Women in Poverty Testimony for Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020 October 3, 2007 Legislative Coordinating Commission Office on the Economic.

Women in PovertyTestimony for

Commission to End Poverty in Minnesota by 2020October 3, 2007

Legislative Coordinating Commission

Office on the Economic Status of Women

Amy Brenengen, DirectorAndrea Lindgren, Research and Policy Analyst

www.oesw.leg.mn

The Office on the Economic Status of Women (OESW)

“The commission shall study and report to the legislature on all matters relating to the economic status of women in Minnesota…”

Purpose of the OESW

…including:(1) The contributions of women to the economy;(2) economic security of homemakers and women

in the labor force;(3) opportunities for education and vocational

training;(4) employment opportunities;(5) women's access to benefits and services

provided to citizens of this state; and(6) laws and business practices constituting

barriers to the full participation by women in the economy.

Four Main Functions of the OESW

Disseminating information Tracking legislation “Staffing” issues relevant to women Gateway to the legislative system

for women and those who work with and care about women.

How OESW Gathers and Distributes Information

Research and Reports Briefs, Fact Sheets, Status Reports,

Studies Public Hearings Listening Sessions Task Forces

OESW and LCEP Synergy

Women’s Issues and Poverty Issues are closely linked.

This is evident in the State of Minnesota based on the following research.

Eight Characteristics Of Householders Account For Three-Fourths Of Minnesota’s Poor

Characteristic of Householder

Percent Of Poor

Poverty Rate

Disabled 38% 19%

High School Dropout 36% 26%

Never Married Mom 19% 42%

College Student 18% 23%

Unemployed 15% 31%

Divorced/Sep Mom 12% 20%

Not Citizen 10% 19%

Older Widow 6% 14%Source: Tom Stinson, Minnesota State Economist and Tom Gillaspie, Minnesota State Demographer

Poverty Rate of People In Selected Households With Householder Experiencing Multiple Risk Factors

85%

71%

59%

59%

51%

49%

46%

0% 30% 60% 90%

Disabled divorced mom with less than HighSchool

Unemployed never married mom

Never Married Moms with Less Than highSchool

Unemployed divorced mom

Unemployed with Less Than high School

Disabled divorced mom

Never Married Mom College Student

Poverty Rate

2005 ACS micro data. Each of the above groups comprise more than 5,000Minnesota households

Source: Tom Stinson, Minnesota State Economist and Tom Gillaspie, Minnesota State Demographer

Poverty and Women

6 of 7 groups cited are women At every level of poverty (100 –

200% of the federal poverty line), there is a higher percentage of women represented.

Within every racial breakdown of each poverty level, more women are represented.

Percentage of Men and Women over age 16 in Minnesota who are Poor and in Poverty: 2005

7.0%

9.8%

12.8%

16.8%

18.9%

9.7%

13.4%

17.0%

22.0%

24.3%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

100% 125% 150% 185% 200%

Federal Poverty Guidelines

Men Women Source: IPUMS, American Community Survey, 2005

Poverty Rates of Women in Minnesota over age 16 by Race: 2005

NativeAmerican

AfricanAmerican

and AfricanAsian Other

Multi-racial

HispanicWhite-

American

100% 28.9% 31.2% 17.0% 21.4% 18.4% 19.7% 8.1%

125% 37.8% 40.5% 22.5% 32.6% 23.7% 29.7% 11.3%

150% 40.3% 44.4% 25.3% 41.8% 25.3% 35.9% 14.9%

185% 50.9% 52.3% 29.4% 52.3% 33.2% 47.2% 19.6%

200% 52.9% 54.4% 35.2% 58.9% 36.4% 51.3% 21.7%

Source: IPUMS, American Community Survey, 2005

Connecting Issues

Poverty, Women and: Domestic Violence Aging Workforce MFIP Education Asset Accumulation Note:

The above issues are not in order, and are not an exhaustive list;

This is top line information, and where the Commission wants more detailed information, we can come back and provide it.

Domestic Violence Twenty women and twelve children were murdered in

Minnesota in 2006 as the result of domestic violence or child abuse (Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women 2006 Femicide Report)

In fiscal year 2006, 37,010 women and children in Minnesota were served by community advocacy programs for battered women. (Office of Justice Programs, Minnesota Department of Public Safety)

In fiscal year 2006, 5,295 battered women and 5,131 children in Minnesota utilized emergency shelter services. (Office of Justice Programs, Minnesota Department of Public Safety)

In fiscal year 2006, 434 battered women and 535 children in Minnesota utilized emergency hotel-motel housing. (Office of Justice Programs, Minnesota Department of Public Safety)

Domestic Violence, cont’d

One of every three homeless women in Minnesota is homeless at least in part due to domestic violence. (Wilder Research Center, 2003)

In 2004, 998 Minnesotans received emergency department or in-hospital care for domestic violence related injuries. 97% of the victims were women. (Minnesota Department of Health, Violence and Prevention Unit, February 2006)

Negative “Cascading Effects” of domestic violence Minnesota Coalition for Battered Women: www.mcbw.org

Older Women

Life Expectancy: Today in America, the average woman age 65 and over lives six years longer than the average man. Average life expectancy for men is 81, for women 85/86.

Poverty: Almost one in five of all unmarried eldery women is poor, and another 10% are near poor. These numbers double for unmarried elderly African American and Hispanic women.

Head of Household: As a result, she is typically widowed and living alone. She struggles to make ends meet on an annual income of $15,615 (compared with $29,171 for men).

Caregiving: During her lifetime she probably spent 17 years caring for children and 18 years caring for elderly parents. Her retirement income is also smaller because she probably did not receive a pension, and was paid less than the average man.

Older Women

Social Security: As a result, she receives lower Social Security benefits. In Minnesota, she annually receives $7,946 while her male counterpart receives $12,224 – a 35% difference.*

Housing: She spends a higher proportion of her income on housing costs — leaving less for vital necessities such as utilities, medical costs, food, and transportation.

Healthcare: The average older woman spends 20 percent of her income each year on out-of-pocket health care costs.

Minnesota Older Women’s League: www.owl-mn.org Asset Development for Low-Income Women *Median Social Security Income of those over 65; 2005 IPUMS American Community

Survey

MFIP/TANF

Historical Perspective: Current operation of the MFIP program does not mirror the successful elements of the original MFIP pilot. The pilot:

Focused on accurate research and information – not emotion and assumption;

was bi-partisan in creation

Administrative Burden: Complicated paperwork and requirements inhibit the operation of the program for both workers and recipients.

Current caseloads increasingly include individuals with multiple barriers

Nationally, following welfare reform, poor single parent families not receiving TANF were more likely to live in dire poverty.

Workforce & Economic Development

While women are experiencing an increased workforce participation rate, they are clustered into a majority of lower paying jobs with low or no projected growth. (OESW “Women and Minnesota’s Job Market”)

Certain high wage/high growth jobs in Minnesota, such as construction trades, have only a 0.7 – 3.4% representation of women. (OESW)

Women’s work portfolio will often include part-time work with no benefits (contributing eventually to decreased retirement/ss benefits)*

Workforce & Economic Development

Local workforce agencies report an increasing number of clients who are low-income women with “multiple barriers.” These clients often need intensive life skills training and one-on-one attention in order to stabilize employment – this is the most expensive training to fund, therefore there is very limited availability.*

There are also a limited number of short-term training opportunities that lead to employment for low-skilled workers. Many of the high growth/high skill occupations require longer training.*

The cost of living overall in Minnesota has increased by 38% in the last decade. (JobsNow Coalition)

*Provider interviews, Sept/Oct 2007

Education

Women and men with a bachelor’s degree or higher share a generally equal poverty rate.

“High return” on Education: Increased

education = less likely to enter into poverty and/or remain in poverty

Positive “cascading effect” of education

Poverty Rates by Gender and Educational Attainment: 2006

6.4%

19.1%

8.1%

2.3% 2.2%

8.3%

26.9%

10.6%

3.1%2.5%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Below Poverty Less than High SchoolGraduate

High SchoolGraduate/Equivalency

Bachelor's Degree Graduate or ProfessionalDegree

Male Female

American Community Survey, 2006, US Census Bureau

Female Single Head of Household

In Minnesota, a single female-headed household with children only under five is approximately twelve times more likely to be in poverty than the equivalent married-couple household.

Poverty Rates by Household Type

3.7%2.7%

6.5%

15.0%

20.4%

25.5%

44.4%

30.3%

24.4%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

45%

50%

Family households With children under age 18 With only children under age 5

Married Male-headed Fem ale-headed

Female Single Head of Household, cont’d

2/3 (64%) of uninsured women are in families with one adult working full-time

Across the board, a single female head of household generally has a lower salary than her male counterpart.

The lowest homeownership rate in Minnesota is among single female-headed households with children.

Asset Accumulation 75 – 80% of current savers in the Minnesota FAIM program are

female.

In one cohort of FAIM savers, women are often more eager than men to apply financial literacy education to their spending and saving habits.

Microlending and Women: Experience shows that women are a good credit risk, and that women invest their income toward the well being of their families. At the same time, women themselves benefit from the higher social status they achieve within the home when they are able to provide income.“ (Microcredit Summit Campaign)

Center for Public Finance Research states that “asset accumulation is a surer path out of poverty than income assistance.”

Summary

“Single Focus” presentations on any of these issues are possible

OESW is willing and interested in working with the Commission closely to tackle this issue.

Poverty Issues are Women’s Issues.