Characteristics of the population below the poverty level: 1984.

This report presents detailed social and economic characteristics of the US population below the poverty level in 1984 based on the March 1985 Current Population Survey (CPS). Poverty data are cross-classified by such characteristics as race, family relationship, type of residence, education, work experience, and type of income received. The average poverty threshold for a family of 4 was $10,609 in 1984, compared with $10,178 in 1983. Reflecting the general improvement in the economy, the number of persons below the poverty level declined from 35.3 million in 1983 to 33.7 million in 1984. During the same period, the poverty rate fell from 15.2 to 14.4%. The decline in poverty was the 1st statistically significant decline since 1975-1976. The number of persons in poverty in 1977 was about the same as in 1976, but from 1978 to 1983, the number of poor persons increased from 24.5 to 35.3 million. The poverty rate declined for both whites and blacks between 1983 and 1984. The rate for whites dropped from 12.1 to 11.5%, and the rate for blacks fell from 35.7 to 33.8%. No statistically significant changes were recorded in the number or percentage of Spanish-origin persons in poverty. There was some evidence of a decline in the poverty rate among white children under 18 years old, but there were no significant changes in the rate among black or Spanish-origin children. Between 1983 and 1984, the total number of poor families declined as did the number of poor married-couple families. Among the 4 major regions, both the number of persons below the poverty level and the poverty rate declined in the South and West regions, while the Northeast and Midwest regions did not exprience any significant changes. The poverty rate for the South was 16.2%, higher than that of any other region.