cost of living

Statehouses across the West are considering reforms to respond to the homeowners insurance crisis. While some are hitting headwinds, concern about the issue isn’t going away.

Using a massive data set detailing some 70 million policies, researchers have found that “credit scores impact homeowners insurance premiums as much as disaster risk.”

With weeks until an end-of-year deadline, Congress lets premium lifelines slip by.

There’s been an especially steep drop in fertility rates in western states, including Wyoming, which has also seen a big jump in the cost of housing.

The high cost of living and other economic conditions could be to blame.

President Donald Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill Act” phases out tax credits for clean energy projects, slowing the addition of new power to the grid. Experts predict it could drive up energy costs, especially in parts of the Mountain West.

How much money does someone need to make ends meet in Wyoming? An updated self-sufficiency standard and interactive calculator from the Wyoming Women’s Foundation aims to answer that question pretty specifically by taking into account factors like location, family size and age of kids.

Nevada has the second-highest grocery prices in the nation, with Colorado and New Mexico also placing in the top 10. High prices mean local food banks are having to help fill in the gaps for many working families.

Tampon shortages, plus increasing costs for both tampons and menstrual pads, present growing challenges for those who have periods. Supply chain issues, hiring challenges and inflation all contribute, which will likely be the greatest burden for lower-income people.

Wyoming’s inflation rate in the final quarter of 2021 grew by 9.3 percent, the highest rate since 1981. According to the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division, a 22 percent increase in transportation costs led the way.