• 15.6 percent of children in rural Alabama counties live in extreme poverty
• 10.8 percent of all Alabama children live in extreme poverty
• The highest rate of extreme childhood poverty is found in Dallas county, where 28.2 percent of children live in extreme poverty (the lowest, Shelby County, is 3.2 percent)

Any household living at or below 50% of the federal poverty line income is classified as living in extreme poverty. For a family of 4, that would mean living on less than $10,975 a year.

Below – Extreme Child Poverty Rates in Small-Population Counties by State: 2008

The report highlights some troubling nationwide trends in extreme poverty since the recession started. Notably, “the recession has expanded the number of children in extreme poverty by approximately 26 percent — adding almost 1.5 million children in extreme poverty across the nation since 2008,” and “school districts with the largest reported percentages of extremely poor children appear to have the least money to educate these children in the schools.”

Finally, the report notes, “Local, state or federal policies in education fail to specifically address the needs of the nation’s poorest children.”

The Alabama State Commission to Reduce Poverty is examining these issues and is seeking community-based solutions to end the extreme poverty in our state.

Read the full report – including the personal stories of some of these Americans – here.

It reminds me how fortunate and blessed I am.

Posted by: Kristina Scott

Our employment rate hit 10.7 percent in September.  That’s the 10th worst unemployment rate in the country.  It is also nearly double what it was just a year ago and the highest it has been in nearly 25 years.

Why so high now, when we keep hearing that the worst of the recession is behind us?

The best analysis I have read is in this article from the Associated Press:

Over the last year, Alabama’s unemployment rate has nearly doubled from 5.4 percent in September 2008. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that Alabama’s rise of 5.3 percentage points from 5.4 percent a year ago to 10.7 percent in September 2009 was the third greatest in the U.S.

“We got into the recession later, but the effect was much greater,” [University of Alabama Center for Business and Economic Research Director Sam] Addy said.

Ranking above Alabama are Nevada (up 6.0 percentage points) and Michigan (up 6.4 percentage points). Those are also the top two states in unemployment, with Michigan at 15.3 percent and Nevada at 13.3 percent.

The man who oversees Alabama’s unemployment compensation benefits, state Industrial Relations Director Tom Surtees, said Alabama was in the middle of the states in unemployment only a year ago. That’s because the early part of the recession curtailed the financial and housing industries, and Alabama was not as impacted as many other states.

Then the recession hit manufacturing jobs, and Alabama has more workers in manufacturing jobs than the typical state, Addy said. Also, professional, business and technical services were hit hard. Those jobs, along with manufacturing, tend to be Alabama’s best-paying.

“When you are losing jobs in higher-paying industries, it affects everyone else because they can’t spend as much,” Addy said.

Posted by Kristina Scott