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The Economic Status of Single Mothers
Report

The Economic Status of Single Mothers

Original Center for American Progress analysis shows that single mothers in the United States face economic insecurity, including high poverty rates and low incomes, that could be alleviated by strengthening the social safety net and advancing policies to support women in the workforce.

Building an Economy for All, Family Economic Security, Women’s Health and Rights, +2 More

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In this article
A mother carrying her baby in a baby carrier and holding an umbrella is seen crossing the street.
A mother carries an umbrella to provide shade for her child as she crosses the street in New York City on July 19, 2020. (Getty/Alexi Rosenfeld)

This report contains a correction.

Introduction and summary

Over the past five decades, family structures in the United States have changed. In 1970, 67 percent of adults ages 25 to 49 lived with a spouse and one or more nonadult children, but in 2021, only 37 percent did.1 A smaller but notable change is the increase in families headed by single parents—the overwhelming majority of whom are single mothers.2 Single mothers face the challenge of being their families’ breadwinners and caregivers,3 and the rise in dual-income families, in which both parents work, puts single-mother families at a comparative disadvantage in terms of family earnings.4 Although some single mothers receive financial assistance from child support5 or qualify for various forms of public assistance, existing levels of economic insecurity demand further policy action.

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This report first describes changing family structures in the United States over the past several decades, including changes in marriage trends, to contextualize the growing share of families headed by single mothers over time. It then details the Center for American Progress’ original analysis of single mothers’ characteristics and economic status. Using data from the Current Population Survey’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement,6 the analysis finds that there were 7.3 million single mothers in 2023, making up more than 4 in 5 single parents. Most single mothers are in their 30s to 40s and do not have a college degree, and about half have never been married. Single mothers are more likely to be Black than mothers overall. While three-quarters of single mothers are working and most are working full time, those working full time have a typical annual income of $40,000. Single mothers overall have a 28 percent poverty rate.* (see Figure 5) The following sections highlight various public assistance programs meant to help low-income single mothers.

The report pushes back on a narrative that encourages marriage as a policy solution to address the economic insecurity that single mothers face, instead offering policy solutions that combat poverty and prioritize the needs of working single mothers:

  • Expand the Child Tax Credit
  • Reform Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
  • Raise the minimum wage
  • Advance policies to promote equal pay
  • Pass universal paid family and medical leave
  • Build affordable and accessible child care

Such policies will advance economic security for single mothers and their families, building a stronger and more equitable economy.

Changing family structures and the rise of single-mother families

The share of single-mother families steadily increased from the 1970s onward; however, rates have dropped in the past decade.7 In 2023, single-mother families made up 1 in 5 families with their own children under age 18.8 Throughout the second half of the 20th century, women gained increased freedom and opportunity to shape their own lives, especially in deciding to marry or start a family.9 Women’s labor force participation rose substantially, and cultural norms on premarital sex, cohabitation, out-of-wedlock births, and divorce evolved.10

Relatedly, trends in marriage changed. From 1970 to 2021, marriage rates for adults dropped from 69 percent to 50 percent, while the percentage of adults over age 18 who have never been married rose from 17 percent to 31 percent.11 Today, marriage rates are lower for Black and Hispanic adults than for white and Asian adults, and marriage rates for adults with less than a bachelor’s degree are lower than rates for adults with a bachelor’s degree or higher.12 Other research finds that from 1979 to 2018, marriage rates for adults ages 33 to 44 dropped most prominently among those with lower educational attainment and in the lower and middle classes.13

To explain changes in marriage rates and the disparities among these rates, some scholars point to declining employment and wages among men with lower education attainment—especially Black men, who also face high incarceration rates that affect marriage rates.14 However, other research finds that the effects of male earnings on marriage rates are minimal, and women’s changing economic characteristics, such as the likelihood of their breadwinner status, are also notable.15 Trends in childbearing have also changed: The birth rate per one thousand unmarried women went from 26.4 in 1970 to 37.8 in 2021, although it has declined since 2010.16 Unmarried birth rates are highest among Black and Hispanic women.17

While childbirth to unmarried women explains part of the prevalence of single motherhood, some women become single mothers due to divorce or becoming widowed. (see Figure 1) Others may be pushed into single motherhood by an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy, which accounts for most births to unmarried women under the age of 30 in the United States,18 or they may choose to become single mothers due to a variety of personal circumstances.19 While single motherhood has always existed, changing societal norms and family structures have made the need for new policies more critical than ever.

While single motherhood has always existed, changing societal norms and family structures have made the need for new policies more critical than ever.

Single mothers’ characteristics and economic outcomes in 2023

In 2023, the United States was home to about 7.3 million single mothers—more than 4 in 5 of all single parents. CAP analysis provides a demographic breakdown of single mothers by age, education, and race. It also analyzes economic outcomes, showing that single mothers have low earnings and high poverty rates20 compared with both single fathers and married parents.

A note on the data

In this analysis, single mothers are defined as women with coresident children under age 18 with no spouse present—which includes mothers who have never been married; are married with an absent spouse; or are separated, divorced, or widowed—and no cohabitating partners.21

Number of single and married parents living with children under age 18 in the United States, 2023

7.3M

single mothers

1.6M

single fathers

48.7M

married parents

The age, education, marital status, and race of single mothers in 2023

According to CAP analysis, in 2023, 20 percent of single mothers were under 30, 39 percent were in their 30s, 31 percent were in their 40s, and 10 percent were 50 or older. (see Figure 1) While just more than half of single mothers have never been married (51 percent), the other half are single due to a divorce (28 percent), a separation (16 percent), or having been widowed (5 percent). CAP finds that about 76 percent of single mothers had less than a bachelor’s degree. In terms of race, in 2023, 37 percent of single mothers were white, 29 percent were Black, 3 percent were Asian, and 26 percent were Hispanic. (see Figure 2)

FIGURE 1

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The racial breakdown of different parent types shows that single mothers are less likely to be white than both mothers overall and mothers who are married. Single mothers are twice as likely to be Black as mothers overall—29 percent versus 15 percent—and almost four times as likely as married mothers—8 percent. (see Figure 2)

FIGURE 2

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The share of mothers who are single mothers varies significantly by race and ethnicity. While 21 percent of all mothers were single mothers in 2023, 47 percent of Black mothers and 25 percent of Hispanic mothers were single mothers. White mothers and Asian mothers had lower rates of single motherhood than mothers overall at 14 percent and 8 percent, respectively.

FIGURE 3

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The labor force participation, employment status, median incomes, and poverty rates of single mothers in 2022/2023

Labor force participation

Many single mothers must provide income for their families while also being the primary caretakers, a dynamic that affects their attachment to the labor market. In 2023, 4.4 percent were unemployed and 20.6 percent were not in the labor force. In comparison, 2.8 percent of single fathers were unemployed and 14.7 percent were not in the labor force. Married mothers were less likely to be in the labor force than single mothers. (see Figure 4)

Employment status

In 2023, 18 percent of employed single mothers worked part time, double the rate of single fathers. Married mothers were more likely to work part time at 21 percent, and married fathers were least likely, at 4 percent.22 (see Figure 4) Single mothers may be more burdened by child care disruptions. For example, school and child care closures during the COVID-19 pandemic particularly hurt single mothers’ employment: In November 2020, 1 in 5 single mothers who faced disruptions in child care reported that they had stopped working, a rate twice as high as that of other parents.23

FIGURE 4

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Median income of full-time workers

Single mothers working full time in 2022 had a median annual income of $40,000.24 (see Figure 5) This is lower than single fathers’ income ($57,000), married mothers’ income ($60,000), and married fathers’ income ($76,000). Single Black women ($38,000) and Hispanic women ($34,000) earned lower median yearly incomes than single white women ($50,000).25 While lower educational attainment rates contribute to a low median income for single mothers, so do factors driving the gender wage gap such as occupational segregation, pay discrimination, and disproportionate caregiving burdens.26 The gender wage gap exists in nearly every occupation and at every level of worker education, and it contributes to greater economic insecurity for women than for men.27 Comparing among workers with earnings working full time, single mothers made just 56 cents for every dollar fathers overall made—a significantly wider wage gap than mothers overall face.28

Read more on the gender wage gap

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Poverty rates

In 2022, single mothers had a poverty rate of 28 percent using the official poverty measure (OPM) and 26 percent using the supplemental poverty measure (SPM).29 (see Figure 5) Single fathers had lower official poverty rates at 15 percent, which supports the finding that single mothers tend to have higher rates of poverty than single fathers.30 For married mothers and fathers, poverty rates were substantially lower, at 5 percent. Official poverty rates were highest for single mothers who are Black at 31 percent and Hispanic at 33 percent, compared with single mothers who are white 24 percent.31

FIGURE 5

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Despite single mothers’ above-average employment rates compared with women’s overall employment rates,32 they continue to earn low incomes and experience high poverty rates compared with single fathers and married parents. These data should spur policymakers to take action to strengthen economic security for single mothers and their families.

Poverty harms children in single-mother families, and the child support system falls short

In 2022, almost 16 million children under age 18 lived with their mothers only.33 Low earnings and high poverty among single mothers mean these children have a higher likelihood of living in poverty than children in married-parent families, which has profound adverse effects on child outcomes.34 Research finds that relative to white children, Black and Latino children are more likely to live in poverty due to single motherhood.35 Children in single-parent families may also deal with emotional and behavioral health issues linked to parental stress and instability.36

While child support can help single parents cover the costs of raising children, existing structures fail to bridge financial gaps for single mothers. The Office of Child Support Services, which oversees state-level child support programs that manage collecting child support payments for custodial parents, served 12.8 million children in fiscal year 2022.37 But less than one-quarter of single-mother families receive child support.38 Additionally, the structure of state programs results in custodial parents not receiving the child support payments they are owed if the noncustodial parent does not pay, or if the custodial parent relinquishes their rights to child support to the state, which they are required to do in order to receive TANF benefits.39 The child support system has also historically harmed noncustodial parents, predominantly low-income Black men, through harsh collection efforts and debt policies that often trap these parents in poverty.40 While child support payments provide important assistance, single mothers and their children would be better served by a system that prioritizes providing opportunities over punishments.41

The social safety net provides some assistance but does not adequately support low-income single mothers

The work requirements for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) leave many single mothers without economic security through employment or vital cash assistance.

As a government program meant to help low-income families, TANF is crucial to supporting single mothers. However, its requirement that participants document work, as well as other burdensome administrative components, have left many without much-needed assistance, and the program has not successfully promoted economic security through employment.42

A primer on TANF

  • TANF is a $16.5 billion block grant program that provides financial assistance to low-income families with children, promotes self-sufficiency through work and job training initiatives, prevents out-of-wedlock pregnancies, and encourages marriage.43
  • In 1996, TANF replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), which had provided cash assistance to low-income families since 1935.44
  • Unlike AFDC, TANF has work requirements that applicants must meet and document to be eligible for benefits.45
  • In many states, applicants must have incomes far below the federal poverty level to be eligible for benefits, and most recipients can only receive benefits for up to five years.46
  • In fiscal year 2023, more than 1 million families received TANF benefits.47

The change from AFDC to TANF brought a substantial reduction in the number of families with children in poverty receiving benefits—from 68 percent in 1996 to 21 percent in 2020.48 This decrease is partly explained by previous recipients moving off the program due to heightened income from employment and a robust economy during the late 1990s.49 However, an analysis by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that 87 percent of the decrease in the TANF caseload from 1995 to 2005 was due to eligible families—those with employed individuals who still qualified for benefits—not participating in the program. The GAO attributes this finding to TANF’s “mandatory work requirements, changes to application procedures, lower benefits, and policies such as lifetime limits on assistance, diversion policies, and sanctions for non-compliance.”50

In fiscal year 2023, about 580,000 one-parent families were receiving TANF benefits. This likely represents a fraction of eligible families, given that in 2019, only 21 percent of eligible families participated in the program.51 Furthermore, only a small portion of TANF state spending goes to work, education, and training activities, and the program’s success measures incentivize quick job placement that does not help participants address significant life barriers or find quality jobs. Employment drops for many post-program participants, and their low earnings and poverty persist.52 While TANF has contributed to heightened employment for some single mothers, it has left others without economic security through employment or vital cash assistance.53 This growing group of “disconnected” single mothers faces deep poverty, poor health and education, and food insecurity.54

Single mothers may qualify for other public assistance programs that provide support

Besides TANF, other types of government programs such as nutrition, shelter, and public health insurance can help low-income single mothers. In 2022, about 38 percent of single mothers received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits; 14 percent received benefits from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); and 85 percent received free or reduced lunch subsidies for their children. (see Figure 6) Seventeen percent received public housing subsidies, and 8 percent received rent subsidies. About 40 percent of single mothers were covered by Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), or other means-tested coverage.55 While spending on cash assistance has declined, “changes in eligibility rules and outreach” for other government assistance programs made these programs more accessible.56

Refundable tax credits for low-income people and people with children also provide financial relief to single mothers. The Child Tax Credit (CTC) and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) aim to provide tax relief for low-income people and help families with the cost of raising children. In 2022, 77 percent of single mothers received the CTC—including both those who received it as a refundable and a nonrefundable tax credit—with 48 percent receiving at least a portion as a refundable tax credit. Half of single mothers received some EITC. (see Figure 6)

In 2021, ARPA temporarily enhanced and expanded tax credits to increase refunds and reach more people,57 resulting in an estimated 97 percent of single mothers being eligible for the CTC.58 However, the expansion expired at the end of 2021, and Congress did not extend it.59

FIGURE 6

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While antipoverty initiatives such as SNAP and refundable tax credits have expanded considerably and been proven effective in alleviating hardship, individuals with minimal or no cash income still require monthly cash assistance for enhanced economic security.60

Why marriage is not a solution to economic insecurity

The difference in the economic outcomes of single-mother families compared with married couple families has elicited a discussion on the importance of marriage for families’ economic security.61 Melissa Kearney, author of The Two-Parent Privilege, argues that the United States must restore the norm of a two-parent family because dual-earner households typically have higher incomes than single-parent families, which is better for children’s outcomes.62 Brad Wilcox, director of the National Marriage Project and author of Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization, makes a similar argument.63 Project 2025, a far-right, authoritarian playbook,64 goes much further, claiming if the “crisis of marriage and the family” continues, our nation is headed toward “social implosion.” As for solutions, Project 2025 proposes repealing policies focusing on LGBTQ+ equality or “subsidizing single-motherhood” and replacing them with policies that encourage the formation of “married, nuclear families” that are narrowly and heterosexually defined.65

Yet encouraging marriage as a policy solution fails to meet people where they are and address the economic insecurity that single mothers face. While dual-earner families have better financial resources than single-earner families, marriage does not always guarantee nor cause greater economic security.66 Policymakers have attempted to use government intervention to encourage marriage for decades but have failed.67 The reality is that family structure in the United States has always evolved and will continue to do so. As discussed above, the increased prevalence of single motherhood over time correlates with increased participation of women in the labor force, evolving cultural norms on marriage and family, and trends in economic disparities that influence marriage and childbearing. A policy platform such as Project 2025 denies these trends in pursuit of a narrow, conservative view of what a family should be.

Furthermore, discussion cannot center around unmarried women when 44 percent of single mothers are divorced or separated. (see Figure 1) The introduction of no-fault divorce laws in the 1970s made divorce more attainable, granting women increased freedom to end unwanted or even dangerous marriages.68 Research has found that states that introduced no-fault divorce laws saw decreased rates of domestic violence, female suicide, and spousal homicide.69 Policies that encourage marriage, at best, ignore the reality that many married couples want a divorce or separation. At worst, they incentivize staying in marriages that are harmful to the well-being of women and their children.

Advancing marriage as a solution to high poverty among single mothers and their children places pressure on individuals to get married and stay married. Marriage should not be the only way for women to maintain economic security for themselves and their children. Instead, policy solutions that meet parents where they are and foster a strong social safety net—which Kearney’s work supports but the far right’s marriage argument does not—will address the economic hardships single mothers face.

Successful policies to combat poverty and support single mothers

A comprehensive policy agenda is needed to improve the livelihoods of single mothers and their families. To fight high poverty rates among single mothers, policymakers should permanently expand the CTC, reform TANF, and raise the minimum wage. To bolster single mothers’ ability to maintain economic security and care for their families, policymakers should advance pay equity for women, pass universal paid family and medical leave, and invest in affordable and accessible child care.

Expand the CTC

Refundable tax credits are crucial to lifting single mothers and their children out of poverty. In 2021, the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) temporarily enhanced and expanded the CTC to increase refunds and reach more people. The act increased the size of the CTC and expanded eligibility for those younger than 18, made the tax credit fully refundable, and provided a portion of CTC benefits to be paid monthly.70

However, the expansion expired at the end of 2021, and Congress did not extend it. Since then, millions fewer families have received valuable assistance, and supplemental poverty rates have returned to preexpansion levels.71 Lawmakers should restore the ARPA changes to these tax credits to ease financial burdens for low-income single mothers and reduce child poverty among single-mother families.

Reform TANF

Critical reforms would help TANF better alleviate poverty for low-income families, especially single mothers. The program’s block grant structure should be eliminated so that funding does not continue to lose value due to arbitrary, outdated funding limits.72 Instead, funding should be determined using the number of eligible people applying for assistance and the benefits levels necessary to meet applicants’ needs. Congress should impose federal standards on state spending, and states should expand cash assistance, which is vital for single mothers struggling to make ends meet. It should also expand other benefits, such as child care and subsidized jobs programs, that help mothers care for their children and maintain employment.73

Congress should reform TANF to broaden eligibility and remove structural barriers to access, including by lifting the income threshold.74 Instead of requiring states to reduce or take away benefits when recipients fail to comply with work requirements without “good cause,” TANF should support people with immediate hardships through cash assistance and real pathways to stable employment. The program’s success measures should be reformed to incentivize states to assist more people in need by measuring the number of families in poverty who receive assistance, benefits levels, the share of state funds spent on core supports, and job quality for those transitioning out of the program.75

Raise the minimum wage

Lawmakers should raise the minimum wage and eliminate the subminimum wage to improve the economic security of low-income single mothers and lift many of them out of poverty.76 Previous CAP analysis revealed that implementing a $15 per hour minimum wage could increase the wages of a quarter of the workforce and boost annual wages by as much as $8,000 for some of the lowest-wage workers.77

Raising the minimum wage would greatly benefit single mothers—particularly Black and Hispanic single mothers—because women, Black, and Hispanic workers are overrepresented among minimum wage earners, as well as among those earning less than $15 per hour.78 The most recent version of the Raise the Wage Act would bump the minimum wage to $17 per hour, which would have even more profound and overdue effects.79

Advance policies for equal pay

The gender pay gap continues to harm women’s earnings, which could have even greater economic consequences for single mothers. In 2022, women typically earned only 84 percent of men’s earnings, with larger disparities for Black and Hispanic women compared with white, non-Hispanic men.80 Women are also more likely than men to earn low wages.81

Congress should pass the Paycheck Fairness Act, which would strengthen federal equal pay protections, prohibit employer retaliation, and limit employer reliance on salary history in pay-setting during the hiring process.82 Further, policymakers must work to ensure historically female-dominated jobs are adequately paid and to increase pathways into higher-paid occupations for women in order to provide single mothers greater economic opportunities with good pay and benefits.83

Pass universal paid family and medical leave

The United States has no federal guarantee for paid family and medical leave, which would provide workers paid time off for things such as parental leave, a serious health condition, or caring for a seriously ill child.84 Federal law also does not guarantee any paid sick days—short-term time off that workers can use for everyday health needs and for their own serious conditions or those of a loved one. While employers can provide paid leave, many workers, especially in low-wage occupations and industries, do not have access to this critical support needed to maintain employment while caring for their families.85

To support single mothers and their families, policymakers must pass a universal paid family and medical leave policy such as the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act,86 which would guarantee workers the right to 12 weeks of paid leave, and a paid sick days policy such as the Healthy Families Act,87 which would provide seven days of paid sick leave.

Build affordable and accessible child care

More than half the U.S. population lives in a child care desert.88 Without viable child care options, mothers are often forced to modify their work schedules, settle for lower-quality care, or leave the workforce altogether—a decision that can jeopardize their family’s financial security. Crucially, such investments would reduce the economic challenges that women frequently face due to their disproportionate caregiving responsibilities. Expensive and inaccessible child care poses a further risk to single mothers: A CAP analysis of the 2016 Early Childhood Program Participation Survey found that when single mothers were unable to find a child care program, they experienced a drop in employment from 84 percent to 67 percent.89

Significant public investment is needed to help expand supply, adequately compensate the child care workforce, and bring down costs for families—costs that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends are no more than 7 percent of families’ incomes. The Child Care for Working Families Act90 would make child care more accessible and affordable while supporting workers and addressing racial and gender disparities. Consistent public funding for child care will more effectively support families in balancing their work and caregiving duties without draining them of vital income.

Conclusion

There is nothing inherent about the disadvantage [single parenthood] brings … For it to be seen that way depends on decisions about the distribution of resources in society, alongside dominant assumptions about appropriate family forms, both which … are contingent and up for revision. Gideon Calder in The Triple Bind of Single-Parent Families

Family structures have changed, and lawmakers cannot ignore the prevalence and experiences of single-mother families. Too many single mothers and their families face unnecessary poverty and economic insecurity, and pushing women to marry and stay married is not the solution. The policies outlined in this report offer ways to alleviate the hardships of single mothers and their children, boost economic security, and build a stronger and more equitable economy.

*Correction, August 8, 2023: This report has been corrected to clarify the poverty rate for single mothers.

Endnotes

  1. Carolina Aragão and others, “The Modern American Family: Key Trends In Marriage And Family Life,” Pew Research Center, September 14, 2023, available at https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2023/09/14/the-modern-american-family/.
  2. Defined here as mother only, one-parent families with own children under 18. See U.S. Census Bureau, “Table FM-1: Families by Presence of Own Children Under 18: 1950 to Present,” available at https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/families/families.html (last accessed May 2024); U.S. Census Bureau, “Figure FM-1: Families with own children under 18,” available at https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/visualizations/time-series/demo/families-and-households/fm-1.pdf (last accessed May 2024).
  3. Sarah Jane Glynn, “Breadwinning Mothers Continue To Be the U.S. Norm” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2019), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/breadwinning-mothers-continue-u-s-norm/.
  4. Rense Nieuwenhuis, “Single Parents Competing in a Dual-Earner Society: Social Policy to Level the Playing Field,” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 702 (1) (2022): 114–128, available at https://doi.org/10.1177/00027162221122686.
  5. The Annie E. Casey Foundation, “Child Support Statistics in the United States,” last updated June 29, 2024, available at https://www.aecf.org/blog/less-than-1-in-4-single-mother-families-receive-child-support/.
  6. Sarah Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset)” (Minneapolis: Minnesota Population Center, 2024), available at https://cps.ipums.org/cps/.
  7. Defined here as mother-only, one-parent families with own children under 18. Based on author’s calculations using U.S. Census Bureau, “Table FM-1: Families by Presence of Own Children Under 18: 1950 to Present”; U.S. Census Bureau, “Figure FM-1: Families with own children under 18.”
  8. Ibid.
  9. Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (January 22, 1973), available at https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/supreme-court-case-library/roe-v-wade; U.S. Federal Trade Commission, “Equal Credit Opportunity Act,” available at available at https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/statutes/equal-credit-opportunity-act (last accessed June 2024); Kimberly Wehle, “The Coming Attack on an Essential Element of Women’s Freedom,” The Atlantic, September 26, 2023, available at https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/09/no-fault-divorce-laws-republicans-repeal/675371/; Jenna Romaine, “Single women were given the right to birth control 50 years ago today,” The Hill, March 22, 2022, available at https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/equality/599274-single-women-were-given-the-right-to-birth-control-50-years/; Rose Khattar and Sara Estep, “Playbook for the Advancement of Women in the Economy” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2024), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/playbook-for-the-advancement-of-women-in-the-economy/
  10. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data from Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, “Labor Force Participation Rate – Women,” available at https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS11300002 (last accessed February 2024); Gretchen Livingston, “The Changing Profile Of Unmarried Parents” (Washington: Pew Research Center, 2018), available at https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2018/04/25/the-changing-profile-of-unmarried-parents/; David T. Ellwood and Christopher Jencks, “The Spread of Single-Parent Families in the United States Since 1960,” John F. Kennedy School of Government Faculty Research Working Paper Series RWP04-008 (2004), available at https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=517662.
  11. Aragão and others, “The Modern American Family: Key Trends In Marriage And Family Life.”
  12. Ibid.
  13. Richard V. Reeves and Christopher Pulliam, “Middle Class Marriage Is Declining, And Likely Deepening Inequality” (Washington: Brookings Institution, 2020), available at https://www.brookings.edu/articles/middle-class-marriage-is-declining-and-likely-deepening-inequality/#:~:text=Since%20then%2C%20both%20the%20middle%20class%20and%20lower,affluent%2C%20used%20to%20have%20the%20highest%20marriage%20rates.
  14. R. Kelly Raley, Megan M. Sweeney, and Danielle Wondra, “The Growing Racial and Ethnic Divide in U.S. Marriage Patterns,” The Future of Children 25 (2) (2015): 89–109, available at https://www.jstor.org/stable/43581974; Isabel Sawhill and Joanna Venator, “Is There a Shortage of Marriageable Men?” (Washington: Center on Children and Families at Brookings, 2015), available at https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/56-Is-There-a-Shortage-of-Marriageable-Men-3.pdf.
  15. Ibid.
  16. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Table 1-18. Birth Rates for Unmarried Women by Age of Mother, According to Race and Hispanic Origin: United States, Specified Years, 1940-55 and Each Year 1960-2000,” available at https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/statab/t001x18.pdf (last accessed May 2024); Michelle J.K. Osterman and others, “Births: Final Data for 2021,” National Vital Statistics Report 72 (1) (2023), available at https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr72/nvsr72-01.pdf.
  17. Ibid.
  18. Isabel V. Sawhill, “Single Parents in High-Income Countries: What the United States Can Learn from Others,” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 702 (2022): 226–235, available at https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/00027162221123446.
  19. Jackie Molloy, “Portraits of Single Moms by Choice,” The New York Times, May 5, 2020, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/05/parenting/single-moms-by-choice-photos.html.
  20. Incomes and poverty rates are reported for the previous calendar year. See Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset).”
  21. Ibid.
  22. “Full time” includes those who usually work 35 hours or more per week. “Part time” includes those who worked less than 35 hours per week. See U.S. Census Bureau, “Subject Definitions,” available at https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/cps/technical-documentation/subject-definitions.html (last accessed July 2024).
  23. Ana Hernández Kent, “Single Mothers Face Difficulties with Slim Financial Cushions,” Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis On the Economy Blog, May 9, 2022, available at https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-economy/2022/may/single-mothers-slim-financial-cushions.
  24. Incomes and poverty rates are reported for the previous calendar year. See Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset).”
  25. Author’s calculations using Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset).”
  26. Robin Bleiweis, “Quick Facts About the Gender Wage Gap” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2020), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/quick-facts-gender-wage-gap/.
  27. Rose Khattar, “Closing the Gender Pay Gap” in “Playbook for the Advancement of Women in the Economy” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2024), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/playbook-for-the-advancement-of-women-in-the-economy/closing-the-gender-pay-gap/.
  28. Author’s analysis of wage gaps using Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset)”; and Equal Pay Today, “Moms’ Equal Pay Day 2024,” available at https://www.equalpaytoday.org/moms-equal-pay-day (last accessed August 2024).
  29. The OPM threshold considers pretax income against the equivalent of three times a yearly low-cost food budget from 1963, varying by household composition and adjusted for inflation. The SPM considers in-kind government assistance, as well as out-of-pocket expenses (such as child support paid) and taxes. See Kyle Ross, “Poverty Rose in 2022, But Policy Solutions Can Create a More Equitable Economy,” Center for American Progress, September 12, 2023, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/poverty-rose-in-2022-but-policy-solutions-can-create-a-more-equitable-economy/.
  30. Yuan-Chiao Lu and others, “Inequalities in Poverty and Income between Single Mothers and Fathers,” International Journal Of Environmental Research And Public Health 17 (135) (2019), available at https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17010135; Karen Z. Kramer and others, “Comparison of Poverty and Income Disparity of Single Mothers and Fathers Across Three Decades: 1990–2010,” Gender Issues 33 (2016): 22–41, available at https://doi.org/10.1007/s12147-015-9144-3.
  31. Author’s calculations using Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset).”
  32. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data from Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, “Employment-Population Ratio – Women (LNS12300002),” available at https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/LNS12300002 (last accessed June 2024).
  33. U.S. Census Bureau, “C3. Living Arrangements of Children Under 18 Years and Marital Status of Parents, by Age, Sex, and Selected Characteristics of the Child for All Children: 2022,” available at https://www.census.gov/data/tables/2022/demo/families/cps-2022.html (last accessed May 2024).
  34. Areeba Haider, “The Basic Facts About Children in Poverty” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2021), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/basic-facts-children-poverty/.
  35. Regina S. Baker, “Ethno-Racial Variation in Single Motherhood Prevalences and Penalties for Child Poverty in the United States, 1995–2018,” The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 702 (1) (2022): 20–36, available at https://doi.org/10.1177/00027162221120759.
  36. The Annie E. Casey Foundation, “Child Well-Being In Single-Parent Families,” August 1, 2022, available at https://www.aecf.org/blog/child-well-being-in-single-parent-families.
  37. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “FY 2022 Preliminary Data Report and Tables,” available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/css/policy-guidance/fy-2022-preliminary-data-report-and-tables (last accessed February 2024); U.S. Census Bureau, “Child Support,” available at https://www.census.gov/topics/families/child-support.html (last accessed February 2024).
  38. The Annie E. Casey Foundation, “Child Support Statistics in the United States.”
  39. Kyle Ross, “Learning from the United States’ Painful History of Child Support,” Center for American Progress, June 17, 2022, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/learning-from-the-united-states-painful-history-of-child-support/.
  40. Ibid.
  41. Kyle Ross, “3 Ways States Can Improve Child Support,” Center for American Progress, February 1, 2024, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/3-ways-states-can-improve-child-support/.
  42. Basic assistance benefits have decreased over time, and TANF funding has not been adjusted for inflation in several decades, meaning federal and state budgets have lost about 40 percent and 50 percent of their values, respectively. See Justin Schweitzer, “TANF Is a Key Part of the Mix of Aid Programs Supporting Families During COVID-19 Crisis” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2020), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/tanf-key-part-mix-aid-programs-supporting-families-covid-19-crisis/; Lily Roberts, “Work Requirements Are Expensive for the Government To Administer and Don’t Lead To More Employment,” Center for American Progress, April 25, 2023, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/work-requirements-are-expensive-for-the-government-to-administer-and-dont-lead-to-more-employment/.
  43. Ibid.
  44. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, “Policy Basics: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families,” available at https://www.cbpp.org/research/family-income-support/policy-basics-an-introduction-to-tanf (last accessed June 2024).
  45. Ibid.
  47. Including assistance through states’ separate state programs and maintenance-of-effort funds funds. S. Department of Health & Human Services, “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Separate State Programs (SSP) – Maintenance-of-Effort (MOE) Caseload Data – Fiscal Year (FY) 2023” available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ofa/fy2023_tanssp_caseload.pdf (last accessed June 2024).
  48. Ibid.
  49. Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance, “Temporary Assistance For Needy Families, 13th Report To Congress, Fiscal Years 2016 through 2021” (Washington: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2024), available at https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ofa/13th_tanf_report_to_congress_final.pdf.
  50. Kay E. Brown, “Testimony Before the Senate Finance Committee: Temporary Assistance For Needy Families: Update on Program Performance,” U.S. Government Accountability Office, June 5, 2012, available at https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-12-812t.pdf.
  51. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data does not breakdown TANF recipients data by gender. See U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Separate State Programs (SSP) – Maintenance-of-Effort (MOE) Caseload Data – Fiscal Year (FY) 2023”; Administration for Children and Families, Office of Family Assistance “Temporary Assistance For Needy Families 13th Report To Congress Fiscal Years 2016 through 2021.”
  52. See Ladonna Pavetti, “TANF Cash Assistance Helps Families, But Program Is Not the Success Some Claim,” Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, August 2, 2021, available at https://www.cbpp.org/research/income-security/tanf-cash-assistance-helps-families-but-program-is-not-the-success-some; Roberts, “Work Requirements Are Expensive for the Government To Administer and Don’t Lead To More Employment.”
  53. Kristin S. Seefeldt and Heather Sandstrom, “When There Is No Welfare: The Income Packaging Strategies of Mothers Without Earnings or Cash Assistance Following an Economic Downturn,” The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences 1 (1) (2015): 139–158, available at https://www.rsfjournal.org/content/rsfjss/1/1/139.full.pdf; Rebecca Blank and Brian Kovak, “The growing problem of disconnected single mothers,” Focus 25 (2) (2007–2008): 27–34, available at https://www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/focus/pdfs/foc252e.pdf; Robert A. Moffitt, “The Deserving Poor, the Family, and the U.S. Welfare System,” Demography 52 (3) (2015): 729–749, available at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4487675/; Claire Cain Miller and Ernie Tedeschi, “Single Mothers Are Surging Into the Work Force,” The New York Times, May 29, 2019, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/29/upshot/single-mothers-surge-employment.html.
  54. Ibid.
  55. Medicaid enrollment data may be inflated due to the continuous coverage requirement, in effect from March 18, 2020, to March 31, 2023, which required state Medicaid agencies to keep individuals enrolled without regular eligibility redeterminations or renewals. Enrollment data during this period may include individuals who under typical circumstances would not qualify or remain enrolled. For information on the data, see Current Population Survey, “HIMCAIDNW,” available at https://cps.ipums.org/cps-action/variables/HIMCAIDNW#description_section (last accessed May 2024).
  56. Blank and Kovak, “The growing problem of disconnected single mothers.”
  57. Arohi Pathak, “Making CTC and EITC Expansions Permanent Would Reduce Poverty and Grow the Economy,” Center for American Progress, September 21, 2021, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/making-ctc-eitc-expansions-permanent-reduce-poverty-grow-ececonomy/.
  58. Author’s calculations using Flood and others, “Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic (ASEC): Version 10.0 (dataset).”
  59. Ross, “Poverty Rose in 2022, But Policy Solutions Can Create a More Equitable Economy.”
  60. Danilo Trisi And Matt Saenz, “Deep Poverty Among Children Rose in TANF’s First Decade, Then Fell as Other Programs Strengthened” (Washington: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 2020), available at https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/deep-poverty-among-children-rose-in-tanfs-first-decade-then-fell-as.
  61. Paul R. Amato and Rebecca A. Maynard, “Decreasing Nonmarital Births and Strengthening Marriage to Reduce Poverty,” The Future of Children 17 (2) (2007): 117–141, available at https://www.jstor.org/stable/4495063.
  62. The declining share of children living with married parents has widened disparities in child well-being between married and unmarried households. See Melissa Kearney, The Two-Parent Privilege: How Americans Stopped Getting Married and Started Falling Behind (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2023); Melissa S. Kearney, “The Explosive Rise of Single-Parent Families Is Not a Good Thing,” The New York Times, September 17, 2023, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/17/opinion/single-parent-families-income-inequality-college.html.
  63. Nicholas Kristof, “The Case for Saying ‘I Do’,” The New York Times, March 30, 2024, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/30/opinion/marriage-wealth-happiness.html. See also Belinda Luscombe, “Does Marriage Really Bring People Happiness? A Discussion,” Time, February 20, 2024, available at https://time.com/6696116/marriage-happiness-brad-wilcox-interview/; Jane Coaston, “‘I Said, “What’s Your Plan About Marriage and Dating?” And There Was Silence.’,” The New York Times, February 26, 2024, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/26/opinion/brad-wilcox-marriage-conservatives.html.
  64. Colin Seeberger and others, “What Is Project 2025?” Center for American Progress, July 12, 2024, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/what-is-project-2025/.
  65. The Heritage Foundation, Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise, (Washington: 2023), available at https://whatisproject2025.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/2025_MandateForLeadership_FULL.pdf.
  66. Research has found that using a contemporary poverty line, about half of adults below the federal poverty line who cared for related children were married. Research has also found that the impact of marriage on lowering poverty has declined over time while the impact of work has increased. See Shawn Fremstad, “Married … without Means: Poverty and Economic Hardship Among Married Americans” (Washington: Center for Economic and Policy Research, 2012), available at https://www.files.ethz.ch/isn/154991/married-without-means-2012-11.pdf; Regina S. Baker, “The Changing Association Among Marriage, Work, and Child Poverty in the United States, 1974–2010,” Journal of Marriage and Family 77 (5) (2015): 1166–1178, available at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jomf.12216.
  67. Eduardo Porter, “Politicians Push Marriage, but That’s Not What Would Help Children,” The New York Times, March 22, 2016, available at https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/23/business/for-the-sake-of-the-children-not-marriage-but-help.html; Jennifer M. Randles, “Marriage Promotion Policy and Family Inequality,” Sociology Compass 6 (8) (2012): 671–683, available at https://compass.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/j.1751-9020.2012.00482.x.
  68. Ashawnta Jackson, “The Lost History of No-Fault Divorces,” JSTOR Daily, December 5, 2022, available at https://daily.jstor.org/the-lost-history-of-no-fault-divorces/#:~:text=It%20was%20a%20long%20road%20to%20no%2Dfault%20divorce%20becoming%20the%20norm%20(and%20it%E2%80%99s%20up%20for%20debate%20again)%2C%20with%20the%20first%20state%2C%20California%2C%20adopting%20it%20in%201969%2C%20and%20the%20last%2C%20New%20York%2C%20in%202010.%20Ultimately%2C%20the%20models%20drafted%20by%20NAWL%20weren%E2%80%99t%20the%20basis%20for%20the%20change; Jaden Loo, “Divorce Rate in the U.S.: Geographic Variation, 2022,” available at https://www.bgsu.edu/ncfmr/resources/data/family-profiles/loo-divorce-rate-US-geographic-variation-2022-fp-23-24.html#:~:text=After%20reaching%20a%2040%2Dyear,increase%20from%202021%20to%202022.
  69. Betsey Stevenson and Justin Wolfers, “Bargaining in the Shadow of the Law: Divorce Laws and Family Distress,” The Quarterly Journal of Economics 121 (1) (2006): 267–288, available at bargaining_in_the_shadow_of_the_law.pdf (nber.org).
  70. Pathak, “Making CTC and EITC Expansions Permanent Would Reduce Poverty and Grow the Economy”; Ross, “Poverty Rose in 2022, But Policy Solutions Can Create a More Equitable Economy.”
  71. Ibid.
  72. Justin Schweitzer, “TANF Must Be Able To Respond Faster and Stronger to Economic Crises” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2022) available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/tanf-must-be-able-to-respond-faster-and-stronger-to-economic-crises/.
  73. Schweitzer, “TANF Must Be Able To Respond Faster and Stronger to Economic Crises”; Justin Schweitzer, “How States Can Use TANF Funds To Help More Residents in Need” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2020), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/states-can-use-tanf-funds-help-residents-need/; Justin Schweitzer, “How States Can Use TANF To Immediately Help Struggling Residents” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2020), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/states-can-use-tanf-immediately-help-struggling-residents/.
  74. Schweitzer, “TANF Must Be Able To Respond Faster and Stronger to Economic Crises.”
  75. Ibid.
  76. Robin Bleiweis, Diana Boesch, and Alexandra Cawthorne Gaines, “The Basic Facts About Women in Poverty,” Center for American Progress, August 3, 2020, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/basic-facts-women-poverty/; Diana Boesch, Robin Bleiweis, and Areeba Haider, “Raising the Minimum Wage Would Be Transformative for Women,” Center for American Progress, February 23, 2021, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/raising-minimum-wage-transformative-women/.
  77. Rose Khattar, Sara Estep, and Lily Roberts, “Raising the Minimum Wage Would Be an Investment in Growing the Middle Class,” Center for American Progress, July 20, 2023, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/raising-the-minimum-wage-would-be-an-investment-in-growing-the-middle-class/.
  78. Ibid.
  79. Raise the Wage Act of 2023, S. 2488, 118th Cong., 1st sess. (July 25, 2023), available at https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/2488/text.
  80. Isabela Salas-Betsch, “5 Facts From the 2022 Wage Gap Data,” Center for American Progress, September 20, 2023, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/5-facts-from-the-2022-wage-gap-data/.
  81. Ibid.
  82. Khattar, “Closing the Gender Pay Gap.”
  83. Ibid.
  84. Molly Weston Williamson, “The State of Paid Family and Medical Leave in the U.S. in 2024” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2024), available at

    https://www.americanprogress.org/article/the-state-of-paid-family-and-medical-leave-in-the-u-s-in-2024/ .

  85. Ibid.
  86. Molly Weston Williamson, “Getting To Know the New FAMILY Act” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2023), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/getting-to-know-the-new-family-act/.
  87. Molly Weston Williamson, “Getting To Know the Healthy Families Act,” Center for American Progress, September 5, 2023, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/getting-to-know-the-healthy-families-act/.
  88. Rasheed Malik and Katie Hamm, “Mapping America’s Child Care Deserts” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2017), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/mapping-americas-child-care-deserts/.
  89. Leila Schochet, “The Child Care Crisis Is Keeping Women Out of the Workforce” (Washington: Center for American Progress, 2019), available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/child-care-crisis-keeping-women-workforce/.
  90. Child Care for Working Families Act, 118th Cong., 1st sess. (April 27, 2023), available at https://www.murray.senate.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/The-Child-Care-for-Working-Families-Act-Bill-Text.pdf; CAP Early Childhood Policy Team, “5 Things To Know About the Child Care for Working Families Act,” Center for American Progress, May 1, 2023, available at https://www.americanprogress.org/article/5-things-to-know-about-the-child-care-for-working-families-act/.

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Author

Isabela Salas-Betsch

Former Research Associate, Women’s Initiative

Team

Women’s Initiative

The Women’s Initiative develops robust, progressive policies and solutions to ensure all women can participate in the economy and live healthy, productive lives.

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