- Christopher T. Wimer, David S. Johnson, and Timothy M. Smeeding
- March 2026
- Link to Guide-to-Interpreting-Recent-Developments-to-US-Poverty-Measures-03232026 (PDF)
An overview of differences between current poverty measures—the Official Poverty Measure (OPM) and Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM)—as well as proposed changes from a 2023 National Academies panel on further improving the measurement of income poverty in the United States. Also included is a short review of other poverty measures including sub-annual (i.e., monthly) measures; measures harnessing various administrative data sources; and measures based on assets, consumption, and material deprivation. This, a collaboration between IRP and the Center on Poverty & Social Policy at Columbia University, guide closes with a brief discussion of how social policy analysts have used SPM measures to assess the effects of government policies and programs related to poverty in the United States.
Categories
Poverty Measurement, U.S. Poverty Measures