Economic conditions continue to improve in America's states, with many showing significant declines in their poverty rates, according to new survey data released recently by the U.S. Census Bureau.

About 14.7 percent of the American population had incomes last year that were below their respective poverty levels, which vary depending on household size — a significant decline from 2014.

Data in the states reflect that improvement. First, here's how the states compared last year. New Hampshire had the lowest rate (8.2%), and Mississippi had the highest rate (22%):

And here's how the poverty rate changed in each state. As I mentioned, at least 23 states — across all regions of the country — saw significant declines in their respective rates (those state name labels are italicized).

Four states technically saw slightly increased poverty rates, according to the survey results, but they were not considered statistically significant changes (each state has a respective margin of error) by the bureau. Still, they are shaded in orange here to highlight them: