Originally published on March 3, 2025 by the San Mateo Daily Journal
A federal bill that would raise the poverty line to better reflect modern costs was reintroduced by U.S. Rep. Kevin Mullin, D-South San Francisco, according to his office.
Mullin first introduced the bill in December 2023, citing the outdated measures by which the current federal poverty line is currently measured. The poverty line calculations have not been updated in more than 60 years and are based only on the cost of food, the press release said.
For a family of four, the poverty line is still $32,150, meaning only 12% of Californians are eligible for a bevy of social programs like Medicaid and food aid. The metric is increasingly untenable in areas with a high cost of living — San Mateo County, which Mullin represents.
“If we really want to get serious about addressing poverty in America and if Congress truly cares about helping hardworking families, then we need to pass the Poverty Line Act,” Mullin said in a press release. “Home prices, a gallon of milk, and child care costs fluctuate depending on where someone lives — the poverty line should reflect the realities of what families in America face.”
Henry Gascon, director of program and policy development of United Way of California, said at an event for the legislation last year that more than one in four households in San Mateo County fall underneath the $141,315 cost metric of what it really costs to make ends meet in the area for a family of four.
The bill has garnered more support since its introduction, receiving endorsements from groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center, Feeding America and the Children’s Defense Fund.
“The way we define poverty shapes the resources available to our nation’s young people, yet the federal poverty measure has remained unchanged for nearly 60 years, even as the cost of living has soared. As a result, countless young families in need have been left unseen and unsupported,” Starsky Wilson, Children’s Defense Fund president and CEO, said in the release.