Augusta has high percentage of working class poor

There's new information that Augusta has one of the highest percentages of working class poor in the country.

A study by the Brookings Institution ranks Augusta with the second-highest number of working class poor in the U.S.

The study measures the number of people who got the earned income tax credit in 2005.

The credits are for low-income workers.

Nearly 56,000 people in metropolitan Augusta got the tax credits then, with about 16,000 clustered in high poverty neighborhoods.

Researchers say that puts the rate of concentrated working class poor at about 29 percent.

They also say such concentrations can often potentially lead to crime, poor housing and schools that perform below standards.

Only Fresno, California, tops Augusta in the rankings.

Augusta beats out cities such as Detroit and Miami.

The study includes 58 metropolitan areas.