The last several state Kids Count data books have tracked the increase in child poverty, but the latest highlights the fact that between 2000 and 2010 the percentage of children in extreme poverty doubled—from 5 percent to 11 percent. These children live in families with income under half the poverty level—less than about $900 a month for a family of four with two children.

Given our understanding of the consequences of deep and prolonged poverty, we should be exerting every effort to address it. International and national health experts have repeatedly emphasized the importance of socioeconomic well-being in fostering or compromising health—physical, mental and emotional.

Economic factors play a critical role in the conditions in which children live and grow. Yet for the current fiscal year the legislators and the governor actually cut programs, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, that lift families above poverty, and restricted access to cash and food assistance. Even with the revenue surplus now available there is no discussion of using the surplus to support families.

Despite worsening economic conditions teen birth and death rates in the state declined between 2000 and 2009. The high school dropout rate decreased substantially—dropping from 15 percent for the Class of 2007 to 11 percent for the Class of 2010. These trends speak to the efforts of families, communities and schools in helping more young people negotiate adolescence successfully.

At the same time confirmed child abuse and neglect rose by 34 percent—affecting roughly 32,500 children in 2010. Over 80 percent of these cases involved neglect—often precipitated by poverty.

The data book is an essential tool in helping us understand the status of the children in our state and local communities so we can have a productive conversation about the appropriate local and state policy responses. Data for Michigan counties and cities are also available on Kids Count Data Center. 

Decisions about programs and policies are better when they are grounded in data reflecting the realities of children’s lives.

– Jane Zehnder-Merrell

The rate of child abuse and neglect increased by more than one-third in Michigan during the past decade, the result of high unemployment and inadequate social programs, according to a new report released today. Jan. 24, 2012 — The Detroit News

Fewer Michigan teens are having babies or dropping out of school, and educational benchmarks for some of the state’s youngest students have improved, according to the new Kids Count report. Jan. 24, 2012 — Detroit Free Press

More Michigan kids are living in extreme poverty, according to the new “Kids Count in Michigan” report that was released today. Jan. 24, 2012 – WILX.com

The number of Kent County children living in poverty has increased every year of the last decade. At the same time, many of the support systems that children need to be healthy and successful in school are unraveling in the face of budget cuts and increasing needs. Jan. 24, 2012 — WZZM13

Contact: Jane Zehnder-Merrell or Judy Putnam at (517) 487-5436

Kids Count: Growing poverty threatens children’s health
Recent Michigan policy decisions worsen the impact on kids

LANSING — Child abuse and neglect in Michigan jumped 34 percent over the past decade while nearly half of public school children statewide now qualify for free and reduced price lunches, the latest Kids Count in Michigan Data Book released today concludes.

Michigan’s long economic struggle is reflected in the new Kids Count findings. Children qualify for school-based meals if their family income is 185 percent of poverty or less. Studies confirm that families need income of about 200 percent of poverty – at least $44,226 for a family of four – to cover basic needs without assistance. Poverty also drives up neglect cases.

“The findings show that children across Michigan are still suffering the fallout from our long recession,’’ said Jane Zehnder-Merrell, the Kids Count in Michigan director at the Michigan League for Human Services. “Poverty in Michigan is as big a threat to our children today as polio was to a previous generation. Fortunately, we can do something about this. We know that public policy can improve children’s social and economic environment.”

This year’s report, Health Matters, focuses on child health and the role that the social and economic factors in children’s lives play in good health.

The annual Data Book is released by the Kids Count in Michigan project. It is a collaboration between the Michigan League for Human Services, which researches and writes the report, and Michigan’s Children, which works with advocates statewide to disseminate the findings. Both are nonpartisan, nonprofit advocacy organizations concerned about the well-being of children and their families.

“Children in poverty often experience hunger, abuse or neglect, extreme stress, depression or anxiety, and other issues impacting their overall health, as well as their ability to learn and grow into successful adults,” said Michele Corey, vice president for programs at Michigan’s Children. “The best public policies must address the whole child from cradle to career, and this data can help guide these policies.”

The report ranks counties on 16 indicators of child well-being (with No. 1 being the best), though data are not available to rank smaller counties on all 16. Trends over time are available for 15 indicators, with nine indicators improving and six worsening.

Statewide, the biggest improvements were in the area of education with fewer students considered not proficient in math and among adolescents with fewer births to teens, fewer teen deaths and fewer high school dropouts.

Michigan saw a small improvement in infant mortality between 2000 and 2009, although African American infants have triple the risk of mortality than that of white infants. There was also a 25 percent improvement in the rate of child deaths over the decade with 318 children (ages 1-14) dying in 2009, down from 471 in 2000.

Worsening trends included the rate of children confirmed as victims of abuse and neglect, which rose 34 percent statewide over the decade. In 2010, 32,500 Michigan children were confirmed victims with four out of every five suffering from neglect.

In 2010, almost half of K-12 public school students (46.5 percent) qualified for free or reduced price lunch, jumping from 36.2 percent in 2006.

The percent of children living in poverty jumped from 14 percent to 23 percent between 2000 and 2009. Even more startling is the rate of children living in extreme poverty – roughly less than $11,000 a year for a family of four – jumped from 5 percent of children to 11 percent. That means that more than one in every 10 kids in Michigan is living in extremely desperate circumstances, living at half the poverty level.

Children growing up in poverty face lifelong consequences. They are less likely to graduate and more likely to suffer from heart disease, obesity and high blood pressure as adults.

“The impact of high unemployment and declining wages is leaving its mark on a generation of children,’’ Zehnder-Merrell said. “Unfortunately, policymakers have cut family supports aimed at blunting the impact of the economic downturn on kids.”

Recent policy decisions that negatively impact kids include:

• Cutting the Michigan Earned Income Tax Credit from 20 percent of the federal credit to 6 percent. The credit has been responsible for pushing 14,000 Michigan kids out of poverty.
• Placing stricter time limits on cash assistance for 12,000 families living in poverty, including nearly 30,000 children.
• Asset limits on food assistance that will impact the newly unemployed and divert needed federal aid from Michigan.
• Reducing the traditional period of unemployment from 26 to 20 weeks. The tough labor market means half of jobless workers search six months or longer before finding employment.

Kids Count in Michigan project is part of a broad national effort to improve conditions for children and their families. Funding for the project is provided by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Detroit-based Skillman Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Foundation, local United Ways and the Battle Creek Community Foundation. The annual data book is available from the Michigan League for Human Services and on the web at www.milhs.org. More state and local data are available at the Kids Count Data Center, www.datacenter.kidscount.org.

Editors, please note: For general comment on the report and questions about data collection, please contact the Michigan League for Human Services at (517) 487-5436. For policy implications please contact Michigan’s Children at (517) 485-3500.

Gov. Rick Snyder’s State of the State address included some welcome items but what he didn’t speak about was telling.
 
The governor mentioned the need for a safety net for those most in need. He supported immigration, pointing out that major Michigan companies — Dow, Masco and Meijer — were started by immigrants. He talked about the need for a Michigan health care exchange, which will move federal health care reform forward in our state.
 
He also talked about the success in placing foster children into adopted homes and introduced a family from Canton who adopted two kids. It was touching to hear the governor call them a “forever family.”
 
But what he didn’t talk about was the thousands of other children in our state who struggle with basic needs – shelter, food and clothing.  He didn’t speak of the growing poverty engulfing our kids.
 
The first year of the Snyder administration brought many cuts to the public structures that help low-income children and their families. Specifically, the state Earned Income Tax Credit, which goes to lower-income working families, was cut by 70 percent – effectively raising taxes on those least able to afford it.
 
In addition, 11,000 families were cut from cash assistance with little warning.  The administration also instituted an asset test on food assistance – even though 37 other states have no asset test. Because food assistance is  federally funded, it saves no state dollars in Michigan. Even an annual back-to-school clothing allowance for the state’s poorest children was ended for most children who used to receive this esteem-boosting allowance.
 
Kids in foster care rightly deserve our attention. But we can’t forget about the other kids.
 
And the governor spoke of making Michigan a better place for business. Let’s not forget the other part of that equation – our people.

– Judy Putnam

Statement:
Governor needs to rethink unraveling of public structures

“We’re glad the governor called for a safety net for those most in need. What that suggests is the need to go back and look at the policies that actually harmed those most in need.

He spoke about helping kids in foster care, which is noble, but we need to lift up thousands of kids who are victims of poverty in our state. Cutting their parents’ cash assistance, their clothing allowance, the very food that’s put on their tables is not the way to assure a safety net.”

– Gilda Z. Jacobs, president & CEO of the Michigan League for Human Services

I began this holiday weekend participating in a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. diversity breakfast.

I thought about all the events being held celebrating his legacy and extolling the tremendous contributions Dr. King has made to the world in which we currently live.

These reflections will be quite appropriate but will fall short if the audiences aren’t challenged to reflect on how society is responding to his call for equality in this moment of economic struggle.

And by society, I mean each of us. We are the society — each person, community, village, township, city, and state has a role to play.

As Dr. King once asked, “On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, ‘Is it safe?’ Expediency asks the question, ‘Is it politic?’ And Vanity comes along and asks the question, ‘Is it popular?’ But Conscience asks the question, ‘Is it right?’

And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right.”

Will we have the courage to be right?

– Renell Weathers

January 13th, 2012 Posted to Blog: Factually Speaking | Comments (2)

Boosting working families, helping needy kids
good ways to restore balance

“The $278 million in additional revenue forecast today at the Revenue Estimating Conference, along with the budget surplus of $457 million projected by the State Budget Office, could go a long way to support Michigan people struggling to get back on their feet.

One of the best ways to aid our economic recovery is to increase the state Earned Income Tax Credit. Growing it from 6 percent of the federal credit to 10 percent would cost $57 million. These are dollars that will directly aid low-income working families as well as small businesses across the state.

Those dollars would also be well spent helping needy children in Michigan. We could restore the children’s clothing allowance, extend emergency shelter payments for homeless children past 90 days and restore cash assistance to the estimated 30,000 children cut due to time limits.”

Remarks may be attributed to Michigan League for Human Services Policy Director Karen Holcomb-Merrill