One Lesson From Yesterday’s Poverty Numbers: Don’t Play Politics with the Social Safety Net

In 2012, 46.5 million people, including nearly 17.8 million women and 16 million children, were living in poverty, according to figures released by the U.S. Census Bureau yesterday. Numbers that big are often difficult to comprehend, but the message is clear: we have a long way to go to end poverty in America.

Although these new data confirm that the poverty rate remains stubbornly high, it is also important to note that without key safety net programs, the statistics would be far worse. What we know for sure is that programs like Social Security, unemployment insurance, food stamps (SNAP), and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), lift millions of people out of poverty and reduce hardship for millions more.

SNAP benefits are not counted as income in Census Bureau’s official poverty numbers—but we know they make a real difference to struggling families. For example, the Census Bureau reported today that if SNAP benefits had been counted as income, the 2012 poverty rate would be 1.3 percentage points lower—and four million more people would be above the poverty line.

The Census Bureau is set to release additional information in late October on the role of income support programs in reducing poverty in 2012 as part of the Supplemental Poverty Measure. We know from the 2011 Supplemental Poverty Measure that they played a crucial role. For example:

• Social Security income alone reduced poverty by 8.3 percentage points
• Refundable tax credits, including the EITC and Child Tax Credit, were responsible for reducing poverty another 2.9 percentage points
• Unemployment insurance benefits reduced poverty by another 1.1 percent
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which benefits primarily adults and children with disabilities, lowered the poverty rate another 1.1 percentage points

While we’re still crunching the new poverty numbers – and we’ll keep you updated as we identify trends and lessons – we already know this: the most vulnerable Americans rely on effective programs like those described above.

But what’s more frustrating than seeing poverty rates stay at historic levels? Republican leadership proposing to cut vital programs that families need to survive. The House is expected to vote on a bill later this week that would eliminate SNAP benefits for up to six million people.

You know, we get it. The numbers are big, the problems vast, and the road to recovery long. But scoring political points with people’s lives is no way to respond to the clear message that the Census data convey. As two former Senate Majority Leaders—Republican Bob Dole and Democrat Tom Daschle—wrote Monday, “In a country struggling to emerge from the worst economic recession since the Depression, this is no time to play politics with hunger.”  For people who live paycheck to paycheck and don’t know where their next meals will come from, the reality behind the poverty numbers isn’t hard to understand. It’s their lives.