If one Chicago lawmaker has his way, the city may become the first of its size to offer all citizens a “universal basic income” regardless of employment status or willingness to work.
Chicago alderman Ameya Pawar, who recently lost his bid to be the Democratic Party’s nominee for Illinois governor, announced Monday that he’s received the blessing of 36 of Chicago’s other top lawmakers, and is working on getting the attention of Chicago’s mayor, Rahm Emanuel.
My legislation calling for the creation of a Chicago #UniversalBasicIncome pilot has 36 co-sponsors! On to the Commitee on Workforce Development and Audit. Committee chair @40thWard is also a sponsor. More soon! #UBI pic.twitter.com/W7D5Hbx31E
— Ameya Pawar (@Ameya_Pawar_IL) June 27, 2018
The bill would provide 1,000 families with a $500-per-month stipend, “no questions asked,” Fox News reports.
“Nearly 70 percent of Americans don’t have $1,000 in the bank for an emergency,” Pawar told media. “UBI could be an incredible benefit for people who are working and are having a tough time making ends meet or putting food on the table at the end of the month.”
Pawar says he’s concerned that tech companies like Amazon and Tesla will leave Americans in volatile industries without jobs, and that soon those Americans would turn on each other — a division he believes is exacerbated by political rhetoric. To quell the masses, Pawar proposes simply giving a lucky few a monthly check to cover basic needs.
Some tech tycoons have proposed similar programs. One pilot effort funded largely by Silicon Valley, is taking place in Stockton, California, a city whose unemployment rate is among the highest in the nation, and where even city officials can’t keep up with their bills.
There are problems with a universal basic income, however. For starters, Chicago can’t afford to pay what it owes now, and even Pawar’s simple pilot program would cost the city, at minimum, $6 million per year.
Economies that adopt subsidy programs quickly get caught in a vicious cycle of wage hikes and price hikes. Where it’s been tried, universal basic income increases inflation, driving up prices on necessary consumer goods; since even the poorest can afford more, goods become more expensive, putting those who rely on a universal basic income in largely the same place they were before receiving their monthly check. Cost drives up wages, which ultimately drive up cost.
Chicago is rarely opposed to finding new ways to spend money, however, so expect the universal basic income to receive wild praise.