Organizations draw attention to poverty rates

URBANA – More than 1.5 million Illinoisans live in poverty, and another 681,786 are in extreme poverty – with incomes less than half the poverty line. In 2007, half of the poverty line is $10,310 for a family of four.

Illinois has one of the highest extreme poverty rates of any state in the Midwest, and two organizations have launched a statewide campaign to change that. The Chicago-based Heartland Alliance and the Illinois Coalition for Community Services in Springfield will sponsor a forum Thursday evening in Urbana to highlight poverty issues in Champaign County. It's one of 26 forums taking place around Illinois this year.

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