August 30, 2006
August 30, 2006 (Poverty Byte)
The release of U.S. Census Bureau income data for 2005 shows a rise in income inequality since the last economic peak. Since 2000, households in the bottom fifth of the income distribution have seen their inflation-adjusted income drop by 5.6 percent and only households in the top fifth have seen their income rise, increasing by 0.8 percent (Figure 1). Black households in the bottom two-fifths of the income distribution have seen their inflation-adjusted income fall by over 10 percent – by 12.3 percent for those in the bottom fifth and 11.4 percent for those in the second fifth.
Figure 1: Growth in Inflation-Adjusted Income, by Income Fifth,
All Households, 2000 – 2005
Figure 2: Growth in Inflation-Adjusted Income, by Income Fifths,
Black and Hispanic Households, 2000 – 2005
Heather Boushey is senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, DC
CEPR’s Poverty Byte is published each year upon release of the Census income report. For more information or to subscribe by fax or email contact CEPR at 202-293-5380 ext. 103 or ray at cepr dot net.
