New figures from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey five-year estimates show child poverty decreasing in nearly two dozen Pennsylvania counties, including Indiana County. But while Indiana County has improved, the child poverty rate is still in the lower half of the state’s 67 counties, and the overall rate ranks even lower.
Indiana, Armstrong and Westmoreland counties all showed improvement. Westmoreland County ranks 23rd in the state with a child poverty rate of 14.7 percent. Armstrong is 27th at 15.7 percent. With a rate of 18.2 percent, child poverty in Indiana County ranks 40th in the state. Jefferson is 47th (18.7 percent), Clearfield is 50th (19.0 percent), and Cambria is 53rd (19.4 percent). Forest County has the worst child poverty rate in the state, at 34.8 percent. Chester and Montgomery counties have the best rates, at 7.8 percent. The state average is 16.3 percent.
Overall, Indiana County is tied with two other counties for 53rd in poverty rate, at 13.7 percent. That’s worse than all of our neighboring counties except for Clearfield. Indiana County’s overall poverty rate is three-tenths of a percentage point worse for calendar year 2021 than it was for the year before.
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