Peach Tree Times

Amid high inflation, many American households who reported having trouble paying their bills has surpassed the households who had difficulty paying their bills in 2020, according to a recent survey by the U.S. Census Bureau.

In some of Georgia's major cities, there was a 10% year-over-year jump in the share of respondents who claim to have difficulty paying bills, according to Yahoo Finance. Many Americans blame President Joe Biden for their economic challenges and the president has seen his approval rating drop significantly.

The survey, conducted from the end of June through early July, shows 40% of adults said it has been somewhat or very difficult to cover usual household expenses. This has been made more difficult for many families as current wages have not enabled them to keep up with inflation, Yahoo Finance reported.

“July, Bloomberg reports: ‘The share of Americans who report having difficulties paying their bills has surpassed its 2020 pandemic peak,’” Sen. Ted Cruz said in a tweet July 26. “Joe Biden is failing.”

According to Yahoo, in 2020, one-third of respondents reported having trouble managing household bills. The share reportedly fell over the following year but started rising about a year ago once government pandemic relief ended and inflation took hold across the country.

The share of 40% of families who are struggling to pay their bills is the highest percentage since the Census started asking the question in August 2020. It also implies more than 90 million families are struggling financially, up from around 60 million a year ago, Yahoo reported.

Survey results show a sharp increase in financial stress in every large metropolitan area in the United States. In Georgia's major cities such as Atlanta, Sandy Springs, and Alpharetta, the share of respondents having difficulty paying bills jumped to about 40% from 30% a year ago.

High energy prices have been a source of financial stress for many households. The latest Census survey shows that nationally, more than one-third of households either reduced or forwent purchasing household necessities, such as medicine and food to pay an energy bill.

Inflation, which rose to a new 40-year high in June, is currently at 9.1%, according to Reuters. This has had a drastic impact on Biden’s approval rating as it fell to 36% last week to tie the lowest rating during his 19 months in office. Among Democrats, his approval rating fell from 74% to 69%.