Our basic needs are met

32% of Travis County residents
were low income in 2008

A family is considered to be low-income if they earn 200% of the federal poverty level according to the National Center for Children in Poverty. This amounts to $42,400 for a family of four. 

Austin’s Center for Public Policy Priorities does an analysis of what it takes for families to live in Texas’ major metropolitan areas. According to this analysis, a family in the Austin metro area with two parents and two children without employer-sponsored health insurance would have needed to earn $53,080 in 2007 to pay for housing, food, child care, medical costs, transportation and other necessities.

The National Center for Children in Poverty reports that children who grow up in low income homes often experience difficulties later in life, such as dropping out of school, poor health, and poor employment outcomes.

Nearly one-third of Travis County residents, 311,005 people, were low-income in 2008. The rate was even higher for residents of the City of Austin.

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37% of Travis County households
were “cost burdened” in 2008

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development considers households that spend 30% or more of their income on housing expenses to be “cost burdened.” This indicator helps to quantify the concept of affordable housing. In 2008, Travis County had a higher percentage of households that were cost-burdened than the MSA, the state, and the nation. The rate for the City of Austin was even higher.

A more complete measure of affordability is one that combines housing and transportation costs, but this data is not regularly available for our area. A new Brookings study, Commuting to Opportunity: The Working Poor and Commuting in the United States, found that in Dallas, the only Texas city included in the study, households earning between $20,000 and $50,000 spent 56% of their total income on housing and transportation.

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Travis County residents
traveled 17 daily vehicle miles
per capita

This indicator monitors our reliance on cars, buses and other vehicles.  The Sustainable Development Indicators-Interagency Workgroup reports on the significance of this indicator.  In areas where there is urban sprawl, significant population increases, and employment growth, people find themselves making more frequent and longer road trips.  This can strain roadway capacity, force communities to build more roads, increase surface water runoff, and increase fuel consumption that contributes to air pollution. Also, people that drive more daily vehicle miles per day have less time for family, friends, and other social activities.   

In fiscal year 2009, Travis County residents traveled an average of 17 miles in their vehicles each day.  This is lower than the average number of daily vehicle miles traveled per capita for the other counties in our MSA.

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Percent receiving homeless housing services
who moved into “safe and stable” housing (data under review)

The Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO) conducted a survey of 515 people who were homeless in Austin in 2007.  When asked why they were homeless, 60% cited unemployment.  The second most commonly cited reason was “inability to pay rent/mortgage.” Very similar answers were cited by the mayors of cities that have seen an increase in homelessness.  According to the U.S. Conference of Mayors 2008 Status Report on Hunger & Homelessness high unemployment and a lack of affordable housing were the two most common factors cited by cities to explain increased homelessness. 

ECHO coordinates planning to address homelessness in Austin and Travis County and manages applications for the funding for homeless services and housing that comes to Austin from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  ECHO oversees the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) that provides data on sheltered homeless clients and the services they receive.  The chart at right shows that almost 7,000 people received services from HUD funded housing programs in 2007.  The Dashboard Steering Committee would like to work with ECHO to use HMIS data to track how effective our community is in helping those who are homeless move to safe and stable housing.  The data for this information is currently under review.  

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LEARN MORE | our basic needs are met

The Basic Needs Coalition of Central Texas is a coalition of agencies that work to secure basic resources, such as food and housing, for people in need.  The 2010 Poverty Fact Sheet and Frequently Asked Questions about Basic Needs: A Focus on Child Poverty summarize poverty information in our community.

Local collaborations that provide education and advocate to ensure the basic needs of special needs populations are met include the Aging Services Council and the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Coalition.

The Capital Area Regional Transit Coordinating Committee helps coordinate transit and transportation services with health and human services.

Travis County Health and Human Services & Veterans Service, Research and Planning Division produces the Travis County Snapshot from  American Community Survey 2008, an annual report summarizing U.S. Census data on poverty, education, income and other data.  The Department’s Community Impact Report 2009 provides an overview of community conditions in Travis County. 

The Center for Public Policy Priorities advocates at the state level for policies to improve the safety net for people in need. The CPPP’s “Family Budget Estimator” compares what it costs families to live in each of Texas’ major metropolitan areas by estimating housing, food, child care, health care, transportation, and other basic expenses.

City of Austin Neighborhood Housing and Community Development’s Comprehensive Housing Market Study includes a housing market analysis and needs assessment of housing available to low to moderate-income residents.

HousingWorks is a local collaboration that advocates for policies to promote affordable housing in all parts of Austin.

The Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO) is dedicated to planning, prioritizing, and developing strategies to end homelessness in Austin and Travis County.  ECHO will soon release a new Plan to End Community Homelessness.