A core socialist program is the latest attack on financial stability and the American work ethic.
From $850 billion in stimulus payments, to state and city payments for universal basic income (UBI) programs, or reparations to black or LGBT residents, the free-money giveaway is on a roll. Combined with the Biden Administration’s proposal to increase federal tax rates on very high income earners to 57.4 percent, progressive dreams of socialism are moving closer to realization.
UBI is an income supplement that has no work requirement. Though many UBI proposals and programs cut benefits off above certain incomes, others do not. UBI is the antithesis of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act drafted by John Kasich and signed into law by Bill Clinton in 1996. That law required recipients to begin working after two years of receiving benefits, placed a lifetime limit of five years on benefits paid by federal funds, sought to encourage two-parent families and discourage out-of-wedlock births, and required state professional and occupational licenses to be withheld from undocumented immigrants.
Delete every requirement of the Clinton welfare reforms, leave the payments, and what remains is UBI.
Los Angeles County last week joined at least 50 other jurisdictions that offer some form of UBI with a pilot program to distribute $1,000 each month to 1,000 residents for three years. The first checks are expected shortly. With a population exceeding 10,000,000, Los Angeles County has the most people of any U.S. county. Cities within Los Angeles County include, among others, Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Pasadena, West Hollywood and Beverly Hills. The county’s population exceeds that of 40 states, emphasizing the significance of its action.
Called “Breathe: LA County’s Guaranteed Income Program,” the program’s website describes its naively utopian premise. “Early research,” we are told, “suggests that a Guaranteed Income program can provide households with financial stability during sharp economic swings to breathe a little easier, alleviate stress, and broaden recipients’ horizons, allowing them the time to complete deferred education and job training, as well as plans to fully participate in their communities. Importantly, these programs come without the scrutiny and work requirements of certain public benefits.”
Applicants must be at least 18, live in a neighborhood that does not exceed the County’s median household income, have a household income that generally falls within 120 percent of the County’s median household income, and show a negative financial impact from Covid. For a single person, the maximum income is $56,000. and for a family of three, $86,400. Participants were randomly selected from the eligible applicants.
