The US Government defines poverty by Income Guidelines.
These guidelines are often used to determine eligibility for federal and state programs
In the chart below, the dollar amounts represent annual earnings that a person must be below to be considered in poverty. For a single parent earning $14,000, this would be the equivalent of $6.73 per hour.
2008 HHS Poverty Guidelines
Persons
in Family or Household |
48 Contiguous
States and D.C. |
Alaska |
Hawaii |
| 1 |
$10,400 |
$13,000 |
$11,960 |
| 2 |
14,000 |
17,500 |
16,100 |
| 3 |
17,600 |
22,000 |
20,240 |
| 4 |
21,200 |
26,500 |
24,380 |
| 5 |
24,800 |
31,000 |
28,520 |
| 6 |
28,400 |
35,500 |
32,660 |
| 7 |
32,000 |
40,000 |
36,800 |
| 8 |
35,600 |
44,500 |
40,940 |
For each additional
person, add |
3,600 |
4,500 |
4,140 |
SOURCE: Federal Register, Vol. 73, No. 15, January 23, 2008, pp. 3971–3972