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2017 ALICE Report PDF

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A L I C E ® ASSET LIMITED, INCOME CONSTRAINED, EMPLOYED Winter 2017 STUDY OF FINANCIAL HARDSHIP UnitedWayALICE.org/Florida THE UNITED WAYS OF FLORIDA Heart of Florida United Way United Way of Martin County United Way of the Big Bend United Way of Miami-Dade United Way of the Broward County United Way of North Central Florida United Way of Brevard County United Way of Northeast Florida United Way of Central Florida United Way of Northwest Florida United Way of Charlotte County United Way of Okaloosa-Walton County United Way of Citrus County United Way of Palm Beach County United Way of Collier County United Way of Pasco County United Way of Escambia County United Way of Putman County United Way of the Florida Keys United Way of South Sarasota County United Way of Hernando County United Way of St. Johns County United Way of Indian River County United Way of St Lucie County United Way of Lake & Sumter Counties United Way Suncoast United Way of Lee County United Way of Suwannee Valley United Way of Manatee County United Way of Volusia-Flagler County United Way of Marion County NATIONAL ALICE ADVISORY COUNCIL The following companies are major funders and supporters of the United Way ALICE Project. Aetna Foundation | AT&T | Atlantic Health System | Deloitte | Entergy | Johnson & Johnson KeyBank | Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation | OneMain Financial Thrivent Financial Foundation | UPS | U.S. Venture i LETTER TO THE COMMUNITY Dear Floridians, This report is about the ALICE population – Florida’s most valuable and vulnerable economic driver. • ALICE workers are the face of Florida to the 100+ million tourists who visit our state’s hotels, restaurants, theme parks, beaches, and retail shops each year. • ALICE workers are the laborers, clerical staff, mechanics, legal aids, and city workers who build and support our homes and businesses. • ALICE workers fill our hospitals, doctors’ offices and homes as aides, orderlies, therapists, and even nurses who care for us and our families’ health. • ALICE workers harvest, transport, package, and sell Florida produce around the state and the world. • ALICE workers shape our future workforce and leaders through their work in day care centers, public and private schools, libraries, community centers, and even our colleges and universities. ALICE is a United Way acronym for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. “Employed” is the critical word. ALICE represents those who work hard and are above the poverty line, but due to high costs and factors often beyond their control, must live paycheck to paycheck. For many, a small emergency can quickly become a major financial crisis. Car repairs and health care emergencies, to name just a few, can plunge these working families over the edge into poverty and financial chaos. When this happens, families, employers, and our economy suffer. In 2014, Florida’s first groundbreaking United Way ALICE Report was released. It established an ALICE survival budget for each of Florida’s 67 counties, based on what it costs to afford basic necessities in each community. The Report revealed a disturbing fact: 45 percent of Florida households cannot afford even this bare-minimum budget. The vast majority of these families were working, yet 15 percent lived below the Federal Poverty Level and fully 30 percent were ALICE. This Update to the Report shows many positive and exciting examples of Florida’s continued population and economic growth. But it also highlights the fact that even with three more years of economic recovery under our belts, during which unemployment fell 50 percent, the rate of Florida’s households who are poor or ALICE has barely decreased: 0.5% each. But more than providing data, this Report is about finding solutions, not about pointing fingers. ALICE families have opportunities to improve their economic conditions, and employers and policymakers have opportunities to help ALICE employees. When both groups understand these opportunities and act upon them, everyone wins. Florida’s United Ways serve each and every county in Florida to ensure you and every Floridian has an opportunity to find and support winning solutions. We hope this new United Way ALICE Report, like its predecessor, provides a common respectful narrative around this critically important but previously overlooked population. Sincerely, Theodore Granger, President, United Way of Florida ii THE UNITED WAY ALICE PROJECT The United Way ALICE Project provides a framework, language, and tools to measure and understand the struggles of the growing number of households in our communities that do not earn enough to afford basic necessities, a population called ALICE. This research initiative partners with state United Way organizations to present data that can stimulate meaningful discussion, attract new partners, and ultimately inform strategies that affect positive change. Based on the overwhelming success of this research in identifying and articulating the needs of this vulnerable population, the United Way ALICE Project has grown from a pilot in Morris County, New Jersey in 2009, to the entire state of New Jersey in 2012, and now to the national level with 15 states participating. United Way of Florida is proud to join nearly 450 United Ways from these states to better understand the struggles of ALICE. Organizations across the country are also using this data to better understand the struggles and needs of their employees, customers, and communities. The result is that ALICE is rapidly becoming part of the common vernacular, appearing in the media and in public forums discussing financial hardship in communities across the country. Together, United Ways, government agencies, nonprofits, and corporations have the opportunity to evaluate current initiatives and discover innovative approaches that give ALICE a voice, and create changes that improve life for ALICE and the wider community. To access reports from all states, visit UnitedWayALICE.org States with United Way ALICE Reports North Dakota Washington Montana Minnesota New Hampshire Vermont Maine Wisconsin South Dakota Oregon Idaho Wyoming Michigan Massachusetts New York Iowa Nebraska Pennsylvania Rhode Island Illinois Indiana Ohio Connecticut Nevada Utah Colorado West New Jersey Kansas Missouri Virginia Delaware Kentucky Virginia Maryland California Oklahoma Arkansas Tennessee C Naroorltihn a DCioslturmicbt ioaf Arizona New Mexico Georgia Texas South Carolina Alabama Florida Louisiana Mississippi Alaska New Jersey (2012) First Cohort (2014) Hawaii Second Cohort (2015-16) iii Third Cohort (2016-17) THE ALICE RESEARCH TEAM The United Way ALICE Project provides high-quality, research-based information to foster a better understanding of who is struggling in our communities. To produce the United Way ALICE Report for Florida, a team of researchers collaborated with a Research Advisory Committee, composed of 22 representatives from across the state, who advised and contributed to our Report. This collaborative model, practiced in each state, ensures each Report presents unbiased data that is replicable, easily updated on a regular basis, and sensitive to local context. Working closely with United Ways, the United Way ALICE Project seeks to equip communities with information to create innovative solutions. Lead Researcher Stephanie Hoopes, Ph.D. is the lead researcher and director of the United Way ALICE Project. Dr. Hoopes’ work focuses on the political economy of the United States and specifically on the circumstances of low-income households. Her research has garnered both state and national media attention. She began the United Way ALICE Project as a pilot study of the low-income community in affluent Morris County, New Jersey in 2009, and has overseen its expansion into a broad-based initiative to more accurately measure financial hardship in states across the country. In 2015, Dr. Hoopes joined the staff at United Way of Northern New Jersey in order to expand this project as more and more states become involved. Dr. Hoopes was an assistant professor at the School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA), Rutgers University-Newark, from 2011 to 2015, and director of Rutgers-Newark’s New Jersey DataBank, which makes data available to citizens and policymakers on current issues in 20 policy areas, from 2011 to 2012. SPAA continues to support the United Way ALICE Project with access to research resources. Dr. Hoopes has a doctorate from the London School of Economics, a master’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a bachelor’s degree from Wellesley College. Research Support Team Andrew Abrahamson Helen McGinnis Dan Treglia, Ph.D. ALICE Research Advisory Committee for Florida Stuart Anderson, Ph.D. Melissa Clements, Ph.D. Maria D. Ilcheva, Ph.D. Joseph F. Pennisi Federal Reserve Bank The Children’s Forum The Metropolitan Center Florida Policy Institute of Atlanta at Florida International Sameera Fazili, J.D. Robin Perry, Ph.D. University Lance Arney, Ph.D. Federal Reserve Bank Florida A&M University SCOPE of Atlanta Phyllis Kalifeh, Ed.D. Rose A. Phillips, M.S. The Children’s Forum Jennifer Bencie, M.D., Liana Fernandez Fox, Florida Housing Coalition M.S.A. Ph.D. Jerry Murphy, Ph.D. Gloria Putiak, M.U.R.P. Florida Department of Hillsborough Community University of Florida Children’s Services Health – Manatee College Brittany Olivieri Birken, Council of Broward County Dale A. Brill, Ph.D. Michael Gutter, Ph.D. Ph.D. Sandra S. Stone, Ph.D. Thinkspot University of Florida Florida Children’s Council University of South Florida Morgan Burleson Nancy Hardt, M.D. Jerry D. Parrish, Ph.D. Ellen Zinzeleta, Sc.D. Homeless and Hunger University of Florida The Florida Chamber United Way Suncoast Coalition Foundation Rick Harper, Ph.D. iv University of West Florida WHAT’S NEW Data & Methodology Updates Every two years, the United Way ALICE Project engages a Research Advisory Committee of external experts to scrutinize the ALICE methodology and sources. This rigorous process results in enhancements to the methodology and new ideas in how to more accurately measure and present this important data. While these changes impact specific calculations, the overall trends have remained the same – ALICE represents a large percentage of our population and these households are struggling to provide basic essentials for their families. For this Report, the following improvements have been incorporated. To ensure consistency and accurate comparison in changes over time, data has been recalculated for previous years. For a more detailed description of the methodology, see the Methodology Exhibit VIII. • The ALICE Threshold for each state now accounts for county- level differences. This key measure is now calculated by combining the average household size for each county rather than using the statewide average household size. • The ALICE Household Survival and Stability Budgets have been updated to reflect today’s economic and technological realities. The Household Survival Budget’s health care costs increased partly due to the Affordable Care Act. Because many ALICE households do not qualify for Medicaid but cannot afford even the Bronze Marketplace premiums and deductibles, the penalty for not having coverage is added to the out-of-pocket health care cost. The ALICE Stability Budget added the cost of a cell phone with internet access. • The Economic Viability Dashboard is now presenting each of its three indices – Housing Affordability, Job Opportunities, and Community Resources – separately instead of as one combined score. Each index represents a critical condition for the stability of ALICE households, and poor scores in on index cannot be compensated by good scores in another. These indices are not cumulative. • The ALICE Income Assessment has been recalculated to more accurately depict the assistance available to help an ALICE household meet basic needs. Only programs that directly help low-income households meet the Household Survival Budget, such as TANF and Medicaid, are included. It no longer includes programs that assist households in broader ways, such as to attend college, or that assist communities, like community policing. Source changes • The American Community Survey no longer provides 3-year averages, so data for all communities with populations less than 65,000 relies on 5-year averages. • The National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO) replaces individual state budgets as the source for state spending on programs to assist vulnerable families, making the spending categories standardized and comparable. • In the Economic Viability Dashboard, the variables for two of the indicators of the Community Resources Index – education resources and social capital – have been changed to items that vary more by county. The variable for education resources is now 3- and 4-year-olds enrolled in preschool; and the variable for v social capital is the percent of the population 18 and older who voted in the most recent election. TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������1 I� WHO IS STRUGGLING IN FLORIDA? �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������5 II� WHAT DOES IT COST TO FUNCTION IN TODAY’S ECONOMY? ������������������������������������������16 A III� ACHIEVING STABILITY: INCOME, SAVINGS AND PUBLIC ASSISTANCE ����������������������������22 D IV� HOW HAVE ECONOMIC CONDITIONS CHANGED FOR ALICE FAMILIES? ���������������������������30 I R CONCLUSION: WHAT CHALLENGES LIE AHEAD? ����������������������������������������������������������������42 BIBLIOGRAPHY �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������56 O EXHIBIT I: ALICE COUNTY PAGES L EXHIBIT II: ALICE HOUSING DATA BY COUNTY F EXHIBIT III: ALICE THRESHOLD AND DEMOGRAPHICS, FLORIDA, 2015 N EXHIBIT IV: KEY FACTS AND ALICE STATISTICS FOR FLORIDA CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICTS EXHIBIT V: THE ECONOMIC VIABILITY DASHBOARD I EXHIBIT VI: KEY FACTS AND ALICE STATISTICS FOR FLORIDA MUNICIPALITIES E EXHIBIT VII: ALICE HOUSEHOLDS BY INCOME, 2007 TO 2015 C EXHIBIT VIII: METHODOLOGY OVERVIEW & RATIONALE I L A vi INDEX OF FIGURES Figure 1� Household Income, Florida, 2007 to 2015 �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������5 Figure 2� Household Income by Age of Head of Household, Florida, 2015 ���������������������������������������������������������������6 Figure 3� Trends in Households by Income by Age, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ��������������������������������������������������������������7 Figure 4� Households by Race/Ethnicity and Income, Florida, 2015 �����������������������������������������������������������������������8 Figure 5� Households by Race/Ethnicity and Income, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ��������������������������������������������������������10 Figure 6� Household Types by Income, Florida, 2015 ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������11 Figure 7� Single & Cohabiting (No Children Below 18) Households by Income, Florida, 2015 �������������������������������11 Figure 8� Families with Children by Income, Florida, 2015 �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������12 Figure 9� Families with Children by Income, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ����������������������������������������������������������������������13 Figure 10� Percentage of Households with Income Below the ALICE Threshold by County, Florida, 2007 and 2015 ���������14 Figure 11� Households Below the ALICE Threshold, Largest Cities and Towns in Florida, 2015 ����������������������������15 Figure 12� Household Survival Budget, Florida Average, 2015 �����������������������������������������������������������������������������16 Figure 13� Household Survival Budget, Florida Average, 2007 to 2015 ����������������������������������������������������������������17 Figure 14� Comparison of Household Budgets (family of 4), Polk County, Florida, 2015 ��������������������������������������19 Figure 15� Comparison of Household Budgets by Category, 2015 �������������������������������������������������������������������������20 Figure 16� Average Household Stability Budget vs� Household Survival Budget, Florida, 2015 ����������������������������21 Figure 17� Earnings by Number of Households and Aggregate Total, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ���������������������������������22 Figure 18� Percent Change in Non-wage Household Sources of Income, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ����������������������������23 Figure 19� Assets Ownership, Florida, 2015 ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������24 Figure 20� ALICE Income Assessment, Florida, 2012 to 2015 ������������������������������������������������������������������������������25 Figure 21� Comparing Basic Need with Public and Nonprofit Spending by Category (Excluding Health Care and Miscellaneous Expenses), Florida, 2015 ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������27 Figure 22� Total Public and Nonprofit Assistance per Household Below the ALICE Threshold, Florida, 2015 ���������29 Figure 23� Number of Jobs by Hourly Wage, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ����������������������������������������������������������������������30 Figure 24� Employment and GDP by Industry, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ��������������������������������������������������������������������32 Figure 25� Top 20 Occupations by Employment and Wage, Florida, 2015 �������������������������������������������������������������33 Figure 26� Small Business Employment by Sector, Florida, 2013 �������������������������������������������������������������������������34 Figure 27� Work Status, Florida, 2007 to 2015 �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������36 Figure 28� Economic Viability Dashboard, Florida, 2007 to 2015 �������������������������������������������������������������������������37 Figure 29� Housing Affordability Index, Florida, 2010 to 2015 ������������������������������������������������������������������������������38 Figure 30� Renters Below the ALICE Threshold vs� Rental Stock, Florida, 2015 ����������������������������������������������������39 Figure 31� Jobs Opportunities Index, Florida, 2010 to 2015 ����������������������������������������������������������������������������������40 Figure 32� Population Inflows and Outflows, Florida, 2015 �����������������������������������������������������������������������������������43 Figure 33� Population Projection, Florida, 2010 to 2030 ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������������45 Figure 34� New Growth by Occupation, Florida, 2015 to 2023 ������������������������������������������������������������������������������47 Figure 35� Employment by Occupation and Impact of Technology, Florida, 2015 ��������������������������������������������������48 Figure 36� Median Earnings Asian, Black, Hispanic, and White Workers, Florida, 2007 to 2015 ��������������������������51 Figure 37� Unemployment for White, Black, and Hispanic Workers, Florida, 2007 to 2015 �����������������������������������51 Figure 38� Short-, Medium-, and Long-Term Strategies to Assist Households with Income Below the ALICE Threshold �������55 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This United Way ALICE Report provides the most comprehensive look at Floridians who are struggling financially: 44 percent of households in Florida could not afford basic needs such as housing, child care, food, health care, and transportation in 2015. Many households are living below the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), but an even greater number of households are what United Way calls ALICE – an acronym for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. ALICE households have incomes above the FPL, but still struggle to afford basic household necessities. The number of ALICE and poverty-level households increased steadily from 2007 to 2012, but while households in poverty fell slightly from 2012 to 2015, the percent of ALICE households continued to rise. This Report focuses on what has changed in Florida since the first United Way ALICE Report was published three years ago. It updates the cost of basic needs in the Household Survival Budget for each county in Florida, and the number of households earning below this amount – the ALICE Threshold. It delves deeper into county and municipal data, as well as ALICE and poverty households by race, ethnicity, age, and household type to reveal variations in hardship that are often masked by state averages. Finally this Report highlights emerging trends that will be important to ALICE in the future. The data reveal an ongoing struggle for ALICE households and the obstacles to achieving financial stability. • Struggling Households: Of Florida’s 7.5 million households, 14.5 percent lived in poverty in 2015 and another 29.5 percent were ALICE. Combined, 44 percent had income below the ALICE Threshold, or 3.3 million, up from 2.6 million in 2007. • Basic Cost of Living: The cost of basic household expenses increased steadily in every county in Florida between 2007 and 2015. The average budget rose by 19 percent, more than the national rate of inflation of 14 percent during that time period. In 2015, the average annual Household Survival Budget for a Florida family of four (two adults with one infant and one preschooler) ranged from $44,028 in Putnam County to $68,952 in Monroe County – compared to the U.S. family poverty rate of $24,250. • Low-wage Jobs: Low-wage jobs continued to dominate the landscape in Florida with 67 percent of all jobs in the state paying less than $20 per hour – a wage that is almost enough to afford the family Household Survival Budget. However, three-quarters of these jobs pay less than $15 per hour. • Assistance for ALICE: Since 2012, the amount needed to bring all ALICE households to financial stability has grown faster than wages and government spending. Notably, health care spending increased by 17 percent, accounting for 55 percent of all public and nonprofit spending on ALICE and poverty-level households. Because services and funds are not typically transferable from one area of need to another, A D RI there are large gaps between spending and need in many categories. For example, the gap to meet O L housing needs is 47 percent and the gap to meet child care is 51 percent. F R O F • Emerging trends: Several trends could change the economic landscape for ALICE families: E T A D ○ The Florida population is aging, and many seniors do not have the resources they need to support P U 7 themselves. 1 0 2 – ○ Differences by race and ethnicity persist, creating challenges for many ALICE families, as well as for T R immigrants in Florida. O P E E R ○ Low-wage jobs are projected to grow faster than higher-wage jobs over the next decade. C LI A ○ Technology is changing the workplace, adding some jobs, replacing many others, while also changing Y WA where people work, the hours they work, and the skills that are required. Technology creates D opportunities as well as challenges for ALICE workers. E T NI 1 U

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This report is about the ALICE population – Florida's most valuable and .. tools for stakeholders to measure the real challenges ALICE households
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