Working with the city of Hudson, New York and a local career center, Andrew Yang’s nonprofit, Humanity Forward will be giving 20 people a basic income of $500 a month for five years, in a collaboration called HudsonUP. Business Insider reports:
A spokesperson for HudsonUP said the 20 residents will be selected later in 2020, likely in the fall, and will begin receiving payments shortly thereafter. Humanity Forward will cover half the bill, which according to Chris Sommerfeldt of the Daily News will be $600,000. Spark of Hudson will cover the other half, and will, together with community organizers, select the 20 participants, the Daily News reports.
While the project is starting in Hudson, Yang said he hopes more Americans get access to UBI policies soon… “I think that millions of Americans got the $1,200 stimulus and liked it,” he said, “and felt that this is something that we should continue to do in a time when there are record levels of unemployment, and tens of millions of jobs lost, many of which will not return…”

Susan Danziger and Albert Wenger, founders of The Spark of Hudson, are longtime UBI advocates. They’re hopeful the five-year program will have long-term impact. “UBI gives freedom — freedom to be entrepreneurs, to run for office, to stay home with the kids, to take care of sick parents, to leave abusive relationships, and to help our community in times of crisis,” Danziger said in a press release.

The article also notes that Spain “is moving to establish a permanent basic income in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic for low-income citizens.”

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Source:: Slashdot