LA’s Guaranteed Basic Income: City to offer $1K/month to families in poverty, no strings attached

By MARGARET SHUTTLEWORTH | City News Service

LOS ANGELES — The largest Guaranteed Basic Income aviator programme successful the state was approved Tuesday by the Los Angeles City Council, expanding the city’s archetypal $6 cardinal concern to astir $40 cardinal to payment 3,000 Angelenos.

The BIG:LEAP — Basic Income Guaranteed: Los Angeles Economic Assistance Pilot — programme volition springiness $1,000 successful nonstop currency payments to families each period for 12 months. The no-strings-attached payments volition beryllium fixed to families who were impacted by the pandemic and are surviving successful poverty.

More than a 4th of the participants volition beryllium residents of Councilman Curren Price’s district, Council District 9, which has the highest percent of radical surviving successful poorness astatine 12.3%, according to a June 14 study connected the programme by the erstwhile Los Angeles Housing + Community Investment Department, which has since been divided into 2 abstracted departments.

Price said Tuesday his territory bureau volition service arsenic a bid halfway during the exertion model to assistance his constituents, and further sites — including libraries and the All Peoples Community Center and Trade-Tech College — volition supply computers, Wi-Fi and connection enactment to assistance Council District 9 residents apply.

“The thought of a (Guaranteed Basic Income) aviator programme is 1 my bureau has been pursuing for immoderate time, and it gained momentum arsenic we witnessed our state analyse the radical disparities and societal injustices during the COVID pandemic,” Price said earlier the ballot Tuesday. “It became wide this programme was indispensable successful pursuing the affirmative results of the Stockton Seed Program.”

“It’s my anticipation that pursuing the decision of this aviator programme that it’ll beryllium replicated astatine the authorities and national level,” Price said.

About $27.4 cardinal was approved for the programme citywide, which includes astir $3.4 cardinal for Price’s district. Price’s bureau volition supply different $6 cardinal from its Guaranteed Basic Income Funds. The offices of Council District 6, 8 and 10 besides provided further backing from their offices’ GBI funds, totaling much than $5 million. The assembly besides approved astir $4 cardinal for probe and plan services related to the aviator program.

Further accusation astir the exertion process volition beryllium released connected Wednesday during a greeting quality league by Price, Council President Nury Martinez, Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson and Community For Investment For Families Department General Manager Abigail Marquez.