TAMPA, Fla. — Unfortunately, the recent ALICE report (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed ) shows that financial hardships for Floridians across the state, specifically in the Tampa Bay region, are worsening.
The ALICE report shows Pinellas County as the highest increase in Florida.
In Pinellas County, "the household survival budget is $108,480, which is the highest for any county in the state of Florida," Ernest Hooper, Chief Communications Officer at United Way Suncoast, told ABC Action News reporter Michael Paluska.
"That number should be alarming for a lot of people, and it keeps going up. It rose 8% in our region. It rose 10% for Sarasota County. So it's not getting easier for families, it's growing more difficult," Hooper said.
Another area struggling is our senior citizens.
"That demographic has grown more than any other demographic," Hooper said. "More and more households, 65 and older, are now classified as Alice, asset-limited, income-constrained, employed. These folks make enough to be above the federal poverty line, but don't make enough to meet those everyday needs. And so they're living paycheck to paycheck and not saving money. There's another number that we haven't even gotten into, yeah, what you need to annually make to have a savings account to move closer to financial security. That number for the state of Florida is $145,000 annually. So it's even higher than some numbers cited for the household survival budget."
At Feeding Tampa Bay, we talked to neighbors getting food at the local market pantry and a hot meal at the Bistro.
"It helps a lot yes,” Leonora Gaspar told Paluska. "The rent, it's more expensive."
The food bank helps offset Gaspar's cost; she is disabled and on a fixed income.
Another neighbor said her most significant cost is food, and she has a good reason.
"I'm spending at least $300 to $400 just on food," Felicia Acosta said. "My husband passed a year ago, and I got my grandchildren at the house. All boys, they eat a lot."
Childcare is also a cost that most parents can't afford. Hooper said more and more moms are leaving the workforce to stay at home.
"Well, we like to use that specific demographic, a family of four with an infant and a toddler, because it captures childcare costs," Hooper said.
The best resource for families in need is to call 211. Hooper told Paluska that operators will find the best non-profit, city, or county agency to address their needs.
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