A family of four in Boulder County needs to make over $100,000 a year to meet their basic needs, according to the most recent Self-Sufficiency Standard evaluation for Colorado.

Prepared for the Colorado Center on Law and Policy by the Center for Women’s Welfare at the University of Washington, the Self-Sufficiency Standard is a calculation of how much income a family must earn to meet their basic needs — something that varies by family composition and where they live. The analysis is conducted every few years for Colorado.

The standard is based on the costs of basic needs and bills, including housing, child care, food, health care, transportation, taxes and miscellaneous costs.

Over the last 21 years, according to this measure, the standard for a family composed of two adults, one preschooler and one school-aged child has increased by 124% for all Colorado counties.

“Note that the standard is ‘bare bones,’ with just enough allotted to meet basic needs, but no extras,” the report said. “For example, the food budget is only for groceries. It does not allow for any takeout or restaurant food, not even a pizza or an ice cream.”

In Boulder, one adult needs to make $41,058 a year to meet their basic needs; one adult with a preschooler needs $80,435; one adult with a preschooler and school age child needs $99,411; and two adults with a preschooler and school age child needs $107,462.

For that same family of four, the self-sufficiency standard for Boulder in 2001 was $49,456 and...

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