Guaranteed Income
Legacy safety net programs in the United States are inefficient and inadequate in supporting the financially insecure – a reality made painfully apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ample research has shown that unrestricted cash assistance can not only alleviate material hardship among the most vulnerable but also improve physical and mental wellbeing, child welfare, educational attainment, and more. Decades of advocacy and research into guaranteed income – whether a universal basic income or direct cash transfers through the tax system – offer a vision for a government whose support is more universal, less administratively burdensome, and more respectful of the dignity of ordinary people.
Since 2017, before the concept gained mainstream recognition, JFI has evaluated the feasibility of unconditional cash transfers and how they might be best situated among existing aspects of the social safety net in the United States & abroad. We have helped build guaranteed income pilots; conducted field evaluations on the efficacy and impact of cash programs, including the world’s largest in Maricá, Brazil; advised state and federal lawmakers on relevant legislative reforms, including the federal Child Tax Credit (CTC); and provided expert commentary to media and advocates on the state (and the future) of the field. Most recently, we have begun to sketch a vision for how the now myriad guaranteed income demonstrations can be translated into sustainable policy – and thereby help address our nation’s deepening inequality.
PARTNER WITH US
While JFI continues to share design and strategy expertise with pilots, we are increasingly focused on policy design: how cash transfers can make our social safety net work better for the working and middle classes, and what financing mechanisms can help sustain them. To that end, we provide policymakers (mayors, state legislators, economic development teams, etc.) and advocates with policy analysis, including microsimulations of proposed legislation and studies of interactions among existing programs. We are eager to partner with individuals or institutions to extend this work internationally – and to expand our field of study beyond traditional guaranteed income / UBI into other social programs (e.g. housing, healthcare) where the principles of unconditional cash may be beneficial.
PARTNERS
Guaranteed Income Tools & Resources
A collection of materials for practitioners and policymakers.
- Toolkit for creating a guaranteed income in your community: Our toolkit, published May 2021 and available here, provides a concrete starting point for anyone interested in supporting a guaranteed income for their community, particularly by launching a guaranteed income pilot. It begins by answering some of the key questions that arise in this undertaking, including what guaranteed income is, why it is gaining attention right now, what the open questions are that a pilot might answer, and what is involved in the creation of a local pilot.
- How to frame guaranteed income policy: a review of literature: This review of literature, published May 2021, covers a range of important guaranteed income messaging questions.
- Exploring a framework for federal policy: Find our white paper series, “From Idea to Reality: Getting to Guaranteed Income,” here. The series is an in depth examination into how to implement guaranteed income in the U.S.
- JFI Position on Guaranteed Income: Our research-informed guidance on basic parameters for guaranteed income.
Featured Partners
Research and Development for the Compton Pledge
We partnered with former Compton mayor Aja Brown and Fund for Guaranteed Income (F4GI) founder Nika Soon-Shiong on design, strategy, and research on this 800-recipient guaranteed income pilot in Compton, California.
Guaranteed Income Contributors
Andrea Gama
Affiliate Researcher
Ege Aksu
Fellow
Halah Ahmad
Vice President, Lead Researcher for Policy
Jack Landry
Research Associate
Johannes Haushofer
Senior Fellow
Leah Hamilton
Senior Fellow
Marcella Cartledge
Fellow
Roberta Costa
Research Manager
Sara Franklin
Fellow
Sidhya Balakrishnan
Director of Research
Yunjie Xie
Fellow
Related Publication Series
Recent Updates
Vox covers JFI’s Child Tax Credit research
Jack Landry spoke with Vox following JFI's new report on state-led CTC expansions.
New Report: Guaranteed Income through the Child Tax Credit
"We estimate that these credits will likely be durable additions to state benefits and will increase cash assistance over the...
Cash at the State Level: Guaranteed Income Through the Child Tax Credit
Eleven states have passed refundable CTCs ranging in value from $180 to $1,750 per eligible child.
Two articles in the New York Times cover JFI’s Colorado Child Tax Credit work
JFI VP Halah Ahmad and research associate Jack Landry worked closely with Colorado lawmakers on a large expansion of the...
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities cites Jack Landry’s research
On the Child Tax Credit.
Press Release: Colorado Expands Child Tax Credit to Parents With No or Little Income
JFI researchers advised Colorado-based advocacy groups, legislators and the governor’s office on pivotal CTC reforms in a successful collaborative...
Now hiring: Research Fellow, Guaranteed Income
A part-time fellowship to work on the formal evaluation of HudsonUP, a multi-year guaranteed income program in Hudson, New York.
Halah Ahmad speaks on guaranteed income at the American Bar Association’s Economic Justice Summit
JFI vice president Ahmad spoke on a panel covering "What is the role of lawyers in guaranteed income programs and...
JFI’s SNAP analysis in the New York Times
Upcoming research by JFI's Jack Landry and Sidhya Balakrishnan, and Northwestern economist Diane Whitmore Schanzenbach
Director of Research Sidhya Balakrishnan in Gothamist
Balakrishnan spoke to Gothamist about New York City's increasing number of cash-assistance programs.
Editorial: The Future of Guaranteed Income Is At The Community Level
Next City op ed by Halah Ahmad, Steve Nuñez, and Hope Wollensack
HudsonUP Basic Income Pilot releases year two report
The second year’s report from the HudsonUP Basic Income Pilot, from Principal Investigator and Senior Fellow Leah Hamilton.
Revisiting the Child Tax Credit for the Lame Duck Session: Comparing Parameters for Anti-Poverty Impacts
JFI researchers review recent CTC proposals and simulate the effects of varying key reforms that increase the policy's anti-poverty impacts,...
Part of the series Policy Microsimulations
Understanding What’s Next in Cash Assistance: State-Level Expansions Through the Tax System
The “Cash Consortium” and the Urban Institute’s State and Local Finance Initiative invite you to join a virtual discussion...
Guaranteed Income as Economic Justice
Hosted in Washington, DC and featuring JFI's Halah Ahmad, this is a joint event by GHI Washington, the Kalmanovitz Initiative...
Do Basic Income Experiments Influence Policy?
A virtual and in-person panel hosted at the 2022 Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN) Congress taking place in Brisbane, Australia between...
JFI’s guaranteed income analysis in the New York Times
The article, "Guaranteed Income Programs Spread, City by City," features JFI's political economy research
The Political Economy of Guaranteed Income: Where Do We Go From Here?
This paper is the fourth and final in a series on “Getting to Guaranteed Income,” analyzing the research to date...
Part of the series From Idea to Reality: Getting to Guaranteed Income
New Release: Political economy of guaranteed income
JFI experts on guaranteed income research and policy communications close out the 'getting to guaranteed income' white paper series, including...
Halah Ahmad speaks at the BIG conference on guaranteed income pilots and policy
Ahmad spoke alongside Madeline Neighly (Economic Security Project) and Kathrine Cagat (Mayors for a Guaranteed Income)
What’s Next for Cash-Based Social Policies? Lessons from the Expanded Child Tax Credit
Join the Urban Institute and the Jain Family Institute for an event exploring key insights on the American Rescue Plan...
Sidhya Balakrishnan speaking at “Keeping it Real OC: Building Financial Strength for Vulnerable Families”
Orange County United Way hosts a "Keeping it Real OC" dialogue with a panel of experts, including JFI's Director of...
The Expanded Child Tax Credit and Parental Employment: Tenuous Evidence Points to Work Disincentives
Some academics and policymakers argue that the expanded Child Tax Credit will disincentive work; this report points out the weak...
Part of the series Policy Microsimulations
HudsonUP pilot features in The Economist
The HudsonUP Basic Income Pilot has completed one year of payments to its initial 25-person cohort; one recipient shares his...