Nearly 43% of Hudson Valley Households Struggle to Afford Basic Needs

Editor’s Note: The ALICE data presented by Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress President and CEO Alexandra S. Obremski in an interview with Radio Catskill was developed through the United Way/United For ALICE partnership. United Way of New York State has raised concerns about how the material was attributed.

In a statement on August 11, United Way of New York State President and CEO Therese Daly said the research and materials were developed through the United Way/United For ALICE partnership and are subject to agreements governing their use and attribution.

“We have serious concerns regarding the unauthorized publication and attribution of these materials and have formally asked that they no longer be used or represented as the work of another organization,” Daly said.

United Way of New York State said it is committed to ensuring that ALICE research is accurately represented and appropriately attributed.

In a statement on August 12, Alexandra S. Obremski, President & CEO of Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress said:

“Pattern for Progress recognizes United Way’s ALICE metric as a valuable tool for understanding household economic well-being across the Hudson Valley. United Way created the ALICE methodology, and United for ALICE continues to produce the data and tools that help communities understand the financial pressures facing working households.

Pattern regularly uses publicly available data from government, nonprofit, and research organizations to provide independent analysis of issues affecting the Hudson Valley. Our ALICE work has been approached in that same spirit: using United for ALICE data and methodology (with attribution) to examine regional trends and help Hudson Valley leaders understand what those findings mean for their communities.

Pattern has also valued the opportunity to participate in the broader ALICE research process in New York. The director of Pattern’s Center for Housing Solutions and Community Initiatives served on the New York Research Advisory Committee, contributing to the cross-sector dialogue surrounding this important work.

Our intention has been to amplify ALICE and extend the reach of this valuable metric among the local governments, employers, nonprofits, and community leaders we work with throughout the region. We understood that goal to be complementary to United for ALICE’s encouragement of community organizations to use and share ALICE data to inform local conversations, partnerships, and solutions.

We hope our shared focus can remain on what the data tell us: a significant number of working households in the Hudson Valley are struggling to afford basic necessities. We welcome the opportunity to work with United Way to bring greater attention to those challenges and to the solutions that can strengthen households and communities throughout the region.”

Nearly 43% of households in the nine-county Hudson Valley region fall below the ALICE threshold, meaning they earn more than the federal poverty level but still don’t make enough to cover basic living expenses.

That’s according to Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress. The organization’s data show nearly 400,000 households are either below the ALICE threshold or living below the federal poverty line.

ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. Pattern for Progress President and CEO Alexandra S. Obremski says the measure provides a more detailed picture of financial hardship because it considers the actual cost of living in individual communities.

“The federal poverty line for a family of four is $33,000,” Obremski said. “And it’s an important measure, but it is a national threshold and doesn’t really reflect actual cost of living in individual communities.”

The ALICE analysis considers costs including housing, child care, food, transportation, health care, technology and taxes, and compares them with household income.

A working-family affordability problem

Obremski says ALICE households represent a broad cross-section of the Hudson Valley. They include workers in health care, child care, retail, hospitality, education and human services, as well as young adults, families with children and older adults living on fixed incomes.

“Having a job or being above the poverty line doesn’t necessarily mean that your household is financially secure,” she said.

The share of ALICE households has grown faster than households in traditional poverty in some parts of the region. In Orange County, for example, the ALICE share increased from about 26% to 35%, while poverty remained relatively stable, according to the data discussed in the interview.

“The issue is not just, ‘Oh, do you have a job?'” Obremski said. “It’s increasingly, does your job provide enough income to live in the community where you work?”

Housing and child care among biggest pressures

Obremski says housing and child care are the two biggest affordability pressures across the Hudson Valley.

Housing is generally the largest expense for a single adult, while child care can become the largest household expense for families with young children.

In Putnam, Rockland and Westchester counties, child care for two young children is estimated at more than $3,200 a month — nearly $39,000 a year before housing, food, transportation and health care costs.

The challenges differ across the region. Lower Hudson Valley counties face particularly high housing and child care costs, while rural counties such as Sullivan, Columbia and Greene generally have lower household incomes and can face additional challenges involving transportation, housing availability and access to services.

Impact on the regional economy

The effects extend beyond individual households, Obremski says.

Employers can have difficulty recruiting and retaining workers. Schools, hospitals and child care providers can face workforce shortages. Families may delay health care, take on additional jobs, move farther from their workplaces or leave the region.

Households with little disposable income also have less money to spend at local businesses.

Pattern for Progress considers the issue a regional economic competitiveness problem as well as a household affordability issue.

No single solution

Obremski says addressing the problem will require action on multiple fronts, including increasing the supply and variety of housing, investing in child care, and examining benefit programs that can create “benefit cliffs” when households earn slightly more income.

She says communities are beginning to experiment with approaches including accessory dwelling units, mixed-use and multifamily housing, converting underused buildings and developing child care partnerships.

But she cautions that no community has solved the ALICE problem.

Obremski says the biggest concern is the long-term sustainability of the region if workers cannot afford to live where they work.

“The people who teach our children, care for our older residents, work in our hospitals, serve our customers, and keep local governments functioning, can’t afford to live here,” she said.

She says Pattern for Progress will continue connecting its ALICE research with other regional data, including an upcoming report on housing affordability.

“If nearly 43% of the households in our 9 county region are below the ALICE threshold, that’s not a small group or people on the margins of the economy,” Obremski said. “These are our coworkers, neighbors, caregivers, young families and older residents.”

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