CLIFF

CLIFF Planner provides information on income and public assistance along a career path. By highlighting the financial tradeoffs among different careers, the CLIFF Planner also helps visualize a path to financial stability.

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CLIENT INFORMATION

CHOOSE A CAREER

CREATE A BUDGET

Complete the information on each of the tabs below to plan the path to financial stability. To save or print these results hit CTRL+P (COMMAND+P on Mac) and print to PDF.

Lifetime Income for Each Career

For each selected career option, the bar charts below show how much in total will be earned in after-tax income from now until retirement at age 65.

PROJECTED INCOME ALONG SELECTED CAREER PATH

The chart below compares employment income before taxes for one’s current job (indicated by the red dot in the first year) and the selected career path(s). If the new job requires training, income may be low in the beginning due to the inability to work full-time while enrolled in school.

THE MINIMUM HOUSEHOLD BUDGET

The dashed gray line in the chart below shows the Minimum Household Budget—the bare minimum cost of household basics necessary to live and work in the modern economy. When family take-home pay reaches the amount indicated by the dashed gray line, the family can afford the Minimum Household Budget.

The two income lines on the chart differ from the same lines in the chart above in two ways: 1) the chart below includes an individual’s income plus any income earned by family members and 2) the chart below shows income minus taxes ('take-home pay').

The Minimum Household Budget includes seven basic expenses: child care, food, health care, housing (rent and utilities), transportation, technology and miscellaneous expenses. Health care includes out-of-pocket costs and employer-sponsored healthcare insurance premiums. These expenses change with time and depend on factors like the number and ages of children and geographic differences in cost of living. The Minimum Household Budget also includes taxes, which are not shown here because taxes are taken out of income in the graph above. For additional information about the Minimum Household Budget, please see the methodology section.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How do I use this tool?

You can find training on benefits cliffs, this tool, and other CLIFF tools at CLIFF Academy: https://academy-clifftool.thinkific.com/.

Additionally, for support you can email cliff@atl.frb.org or attend the weekly ‘office hours’ on Tuesdays from 3:30 to 4:30 EST by clicking on the following link: Office Hours Microsoft Teams Link

What are each of the public assistance programs shown in CLIFF?

A brief summary of each program is provided in the 'Programs and Tax Credits' section below. To visually see how any of these programs vary by state, income level, and family composition view the Policy Rules Database Dashboard.

Are the rules for each program in this tool up-to-date?

Benefit amounts, eligibility thresholds, and other important factors are often adjusted in many of the programs modeled in this tool. See the 'Rule Years in PRD' tab in our PRD Dashboard tool to see the how current our data is for each program in each state.

How do I save my results?

For privacy reasons, information is never stored in CLIFF tools. To save your results, click CTRL+P (COMMAND+P on Mac) and save the printed page as a PDF.

Who should I include in my 'family'?

Include anyone in your household with whom you share financial resources and/or include on a single tax return--the filer, the filer's spouse, and any dependents. The CLIFF tools assume all family members are part of the household and file a single, joint tax return for the purposes of benefits calculations.

How do we project wages in the calculations shown in the results tab?

See methodology below.

Where can I find information on the training required for different careers?

We recommend that you utilize information about typical skills and education required for any job available on mynextmove.org.

In addition, talk to local employers and career counselors operating in your areas to learn if local job requirements differ from the typical national requirements shown on 'My Next Move'.

I'm not currently receiving any public assistance. Should I include it in my analysis?

No. CLIFF dashboard includes government assistance program values using the assumption that the person is already receiving the selected program(s). For some programs, eligibility rules differ for those currently enrolled and new enrollees. To assess potential eligibility for programs see the CLIFF Snapshot Tool. To see how eligibility rules differ between those currently enrolled and new enrollees see the PRD dashboard.

What public assistance programs might I qualify for?

The CLIFF suite of tools are not intended to determine eligibility for assistance programs. This is especially true for SSI and SSDI, which have very complex qualification considerations. At the same time, selecting public assistance programs within the CLIFF suite of tools can provide users with the potential estimated value of programs for which they may be qualified. It is important to note, however, that programs can take time to obtain due to the process of completing paperwork, documentation of eligibility, and in some cases extended waitlists. For example, child care assistance waitlists and housing voucher waitlists can sometimes be years-long.

Does my state offer universal free school meals for children?

The following states have made recent legislative or administrative changes that provide universal free school meals to school-age children: CA, CO, GA, IL, ME, MA, MI, MN, NV, VT. The benefit must be selected in order to be reflected in the charts and calculations.

I'm receiving a program that is not on the list. What should I do?

See full list in 'Programs not included in CLIFF' below. If a program you are receiving is not on the list of programs in CLIFF, you should check with your case manager to learn about the eligibility rules and do your own calculations to learn how it will impact your budget.

How is out-of-pocket health insurance cost determined?

For purposes of calculating net financial resources, CLIFF automatically calculates the out-of-pocket cost of health insurance based on the lowest cost option for which the household is eligible. To determine the potential set of health insurance options, CLIFF takes into consideration the programs you select from the list and the cost of purchasing health insurance through an employer. The cost of health insurance (both the total cost and the unsubsidized out-of-pocket cost) varies by source. For example, the premium paid each month will depend on whether the person is receiving Employer Sponsored Health Insurance, Medicaid/CHIP, or health insurance through the Health Exchange Marketplace. Medicare is not included in the health insurance calculations.

What is a Benefits Cliff and a Benefits Plateau?

Benefit Cliffs and Plateaus occur when employment income increases but due to losses in public assistance the household is not financially better off. Wage increases can impact eligibility for public assistance programs. Due to the loss of these programs, career advancement opportunities can result in the family being financially worse off (a benefits cliff) or no better off (a benefits plateau) than before the wage increase. You can tell if the person experiences a benefit cliff or plateau by examining the net resources chart. If the person's income increases from one year to the next but net resources decline, the person may face a benefits cliff. If the person's income increases from one year to the next but net resources are unchanged, the person may face a benefit plateau. Learn more about benefits cliffs on our website.

I tried selecting an occupation for my selected county, but I don't see it. Where is it?

If an occupation is not on the dropdown menu, it means their is not enough people with that job in that county for the Bureau of Labor Statistics to generate wage estimates.

What types of income are assumed to be $0?

The following types of income affect eligibility for some programs and are assumed to be $0 for the purposes of generating calculations in CLIFF Dashboard: child support, investment income, gifts, unemployment insurance, pensions, and state disability payments.

How do the results differ for persons with disabilities?

This tool incorporates special rules for individuals with disabilities for the following programs: SSDI, SSI, Medicaid, SNAP, Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, and Federal Income Taxes. In some states, children with disabilities may be subject to different rules for the CCDF program; these state-specific rules are not incorporated. The following programs count SSI and SSDI income towards eligibility: SNAP, WIC, School Meals, Head Start/Early Head Start, and Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers.

Are eligibility redetermination periods factored in these calculations?

Some programs have probational periods where participants are able to keep a benefit for some period after they are no longer eligible - for example, if their income passes a threshold. Probational periods vary by state and program and are not factored in the tools.

Do wages and and expenses account for inflation?

All projections are in today's dollars. In the long run, the change in real wages (adjusted for inflation) have averaged about 0% over the past 40 years. This means that, on average, wages and inflation grow at the same rate. See data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis' FRED

Are the effects of income changes on wage garnishments or child support payments factored in?

No. The effects of income changes on wage garnishments, child support payments, etc. are not included in these calculations.

Methodology

The Minimum Household Budget is the bare minimum cost of household basics necessary to live and work in the modern economy. These basic budget items include housing, child care, food, transportation, health care, and technology (a smartphone plan), plus taxes and a contingency (miscellaneous) fund equal to 10% of the household budget. The budget is calculated separately for each county and for different household types.

The Minimum Household Budget largely reflects the work of United for ALICE. ALICE® stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed and includes households that earn more than the Federal Poverty Level yet struggle to afford basic expenses.

In specific instances, the CLIFF suite of tools may incorporate different values for food, housing, and health care costs than those provided by United For ALICE. For example, ALICE assumes that a household participates in an employer-sponsored health insurance plan when available. In contrast, CLIFF tools determine and assign the most cost-effective bundle for a household’s health care needs. This could include a scenario in which an adult participates in an employer insurance plan while children in the household receive Medicaid. Additionally, there are scenarios in which the CLIFF suite of tools may incorporate slightly different food costs than the calculations produced by United For ALICE. Specifically, the value of any benefit in the CLIFF suite of tools, including those associated with food expenditures, cannot exceed the cost of the associated expense. For additional information, please visit www.unitedforalice.org/methodology.

CLIFF wage projections are based on a variety of assumptions and are only meant to provide a benchmark for CLIFF tools users. A brief overview of the procedure is provided below, followed by more technical details for the interested user on the Advancing Careers Webpage..

Wage projections are generated in two steps. First, an entry-level wage is determined based on granular occupation and location-specific wage percentiles from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). In particular, we assume that wages start somewhere between the 10th and 25th percentiles of the local or state-specific occupational wage distribution. Second, wages are assumed to grow with experience from this starting level by applying returns to experience that are estimated using household survey data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) and standard parametric methods from the labor economics literature. The returns to experience are typically allowed to vary by occupation and by state, except when there is insufficient data to allow for this flexibility (in which case returns to experience only vary by occupation). Annual earnings are obtained by assuming a full-time full-year schedule (40 hours per week for 52 weeks per year). If there is a training period associated with the chosen occupation, predicted earnings are delayed until the training has been completed and workers are assumed to work part-time in a near-minimum wage job during the training period (a cashier job in the chosen location assuming 20 hours per week for 52 weeks per year). Predicted wage profiles are also shifted upwards to comply with prevailing state minimum wages (both active minimum wages and future increases that states have announced).

Projections for a near-minimum wage job are obtained using the wage growth associated with a cashier worker in the chosen county.

The calculations for public assistance programs, taxes, and tax credits are produced using the Policy Rules Database.

To estimate taxpayer savings we assume that a person who transitions off of a public assistance program with a wait list is not replaced by another person.

Programs and Tax Credits

Subsidized Child Care: Subsidized child care programs are funded by the Child Care Development Fund grant (CCDF). This program has a different name and different eligibility rules in each state. The subsidized child care program provides funding to offset the costs of child care subsidized daycare services to families below state-specified income levels. In almost all states, there is a different income threshold for initial enrollment and continuous enrollment. This lets families stay on the program as their income increases beyond the initial enrollment income threshold. The federal regulations cap eligibility at 85% of State Median Income. Families pay a copay based on a sliding scale fee schedule, which varies at the county or state level. Note that subsidized child care programs have a waitlist in many cities.

Head Start and Early Head Start: Children from birth to age five and pregnant women from families with incomes below the poverty guidelines are eligible for Head Start and Early Head Start services. Children younger than three are eligible for Early Head Start, and children at least three years old up to school age (typically five years in most states) are eligible for Head Start. Children from families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or SSI are categorically eligible. Children who are homeless or in foster care are eligible as well. Additionally, programs are allowed to enroll families whose incomes are below 130 percent of the poverty line, although the enrollment of these families are capped at 35 percent of participants.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP): This program is also known as food stamps and provides vouchers that can be exchanged for food. SNAP is available to individuals below state-specified income levels. Eligibility for SNAP depends on household income, housing expenses, and child care expenses. Some states also have asset tests. Note that the income eligibility rules described on the federal government's benefits website are not always correct because they do not account for the fact that states sometimes use broad based categorical eligibility rules to extend eligibility beyond federal limits.

Free of Reduced Price School Meals:This program is also known as the School Breakfast Program and National School Lunch Program. Both programs are federally assisted meal programs operating in public and nonprofit private schools and residential child care institutions. They provide low-cost or no-cost breakfasts and lunches to children every school day. The maximum income for eligibility is 185 percent of the FPL. Children also gain categorical eligibility for free school lunch and breakfast if they are in a family that receives SNAP benefits or TANF cash assistance. In addition, all children at high-poverty schools ('CEP') designated by the U.S. The Department of Agriculture receives school meals at no charge. Note that CLIFF does not account for CEP schools when determining eligibility for SLP and NSLP.

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): WIC provides supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk. WIC provides vouchers for specific types of foods - such as whole-grain bread, baby food, infant formula, and milk - as well as separate 'cash value vouchers' that can be used to buy fruits and vegetables. WIC also provides infant formula to mothers who do not breastfeed. Note that only the value of food is estimated in CLIFF (not the other services provided). To be eligible for WIC, applicants must either have gross household income at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty level or be categorically eligible. An applicant who already receives SNAP (formerly food stamps), Medicaid, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families cash assistance is categorically eligible for WIC. In addition to passing income tests, women are eligible while they are pregnant and for six months after the birth of the infant. Women who continue to breastfeed their infants beyond six months are eligible for WIC benefits for up to a year after childbirth. Children may be eligible up to their fifth birthday.

Housing Voucher: The Housing Choice Voucher Program (Section 8). Section 8 provides vouchers which reduce the cost of rent. The voucher is paid to the landlord directly by the local public housing agency on behalf of the participating family. The family then pays the difference between the actual rent charged by the landlord and the amount subsidized by the program. To be income-eligible, a family must have adjusted income below 80 percent of the median income for the county or metropolitan area where the family lives. Adjusted income reduces a family's gross income by (1) dependent deduction, (2) elderly/disabled deduction, (3) unreimbursed medical expenses of any elderly family or disabled family, and (4) any reasonable child care expenses necessary to enable a member of the family to work or to further his or her education. The family is 'continuously assisted' under the 1937 Housing Act, meaning the family is already receiving assistance under any 1937 Housing Act program-for example, public housing-when the family is admitted to the voucher program. Once admitted to the program, the family does not undergo any further income eligibility tests. Note that the Section 8 Housing Voucher program has a waitlist in many cities. In Connecticut the value of the housing voucher will include the Rental Assistance Program if that program is checked. Follow the link to see more information about the Earned Income Disallowance work incentive.

Health Insurance Marketplace Subsidies/ACA: Health insurance marketplace subsidies (also referred to as 'ACA' in CLIFF) provide subsidies for health insurance for those with incomes between 100 percent and 400 percent of the FPL. People pay a portion of their income toward health insurance. The amount of the individual responsibility portion varies by income level, age, and family size. The difference between the individual responsibility portion and the full cost of health insurance purchased on the health exchange is the estimated value of the program.

Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program Medicaid is a federal and state program that helps with medical costs for some people with limited income and resources. CHIP provides health coverage to eligible children, through both Medicaid and separate CHIP programs. Income-eligibility thresholds vary by state and depend on whether adults have dependents. There are no work requirements for Medicaid.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI): SSI is a federally funded program that provides cash assistance to low-income individuals with disabilities that prevent them from engaging in “substantial gainful activity” (SGA), in other words, generating income, as diagnosed by medical professionals. Similar to TANF, while many individuals on SSI do not work at all and therefore receive the federally-determined (and updated based on inflation) maximum SSI benefit amount, any earnings that SSI recipients receive lowers their SSI benefit amount. Contact the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance Program in your state to find out precise details on how earnings affect SSI and other public benefits. In some states, the state supplement is distributed through an EBT card. You may also be eligible to establish an ABLE savings account that can help you remain eligible for public benefits even if your assets increase.

Social Security's Disability Insurance (SSDI): Social Security's Disability Insurance Benefits are federally funded and administered by the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA). Social Security pays disability benefits to certain family members if they worked long enough, paid Social Security taxes, and have a medical condition that prevents them from working for at least 12 months or is expected to end in death. Without these work incentives, an individual receiving SSDI must earn less than the monthly federal benefit rate (not counting other household members income) to remain eligible. Contact the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance Program in your state to find out precise details about on how earnings affect SSDI and other public benefits.You may also be eligible to establish an ABLE savings account that can help you remain eligible for public benefits even if your assets increase.

Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC): Both federal and state EITC calculations are included in CLIFF. The Federal EITC is a benefit for working people with low to moderate income. Workers receive a credit equal to a percentage of their earned income up to a maximum. After the credit reaches the maximum, it remains flat until earnings reach the phaseout point. Both the credit rate and the credit maximum vary by family size. To qualify, workers must meet certain requirements and file a tax return, even if they do not owe any taxes or are not required to file. The Federal EITC is a refundable tax credit; it reduces the amount of tax owed and may result in a refund. The income eligibility threshold varies according to the number of dependents and tax filing status. Workers who do not claim eligible children must be at least age 25 but under age 65. If a worker is married filing a joint return, either the worker or spouse must meet this age requirement. Those who are married and filing separately are not eligible. In 2020, 28 states and the District of Columbia offered an additional State EITC. States typically set their credits as a percentage of the Federal EITC. However, unlike the federal credit, some State EITCs are not refundable.

Child Tax Credit (CTC): Both federal and state CTC calculations are included in CLIFF. The Federal CTC is a partially refundable tax credit available to parents with qualifying dependents under the age of 17. In 2020, a family that earned less than $2,500 was ineligible for the credit. Those with incomes above $480,000 ($280,000 for singles and household heads) receive no CTC. Working families can receive a refund equal to 15 percent of their earnings above $2,500. This refund can be worth up to $1,400 per child. Families can claim a maximum tax credit of $2,000. The Federal CTC starts to phase out at income levels of $400,000 ($200,000 for single or head-of-household filers). The America Rescue Plan significantly temporarily expanded the Federal CTC credit in multiple ways. See the Policy Rules Database Technical Manual for more information. As of 2021, six U.S. states-California, Colorado, Idaho, New York, North Carolina, and Oklahoma-have their own child tax credits. States' CTC are typically structured either as a lump-sum payment for each eligible child or as a fixed percent of the federal credit. New York has a combination of both approaches. Some states' CTCs are nonrefundable.

Federal Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC): The Federal CDCTC is a nonrefundable tax credit that reduces a taxpayer's federal income tax liability based on child- and dependent-care expenses incurred. Taxpayers must have earned income and meet a variety of eligibility criteria including incurring qualifying child- and dependent-care expenses for a qualifying individual. A qualifying individual for the Federal CDCTC is either (1) the taxpayer's dependent child under 13 years of age, or (2) the taxpayer's spouse or dependent who is incapable of caring for himself or herself. A taxpayer must have earned income to claim the credit. For married couples, both spouses must have earnings unless one is a student or incapable of self-care. There is no upper income eligibility threshold-taxpayers at all income levels can claim the Federal CDCTC. Many lower-income taxpayers receive little or no credit since the credit is nonrefundable. As of 2020, 28 states and the District of Columbia had enacted their own State CDCTCs, the structure of which varies significantly by state. Some states have set their credits as a share of the federal credit while other states calculate it as a share of expenses. In some states, the credit is fully refundable, while in others it is nonrefundable.

Programs not included in CLIFF tools: The following programs are not currently included: Medicare, city-funded programs, and programs available to specific populations (such as Veterans).

CLIENT INFORMATION

CHOOSE A CAREER

CREATE A BUDGET

State of Residency

County of Residency

Town of Residency

Borough of Residency

Parish of Residency

Living with spouse or partner?

Married?

Living with any other family members?

Include adults and children

How many?

Monthly earnings of spouse/partner and other family members

Include adults and children

Does anyone in the home have a disability?

Age

Age of spouse or partner

Monthly earnings of spouse/partner

Age of first other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Monthly earnings of first other adult

Monthly earnings of first other adult

Age of second other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Monthly earnings of second other adult

Monthly earnings of second other adult

Age of third other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Monthly earnings of third other adult

Monthly earnings of third other adult

Age of fourth other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Monthly earnings of fourth other adult

Monthly earnings of fourth other adult

Age of fifth other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Monthly earnings of fifth adult

Age of fifth other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Age of seventh other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Age of eighth other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Age of ninth other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Age of tenth other family member

Enter 0 for children younger than 1

Client's Current Job

CLIFF Planner needs this information to calculate the current year budget.

Current hourly wage

Current hours per week

Receives employer-provided health insurance?

Career Option 1

Optional Occupation Filters:

These filters will reduce the size of the occupation list below.

Don't see an occupation?

If an occupation is missing, try searching by keyword on mynextmove.org to get the official BLS occupation name.

Optional Occupation Filters:

These filters will reduce the size of the occupation list below.

Don't see an occupation?

If an occupation is missing, try searching by keyword on mynextmove.org to get the official BLS name.

Career Option 2

Optional Occupation Filters:

These filters will reduce the size of the occupation list below.

Don't see an occupation?

If an occupation is missing, try searching by keyword on mynextmove.org to get the BLS official occupation name.

Lifetime Income for Each Career

PROJECTED INCOME ALONG SELECTED CAREER PATH

THE MINIMUM HOUSEHOLD BUDGET

Please list income and assets. The information on this page will help screen for public assistance eligibility by program. Please be as accurate and thorough as possible. No information is stored.

Income

Monthly income from child support

Monthly income from investments

For example, from stocks or bonds

Assets

Bank accounts (checking and savings)

Do not include any retirement savings (such as IRA or 401k)

401K

Traditional IRA