New data and interactive tools reveal that the share of children growing up amid financial insecurity remained stubbornly high from 2019 to 2022
In 2022, 42% of New Jersey’s children lived in households that couldn’t afford the basics, according to new data from United Way of Northern New Jersey and its research arm United For ALICE. This ranks New Jersey 10th in the nation, with a ranking of 1 representing the lowest percentage of hardship for children.
ALICE in Focus: Children reveals that traditional measures of poverty have severely undercounted the number of children ages 18 and younger in New Jersey who are growing up in financially insecure households. While 13% of all children in the state lived in poverty in 2022, the new data shows that 28% – more than twice as many – lived in families defined as ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed). ALICE households earn more than the Federal Poverty Level, but less than the basic costs of housing, child care, food, transportation, health care and technology, plus taxes.
The research also shows that the 42% of children in 2022 who were below the ALICE Threshold – consisting of ALICE households and households in poverty combined – was largely unchanged from 41 in 2019.
“Undercounting the number of children living in hardship in our state not only masks the true scale of the issue but also hinders our ability to provide the necessary support and resources,” said United Way of Northern New Jersey CEO Kiran Handa Gaudioso. “Without these, our children are at risk of falling behind in school, facing health issues and missing out on opportunities to flourish as they grow.”
Because ALICE households often earn too much to qualify for public assistance, the data finds that in 2022, more than 519,000 children in struggling families didn’t access the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
ALICE in Focus: Children also reveals that in 2022:
● Hardship varied widely across the state, ranging from a low of 8% in Haddonfield Borough to a high of 82% in Patterson.
● Racial disparities persisted, with 59% of Black and 60% of Hispanic children in New Jersey living in households below the ALICE Threshold, compared with 29% of white children.
● Having two working parents didn’t guarantee financial stability: Among all New Jersey households with two working adults, 28% of children were still growing up in hardship.
● Nearly 183,300 children in households earning below the ALICE Threshold had no high-speed internet access at home.
"To unlock a brighter future for every child, we’ve got to aim higher than the poverty level," said United For ALICE National Director Stephanie Hoopes, Ph.D. "Together we are working to make the ALICE Threshold the minimum standard for child well-being.”
More state and local data is available through the interactive ALICE in Focus: Children Data Dashboard – which provides filters for regional and local geographies, age, race, disability status, living arrangements and household work status. Visit UnitedForALICE.org/Focus-Children.
ALICE in Focus: Children is part of the ALICE in Focus Research Series, which draws from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS). Each installment in the series highlights a specific population within the ALICE demographic. Topics have included people with disabilities and veterans.
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