How much does Minnesota spend on welfare per person in poverty?
In addition to dedicating a larger share of the budget to welfare, Minnesota ranks at the top when welfare spending is controlled for the population of people in poverty.
As the report explains,
Compared to other states, Minnesota is generally a low-poverty state. In 2019, for example, while the National poverty rate was 12.3 percent, Minnesota’s rate was 9 percent — the third lowest rate in the country, after New Hampshire and Utah. Not
surprisingly, after controlling already high spending for the low poverty rate, Minnesota’s spending on welfare flies off the charts.In 2019, the national average state and local spending on public welfare per person below 200 percent of federal poverty was $8,048. Spending ranged from $4,038 in Georgia to $17,742 in Massachusetts.
Minnesota had the fourth highest level of spending at $14,114. This is 75 percent above the national average and 90 percent higher than the median state amount ($7,426). Only Massachusetts, Alaska, and New York had higher levels of spending. When only those living below poverty are considered, Minnesota spent the equivalent of $34,379 on state and local public welfare per person in 2019 — third highest after Massachusetts and Alaska. Minnesota spent over three times as much as the lowest spending state amount of $9,643, two times the median state amount of $17,128 and 1.8 times the national average figure of $18,882.
For the most recent year for which data is available — 2021 — spending (in constant 2019 $) remained largely unchanged for Minnesota at $34,347 per person below federal poverty (second highest), and $14,470 per person below 200 percent of federal poverty (fifth-highest). While the national average spending went up for both groups, Minnesota spending was still 65 percent higher for those living below poverty and 75 percent higher for those below 200 percent of federal poverty
Figure 1: Spending on public welfare per person below 200% of federal poverty, FY 2019
Figure 2: Spending on public welfare per person below 100% of federal poverty, FY 2019
All in all, whichever way we slice the data, Minnesota is a generous state. Minnesota was generous before the 2023 legislative session. With the new spending passed in 2023, this generosity will only grow.