United Ways of the Pacific Northwest
Study of Financial Hardship

ALICE, a United Way acronym which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed, represents the growing number of individuals and families who are working, but are unable to afford the basic necessities of housing, food, child care, health care, and transportation.

Through a series of standardized measurements, United Way is quantifying the households in each state that are struggling financially, and the reasons why. These measurements provide a broader picture of financial insecurity than traditional federal poverty guidelines. This is the third time that we have studied and reported on ALICE in the Pacific Northwest.

• COVID-19 Hit as Record Number of ALICE Families Were Priced Out of Survival. Visit the United for ALICE COVID-19 website here. For state specific reports click on the links below:
  
  • Idaho interactive website and narrative report can be found at www.UnitedForALICE.org/Idaho and the press release can be found here. A recording of the June 16th Idaho Launch Event can be found here.
  • Oregon interactive website and narrative report can be found at www.UnitedForALICE.org/Oregon and the press release can be found here. A recording of the June 16th Oregon Launch Event can be found here.
  • Washington interactive website and narrative report can be found at www.UnitedForALICE.org/Washington and the press release can be found here. A recording of the June 16th Washington Launch Event can be found here.
• Visit UnitedforALICE.org to learn more about the national study. 
• Previous versions of the study can be found at the website link for each state. 

Why ALICE Matters

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.

Pacific Northwest ALICE Sponsors

Special thanks to the following sponsors for helping to bring the Message of ALICE to the Pacific Northwest states of Idaho, Oregon and Washington.