By Esteban Candelaria, Santa Fe New Mexican
Nov. 20, 2024
Does New Mexico have the worst rate of child poverty in the nation? It might depend on how you measure it.
According to three-year averages on one measure from U.S. Census Bureau data released in September, it does. But nonprofit child advocacy organization New Mexico Voices for Children said there’s reason for optimism when looking at another measure.
“Far too many families are living in poverty, when we look at the [official poverty measure]. It’s really unacceptable. It has very real implications for child well-being that can’t be entirely resolved by benefit programs and tax credits alone,” Voices for Children research and policy analyst Emily Wildau said during a virtual news conference Wednesday morning. “But the [official poverty measure] doesn’t actually show us the also very real impact of those programs that do lift many kids and families out of poverty.”
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