by Tyler Prochazka | Aug 19, 2016 | News
One of the biggest objections to the universal basic income, especially from libertarians and conservatives, is that it is far too costly to implement. Among OECD countries, however, this is largely untrue.
The Economist recently unveiled a Basic Income Calculator that can illustrate how much each person could receive under a UBI by scrapping existing non-health related welfare. The United States would be able to achieve a $6,300 basic income.
To reach a $10,000 basic income, the U.S. government would need to use an additional seven percent of GDP. This would still keep the United States at welfare spending below many other OECD countries as a percentage of GDP.
Seven countries already spend more than $10,000 per person on non-health welfare and could decrease their spending under a UBI.
To see the full Economist basic income calculator, click here.
Data Team, “Daily chart: Universal basic income in the OECD”, The Economist, June 3, 2016.
by Tyler Prochazka | Aug 17, 2016 | Opinion
The Green Party and its presidential nominee Jill Stein has made overtures to the guaranteed basic income. However, Stein recently clarified her position on CNN, saying that the basic income is only a “visionary goal” at this point.
The Universal Basic Income is part of the Green Party’s platform, and many news outlets have previously reported that UBI is part of Stein’s core policies.
Stein’s clarification that the UBI is not a “practical” policy to push is extremely disappointing. She could have helped bring the UBI to the forefront of the debate as voters search for an alternative choice to Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.
Perhaps Stein does not want voters to confuse her position with that of conservatives and libertarians such as Charles Murray, who want to replace most social services with a $10,000 universal basic income.
Instead of dismissing UBI outright, Stein should advocate for creating pilot programs to test the efficacy of basic income around the United States. Not only does this sound completely reasonable, it is likely the inevitable first step toward implementing a full basic income throughout the country.
Alternatively, Stein could use the carbon tax as a method to promote the UBI through a carbon dividend. This would motivate those passionate about the environment and basic income.
The biggest problem with Stein’s comments to CNN is that they may deflate some motivation to push for a basic income. Stein has billed herself as a revolutionary candidate and yet she is hesitant about the guaranteed basic income. That may give some potential basic income supporters hesitation about the policy.
After Stein’s new comments, it is unclear which candidate is the most friendly to basic income. Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson said he was “open” to a basic income and supports a Fair Tax, which includes a prebate check that would essentially create a universal basic income.
Hopefully, Stein will take a more proactive approach with the basic income and support experiments to determine whether she is right about its practicality.
Basic income is not just a vision. It is a critical movement for the twenty first century.
Image By Paul Stein – https://www.flickr.com/photos/kapkap/7999998562/sizes/m/in/photostream/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21702881
by Tyler Prochazka | Aug 3, 2016 | Opinion
As the US Presidential race heats up, most of the candidates have already made their opinions known regarding Universal Basic Income. Regardless, it is imperative that the United States fund new basic income pilot programs to test how a basic income would affect the current economy.
The United States experimented with a type of basic income in the 1960s and 70s, but it is time to collect new data. This is the first step toward implementing a full UBI in the United States.
Recent pilot programs throughout the world, such as in India, have given the basic income movement ammunition to push its message, showing improved educational, health and entrepreneurial outcomes. A pilot program in the United States would show policymakers that a basic income is far superior to our outdated bureaucratic safety net.
Sign this petition to ask all of the US presidential candidates to take a pledge to fund basic income pilot programs throughout the country.
by Tyler Prochazka | Jul 23, 2016 | News
Probably for the first time in US history, the basic income is becoming an issue in the presidential election. Most of the candidates have already made their positions known. Two candidates, Jill Stein and Gary Johnson, appear to be the most supportive of the basic income. Although, Stein recently said basic income is a “visionary goal” and not something she is going to push as part of her agenda.
Hillary Clinton
The candidate said she is “not ready to go there,” but she would expand the earned income tax credit. She said distributing money without producing income is not something that “works for democracy and I don’t think it works for most people.”
Gary Johnson
Johnson said he was “open” to the idea of a Universal Basic Income based on its ability to save bureaucratic costs. Johnson directly supports the FairTax, which has a basic income component in the form of a prebate.
Jill Stein
UPDATE: On a recent CNN interview, Stein said guaranteed minimum income is a “visionary goal and not one of the practical goal posts of our agenda.”
“(Guaranteed basic income is) not something I’m willing to move forward at this point,” she said.
Donald Trump
Trump has not commented on the basic income. Requests for comment from the campaign were not returned.
by Tyler Prochazka | Jul 18, 2016 | News
With the US libertarian presidential candidate pushing double-digits in the polls for the first time in history, many are starting to take former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson’s policy ideas seriously. While signing books at the libertarian Freedom Fest conference, Johnson said he was “open” to the idea of a Universal Basic Income (UBI).
Like many libertarians, Johnson said he liked the idea of the UBI because of its potential to save money in bureaucratic costs, freeing up more money to give people directly. During the exchange, we discussed how directly giving a basic income would increase the value of each dollar spent for the recipient, as opposed to in-kind services, such as food stamps, which restrict purchases.
At the same time, I asked Johnson about his position on the carbon tax and using these funds to fund the basic income. He once again said he was “open” to the idea.
“There are a lot of smart libertarians that support the carbon tax, so I don’t discount the idea,” Johnson said.
Johnson was attending Freedom Fest in Las Vegas to discuss term limits and answer questions about his candidacy with his running mate, former Massachusetts governor William Weld. He is currently polling around 13 percent against Donald Trump, Jill Stein, and Hillary Clinton.
Photo source: Instagram
