US Income Inequality Rose to Record During Biden’s First Year

A key measure of US income inequality rose to a new record in 2021, the first year of President Joe Biden’s term.

The so-called Gini Index rose by 1.2% last year to 0.494, according to data released Tuesday by the US Census Bureau. The index measures how income is distributed, with a value of 0 representing perfect equality while 1 indicates absolute inequality.

The same report showed the US poverty rate climbed for a second straight year in 2021 and household income slipped slightly. Last year, 37.9 million people were in poverty, about 3.9 million more than in ...