Here’s How Many Harford County Kids Live In Poverty

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — A new report shows 8.5 percent of Harford County kids live in poverty, a share that’s well below the national average and lower than Maryland. That’s according to an annual report released this week by the Annie E. Casey Foundation that ranked Maryland the 14th best state in the nation when it comes to child well-being.

The Kids Count Data Book report ranked states based on measurements across four categories: economic well-being, education, health, and family and community. Maryland ranked 16th, 11th, 15th and 19th, respectively.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are 4,766 children in Harford County living in poverty in 2017, the latest year for which the data was available.

That year, the federal poverty level — which changes based on the number of people per household — was $24,600 for a family of four.

Here’s how Harford County compared to the nation and state when it came to child poverty.

Children in poverty in 2017:

• Harford County — 8.5 percent
• Maryland — 12.4 percent
• United States — 18 percent

Child poverty by race in Harford County in 2017:

• White — 48.83 percent
• Black — 36.47 percent
• Hispanic/Latino — 9.36 percent
• Asian — 1.02 percent
• American Indian/Native Alaskan — 0.35 percent
• Other — 3.97 percent

Here is how Harford County compared with some area jurisdictions as far as child poverty rates:

• Harford County — 8.5 percent
• Baltimore County — 10.4 percent
• Cecil County — 13.2 percent
• Baltimore City — 31.8 percent

Overall, American kids across the country have better odds of succeeding than they did 30 years ago, the report said. One of the most positive trends the researchers found was that they’re seeing improvements over the last three decades in 11 of the 16 indicators they look for when it comes to overall child well-being, Leslie Boissiere, vice president of external affairs at the organization, told Patch this week.

“We’re seeing significant traction on things like high school graduation rates. It’s at an all-time high,” said Boissiere.

Furthermore, 95 percent of children have health insurance coverage and there’s been a large drop in the number of teen pregnancies.

But it’s not all good news.

“Unfortunately we’re not seeing the same results for children of color,” said Boissiere. “African-American, Native American and Latino children in particular still face significant obstacles in this country.”

RELATED: America's Hungry Kids: 13M U.S. Children Don't Have Enough To Eat

And while the national average for children who live with a parent who doesn’t have a stable job is 27 percent, that number is far higher for children of color: 42 percent for African-Americans, 47 percent for American Indians and 32 percent for Latinos. For whites and Asian and Pacific Islanders, that number is 21 percent.

A similar trend is true when it comes to children living in households with a high housing cost, meaning at least 30 percent of the household’s pre-tax income goes toward housing costs.

The national average is 31 percent and that number is far lower for whites at 22 percent. But it’s far higher for children of color: 45 percent for African-Americans, 30 percent for American Indians, 31 percent for Asian and Pacific islanders and 42 percent for Latinos.

“That doesn’t leave much for clothes and transportation and all these other things that they need,” said Boissiere.

Poverty has one of the most profound effects on child well-being, she said. Of the roughly 74 million kids in the U.S., one in six lives in poverty.

States where the disparities are more prevalent tend to be located in the South and Southwest, Boissiere said. It also happens that child growth population outpaces the national average in the South and West, particularly in Texas, Florida and California.

The organization urged states to invest in kids. Boissiere highlighted several programs that she said have been proven to be effective in helping lift up families financially. She pointed to the earned income tax credit and the child tax credit.

“Essentially what they do is allow working parents to have more of their income available to provide for their children,” she said.

Of the 6 million families that benefited from the earned income tax credit last year, about half of those were children.

“We know what works and where we need to continue to invest in those policies that work,” she said.

Patch national staffer Dan Hampton contributed to this report.