Meeting the Self Sufficiency Standard in Rochester

Rochester, NY – WXXI's Bob Smith interviewed Dr. Diana Pierce of the University of Washington about the study she authored, "The Self-Sufficiency Standard for New York State 2010."

It measures how much a family of three needs in all the major metropolitan areas of the state to pay for the essentials including housing, food, clothing, health care, transportation and child care (but no frills such as recreation, vacation or restaurant/take-out meals) without using any public assistance or outside help; the number in Rochester exceeds $47,000 a year.

Click on the audio player above to hear a discussion about what steps we could take as a community to enhance family incomes and bring more people up to that standard of self-sufficiency.