County poverty on the rise

Cayuga County's poverty rate edged higher in 2007, new census data reveal, though the county remains just below the statewide rate.

Figures released last week pegged Cayuga County's overall poverty rate at 12.6 percent in 2007, up from 10.6 percent a year earlier. The statewide rate of 13.7 percent was down from 14.2 percent.

The census figures use the federal Office of Management and Budget standard to determine the poverty threshold, which was put at $21,203 for a family of four.