Data Show 40 Percent of US Households May Become a Permanent Underclass

A growing number of US households cannot meet their monthly expenses for the basic necessities of life. The problem has persisted for years.

Josephine, a retiree from Port Huron, Mich. visits a food bank on July 26, 2024, to make ends meet. Steven Kovac/Epoch Times

Some call them the “working poor,” others refer to them as the “forgotten Americans.”

An ongoing series of studies sponsored by the charitable nonprofit United Way labels this group with the acronym ALICE, which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed.