It is difficult to categorize poverty as either a strictly political or strictly economic cause of illiteracy, because poverty is a vicious cycle resulting from both economic and political factors. In terms of economics, poverty contributes to illiteracy because the impoverished do not have sufficient resources to educate themselves. The impoverished certainly cannot afford private schooling, and they frequently live in an area with a weak tax base that inhibits the development of vital public works. Politically, the impoverished often lack adequate public representation, because officials do not have compelling reasons in the short run to promote education.
Public library systems play an integral role in increasing literacy. However, because libraries are not necessarily as urgent a public need as programs like water and sewage, transportation, and law enforcement, some cities cut funding to libraries during times of economic hardship. In the short run, this solution can balance budgets and save money. On the other hand, depriving people of public programs such as libraries inhibits citizens' efforts to educate themselves and contributes to a less productive workforce in the long run.
Illiteracy and income are inextricably linked. According to SIL International, a nonprofit group dedicated to global language development, the rate of literacy compared to per capita income suggests that as literacy rates rise in a given population, income rises exponentially. In countries where less than 55 percent of the population is literate, per capita income is approximately one-twentieth that of a country that is almost entirely literate.
A political factor bearing on illiteracy is the curricula that state boards of education develop for public schools. Some states have such influence in education that their decisions affect the curricula in other states by the increased demand they place on textbook publishers. When big states like California shift their educational approach and require new textbooks, it forces publishers to meet the demand, ultimately affecting the educational policies of other states. This can affect student literacy if the decisions that large states make are unwise or unsuitable for their peers.