14 percent of people here at or near poverty level

Johnson County is one of the richest counties in the nation, with a median household income of $71,658. At the same time, more than 74,000 Johnson Countians live at or near the federal poverty level. That is 14 percent of the county’s estimated population and includes 23,000 children from newborn to age 17.

Karen Wulfkuhle, executive director of United Community Services of Johnson County, said there are two levels of poverty: people living on incomes at less than 100 percent of the federal poverty level and those, most commonly referred to as the working poor, living on incomes at less than 200 percent of the FPL. Those are the individuals who earn too much to qualify for many assistance programs.

The numbers came from a 2008 survey conducted by American Community Survey.

“These numbers were collected in 2007 and 2008 before the recession hit the hardest on people,” Wulfkuhle said. “If there was an actual count in our community today, I’m sure these numbers would be low.

“One of the things we look at and what we think is a more current figure is the number of people on food stamps, and those numbers have dramatically increased, particularly recently.”

The number of Johnson Countians using food stamps this past October was 17,852, an increase from 13,174 in October 2008 and from 11,322 in October 2007.

“That’s a dramatic increase,” Wulfkuhle said. “It’s among the highest in the state in terms of the number of people on food stamps, so that’s more of a current point in time reflection of economic conditions for families in our community.”

The county also has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of people seeking assistance for the first time, said Christina Jordan, community social services team manager for the county’s Human Services Department.

“We have six multiservice outreach centers and they’ve seen a 30 to 40 percent increase overall in requests,” she said. “And of those, we have a 40 to 50 percent increase in brand new, never-ever-sought-help clients; middle class people who are laid off, had an illness…

“An example is we had an engineer who practiced 30 years. He’s 62, got laid off, got another job and laid off from that and for the first time in his life he’s had to seek assistance, and last year he was one of our donors. It’s been very humbling.

“We have a lot of that, and for my staff, that’s the hardest thing to see – people brand new struggling so much.”

Jordan said the multiservice center food pantries served 12,000 different households compared to 8,000 at the same time last year. And as the third quarter ended so did the agency’s utility assistance funds. Those are funds from the county and matched by the cities to help families pay utility bills.

“We had a year’s worth of funding that we ran out (of) in September and many of the cities scrambled to get us a few more thousand dollars,” Jordan said. “Some cities couldn’t help and unfortunately we’re now turning people away.

“It’s pretty scary going into this winter and the cold weather not having as much funding.”

The federal poverty level in 2008 was $10,400 for one person, $14,000 for two people in a family, $17,600 for a family of three, and $21,200 for a family of four. For each additional member of a family, $3,600 is added.

An increase of people living in poverty impacts the local economy in a variety of ways, including poor health and increased criminal activity. Debbie Collins, executive director of Johnson County Human Services, said addressing poverty is a communitywide effort.

“We kind of cobble together a whole bunch of different resources to help families that are in need,” she said. “With most people we’re able to do something for them but typically aren’t able to provide for all of their needs.

“We’ve been able to keep up with the demand, but it’s been very, very draining and we certainly won’t have anything (funds) left at the end of the year.”

And it’s not likely to get any better. Collins said she is expecting a $200,000 decrease in her 2011 budget.

“We always prepare for the worst and hope for the best and usually things work out a little more in our favor than we think they will,” she said. “So hopefully, something will surface and things will get better.

“Maybe a miracle will happen.”

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