More than half a million Connecticut families are dangerously close to poverty, according to new report released on Friday.

And you might be surprised where they live – in some of the state’s wealthiest enclaves.

Nestled in the Litchfield Hills, Roxbury is one of the most affluent towns in Connecticut. But behind that New England charm is a steep rise in families teetering on the edge of poverty.

“There is a financial storm that’s battering families in every community, from every background,” said Eric Harrison, president and CEO of the United Way of Central and Northeastern Connecticut.

The United Way of Connecticut’s new ALICE report paints a bleak picture. (ALICE stands for Asset-Limited, Income-Constrained and Employed.)

For 2023, the new survey found that 40% of all working families in Connecticut – a record-setting 581,000 households – couldn’t afford a basic “survival budget.” For a family of four, that means making less than $9,684 a month.

And the problem is getting worse. The ALICE rate has jumped 17% since pre-pandemic levels.

“The number of ALICE households has really ticked up pretty meaningfully since 2019,” said United Way of Connecticut president Lisa Tepper Bates told reporters.

The United Way report found the most poverty concentrated in cities like Bridgeport, Hartford, New Haven and Waterbury. But the biggest increases are in wealthy suburbs like Roxbury, Washington, and Salisbury, which all saw double-digit increases.

Marielle Smith is a mother from Simsbury, where the average home costs $528,000 – up 3.6% in the last year, according to Zillow.

“I found myself constantly picking up shifts for the last few months. This left no time for me and my children to make those cherished summer vacation memories,” she said. “Even if you never experienced having to pick which bills to pay, I want you to know that I have. And I know a lot of others do too, but they’re too embarrassed to admit it.”

Help is on the way, but critics said it’s not enough.

Every family in Connecticut will get free or reduced-cost day care starting in 2027, thanks to a new Universal Pre-K endowment championed by Gov. Ned Lamont. The fund is already creating 500 new day care slots this fall, with another 1,000 expected in January.

But some lawmakers said parents need more help. They’re pushing for a permanent child tax credit paid for with higher capital gains taxes on the rich.

“We hear from parents in our districts, how hard it is to afford to raise a child in our state,” said state Rep. Kate Farrar (D-West Hartford). “Deciding to pay for utilities versus their car repair, whether to buy food or fill that pivotal prescription.”

Lamont, a multi-millionaire himself, opposes any tax hike on the wealthy.

“We don’t need that. I don’t support that,” he told News 12 Connecticut in April. “We’ve eliminated taxes for our essential workers, working families. I’ve given a significant tax cut to middle-class families. We’ve done a lot to make our tax system more progressive.”

Instead, Lamont signed a modest income tax cut for everyone in 2023. He also increased the Earned Income Tax Credit for the working poor.

The growing wealth gap is likely to be an issue in the race for governor next year.

If Lamont runs for reelection, he faces a challenge from fellow Democrat Josh Elliott. The progressive lawmaker has promised to raise taxes on the wealthy, including a new surcharge on stock earnings (exact amount to be determined), more tax brackets and raising the top rate from 6.99% to as high as 10%.

“We are not here to demonize the wealthy,” Elliott said during his campaign launch. “But we will talk candidly about a tax code that currently rewards wealth instead of work.”

Elliott is hoping for the same surge that Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani saw in New York City. Campaigning on the high cost of living, Mamdani stunned the political establishment and captured the Democratic nomination for mayor, but will face a re-match with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the November general election.

Republicans also plan to campaign on the high cost of living.

“Under one-party Democrat rule, Connecticut continues to get more and more unaffordable for hard working families,” the Connecticut Senate GOP said in a statement. “Senate Republicans will continue proposing common sense solutions to cut taxes, reduce electricity bills and help struggling working families.”

Earlier this year, Republicans promised to save families $1,000 extra each year with sweeping tax cuts and a cap on local property taxes. But critics accused GOP senators of trying to eliminate the safety net when the Trump administration is making deep cuts to federal programs.