1/13/2012

Illinois Poverty News: Weekly Update

Here's the latest roundup of news stories highlighting issues related to our efforts to reduce poverty in Illinois.

Foreclosure filings in Illinois dropped 32% last year though the state had the eighth highest foreclosure rate in the country.

A new study shows 46.2 million Americans are living in poverty, a 27% increase between 2006 and 2010. The numbers are expected to grow due to the slow pace of economic recovery.

Gov. Quinn signed legislation that increases the Earned Income Tax Credit by 5% over two years and indexes future increases to inflation.

The Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law calls the Earned Income Tax Credit increase "critical for achieving tax fairness."

Research suggests that interventions to prevent poverty should start not in kindergarten or high school but before birth.

More than 10,660 students in Chicago Public Schools were homeless at the beginning of this school year, an increase compared with the same time last year.


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