Long Beach Launches Guaranteed Income Program

LONG BEACH— The City of Long Beach July 7, announced its guaranteed income pilot program to help 500 single parents in the city who are living in poverty and struggling to meet basic needs. 

Direct payments will focus on the 90813 Zip Code which is the highest concentrated area of family poverty in Long Beach and has a median household income 25% lower than any other zip code in the city. The pilot program will provide up to 500 participants with $500 per month for 12 months.

Participants will be single-parent households, mostly consisting of single mothers, with incomes below the poverty line. The application will consider household income and hardships created by the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to providing direct payments, each parent will receive free child care, transportation support, workforce training and access to resources to support digital inclusion like cell phones and internet connection.

The city is working with the Office of Economic Research at California State University, Long Beach which provided analysis and recommendations to help develop this initiative. The office will be studying the effects of the pilot program on families and communities to help lift people out of poverty — in Long Beach and around the country.

The Long Beach Economic Development Department will begin accepting applications in the coming months and expects to begin distributing funds to residents by the end of this year.