Economic Hardship
When individuals and families experience economic hardship and poverty, accessing basic needs such as food, health care, and housing become a challenge. Poverty also causes negative health, education, and employment outcomes for children, adults, and families.
There are four measures of economic hardship included in this indicator:
- Official Poverty Measure (OPM)
- Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM)
- Self-Sufficiency Standard (SSS)
- Asset-Limited, Income-Constraint, Employed (ALICE)
The U.S. Census Bureau, the government agency in charge of measuring poverty, uses the Official Poverty Measure and Supplemental Poverty Measure. However, these measures do not accurately reflect the true experiences of poverty in Washington. For this reason, we rely on the alternative measures such as Self-Sufficiency Measure and ALICE to provide a more accurate economic hardship.
Current Trend
Over the last 10 years, poverty rates, as seen from the OPM and SPM, have been generally going down in Washington. In 2022, the Supplemental Poverty Rate was at an all-time low of 8% largely because of the direct cash federal programs which greatly alleviated poverty. However, when many of these direct cash programs ended in 2022, the SPM rate reverted to pre-pandemic level.
Data for the Official Poverty Measure and Supplemental Poverty Measure are from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, Public-Use 1-year estimates.
Data for the ALICE threshold is from United Way’s Research Center
Data for the Self-Sufficiency Standard is from University of Washington’s Center for Women’s Welfare
Data for the Self-Sufficiency Standard and ALICE threshold has not historically been collected yearly.
The Official Poverty Measure is based on three main elements: cost of food, income, and family size.
The Supplemental Poverty Measure is based on a larger set of expenditures (food, clothing, shelter, and utilities), accounts for income and non-cash benefits, and vary by family size and geography.
The Asset-Limited, Income-Constraint, Employed (ALICE) threshold is based on budgets that include essential costs (housing, transportation, food, child care, etc.) and varies by family size and geography to reflect the cost of living.
The Self-Sufficiency Standard defined the amount of income necessary to meet basic needs. It is based on major budget items (housing, food, transportation, health care, etc.), varies across family size and counties.