Many individuals across the United States are classified as low-income, or low-wage earners. Households, whether comprised of individuals or families, in some cases are not self-sufficient and struggle to make ends meet financially, even if employed. Public assistance programs help alleviate these existing disparities by providing these individuals with the means to better their situations, and attain incomes at or above the self-sufficient equivalency. Self-sufficiency in this report is defined as the level of annual earned income needed to provide for a household’s basic needs, including housing, food, transportation, childcare, and healthcare without accessing aid from public assistance programs.