The Ladder

Photo by Midorisyu/Flickr.com

Here at the Asset Building Program, we believe that helping people build their savings and assets will allow them to get (and stay) out of poverty. The recession has been hard on low and middle income Americans, especially those who commute to work in a car. When gas prices rise, they are forced to cut spending in other areas (food, medicine, education, etc) in order to pay for gasoline.

Our colleague Lisa Margonelli, director of the Energy Policy Initiative, spent the past year interviewing people across the country about their struggles with rising gas prices, often made worse by the recession. She spoke with Megan, a 23 year old college student in Iowa who commutes 120 miles everyday and uses her credit card (with a 19% interest rate) to pay for gasoline. And Darren, a security guard in California who works 30 days a month, with 16 of those days going to pay for his commuting costs. And then there's Ro, a recent college graduate who skipped lunch in order to have money to put gasoline in her car to get to a part-time job.

People across the country are struggling just to get by and put gasoline in their cars and are struggling to save. This means that they may be just one job loss, car repair, or medical emergency away from poverty. And unfortunately their experiences aren't unique. In a survey of over 2,000 households, Lisa found that many Americans are struggling to pay the gasoline bill and stay out of debt.  

But there are policy solutions that can address the challenges that people like Megan, Darren, and Ro face and keep them out of the red. On Friday October 21st, Lisa is holding an event at New America to explain her findings and share policy ideas to help the middle class get out of this energy trap. To learn more or RSVP for the event, click here. We're looking forward to this cross-cutting discussion that considers multiple sides of a pressing problem.