Marin County has one of the lowest rates of child poverty in California, but that rate grew by more than 9 percent from 2006 to 2011, according to a report issued this week.
The Center for the Next Generation, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, used U.S. Census Bureau data to compare child poverty rates with poverty rates among seniors in California's 51 counties. The center found that poverty rates grew at a much faster rate among children than seniors from 2006 to 2011.
The report shows that while Marin's child poverty rate grew 9.2 percent during those years, the poverty rate among Marin's seniors decreased slightly, by 0.2 percent. The poverty rate among Marin seniors in 2011 was 4.7 percent. Approximately 21 percent of Marin's estimated population of 255,000 are under the age of 18 while about 17 percent are 65 or older.
The report also found that childhood poverty is endemic among California's fastest-growing demographic segment — Hispanics — with nearly one in three Hispanic children in California living at or below the poverty line. Approximately 25 percent of the children in Marin are Hispanic. The report contrasted these statistics with poverty data on seniors, of whom fewer than one in 10 live in poverty.
Ann O'Leary, director of the center's children and families program, said California's child poverty rate imperils the state's economic future.
"Our ability to thrive as the world's ninth largest economy depends on having an educated, healthy and stable next generation of workers," O'Leary said. "We're headed in the opposite direction."
The report shows that Marin — with a child poverty rate of 9 percent — has the lowest rate in the state save for one other county: Calaveras.
But Amy Reisch, executive director of the First 5 Marin Children and Families Commission, said Marin's poverty rates may be somewhat deceptive because they are based on federal income guidelines that require a family of four to earn less than $22,000 a year to be defined as poor. A family can earn far more than that and still be poor in Marin, where an estimated $8,400 a month is needed for a family of four to cover the cost of food, housing, child care, health care and transportation, Reisch said.
"So the reality of who is actually severely struggling in Marin doesn't really come through with these statistics," she said.
Larry Meredith, director of the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services, said he was surprised that child poverty in Marin hadn't grown at an even faster rate due to the economic downturn.
"We know that due to the high cost of living in Marin about 30 percent of the households are having trouble making ends meet," Meredith said. He said high child poverty rates are particularly troubling because children who get a poor start in life often underperform economically later in life.
The study also contains some other revealing Marin statistics. It reports that nearly 26 percent of the Marin households with children under 18 are overseen by a single parent and that the poverty rate among single mothers in Marin is nearly 21 percent.
Aideen Gaidmore, head of the Marin Child Care Council, said those numbers indicate to her that more government funding needs to be provided for child care.
"Child care is a critical part of the safety net for families in poverty," Gaidmore said. "Right now, we have 900 children on our waiting list for child care funding, and we've received cuts in our state contract every year for the last five years."
The Center for the Next Generation recommends taking two actions to address child poverty in California. First, it suggests the state make it easier for people in need to access critical benefits such as child care, paid family leave and food stamps. Second, it advocates targeting more school funds to the state's school districts with the highest concentrations of poor students.
A report issued by the Marin Community Foundation last year that highlighted the stark contrasts in health and life expectancy between Marin's wealthiest residents and those living in the county's low-income and minority neighborhoods made the same recommendation.
That study compared the $8,237 spent per student at San Rafael High School, where more than half of the students are eligible for free or reduced lunches, and the $10,340 spent per student at Larkspur's Redwood High, where only 4.6 percent are.
The budget proposal Gov. Jerry Brown released on Thursday includes a reorganization plan that would give schools serving low-income students additional funding.
O'Leary said, "We applaud the governor for starting that conversation."
Contact Richard Halstead via e-mail at email@example.com