Mayors pushing for guaranteed income programs decry the dismantling of federal aid programs
The Mayors for a Guaranteed Income coalition decried the dismantling of federal aid programs in a news release published on Tuesday.
"At a time when key federal aid programs are being dismantled, state leaders are picking up the slack and bolstering economic stability for residents," founder of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income Michael D. Tubbs said.
President Donald Trump has cut federal programs and seeks to dismantle the Department of Education. The Trump administration froze more than $10 billion in federal childcare and social services funding to five Democratic-led states amid concerns taxpayer dollars were improperly diverted to noncitizens, according to a report released in January.
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The organization said that state leaders are helping Americans struggling to "make ends meet" as the "affordability crisis" continues. The mayors claimed that state leaders are "bolstering economic stability for residents" through guaranteed income programs.
"With data from nearly 30 city-led and county-led pilots, we have proof that guaranteed income policies help struggling families meet their basic needs, build savings for emergencies, seek better employment, and experience reduced stress," Tubbs said in the statement. He went on to say, "As the affordability crisis continues to put pressure on household finances, this is a solution that lifts families up."
Guaranteed basic income programs have become a trend across the U.S. in recent years, with more than 100 pilots launched since 2018. Mayors for Guaranteed Income grew into a coalition of 150 mayors pushing pilot programs, offering low-income participants up to $1,000 a month with no strings attached. The group has pushed pilot programs that have been adopted by municipalities across the country.
Most notably, Cook County, Illinois, the second-largest county in the U.S., established a permanent guaranteed basic income program after the success of a previous pilot version. The program launched in 2022 with the aid of federal COVID-19 relief funds.
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"Guaranteed income policies, which provide recurring, unconditional cash payments to people in need, have been tested at the local level in hundreds of cities and counties across the nation," Mayors for Guaranteed Income stated in the new release.
The group explained further that based on the evidence, its counterpart organization Legislators for a Guaranteed Income reported more than 20 bills in 11 states being proposed to establish some form of statewide guaranteed income program.
More than 60 bills that would implement cash-based policies similar to guaranteed income have been floated in another 15 states.
Tubbs also founded the Counties for a Guaranteed Income and Legislators for a Guaranteed Income. He was the former mayor of Stockton, California from 2017 to 2021.
"With data from nearly 30 city-led and county-led pilots, we have proof that guaranteed income policies help struggling families meet their basic needs, build savings for emergencies, seek better employment, and experience reduced stress," Tubbs said in the statement. He went on to say, "As the affordability crisis continues to put pressure on household finances, this is a solution that lifts families up."