Scorecard for Shared Prosperity: Measuring change to drive collective action
OUR PATH FORWARD
Long before the COVID-19 crisis hit, disparities have been widening in metro regions across the United States. In the greater Seattle region, disparities around race, gender and geography not only harm some people and communities more than others—particularly Black and Indigenous people —they inhibit the well being of the entire region. Shared prosperity—the idea that we all do better when we all do better—is central to the way Civic Commons addresses these threats and inequities to create a fair system in which everyone has access to the opportunity and resources they need to thrive. With this framework in mind, we convened a panel for a webcast exploring shared prosperity, what it means, and the possibilities it presents for making equitable change in our community. Learn more about how inclusivity benefits everyone and Our Path Forward here.
DIMENSIONS OF PROSPERITY
How to read the data
- Good news! Our region is headed in the right direction.
- Watch out! This trend means something is wrong.
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- Arrows show you whether a trend is increasing or decreasing.
We measure Greater Seattle’s shared prosperity by tracking the total well-being of its residents. Prosperity is truly shared when everyone’s basic needs are met and everyone has access to economic opportunity. Collectively these measurements are meant to help guide local decisions and drive greater equity.
Individuals
Individuals thrive when their health outcomes improve and when occurrence of chronic disease and exposure to violence decreases over time.
See more data on individuals >Change in adults with health concerns
White
People of color
Households
Household thrive when families can build wealth over time with long term assets like personal savings and home ownership, and through entrepreneurship.
See more data on households >Change in median household income
Communities
Communities thrive when residents are stable, food secure and not forced to move due to affordability, development, or access. Environmental sustainability also plays a critical role.
See more data on communities >Change in cost-burdened households
Economy
Our economy thrives when the region’s businesses expand, hiring is robust, educational attainments rise and traffic delays don’t obstruct the movement of people.
See more data on economy >Change in GDP
Democracy
Our democracy thrives when people participate in community processes and engage with elected representatives.
See more data on democracy >Change in voter participation rate
White
People of color
Individuals
People tend to thrive when their primary health needs are met. Our key indicator here is the percentage of adults with health concerns. However, to gauge the overall well-being of individuals, we also track incarceration rates, group participation rates, mental health indicators and air quality.
What are we seeing?
Among the indicators for individuals, four changes in the data raise concerns for civic wellness considerations, as follows:
Continued decline in group participation rates;
decreased number of unhealthy air quality days;
increased incarceration rates for people of color; and
an increase in health concerns.
Other notes on individuals indicators:
Poor physical health concerns increased overall, but this indicator decreased for people who are Black, American Indian or Alaskan Native (AI/AN), and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander (NHPI). Reports of poor mental health also minimally decreased overall, however reporting of poor mental health decreased amongst people who are American Indian or Alaskan Native and Hispanic.
Health concerns increased for all racial categories, except for people who are Black and American Indian or Alaskan Native.
Incarceration rates decreased overall.
The number of days of unhealthy air quality fluctuated from 2019 to 2022. The number of days decreased between 2020 to 2021 but then increased from 2021 to 2022 followed by another decrease from 2022 to 2023.
Why is this metric important?
Individual perspective on health status provides insight into the general feeling of well-being and security felt by the region's residents.
Source: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
Why is this metric important?
Participation fosters feelings of belonging and connection, leading to better overall mental and physical health.
Source: National Conference on Citizenship - Data directly provided by NCoC
Why is this metric important?
High rates of incarceration have negative effects on family stability, toxic stress levels, and have been shown to be connected with poor health outcomes for individuals.
Sources: Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs (WASPC), ACS, PL 94-171
Why is this metric important?
Poor physical health, including chronic illnesses, creates barriers for individual participation in the economy, and drives costs through the health care system.
Source: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
Why is this metric important?
Mental health is a significant contributor to overall health, and can result in isolation and loss of a sense of belonging. It is also often a precursor to people experiencing homelessness.
Source: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
Why is this metric important?
Unhealthy air quality restricts activity for all residents, and acutely impacts sensitive and unhealthy group's quality of life.
Source: EPA
HOUSEHOLDS
A household is a group of people who are related and live together. To see how well households are doing, we look at median household income. We also track employment, on-time graduation rates, access to public transportation, and homeownership to give us a picture of how families are doing.
What are we seeing?
Overall household income has increased in 2022. The median white household income ($96,000) remains significantly larger than households of Black ($68,000) and American Indian and Alaskan Native people ($74,000).
High school graduation rates increased overall from 82.3% to 85.5%.
Homeownership has stayed mostly consistent across all racial categories.
Why is this metric important?
Growth in household income is a critical driver in building household wealth and also leads to increased consumption which supports broader economic growth for the region.
Source: ACS
Why is this metric important?
Growing employment indicates robust commerce and provides new job and growth opportunities for the region's residents.
Source: BLS
Why is this metric important?
A highly functioning education system results in a resident base that is engaged, employable, and productive.
Why is this metric important?
Well designed transit networks, coupled with easy access connect residents with job centers, create economic opportunities for people while reducing traffic congestion.
Source: PSRC
Why is this metric important?
Homeownership is a primary method of building household wealth over time and provides greater financial security and flexibility.
Source: ACS
Communities
Communities do best when their members can easily afford the basics of life—food and shelter. To track this, we watch the number of households that pay more than 30% of their monthly wages for housing. We also track the percentage of jobs that pay a family-sustaining wage, average rental prices, and carbon emissions.
What are we seeing?
Overall housing cost burden stayed the same at 34%.
The food insecurity rate increased from 8.4% to 11.2%.
Median rental prices increased.
Change in CO2 emissions decreased significantly from 2019 to 2020 with a 19% reduction (due to reduced travel during COVID), but increased again from 2020 to 2021.
Why is this metric important?
Housing costs in excess of 30% of income limit financial security, and can prevent upward mobility by restricting funds available for personal growth and continued education.
Source: ACS
Why is this metric important?
Family sustaining wages promote economic security and mobility for households, and prevent individuals from needing to have multiple jobs.
Why is this metric important?
Experiencing hunger can be a barrier to educational success, participation in the economy, and can lead to poor health including malnutrition.
Source: Feeding America
Why is this metric important?
Indicates the general inflation rate for housing in the region, which has been shown to highly correlate to the incidence of people experiencing homelessness. This measure is influenced by both the supply of affordable housing as well as overall demand.
Source: ACS
Why is this metric important?
Carbon emissions are directly tied to changing climate and the downstream impacts on health, livability, and economic distress caused that most acutely impact vulnerable communities.
Economy
Many factors contribute to a thriving economy. The gross domestic product, or GDP, is a measure of the total value of the goods and services produced in the area. Other metrics add to the story too. We also track household employment, the vitality of new business, the region’s educational attainment, and the rate of people moving to King County, among other numbers.
What are we seeing?
GDP growth and change in small business employment decreased slightly from 2021 to 2022.
Migration to the region and post-secondary education decreased slightly from 2021 and 2022. Data from 2020 were not available for post-secondary education rates.
There was an increase in new private sector establishments from 2020 to 2021, followed by a large decrease from 2021 to 2022.
Between 2020 and 2021, the number of hours spent in traffic increased from 25 to 45 hours, and then increased slightly to 46 hours in 2022. By 2023, it had further risen to 58 hours.
Why is this metric important?
Expansion of economic activity benefits our region's businesses and creates opportunities for all residents to participate in that growth.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis
Why is this metric important?
A vibrant and diverse small business sector creates opportunities for new ventures to grow into medium and large businesses, and insulates the region from sector-specific shocks.
Why is this metric important?
Successful new businesses promote opportunities for entrepreneurship and innovation and are a particularly good vehicle for household wealth accumulation.
Source: BLS
Why is this metric important?
Efficient flow of capital into small businesses promotes a vibrant and diverse commercial sector and provides greater opportunity for entrepreneurship and innovation.
Source: FFIEC
Why is this metric important?
Residents with postsecondary degrees have better job prospects and higher earning potential than those without.
Source: ACS
Why is this metric important?
Migration into our region provides a deeper pool of talent for businesses to employ, and indicates a region that is attractive to outsiders.
Source: ACS
Why is this metric important?
Freeway congestion restricts the efficient flow of physical goods, increases commute times, and causes pollution.
Source: INRIX
Democracy
A strong democracy relies on the activity of many individuals. Our key metric here is voter participation rates. We also look at neighborhood participation rates and the rate at which people contact a local official.
What are we seeing?
Voter participation rates in 2020 decreased overall.
The overall neighbor participation rate continued to decrease from 2017 to 2020, with POC participation rate declining at an even greater rate than the white population’s, signaling reduced sense of belonging.
People contacting public officials declined among the white and POC population, but increased overall. This can be accounted for by an increase in Asian, American Indian/Alaskan Native, and Hispanic participation rates, signaling increased civic engagement.
Why is this metric important?
Broader participation in elections results in more representative government, policies that reflect the will of the region's residents, and promotes greater civic engagement.
Why is this metric important?
Connection with neighbors increases an individual's sense of belonging and builds civic engagement. Communities that are more connected are more resilient to change.
Why is this metric important?
Accessing power to share perspectives or try to influence policy are critical elements of well-functioning democratic practices.