Mayor Steve Benjamin announces launch of Columbia’s Guaranteed Income project pilot program CLIMB

In partnership with national organization Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, the one-year CLIMB pilot project seeks to determine effectiveness of monthly baseline payments to overcome economic instability in designated Columbia households and communities.

Mayor Steve Benjamin is pleased to announce the launch of Columbia Life Improvement Monetary Boost (CLIMB), Columbia’s guaranteed income pilot project. Beginning this summer, the City of Columbia will conduct the 1-year guaranteed income pilot to provide monthly $500 unconditional payments to 100 specified program participants. This pilot seeks to determine the effectiveness of regular monthly payments to address financial instability, and subsequent effects in strengthening fathers and families.

During the June 15 City Council meeting, Columbia City Council unanimously passed Resolution No.: R-2021-073 – Launch and Implementation of CLIMB Guaranteed Income Pilot Project. The resolution includes in its language:  BE IT RESOLVED, That Mayor Benjamin and Columbia City Council support the launch, implementation, pilot payment period and subsequent data evaluation of CLIMB.

The CLIMB project will explore one of the most promising tools for addressing poverty, inequity, and family instability: a guaranteed income. 100 City of Columbia residents currently enrolled in the Midlands Fatherhood Coalition will be randomly selected for the pilot. The participant selection process has begun, with payment distribution scheduled to begin by late Summer. None of the funding for the CLIMB project comes from City of Columbia sources, rather all funds have been and will continue to be privately raised.

The City of Columbia has designed and will launch CLIMB through its partnership with the national organization Mayors for a Guaranteed Income (MGI). Building off the first-of-its-kind guaranteed income pilot, the Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration (SEED), and rooted in Dr. Martin Luther King’s legacy, former Stockton, CA mayor Michael D. Tubbs founded MGI in June of  2020.

Mayor Steve Benjamin has joined mayors across the country to come together in this network to advocate for a guaranteed income—direct, recurring payments—that uplifts all of our communities,

building a resilient, just America. Additional CLIMB partners include fiscal agent Central Carolina Community Foundation, Columbia-based Dream Team Consulting, Midlands Fatherhood Coalition, SC Thrive, and national African-American owned fintech company MoCaFi.

“The CLIMB pilot project will explore one of the most promising tools for addressing poverty, inequity, and family instability: a guaranteed income. CLIMB’s guaranteed income monthly payments are intended to provide economic stability and uplift to families, which previous case studies have shown is pivotal to creating opportunities to escape systemic poverty, and also strengthen communities,” said Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin. “By directly addressing financial insecurity through a guaranteed income, we can better empower fathers and families to invest in themselves and their children.”

A guaranteed income is an unconditional monthly cash payment given directly to individuals. Guaranteed income is meant to supplement, rather than replace, the existing social safety net and can be a critical tool for improving economic equity. A guaranteed income is meant to provide an income floor, but not meant to be a replacement for wages, and can also be targeted to those who most need it. Guaranteed income is rooted in a history of racial justice – in 1967, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., called for guaranteed income as the simplest and most effective solution to poverty.

“I am thrilled that Columbia is the latest city to join this growing national movement,” said MGI Founder Michael Tubbs. “Mayor Benjamin’s leadership adds an important voice in the effort to end poverty and provide economic stability for all through a guaranteed income.”

Data collected from the one-year pilot will help determine the effectiveness of a guaranteed income in helping citizens overcome otherwise insurmountable economic privation, and help lift them into more stable economic circumstances.

Project Key Performance Indicators include:

• Employment Status
• Stable Housing
• Father-Child Interaction
• Mental & Physical Health