Hawaii Island’s stubbornly high poverty rate dipped in 2016 but still remained above pre-recession levels, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
The Small Area Income and Poverty Estimate, released in November, said 15.4 percent of residents were below the poverty level, down from 18.3 percent in 2015. The statewide average was 9.5 percent in 2016.
The survey estimated there were 29,962 people in poverty out of an island population of 194,942.
The reduction in poverty occurred even as the same survey estimated median household income levels on the island dropped slightly from $54,914 in 2015 to $54,684 in 2016.
Eugene Tian, an economic researcher for the state, cautioned against relying on year-to-year differences since the surveys are based on an average sample of 1,432 housing units on the island each year. He said five-year averages are a more reliable indicator.
“Generally, both income and poverty rates have been improving over the past 5 years,” he said in an email.
From 2012 through 2016, the average annual poverty rate was 18.04 percent. Annual median income levels averaged $51,582 during that period.
From 2011 through 2015, the poverty rate averaged 19.04 percent, with median income levels averaging $49,882.
Y.S. Kim, another researcher with the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, said the decline in the poverty rate is likely tied to lower unemployment.
Unemployment was at 2.3 percent as of October, down from a peak of 11.2 percent in June 2009 during the recession, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Poverty levels on the island peaked in 2011 at 20.4 percent and were at 13.1 percent a decade ago, according to the survey.
Median household income levels peaked at $55,779 in 2007 and reached a low point of $46,186 in 2011, the survey says.
According to the survey, the highest poverty areas, based on a five-year average, were found in Fern Forest (54 percent), Eden Roc (44.7 percent) and Hawaiian Ocean View Estates (43.6 percent).
As for urban centers, those rates were estimated at 17.4 percent for Hilo, 12.3 percent for Kailua-Kona and 14 percent for Waimea during a five-year period.
As of January 2017, the poverty threshold for Hawaii was $13,860 for single-person households, $18,670 for two-person households and $23,480 for three-person households, according to DBEDT.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
Poverty thresholds for Hawaii
Household size:
1 — $13,860
2 — $18,670
3 — $23,480
4 — $28,290
5 —$33,100
6 — $37,910
7 — $42,470
8 — $47,530
Source: State Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism
