Bradenton Herald (Florida), January 10, 2008: Manatee’s household income, poverty up
By DUANE MARSTELLER
dmarsteller@bradenton.com
We made more money, but more of us lived in poverty in 2005 than in the previous year.
That’s according to U.S. Census Bureau figures released Wednesday, which show Manatee County’s poverty rate rose from 2004 to 2005, despite a large increase in household income during the same time.
An estimated 30,914 Manatee residents, or 10.3 percent of the county’s population, lived below the federal poverty line three years ago, the census said. That’s almost 1,600 more people than in 2004, when the county’s poverty rate was 9.7 percent.
The greater amount in poverty came despite an almost $3,000 increase in median household income over the same period, the census said. That number, which denotes the point where half of all households earned more and half earned less, was $44,165 in 2005.
The apparent contradiction left officials of agencies that serve the impoverished scratching their heads.
“I’m not surprised by it, but I am a little surprised by the increase in household income,” said Cheri Coryea, the county’s human services division manager.
It could have been a byproduct of that year’s soaring housing market, she said. Incomes might have jumped because good-paying construction and related jobs were plentiful and more affluent newcomers were moving to Manatee, yet poverty rose because most new jobs were in the low-paying service sector, Coryea said.
But she and Mary Twitty, who oversees Manatee’s lead anti-poverty agency, said they believe Manatee’s poverty rate has worsened since then because of the housing slump and rising food and energy costs.
The number of people seeking help through the Manatee Community Action Agency has risen dramatically in the past year, said Twitty, its interim executive director. For example, the agency had to turn away 290 people who sought housing assistance last month because of a lack of money, up from 186 in December 2006 despite no change in the amount of available funds.
“If we’re getting an increase, it’s a pretty good indicator that more people are having a harder time just meeting their basic needs,” she said. “We’re dealing primarily with people in service jobs, and their pay is not keeping pace with the cost of living.”
Twitty said among the hardest-hit are working families. The census estimated 14.3 percent of Manatee families with school-age children lived in poverty in 2005, up from 13.5 percent a year earlier.
Manatee’s overall poverty rate mirrored Florida, where rates rose from 11.9 percent in 2004 to 12.8 percent the next year. The U.S. rate rose as well, from 12.7 percent to 13.3 percent.
The 2005 poverty thresholds ranged from $9,367 for a single person over age 65 to $37,757 for a single parent with eight children. For a family of four, including two children, the threshold was $19,806.
Duane Marsteller, transportation and growth/development reporter, can be reached at 745-7080, ext. 2630.
Manatee County poverty rates
|
2005 |
2004 |
2003 |
2002 |
2001 |
2000 |
|
|
All |
10.3% |
9.7 |
10.8 |
10.7 |
10.4 |
9.4 |
|
Younger than 18 |
15.9 |
14.7 |
16.7 |
15.4 |
16.4 |
15.7 |
|
School-age children (5-17) |
14.3 |
13.5 |
15.6 |
14.7 |
15.1 |
14.7 |
|
Median |
household income $44,165 $41,419 $39,756 $38,647 $37,694 $38,732
SOURCE: U.S. Census Bureau