Last month, we highlighted some of the fabulous work our state partners did surrounding the reports on poverty they co-released in conjunction with CHN’s national report, The High Cost of Being Poor in the U.S. The work continued this past month, with our remaining state partners releasing reports based on the recent Census Bureau data, and spreading the word about poverty and the need for additional investments in policies that help people lift people up. Here’s what our partners have been up to, along with where you can find more information on the state of poverty in your state:
In Georgia we partnered with 9to5 Atlanta, one of the largest national membership organizations of working women in the nation. Together we released a report that described the state of poverty in Georgia for the 1.7 million people living below the poverty line. The report was covered by the Atlantic Journal-Constitution; you can read the article here.

Michelle Wyant was interviewed for the article in the Tampa Bay Times. Wyant, who has fibromyalgia, gets ready to ride her scooter to a part-time cleaning job, which she goes to before going to a full-time cleaning job. Photo credit: Jim Damaske | Times

Our co-partners, the Florida Associate for Community Action, Central Florida Behavioral Health Network and Florida Coalition for the Homeless, released a report in Florida. Each group works to reduce poverty through a combination of community action, mental health awareness and anti-homeless efforts. The Tampa Bay Times covered the report in an article titled “Cost of necessities has Florida’s poor living on a razor’s edge.” More information can also be found here and on Facebook.

In Illinois CHN partnered with several anti-poverty organizations including the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, Illinois Hunger Coalition, Heartland Alliance, Chicago Jobs Council, and the Illinois Association of Community Action Agencies. Infographics from the report can be found on social media. Chicago’s NPR affiliate, WBEZ, recently aired an interview with Heartland Alliance’s Director of Policy and Advocacy Samantha Tuttle. You can listen to the segment here.

Our friends at the Mississippi Low-Income Child Care Initiative and the Children’s Defense Fund-Southern Regional Office also released a report. Mississippi Public Broadcasting (MPB) interviewed Carol Burnett, executive director of the Mississippi Low Income Childcare Initiative, in a segment covering the report. You can listen by following this link and clicking ‘play’ under “The Cost of Being Poor in Mississippi”. The Kemper County Messenger also covered the report in an article. Additionally, the report can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.

A living wage, paid leave & affordable childcare are critical for Mississippians. #childcarematters #TalkPoverty @BennieGThompson pic.twitter.com/NRWwdLEvUq

— MLICCI (@MLICCI1) October 18, 2016

The North Carolina Justice Center, a research and advocacy organization that works to eliminate poverty in their state, released a report via their website and Twitter.

In Ohio, CHN partnered with Advocates for Ohio’s Future, an advocacy organization that promotes health and human services through policy solutions. The report was shared widely on Facebook and Twitter by several organizations, including the Ohio House Democrats. Additionally, the Ohio report was covered by several media outlets including the Columbus Dispatch, Sidney Daily News, Hannah News Service and Gongwer.

Recent report shows “it’s expensive to be poor.” Ohio support programs working, but 1.7M still in poverty. MORE: https://t.co/tqskEHJKCF

— Ohio House Dems (@OHHouseDems) October 7, 2016

CHN partnered with 9to5 Wisconsin as well. You can find a synopsis of the Wisconsin report on their website and read the report here.

Finally, CHN partnered with Action for Boston Community Development (ABCD), an organization that works to empower disadvantaged people to overcome poverty in Massachusetts. Read the report for more information on steps the state can take to reduce poverty.

All of our state partners are sharing these reports with their members of Congress, and you can too to raise awareness on the state of poverty and effectiveness of anti-poverty programs. Not sure who your representatives are? That’s okay; you can look them up here. Then head over to your state-specific media toolkit and find your representatives’ twitter handles to tweet them the report. Be sure to join the national conversation with #PovertyCosts.

For additional resources, check out our website for the national and state reports with infographics and state media toolkits to help you share on Facebook and Twitter. Visit our 2015 Census and Poverty Data resources page for more Census information from organizations around the Coalition.