Middle-class income hit highest level on record in 2016, Census Bureau reports
By Heather Long September 12 at 11:10 AM
America's middle class had its highest-earning year ever in 2016, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday.
Median household income in America was $59,039 last year, surpassing the previous high of $58,655 set in 1999, the Census Bureau said. The figure is adjusted for inflation and is one of the most closely watched indicators of how the middle class is faring financially, as the Census surveys nearly 100,000 homes.
The Census said the uptick in earnings occurred because so many people found full-time jobs — or better-paying jobs — last year.
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America's poverty rate also fell to 12.7percent, the lowest since 2007, the year before the financial crisis hit. The percent of Americans without health insurance also dropped last year to just 8.8percent, largely thanks to expanding coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
Economists welcomed the news as evidence the recovery had finally taken hold after years of frustration for the middle class as they watched the stock market soar but their incomes barely budged. Donald Trump tapped into this anger in the 2016 campaign, often saying people were no better off economically than they were in 2000.
“The slow early 2000s recovery and expansion, combined with the damage done by the Great Recession, has led to nearly two decades of lost income growth for typical American households,” says economist Elise Gould of the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
Almost every demographic group saw an increase in income last year, Census officials found. They cautioned, however, that the Census changed its methodology in 2014, so they are hesitant to definitively say it's the highest median ever, but they acknowledge there has been very strong growth in the past two years.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...bar&tid=a_breakingnews&utm_term=.b23390ba4986
By Heather Long September 12 at 11:10 AM
America's middle class had its highest-earning year ever in 2016, the U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday.
Median household income in America was $59,039 last year, surpassing the previous high of $58,655 set in 1999, the Census Bureau said. The figure is adjusted for inflation and is one of the most closely watched indicators of how the middle class is faring financially, as the Census surveys nearly 100,000 homes.
The Census said the uptick in earnings occurred because so many people found full-time jobs — or better-paying jobs — last year.
National News Alerts
Major national and political news as it breaks.
America's poverty rate also fell to 12.7percent, the lowest since 2007, the year before the financial crisis hit. The percent of Americans without health insurance also dropped last year to just 8.8percent, largely thanks to expanding coverage under the Affordable Care Act.
Economists welcomed the news as evidence the recovery had finally taken hold after years of frustration for the middle class as they watched the stock market soar but their incomes barely budged. Donald Trump tapped into this anger in the 2016 campaign, often saying people were no better off economically than they were in 2000.
“The slow early 2000s recovery and expansion, combined with the damage done by the Great Recession, has led to nearly two decades of lost income growth for typical American households,” says economist Elise Gould of the left-leaning Economic Policy Institute.
Almost every demographic group saw an increase in income last year, Census officials found. They cautioned, however, that the Census changed its methodology in 2014, so they are hesitant to definitively say it's the highest median ever, but they acknowledge there has been very strong growth in the past two years.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...bar&tid=a_breakingnews&utm_term=.b23390ba4986
