Hunger in Central Texas

Hungry Households

• Nearly one in five Central Texans are hungry.
• 41,000 children under the age of 18 in Travis County are confronted with food insecurity every day.
• 82% of Food Bank Partner Agency recipients are food insecure. 49% of recipients experience outright hunger. (Source: Hunger in America 2006: Central Texas Report, in association with Feeding America)
• 61% of Austin Independent School District (AISD) students are eligible for free or reduced lunch.

Making Ends Meet

• 76% of households receiving assistance from CAFB Partner Agencies report incomes below the federal poverty level. (Source: Hunger in America 2006: Central Texas Report, in association with Feeding America)
• 106,930 (12.6%) of Travis County individuals live below the Federal poverty level ($18,850 for a family of four). (Source: Austin Community Survey, 2004)
• The annual income needed for a Travis County family of four without employee sponsored health insurance to "afford" to live in the Austin area is $53,080. That's 257% above the Federal poverty level. (Source: CPPP.org, The Family Budget Estimator Project)
• Austin continues to have the highest cost of living in the state of Texas, exceeding housing costs in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Fort Worth.

Working Poor

• Approximately 200,000, or 20%, of Travis County residents are classified as "working poor" by the Texas Department of Human Services.  (Source: Basic Needs Coalition, 2005)
• Between 2000 and 2003, the number of households in Travis County increased by 23,274, the majority of which (21,822 households) fell into the lowest three income brackets having an annual income of $24,999 or less.

Who's Serving Our Hungry?

• Of Food Bank Partner Agencies, 71% of pantries and 37% of the soup kitchens are run by faith-based agencies.
• 59% of Partner Agency pantries and 12% of soup kitchens are entirely volunteer run with no paid staff.
• CAFB is by far the most important source of food for its Partner Agencies, accounting for 76% of food for pantries and 38% for soup kitchens.

(Source: Hunger in America 2006: Central Texas Report, in association with Feeding America)

Poverty in Travis County 

• In 2006, an estimated 15.2% of Travis County residents were living below the federal poverty level.  The Travis County poverty rate is higher than the U.S. rate (13.3%) but lower than the Texas rate (16.9%). (2006 American Community Survey) 
  
  
• The United Way Capital Area centralized referral and information system, 2-1-1 Texas, reports that requests for basic needs assistance spiked 34% in 2006 to the highest degree experienced during the last 5 years. (2-1-1 Texas)
  
  
• The Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA) has 5,451 people on the wait list for one of their 1,928 units of public housing and 5,111 on the wait list for Section 8 vouchers. (HACA, January, 2008)
  
  
• An analysis of food providers for low-income individuals and families by zip code showed that 13 of the 24 Travis County zip codes with high poverty levels do not have a food pantry or hot meal services. (BNC Travis County Food Provider Survey Results, 2007)
  
  
• The percentage of Travis County married couple families living below poverty is 6.3% compared to 26% of families headed by a single female. (2006 American Community Survey)
  
  
• In Travis County, 12.7% of families with children under the age of five had an income below the poverty level.  This rate jumps to 38.6% of households headed by unmarried women with children under five living in poverty. (2006 American Community Survey)
  
  
• An estimated 7.3% of the senior population (ages 65 years and older) in Travis County have incomes at or below the poverty level. (2006 American Community Survey)       
     
  
• Many people with disabilities survive at the economic and social margins of American society. In Travis County, people with a physical disability are 1.5 times more likely than the general population to live in poverty. Residents with a mental disability live in poverty at almost twice the general rate. (2006 American Community Survey)
  
• Almost 40% of Central Texas families live at or below the Family Security Index income level, suggesting that any fluctuation in family income or expenses could threaten the family's ability to make ends meet.(www.centex-indicators.org 2006 report).
  

Who needs assistance meeting basic needs (i.e. food, housing) in Travis County?

Children

• 1 in 5 children in Travis County live in poverty
• 15.3% of families with children under 18 years of age live in poverty
• 26% of families with single mothers live in poverty
• 38.6% of  single mothers with children under the age of five live in poverty
  (2006 American Community Survey)

People of all races

• 1 in 5 Latinos are living in poverty
• 1 in 4 African Americans are living in poverty
• 1 in 9 Whites are living in poverty 
• 1 in 5  Asians are living in poverty                                          
  (2006 American Community Survey)

Immigrants

• 23% of immigrants in Travis County are living below the federal poverty level.
  (2005 data, Travis County 2006-2007 Immigrant Assessment)

People on fixed incomes

• 7.3% of the senior population (ages 65 years and older) in Travis County have incomes at or below the poverty level.
• In Travis County, people with a physical disability are 1.5 times more likely than the general population to live in poverty.
• Residents with a mental disability live in poverty at almost twice the general rate.                                            
  (2006 American Community Survey)
   

People with low educational attainment

• In the U.S., adults who don't finish high school earn 65% of what people who have a high school diploma earn.
  (2007 Education at a Glance Report)
• In Travis County, workers 25 years and older with less than a high school diploma had median earning of $19,100 whereas workers with a bachelor's degree earned a median income of $42,400.                                             
  (2005 American Community Survey)
• 1 in 7 Travis County residents over 25 did not complete high school.    
  (2006 American Community Survey)

Who are most vulnerable to poverty? 

Low Wages & Lack of Benefits/Unemployment/Underemployment

In 2006, 30.1% of Texas workers earned "poverty wages" defined as $9.91/hour or less. This puts Texas well above the national average, as only two other states have a higher percentage of workers earning poverty wages. (Center for Public Policy Priorities, 2007)  Much of employment is in service jobs that pay low wages and have few, if any, benefits. Employment is related to low education and skill levels.

Very Young or Very Old Age

Children, especially the very young, are completely dependent on their parents to meet their basic needs. Likewise, although many are healthy and stable, the elderly are at risk of increased dependency.  They may also suffer from illness, physical disability or mental impairment.

Mental Illness

Mental illness includes a vast number of functional and non-functional conditions. Because it is identified through behavior, mental illness is often understood as a social problem, prohibiting people from living successfully in their communities.

Disability

People with disabilities have very different physical and learning challenges, but lifestyle limitations are common.  The disabled tend to have low incomes and, at the same time, special needs. They are also at risk of isolation due to social stigma. 

Social Exclusion

Exclusion happens when people are not part of ordinary life networks.  The homeless, ex-prisoners, people with AIDS, people with disabilities and for whom language is a barrier often suffer from exclusion.  People who are excluded can be deprived of resources, lack social protection and have to fight social stigma.

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