SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The mayor of Oakland, California, has announced a privately funded program to give low-income families of color $500 a month with no rules on how to spend it. The program is one of the largest forms of a guaranteed income project the U.S. so far. Its idea is that giving poor people a set amount of money each month will ease the stresses of poverty that contribute to poor health and hinder their ability to find full-time work. The idea isn’t new, but it has received attention recently after progressive mayors launched similar programs across the country. The first program was launched in Stockton, California, in 2019.
