More Hawaii households in poverty, report finds

Hawaii has seen a significant increase in the number of households living in poverty in the past few years, according to an Aloha United Way report released Tuesday.

The report, based on a 2022 statewide survey, found that while 9% of Hawaii households were below the federal poverty line in 2019, that percentage ballooned to 15% in 2022.

That means 1 in 7 island households are struggling under the federal poverty line, which is $15,630 for a single-person household and $31,920 for a four-­person household.

“Over 200,000 people are under the poverty level,” John Fink, president and CEO of Aloha United Way, said Tuesday morning at a news conference. “That’s an astounding figure we have to deal with going forward.”

With 44% of households either under the poverty line or considered ALICE households, an estimated 634,000 people are having a tough time making ends meet in Hawaii, according to the report. ALICE stands for “asset-limited, income-­constrained, employed” and represents households with income above the federal poverty level but below the basic cost of living.

Officials said the pandemic, inflation and other unexpected impacts made things worse for many people and pushed those at the lower end of the ALICE spectrum into poverty.

The survey of 2,391 residents — one of largest of its kind to date — was supported by the Bank of Hawaii and conducted by Anthology Research between July and September.

This year’s report, ALICE in Hawai‘i: 2022 Facts &Figures, was largely based on the data obtained from the survey, in part, because the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey was disrupted during the pandemic and deemed unreliable. Hawaii is the only state distributing ALICE data in 2022.

The report found that households with children, larger households and those identifying as Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and Filipino are disproportionately affected with hardship and are far more likely to be below the ALICE threshold.

Maui County showed the largest percentage increase in poverty levels, rising to 16% from 6%.

The report indicates that the top three issues that residents are struggling with are health or disability problems, difficulty paying off debt and housing costs.

Nearly half of the households surveyed said they would be able to cover only two months or less of household expenses, based on the money they have available. Nearly 1 in 10 wouldn’t be able to pay an unexpected $400 expense at all.

The data also shows that households below the ALICE threshold are significantly less likely to use basic financial services like checking/savings accounts, retirement accounts and credit cards. And these same households are far more likely to be affected by negative credit scores, limiting their access to financial aid in an emergency.

“These people have found a way to survive,” Fink said. “They have borrowed from friends and family. They cannot continue to do that. They cannot continue to dip into savings accounts and, of course, 401(k)s. That will have a ripple effect for 20 years for some of these people.”

In 2022, Aloha United Way and the Hawai‘i Community Foundation teamed up to run the 2022-2024 ALICE Initiative. AUW and HCF each pledged $750,000 per year for the next three years — a total of $4.5 million — to a group of 17 nonprofit organizations to support their work with ALICE households, including issues relating to financial stability, building savings, and safe and affordable housing.

Financial support has also been pledged locally to the AUW ALICE Fund for the next three years by the Bank of Hawaii Foundation, Hawaii Pacific Health, HMSA, Hawaiian Electric Industries and Locations Foundation Inc.