Family Economic Supports
You are in the Family Economic Supports section of the Casey Foundation Knowledge Center, which offers resources that are either published or funded by the Casey Foundation. Resources include information, resources, policies and strategies to help families stabilize their income and build wealth and assets.
See also Our Work: Economic Security, an overview of the Casey Foundation's investments in this issue.
See all Economic Security resources in the Knowledge Center.
Featured Publications

Seizing the Moment: State Governments and the New Commitment to Reduce Poverty in America
2008
CLASP and Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity, a Casey-funded initiative, have released a report highlighting national, state, and local efforts to address poverty. In this report, the authors identify which states have raised the political profile of fighting poverty and the challenges faced by those who struggle to make ends meet; also included are summaries of formal policy recommendations released by four states.
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Immigrant Integration in Low-Income Urban Neighborhoods: Improving Economic Prospects and Strengthening Connections for Vulnerable Families
2007
How well are immigrants integrating in U.S. inner cities? To answer this question, this report draws on a unique survey of residents in 10 vulnerable urban neighborhoods (part of Casey’s Making Connections initiative) to examine the financial well-being and economic integration of families of different racial, ethnic, and nativity status. Among the main findings is that families with children across all groups are especially vulnerable, and immigrants and native minorities in the neighborhoods we examine face similar types of economic difficulties ─ although to varying degrees. Overall, the report’s findings suggest that even in these tough neighborhoods, the potential for economic integration of immigrants is strong.
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States Ranked on the Basis of the Condition of Children in Low-income Families
2007
This KIDS COUNT Working Paper ranks all 50 states in terms of the condition of children living in low-income families. The report uses 29 state-level indicators from one year (2003) of two new data sources - the National Survey of Children’s Health and the American Community Survey. This new information is an important look at a target population that is often the focus of public policies to improve the lives of children.
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View the KIDS COUNT Data and Research Reports Series >>

Borrowing to Stay Healthy: How Credit Card Debt Is Related to Medical Expenses
2007
Financially stretched low-and middle-income families often find it difficult to meet out of pocket medical expenses, often turning to credit cards and accruing medical debt. To gain a better understanding of this phenomenon, this report analyzes data from a national household survey of low-and middle-income households with credit card debt.
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Affordable Car Ownership Programs: Transporting Families Toward Financial Stability and Success
2007
This article looks at innovative programs that are helping rural low-income families to acquire affordable, reliable transportation as a strategy to stabilize or improve their employment situation. The need for a car is particularly critical in rural areas, where there usually are no public transportation options, and jobs and fair-priced goods and services are far away. The brief describes a variety of car program approaches and how they help to build family economic success in rural communities.
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View the Rural Family Economic Success Practice Briefs Series >>

Securing State Commitments to Family Economic Prosperity
2007
This policy brief examines recent state poverty initiatives and explores the tools and strategies states are pursuing to improve economic security, including establishing measurable targets for poverty reduction.
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view all Family Economic Supports publications