“When you hear that Hawaiʻi has one of the lowest poverty rates in the nation, remember that’s because the official rate doesn’t take into account our highest-in-the-nation cost of living,” said Nicole Woo, senior policy analyst at the Hawaiʻi Appleseed Center for Law & Economic Justice. “Also remember that the Census Bureau has a more accurate poverty measure, one that shows that Hawaiʻi actually has one of the nation’s highest poverty rates, which more accurately reflects what we see here every day.”

Some of the cost of living expenses factored in by the supplemental report included groceries, utilities, medical bills, child care and transportation—among others crucial in painting a clearer picture of the price tag on day-to-day living in the Islands.

Hawaiʻi was one of 22 states that had a higher poverty rate in the supplemental poverty report when compared to the official measure including California, Oregon, Texas, New York and Florida.