By any honest measure, too many Kansas families are struggling to make ends meet. The latest State of ALICE in Kansas report — ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed — finds that 38% of Kansas households were below the ALICE Threshold in 2023, meaning they could not afford the basics even while working. That includes 12% living in poverty and another 26% who earn too much to qualify for aid but still can’t cover essentials like housing, child care, food, transportation and healthcare.

This isn’t a fringe problem; it’s the working backbone of our economy. These are Kansans we depend on daily, like child‑care providers, home‑health aides, cashiers and delivery drivers.

Kansans feel the squeeze. In the 2025 Kansas Speaks public opinion survey — conducted by the Docking Institute of Public Affairs at Fort Hays State University — 36.1% said the Kansas economy is getting worse, and 46.5% reported feeling very or moderately concerned that the state’s economy could seriously threaten their family’s welfare — a worry that ticked up from last year. When people don’t see a path to stability, they pull back on spending, on investing in education, on starting businesses. That feeds a cycle of slower growth.

Inflation adds insult to injury. In September, prices across the Midwest rose 3.1%. Housing costs are up 4.5% and rent surged 5.0% compared to 3.4% nationally. For a Kansas renter already under ALICE’s budget pressure, that is the difference between paying for a car repair or skipping the prescription refill.

The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics confirms that lower-income households experience greater impact from inflation than higher-income ones, meaning Kansans living on tighter budgets face disproportionate pressures. After adjusting for inflation, Kansas’ median household incomes have barely budged post-COVID, lagging behind national progress. Inflation’s heavier burden on lower-income families widens this gap, as working families spend more of their limited incomes on essentials.

Meanwhile, the recent federal government shutdown made a bad situation worse.

Kansas Action for Children reports that the shutdown disrupted key economic data flows (including unemployment statistics) and contributed to state revenues missing estimates by $3.4 million in September due to a steep $35.4 million shortfall in corporate income tax receipts, despite stronger individual income and sales taxes. Overall receipts for the month were about 1.9% lower than in September 2024.

Beyond numbers on a page, the shutdown threatened essential benefits: SNAP and WIC faced imminent disruption, putting nearly 190,000 Kansans at risk of losing food assistance, with 48,000 WIC recipients depending on nutrition support for mothers and children. When Washington cannot keep the lights on, the ripple effects hit our paychecks, our schools, our main streets, and exacerbated those among us who are already vulnerable.

When federal policy falters, Kansas families pay the price first. Stabilize the basics — food assistance, health insurance support, small‑business lending, predictable budgets — and we give vulnerable households the breathing room to become the bedrock of the state’s growth rather than the warning siren of its fragility.

If we want a Kansas where hard work reliably leads to stability, we need policies that stop pushing families underwater and start helping them reach the shore.

As the Kansas Legislature gears up for its 2026 session, lawmakers are already sending signals about where priorities lie — the initial bills suggest little additional support for working families. Early filings include a proposal to delay school start dates until after Labor Day; legislation aimed at loosening library-district governance; and a “Kansas Teacher Shortage Relief Act” to ease re-entry for retired educators.

These bills signal lawmakers’ attention to core community institutions like schools and libraries, but if our state truly wants to lift those families hovering near or beneath the ALICE threshold, the session must go further.

Legislators should prioritize enhanced affordability — expanding access to affordable child care, increasing housing subsidies and upgrading income thresholds to reflect changing living costs. Federal programs remain vital, but state action can shield families when Washington falters.

The 2026 Legislature has a choice: tinker at the edges or invest in Kansans’ ability to thrive. If leadership is serious about long-term economic resilience, it must anchor its agenda in policies that pair educational and community improvements with real financial support. That means not just making communities stronger, but lifting the families who live in them.

— Alexandra Middlewood is an associate professor and chair of the Political Science Department at Wichita State University.