Portrait of Disadvantage Among Women in New York City in 2022
This special portrait report provides a glimpse at poverty and disadvantage through a gender lens, focusing on the experience of low-income female New Yorkers.
The State of Poverty and Disadvantage in New York City
Robin Hood and the Center on Poverty and Social Policy released the sixth Poverty Tracker Annual Report which assesses rates of income poverty, material hardship, and economic disadvantage in New York City in 2022.
Spotlight on Food Hardship: Compounding hardships and health challenges among New Yorkers struggling to afford food
This Poverty Tracker report shows how food hardship increased from 2021 to 2022—rising from 30% to 34% among adults and from 39% to 43% among families with children—and documents how commonly it overlaps with other hardships and health challenges.
New York City’s 3-K for All Supports Mothers’ Labor Force Participation
Using data from the Early Childhood Poverty Tracker, this report focuses on the role of New York City’s 3-K in supporting mothers’ labor force participation and employment.
Spotlight On: Liquid Assets, Financial Shocks, and Entrances into Material Hardship
This report uses Poverty Tracker data to examine whether liquid assets guard New Yorkers from sliding into hardship after experiencing a financial shock. The findings show that roughly $2,000 in liquid assets appear to buffer against added hardships after such a shock, but not all New Yorkers have access to such financial reserves.
Spotlight on Early Childhood Education: Participation in Pre-K before and during the COVID-19 pandemic
This report uses Early Childhood Poverty Tracker data to better understand how families changed their engagement with city’s pre-kindergarten (pre-K) programs in response to the pandemic. Pre-K enrollment was lower on average after the onset of the pandemic, but the drop in enrollment was relatively smaller for families with lower incomes, Black and Latino families, and immigrant families than for their counterparts. However, these children also showed disproportionately higher rates of remote learning than their peers – which research suggests may lead to poorer outcomes for children.
Spotlight on Early Childhood Education: Participation in New York City’s 3-K for All program
This report uses Early Childhood Poverty Tracker data to examine participation in New York City’s 3-K for All program, which aims to expand the universal pre-K program to the city’s three-year-old children. The report finds that only a fraction of eligible families enrolled in a 3-K program despite their high interest in the program, and the gap between program application and enrollment was larger among Black, Latino, and lower-income families than their counterparts. Those who did enroll in 3-K had much lower childcare costs than those who did not, saving an average of $450 a month.
Work and Education After the Pandemic: Who was left behind?
This report draws on in-depth interviews with Poverty Tracker participants to better understand the experiences of low-wage workers through different stages of the pandemic. Their stories show that while the effects of the pandemic may be fading for many, workers with low-wages have incurred substantial debts and continue to struggle as they re-imagine and retool their work lives.
Special Series: Health and Health Care in New York City, Second Report
This report examines healthcare utilization among New Yorkers with high health care needs who also face economic disadvantage. These New Yorkers often forgo needed care, driven by issues of access related to cost, transportation, and mobility. Inequalities were even more stark among those facing housing challenges. This work is part of a special series funded by The Helmsley Charitable Trust.
The State of Poverty and Disadvantage in NYC 2021
This year’s Poverty Tracker report spotlights the temporary pandemic relief programs that dramatically — but only briefly — brought child poverty in New York City to historic lows in 2021. The reduction in poverty rates highlighted in the report shows that government policy can be an effective poverty-fighting tool.
Spotlight on Food Assistance in NYC: Food pantry use spikes among non-U.S. citizens amid changing immigration rules
This new report examines an often overlooked area of need in New York City: food insecurity among low-income, non-citizen New Yorkers. The Poverty Tracker documents a significant increase in non-citizens using emergency food services—and how pantries served a critical lifeline.
The State of Poverty & Disadvantage in New York City in 2020
The State of Poverty and Disadvantage in New York City explores rates of income poverty, material hardship, and health problems in New York City in 2020 using Poverty Tracker Data. New to this report, we are able to spotlight the experiences of Asian New Yorkers.
Spotlight on Child Tax Credit: Transforming the Lives of Families
We interviewed 18 families receiving an expanded Child Tax Credit in New York City over six months to understand how they incorporated the new monthly payments into their household budgets. Parents viewed the expanded Child Tax Credit as an opportunity to enhance their children’s lives, prevent hardship, stabilize their budgets, and save for the future.
Spotlight on Health: Access to health insurance and health care for families with young children in New York City
In New York State, children are eligible for public health insurance (Medicaid or Child Health Plus) regardless of income or immigration status. However, coverage for adults is much more uneven. Drawing on three years of data for families in the Early Childhood Poverty Tracker, this new report examines health insurance coverage and health care access for parents and young children in New York City.
Spotlight on Mental Health: Disparities in psychological distress among parents of young children in New York City
This new brief examines the mental health of New York City parents using Early Childhood Poverty Tracker survey data collected before the pandemic began. The report shows that nearly 50% of New York City parents living in poverty experienced psychological distress compared to just 1 in 5 higher-income parents.
Testimony for the New York State Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Taxes, 2022-23
CPSP testifies on the anti-poverty potential in reforming the Empire State Child Credit.
Special Series: Health and Healthcare in New York City
Using Poverty Tracker data, this report aims to provide a better understanding of the economic lives of New Yorkers with the highest health care needs.
Spotlight on Housing: The looming eviction crisis
As New York State’s eviction moratorium ended on January 15th, 2021, New York City is at risk of a massive increase in evictions and homelessness, but there are policy solutions that can help address housing affordability in New York City.
Spotlight on Food Hardship in New York City
Despite the additional challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity rates in New York City remained stable between 2019 and 2020, a testament to the social policy response and efforts by the city’s emergency food distribution network. However, the rate of food hardship still remains high in New York City.