Description

SPMPOVANC12_19RYALT indicates a family's poverty status using a Supplemental Poverty Measurement (SPM) threshold anchored to a 2012 standard of living (after adjusting for inflation). It is a dichotomous variable indicating whether a family's available resources fall above or below the 2012 Anchored SPM Threshold (SPMTHRESHANC12_19RYALT). It is comparable to the unanchored SPMPOV_19RYALT, which reflects a standard of living more contemporary with the year in which poverty is being measured.

This variable is an alternative version of SPMPOVANC12 and reflects variables that were re-released for the 2020 ASEC which reflects methodological changes first introduced with the 2021 CPS ASEC sample. For more information, see our documentation on the re-release of the 2019 SPM research file in the 2020 ASEC that describes methodological improvements that impact SPM resource and threshold variables. The SPM reference year is the calendar year to which the income, taxes, transfers, expenses, and poverty thresholds apply.

This is one of three anchored variables created by the Center on Poverty and Social Policy at Columbia University as part of their Historical SPM project. SPMTHRESHANC12_19RYALT records a family's SPM poverty threshold anchored to 2012, and SPMGEOADJANC12_19RYALT provides a geographic adjustment factor that users can apply to SPMTHRESHANC12_19RYALT to produce a geographically unadjusted poverty threshold.

Comparability

This variable is comparable over time.

Universe

Flags

Unharmonized Variables