ALICE
2020 ALICE NY Report is HERE!
View Recorded Overview of the ALICE Trends and 2020 Report
COVID-19 and ALICE
The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 is exposing critical shortcomings in our economy and in our systems of health care and education. No one is immune to its direct or indirect effects, but ALICE families are particularly vulnerable to hardship from both illness and economic disruption. Current economic measures do not capture the experience of this population. In this unprecedented time, it is imperative that we use the ALICE measures to fully understand the impact of COVID-19 on U.S. workers and their families.
The current crisis is demonstrating how exposed ALICE households — and therefore our communities and businesses — are to an emergency. Here are some of the intersecting ways ALICE workers, families, and seniors will be impacted by this crisis.
Click here for a statement on NYS COVID-19 and ALICE.
Click here to get involved with Local New York United Way efforts to help ALICE.
New York State United Way ALICE Project: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed
Updated ALICE Report Released June 17, 2020
ALICE Highlights New York Slide Deck For Public July 2020
ALICE Trends 2020 Overview - recorded presentation
ALICE.org Demo: How to Curate Your Local Data- recorded presentation
Visit NY's page at www.UnitedWayALICE.org/newyork to review:
- Updated ALICE Report for New York
- ALICE Data for every county, town and village in New York State
- Household Survival Budgets and Household Stability Budgets for every county in NYS
The ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) Project was initiated by United Way of Northern New Jersey several years ago to bring focus to the families and individuals who work but whose salaries do not provide sufficient resources to meet basic needs.
The ALICE Project developed a methodology using publicly available census, employment, wage, cost of living and other data to help to understand the extent of ALICE in our communities, those who are above the federal poverty level, but below a sustainable wage.
The New York ALICE Report is a project of the United Way network in the state. Through the support of 34 local United Ways around the state, and with the generous sponsorship of KeyBank, NBT Bank and CSEA, Local 1000 the State United Way office has contracted with the national ALICE project to perform the research for New York.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Brenda Episcopo; episcopob@uwnys.org; 518-608-6456
ALBANY (NY) – Even before COVID-19 hit, 45% of New York households were already one emergency away from financial ruin, setting the stage for an unprecedented statewide economic crisis for the next several years, according to the state’s latest ALICE® Report, released today by the United Way of New York State.
ALICE® stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. ALICE households earn more than the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), but less than they need to afford a basic survival budget. There is no room in their household budgets for emergency expenses.
The 2020 ALICE report shows New York’s low-income families systematically lost buying power and financial stability as the cost of essentials outpaced wages. Meanwhile, the number of jobs that provide a living wage did not keep pace with the state’s population. The result was that 3.2 million of New York’s 7.37 million households were ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed), a record number even before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report calls for stakeholders across all sectors to use its findings to remove obstacles to financial stability, identify gaps in community resources and build data-driven solutions to help ALICE families achieve economic stability, bolstering the state’s economy overall.
“The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, is showing critical areas of need for our economy, health care system, and education capacity during a national crisis. No one is immune to its direct or indirect effects, but ALICE families are particularly vulnerable to hardship from both illness and economic disruption.” Said Brenda Episcopo, President and CEO of United Way of New York State. “The 2020 ALICE ®NY Report provides a reliable baseline of ALICE households to best direct resources. This report shows that ALICE households did not recover from the last economic recession, even though the economy improved. We can use this information to ensure we don’t leace ALICE behind again as we recover from the current economic and health crisis.”
The most recent ALICE report shows that over the last few years, New York’s economy has rebounded and the state has made investments to assist those living in poverty. However, there is still a large number of New Yorkers who lack sufficient income and resources to pay for housing, food, child care, transportation, and health care. The report continues to show that ALICE lives in every part of the state, from our biggest cities to our most rural areas.
Using data from the census and a number of economic studies produced in 2018, The 2020 New York ALICE report shows that:
- Between 2007 and 2018, the percent of households in poverty in New York remained stable, increasing from 13 percent in 2007 to 14 percent in 2018. At the same time, the percentage of ALICE households increased at a faster rate from 23 percent in 2007 to 31 percent in 2018.
- To meet the ALICE threshold for survival, a 4-person household (two adults, two children in care) needs an annual income of $78,156 or $39.08 per hour.
- An individual needs an annual income of $27,312 or $13.66 per hour, to meet the household survival budget.
- Economic data show that the number of low-wage jobs increased by 33% from 2007 to 2018 and accounted for the largest number of jobs in New York in 2018.
- All but one of New York’s 62 counties has 30 percent or more households earning less than what is needed to afford a basic household budget.
"The spread of COVID-19 is impacting all of us in all of our communities," said Ruth Mahoney, Capital Region president and regional retail leader, KeyBank. "Already struggling to make ends meet before the pandemic, ALICE families are particularly vulnerable to the economic struggle that will follow the COVID-19 response. This year's ALICE report shines a light on the challenges facing New York's income constrained families, and it is our hope the report can inform conversations about how can we can collaboratively open doors for more people to achieve financial stability."
The report debuts a new measurement called the ALICE Essentials Index. This Index chronicles how the cost of housing, child care, food, transportation, health care and a smartphone plan rose at nearly twice the rate of inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index.
“The ALICE Essentials Index shows that, through no fault of their own, ALICE families have been priced out of economic stability, setting the stage for the scope of this crisis,” said United For ALICE National Director Stephanie Hoopes, Ph.D. “Using the Consumer Price Index alone to measure inflation provides an incomplete picture of the cost of living, severely underestimating the mounting financial pressures on ALICE families.”
“This report shows how vulnerable so many households in New York are, and with the current crisis, it’s going to get worse before it gets better,” said CSEA (Civil Service Employees Association of NY State) President Mary E. Sullivan. “It underscores the need to keep fighting for a living wage for all workers, and to ensure we have adequate public services, like those that CSEA members provide, to help meet the needs of families who are struggling.”
“At NBT Bank, we value our relationships with United Way chapters across our footprint in New York and beyond, and the critical support they provide to promoting financial stability in our communities,” said NBT Bank President and CEO John H. Watt, Jr. “We are proud to have played a role in making the 2020 ALICE report possible and hope the information it provides will help drive positive change for ALICE families, particularly in light of the deep economic impacts associated with the current pandemic.”
To read a copy of the report and find county-by-county and town-level data on the size and demographics of ALICE as well as the community conditions and costs faced by ALICE households, visit www.UnitedForALICE.org/new-york.
The ALICE Report for New York was sponsored in part by Key Bank; CSEA, AFSCME Local 1000, AFL-CIO; NBT Bank and 34 Local United Ways and is a project of United For ALICE, a grassroots movement of some 650 United Ways in 21 states, corporations and foundations, all using the same methodology to document financial need. ALICE Reports provide county-by-county and town-level data, and analysis of how many households are struggling, including the obstacles ALICE households face on the road to financial independence.
For more information or to find data about ALICE in local communities, visit www.UnitedForALICE.org/New-York
About United Way of New York State
United Way of New York State is a statewide membership organization, with a mission of strengthening the capacity of Local United Ways in New York State to be leaders in achieving results that improve the lives of all New Yorkers. Of 42 Local United Ways in New York, 36 of them are members of United Way of New York State. Our member United Ways raised $152.6 million dollars in 2018, to invest in community efforts. For more information visit uwnys.org.
211 New York is a wholly owned subsidiary of United Way of New York State. 211 is a free information and referral resource that links people in need of assistance with resources available in their local communities. In 2018, 2-1-1 received 1.74 million phone calls, 21.3 million web visits and 24,734 text-based contacts. 211 New York is experiencing 2.5X call volume in response to COVID-19. For more information, visit 211NYS.org.
About United For ALICE
United For ALICE is a driver of innovation, shining a light on the challenges ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) households face and finding collaborative solutions. Through a standardized methodology that assesses the cost of living in every county, this project provides a comprehensive measure of financial hardship across the U.S. Equipped with this data, ALICE partners convene, advocate, and innovate in their local communities to highlight the issues faced by ALICE households and to generate solutions that promote financial stability. The grassroots movement represents United Ways, corporations, nonprofits and foundations in Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Hawai‘i, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin; we are United For ALICE. For more information, visit: UnitedForALICE.org.