Study: 30% of local households can't meet basic cost of living

Jul. 29—An estimated 30 percent of Yuba-Sutter households do not earn sufficient income to meet their basic costs of living, according to a study by United Ways of California.

The study used the "Real Cost Measure" to determine a household's ability to earn sufficient income. The Real Cost Measure has two primary components. Household dignity budgets estimates the costs of meeting basic needs for different households in a given area, based on data that account for variation in local costs of living; and neighborhood-level demographic analysis: an estimate based on Census data of how many households have income below those local budgets, according to the study's executive summary.

United Ways of California said the federal government's official poverty measure understates poverty because its formula is based on the cost of food, and the costs of housing, transportation, child care, health care, and other costs have risen more rapidly than food costs. The federal poverty measure also neglects regional variations in the cost of living.

"As a result, the true extent of families contending with deprivation is hidden," the executive summary read. "Many of these hidden poor find they earn too much to qualify for most public services, yet still struggle to meet their most basic needs, especially as the costs of housing, health care, and other necessities continue to rise faster than wages."

The study listed "Sutter and Yuba counties — Yuba City" as having 14,208 households below the Real Cost Measure (30 percent). Approximately 10 percent of households in the region, or 4,738 households, live below the federal poverty line.

In the Colusa, Glenn, Tehama, and Trinity counties region, 11,249 households are below the Real Cost Measure (31 percent). Approximately 10 percent of households in the region, or 3,556 households, are below the federal poverty line, according to the study.

Statewide, there are an estimated 3,541,274 households below the Real Cost Measure (32 percent). The data used for the study is from 2019.

"I think this really gives people an honest idea of how many people are struggling to have a good quality of life," said Bob Harlan, executive director of Yuba-Sutter-Colusa United Way. "... We go through life dealing with our own problems or our own success and we don't realize what other people are going through."

The Yuba-Sutter area is listed as part of the "Greater Sacramento" region in the study. In 2019, there were 204,397 households below the Real Cost Measure (27 percent). Households of color struggle disproportionally in the Greater Sacramento region. Of the 204,397 households below the Real Cost Measure, 56,481 were Latinx, according to the study.

In addition, families with children face a larger barrier to economic security, families work, but don't earn enough, and high housing costs are a major challenge for struggling households.

In the Greater Sacramento area, approximately 17 percent of households (130,923) are above the federal poverty level but below the Real Cost Measure.

Harlan said this data does not include the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and he believes things have gotten worse in the past year and a half despite the pandemic relief programs. He said there are several nonprofit organizations working in the area that help people with every type of need.

"I think this really supports their existence very strongly," Harlan said.

Yuba-Sutter-Colusa United Way works with 28 partner agencies in the community. Harlan said in 2019 those agencies assisted 15,500 unique individuals each month. He hopes people will consider giving to local organizations.

"We have a lot of great nonprofits," Harlan said.

For more information on the study, visit https://bit.ly/374N9pq.