Marriage Poverty - Vermont

Marriage:
Vermont’s No. 1 Weapon
Against
Childhood Poverty
How the Collapse of Marriage Hurts Children
and Three Steps to Reverse the Damage
A Heritage Foundation Book of Charts • 2012

Richard and Helen DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society

Growth of Out-of-Wedlock Childbearing in Vermont, 1929–2010
In 2010, a record 39.2 percent PERCENTAGE OF CHILDREN BORN OUT OF WEDLOCK
of children in Vermont were born
outside marriage. Throughout most 50%
of Vermont’s history, non-marital
childbearing was rare. For example,
in 1950 only two percent of children 40.8%
in the state were born to unmarried 40%
women. In the late 1970s the rate
39.2%
was still below ten percent. However,
over the last three decades unwed
childbearing in Vermont has 30%
increased dramatically.
National
Note: Data on non-marital births in Vermont
Vermont are unavailable between 1951
and 1977. However, all states that have 20%
data for this period show rates which
parallel the national trend displayed in the
chart. In these states, the non-marital birth
rates remained low until the onset of the
federal War on Poverty in the mid-1960s, 10%
and then began to rise steadily. The
Vermont unwed birth rate between 1934
and 1979 very likely parallels the overall
national trend.
0%
Sources: U.S. Government, U.S. Census
Bureau, and National Center for Health 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
Statistics.

Chart 1 • Marriage and Poverty in Vermont heritage.org

In Vermont, Marriage Drops the Probability of Child Poverty
by 89 Percent
The rapid rise in out-of- PERCENTAGE OF FAMILIES WITH CHILDREN THAT ARE POOR
wedlock childbearing is a major 35%
cause of high levels of child pov- 32.7%
erty in Vermont.
30%
Some 32.7 percent of single
mothers with children are poor
compared to 3.5 percent of mar- 25%
ried couples with children.
Single-parent families with 20%
children are nine times more likely
to be poor than families in which
the parents are married. 15%

The higher poverty rate among
single-mother families is due both 10%
to the lower education levels of the
mothers and the lower income due
5% 3.5%
to the absence of the father.

0%
Single-Parent, Married,Two-Parent
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Female-Headed Families
Community Survey, 2007–2009 data. Families


In Vermont, One-Third of All Families with Children Are Not Married

Overall, married couples head
about two-thirds of families with
children in Vermont. One-third
are single-parent families.

Unmarried
Families
33.2%
Married
Families
66.8%

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American
Community Survey, 2007–2009 data.


In Vermont, 80 Percent of Poor Families with Children Are Not Married

Among poor families with
children in Vermont, four in ﬁve
are not married. By contrast, only
one-ﬁfth of poor families with
Married
children are headed by married Families
couples.
19.9%

Unmarried
Families
80.1%



In Vermont, Few Unwed Births Occur to Teenagers
Out-of-wedlock births are often PERCENTAGE OF OUT-OF-WEDLOCK BIRTHS
confused erroneously with teen BY AGE OF MOTHER
Under
births, but only 3.8 percent of Age 18:
out-of-wedlock births in Vermont 3.8%
occur to girls under age 18.
By contrast, some 79 percent of
out-of-wedlock births occur to Age
young adult women between the 30–54: Age
ages of 18 and 29. 17.6% 18–19:
13.7%

Age
25–29: Age
24.4% 20–24:
40.5%

Note: Figures have been rounded.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 2008 NHS
data.


Less-Educated Women Are More Likely to Give Birth
Outside of Marriage
Unwed childbearing occurs PERCENTAGE OF BIRTHS THAT ARE MARITAL
most frequently among the OR OUT OF WEDLOCK
women who will have the greatest 100%
9.6% Unmarried
difﬁculty supporting children by
90%
Mothers
themselves: those with low levels
of education. 40.0%
80%
In Vermont, among women who 59.4%
are high school dropouts, about 70%
75.6 percent of all births occur 75.6%
60% Married
outside marriage. Among women 90.4%
who have only a high school 50% Mothers
diploma, nearly six in ten births
occur outside marriage. By con- 40%
60.0%
trast, among women with at least a 30%
college degree, only 9.6 percent of 40.6%
births are out of wedlock. 20%

10% 24.4%

0%
High School High School Some College Mother’s
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Dropout Graduate College Graduate education
Human Services, Centers for Disease (0–11 (12 (13–15 (16+ level
data. Years) Years) Years) Years)


Both Marriage and Education Are Highly Effective
in Reducing Child Poverty in Vermont
The poverty rate of married PERCENTAGE OF FAMILIES Poverty Rate of Families by
WITH CHILDREN THAT Single
couples with children is dramati- Education and Marital Status
ARE POOR Married
cally lower than the rate for house- of the Head of Household
holds headed by single parents. 60%
This is true even when the married
couple is compared to single par- 49.3%
ents with the same education level. 50%

For example, in Vermont, the
poverty rate for a single mother 40%
who has only a high school 31.8%
diploma is 31.8 percent, but the 30% 29.3%
poverty rate for a married couple 22.6%
family headed by an individual 20%
who, similarly, has only a high
school degree is far lower at 13.2%
7.2 percent. 10% 7.2%
3.1%
On average, marriage drops the 1.1%
poverty rate by around 78 percent 0%
among families with the same High School High School Some College
Dropout Graduate College Graduate
education level.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Note: Virtually none of the heads of families in the chart who are high school
Community Survey, 2005–2009 data. dropouts are minor teenagers.


Unwed Birth Rates Vary Strongly by Race in Vermont
In 2008 (the most recent year PERCENT OF BIRTHS THAT ARE OUT OF WEDLOCK
for which racial breakdown is
available), nearly four in ten births 70%
(38.8 percent) overall in Vermont 8.3%
occurred outside marriage.
60% 56.0%
Among white non-Hispanics,
about four in ten births (39.1
percent) occurred outside mar- 50%
riage. This was the third-highest
non-marital birth rate among 38.8% 39.1% 40.2%
40%
white non-Hispanic women in the
nation.
Among blacks, 40.2 percent of 30%
births were to unmarried women.
Among Hispanics, 56 percent of
20%
births were out of wedlock.

10%

0%
Source: U.S. Department of Health and All Races White Black Hispanic
Control and Prevention, 2008 NHS Non- Non-
data. Hispanic Hispanic


Racial Composition of All Births and Out-of-Wedlock Births in Vermont
In Vermont in 2008, some 95.1 ALL BIRTHS OUT-OF-WEDLOCK BIRTHS
percent of all births occurred to
non-Hispanic whites, 1.6 percent
occurred to non-Hispanic blacks,
and 1.2 percent occurred to His-
panics.
The racial composition of
unwed births was nearly identical.
In 2008, 95.9 percent of all non-
marital births in Vermont were to 95.1% White Non- 95.9%
non-Hispanic whites, 1.7 percent Hispanic
were to Hispanic women, and 1.6
percent were to black non-
Hispanic women.

2.1% Asian/Other 0.8%
1.6% Black Non-Hispanic 1.6%
Source: U.S. Department of Health and 1.2% Hispanic 1.7%
data. Note: Figures have been rounded.


Non-Married White Families Are Nine Times More Likely to Be Poor
in Vermont
Marriage leads to lower poverty PERCENTAGE OF FAMILIES THAT ARE POOR
rates for whites and Hispanics.*
For example, in 2009, the pov- 30%
erty rate for married white families
in Vermont was 2.7 percent. But
the poverty rate for non-married 25% 24.2%
white families was nearly nine
times higher at 24.2 percent.
20%

15%

10%

5%
2.7%
* The black population in Vermont is
too small to provide reliable estimates
of poverty by family structure. 0%
Married Families Non-Married Families


Non-Married Hispanic Families Are Roughly 13 Times More Likely
to Be Poor in Vermont
In 2009, the poverty rate for PERCENTAGE OF FAMILIES THAT ARE POOR
Hispanic married families in Ver-
mont was 3.3 percent, while the
45% 42.3%
poverty rate among non-married
families was nearly 13 times
40%
higher at 42.3 percent.
35%

30%

25%

20%

15%

10%

5% 3.3%

0%
Married Families Non-Married Families


Three Steps to Reduce Child Poverty through Marriage

1) Provide information on the benefits of marriage in reducing child poverty
and improving child well-being.

Marriage is a highly effective institution which greatly decreases parental and child
poverty while improving long-term outcomes for children. Conversely, the absence of
marriage greatly increases welfare costs and imposes added burdens on taxpayers.
Unfortunately, almost no information on these topics is available in low-income
communities. This information deficit should be corrected in the following manner:

• Explain the benefits of marriage in middle and high schools with a high
proportion of at-risk youth;
• Create public education campaigns in low-income communities on the
benefits of marriage; and,
• Require federally funded birth control clinics to provide information on the
benefits of marriage and the skills needed to develop stable families to
interested low-income clients.

2) Reduce anti-marriage penalties in means-tested welfare programs.

3) Promote life-goal-planning, marriage-strengthening, and divorce-reduction
programs to increase healthy marriages and reduce divorce and separation.

The Family & Religion Initiative is one of 10 Transformational Initiatives making up The Heritage
Foundation’s Leadership for America campaign. For more products and information related to this initiative
or to learn more about the Leadership for America campaign, please visit heritage.org.

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214 Massachusetts Avenue, NE • Washington, D.C. 20002 • (202) 546-4400 • heritage.org

Marriage Poverty - Vermont

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