In the implementation of and towards the realization of economic justice as well as encouraging people to start their businesses, the City of Ann Arbor in Michigan State has developed an innovative unconditional stimulus check for cash grant pilot known as “Guaranteed Income To Grow Ann Arbor” (GIG A2). This groundbreaking experiment has distributed $528 monthly Economic Impact Payments to qualifying residents through the door, supporting struggling residents, the newly self-employed, and gig workers.
With the third round of payment and the upcoming distribution of the monthly payment hitting the streets, the program is receiving positive attention for the changes that it could make in local economic areas and the knowledge that it has to offer for the effects of guaranteed income to community well-being and economic development.
Meet these criteria to unlock $528 monthly payments
GIG A2 is a two-year pilot program where the company has started issuing payments to a hundred chosen people since early this year. In participation, necessary criteria include residence in Ann Arbor, participation in the gig economy, and more: applicants must be at least 18 years old. Eligibility requirements include the income contingent stating that all participants must gross not more than 225% of the federal poverty level.
It also included those applying for or receiving a government benefits program like SNAP or Pell Grant. This approach ensures that the program reaches a group of people who, by chance, are challenged economically despite possessing business ideas. These funds are to be released on the 15th of each month lest the weekend or a holiday interfere, and the amount of $528 per month will ensure that the participants can consistently fulfill all essential needs.
A detailed look at how this program aims to impact Ann Arbor
As a project spearheaded by Kristin Seefeldt, William Lopez, and Rebeccah Sokol from the University of Michigan’s Poverty Solutions team spearheading the GIG A2 scheme, the initiative is more than a mere welfare program that only offers cash support. The study design includes a solid research approach to evaluate how the guaranteed income affects different spheres of the participants’ activity. The present research will focus on the possible patterns of using the monthly payments identified at the recipient level, as well as their impact on the volume of business initiatives, health status, and general well-being of the recipients.
To complement the study with greater rigorousness, 100 participants will be randomly selected from the pool of applicants eligible for the payments and offered a similar set of questionnaires and tests but will receive no monthly fees. This scientific approach will be beneficial for establishing accurate data needed to assess the effectiveness of guaranteed income programs that might be useful in future policy-making in Ann Arbor and other cities.
Collaborative efforts: How community support is driving this initiative
The GIG A2 program is the best example of the positive engagement of Ann Arbor’s stakeholders. The initiative gets support from the ARP (American Rescue Plan Act) and funds from the City of Ann Arbor and the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, which involves local government bodies, academic institutions, and non-profit organizations.
Friends in Deed, Express Your Yes Foundation, Groundcover News, Ann Arbor District Library, and Entrepreneurship Center at Washtenaw Community College provided consultation for the pilot program. Therefore, this multiple-agency approach offers the flexibility that makes the program ‘site-specific’ while at the same time harnessing a range of professional experience. Even the participation of Steady, a platform we use for disbursing monthly payments, shows how committed the program is to providing suitable funds at the right time.
Thus, as long as the Guaranteed Income to Grow Ann Arbor program unfolds, it will significantly attempt to prevent and reduce economic injustice and invest in local businesses. The $528 per month provided through stimulus checks to qualified residents is an initial supply of pocket money and seeks to bet on low-income minority small business owners and gig workers.
The experimental aspect of the program will likely provide crucial information on the impact of guaranteed income on people’s physical and psychological well-being, which can help create similar programs throughout the United States. With participants receiving their third monthly payment comes the expectation of the results that the policymakers, researchers, and community leaders across the country expect to come out of this social experiment in economic safety net and development from Ann Arbor.
