CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WBOY) – Following the release of the U.S. Census and U.S. Department of Agriculture data, lists of the top 10 poorest and hungriest states were released this week.

West Virginia and Kentucky are two of eight states to make both lists, with West Virginia ranking fourth in both lists. The Mountain State is joined by Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Oklahoma as the other states on both lists. All of these states, except for Oklahoma, were on both lists in 2017, as well.

The District of Columbia and South Carolina are also on the poorest list.

Kansas, North Carolina, and Texas are also on the hungriest list.

A news release from the Friends Committee on National Legislation points to the connection between poverty and food insecurity.

“There is much welcome news in the latest government data, but we cannot ignore the fact that hunger and poverty persist in our country. These decreases are important and they reaffirm the vital role federal anti-poverty programs play in ensuring low-income Americans can obtain the benefits that help meet our basic human needs,” said Diane Randall, FCNL executive secretary.

