Methodology
POVERTY POPULATION ESTIMATES

Notes on Source Data

IMPORTANT NOTE: The following methodology may include references to report features not available on the public site version. On the public site, masking is performed to protect the privacy of individuals served by CDSS and comply with CDSS data de-identification guidelines. Values of 1 to 10 and calculations based on values of 1 to 10 are masked ('M' or '*'). In stratified views of the data, additional values (the lowest available) are masked to prevent calculation of values 1 to 10.

The poverty population estimates are computed using poverty data from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) and population data from The California Department of Finance.

Poverty Data

The U.S. Census Bureau's, American Community Survey (ACS) 2018-2022 5-year Estimates. Series B17020 A - I - Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months by Age. Data were queried for the state and each of the 58 counties for children ages 0-17.

https://data.census.gov

* Based on a pooled sample 5-year ACS estimates are more statistically reliable and can provide data for smaller geographies. However, these estimates are less current and cannot be applied reliably to a specific year.

The American Community Survey (ACS) provides population data for seven different race groups (White, Black, Asian, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, Native American, Other Race, and Two or More Races). The sum of these seven mutually exclusive categories is equal to the total population. Consistent with Census methodology, respondents can also separately describe themselves as Hispanic or Latino. Tables in the ACS B17020 series are also available for Hispanics (of all races) and White, non Hispanics. However, Hispanic and Non-Hispanic breakouts are not provided for the other races.

CCWIP Child Population Data

The California Department of Finance (DOF) provides population estimates for seven different race/ethnic groups. White, Black, Hispanic, Asian, Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaskan Native and Multi-Race. The sum of these mutually exclusive categories is equal to the total population. Hispanics are broken out separately from the other races/ethnicities. For research purposes Asian and Pacific Islanders are grouped into one category Asian/Pacific Islander.

Methods

Using the ACS data, a poverty multiplier was calculated by dividing the population within a specific race in poverty by the total population count (in poverty and not in poverty) for that race. Separate multipliers were created for the state and each of the 58 counties. This multiplier was then applied to the California Department of Finance Population Estimates in order to estimate a population of children in poverty for the state and each of the 58 counties.

*It is important to note that the race categories for these two data sources are not consistent.

The following diagram details which groups from the ACS survey data were grouped/used to estimate the population in poverty for a specific race/ethnicity in the DOF population. Matching categories are color coded.

	American Community Survey	CA Department of Finance
B17020-A	White	White
B17020-B	Black	Black
B17020-C	American Indian / Alaskan Native	Hispanic
B17020-D	Asian	Asian / Pacific Islander
B17020-E	Native Hawaiian / Other Pacific Islander	American Indian / Alaskan Native
B17020-F	Other Race	Multi-Race
B17020-G	Two or More Races
B17020	TOTAL	TOTAL (sum of race/ethnicity categories)
B17020-H	White, Not Hispanic or Latino
B17020-I	Hispanic or Latino

Please note: These tables are designed to provide an estimate of the population of children (ages 0-17) living in poverty for California and its 58 counties by race/ethnicity. Although the process utilizes the best available data for this purpose, there are limitations associated with this methodology. First, the ACS data are based on a sample and are subject to both sampling and non-sampling variability. Second, although more statistically reliable, multiyear ACS estimates do not provide data regarding specific years, rather only pooled values over a specific period of time. Therefore, the estimates do not capture annual changes in the actual proportions of children in poverty within a specific race/ethnicity group over time. Rather, they represent what would be expected proportionally given changes in the total size of a population of a specific race/ethnic group.

Cells containing a period (".") represent a value of zero. In cells representing quotients, a period may also indicate the indeterminate form 0/0.

Note: Cells containing a period (".") occur when a multiplier is missing because it cannot be calculated using ACS data (due to small sample sizes).

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