Prices for food, gas, housing, childcare, healthcare and other basic needs are on the rise and Michiganders’ wages aren’t keeping up. Meanwhile, families are facing federal cuts to social safety net programs and the wealth gap in America is the worst it’s ever been. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Just last week, the Michigan League for Public Policy hosted a webinar and published a brief on the power of cash benefits in building economic security for Michiganders. The concept offers transformative solutions for the 41% of families in our state that are living in poverty or are considered “ALICE” (Asset Limited, Income Constrained and Employed) households. The ALICE survival threshold represents a minimum household budget a family would need to meet in order to afford basic necessities without making sacrifices.

To put this into perspective, a family of three (for this example, a parent and two school-aged children) needs to earn $27,320 annually to be above the poverty threshold. That same family would need to earn $56,484 to be above the ALICE survival threshold. Families like this live in every county in Michigan and they face impossible choices.

They often have to decide between keeping the lights on at home or putting food on the table, or whether to forgo filling a prescription in order to make a necessary car repair. For these families, the power of unrestricted, no-strings-attached direct cash programs is undeniable.

Originally published by Michigan Advance, a nonprofit news organization.

Patrick Schaefer

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Cash benefits are key to addressing financial hardship for Michiganders

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