In 2024, Governor Inslee signed into law SHB 2230 which establishes the Economic Security for All (EcSA) grant program. The bill uses the Self-Sufficiency Standard as a definition of financial need and requires a career plan for all EcSA customers using the Self-Sufficiency Standard.
The Olympia Food Cooperative uses the Self-Sufficiency Standard for eligibility for their Cooperative Access Program which offers a free annual membership and a grocery discount.
The Standard has been used in California, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Hawaii, Nebraska, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, and Washington State to advocate for higher wages through living wage ordinances and in negotiating labor union agreements.
In Washington State, the Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County adopted the Self-Sufficiency Standard as its official measure of self-sufficiency and continues to use the Standard as a program evaluation benchmark.
In Washington State, the Self-Sufficiency Calculator is an online tool created by the Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County to support career planning with customers and to track progress toward economic self-sufficiency.
The Standard was cited in research and testimony in support of the SeaTac living wage ordinance (raising wages to $15/hour for covered employees) and in the successful campaign to raise the minimum wage in Seattle to $15/hour (over several years, depending on establishment size).
Redefining Housing Affordability Measures: The Self-Sufficiency Standard provides an alternative tool to understanding housing cost burden. An Urban Planning thesis titled “Analyzing Measurements of Housing Affordability” found that the Self-Sufficiency Standard was the best measure of housing affordability of the six measures examined.
Many states in the Kids Count! Project use the Standard as an indicator of economic well-being or security to determine the well-being of children and how to best invest in them.
The report Poverty Doesn’t Fly, performed by the Harry Bridges Labor Center at the University of Washington, analyzed the economic impact of a proposed $15 minimum wage on workers at the Portland International Airport.
Dr. Pearce testified as an expert witness in the case City of Richland vs. Wakefield for a woman who was ordered to pay court fees, despite her inability to pay.
