(AP) - Census data released last week shows that nearly 1 million New Jersey residents currently fall under the federal government's poverty threshold.



Since the end of the Great Recession in 2009, New Jersey's poverty rate has increased approximately 2 percent to just less than 11 percent.



That figure, however, remains well below the national average of 15.47 percent. The federal poverty threshold stands at $11,880 annually for individuals and $24,300 for a family of four.



The poverty rate for Atlantic City, which has been beset by the recent state takeover, has skyrocketed from 23 percent to 37 percent. That means more than one in three city residents earn below federal poverty levels.



Seventy-five percent of households in Atlantic City combine to make less than $50,000 a year.