In Colorado, the Colorado Center on Law and Policy used the Colorado Self-Sufficiency Standard to determine the impact of affordable housing on family stability and upward mobility.
In Virginia, Voices for Virginia’s Children successfully advocated for the state’s TANF Authorization Committee to use the Virginia Self-Sufficiency Standard as a tool for setting eligibility guidelines.
In Portland, Oregan, the City of Portland uses the Self-Sufficiency Standard as one of their core “Measures of Success” in the Portland Plan in which they hope to reach 90% self-sufficiency, mainly through job training.
A 2011 article in Poverty and Public Policy, “Determining Eligibility for Poverty-Based Assistance Programs: Comparing the Federally Established Poverty Level with the Self Sufficiency Standard for Pennsylvania,” compares the Standard with the Federal Policy Measure as an indicator for public assistance eligibility.
Under its Workforce Investment Act, the Chicago Workforce Investment Board adopted the Self-Sufficiency Standard as its self-sufficiency benchmark.
When the Oklahoma Department of Human Services proposed large increases in child care co-payments, the Community Action Project (CAP) of Tulsa County used analyses based on the Self-Sufficiency Standard in their report, Increased Child Care Co-Payments Threaten Access to Care for Low Income Families, resulting in the Department rescinding the proposed increases.
Fort Carson in Colorado was one of the first military bases to consider reviewing its vendor contracts using the Self-Sufficiency Standard. Their sustainability plan sought vendors who pay “livable wages” to their employees, as defined by the Standard.
This article documents the challenge of acquiring child care subsidies in Philadelphia in the article “The Difficulty of Obtaining a Child Care Subsidy: Implications for Policy and Practice.”
In Maryland, Advocates for Children and Youth used the Self-Sufficiency Standard in their Maryland Can Do Better for Children campaign, a three-year plan to address critical needs of children and their families by 2010.
The Self-Sufficiency Standard was an integral tool for increasing Hawaii’s minimum wage to $6.75 on January 1, 2006 and $7.25 on January 1, 2007.