TY  - JOUR
AU  - Hanratty,Maria J.
AU  - Blank,Rebecca M.
TI  - Down and Out in North America: Recent Trends in Poverty Rates in the    U.S. and Canada
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 3462
PY  - 1990
Y2  - October 1990
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w3462
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w3462.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
Maria J. Hanratty
Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs
University of Minnesota
301 19th Ave. S
Minneapolis, MN  55409
Tel: 612/625-6500
Fax: 612/625-3513
E-Mail: mhanratty@hhh.umn.edu

Rebecca M. Blank
Under Secretary for Economic Affairs
Department of Commerce
Economics and Statistics Administration
Herbert C. Hoover Building, Room 4848
1401 Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC  20230
Tel: 202-482-3727
Fax: 202-482-0432
E-Mail: rblank@doc.gov
AB  - This paper documents the striking difference in U. S. and Canadian poverty trends from 1970 to 1986. While U.S. poverty has shown no consistent trend since 1970, Canadian poverty decreased by 60%. This paper examines why U. S. and Canadian poverty trends differed during two periods: 1970-1979 and 1979-1986. During the 1970s, we find that the principle reason for declining Canadian poverty rates is higher economic growth. During the 1980s, we find that differences in government transfers are the main cause of relative poverty change in the two countries. Virtually all of the 3.5 difference in U.S. and Canadian poverty changes from 1979 to 1986 can be attributed to differences in the proportion of families moved out of poverty by transfers. This may reflect both the expansion in social assistance levels in Canada, and the retrenchment in assistance levels in the U. S.
ER  -