The program will give 1,000 randomly selected residents $1,000 a month for three years. Applications open March 31.
The "Breath: LA County's Guaranteed Income Program" will give 1,000 randomly selected residents $1,000 a month for three years.
To qualify, people must be at least 18 years old, have a household income under $56,000 for a single person or $96,000 for a family of four and have experienced negative impacts due to thepandemic. Participants will receive the money through a debit card, and there are no strings attached or conditions to the income.
"The financial uncertainty and varying depths of poverty that millions of our constituents experience day to day cannot be addressed with a one-size-fits-all approach. Now is our opportunity to invest in support that directly reaches our residents," said"...It's time that we trust that our residents know how best to meet their needs when given the resources to do so.
"The course of this pandemic has revealed the large number of county residents who are living on the brink of financial crisis, with insufficient savings to weather a job loss, a medical emergency or a major car repair," Kuehl said. "This guaranteed income program will help give residents the breathing room they need to better weather those crises. There is ample evidence from guaranteed income projects around the country that financial support, coupled with the freedom to make their own decisions about how best to spend their money, offers families the flexibility they need to establish stability and invest in a more prosperous future for themselves.