Greater Des Moines, IA (October 4, 2022) – Eleven organizations have committed funding to launch the Central Iowa Basic Income Pilot Project—a cross-sector collaboration that will study the impacts of a monthly stipend on the lives of low-income individuals and the community.
The following organizations are investing a combined $2.5 million in the project, with nearly 70% from private funds:
“The Central Iowa Basic Income Pilot is a strong example of the public and private sectors collaborating to fund and study innovative solutions to complex community issues like the intersections of poverty and public health,” said Dr. Nalo Johnson, President & CEO of Mid-Iowa Health Foundation. “The Project is a unique opportunity to investigate the impact that greater flexibility to meet basic needs has on people’s health and well-being. Our goal is to collect data that will inform the design and implementation of policy and spending decisions that more effectively address poverty.”
Central Iowa joins other communities across the nation that have recently launched basic income projects and is the first to include urban, suburban, and rural geographies in a single pilot model. Research has shown that basic income helps people by reducing month-to-month income fluctuations, increasing ability to find full-time employment, improving physical and mental health, and improving response to unexpected emergencies. Studies also show a boost in young children’s healthy development.
The funders supporting the Central Iowa Basic Income Pilot have made the following joint statement:
“As a collective of funders, we are committed to maintaining a healthy, vibrant Greater Des Moines region. We are proud to join forces to invest in research that will provide data to support policy decisions and will insert central Iowa in a national conversation regarding ways to reduce poverty and improve health and life outcomes.”
Project implementation will begin this fall. The Harkin Institute at Drake University will provide project coordination. Research will be conducted by The Center for Guaranteed Income Research at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice with local support from Des Moines University’s Department of Public Health. Community-based organizations will offer guidance and support with participant engagement.
Participant recruitment is expected to begin in February 2023, with first payments starting in May 2023. Over two years, 110 low-income individuals living in Polk, Warren and Dallas Counties will each receive a $500 monthly stipend. Researchers will track how participants use the stipend each month and will compare various health and well-being outcomes of stipend recipients to those of 140 individuals who do not receive a stipend. Research findings will be shared with the community to explore the effects of low-income community members’ access to a sustained amount of unrestricted economic assistance each month.
To learn more about the Central Iowa Basic Income Pilot, visit bit.ly/Basic-Income-DSM
This project is supported in part by federal funds under the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund awarded to the City of Des Moines, Iowa, City of Urbandale, Iowa, and Polk County, Iowa, by the U.S. Department of Treasury.
