State Inflation Tracker: April 2022
Americans are facing the highest inflation rates in decades, making it harder for them to afford everyday goods and more expensive to raise their families. Each month coinciding with the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ release of the Consumer Price Index, JEC Republicans’ State Inflation Tracker estimates how much inflation increases costs for American families in each state and how the drivers of inflation continue to vary across the country. Specifically, we ask: how much more must the average household pay today to maintain the same standard of living it achieved in January 2021, the last time inflation was within historical norms? See our methodology for a full description of our methods and a downloadable data file with a detailed breakdown of inflation costs by state.
You can find our full analysis for April 2022 here. See the highlights below:
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Prices increased 10.5 percent from January 2021 to April 2022, costing the average American household $569 last month alone.
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Even if prices stop increasing altogether, the inflation that has already occurred will cost the Average American household $6,829 over the next 12 months.
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Families in the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) are facing the highest inflation rates, with prices today 12.7 percent higher than in January 2021.
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Due to a combination of higher inflation rates and higher average household spending, inflation is imposing the greatest monthly costs on families in the states of Colorado ($774), Utah ($751), and Arizona ($688). Annualized, these families are facing inflation costs of $9,283, $9009, and $8,252 over the next year, respectively.
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For the average American household, inflation costs increased from $536 in March to $569 in April, a $33 increase in monthly inflation costs. Monthly inflation costs grew the most in the states of New Jersey ($56), New York ($55), and Colorado ($50). In the remaining states, inflation costs grew by between $8 and $48.
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In the United States overall, the monthly inflation cost in April 2022 was highest within transportation ($266), followed by energy ($146), food ($69), and shelter ($66).
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Families in Colorado are facing the highest transportation inflation costs ($345); families in Illinois, Alaska, and California are facing highest food inflation costs ($86 each); and families in Colorado are facing the highest shelter ($128) and energy ($197) inflation costs.
Household Inflation Costs by State, May 2022
Source: JEC Calculations using: Bureau of Economic Analysis, Personal Consumption Expenditures; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Expenditure Survey; Census Bureau; American Community Survey.
Notes: Inflation rates reflect how much prices have increased since January 2021, and inflation costs reflect how much more the average U.S. household must pay in the current month for the same goods and services it purchased in January 2021. See our methodology for a detailed explanation of these calculations; Jackie Benson, Kevin Corinth, and Kole Nichols. “State Inflation Tracker: Methodology.” U.S. Joint Economic Committee Republicans. April 12, 2022.
Jackie Benson
Kevin Cornith
Kole Nichols