Setting the Standard for America’s Working Families

1. Setting the Standard for America’s Working Families The Family Economic Self-Sufficiency Project and the Self-Sufficiency Standard Presented by:Joan A. Kuriansky, Executive DirectorWider Opportunities for Women, Inc., Washington, DC 1001 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 930, Washington, DC 20036

2. Today’s Presentation • Wider Opportunities for Women • Background on the Family Economic Self-Sufficiency (FESS) Project • What the Self-Sufficiency Standard Is and How It Is Calculated • How the Standard Has Been Used

3. Why WOW Launched the FESS Project Our Challenge: • How to measure the circumstances and obstacles facing low- income families trying to become economically secure? • How to develop programs and policies that increase opportunities for low-income families that move families toward economic self-sufficiency • How to affect the public and policy makers about the needs of these families? • How to mobilize a community to act with and on behalf of these families?

4. The Family Economic Self-Sufficiency Project The Six Strategies for Self-Sufficiency: • Targeting high wage jobs • Promoting NTO for women • Micro credit • IDA • Functional Literacy • Self-Sufficiency Standard

5. The Family Economic Self-Sufficiency Project Who we are today: • 36 State partners with state wide coalitions representing over 2,000 community based organizations, state and local government, employers and labor.

6. What is the Self-Sufficiency Standard? • Amount of income required to meet basic needs (including taxes) in the regular “market place” w/o public subsidies or private/informal subsidies • Public subsidies = Food Stamps, Medicaid, subsidized child care, etc. • Private subsidies = free baby-sitting by a relative, food provided by churches or food banks, shared housing, etc. Lead Researcher: Dr. Diana Pearce, University of Washington

7. How is the Standard Different from the FPL The FPL is based on 2-parent family model assumes only 1 parent works in 2-parent families & no workers in single-parent families. • The Standard assumes that all adults work full-time—includes costs of working, i.e., transportation & taxes, & for families with young children, child care. The FPL is based on the cost of food and assumes that food is 1/3 of the family budget. • The Standard is calculated differently—based on costs of all basic needs, updated annually, allowing costs to increase at different rates.

8. How the Standard & povertymeasure are different The FPL only distinguish by family size and number of children • The Standard varies costs by the age of children—especially important for child care, but food and medical care costs also vary by age. • The FPL assumes costs are the same, no matter • where you live • The Standard varies by geographical location—most important for housing, but also geographic variation in costs of child care, health care & transportation.

9. Assumptions • All Adults work full time • No family members with special needs • No frills budget • No one time purchases ( furniture, car, appliances) • No savings • No loan payments

10. 7 Basic Categories of Expenditures • Housing: Fair Market Rents set by HUD, including basic utilities • Food: USDA Low-Cost Food Plan • Child Care: State Child Care Market Rate Survey • Transportation: Public Transportation or Costs of owning and operating an average car (Natl. Assoc. of Insurance Commiss. on Consumer Expenditures) • Health Care: Average employee premiums and out of pocket costs for employer-sponsored insurance • Miscellaneous: 10% of all other costs • Taxes: Federal income and payroll taxes, state and local sales taxes minus low-income tax credits.

11. The Self-Sufficiency Standard for Los Angeles, CA 2003

12. Percentage of Income Needed to Meet Basic Needs, 2002Maricopa County Arizona – one parent, one preschooler, one school age

13. The Standard Compared to Other Benchmarks, 2002 (Tucson, AZ - one parent, one preschooler, one school age child)

14. The Standard Helps Us Understand • It is not about bad budgeting • It is not just about the poor- a large part of the population falls in the gap • There is little or no cushion when things go wrong • To get by month to month, families often have to make hard choices • Run up credit bills or take out usurious loans; • forsake needed medical care or obtain free food • Many families don’t get by • Foreclosure, family stress, substance abuse, domestic abuse

15. The Impact of Work Support

16. “Coming Up Short” National Snapshot of Impact of Wages and Work Supports • Minimum wage covers only 34% of costs on average. • Subsidized childcare makes a significant difference (can reduce cost by as much as 35%) • At $12/hour a family meets only 72% of its costs on average. • Key is the interaction between state and federal policy.

17. “Overlooked and Undercounted” • Report shows how California families are faring in relation to the Standard - 1/5 of SF Bay Area below SSS; 1/3 rd in L.A. • Shows not just who is below the Standard, but what their characteristics are - more than 1/2 Latino households - more than 1 out of 4 households with one full time worker can’t meet basic needs - 78% households with 4 or more children are likely to live below self sufficiency • Broadens discussion about whether which policies and programs are working w/ info on who is “making it” and who is not

18. How the Standard Has Been Used To affect policy changes: • Assess impact of different work support policies • Establish co-payment schedules for childcare assistance • Evaluate tax reform policies, sales tax vs change in municipal a income state tax • Establish living wage ordinances

19. How the Standard Has Been Used? To affect change in workforce policy: • WOW and NAWB survey-more than 30% of Local WIB’s used self sufficiency measure like WOW’s to affect policy • Expand eligibility for intensive and training services • Assess segments of job seekers who are being served • Direct training money • Goal in economic development/sector projects

20. How the Standard Has Been Used? To assess program effectiveness: • VA Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) used VA Standard to assess economic outcomes for DSS clients To assist individuals and their caseworkers • NYC Head Start and welfare offices • Seattle One Stop counselors • Philadelphia Office of Aging

21. The Budget Worksheet and Self-Sufficiency Calculators • PA piloted The Self-Sufficiency Standard Budget Worksheet and now there are online Self-Sufficiency Calculators in NYC, IL, and WA • Starts w/ the Self-Sufficiency Standard • Lets individual plug in real costs & subsidies • Tests various wages ability to cover costs

22. How the Standard Has Been Used To affect Public debate: • Miami Prosperity Campaign • Wyoming Family and Children Initiative • The Bay Area “Bottom Line Report” • State legislation to institutionalize standard • Federal legislation

23. Moving Forward:Public Policies to Promote Self-Sufficiency -Renew investment in job skills training aimed at good paying jobs -Expand access to higher education -Economic development strategies targeted to quality jobs -Increase minimum wage -Expand of public or subsidized health insurance -Streamline application process for public benefits -Tax relief for low-income working families -Stronger regulation of high-cost financial services -Subsidized saving programs -Family leave benefits/unemployment insurance

24. How You Can Be Involved … Contact: Wider Opportunities for Women 1001 Connecticut Ave, NW Suite 930 Washington, D.C. 20036 (202) 464-1596 www.SixStrategies.org Kate Farrar, FESS Program Associate