The poorest Americans no longer get most of the benefits from the "safety net" of federal programs created to alleviate poverty, Binyamin Appelbaum and Robert Gebeloff of The New York Times report. But some areas that have recently or historically voted for opponents of federal aid now increasingly rely on it. The Times' example is the 8th Congressional District of Minnesota, approximately the northeastern quadrant of the state, where the reporters found middle-class voters who are "frustrated that they need help, feel guilty for taking it and resent the government for providing it." Other such areas may be apparent on this Times map:
UPDATE, Feb. 17: Economist Paul Krugman, a Times columnist, cites some studies of such conflicted behavior, concluding with one by Suzanne Mettler Cornell University, which found that 44 percent of Social Security recipients, 43
percent of those on unemployment and 40 percent of Medicare beneficiaries said they “have not used a government program.” (Read more)
The government now provides more than a sixth of Americans' income through more than 50 programs such as Medicare, food stamps and the earned-income tax credit. In 1979, 54 percent of benefits went to households earning the bottom 20 percent of incomes. In 2007, the bottom fifth got 36 percent of the total, according to the Congressional Budget Office. What was a secondary mission, maintaining the middle class from childhood through retirement, "has gradually become primary," Appelbaum and Gebeloff report.
Almost half of all Americans lived in households that received federal benefits in 2010, according to the Census Bureau. The increase is due in large part to the expansion of the "safety net," the Times reports. In 1975, households that made up to $26,997 were eligible for the earned income tax credit. In 2010, households making up to $49,317 were eligible. They write the trend also reflects the decline of the middle class, mostly manifested in almost continuous boom and bust cycles of economy in small and rural towns. (Read more)
For rural journalists, the interactive map is a handy research device, because it can display county-by-county information. Here's a zoom to part of Appalachia, with information on a county where more than half the income is derived from federal benefits (click on map for larger version):
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| Map shows share of income from all benefits; click here for interactive version |
The government now provides more than a sixth of Americans' income through more than 50 programs such as Medicare, food stamps and the earned-income tax credit. In 1979, 54 percent of benefits went to households earning the bottom 20 percent of incomes. In 2007, the bottom fifth got 36 percent of the total, according to the Congressional Budget Office. What was a secondary mission, maintaining the middle class from childhood through retirement, "has gradually become primary," Appelbaum and Gebeloff report.
Almost half of all Americans lived in households that received federal benefits in 2010, according to the Census Bureau. The increase is due in large part to the expansion of the "safety net," the Times reports. In 1975, households that made up to $26,997 were eligible for the earned income tax credit. In 2010, households making up to $49,317 were eligible. They write the trend also reflects the decline of the middle class, mostly manifested in almost continuous boom and bust cycles of economy in small and rural towns. (Read more)
For rural journalists, the interactive map is a handy research device, because it can display county-by-county information. Here's a zoom to part of Appalachia, with information on a county where more than half the income is derived from federal benefits (click on map for larger version):
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