Poverty

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In 2020, poverty fell slightly from 10.9% to 10.6% due to federal stimulus measures.

No significant movement since the last available data

Benchmark: Maine’s poverty rate will decline and remain below the U.S. rate through 2030.

Overview Fig. A Fig. B

Overview

The poverty rate reflects both Maine’s economic performance and the experience of individual residents. COVID had far-reaching ripple effects on vulnerable households, but official poverty rates declined in 2020 thanks to federal stimulus measures. The percentage of Mainers living in poverty fell from 10.9% to 10.6%, but varied greatly by region—from 8.1% in York County to 15.3% in Washington County.

State-level poverty rates also mask stark differences within Maine’s populations. From 2016 to 2020, BIPOC* and Latino or Hispanic Mainers were twice as likely to be living in poverty; and 15.4% of Maine children under age 5 were living in poverty, compared to 8.5% of Mainers over age 65. Many poor children are in households headed by single females. From 2016 to 2020, almost 1 in 3 single-mother households were poor (31%), and almost 2 in 5 single-moms with children under age 5 were living in poverty (38%).

*Black, Indigenous, People of Color

Fig. A

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Percentage of Residents in Poverty

Source : U.S. Census Bureau

Fig. B

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Poverty Rate by Age, 2016-2020

U.S. Census Bureau