By Kylie Werner | InMaricopa
Poverty rates are trending down in Maricopa as they rise in other metro Phoenix cities like Mesa, Goodyear and Surprise, according to new U.S. Census Bureau numbers.
Data from the bureau’s 2023 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates shows since 2022 the poverty rate in Maricopa decreased by 1% from 9.5% to 8.5% — some 4 points lower than the state average, 12.4%.
The survey also breaks down the poverty rate by age and shows 9% of people experiencing poverty in Maricopa are children and 14% are seniors over 65.
Breaking down the numbers
The census determined poverty status by comparing annual income to a set of dollar values — called poverty thresholds — which varies based on family size and the age of the householder. If the family’s pretax income is less than the dollar value of their threshold, then every person in the family is impoverished.
The poverty thresholds are updated annually to account for changes in the cost of living using the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers and do not vary geographically.
