Florida
State Government
Governor
Ron DeSantis (R)
State Senate
12
Democrats,
28
Republicans
State House
36
Democrats,
84
Republicans
Economic well-being - Florida
Extreme poverty rate
0.1
Food insecurity
0.1
Minimum wage
13.0
Percent of working families under 200% of the poverty line
0.3
Poverty rate
12.0%
Unemployment rate
3.8
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
10.9
Poverty by demographic - Florida
Child poverty rate
0.2
Number of Asian and Pacific Islander children below 200% poverty
31000
Number of Black or African American children below 200% poverty
445000
Number of Hispanic or Latino children below 200% poverty
628000
Senior poverty rate
12.1 %
Women in poverty
11,688,390
The Tampa Tribune, March 12, 2014: Early learning center plan gaining steam
"Named for a former school board member who died in 2011, the center will provide day care and educational programs to children between the ages of 1 and 5 living in poverty."
The Pensacola News Journal, December 23, 2013: Hungry for the holidays: Many seniors cannot afford enough to eat
"Medically disabled and living below the poverty line, Frison often goes to bed hungry. Even more often since she lost her food stamp benefits four months ago. She said she only got the $16-a-month minimum, but at least the food stamps were enough to buy chicken neck bones. With beans, rice and noodles, she could make the meals last."
The Florida Today, October 02, 2013: Closure of 9 Head Start programs puts parents, children and staff in a jam
"Parents of children enrolled in Head Start began looking for alternative child care on Tuesday, after the federal-government shutdown closed nine of the early-education centers in the Big Bend."
The Miami Herald, August 10, 2013: Low-income schools struggle under state's grading system
"With dozens of changes in just the past three years, the formula behind Florida's A-to-F school grading system has been criticized as a confusing mess. But there's been at least one constant in Miami-Dade and Broward results: The wealthiest schools never get Fs, and schools with high populations of poor students face an uphill battle to even get a C."
The Miami Herald, July 29, 2013: In college towns, poverty dips without students
"A new report released Monday by the U.S. Census shows that two Florida cities with large concentrations of college students experience big declines in poverty rates when college students aren't counted."
The Palm Beach Post, June 13, 2013: Program aims to help low-income Wellington residents soar
"SOAR stands for Skills, Opportunity, Achievement and Reward and is designed to help residents who might not otherwise have the chance to attend school, take some classes. The tuition reimbursement program is funded through a Community Development Block Grant the village received and will be applied to all qualified low-income families, as long as they meet the requirements."