Frequently Asked Questions

Guaranteed income doesn't push people out of the workforce, it gives them the stability to find better work. When people aren't one emergency away from crisis, they have room to seek out sustainable jobs instead of taking the first one available out of desperation. Stockton's SEED pilot, one of the earliest and most studied guaranteed income programs in the country, found that participants found full-time work at double the rate of non-participants.

Guaranteed income programs can, and have, been paid for in a number of ways: adjusting tax rates on the wealthiest and corporations, or through philanthropic sources, public dollars, or a mix of both. It's also worth weighing against the alternative. For example, Florida spends over $30,000 a year to incarcerate someone, far more than the cost of a guaranteed income program that helps keep people out of the system altogether.

People use guaranteed income to catch up on bills, fix vehicles, pay off debt, start businesses, and get medical care they've needed for years. Some invest in their health, buy school supplies for their kids, or build savings for the first time. Pilots nationwide consistently find that the majority of guaranteed income goes toward essentials like housing, food, and transportation. Distinctions between "needs and wants" aren't ours to make. Cash is rooted in trust, because people know best what they need in their own lives, and what they deserve is dignity, not conditions.

Strict eligibility rules, red tape, mountains of paperwork, only serve to dissuade the people who need support most. We have a disappointing history in this country of believing people facing financial hardship can't be trusted to make their own choices. That runs counter to the freedom and dignity every Floridian deserves.

Not exactly. A Universal Basic Income goes to everyone and aims to cover all basic needs. Guaranteed income works differently: it targets those with the greatest need and sets a floor no one falls below, not a universal payment.

Targeting lets programs prioritize the communities facing the highest levels of economic insecurity, whether that's people returning home from incarceration or families facing displacement. Many organizers see these pilots as a step toward broader, publicly funded policy that could eventually reach everyone. Guaranteed income is part of building an economy that works for all of us, not just some of us.

This isn't a new or fringe idea. Guaranteed income has drawn support across the political spectrum for decades, including conservative economists who championed it as a simpler, more dignified alternative to bureaucratic welfare programs, and civil rights leaders who saw direct cash as a foundation for racial and economic justice. That support carries into today: recent polling shows a majority of Americans, across party lines, support guaranteed income. From mayors and community organizers to researchers and everyday Floridians, that same broad coalition continues to grow. When people have what they need, everyone does better.