Federal Poverty Line is Unrealistic
- Chris Harden for Congress
- Dec 9, 2025
- 2 min read
What should the new poverty line be set at?
The federal government says for a family of four the poverty line is $32,150 per year. That’s under $3,000 a month (before taxes). A Wall Street portfolio manager has recently made the claim that the new poverty line for a family of four should be $140,000. This is a drastic difference in the two numbers.
So, lets breakdown the average costs for a Georgia family of four in CD-11.
Average rent for a 2-bedroom (a modest family-size apartment) is often $2,000–$2,200/month — nearly $26,400/year just for housing.
On top of that, the monthly grocery bill for a family of four is commonly $900 to $1,300/month — that’s roughly $10,800 to $15,600/year spent on food alone.
Average childcare cost for two children in daycare is $1,600-$2,000/month — averaging about $20,000-$24,000 a year
Add in other essentials (utilities, transportation, healthcare, etc.), and it’s easy to see how a family could be well above the official “poverty line” — and still regularly struggle to make ends meet.
It’s time for America to confront this reality. If the basic costs of living are this high — maybe we need a new standard for what “making ends meet” really means.
As your representative, I would fight for Georgia families and put their best interest first. To just name a few of how this can be accomplished with competent and compassionate leadership:
Raise the federal minimum wage so paychecks match the cost of living
Lower prescription drug and healthcare costs that drain family budgets
Expand the Child Tax Credit to put real money back in parents’ pockets
Lower housing costs by investing in affordable housing and removing burdensome tariffs
Support affordable childcare so parents can work without going bankrupt
Modernize federal poverty guidelines so policy reflects real-world expenses
It’s time to acknowledge the real numbers — and to deliver real solutions. Having a realistic federal poverty line is important to ensure families can access the support they need to help them stay healthy, fed, and stable. When the poverty line falls out of line with real living costs, too many struggling families get left behind.
Let’s do Something Different Together and make Georgia Affordable for All Families!
