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Cliff-Zone Families
123,023
Total Wage Suppression
$89.6M
State Avg Cliff Zone
14.6%
The benefits cliff — sometimes called the welfare cliff or cliff effect — occurs when families lose public benefits faster than they can replace them through increased earnings. In Wisconsin, an estimated 123,023 families across 72 counties earn between 100–200% of the Federal Poverty Level, where benefits like SNAP, Medicaid, childcare subsidies, and housing assistance phase out. The CLIFF Index measures this exposure at the county level, including peak marginal effective tax rates, wage suppression estimates, and advancement thresholds. Click any county below for the full diagnostic report.
| CountyCounty↕ | PopulationPopulation↕ | Cliff Zone %Cliff Zone %↕ | Families AffectedFamilies↓ | Wage SuppressionWage Gap↕ | Peak METRPeak METR↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee County | 926,331 | 18.9% | 25,103 | $18.3M | 607% |
| Dane County | 572,674 | 10.7% | 7,723 | $5.6M | 607% |
| Brown County | 270,892 | 14.9% | 5,956 | $4.3M | 607% |
| Racine County | 197,532 | 15.2% | 4,773 | $3.5M | 607% |
| Rock County | 164,350 | 16.7% | 4,175 | $3.0M | 607% |
| Waukesha County | 411,762 | 7.1% | 4,051 | $2.9M | 607% |
| Winnebago County | 171,769 | 15.1% | 3,626 | $2.6M | 607% |
| Outagamie County | 192,826 | 12.2% | 3,609 | $2.6M | 607% |
| Kenosha County | 168,438 | 13.6% | 3,602 | $2.6M | 607% |
| Marathon County | 138,403 | 14.1% | 2,778 | $2.0M | 607% |
| La Crosse County | 120,488 | 14.9% | 2,519 | $1.8M | 607% |
| Sheboygan County | 117,991 | 15.3% | 2,489 | $1.8M | 607% |
| Dodge County | 88,742 | 15.1% | 2,178 | $1.6M | 607% |
| Eau Claire County | 107,116 | 13.7% | 2,102 | $1.5M | 607% |
| Washington County | 137,879 | 9.7% | 1,994 | $1.5M | 607% |
| Manitowoc County | 81,406 | 17.4% | 1,956 | $1.4M | 607% |
| Walworth County | 105,657 | 12.3% | 1,953 | $1.4M | 607% |
| Fond du Lac County | 104,137 | 13.9% | 1,946 | $1.4M | 607% |
| Wood County | 74,004 | 18.1% | 1,935 | $1.4M | 607% |
| Sauk County | 66,009 | 15.6% | 1,686 | $1.2M | 607% |
| Chippewa County | 66,799 | 16.7% | 1,518 | $1.1M | 607% |
| Jefferson County | 86,003 | 12.8% | 1,456 | $1.1M | 607% |
| Ozaukee County | 92,966 | 10.1% | 1,449 | $1.1M | 607% |
| St. Croix County | 96,033 | 9.8% | 1,441 | $1.0M | 607% |
| Portage County | 70,832 | 14.4% | 1,309 | $953K | 607% |
| Barron County | 46,797 | 18.6% | 1,270 | $925K | 607% |
| Marinette County | 42,046 | 20.3% | 1,260 | $917K | 607% |
| Grant County | 51,770 | 17.9% | 1,237 | $901K | 607% |
| Waupaca County | 51,569 | 14.7% | 1,237 | $901K | 607% |
| Monroe County | 46,208 | 19.2% | 1,209 | $880K | 607% |
| Columbia County | 58,272 | 13.0% | 1,156 | $842K | 607% |
| Clark County | 34,739 | 19.9% | 1,125 | $819K | 607% |
| Shawano County | 41,039 | 17.9% | 1,058 | $770K | 607% |
| Calumet County | 52,942 | 11.1% | 1,038 | $756K | 607% |
| Oconto County | 39,589 | 16.3% | 988 | $719K | 607% |
| Polk County | 45,555 | 13.5% | 880 | $641K | 607% |
| Dunn County | 45,527 | 16.9% | 861 | $627K | 607% |
| Oneida County | 38,167 | 15.9% | 775 | $564K | 607% |
| Green County | 37,017 | 14.1% | 766 | $558K | 607% |
| Trempealeau County | 30,839 | 15.6% | 727 | $529K | 607% |
| Vernon County | 31,049 | 16.3% | 705 | $513K | 607% |
| Douglas County | 44,229 | 13.6% | 704 | $513K | 607% |
| Pierce County | 42,584 | 12.5% | 696 | $507K | 607% |
| Juneau County | 26,689 | 19.3% | 687 | $500K | 607% |
| Lincoln County | 28,426 | 17.0% | 631 | $459K | 607% |
| Waushara County | 24,868 | 17.0% | 566 | $412K | 607% |
| Jackson County | 20,981 | 21.0% | 562 | $409K | 607% |
| Vilas County | 23,647 | 16.4% | 525 | $382K | 607% |
| Kewaunee County | 20,664 | 15.5% | 525 | $382K | 607% |
| Langlade County | 19,490 | 18.2% | 520 | $379K | 607% |
| Taylor County | 20,024 | 17.5% | 513 | $373K | 607% |
| Door County | 30,445 | 12.5% | 509 | $371K | 607% |
| Sawyer County | 18,476 | 18.7% | 497 | $362K | 607% |
| Washburn County | 16,854 | 19.5% | 497 | $362K | 607% |
| Green Lake County | 19,263 | 15.2% | 465 | $339K | 607% |
| Adams County | 21,123 | 18.4% | 455 | $331K | 607% |
| Iowa County | 23,867 | 12.9% | 437 | $318K | 607% |
| Ashland County | 16,080 | 20.1% | 419 | $305K | 607% |
| Lafayette County | 16,942 | 17.8% | 417 | $304K | 607% |
| Buffalo County | 13,393 | 18.6% | 402 | $293K | 607% |
| Crawford County | 16,042 | 17.9% | 390 | $284K | 607% |
| Marquette County | 15,746 | 17.5% | 383 | $279K | 607% |
| Richland County | 17,205 | 15.6% | 379 | $276K | 607% |
| Rusk County | 14,179 | 19.9% | 378 | $275K | 607% |
| Bayfield County | 16,575 | 16.4% | 330 | $240K | 607% |
| Forest County | 9,369 | 20.8% | 305 | $222K | 607% |
| Price County | 14,092 | 19.5% | 300 | $218K | 607% |
| Burnett County | 16,916 | 17.2% | 291 | $212K | 607% |
| Pepin County | 7,431 | 15.7% | 168 | $122K | 607% |
| Menominee County | 4,252 | 24.5% | 164 | $119K | 607% |
| Iron County | 6,210 | 20.3% | 155 | $113K | 607% |
| Florence County | 4,646 | 18.8% | 134 | $98K | 607% |
72 of 72 counties shown. Click any county for full diagnostic.