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New York City Overlooked and Undercounted 2026 Report
This analysis is based on the New York City Self-Sufficiency Standard—referred to in this report as the True Cost of Living in New York City—a realistic, geographically specific, and family composition–specific measure of income adequacy. As such, it provides a more accurate alternative to the Official Poverty Measure.
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Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation award
The Center for Women's Welfare is pleased to share that we have been awarded a 1-year grant by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation to advance the SSS by producing the first national dataset of households whose incomes fall in the gap above the federal poverty line but below basic needs adequacy.
Kauffman Foundation website
Celebrating Dr. Pearce's Leadership
Thanks to the generous support of Standard founder, Dr. Pearce, the Standard will be calculating all 50 states in 2026. Interested in hosting or accessing the data?
2026 UW Population Health Initiative Award
The upcoming project "Expanding the Self-Sufficiency Standard to Model Health Coverage Options" was recently funded.
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Respect the Worker, Value the Work
Occupational Segregation in Washington State at a Glance
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Occupational Segregation in Washington State
In Washington State, women of color make up 16% of the workforce but are overrepresented in low-wage jobs like cashiers, cooks, customer service representatives, agricultural workers, and personal care aides — most of which fail to meet Self-Sufficiency Standard needs, especially for families with young children.
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Covering Costs in Oregon
One adult taking care of a preschooler and school-age child needs to earn $49.55 per hour in Portland to cover their basic needs.
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New data
The Self-Sufficiency Standard calculator now includes the most recent data from 2025.
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Call for a better way to measure poverty
In a letter to Representative Jayapal, leaders of five Washington State agencies recommend adopting the Self-Sufficiency Standard as the official measure of poverty.
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A project of the Center for Women’s Welfare (CWW), the Self-Sufficiency Standard is a budget-based, living wage measure that defines the real cost of living for working families at a minimally adequate level. The Standard is an affordability measure and an alternative to the official poverty measure.

The Self-Sufficiency Standard determines the amount of income required for working families to meet basic needs at a minimally adequate level, taking into account family composition, ages of children, and geographic differences in costs.

Self-Sufficiency Standard by State

Click on a state or view the state list.

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