At a press conference on September 14th, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle publicly announced the landmark Cook County Promise Guaranteed Income Pilot. This is the largest publicly funded guaranteed income program in the US. The County will provide $500 monthly unrestricted cash payments to 3,250 households for two years, beginning in December 2022. The application window will be open October 6th – October 21st and recipients will be selected by lottery.

More than one-third of all Cook County households are eligible to apply. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age, a resident of Cook County, and meet income eligibility requirements. Households that are already receiving a guaranteed income from another pilot (such as Chicago’s Resilient Communities Pilot or Evanston’s Guaranteed Income Program) are not eligible to apply.

Read the details here