U.S. Poverty Rate Falls for First Time Since 2006

The official poverty rate in the U.S. in 2013 stood at 14.5 percent, down from 15 percent in 2012, making it the first decline in the poverty rate since 2006.

The statistics come from the U.S. Census Bureau and its report “Income and Poverty in the United States: 2013,” released in mid-September. The report is based on information collected in the 2014 and earlier Current Population Survey Annual Social & Economic Supplements.

Other highlights:

• In 2013, 45.3 million people in the United States were in poverty. For the third straight year, the number of people in poverty at the national level was not statistically different from the previous year’s estimate.
• The 2013 poverty rate was 2 percentage points higher than in 2007, the year before the most recent recession.