About 8 million (± 429,000) Hispanics were eligible to vote in the November 1986 Congressional election. This was 1.4 million (±579,000) more eligible persons than in the November 1984 Presidential election. Of these 8 million eligible Hispanics, 54 percent (± 2.8) reported they registered to vote, but only 36 percent (± 2.7) reported voting. These participation rates are much lower than those reported by the 158 million (±304,000) non-Hispanic counterparts. Over two-thirds of them reported registering, and somewhat less than half reported voting.

The 1986 Hispanic registration and voter turnout rates were not statistically different from those for the 1982 Congressional election. However, among nonHispanics, there was a decline in the voter turnout rate from 1982, 51 percent (± 0.4), to 1986, 49 percent (± 0.4) (figure 2).

Table 10 may lead one to assume that Hispanic voter turnout rates are always lower than those of nonHispanics for all social and economic characteristics shown. Statistical testing, however, shows that differences were not evident between Hispanics and nonHispanics in the voter turnout rates for the following selected characteristics:

• Persons with 4 or more years of college completed. • Unemployed persons.

• Persons employed in managerial and professional specialty occupations, service occupations, and those employed as operators, fabricators, or laborers.

• Persons in families with incomes of $50,000 and over. Fertility. Hispanic women as a group are more likely to bear children than non-Hispanic women. However, significant differences in childbearing by social and economic characteristics also are evident among Hispanic women. In the text that follows, only women ages 35 to 44, those approaching the end of their reproductive years, are discussed (figure 3 and table 11).

A higher proportion, 17 percent (± 5.6) of Hispanic women 35 to 44 years old with 1 or more years of college completed reported being childless than Hispanic women with less than a high school education, 8 percent (± 2.6). Hispanic women in the labor force also were more likely to be childless than those not in the labor force (12 percent± 2.8 compared to 8 percent ± 2.8).

A large difference in the proportion having children existed between single Hispanic and non-Hispanic women 35 to 44 years old. Specifically, the proportion of single Hispanic women reporting having children, (57 percent ± 10.6), was double that of single non-Hispanic women of the same age (26 percent ± 2.9). Type of family. The proportion of married-couple families among Hispanics was lower in 1987 than in 1982: 71 percent (± 1.4) and 74 percent (± 1.5),

respectively. A similar change was evident for nonHispanics. The proportions of families maintained by a man or woman, with no spouse present, were larger in 1987 than in 1982 for both Hispanics and non-Hispanics (table C).

Unemployment rates. The unemployment rate for Hispanics and non-Hispanics 16 years old and over was lower in March 1987 than in March 1982. However, the unemployment rate of Hispanics, 10.2 percent (± 0.6), remained higher than that of non-Hispanics, 6.8 percent (± 0.2), in 1987 (table C).

Median earnings of persons. The median earnings of Hispanic civilians 15 years old and over remained lower than those of non-Hispanics. In 1986, the median earnings of Hispanic men, $11,958 (± $322), was 61 percent (± 1.8) of the median earnings of non-Hispanic men, $19,588 (± $228). The comparable ratio of Hispanic women's earnings to non-Hispanic women's earnings was 82 percent (± 4.8) (table C).

Income of families. After adjusting median family money income for the 21-percent increase in consumer prices, no significant change was evident in the real median money income of Hispanic families between 1981 and 1986. Non-Hispanic families experienced a 10-percent (± 1.3) increase in real median money income. However, an improvement in Hispanic family income is apparent when 1982, the end of the most recent recession, is used as the base year for comparison. While real income for Hispanic families decreased between 1981 and 1982, it subsequently increased from $18,321 ($645) in 1982 to $19,995 (± $862) in 1986-a 9 percent (± 6.1) increase. Non-Hispanics experienced an 11 percent (± 1.2) increase in real median family income over the same period; not statistically different from the increase experienced by Hispanic families (tables C and D).

Poverty. The poverty rate of Hispanic families did not improve between 1981 and 1986-23.5 percent (± 1.6) and 24.7 percent (±1.5), respectively. About 200,000

7Changes in real earnings or income refer to comparisons after adjusting for inflation. The percentage change in prices between 1981 and 1986 was computed by dividing the annual average Consumer Price Index (CPI) for 1986 by the annual average value of the CPI for 1981. For a more detailed discussion, see Current Population Reports, Series P-60, No. 159, Money Income of Households, Families, and Persons in the United States: 1986.

"The poverty definition used here is that adopted for official government use by the Office of Management and Budget and consists of a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition. Families or individuals with income below their appropriate thresholds are classified as below the poverty level. The poverty thresholds are updated every year to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index.

The estimates of poverty in this report are based solely on money income and do not include the value of noncash benefits such as food stamps, Medicaid, and public housing. For a further discussion of poverty and valuing noncash benefits, see Current Population Reports, Series P-60, No. 160, Poverty in the United States: 1986.

(±104,000) more Hispanic families were living below the poverty level in 1986 than in 1981-a 24-percent (13.2) increase. An improvement in the poverty rate of Hispanic families is evident, however, when the end of the last recession is used as the base year for comparison. The poverty rate of Hispanic families increased between 1981 and 1982, but then decreased from 27.2 percent (± 1.7) in 1982 to 24.7 percent (± 1.5) in 1986 (tables C and D).

Of the 1.1 million (± 77,400) Hispanic families that were living below the poverty level in 1986, 49 percent (±3.5) were maintained by a woman with no husband present. Families with householders who had completed less than 4 years of high school constituted 62 percent (3.4) of the Hispanic families below the poverty level in 1986 (table 2).

USER COMMENTS. We are interested in your reaction to the usefulness of the information presented here and to the content of the questions used to provide these results. (There are facsimiles of the CPS control card and the origin or descent flash card in appendix D). We welcome your recommendations for improving our survey work. If you have suggestions or comments, please send them to:

Current Survey Comments Population Division

U.S. Bureau of the Census Washington, DC 20233