Directions for reducing child poverty

The rate of child poverty in the United States is higher now than in 1966. Children are the poorest age group and are more likely to be poor than children in other industrial economies. The level and trends in child poverty are analyzed; the major American income support policies for children, including recent reforms of Aid to Families with Dependent Children, are described; and the impact of those policies on poverty are evaluated. Alternate strategies for reducing child poverty, including an expanded Earned Income Tax Credit, child support system reforms, and a medical insurance plan, are proposed. Pragmatic, administratively feasible policies exist that can substantially reduce child poverty without significant new government spending.