FPWA

New York City is now the first municipality in the nation to establish a True Cost of Living measure.

The release of this data is a meaningful step in honoring the will of voters — more than 80% of whom approved a charter revision requiring the City to develop and publish this metric annually.

And now, the real work begins.

TCOL has the power to reshape how policymakers approach wages, benefits, tax policy, housing, child care, and more. In a city where 62% of New Yorkers are economically insecure, we now have a tool that reflects the full picture of what it takes not just to survive, but to thrive.

"The city will no longer solely rely on outdated poverty thresholds that obscure the financial pressures families face. It is naming what it costs to live here, and to do so with dignity. Government statistics have told the lie that families are doing fine as long as they sit above the poverty line. Across the five boroughs, that line has never reflected reality."

🔗 Read the full piece from FPWA CEO & Co-Chair of the National True Cost of Living Coalition, Jennifer Jones Austin, now:

Affordability’s real cost in New York New Yorkers don’t need a report to tell them life in this city is expensive. They see it in rents that rise faster than wages, in child care costs that rival college tuition, and in paychecks that barely cover the bills. Only our g…