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Surging Gas Prices Take a Bigger Bite out of Workers' Wages

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Surging Gas Prices Take a Bigger Bite out of Workers' Wages

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Surging Gas Prices Take a Bigger Bite out of Workers’ Wages

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As gas prices hit record levels in the U.S., many low- and moderate-income workers are finding their wages no longer are covering basic expenses. Some say they may not be able to afford driving to their worksite much longer.

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US grocery workers hit by rising prices: ‘We’re at the bottom of the food chain’

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Food store employees grapple with fewer hours and inflation – and sound alarm at merger of two largest chains

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Grocery workers across Southern California are preparing to strike against Ralphs, Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions - the region's first in decades - unless a final round of negotiations next week can yield better pay, improved staffing and other benefits.

More than 45,000 members of the United Food and Commercial Workers union, who stock and serve about 500 stores in the region, voted on June 11 to authorize a strike.

While it did not disclose the results, union leaders say the vote was "overwhelmingly" in favor of a strike.

The vote comes as negotiations between seven UFCW chapters and Kroger, parent company of Ralphs, and Albertsons, which owns Vons and Pavilions, have been ongoing for months.

They are scheduled to meet three more times between June 25 and 27. If these end without an agreement, union officials say a strike can be called immediately.

"This action is to show the companies that we're fed up and ready to do what it takes," said Jenna Thompson, a spokesperson with UFCW Local 324, which represents about 12,000 grocery workers in Long Beach, Whittier, Downey and Orange County.

In separate emailed statements, representatives for Ralphs and Albertsons both said they're negotiating in good faith and hope to reach an agreement before any work stoppage.

According to Dylan Boyke, a baker at an Albertsons in Westminster and union negotiator, the two sides have met nearly a dozen times since Feb. 13, when talks began ahead of the contract's expiration on March 2.

The contract covers checkers, baggers, meat-cutters and other workers from San Diego to San Luis Obispo, including those employed by Ralphs, which is owned by Kroger Co. of Cincinnati; Vons and Pavilions, owned by Albertsons of Boise, Idaho. Albertsons, meanwhile, is owned by Cerberus Capital Management of New York, N.Y. Workers are also employed at Stater Bros., Gelson's and Super-A stores.

According to Boyke, the two sides are still far apart on issues of health benefits, pensions and wages for newer hires.

Workers say wages - which range between $16.25 and $26.75 an hour - are too low to afford today's cost of living. Stores are also understaffed, Boyke said, as deli sections are forced to close early and check out lines snake around the store.

In an email, Ralphs spokesperson Salvador Ramirez said the company's current offer includes "market-leading wage increases for associates over the life of the agreement, and continued investment in industry-leading healthcare and a pension. These are benefits that many non-union competitors do not offer."

But on Friday, as UFCW Local 324 members rallied outside a Ralphs in Long Beach, one worker said she is routinely the only clerk on the checkout line, leading to a line of customers "beyond my eyesight."

"There's not enough people to do the job that's required," Boyke added. "... Obviously, where there's money involved, that's where the sticking points are."

The UFCW also wants to maintain the premier medical plans that distinguish the union and were won through decades of strikes and hard bargaining. But it takes too long, they say - six to eight months - for new hires to access benefits.

And the pension, meanwhile, has not been increased since 2004, due to federal restrictions. The plan, workers say, is to tack on a secondary pension plan to supplement the cost of retirement.

"Or members can't live on what the pension is," said Andrea Zinder, a grocery worker of 40-plus years and lead negotiator. "They can't retire in dignity."

The union has also filed complaints against the chains to the National Labor Relations Board, alleging worker surveillance, intimidation and retaliation against union members.

Jose Espinoza, a labor negotiator since February and supermarket clerk of 27 years, said he was recently transferred from Long Beach to Redondo Beach without a replacement.

The new location is 20 miles away, outside of his chapter and into a union that doesn't have a bargaining seat. The decision doesn't sit right with him, he said, considering he was denied a local transfer last month. He starts at his new post on Monday.

"In my 27 years with the company, I've never seen this happen once," he said.

Albertsons and Ralphs both said they're committed to a fair collective bargaining process.

"We respect the rights of workers to engage in collective bargaining and remain committed to negotiating in good faith to reach an agreement that is fair to our employees, good for our customers, and allows our company to remain competitive," said Courtney Carranza, director of communications and public affairs for Albertsons' Southern California Division.

Espinoza and others say they're ready for a strike. Members will receive strike benefits ranging from $100 to $1,500 a week for walking picket lines, depending on their position.

Other unions threw their support behind the UFCW, including Teamster delivery drivers, telling members who work in the stores not to cross picket lines in the event of a strike, Thompson said.

"Striking is always our last resort," Thompson said. "We don't want to go on a strike, but we will."

The last major Southern California grocery strike lasted 141 days in 2003 and 2004, roiling the region's supermarkets and costing the chains a combined $1.5 billion in sales. It kickstarted the fortunes of alternatives like Trader Joe's or Costco, and left union strikers with staggering debts through the winter holiday season.

A UFCW strike was averted in 2022, in a deal made in the final hours of negotiations.

According to Zinder, who said she's helped negotiate at least 10 contracts in her tenure, this time is no different from the last time. If a deal is reached, she added, it'll be in the final hours.

"We remain actively engaged in bargaining with the union because we believe the best outcomes are achieved at the table, not through disruption," Ramirez, the Ralphs spokesperson, said.

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Grocery workers threaten to strike if contract deal isn't reached soon

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Ralphs, Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions could all see work stoppages by the end of June, according to workers who rallied in Long Beach on Friday.

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Grocery prices have jumped up, and there's no relief in sight

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Grocery prices have jumped up, and there's no relief in sight

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Grocery prices have jumped up, and there’s no relief in sight

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Groceries saw their biggest jump in nearly three years last month, a worrisome sign for inflation-weary shoppers. Tariffs are contributing to higher prices for imported staples like bananas and coffee.

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Gas prices respond to crude oil prices, refining and distribution costs, and changes in demand. Discover what determines the price at the pump.

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Looking Under the Hood: What Determines the Price of Gas

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Looking Under the Hood: What Determines the Price of Gas

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Down a few cents, then up a dollar - and always at the worst time - gas prices can be a pain because they feel so fickle. But while it might seem that way, they rarely change on a whim. Rather, gas prices take into account a complex set of global factors that are at work long before the gas gets to your local station.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, those factors include:

Here's how each of those factors and others hold sway over the price you pay at the fuel pump.

Crude oil prices depend on global supply and demand dynamics. Prices might become more volatile when geopolitical events or severe weather impact - or threaten to impact - the oil supply chain. For example, oil prices shot up when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, and have stayed elevated ever since. That's the primary reason gas prices are so high right now .

Barring those unexpected events, oil prices go up or down based on global demand for oil, as well as production decisions made in countries that export crude.

The U.S. is the top oil-producing country in the world, giving it some sway in the global market. But it is far outweighed by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which makes production decisions for all its 12 members. Together, OPEC members produce the most oil and hold the largest share of oil reserves. With that level of control on oil supplies, OPEC has ample power to fluctuate oil prices by controlling the amount of oil flowing into the market.

The crude oil used to produce gas in the U.S. is a mix of imported and domestic. The primary sources of imported crude oil in the U.S. are from Canada, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Colombia. Russia was on that list until March 2022, before the war in Ukraine.

Crude oil must be refined to produce fuel that can be sold to consumers. This conversion is done in petroleum refineries.

The cost of refining changes throughout the year and varies by region. That cost also depends on the type of crude oil used; the ingredients blended into the fuel; the formulation that must be used in each region to meet air quality standards; and the processing technology used at each refinery.

The retail price of gas also takes into account any federal, state and local taxes. The federal gas tax adds 18.4 cents per gallon to the price of gas. And state gas taxes add another 32.6 cents per gallon, on average, according to a NerdWallet analysis of U.S. Energy Information Administration data.

State tax rates vary widely. California's rate (69.8 cents per gallon) and Illinois's rate (67.1 cents) are highest, followed by Pennsylvania (58.7 cents). Alaska has the lowest state tax (9 cents per gallon), followed by Mississippi (18.4 cents) and Hawaii (18.5 cents).

There are four types of fuel available at the pump that will differ in price. The three non-diesel types of gasoline - regular, midgrade and premium - are categorized by octane rating, a measure of fuel stability (the pressure at which a fuel will combust in an engine).

Distribution, marketing and retail

The cost and profits of getting fuel to consumers also affect the price of gas. Once crude oil is refined and becomes gasoline, it is shipped via pipeline to terminals where it can be blended to meet local standards. From terminals, it is delivered via tanker truck to retail gas stations where you buy your fuel.

The marketing and individual retailer costs - by chains or independent stations - will be further passed on to the consumer. Rent, traffic patterns, wages, equipment, insurance, local taxes and operational fees are also factors that will affect the price retailers will charge for gas.

An example: Why California gas prices are so high

California tends to have the highest gas prices in the country because of the state's environmental regulations, taxes and unique self-reliance on refining its own gasoline.

Did you know that the gasoline sold in California is different from gasoline sold anywhere else in the United States? Since the '90s, California has mandated that any gasoline sold in the Golden State be produced according to strict guidelines that reduce the gasoline's overall emissions. As you might expect, California's cleaner fuel blend is more expensive than the gasoline used by the rest of the nation.

Because of these regulations, more than 90% of gasoline used in California is refined in the state, according to the California Energy Commission. So, if any of the state's refineries experience unplanned outages or disruptions, those gas prices climb even higher, since the state can't boost its gasoline supply by importing dirtier fuel that wasn't refined according to its regulations.

Also, gas prices are high in California because there's just less gasoline being refined in the state. In late 2022, California ​​mandated that all cars, trucks and SUVs sold in the state be zero-emission vehicles by 2035. Because of that, California's refining industries are beginning to transition away from fossil fuels, according to The Hoover Institution, a public policy think tank at Stanford University.

Finally, taxes contribute to the state's gas prices. Drivers in California pay 69.8 cents per gallon in state taxes - the highest state tax rate in the country.

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Looking Under the Hood: What Determines the Price of Gas - NerdWallet

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Gas prices are determined by a complex set of factors that are at work long before the gas gets to your local station.

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Tale of Two Cities: How Boston hopes Austin can solve its housing crisis

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Tale of Two Cities: How Boston hopes Austin can solve its housing crisis

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Boston and Austin, Texas, share more than just a rhyme in their names.

Both cities face the stiff housing crunch affecting cities nationwide. Both have booming tech and biotech sectors. And both are home to tens of thousands of students, many of whom compete for apartments with year-round residents.

But where Boston's average rent is up 2.4% from a year ago, Austin's rents are falling, according to data from Apartment List.

Compared to Oct. 2023, the average rent in the Texas capital was down 7.1% last month.

Boston officials think there might be something they can learn from their Lone Star State counterparts - and vice versa.

In early December, Boston will host a delegation of Austin officials who will meet with local leaders and testify before the Boston City Council, sharing lessons on how to spur new housing developments, lower living costs, and make the best use of land.

"They've been able to stabilize their rent, build more housing, and do what we want to see here, where things are calming down and there is supply for the demand," Boston City Councilor Enrique Pepén, who represents residents of Hyde Park, Roslindale and Mattapan, told MassLive.

Austin's population has exploded in recent decades, more than doubling since 1990 and rocketing Austin into the top 15 largest cities in the country. Nearly 980,000 Texans now call Austin home. Boston's population sits at just over 650,000.

Austin housing prices soared in recent years, particularly from 2020 to 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when they rose roughly 60%, according to Zillow.

Local officials saw a need for action.

A year ago, Austin became the largest city in the country to eliminate off-street parking requirements for new buildings, a move other cities found reduced costs and spurred development.

In Seattle, for example, the elimination of parking requirements in 2012 led to a 40% reduction in parking for new construction, saving developers $537 million over the following five years and in turn lowering housing costs, one study found.

Building a new parking area can add thousands of dollars in cost to a project - per parking spot, Austin City Councilor Zo Qadri told MassLive.

"That cost, that burden, often falls on renters or homeowners," he said.

Under the new rules, instead of reserving space for vehicles, Austin developers were freed to use the land in other ways, including for expanded residential space.

"We're simply leaving it up to the market to decide how much parking is actually necessary," Qadri said.

In 2021, Boston eliminated parking requirements for housing developments where at least 60% of units are income-restricted.

However, the new policy appeared to have limited effect, as relatively few projects meet the requirement.

Last December, Austin city councilors expanded the number of housing units that could be built on almost any property where single-family homes are allowed. They followed that move by enacting new zoning changes that reduced the land needed for single-family homes and allowed denser multifamily development.

Austin developers also met the influx of new arrivals. Last year, the city issued permits for more than 13,600 new homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Boston does not face the same growth as Austin. In fact, its population fell by about 24,000 from 2020 to 2023.

Boston also faces insufficient new housing, a pattern found across Massachusetts. In 2023, Boston issued about 2,050 new housing permits, 15% as many as Austin in a city two-thirds the size.

Officials estimate the Bay State needs 200,000 new homes to meet the housing demand that has driven prices sky-high.

Jesse Kanson-Benanav, executive director of the advocacy group Abundant Housing Massachusetts, said changes like the ones in Austin could bring Boston close to its portion of that goal.

To make progress, he said, Boston will need to simplify its zoning code, the colossal set of laws that govern how and where developers can build.

The Boston zoning laws stretch 4,000 pages - 40% more than New York City, the most populous city in the country, which has 13 times as many people and six times as much land as Boston.

Last year, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu launched an effort to "comprehensively" update the zoning code for the first time since 1964.

Right now, city laws make it difficult for even small housing projects to get built, Kanson-Benanav said. Outdated rules subject Boston developers to an expensive, protracted planning and approval process, the costs of which then get passed on to tenants or buyers.

Even triple-decker apartment buildings, a historic staple of the city's architecture, cannot be built without a special permit in most of Boston.

"We need to go from a paradigm where it's taking literal years - four, five, six years - for a project to even begin construction" to one where triple-deckers could be built without hassle in any neighborhood, Kanson-Benanav said.

The changes in Austin have placed the Texas city at the forefront of a national movement to build more housing, he said.

The benefits of next month's visit do not only travel in Boston's direction. Austin officials are eager to take notes on Boston's land use successes.

They will visit the Rose Kennedy Greenway, which could offer insights for an Austin project to develop parks and public open space over a section of Interstate 35 in the city.

"We have a lot of these great wins, but we only know what we know," Qadri said.

The Austin delegation will spend about three days in Boston in the first week of December. Austin officials will testify before the Boston City Council on Dec. 3.

"While Boston and Austin may differ in land mass, we share similar challenges when it comes to the issue of ensuring affordable housing," Boston City Councilor Sharon Durkan said in a statement. She will chair the council hearing.

During their stay, the Austin group will also meet with the Boston Planning Department, visit The Pryde - a former school building converted into LGBTQ-friendly senior housing - and stop into neighboring Cambridge and Somerville to discuss zoning and affordable housing, Qadri said.

The Austin team will "potentially" meet with Mayor Michelle Wu, he added. A spokesperson for Wu did not return an email from MassLive confirming the meeting.

A week and a half out from the trip, Qadri - a native of New York and New Jersey - was contemplating whether to bring his Yankees hat.

"I just might," he joked, before rethinking. "I probably won't."

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A Tale of Two Cities: How Boston hopes Austin, TX, can solve its housing crisis

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Boston's average rent is up 2.4% from a year ago. Austin's rents are falling. Boston officials think there might be something they can learn from their Lone Star State counterparts.

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U.S. homelessness rises 18% amid affordable housing shortage

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U.S. homelessness rises 18% amid affordable housing shortage

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Homelessness rose 18% in the U.S. this year as the affordable housing crisis, inflation, stagnant wages and natural disasters pummeled communities across the country, federal officials said Friday.

More than 771,000 people - or about 23 of every 10,000 - experienced homelessness when the national count was conducted in January, according to an annual report by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Families with children saw the largest increase in homelessness, at 39%. Nearly 150,000 children experienced homelessness on a single night in 2024, representing a 33% increase from last year.

Conversely, veterans were the only group to experience a decrease in homelessness, which dropped by 8% from 2023 to 2024, according to the report.

Los Angeles, which has consistently reported the highest number of unsheltered people in the country, saw a 5% decrease following investments in temporary and permanent housing programs. Dallas, which in 2021 launched an initiative to connect unsheltered families to housing and services, saw a 16% drop this year.

"No American should face homelessness, and the Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring every family has access to the affordable, safe, and quality housing they deserve," HUD Agency Head Adrianne Todman said in a statement. "While this data is nearly a year old, and no longer reflects the situation we are seeing, it is critical that we focus on evidence-based efforts to prevent and end homelessness."

Notably, the annual count was conducted months before a U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowed cities to ban sleeping and camping on public streets. Since the June decision, cities and states, especially in the Western U.S., have passed new policies that allow encampments to be removed, which could impact the annual count moving forward.

"Increased homelessness is the tragic, yet predictable, consequence of underinvesting in the resources and protections that help people find and maintain safe, affordable housing," Renee Willis, incoming interim CEO of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, said in a statement. "As advocates, researchers, and people with lived experience have warned, the number of people experiencing homelessness continues to increase as more people struggle to afford sky-high housing costs."

Natural disasters and immigration played a key role in the 2024 numbers.

Some 5,200 people on the Hawaiian island of Maui were sleeping in disaster emergency shelters at the time of the annual count, according to the report. Those numbers have shifted since the count was conducted, reflecting the difficult work of rebuilding Lahaina, Hawaii, after a monstrous fire razed the historic town in 2023. The data also reflects the devastating toll natural disasters can have on communities as climate change fuels more wildfires and hurricanes.

On the mainland, Chicago and Denver reported data indicating that their work helping asylum-seekers from other countries led, in part, to more homelessness in their cities. HUD pointed out the data was collected before the Biden administration began restricting illegal border crossings, which have dropped by more than 60% since January.

As a result, migrant arrivals have dropped significantly in Chicago, for example, where the migrant shelter census is down more than 60%, and in Denver, where the shelter census is down nearly 100%. Both cities ended their migrant shelter systems earlier this year.

People who identify as Black, African American or African were overrepresented among people experiencing homelessness. They comprise 12% of the U.S. population, but 32% of the people experiencing homelessness, according to the report.

"The answer to ending homelessness is ensuring everyone has access to safe, stable, and affordable housing. Our leaders must immediately expand the resources to rehouse people without homes and assist the rapidly growing number of people who cannot afford skyrocketing rents," said Ann Oliva, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

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U.S. homelessness rises 18% amid affordable housing shortage

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Homelessness rose 18% in the U.S. this year as the affordable housing crisis, inflation, stagnant wages and natural disasters pummeled communities across the country, federal officials said Friday.

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Why do gasoline prices fluctuate?

Retail gasoline prices are mainly affected by crude oil prices and the amount of gasoline available to meet demand. Strong and increasing demand for gasoline and other petroleum products in the United States and the rest of the world can place intense pressure on available supplies.

Gasoline prices tend to increase when the available gasoline supply decreases relative to real or expected gasoline demand or consumption. Gasoline prices can change rapidly if something disrupts crude oil supplies, refinery operations, or gasoline pipeline deliveries. Even when crude oil prices are stable, gasoline prices fluctuate because of seasonal changes in demand and in gasoline specifications.

Crude oil and gasoline prices reached record highs in 2008

The spot price for Brent crude oil (the benchmark for world crude oil prices) reached record highs in 2008 as a result of high worldwide oil demand relative to supply. Significantly higher demand in China, the Middle East, and Latin America, combined with market uncertainty in world supply, contributed to the run-up in oil prices and, in turn, to record-high gasoline prices in the United States.

Seasonal demand and specifications for gasoline also affect prices

Historically, retail gasoline prices tend to gradually rise in the spring and peak in late summer when people drive more frequently. Gasoline prices are generally lower in winter months. Gasoline specifications and formulations also change seasonally. Environmental regulations require that gasoline sold in the summer be less prone to evaporate during warm weather. This requirement means that refiners must replace cheaper but more evaporative gasoline components with less evaporative but more expensive components. In 2000 through 2022, the average monthly price of U.S. retail regular-grade gasoline in August was about 39 cents per gallon higher than the average price in January.

Gasoline inventories can help to moderate price increases

The supply of gasoline is largely driven by crude oil supply and refining, gasoline imports, and gasoline inventories (stocks). Stocks are the cushion between major short-term supply and demand imbalances, and stock levels can have a significant impact on gasoline prices.

If refinery or pipeline problems or low imports cause unexpected declines in supply, gasoline inventories may drop rapidly. This drop in inventories may cause wholesalers to bid higher for available supply over their concern that future supplies may not be adequate.

Imbalances may also occur when a region changes from one gasoline formulation to another, and refiners, distributors, and marketers adjust supply for the new product.
Last updated: April 19, 2023, with data available at the time of update.

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Gasoline price fluctuations - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)

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How and why gasoline prices fluctuate according to changes in gasoline markets.

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Understanding the price we pay at the pump (VIDEO)

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Understanding the price we pay at the pump (VIDEO)

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Gas Prices Explained | Understanding the price we pay at the pump.

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Name a problem with the U.S. economy, and chances are it's connected in some way to the country's failure to build enough homes.

In the first two decades of the 21st century, the U.S. built 5.5 million fewer homes than were needed, the National Association of Realtors estimated in a 2021 report. To further exacerbate the issue, high interest mortgages are making homeowners reluctant to sell their homes and lose the low interest rates they got at the height of the pandemic.

The effects of that housing shortage are rippling through the economy, most obviously in the form of soaring home prices that have made it nearly impossible for anyone but high-income earners to get into the housing market.

Beyond that, the housing shortage has caused problems with inflation, economic growth, job creation, and wealth inequality, for starters.

"If accessibility to affordable shelter becomes problematic, that's obviously bad for the U.S.," said Mark Fleming, chief economist at First American, a title insurance company. "We need to be able to shelter-affordably-the people who live in this country."

Worse Inflation

For most households, housing costs are the biggest single budget item. That means official inflation rates, which are designed to measure the cost of living, are highly sensitive to any changes in housing costs. Housing costs make up 45% of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the most widely watched measure of inflation.

Indeed, rising rents are responsible for the vast majority of inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index, and are a major reason why inflation that spiked after the pandemic hasn't yet fallen to the Federal Reserve's goal of a 2% annual rate.

Whether or not your household budget is affected by changes in housing costs, higher inflation affects the economy in countless ways, for instance, driving up borrowing costs on all kinds of loans.

"Even if you're not taking on a new mortgage right now if you needed to borrow to buy a car or to invest in a business, or make any sort of major purchase that you're going to finance, you would pay higher rates as a result," said Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com.

Inefficient Job Market

Higher housing costs make it much more difficult to move, meaning it's harder for people to relocate to take jobs they might otherwise prefer. That also makes it harder for employers to find the workers they need.

For example, Cape Cod businesses have had trouble hiring because housing has gotten too expensive for prospective employees to afford, according to a report this week by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

And when jobs and workers have a harder time matching with one another, the whole economy is less productive, a report on the housing shortage by White House economists noted in March.

"The strength of the labor market in terms of matching the right labor to the right industries and stuff like that has been a historical hallmark of the U.S. economy," Fleming said. "Now, with everybody being less willing to move because of the financial penalty, that should, in theory, be a drag on the benefits that we would otherwise have gotten from labor mobility."

That drag has been less than it might otherwise be because of the rise of remote work, Fleming and Hale said.

Less Economic Growth

The economy is also missing out on all the activity generated by moving. For instance, economists cited the frozen housing market as a reason that sales of furniture and appliances have been falling.

Not to mention, homebuilding itself is a major contributor to overall economic growth, making up 3% to 5% of the gross domestic product (GDP), according to an analysis by the National Association of Homebuilders.

"That underbuilding, in effect, is lost economic activity," Fleming said.

Wealth Inequality

For most middle-class families, the value of their home is the biggest component of their net worth. People shut out of homeownership because of high costs are shut out of a major opportunity to build wealth, potentially widening the gap between financial haves and have-nots.

"That wealth creation is very important for the economic success of your household directly, and future generations of your household," Fleming said. "In a market where there's such short supply, where it's harder to become a homeowner than in times past, that means fewer people are going to be able to gain those wealth creation benefits."

Why Is This Happening?

There's no single cause or solution to the housing shortage, Hale said.

"The economy is big and interconnected and thinking about the impacts of the housing shortage bring that to light," Hale said.

However, experts say one major factor is zoning laws in cities and towns across the country, which restrict how much and where housing can be built.

The White House report pinned some of the blame on dynamics in local governments. Homeowners often oppose the construction of new housing, on the logic that it will make their own homes less valuable, and wield political power to restrict new construction. President Joe Biden's administration proposed using federal funds to encourage zoning reform as part of a broader effort to promote affordable housing in 2022.

Building more new homes also has been cited as a way to relieve some of the pressure in the housing market. However, high interest rates have made it hard for homebuilders to capitalize on the unmet demand.

"The economy just hasn't built enough homes to keep up with households that have formed over the last 10 years," Hale said. "One of the things that makes it such a big problem is that there is no one single solution. It is going to require dedicated interest from local officials and state officials and federal officials thinking about how we can improve policy to tackle the shortage."

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The Housing Shortage Is Hurting Almost Every Part of the Economy

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Name a problem with the U.S. economy, and chances are it's connected in some way to the country's failure to build enough homes.

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NBC News is tracking changes in the prices of eggs, bread, ground beef, chicken and other grocery items to monitor the impact on consumers’ food bills.

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AI Chip Shortage could raise Phone Prices

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AI Chip Shortage could raise Phone Prices

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The AI-fueled chip shortage could raise smartphone prices — new research spells out by how much

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The average selling price of smartphones in 2026 is expected to rise 6.9%, Counterpoint Research said.

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How a microchip shortage is threatening to hike gadget prices

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How a microchip shortage is threatening to hike gadget prices

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A ‘seismic’ Nvidia shift, AI chip shortages and how it’s threatening to hike gadget prices

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The AI infrastructure buildout is creating shortages of components including various types of chips that are also used in consumer electronics.

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The AI frenzy is driving a memory chip supply crisis

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The AI frenzy is driving a memory chip supply crisis

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As political winds shift, top chipmaker TSMC looks beyond Taiwan

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The lifeblood of Silicon Valley — advanced microchips — pumps from a science park on Taiwan’s west coast, mostly from TSMC, the world’s biggest chipmaker. But now the company is looking abroad for places to grow.

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Land-use and permitting reforms have gained increased attention as policymakers throughout the country struggle with the nation’s housing shortage, which is estimated to be 4 million to 7 million homes. This shortage has pushed rents, housing prices, and homelessness to record levels in recent years, with costs to buy and rent much higher than historical norms.

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Mayor Vetoes Bills to Raise Wages for Grocery Delivery Workers - City Limits

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The legislation would have mandated a minimum wage for app-based grocery delivery workers for companies like Instacart. The Council says it is considering next steps, as advocates push lawmakers to override the veto.

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What Was Up with Grocery Prices? - Liberty Street Economics

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A look at the causes of the rise in consumer price index food inflation from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic until now.