A report on poverty in Illinois places Sangamon County on a “poverty watch list,” noting that local numbers on unemployment, teen pregnancy and high school graduation rates are cause for concern.
The Illinois Poverty Report says between 12 and 17 percent of county residents live in poverty, and say the trends suggest those numbers could get worse.
Christian and Macon counties are also on the poverty watch list, while Montgomery County lands on the more severe “warning list” because of even higher rates of poverty.
