Antony Davies & James Harrigan, “Sorry CNN and David Wheeler, but a ‘Basic Income’ Wouldn’t End Poverty.” The Blaze. April 16, 2014
Kristina Erbenich, right, is handed an eviction notice by San Jose city worker Mark Ruffing at a tent city in San Jose, CA, Credit: AP, via The Blaze
This page contains a calculator which can be used to design a guaranteed basic income (another word for “basic income guarantee” or “negative income tax”) in the United States, using hard Census data and spending data from the Congressional Budget Office. In its basic form, the tool only requires two inputs to calculate the costs of various forms of a guaranteed basic income: (1) the size of guaranteed basic income (in dollars) for every American over the age of 18 years old and (2) an effective tax rate to limit those benefits as income is earned.
In its advanced form, the tool allows readers to pick and choose from line items in the CBO’s 2014 Fiscal Outlook. It automatically tallies that spending and compares proposed levels to the cost of the currently active programs in the United States. The homepage includes an extensive discussion of how it works and the methodology used to create it.
The calculator’s home page is: https://dqydj.net/a-guaranteed-basic-income-cost-calculator-solving-poverty-in-america/.
A link directly to the calculator is: https://dqydj.net/scripts/fullhtml/2013negativeincometax.html.
A picture of the BIG calculator / financial soundness checker.
SUMMARY: This article focuses on poverty and inequality, discussing how poverty puts people in a condition in which they cannot make meaningful choices. “Instead, we might look to policies like a guaranteed basic income or a negative income tax, in which we give people money and treat them with the dignity their humanity entitles them to. … Not only would it help those who are suffering get by, but rather than treating them like social degenerates, it would trust and empower them to make their own financial decisions. Given how much responsibility the more fortunate among us have for the problems plaguing the poor, it is the least our society can do.” The author, Shamus Khan is an associate professor of sociology at Columbia University. He is the author of Privilege: The Making of an Adolescent Elite at St. Paul’s School.
Shamus Khan, “The marriage of poverty and inequality: Who is responsible when people don’t have enough?” Al Jazeera America. February 20, 2014.
Image: Bank of Montreal (bmo.com)
[Craig Axford]
A guaranteed annual income targeting the 100,000 citizens of Manitoba that are currently living below the after tax low-income cutoff would cost about $1.2 billion. According to this article, with a willing federal partner the province that was home to the 1970s Minicome experiment could make it happen.
Shaun Loney, “Minimum income can end poverty”, Winnipeg Free Press, March 1, 2014
SUMMARY: Switzerland could soon adopt an Unconditional Basic Income or UBI which means every adult national would receive a monthly paycheck of approximately $2,800 from the government. The money is guaranteed regardless of employment status. Proponents say UBI would end poverty. Opponents worry it would harm Switzerland’s competitiveness. In this episode, the Stream speaks about this issue with: Stanislas Jourdan, Coordinator, Unconditional Basic Income Europe, Ash Navabi, Blogger, Mises Institute Canada, Enno Schmidt, Co-founder, Basic Income Initiative, Switzerland, Francine Mestrum, Founder, Global Social Justice.
The Stream, “Income for All: Could adopting unconditional basic income end poverty?” AlJazeera. Broadcast March 20, 2014.
The Stream’s website is: https://stream.aljazeera.com/story/201403200004-0023573
This episode of the Stream is online in full on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QfU0g5h6KSk
