Washington, DC – The number of American children living in poverty is predicted to once again rise as a result of the recession, as people receiving food stamps increased by 7 million, or 21 percent, in just one year, according to a new analysis released today by First Focus and Brookings researcher Julia Isaacs. As a result, public agencies and private charities will continue facing significant hardships in their efforts to meet the needs of children and families throughout 2010, the report finds.

Statistics released in September by the U.S. Census Bureau indicate that in 2009, nearly one in five children under the age of 18 lived in poverty. Experts acknowledge that this statistic does not capture the full impact of the economic downturn, which will drive 2010 poverty numbers even higher.

“With 7 million more people receiving nutrition assistance or food stamps, we can expect to see a significant rise in child poverty between 2009 and 2010, with increases expected throughout the country,” said Julia Isaacs, Child and Family Policy Fellow at Brookings and author of the new study.

The new research released today seeks to predict the 2010 state and national Child Poverty rates ten months before the actual statistics will be released by examining current data on unemployment and increases in families’ use of food stamps, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The study, entitled “Child Poverty During the Great Recession: Predicting State Child Poverty Rates for 2010,” finds that that based on data between June 2009 and August 2010, nationally the number of poor children is expected to rise by nearly 1 million, from 14.7 million (20%) in 2009 to 15.6 million (21.3%) in 2010.

State specific findings outlined in the report include:

• Most states will see a rise in child poverty in 2010, with an increase averaging 1.3 percentage points across the states.
• Half of the states (26 states) will have child poverty rates of 20 percent or higher in 2010, almost double the number of states (14) with poverty 20 percent or higher in the pre-recessionary period of 2000-2007.

“The sobering predictions outlined in this report must serve as critical call for help,” said Bruce Lesley, president of First Focus, a bipartisan child advocacy organization. “Compared to other children, kids living in poverty are more likely to experience homelessness, suffer from child abuse, fail to complete high school or college, and live in poverty as adults. It is imperative that Congress move swiftly to ensure the continuity of much needed services that are of immense value to low-income and unemployed families with children. Unemployment benefits kept one million children out of poverty in 2009. We urge Congress to continue this program through 2011 in order to protect our most vulnerable children.”

The predictions outlined in this new report are consistent with estimations for the number of children living below the poverty line in the Foundation for Child Development’s 2010 Child Well-Being Index.