The Annie E. Casey Foundation released the 2021 KIDS COUNT Data Book on June 21. The results show progress in combatting child poverty over time, but they also illuminate negative consequences households with children could face due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Child poverty in Illinois was declining in the decade prior to the pandemic. In 2010, 19% of Illinois children lived in poverty. That number dropped to 16% in 2019. But that still translates to 436,000 Illinois children in poverty, and the situation becomes especially alarming when one views the data by race and ethnicity. Black children lived below the federal poverty level at a rate of 34%, more than two times that of the state rate, while Latinx children were below poverty level at a rate of 20% and White (non-Latinx) children at 9%.

SOURCE: Annie E. Casey Foundation's analysis of U.S. Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey

Initial research on the pandemic’s impact suggests that Illinoisans will continue to struggle with housing costs. In 2019, 28% of Illinois children lived in households with a high housing cost burden. And responses to the U.S. Census Bureau’s recent Household Pulse Survey, which gauges how the pandemic has affected households, show that in 2020 23% of Illinois households with children had little or no confidence in their ability to pay their next rent or mortgage payment on time. This number decreased to 19% in March 2021. However, the data also show significant differences in lost employment by race and ethnicity. The intersection of lost income, high housing costs, and more unemployment could mean Illinoisans will continue to face problems with the availability and affordability of housing for a long time to come.

One way to help households deal with costs for not only rent or mortgage payments, but also basic household needs, would be for Congress to make permanent the one-year increase to the federal child tax credit.

To get more insights into child poverty in Illinois and ways to support Illinois children and families, view Voices for Illinois Children’s KIDS COUNT state report’s Executive Summary. The full report will be released in July.

For more information on the Voices for Illinois Children KIDS COUNT Report, contact Dr. Bill Byrnes at [email protected].

Voices for Illinois Children
1 N. LaSalle Street, Suite 1700 | Chicago, Illinois 60602
312-456-0600 | [email protected]

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