There has been a lot of discussion lately about raising the minimum wage to a livable wage. Wages paid to American workers have not kept up even with the low levels of inflation. The proposal to raise the Federal minimum wage to $10.10/hour is a start but is still well below a livable wage in most places including Chico and Butte County. If minimum wages kept up with inflation over the past 30 years they would be around $21/hour in 2014, not $10.10.

According to the California Budget Project a “livable wage” in Butte County for one person in 2013 was $12.80/hour, higher than the current minimum wage is $8.00/hour and the averaged per capita income hourly wage of $11.33. While this increase may seem significant it is still 66% of the median wage and would classify a person as “low-income”. A “low-income”, 1-person household in Butte County earns less than $30,650 a year. That’s $14.74/hour or less and a livable wage would still be below this level!

The California Budget Project’s (CPB, http://www.cpb.org) December, 2013 report, “Making Ends Meet: How Much Does It Cost to Support a Family in California?” analyzed the cost to live in California and each of its counties.  The CBP analyzed the following basic living needs: housing and utilities, child care, transportation, food, health care, miscellaneous expenses (including telephone service, housekeeping supplies, and other basic costs), and taxes.

Livable wage in Chico/Butte County:

• A single adult needs an annual income of $26,615, or $12.80/hour.
• A single-parent family with two children needs an annual income of $61,605, or $29.62/hour.
• A two-parent family with one parent working and two children needs an annual income of $53,138, or $25.57/hour.
• A family with two working parents and two children needs an annual income of $69,480, or $16.70/hour for each working parent.

How much do people in Chico make? According the latest Census information, American Community Survey (ACS) reports that in Chico:

• The median household income is $42,896/year, or $20.62/hour, 70% of the State’s median of $61,400.
• The median family income is $56,301/year, or $27.07/hour.
• The per capita income is $23,573, or $11.33/hour, 80% of the State’s per capita of $29,551.

The US Census reports that 23% of the population in Chico is below poverty level.