- Somerville, Massachusetts, plans to pilot a guaranteed basic income program for 200 low-income households.
- The program provides unconditional payments of $750 per month to keep people in their homes.
- Somerville’s Income Pilot joins similar programs in Austin, San Antonio, Denver and Minneapolis.
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A city in Massachusetts is giving low-income families $750 a month with no strings attached. The basic income guarantee program focuses on residents at risk of losing their homes.
of Somerville GBI Pilot It will serve approximately 200 low-income families currently facing housing insecurity. Participants must already be enrolled in local social and housing services.
The city, located northwest of Boston, announced on March 20 that it would allocate $1.8 million to the program.
Participating households receive cash every month for an entire year and can spend it as they wish. The city of Somerville began enrolling eligible households last month and plans to start making payments in July.
Guaranteed basic incomes are becoming increasingly popular in American cities. The income program is being piloted in San Antonio, Austin, Boston, Minneapolis, and Durham, North Carolina. Some programs, such as the one in Denver, have been so successful that funding has been extended.
Basic income participants told Business Insider they used the money to pay rent, buy groceries, pay off credit card debt and raise children.
“My life was always a few hundred dollars short,” a participant in San Antonio’s income program told BI. “For the first time, I could breathe.”
Basic income may help Somerville families pay rent
The City of Somerville stated: in a press release They say their basic income pilot aims to test the GBI model as a potential long-term poverty solution.
Almost 17% of all rental households in Somerville spend more than half of their income on housing. by city. Also, in 2022, 51% of all renters in the Boston metropolitan area were cost-burdened, according to the Boston Foundation. 2023 Housing Report Book. To be considered cost-burdened, a household must spend at least 30% of its income on housing.
“Sometimes we need solid ground to stand on in order to thrive and move forward, and this program seeks to provide that stepping stone,” Somerville Mayor Katchana Ballantyne said in an official statement.Ballantine is a member of Mayors seek guaranteed income.
The city plans to draw funding from President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, also known as ARPA. The federal funds are intended to alleviate the public health and economic impacts of the pandemic in U.S. cities.somerville previously dedicated millions of dollars Contribution of ARPA funds to child care and rental assistance programs.
Researchers from the University of Massachusetts will evaluate the impact of the GBI on Somerville participants throughout the program’s implementation period, the city said. Program findings will be shared with local leaders and the public.
Despite opposition, revenue experiments continue across the country
The introduction of the GBI program was not without opposition. In Arizona, South Dakota, Iowa, and Texas, Republican legislatures and governors are working to ban basic income.
Some lawmakers call the GBI a “socialist idea” and worry that it will make people too dependent on the government.
“The founding fathers would say it goes against our capitalist system in a big way and encourages people to work,” John Gillette, a Republican state representative from Arizona, told BI last month. ” he said.
Still, basic income programs continue to be piloted at the local level. St. Louis, Missouri, recently handed out $500 a month in benefits to low-income families, and Flint, Michigan, is providing funds to new mothers. The Atlanta program also provides unconditional payments to low-income black women.
Have you benefited from a guaranteed basic income program? Share your story with this reporter. allisonkelly@insider.com.