WASHINGTON (AP) — The poverty rate in the United States has dropped for the first time since 2006, bringing a bit of encouraging news about the nation’s economy as President Barack Obama and Congress gear up for midterm elections.

The Census Bureau, in its annual look at poverty in the United States, said that the poverty rate in 2013 was 14.5 percent, down from 15 percent in 2012. The decrease in the poverty rate was attributed to the growth in year-round employment by 2.8 million jobs in the United States, government officials said.