In the past five months alone, some 7.8 million Americans fell into poverty, according to a new report released Wednesday by researchers at the University of Chicago and the University of Notre Dame.
In order to fall below the federal poverty line, one has to have an income at or below $12,000, or $26,200 for a family of four.
The poverty rate surged to 11.7% in November, up 2.4 percentage points since June. This five-month spike is the largest jump in a single year since the US government began tracking poverty 60 years ago, The Washington Post reported. And the increase is a direct result of dwindling government aid, researchers noted.
Nearly 8 million Americans fell below the poverty line since the summer
With his wealth he could have funded this himself! Now a Church owes the government money? He is already a 501c3!!! What more does he wants! Much of the COBVID Relief went to rich people and big business, meanwhile ‘little Joe’s Cafe’ had to close like many other small businesses.
Proverbs 22:7
The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender.
Why is a Pastor and Church taking so much money????????? Joel Osteen is already a millionaire!!!!! I am sorry this is horrible! So much of this stimulus money has been given to out to big, wealthy organizations while so many Americans go hungry, cannot pay rent, out of work….who is watching the chicken house???? No one!!!!! No wonder the Federal Budget is overflowing with red ink! Who is in charge in D.C.? Government welfare to a millionaire!!!!!!!!!!! SHAME! This is showing an unbelieving world what it wants to see from Christians!!! This upsets me to no end! We are in the worst crisis since the Civil War and worst pandemic since the Spanish Flu in 1918 and this happens!!!!!????!!! The Republicans and Democrats could not organize a one car funeral!
The loan received by Osteen’s Lakewood Church was the first time federal lawmakers provided direct financial assistance for a house of worship, the Houston Chronicle reported.
As part of the federal CARES Act that gave coverage to employers to pay for employee wages and other operational costs and needs during the coronavirus pandemic, Lakewood Church received the third-highest loan in the Houston area, according to the Houston Business Journal, citing federal data.
What More does millionaire Osteen want? His church is already a 501c3!!! This is so Wrong! Meanwhile Little Joe’s business in Albuquerque has to close his doors because He didn’t get any of that funding for some reason Much of that Covid relief money went to big businesses and rich people Once again the politicians forgot about the little people the backbone of our country shame on them. We have a huge problem in this country were run by a two party system Republicans and Democrats both parties are very corrupt.
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From WalletHub Today:
With 10.7 million Americans still unemployed and nearly 69% of people saying they would have difficulty meeting their financial obligations if their next paycheck were delayed for a week, WalletHub today released updated rankings for the Cities in the Most Financial Distress During COVID-19, along with accompanying videos and audio files.
In order to take a deeper look into where people are struggling the most financially, WalletHub compared the 100 largest cities without data limitations across nine key metrics. Our data set includes factors like the change in the number of bankruptcy filings between September 2019 and September 2020, the average credit score and the share of people with accounts in distress. Below, you can see highlights from the report, along with a WalletHub Q&A.
| Most Distressed | Least Distressed |
| 1. Las Vegas, NV | 91. Newark, NJ |
| 2. Phoenix, AZ | 92. Boise, ID |
| 3. Chicago, IL | 93. Irvine, CA |
| 4. Miami, FL | 94. Lincoln, NE |
| 5. San Antonio, TX | 95. Boston, MA |
| 6. Los Angeles, CA | 96. Scottsdale, AZ |
| 7. Fort Worth, TX | 97. Anchorage, AK |
| 8. Houston, TX | 98. Madison, WI |
| 9. Dallas, TX | 99. Jersey City, NJ |
| 10. Austin, TX | 100. Fremont, CA |
To view the full report and your city’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/cities-financial-distress/79863
WalletHub Q&A
How are cities’ economies linked to people’s well-being?
“If the economy in a city is not doing well, there are fewer opportunities for residents to get a job and become financially successful. This is especially true during the COVID-19 pandemic, as many cities have been forced to institute lockdowns. This impacts key non-essential businesses in the city, such as the tourism industry or sit-in dining, and in turn leads to higher unemployment when businesses must shutter their doors,” said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. “The loss of a job, or at least loss of revenue, caused by a diminished city economy can cause people to fall into financial distress. It doesn’t even take a long disruption to hurt people’s well-beings, either – over two thirds of Americans would have trouble meeting their financial obligations if their next paycheck were delayed by just one week.”
How does the closure of schools contribute to financial distress?
“Closing schools increases the number of people in financial distress because it removes the normal supervision of children during the day and places that burden on parents. Parents, especially those with younger children, may have to stay home from work or hire childcare as a result. Households where both parents work may see a sudden drop in income, but the hardest-hit households will be those with single parents,” said Jill Gonzalez, WalletHub analyst. “If it is feasible, businesses should let parents work from home when their children have to do online schooling. The government should also help schools reopen faster by adopting widespread rapid COVID-19 testing, which will prevent infection within schools while giving students the in-person learning they desperately need.”