An income below a certain threshold meets the federal guidelines for poverty and entitles a person or household for certain government programs.
Parameters:
(1) base income for 1 individual ($11,770 for 1 person in 2015)
(2) increment per person ($4,160 in 2015)
(3) number of people in the household
Separate tables are prepared for Hawaii and Alaska.
poverty threshold =
= (base income for 1 person) + ((number of people) * (increment))
Interpretation:
• Income below the threshold indicates that the household meets criteria for poverty.
• Certain government programs multiply the threshold by a factor (1.25, 1.5, etc) to determine eligibility.
