12/16/2025
When you see non profits and liberal politicians citing the United Way's ALICE - – Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed study, please know that ALICE’s methodology inflates the number of “struggling” households and is too loose to justify major new spending.
ALICE does not actually measure whether households are asset‑limited, income‑constrained, or employed; it simply labels everyone under a model budget threshold as ALICE, regardless of their real assets, work status, or spending choices. Their “survival budget” uses aggressive assumptions (e.g., treating very different household types as having the same childcare and other costs) which exaggerate hardship and make it sound like life‑and‑death “survival” when many of these families have some financial margin or options.
As donors increasingly give directly online, some analysts question whether United Way’s middleman role and added administrative layer are still justified in many communities. Many conservatives view United Way with skepticism or opposition, mainly over its support for progressive causes, centralized fundraising model, and perceived “woke” cultural agenda. Nonprofit Quarterly has published critical analysis arguing that United Way’s “way or bust”.
The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Philanthropy News Digest have amplified concerns about accounting practices, including double-counting of contributions and how shared campaigns with other charities are reported, citing NCRP and other critics.
ALICE is evidence of structural cost and policy problems, not proof that “the market has failed and needs a larger welfare state.” The argument is that high housing, childcare, insurance, and tax burdens are often driven by zoning, regulation, and mandates, which squeeze working‑class households even when wages are rising. In this view, the fact that many ALICE households are working in a tight labor market but still feel squeezed is a signal to cut red tape, lower taxes on work, and make it easier to build housing and expand childcare supply, not to lock more families into permanent subsidy dependence.
Take Back Michigan Michigan Trump Republicans Michigan Chamber of Commerce Grand Rapids Chamber Southwest Michigan Regional Chamber Greater Niles Chamber of Commerce Michigan Forward National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy (NCRP)
