California
State Government
Governor
Gavin Newsom (D)
State Senate
32
Democrats,
8
Republicans
State House
62
Democrats,
17
Republicans
Economic well-being - California
Extreme poverty rate
0.1
Food insecurity
0.1
Minimum wage
16.5
Percent of working families under 200% of the poverty line
0.3
Poverty rate
11.8%
Unemployment rate
5.5
Number of Black or African American children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment
Number of Hispanic or Latino children living in families where no parent has full-time, year-round employment
Percent of individuals who are uninsured
5.9
Housing - California
Home foreclosure rate
1 in 3407
People experiencing homelessness
187,084.0
Households paying more than 50% of income on housing
1,633,600.0
Percent renters
0.4
Poverty by demographic - California
Child poverty rate
0.2
Number of Asian and Pacific Islander children below 200% poverty
251000
Number of Black or African American children below 200% poverty
192000
Number of Hispanic or Latino children below 200% poverty
1981000
Senior poverty rate
12.0 %
Women in poverty
19,461,027
EdSource, July 1, 2015: Suit claims LA Unified underfunding low-income kids, English learners
"The first lawsuit involving the state's new education funding formula is a big one, with potential statewide implications. In a lawsuit filed Wednesday, civil rights attorneys charged the Los Angeles Unified School District with shortchanging English learners, low-income children and foster youth by hundreds of millions of dollars. The district disputes the claim."
TruthDig, April 2, 2015: Stanford's Making Tuition, Room and Board Virtually Free for Students From Low-Income Families
"Stanford University has just taken a huge step toward helping students whose parents make less than $125,000 a year get a college education without accruing inordinate amounts of debt."
Oakland Local, March 24, 2015: Affordable housing out of reach for many low-income Oakland seniors
"Even if Gibson had Section 8, he might have a hard time finding a spot. For seniors who can afford rents of $3,000 a month, there's plenty of housing available, according to Pamela Hall, an advocate at Oakland's Housing Assistance Center. Those willing to move to Tracy or Modesto can find a place in senior housing for as little as $1,700. The story for affordable housing is very different. 'There's no [affordable] senior housing,' Hall said. 'The waitlists are long. They're running from three to five years.'"
EdSource, March 18, 2015: New funding law creates disparity among low-income schools
"The state's new education funding formula provides extra money for all low-income children, students learning English and foster youth, and contributes more dollars if they make up the bulk of students in a district. But if these 'high-need' kids happen to be concentrated in a few schools within wealthier districts, they get less funding than they would receive in a poor district, a recent study revealed. The report also cautioned that districts' accountability plans lacked the information to determine if the students were receiving the help they needed."
The Los Angeles Times, February 17, 2015: (Op-Ed) Punishing schools for child poverty doesn't help students
"There is strong evidence that poverty is the major problem in American education: When researchers control for poverty, our performance on international tests is at the top of the world. Poverty means poor diet, inadequate healthcare and lack of access to books."
Lompoc Record, January 31, 2015: Cal Grants help low, middle-income families
"More than 40 years ago, California set a goal of providing access to higher education for low and middle-income students. That goal became a reality with the passage of funding for Cal Grants, cash awards for college aid, and the application window is open through March 2."