Report: Poverty increases in 85 percent of Illinois counties

from WQAD

CHICAGO Most counties in Illinois are seeing more poverty.
That's according to the "2007 Report on Illinois Poverty" by the bipartisan Heartland Alliance.

The report was released today.

It says that 85 percent of the counties in Illinois had increases in the number of people in poverty compared to a similar study last year.

The study also shows that nearly 700-thousand people in the state live in "extreme poverty." Extreme poverty is defined by households living on an annual income of less than half the poverty line.

That means an Illinois family of three has a monthly income of less than 692 dollars and ten cents.

At the same time Illinois no longer leads Midwest states in overall poverty as it did last year.

It has fallen to fifth behind Missouri, Michigan, Ohio and Indiana.

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.