'Not the American dream': Hard times hit 1 in 3 Jacksonville-area families

A new report on the working poor shows that almost 40% of Northeast Florida households — at least one in three — struggled to make ends meet during the COVID-19 pandemic, with even higher rates for Black and Hispanic families compared to white families.

Based on 2021 U.S. Census data, the report from United Way of Northeast Florida and its research partner United for ALICE revealed "deep racial disparities in the rates of financial hardship," with 55% of Black households and 46% of Hispanic households surviving on income less than the basic cost of living for their community, compared to 34% for white households.

"The pandemic was a tough time for so many in our community, exacerbating challenges already faced by struggling families as well as people who found themselves struggling for the first time in their lives," said Melanie Patz, area United Way president and CEO. "This new data is critical in helping us better understand these challenges, shine a light on those they disproportionately affect and, alongside our partners, develop effective long-term solutions."

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Kimberly Allen is CEO of 904Ward, a Jacksonville nonprofit working to build a more inclusive community. She said she was not surprised by the ALICE results or the racial disparity they revealed.

Even before the pandemic and inflation that followed, she said, there were a wide range of systemic issues causing economic and racial disparity. They include the generational impacts of redlining, in which many poor and minority areas were frozen out of mortgage lending starting in the 1930s; highway construction through low-income neighborhoods; and environmentally toxic living conditions.

"Until we're willing to address those root causes, we're going to continue to see these same outcomes for years to come," she said. "We're going to come back here 20 years later with the same data, asking the same questions."

Who is ALICE?

In 2012 the United Way of Northern New Jersey developed a data-gathering method called ALICE, which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed.

United Ways across the country now use the method to calculate the number of people who are working and earning more than the federal poverty level but still have difficulty making ends meet based on a minimal "survival budget." That's the ALICE threshold.

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The latest Northeast Florida report, which includes data from Duval, Baker, Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties, said about 74,000 area households live below the federal poverty level. In 2021 that was $26,500 for a family of four.

But another 176,000 families were below the ALICE threshold, with income above the federal poverty level but not enough to comfortably get by. They are "typically those working one or more low-wage jobs with little or no savings and are often overlooked and undercounted by traditional poverty measures," according to the United Way.

In Northeast Florida, the annual ALICE Household Survival Budget for a family of four was $84,072 in 2021. That budget reflects the minimum cost to live and work in the area, including housing, child care, food, transportation, health care, a smartphone plan and taxes. But it does not include savings for emergencies, college or retirement.

During the pandemic, increased level of public assistance eased some families' financial hardship.

"While the COVID-19 pandemic brought employment shifts, health struggles and school and business closures in 2021, it also spurred unprecedented public assistance through pandemic relief measures, such as tax credits, stimulus payments and rental assistance," according to the United Way. "While job disruptions and inflation delivered significant financial pain, these pandemic supports and rising wages did help to lessen what could have been a deeper financial crisis."The Child Tax Credit and Child and Dependent Care Credit helped reduce expenses, bringing the family Survival Budget down to $69,264. But that figure remained substantially higher than the federal poverty level of $26,500 for a family of four.

"This is not the American Dream," Patz said.

Certain populations have been particularly hard hit

In 2021, 76% of single women heading households in Duval County reported income below the ALICE rate. Support has been underway — for instance, the Women's Giving Alliance funds nonprofits that help ease female poverty — but more widespread funding may be needed.

"We need to make sure that these organizations have the capacity and resources they need to scale their services," Allen said. "Right now we have the perfect storm. Inflation would not have happened without COVID … and we are dealing with the repercussions."

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Also, certain ZIP codes showed high ALICE rates. They were 32209 with 74%; 32202 with 71%; 32206 with 69%; 32254 with 67%; and 32208 with 66%. Again, many initiatives have been implemented, including a $2 million Florida Blue investment in the 32206 ZIP code, Jacksonville's Eastside, in 2022.

"While ALICE can be found in all areas of our community, there are certain ZIP codes where poverty and health disparities are concentrated," Patz said. "These disparities are why United Way is committed to focusing on three impact areas: basic needs, financial well-being and racial equity. The unfortunate reality is the need always outweighs the resources available. Poverty is not an issue philanthropy, the government or private sector can solve alone.

That's why she said the United Way is committed to bringing all stakeholders together to continue to work on and develop collaborative solutions for these systemic issues.

"If we rely solely on the programs, they will never be enough," Allen said. "We have to have a conversation about the system that has left these communities, these ZIP codes, in peril, having to struggle in the first place. We have to be willing to acknowledge those things and … understand these are the long-term impacts and this is what we need to reverse it."

About 3% of adults — age 16 and up — in Duval County were unemployed in 2021. About 25% were employed full time and 24% part time. But many full- and part-time workers are paid by the hour, which meant they were "more likely to have fluctuations in income and less likely to receive benefits," according to the report.

How did Florida fare as a whole?

Statewide, 3.9 million, or 45%, of households had income below the ALICE threshold, including those who lived below poverty level and the so-called ALICE households, according to the Florida report.

"The crux of the problem is a mismatch between earnings and the cost of basics," according to the report. "Between 2019 and 2021, the cost of basics increased across Florida and remained well above the FPL [federal poverty level]." During that time period, average annual costs, excluding taxes, increased 12% for a single adult, 11% for a single senior and 7% for a family of four.

Of the 20 most common occupations in Florida in 2021, 70% paid less than $20 per hour. One of the most common was cashier: 54% of them were below the threshold, earning a median hourly wage of $11.06 — not even enough to cover the Survival Budget for one worker employed full time ($14.17 per hour), much less for a family with children.

The Florida report also found ALICE households "especially vulnerable to national economic disruptions" and included all demographic groups. But disparities also exist statewide "due to persistent racism, ageism, gender discrimination and geographic barriers." About 59% of Black and 51% of Hispanic households were below the ALICE threshold in Florida in 2021, compared to 40% of white households.

"With pandemic assistance waning while significant challenges remain, there are warning signs that the economic situation for [such] households … has worsened since 2021, including sustained high levels of food insufficiency, continued difficulty paying bills, medical debt and feelings of anxiety and depression," according to the Florida report.

That dire prognosis also likely applies to Northeast Florida.

"Since 2021, we believe conditions have not improved for families below the ALICE threshold," said Jeff Winkler, the area United Way's head of basic needs. "While wages have risen, inflation is outpacing them, particularly related to basic necessities like housing, food, transportation and child care. The sunset of many of the pandemic-related federal supports have only further strained household budgets."

Also, credit card debt is at an "unprecedented level" of almost $1 trillion nationwide as some families are forced to use them to get by, Winkler said.

How have the area United Way and the overall community responded?

"The good news is, at United Way, we believe — and know — change is possible," Patz said. "We can build a community of opportunity where everyone has hope and can achieve their full potential."

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The agency has focused its resources and investments on basic needs, financial well-being and racial equity. In September 2022, the area United Way announced a plan to distribute $9.05 million among 37 nonprofits to help people in Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau and northern St. Johns counties who are having trouble staying financially afloat.

Those nonprofits collectively serve about 210,000 people, providing food, housing, education and workforce development. The grants were intended to help them expand those efforts.

Earlier this year, the agency announced that it would invest at least $1 million of a $20 million windfall gift from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott to "protect and increase" affordable home ownership in three historically Black and low-income neighborhoods in Jacksonville. Work funded by the investment is now being used to preserve homes in North Riverside and soon on the Historic Eastside.

The nonprofit also formed a task force to recommend future investments from the 2020 Scott donation for "long-term affordable housing solutions."

Meanwhile, United Way is partnering with 904WARD and the University of North Florida on a racial equitycommunity needs assessment. The report is to be released this summer and guide the agency's future work in racial equity.

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Such work must include addressing the causes of racial disparities, Allen said. And the public must play its part.

"What we need is systemic change," she said. "… The best way to get change at the systemic level is to vote and to make sure that we are electing officials who are going to take to heart the matters that are impacting our communities, especially our adversely impacted communities. Write policy, erase policy, create new policy and edit old policy so that it makes sense and aligns with the lived experience."

bcravey@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4109

UNITED WAY OF NORTHEAST FLORIDA ALICE REPORT

To read the full ALICE reports on Northeast Florida and statewide and to access the interactive ALICEdata dashboards and county fact sheets, go to unitedwaynefl.org/alice. To speak to United Way leadership about the report, contact Sarah Henderson, director of marketing and communications, at sarahh@uwnefl.org. To donate, volunteer or get more information about the area United Way and its programs, contact the agency at 40 E. Adams St., Suite 310, Jacksonville, FL, 32202; (904) 390-3200 or go to unitedwaynefl.org.

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: United Way details financial struggles of Jacksonville-area families