Rising inequality and rapidly-accelerating innovation are disrupting the economic lives of workers across the country, as higher-paying jobs require higher levels of education and become harder to get. Further, the current social safety net is not designed to support all New Yorkers in the face of these trends. Many struggling workers are ineligible for the most generous public assistance programs, and they find it increasingly hard to make ends meet given the increasing cost of living in New York and other cities.

As policymakers search for tools to counteract these global trends, interest has renewed in basic income. By providing unconditional, guaranteed stipends, basic income has the potential to provide economic security to the vulnerable and give them the flexibility they need to invest in themselves. New York City is interested in piloting this idea through a randomized control trial to see if basic income could be an effective policy tool to expand the social safety net and provide financial stability to New Yorkers in need.

We provided technical advisement to funding, technical, and operational partners to support development of a Universal Basic Income Pilot Study in New York City.

LOCATION
New York City, NY, USA

CLIENT
Confidential New York City Agency

PARTNERS
Confidential Foundation

ROLE
Technical advisement