Researchers are projecting a record-low U.S. poverty rate in 2021, and they're pointing to federal COVID-19 relief as the driving factor behind the shift. The Census Bureau last September reported that the county's poverty rate in 2019 hit a record low of 10.5%, with 4.2 million fewer impoverished people than in the previous year, when the poverty rate was 11.8%. The poverty rate for children will fall from more than 30% to 5.6%; the rate for adults under 64 will drop to 8.1%; and the rate for people over 65 will be reduced to 9.2%. Other researchers are not surprised by the impact of federal aid and fear the record-low poverty rate estimates are unsustainable over time. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) estimates that more than $1 trillion in federal coronavirus funds have not been spent.

Source: Fox News July 31, 2021 18:00 UTC