Poverty Rates in Nevada
Close to Equal Percentages of Rural and Urban Poverty
With a poverty rate of 11.1%, Nevada is tied with Kansas and Indiana with the 30th highest poverty rate in the United States.
This is just slightly lower than the poverty rate of Pennsylvania, and just slightly higher than the poverty rate of Wisconsin.
Where the Worst Poverty in Nevada Occurs
Poverty rates in Nevada remain very close to the state average in every major city and county in the state.
Nevada is a rare case in which there are no counties or major cities experiencing critical poverty rates (at least 50% above the state average).
The only three major cities (25,000 or more people) with poverty rates above the state average at all are North Las Vegas (14.8%), Reno (12.6%), and Las Vegas (11.9%).
The poverty rate also actually dips more than 50% below the state average in one county in Nevada. This is Storey County, with a poverty rate of 5.1%.
Why the Worst Poverty in Nevada Exists
The poverty rates in Nevada do not change very much from place to place, and certainly not enough to pinpoint any specific area as a critical poverty area. However, the poverty rates of Nevada definitely aren’t the lowest in the country anyway.
To better understand what is causing the poverty in Nevada, the problem should be looked at from both a rural perspective and an urban perspective.
Nevada is predominantly made up of desert. Poverty in rural areas like the desert regions of Nevada is often times caused by a lack of access to utilities, education, jobs, and health care.
The distance from the major cities also causes an information deficit, and residents in these rural areas will have much less of a political voice.
Poverty in urban areas like Las Vegas and Reno, on the other hand, is oftentimes caused by a higher cost of living than what low-wage positions can afford to pay for.
This leads to a lack of saved up assets, and an extreme vulnerability to any kind of financial burden. If anything goes wrong, people who make up the working poor will more often than not slip into a state of poverty.
All of this aside, it is important to keep in mind that the reasons for poverty are as unique as the individuals who live through it. Though finding trends in a specific area is important, no generalization can account for everyone.
What is Being Done about Poverty in Nevada
Though it is hard to focus on one particular area of Nevada when combating poverty since the poverty rates are spread pretty equally, there are still some initiatives to reduce poverty in both the rural and urban areas of Nevada.
In the rural areas of Nevada, there are organizations like the Nevada Rural Development Council which branches from the USDA Rural Development program.
The Nevada Rural Development Council works with nonprofits, local government, and tribal governments to overcome interdepartmental and intergovernmental barriers to implement strategies to strengthen rural communities.
In the urban areas of Nevada, legislators who worked to raise the minimum wage are allies of the poor. With a higher minimum wage, the working poor in many urban areas will be better able to sustain themselves without assistance.
References:
United States Census Bureau
United States Department of Agriculture Rural Development
