Allies staff was excited to participate in the LA County Guaranteed Income Summit last week. Thank you to the Center for Strategic Partnerships, the County’s Poverty Alleviation Initiative, and the City’s Community Investment For Families Department for organizing this inspiring and informative event! The summit included a gallery walk highlighting the results of over 10 guaranteed income pilots in LA County, and speakers included policymakers, philanthropists, researchers, and data experts who have championed guaranteed income programs nationwide. Lots of powerful insights were shared—including how for families, guaranteed income led to huge investments in their children. Some major takeaways included:

  • There’s a deep need for a functional safety net for former foster youth, who face overwhelming rates of poverty and homelessness when they age out of the system. The average annual income of people who participated in the initial Breathe program was under $15K—for former foster youth, it was $9K, and a third of these young adults were parents themselves.
  • For families in the City’s BIG:LEAP guaranteed income program, researchers found that when parents face less economic stress, they invest in their children. Parents who participated in the program were significantly more likely to keep their children enrolled in enrichment and extracurricular activities, and they reported a lower likelihood of eating less due to financial constraints.
  • We also know that poverty itself hinders child development. Infants whose mothers received a $333/monthly stipend through the Baby’s First Years study had more brain activity associated with stronger cognitive development.

At this week’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Supervisor Holly Mitchell introduced a motion to expand the County’s Guaranteed Income Breathe program to youth in foster care. Over 2,000 foster youth ages 18-21 will receive $500/month for 18 months as a result of this expansion, set to start this fall. Stay tuned for more details at https://ceo.lacounty.gov/pai/breathe/.