$4,500,000 To Be Handed Out With No Strings Attached As US Country Prepares To Launch Guaranteed Income Pilot Program: Report

A Californian county is preparing to launch a multi-million dollar guaranteed income pilot program, according to a new report.

The Richmond Confidential says Contra Costa County has allocated funds for a guaranteed income pilot program giving up to $1,000 per month to 250 residents for a period of one and a half years.

The program, which could kick off by the end of 2025, will target homeless residents, young people transitioning from foster care, low-income households with young kids and newly released convicts.

Contra Costa County’s Board of Supervisors allocated funding for the guaranteed income pilot program last month.

The funding will be drawn from a countywide sales tax known as Measure X that was approved by voters in the 2020 general election. Revenue generated from a statewide criminal justice reform bill is also another source of the program’s funding.

Currently, Contra Costa County officials are fleshing out the program’s details including the selection and application processes of potential participants.

The report cites Measure X Community Advisory Board member Rachel Rosekind, who says the pilot program aims to transform lives.

“The idea is to really make a transformative investment in our residents. And so to think about all the different ways to do that in terms of how long, how much, who are we investing in.

We want to really uplift and change not just the lives of these residents, but the lives of their families, the fabric of their communities.”

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