Reports & Articles
Over the past decade, Washington home prices have increased dramatically. But in a new report, Economic Opportunity Institute has found that this escalation alone is not the only significant hurdle for potential home buyers. The dramatic increase in home prices in Washington is not proportionate to wage gains for workers, creating an ever-widening gap between […]
Wages vary dramatically between occupations. For those people lucky enough to be occupations where wages have kept pace with the cost of housing, typical rent is still about as affordable as it was more than a decade ago. But for many others, rent in Washington takes up a greater share of income than before. Decreases […]
The advertised rent for housing is the same for everyone – but for Black and Hispanic workers, rent is typically far less affordable than for their White counterparts. The estimated median wage of a White worker in Washington ($33.60/hour) means median 2-bdroom rent ($1651) costs the equivalent of 12.3 work hours/week. The same rental costs […]
Renters often expect increases when they renew their leases. Unfortunately, their wages haven’t increased in at the same rate. EOI’s new dataset shows that since the pandemic, fewer jobs pay enough for workers to be able to rent in Washington. According to the data, the proportion of jobs with a median wage sufficient to afford […]
February marks the 30th anniversary of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) of 1993— the first bill President Clinton signed into law. FMLA is a lifesaver for millions of families across the country. Nearly 15 million workers take this leave every year to care for newborns, seriously ill family members, or themselves, without […]
If you live in Washington, you may feel like your rent is increasing faster than your income. Data show that you’re probably correct. Over the past decade, rental costs in Washington have begun outpacing wage gains for workers, making it harder and harder to afford a place to live. In 2021, the median cost to […]
It’s no secret. High health care costs are driving Washington workers and families over the edge. More than 400,000 people in our state are being chased by debt collectors for medical bills. Four out of five Washingtonians recently surveyed say they’re worried about affording their health care. And drug companies, major health systems, and insurers keep asking for skyrocketing price […]
Our state needs tax revenue to fund all of the things we love and rely on. From public schools and universities to firefighters and so much more, taxes are essential. But the way we raise those funds matters. Unfortunately, Washington does not collect taxes equally. We have a potential solution, though: A wealth tax. Washington’s […]
Health care costs in the United States are out of control. As a nation, we spend double what similar countries spend – and our costs continue to rise.
By many measures, Washington is an affluent state. As a long-time home to drivers of industry and technology, Washington draws and creates wealthy individuals. A recent study by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy describes the geography of extreme wealth in the United States and notes that Washington is one of a handful of […]
On August 24, 2022, the Biden Administration announced they will be canceling student loan debt for millions of borrowers across the country. Up to $10,000 (i.e., whatever the remaining balance is up to $10,000) will be forgiven for those student loan borrowers with loans held by the Department of Education and up to $20,000 for […]
More than 30 months since the pandemic began, COVID is still with us. While (from a jobs point-of-view) its biggest economic shock waves have subsided, some of its effects still linger. Here’s what Washington’s jobs picture looks like now — and a lesson we can learn from the public policy response to the pandemic. Unemployment […]
Washington is home to nearly one hundred individuals worth a billion dollars or more. At the same time, nearly one out of four Washingtonians lives in poverty.
It has been a little over two years since COVID changed the world. It has been an emotional roller coaster for all, especially the child care workforce. Before the pandemic, the child care sector was like a rickety old rollercoaster, functioning but in constant need of tweaks in the form of financial assistance from government […]
This week President Joe Biden signed the historic Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), a $700 billion bill funding reductions in prescription healthcare costs and climate issues, which Congress hopes will help the overall economy and each family’s economic well-being. The passage of the reconciliation mega-bill gives us hope that Senate and House representatives can and will […]
Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in early 2021 to help cushion the blow of the COVID-19 pandemic and kick-start a recovery from the ensuing economic recession. The act included provisions to improve health care affordability, extend unemployment insurance, support small businesses, and increase tax credits for families. ARPA added desperately needed supports […]
As we close out Pride month and honor LGBTQ history, let’s celebrate the many beautiful forms family can take and ensure that LGBTQ working families can access the legal protections they need to care for all their loved ones. For many people, especially those in the LGBTQIA+ community, family is found, created, and chosen. Following […]
After-Pregnancy Coverage, the new program won by advocates in 2021 to expand Medicaid coverage after pregnancy, is now available. The program will help thousands of Washingtonians gain access to coverage during a critical time and help address our state’s maternal health crisis. Who is eligible and what does it cover? Starting this month, if you […]
View Executive Summary, here, or the PDF report, here. Introduction: Program overview and history Washington’s Paid Family & Medical Leave program (PFML) launched in January 2020, the same month that the nation’s first COVID-19 case was identified in the state. During its first two years, PFML provided benefits on 262,500 claims from people welcoming a […]
Did you know that Latinx women earn an average of 57 cents for every white man’s dollar, Black women earn 64 cents, and white women earn 79 cents? Our friends at Molly Moon’s Homemade Ice Cream do, and to honor Equal Pay Day on March 15th, they’ll donate 10% of profits from all locations to […]
The way we talk about and report on the economy and the state budget often masks underlying problems. It can make it harder for our elected leaders to enact the policies we need to build more resilient and equitable communities. Right now, reporting on the economy paints a picture of a robust economic recovery despite […]
In 2021, Washington’s legislature took a big step toward addressing our most unfair-in-the-nation tax code by passing a tax on the capital gains of the very wealthy. SB 5096 established a 7% tax on extraordinary profits exceeding $250,000 per year from the sales of assets like stocks and bonds. When it goes into effect in […]
Tuesday, February 15 marked a major cut-off in Washington’s 2022 legislative session. Policy bills must now have passed their “house of origin” – either the House or Senate – to continue being considered this year. Bills that have survived this cut off now move to the other chamber. Senate committees will take up House bills […]
Since March 2020, when the pandemic began shutting down workplaces, schools, and social gatherings, child care providers and their staff have been going 110%. They’ve risked their health and faced extra costs, with resources dwindling every day. For them, anxiety and worry continue to grow as we head into year three of this seemingly never-ending […]
We all vividly remember the beginning of the pandemic and the economic crash we faced in 2020. In response to projected state revenue loss, Governor Inslee vetoed hundreds of millions of dollars of funding from the 2020 supplemental budget, including funding for more counselors at high-poverty elementary schools and $50 million for climate mitigation efforts. […]
Washington launched its new Paid Family & Medical Leave program (PFML) in January 2020, just weeks before the first U.S. COVID case was first identified in the state. That timing turned out to be fortuitous. PFML has helped keep Washington families financially afloat, improved health, and relieved stress during the past two tumultuous years. Because […]
Recent increases in consumer prices are real and significant. But while the Consumer Price Index (CPI) tells us how much prices have changed over time, it doesn’t tell us much about the factors underlying those increases. One factor that hasn’t received enough attention is how the pricing power – and higher profits – of corporations […]
While the bottom 50% have made some headway since the end of the Great Recession, the share garnered by the wealthiest has far outstripped everyone else. Heading into the pandemic, White families, in general, had significantly more wealth than Black, Hispanic and other or multiple race families. At the pandemic’s onset (2019), the typical White […]
Much has been made of the increased leverage workers have had lately to negotiate higher wages. Looking at national data, it is true that some workers are experiencing stronger wage growth than others, including “job switchers” who leave one job to take another, as well as lower-wage workers. But historically, that’s common during periods of […]
Overall, Washington has 2.5% (89,400) net fewer nonfarm jobs than it did pre-pandemic. While high-wage sectors have gained net jobs since February 2020, low- and moderate-wage jobs in hospitality, manufacturing, services, and government are making up ground much more slowly. Among Washington’s largest job sectors, those with net job gains since February 2020 include: Information […]
Introduction As we head into our third year of living with a pandemic, major parts of our state and national economies have stabilized – and some economic measures show the economy thriving. But while some individuals and corporations are prospering, many households and small businesses face enormous challenges. Federal pandemic assistance through much of 2020 […]
For PDF Factsheet, click here. Washington’s Paid Family & Medical Leave program began providing benefits in 2020 to people needing time away from work to heal from their own serious health condition, care for a new child, or care for seriously ill family. Over the past two years, 250,000 workers and families have benefitted. Washington’s […]