• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, August 10, 2010

According to a study from the Urban Institute "Childhood Poverty Persistence..." by Ratcliffe and McKernan, 49% of American babies born into poor families will be poor for at least half their childhoods. Among children who are not poor at birth, only 4% will be "persistently" poor as children. Those poor at birth are more likely to be poor between ages 25 and 30, drop out of high school, have a teen nonmarital birth, and have patchy employment records than those not poor at birth.

Ratcliffe and McKernan observe that "Because poverty status at birth is linked to worse adult outcomes, targeting resources to children born into poverty and their families would help particularly vulnerable people... "

An estimated 14.1 million Americans under age 18 are poor. Approximately 4.2 million children are born annually.

63% of children enter adulthood without experiencing poverty, but 10% of children are persistently poor, spending at least half their childhoods living in poverty. Another 17% are poor for one to three years and 10% are poor for four to eight years. Among children who are poor nine years or longer, only 17% have a single uninterrupted poverty spell.

Children who are born into poverty have much higher rates of economic and educational difficulties in their adult years. Among adults, 4% who were not poor at birth have been poor for half or more of their lives between age 25-30, compared to 21% who were poor at birth. Among whites, these rates are 2% and 6%, compared to 17% and 41% for blacks.

7% of adults who were not poor at birth have no high school diploma, compared to 22% who were poor at birth. These rates are 6% and 24% among whites. Among blacks, the rate of not having a high school diploma is higher those who were not poor at birth (11%), but lower who were poor at birth (20%).

Fallout from persistent childhood poverty is evident during young adulthood, says the report. Using Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID) data from 1968 through 2005, the report  examines children's poverty status from birth through age 17. The report notes that child poverty rates have ranged between 15% and 23% over the past four decades.Persistent poverty among children is of particular concern, as the cumulative effect of being poor may lead to especially negative outcomes and limited opportunities.

In general, the longer a child is poor, the worse his or her adult outcomes. Only 1% of never-poor children spend half their early adult years living in poverty, compared with 32% of persistently poor children. The likelihood that an individual drops out of high school, has a teen non-marital birth, or has a spotty work record generally increases with the number of years poor as a child.

Findings summary:

• 13% of all children (40% of black children and 8% of white children) are born poor.
• 37% of children live in poverty for at least a year before reaching age 18.
• 10% of children spend at least half their childhood years (9 years or longer) in poverty.
• Black children are 9 times more likely than white children to be poor for at least three-quarters of their childhoods; 18% versus 2%.
• 69% of black children and 31% of white children who are poor at birth stay poor for least half their childhoods.

Childhood poverty rates, according to the U.S. Census Bureau says the report, have ranged between 15 and 23% over the past four decades. In 2009, a family with two adults and two children was considered poor if its income was below $21,756.

Please visit the Urban Institute here for additional information and findings.