When the Census Bureau releases its 2014 report on household income tomorrow, it will include two different definitions of poverty for the first time.
The official definition has changed little since its adoption 50 years ago, when its threshold was set as cash income equal to three times what a frugal family spent on food. A relatively new unofficial rate is based on a much wider definition of income, including the earned-income tax credit and noncash subsidies for housing, school lunch and home heating. It also adjusts income for taxes, child care, health insurance and out-of-pocket medical costs. The unofficial rate also reflects regional costs of living with different thresholds for renters and people with mortgages.
For several years, the bureau has released the unofficial rate as a research report with little fanfare. Simultaneous release will draw more attention and sharpen its contrasts with the official measure.
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