LA councilmembers want to revive guaranteed basic income program for the poor

In the city's pilot program, 3,200 poor families were given $1,000 per month for a year with no strings attached.

Nearly a year-and-a-half after the city’s guaranteed basic income pilot program ended, some Los Angeles city councilmembers say they now have proof the program works – and they want to revive it so more Angelenos can remain housed, fed and have other basic needs met.

Between January 2022 and March 2023, about 3,200 of the city’s poorest families were given $1,000 per month for a year with no strings. During a press conference outside City Hall and in a presentation to the City Council on Tuesday, July 30, Councilmembers Curren Price and Hugo Soto-Martínez were joined by researchers and participants to discuss how that pilot program – the Basic Income Guaranteed: Los Angeles Economic Assistance Pilot, or BIG:LEAP – resulted in positive outcomes for those who received the cash assistance.

Price proposed a guaranteed basic income program in 2021, and city leaders agreed to invest $38 million to create the pilot program designed to help families make ends meet.

“It was the biggest program of its kind in the nation, and of course, so much has been at stake since then,” Price said. “That’s why I’m so excited to have the results of this study before us today so that we can build on what’s been done and figure out how we move forward to the next step.”

The idea behind the guaranteed basic income program was to provide some of the city’s poorest households with direct cash. Because the dollars came with no restrictions, families could decide how to spend the money.

“When we empower Angelenos to make decisions for themselves, they are in the best position to navigate these financial hardships,” Abigail Marquez, general manager of the city’s Community Investment for Families Department, which oversaw the pilot program, told the City Council.

Among the criteria, program participants had to have a dependent child or be pregnant, have an annual income below the federal poverty line and have been impacted financially or health-wise because of the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 50,000 people applied.

A study examining the program’s effectiveness and shared with the City Council found that families who received the monthly cash assistance reported less financial stress, greater housing and food security, took better care of their health and had more time to spend with their children or to invest in enrichment activities for their kids, such as sports or clubs. That in turn improved their kids’ academic performances and behavior.

Additionally, having a guaranteed basic income reduced the severity and frequency of domestic violence and gave more people the option to leave a dangerous home environment, the study found.

The report was produced by the Center for Guaranteed Income Research at the University of Pennsylvania, in partnership with researchers from USC and UCLA.

Ashley Davis, who lives in South Central L.A. and who participated in the pilot program, said that with a young son who’s autistic, having the additional income every month allowed her to focus more on getting therapy for her son and to purchase healthier foods.

It also enabled her to change careers. Davis is now in nursing school, which she hopes to complete in 2026.

She credits the track she’s on to the guaranteed basic income pilot program.

As parents, “sometimes we’re afraid to ask for help or reach out for help,” Davis said. “I was one of those people who really needed it. And for the longest time, I wouldn’t accept that. So I’m thankful.”

During Tuesday’s council meeting, Price announced he was introducing a motion to establish a new guaranteed basic income program. The motion is co-sponsored by Councilmembers Soto-Martínez and Marqueece Harris-Dawson.

The motion, which has yet to be voted on by the City Council, would ask the Community Investment for Families Department to return with recommendations for creating a new program that specifically targets those facing domestic violence or transitional age youth – young adults ages 18 to 24, many of whom are coming out of the foster care system.

City staff would also be asked to identify the potential funding of $4 million to $5 million to support the proposed program.

Soto-Martínez said the pilot program demonstrated that putting money into struggling families’ pockets actually helps.

“This program has shown us something extraordinary,” he said. “It has proven that when we come together as a city and prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable among us, we can create real transformative change.”