A HARD LOOK AT
POVERTY IN DORCHESTER COUNTY
The percentage of people living in poverty in Dorchester County is 15.8% of the total population with a total of 5,017 locals living in poverty according to the Federal Poverty Level. What would it take to drop the poverty rate down by at least 5.8%? How do we move 291 households permanently out of poverty? Who does what? How are economic development and poverty reduction outcomes and strategies connected to the most important goals of the city?
Poverty limits the rate of growth of household incomes, business profitability, and tax revenues. It drives crime rates, diminishes graduation rates, increases homelessness, and hampers employers’ abilities to hire qualified candidates.
Poverty drives crime rates, diminishes graduation rates, and increases homelessness. Furthermore, subsidy programs have a built-in disincentive known as the Cliff Effect that generates a phantom workforce in Dorchester County —people who want to work can work, but will not or cannot because they will lose more childcare, Medicaid, food stamps, etc. than they can replace with a new job, increased hours, and/or taking a raise.
The Circles approach to changing poverty, and these seemingly ingrained social challenges, is to work together over time to create stronger, more secure families and individuals in Dorchester to end poverty.