ALICE and poverty

There are several ways that economic security and poverty are measured. ALICE is a methodology that represents the growing number of families who are struggling to meet their basic needs (United Way of Northern New Jersey, 2025). Federal poverty rates are a different way to measure economic status by estimating the monetary income of households by family sizes and compositions and are typically collected by the U.S. Census Bureau. Both measures use U.S. Census Bureau data, among other reliable sources, but communicate different measures of economic security or insecurity.

While costs for some basic needs in Lenawee County are rising, poverty rates and ALICE household rates are relatively stable. Estimates place just over one quarter (27%) of households in Lenawee County within the ALICE group, and this is the same rate as for the state of Michigan (Figure 1). Lenawee County and state-level poverty rate estimates are slightly different, with Lenawee County showing a 11% poverty rate, which is lower than the state rate of 14% (U.S. Census Bureau, 2019-2023a). Most of the financially strained individuals in Lenawee County are not actively living in poverty but may be living paycheck to paycheck depending on their financial circumstances. Over time, Lenawee County appears relatively stable and on track with the state in terms of overall financial strain rates; however, the degree to which economic strains are felt varies from place to place and from person to person.