United States Department of Health & Human Services

Prior HHS Poverty Guidelines
and Federal Register References

Poverty guidelines since 1982 for the 48 contiguous states and the District of Columbia can be calculated by addition using the figures shown below.  (This simple calculation procedure gives correct guideline figures for each year, but it is not identical to the procedure by which the poverty guidelines are calculated from the poverty thresholds each year; see an example calculation.)  Before 1982, the poverty guidelines were issued by the Office of Economic Opportunity/Community Services Administration.

HHS Poverty Guidelines
Year First
Person
Each
Additional
Person
(Four-Person
Family)
Page with
Complete Details
2008 $10,400 $3,600 ($21,200) 2008 Guidelines
2007 10,210 3,480 ( 20,650) 2007 Guidelines
2006 9,800 3,400 ( 20,000) 2006 Guidelines
2005 9,570 3,260 ( 19,350) 2005 Guidelines
2004 9,310 3,180 ( 18,850) 2004 Guidelines
2003 8,980 3,140 ( 18,400) 2003 Guidelines
2002 8,860 3,080 ( 18,100) 2002 Guidelines
2001 8,590 3,020 ( 17,650) 2001 Guidelines
20001/ 8,350 2,900 ( 17,050) 2000 Guidelines
19991/ 8,240 2,820 ( 16,700) 1999 Guidelines
1998 8,050 2,800 ( 16,450) 1998 Guidelines
1997 7,890 2,720 ( 16,050) 1997 Guidelines
1996 7,740 2,620 ( 15,600) 1996 Guidelines
1995 7,470 2,560 ( 15,150)  
1994 7,360 2,480 ( 14,800)  
1993 6,970 2,460 ( 14,350)  
1992 6,810 2,380 ( 13,950)  
1991 6,620 2,260 ( 13,400)  
19902/ 6,280 2,140 ( 12,700)  
19892/ 5,980 2,040 ( 12,100)  
1988 5,770 1,960 ( 11,650)  
1987 5,500 1,900 ( 11,200)  
1986 5,360 1,880 ( 11,000)  
1985 5,250 1,800 ( 10,650)  
1984 4,980 1,740 ( 10,200)  
1983 4,860 1,680 ( 9,900)  
19823/ 4,680 1,540 ( 9,300)  
1.  Note that 1999 and 2000 poverty guidelines figures should NOT be used in connection with determining poverty population figures from 2000 Decennial Census data.  Poverty population figures are calculated using the Census Bureau poverty thresholds, not the poverty guidelines.
2.  Note that 1989 and 1990 poverty guidelines figures should NOT be used in connection with determining poverty population figures from 1990 Decennial Census data.  Poverty population figures are calculated using the Census Bureau poverty thresholds, not the poverty guidelines.
3.  Figures for nonfarm families only.

For a table showing the poverty guidelines for all family sizes back to 1965, see Table 3.E8 in the most recent Annual Statistical Supplement of the Social Security Bulletin.  This table is also available on the Social Security Administration's Web site.


Poverty guidelines for the years shown above can be found in the Federal Register as follows:

2008 — Vol. 73, No. 15, January 23, 2008, pp. 3971-3972
2007 — Vol. 72, No. 15, January 24, 2007, pp. 3147-3148
2006 — Vol. 71, No. 15, January 24, 2006, pp. 3848-3849

2005 — Vol. 70, No. 33, February 18, 2005, pp. 8373-8375
2004 — Vol. 69, No. 30, February 13, 2004, pp. 7336-7338
2003 — Vol. 68, No. 26, February 7, 2003, pp. 6456-6458
2002 — Vol. 67, No. 31, February 14, 2002, pp. 6931-6933
2001 — Vol. 66, No. 33, February 16, 2001, pp. 10695-10697

2000 — Vol. 65, No. 31, February 15, 2000, pp. 7555-7557
1999 — Vol. 64, No. 52, March 18, 1999, pp. 13428-13430
1998 — Vol. 63, No. 36, February 24, 1998, pp. 9235-9238
1997 — Vol. 62, No. 46, March 10, 1997, pp. 10856-10859
1996 — Vol. 61, No. 43, March 4, 1996, pp. 8286-8288

1995 — Vol. 60, No. 27, February 9, 1995, pp. 7772-7774
1994 — Vol. 59, No. 28, February 10, 1994, pp. 6277-6278
1993 — Vol. 58, No. 28, February 12, 1993, pp. 8287-8289
1992 — Vol. 57, No. 31, February 14, 1992, pp. 5455-5457
1991 — Vol. 56, No. 34, February 20, 1991, pp. 6589-6861

1990 — Vol. 55, No. 33, February 16, 1990, pp. 5664-5666
1989 — Vol. 54, No. 31, February 16, 1989, pp. 7097-7098
1988 — Vol. 53, No. 29, February 12, 1988, pp. 4213-4214
1987 — Vol. 52, No. 34, February 20, 1987, pp. 5340-5341
1986 — Vol. 51, No. 28, February 11, 1986, pp. 5105-5106

1985 — Vol. 50, No. 46, March 8, 1985, pp. 9517-95181/
1984 — Vol. 49, No. 39, February 27, 1984, pp. 7151-7152
1983 — Vol. 48, No. 34, February 17, 1983, pp. 7010-7011
1982 — Vol. 47, No. 69, April 9, 1982, pp. 15417-15418

1.  For a correction of a typographical error in one figure for Hawaii for 1985, see Federal Register, Vol. 50, No. 50, March 14, 1985, p. 10319.


Go to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).

Go to the page of Further Resources on Poverty Measurement, Poverty Lines, and Their History

Return to the main Poverty Guidelines, Research, and Measurement page.

Last Revised:  January 23, 2008

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