Poverty in US on the climb

‎”In 2008, 8 percent of related (to the householder) children (5.9 million) lived in extreme poverty, defined as living in a family with income less than one-half of the poverty threshold (Poverty threshold: $21,834, so $10,917.). This percentage was the highest since 1998.”

Source: US Census Bureau, Current Pop Survey
Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics