Poverty in Oklahoma is at a 10-year high, according U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
More than 610,000 Oklahomans lived below the poverty line in 2010. Poverty in Oklahoma reached a high in 2006, dipped in 2007 and 2008, and started climbing again in 2009.
Poverty percentages for Oklahomans under 18 are the highest they’ve been in a decade, and the increases are outpacing adult poverty estimates.
Poverty percentages for those under 18 increased more than 2 percent from 2009, as did the percentages of those aged 5–17 in families. The number of children under 5 living in poverty increased 3 percent from 2009–2010, the data show.
Scarcity is most severe in regions known as food deserts, where going to the grocery store often means taking a road trip. But new legislation awaiting the governor’s signature could bring more healthy food to areas that need it.
