LIHU‘E — As the cost of living continues to rise and wages stagnate, more Kaua‘i residents have slipped into poverty.
A new study from Aloha United Way showed an increase in Kaua‘i residents living below the poverty line ($15,630 a year for a single-person household and $31,920 for a four-person household) from 10 percent in 2018 to 14 percent in 2022. This mirrors state trends, where the poverty rate increased from 9 to 15 percent.
“With the rising cost of living and inflation, more people are living in poverty in 2022 than during the great recession,” said Aloha United Way Vice President of Community Impact Kimo Carvalho.
All Neighbor Islands saw higher poverty rates than O‘ahu, but Kaua‘i had a lower rate of residents living in poverty than Maui (16 percent) or Hawai‘i Island (18 percent). More than 1 in 5 Kaua‘i residents said their spending was more than their income, and 23 percent said their spending equaled their income.
The data comes from 2,391 phone and web surveys completed between July and September 2022. The study looked at households below the poverty line along with those above the federal poverty level, but below the basic cost of living, referred to as Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed, or ALICE. Of Kaua‘i residents, 44 percent were under the ALICE threshold.
The study showed Kaua‘i residents were far more likely to report being affected by a health issue than respondents from other islands. A quarter of Kaua‘i residents surveyed listed their top issue as a serious health condition, physical disability or medical problem unrelated to COVID-19.
“Many residents have delayed medical care, which has caused capacity issues, particularly in Neighbor Islands,” said Carvalho. “I know that they do have an older population on Kaua‘i, but I imagine there is a correlation with the delayed health care as well.”
Mental health also showed up as a primary area of concern, with 1 in 4 people across the state struggling with mental health challenges.
“The reason mental health is significant is because a household is less likely to be successful if they have barriers, such as depression, anxiety and stress,” said Carvalho.
On Kaua‘i, a mental health professional shortage leads to long wait times of a month or longer for people seeking care.
Statewide, about 75 percent of those surveyed said they had reduced their expenses, a 7 percent increase from 2019, while 58
percent said they worked extra hours or took on an extra job, a 4 percent increase. And 39 percent said they overdrew from their checking account, a 9 percent increase. These impacts fell harder on certain populations.
“While there are people of all ages, races and ethnicities struggling in every community, there are specific groups that face disproportionate impacts,” said Carvalho. “Specifically households below the ALICE threshold are more likely to be Native Hawaiian or Filipino. They have children, they live in a multi-generational or larger household. They do not have a college degree or trade certification.”
The Aloha United Way study was supported by funding from the Bank of Hawai‘i Foundation and in partnership with the Financial Health Network, United For ALICE, and the Hawai‘i Community Foundation.
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Guthrie Scrimgeour, reporter, can be reached at 808-647-0329 or gscrimgeour@thegardenisland.com.
$15,630 poverty line? That will not cover most rents. Food, insurance, car, phone etc not necessities I guess. People moving here buying $2M+ homes who bring a business here do you think they will charge friendly prices for their services? Our COL is out of control and Kaua`i becoming a place for the wealthy.