One of the biggest cities in the US is preparing to hand $1.3 million to families who are struggling to pay their bills.
The cash will be given with no strings attached to lower income families who qualify in Austin, Texas, reports the ABC-affiliated news station KVUE.
The city council approved the program on Thursday, and the sign up process is not yet up and running.
This is the second time local leaders have backed a guaranteed income program in the city.
Austin’s first pilot launched in 2022, giving 135 families $1,000 a month for a year.
Participants said they spent the money on things like housing, basic necessities and health care, according to Urban Institute researcher Mary Bogle.
“That’s one of the most fascinating things, is how people choose to spend the money. They’re so smart about it. They’re way smarter than our siloed systems that would say, ‘Here’s money and you must spend it on just food.'”
A separate pilot program was approved in Harris County, Texas in January. That program will give just over $17 million to 1,928 households.
The guaranteed income programs in Texas joins dozens of similar pilots around the US, all testing the results of handing cash to people struggling to stay afloat financially.
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