The
federal government defines a minimum amount of income necessary for basic
maintenance of a family of four. This amount may fluctuate depending on the cost
of living and the location of the family. In 1998, a family of four with an
annual income below $16,530 was classified as living in poverty.
Some analysts have
suggested that the official poverty figures overstate the real extent of poverty
because they measure only cash income and exclude certain government assistance
programs such as Food Stamps, health care, and public housing. Others point out
that these programs rarely cover all of a family's food or health care needs and
that there is a shortage of public housing. Some argue that even families whose
incomes are above the official poverty level sometimes go hungry, skimping on
food to pay for such things as housing, medical care, and clothing. Still others
point out that people at the poverty level sometimes receive cash income from
casual work and in the "underground" sector of the economy, which is never
recorded in official statistics.
The 2006 United Nations Development Program reported on income equality. It
ranked the United States as tied for 73rd out of 126 countries, as measured by
the Gini coefficient. The richest 10% make 15.9 times as much as the poorest
10%, and the richest 20% make 8.4 times as much as the poorest 20%.