ITSA Newsletter: June 2024 Edition

Here’s the latest and biggest Basic Income news:

‣ Oregon could become the first state since Alaska to have a small annual basic income

‣ Denver’s Basic Income Pilot observes a 45% reduction in homelessness and $600,000 saved in public service interactions

‣ Artists receiving basic income in Ireland report 'unfailingly positive' impact on creativity and well-being after one year

‣ A 20-year study in Australia finds that a $26,000 AUD income boost in a child’s first year (~$1,400/mo USD) would significantly improve child and parent health

‣ UK’s Green Party unveils plan for universal basic income by 2025

‣ New analysis concludes that a global UBI has the potential to increase global GDP by 130% while reducing carbon emissions

‣ FOX will air at least two seasons of a new animated show called Universal Basic Guys that involves everyone in an automation-impacted town getting $3,000 a month in UBI

‣ A nonprofit has filed a lawsuit against the City of St. Louis over its Guaranteed Basic Income program

‣ California Congressman Adam Schiff has proposed a basic income pilot program bill that would launch 10 pilots across the US

ITSA News Update

Since our first private screening in Los Angeles in April, we have since also held similar private screenings in DC and New York City, with our next one in SF. The screenings involve select clips from the Bootstraps docuseries currently in post-production that we’re supporting as one of our first two key UBI projects. People are leaving these screenings energized and wanting to get more involved.

Help us get Bootstraps finished with a donation to the Income To Support All Foundation today. All donations will be matched dollar for dollar up to $500,000.

If you want to help with fundraising, consider clicking the Fundraise button in the link above to help us raise the funds with your own pages and donation targets.

Also, be sure to check out the Comingle YouTube channel for recordings of our weekly discussions on X-Twitter about UBI with special guests and topics. So far, 32 episodes are available there to listen to and share. It’s in these episodes that we discuss all the news in this newsletter.

Oregon could become the first state since Alaska to have a small annual basic income [link]

• A ballot initiative in Oregon has gathered enough signatures to make the ballot in November.

• If passed into law by voters, every Oregon resident would receive $750 a year funded by a 3% tax on corporations earning over $25 million a year.

• With a household of four getting $3,000 a year, child poverty is estimated to drop in Oregon by 26%.

Denver’s Basic Income Pilot observes a 45% reduction in homelessness and $600,000 saved in public service interactions [link]

• The Denver Basic Income Pilot has published its one-year findings.

• After 10 months, 45% of those getting $1,000/mo are living in a house or apartment they rent or own compared to 25% of those getting $500/mo or $50/mo.

• Researchers reported substantial reductions in public service interactions, including emergency room visits, hospital nights, and jail stays with an estimated savings across all groups of $589,214.

• The pilot will continue for at least another six months.

Artists receiving basic income in Ireland report 'unfailingly positive' impact on creativity and well-being after one year [link]

• The impact assessment of the first year of the Basic Income for the Arts pilot in Ireland has been released.

• 2,000 artists are receiving 325 euros a week (~$1,400/mo) for three years.

• Recipients of basic income spent on average almost eight hours more a week on their creative practice than the control group and spent €550 more a month in their practice.

• Those with basic income were 15 percentage points less likely to have been unable to work in the arts compared to the control group.

A 20-year study in Australia finds that a $26,000 AUD income boost in a child’s first year (~$1,400/mo USD) would significantly improve child and parent health [link]

• A study in Australia tracked 5,107 infants since 2004.

• Researchers concluded that if households with incomes under $56k AUD (~$37k USD) got a $17k USD boost in a child’s first year, both the kids and their parents would see positive results that last for decades.

• The money would reduce children’s risk of poor learning outcomes at age four to five; equal to an 11% improvement in equity.

• The money would reduce the risk of poor mental health of the child’s primary carer at two to three years; equal to a 7% improvement in equity.

UK’s Green Party unveils plan for universal basic income by 2025 [link]

• A general election in the UK is happening on July 4th and the UK Green Party has pledged to introduce UBI by 2025.

• Their proposal is for every adult to receive £89 per week (~$450/mo) with additional payments going to those facing barriers to work, including disabled people and single parents.

• Higher earners would pay more in tax than they would receive in UBI.

New analysis concludes that a global UBI has the potential to increase global GDP by 130% while reducing carbon emissions [link]

• According to the research team, giving basic income to the entire world population could boost the global GDP by $163 trillion, which is about 130% of the current GDP.

• Every dollar spent on implementing the basic income could generate as much as $7 in economic impacts, the analysis shows.

• They estimate that taxing CO2 emitters alone can generate about $2.3 trillion a year, enough to provide a basic income for all people living below the poverty line in less developed countries.

FOX will air at least two seasons of a new animated show called Universal Basic Guys that involves everyone in an automation-impacted town getting $3,000 a month in UBI [link]

• In the show, Mark and Hank Hoagies suddenly find themselves with no jobs when the Glantontown Hot Dog factory is fully automated, but the town is part of a UBI pilot program that gives all residents of $3,000 a month in basic income.

• The series creators are Adam and Craig Malamut who also created Sports Friends, Game of Zones, and The Champions.

• In an unusual move, a full second season has been ordered before the premiere of the first episode of the first season.

‣ A nonprofit has filed a lawsuit against the City of St. Louis over its Guaranteed Basic Income program [link]

• The Holy Joe Society is claiming in their lawsuit that basic income violates the state constitution of Missouri by providing public money to private individuals.

• The lawsuit also alleges that that program violates the city charter by only helping families with children enrolled in public schools.

• 440 families living in poverty there are receiving $500 a month.

‣ California Congressman Adam Schiff has proposed a basic income pilot program bill that would launch 10 pilots across the US [link]

• The Guaranteed Additional Income for Families in Need Act, or GAINS Act, proposes the creation of 10 pilot programs in cities across the US that would give participants $500 a month without strings.

• Over the course of 5 years, the pilots would collect research as to whether the cash improved the health outcomes among the participants.

• The only stipulation would be that the recipients of the cash be enrolled in Medicaid so as to measure any reduced spending on Medicaid.

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Scott Santens

Founder & President, ITSA Foundation