Jamie Morgan: Improving racial equity by combining basic income and Baby Bonds
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One of the proposals championed during the 2020 Democratic primary was Baby Bonds, which would create steadily growing trust accounts for each child that they could access when they turn 18. The Institute for Assets and Social Policy at the Heller School of Social Policy at Brandeis partnered with podcast co-host Jim Pugh through the Universal Income Project to model how such a program would drastically reduce income and asset poverty when combined with a basic income. Jamie Morgan, a PhD student at the Heller School, joined the podcast to discuss this concept and the promise it holds.
Leah Hamilton: Why Basic Income Could Address Issues of Welfare Programs
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We often mention that our current welfare programs have serious inefficiencies, bottlenecks and unnecessary filters, and on this episode, we delve into the tragic human toll these bureaucratic issues cause. Dr. Leah Hamilton, Associate Professor at Appalachian State University and author of Welfare Doesn’t Work: The Promises of Basic Income for a Failed American Safety Net, has studied the welfare state in the U.S. and gotten to know families that have been torn apart as a result of asset limits and other harmful criteria in our benefit programs. She joined the podcast to discuss these problems and why basic income could be a solution.
Alex Howlett: Making Basic Income Dynamic and Responsive
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The amount that everyone would receive under a basic income is generally stated as $1000 per month, give or take, with any nod to how this amount would change contained in the occasional “chained to inflation” at the end. Our guest this week, Alex Howlett, argues for a different framework: making the basic income dynamic and dependent on several economic factors. Jim discusses this concept with Alex, and how it might work in practice.
Stacey Rutland: Building a Post-Yang Campaign Basic Income Movement
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The Andrew Yang presidential campaign introduced millions of people to the idea of basic income, and galvanized many who are excited by the idea. Income Movement is an organization looking to build on this progress to create a sustained national movement for basic income. Jim spoke with Stacey Rutland, one of Income Movement’s cofounders, on what they have done so far and their plans for the future.
Morgan Harper: Running for Congress in Ohio on Universal Income
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While Andrew Yang has brought basic income to the national stage, we are seeing more and more state and local politicians exploring the idea as well. One of them is Morgan Harper, who is seeking to represent Ohio’s 3rd Congressional District. Harper is running on a number of transformative policies, including universal childcare, Medicare for all, and universal income. She joined the podcast to discuss her campaign, challenging an incumbent from the same party, and her take on basic income.
Workers Strength Fund: Providing financial security to precarious American workers
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For most of the late 20th century, having a job provided you with enough financial security to live a decent life in the United States. But today, millions of American workers are living in extreme precarity, just one emergency expense away from financial destitution. A new initiative called the Workers Strength Fund is aiming to combat this problem using unconditional cash. Jim spoke with Lead Product Advisor Rachel Schneider, Melissa Gopnik from Commonwealth, and Betsy Edasery from The Workers Lab about how this initiative works and what impact it’s having on people’s lives.
As a reminder, you can support our work at the Basic Income Podcast by visiting glow.fm/basicincome.
If we were to fund a basic income of $1,000 a month with a wealth tax, a carbon tax, some program consolidation and deficit spending, how much would your bank account increase or decrease after your income and current government assistance are factored in? A new project, the UBI Calculator (ubicalculator.com), seeks to answer this question down to the dollar for many of the UBI plans being proposed today. The project’s creator, Conrad Shaw, joined the podcast to discuss the UBI Calculator and why he built it.
Robert Stayton: Could Solar Dividends Provide a Basic Income?
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Robert Stayton proposes an outside-the-box idea for how to provide both ample clean energy and a basic income on the local, state or national level: solar dividends. This proposal would leverage the abundance of available solar energy with the regulatory ability to increase the price at which solar energy is purchased into the grid. To read more about Stayton’s proposal and the book that details it further, go to solardividends.org.
Reverend Liz Theoharis: Building a Movement Centered on Poor People
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One of the most prominent advocates of guaranteed income is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who led the Poor People’s Campaign in the 1960s to demand economic justice for those living in poverty in the United States. The Poor People’s Campaign has been revived in recent years by Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis and Rev. Dr. William Barber and aims to combat the challenges facing poor people at a systemic level. This includes issues as diverse as climate change, workers’ rights, housing, and economic empowerment. Importantly, the campaign puts poor people at its center as a driving, shaping force. Rev. Theoharis joins the podcast to discuss the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival and how the work of the campaign connects to universal basic income.
In this discussion episode, Jim lays out his ideas on how we should think about basic income in relation to other benefit programs like unemployment insurance and the Earned Income Tax Credit. We get into topics like whether basic income should count as taxable income, and the difference between the social safety net and the social contract.
Also, we now have a new way you can support the podcast! To donate to support our operational costs, and, if we reach a certain level, to promote the podcast, go to https://glow.fm/basicincome.
Jhumpa Bhattacharya: The Racial Wealth Gap and Basic Income Policy Design
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Basic income has been heralded as a policy that can partially address racial inequities in our economy and social benefit system, but how would the goals of racial equity inform basic income policy? Jhumpa Bhattacharya of the Insight Center for Community Economic Development joins the podcast to discuss this issue, and the vital importance of countenancing our racial history as we design future economic policy.
Rutger Bregman, Author of Utopia for Realists (rebroadcast)
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A conversation with Rutger Bregman, author of Utopia for Realists: The Case for a Universal Basic Income, Open Borders and a 15-Hour Workweek. We discuss what brought him to the basic income movement, some historical basic income experiments, and how a basic income could benefit his home country of the Netherlands. This was one of our first episodes and originally aired in September of 2016.
What Basic Income Will And Won't Solve (Rebroadcast)
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Basic income advocates often talk about what a transformative impact universal basic income could have on society — but what issues and challenges will it actually solve? Jim and Owen share their thoughts on whether basic income is the solution to poverty, automation, wealth inequality, and more. This episode originally aired in February of 2018.
Dr. Evelyn Forget on Mincome and Basic Income in Canada (Rebroadcast)
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Canada’s basic income trials in trials in the 70s – the “Mincome” experiments – were largely forgotten until Dr. Evelyn Forget found records of the Mincome trials and individuals who had received a basic income. She discusses what she found, and the implications for Canada’s upcoming trials in Ontario. This episode originally aired in May of 2017.
Why is Interest in Basic Income Surging? (Rebroadcast)
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Three years ago, few people had even heard of universal basic income. Now interest is growing across the country, and the idea is getting more exposure and support. What led to this shift? Owen and Jim delve into many of the factors at play, and discuss how we can take advantage of this moment. This episode originally aired in August of 2017.
Roy Bahat, Head of Bloomberg Beta, on Innovation and Basic Income (Rebroadcast)
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Roy Bahat, Head of Bloomberg Beta, discusses the future of employment and why a universal basic income could spur innovation. He also discusses the mental leaps it requires to wrap our minds around the basic income, and what we can do to help others to make those leaps. This episode originally aired January, 2017.
A Step Forward for Basic Income in the U.K. feat. Jamie Cooke
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Recently John McDonnell, shadow chancellor of the U.K.’s Labour Party announced that he would like to see state-funded basic income trials when the Labour Party returns to power. This has triggered an active discussion on basic income in the Labour Party and throughout the United Kingdom. Jamie Cooke, Head of RSA Scotland came back on the Basic Income Podcast to discuss these developments and where things might go from here.
Basic Income and Cash Dividends at the First Democratic Presidential Debate
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On June 26th and 27th, the first Democratic Presidential debates were held in Miami, Florida. The debates gave basic income-focused Andrew Yang a national platform, and several other candidates pushed ideas such as a carbon dividend or expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit that would put more cash in people’s hands. Owen and Jim discuss the debates and how the politics of the moment is shaping these conversations.
Cash Transfers for Low Income Expecting Mothers, feat. Zea Malawa
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Expecting Justice, a program out of the San Francisco Department of Public Health, is spearheading a cash transfer program for low income expecting mothers, with a focus on Black and Pacific Islander women. Dr. Zea Malawa, who is leading the initiative, joined the podcast to discuss the rationale behind the pilot and how cash transfers can be cost-effective from a healthcare perspective.
If you’d like to support this initiative, you can contact Dr. Malawa by email at zea.malawa@sfdph.org.
A Proposed Social Wealth Fund in Maryland, feat. Del. Gabriel Acevero
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Maryland Delegate Gabriel Acevero is leading the charge for the creation of a social wealth fund in his state. This fund, which would be seeded with revenue from medical cannabis, would eventually pay out dividends and potentially other benefits to Marylanders, with the goal of becoming a universal basic income over time. Del. Acevero joined the podcast to talk about his proposal and the role of racial justice in social benefit programs.
