New Research: 42% of CT’s Children Lived in Hardship Pre-Pandemic

Almost half of Connecticut’s children—42%—lived in households that couldn’t afford the basics in 2019, according to a new report from United Way of Coastal Fairfield County and its research partner United For ALICE.

The new report, ALICE in Focus: Children, also reveals the disproportionate impact of financial hardship on the state’s Black and Hispanic children--the majority of whom lived in financially struggling households pre-pandemic (72% and 67%, respectively).

Growing up in financial hardship isn’t limited to the 13% of Connecticut’s children whose families earned at or below the federal poverty level. Another 29%, more than twice as many, lived in struggling ALICE households. ALICE® (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) families earn above the federal poverty level and therefore do not qualify for assistance programs, but earn too little to afford the basic costs of housing, child care, health care, transportation and a smartphone plan.

The report finds traditional measures of poverty have severely undercounted the number of children of all races ages 18 and younger in Connecticut who are growing up in financially insecure households.

“Undercounting the number of children who are at risk can have lifelong consequences,” said Lucy Teixeira, Board Chair, United Way of Coastal Fairfield County. “Thousands of children are locked out of receiving critical supports for stable housing, food, and quality education--all of which can inhibit healthy child development.”

Because ALICE households often earn too much to qualify for public assistance, the report finds that more than 192,000 at-risk Connecticut children—or 63%—didn’t access the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP.

Other findings from ALICE in Focus: Children include:

• Having two working parents didn’t guarantee financial stability: Among households with two working adults, 21% of Connecticut’s children were living in families whose income didn’t meet the cost of basic needs in 2019.
• Among households below the ALICE Threshold, families of Hispanic children had the lowest homeownership rate at 22% in comparison with 60% of families of white children.
• Nearly 71,000 children in households earning below the ALICE Threshold had no high-speed internet access at home—just before school classes shifted online due to the pandemic.

“Having accurate, complete data is the foundation for designing equitable solutions,” said United For ALICE National Director Stephanie Hoopes, Ph.D. “COVID-19 hit ALICE families so much harder than others because they struggle to build savings yet often don’t qualify for financial assistance.”

According to the new research, 41% of Connecticut families below the ALICE Threshold reported in the fall of 2021 that their children “sometimes or often” didn’t have enough to eat. More than half of these families did not receive any public assistance for free meals or groceries.

More data is available through the ALICE in Focus: Children interactive data dashboard – which provides filters for regional and local geographies, age, race, disability status, living arrangements and household work status. Visit UnitedForALICE.org/Focus-Children.

ALICE in Focus: Children is the first installment in the ALICE in Focus Research Series, which draws from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Samples (PUMS). Each installment in the series will highlight a specific segment within the ALICE demographic. Upcoming topics include people with disabilities and veterans.

###

About United Way of Coastal Fairfield County

United Way of Coastal Fairfield County’s mission is: “Together, we empower people to improve their lives. We do this by working innovatively with partners to tackle the most pressing issues in a community. Our vision is that all children and families will thrive in school and life. UWCFC serves the towns of Bridgeport, Darien, Easton, Fairfield, Monroe, New Canaan, Norwalk, Stratford, Trumbull, Weston, Westport, and Wilton. Find out more at: https://unitedwaycfc.org/

About United For ALICE

United For ALICE is a driver of innovation, research and action to improve life across the country for ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) and for all. Through the development of the ALICE measurements, a comprehensive, unbiased picture of financial hardship has emerged. Harnessing this data and research on the mismatch between low-paying jobs and the cost of survival, ALICE partners convene, advocate and collaborate on solutions that promote financial stability at local, state and national levels. This grassroots ALICE movement, led by United Way of Northern New Jersey, has spread to 24 states and includes United Ways, corporations, nonprofits and foundations in Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawai‘i, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Washington, D.C., West Virginia and Wisconsin; we are United For ALICE. For more information, visit: UnitedForALICE.org.