Finding a Cure for Child Poverty

from WCAX

Barre, Vermont - October 1, 2007

Even with the state's strong economy and low unemployment rate, advocates say more than 13% of Vermont kids are living below the federal poverty line. A bipartisan council made up of lawmakers, members of the Douglas administration, and community organizations is hoping to change that.

"It seems to be getting worse in this country," said State Sen. Douglas Racine, D-Chittenden County. "We do know that looking at European countries, various public policies can make a difference."

Racine co-chairs the Vermont Child Poverty Council. He said 10,000 to 20,000 Vermont kids are living in poverty, which the federal government defines as income under $20,650 for a family of four. The group is holding a series of public forums that aims to find strategies to cut that number in half in the next decade. At the first forum in Barre Monday night, panelists shared their experiences and suggestions.

"Is it more important to have the lights on this month or food on the table?" panelist Sarah Mosier said. "It's definitely picking and choosing. That's what life is like. It's always a catch-up game."

Mosier said her husband has a good job, but with one child and another on the way, there's just never enough. His recent cost-of-living raise actually made it harder to make ends meet. "It gave us an extra $40 a week but took away over $200 in food stamps."

So Mosier told the council she'd like lawmakers to build more flexibility into the food stamp program. Right now, she said, income restrictions don't let people get ahead. Racine said the Vermont Poverty Council is considering short-term solutions like that, but needs to examine long-term initiatives, too -- like education.

"We know that kids from low-income families tend not to do as well in school and are more likely to be high school dropouts with all the personal and societal costs involved with that," he said. "We want to look at our education system to see how we can help those kids succeed in school so they don't become yet another statistic."

Panelist Billie Jo Kimball hopes to use her education to break that cycle of poverty. She got her high school diploma at age 26, and is now studying at the Community College of Vermont.

"My mom worked 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, just to make ends meet," she said. "I want my children to have a better life."

The Vermont Child Poverty Council plans to hold a forum in each of the state's 14 counties over the next two months. The next meeting, in Windsor County, will be held Tuesday, October 2, from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in Room 210 of the Windsor K-12 Education Complex. The council expects to take its proposals to the legislature when it convenes in January.

Kate Duffy - WCAX News