A city in California that was once plagued with mortgage foreclosures will soon begin distributing $500 per month to 100 of its residents for an 18-month universal basic income program.
Situated less than 100 miles east of the wealthy Silicon Valley, Stockton's median household income is $49,271 — lower than the national average of $57,617. The basic income experiment is slated to begin in 2019.
"Stockton is a city that looks a lot like the rest of America," Natalie Foster, co-founder and co-chair of the Economic Security Project, told CNN.
Stockton has a population of more than 300,000 but has a 25 percent poverty rate, CNN reported. It declared bankruptcy in 2012.
"We have a bunch of folks starting off life already behind, born into communities that don't have a lot of opportunity," Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs told CNN. "My mom always used to say, 'You have to get out of Stockton.' ... But I want Stockton to be [a place people] want to live in."
The basic income experiment was first reported earlier this year. It will serve as a test to see how a cash handout impacts several factors, from spending to school attendance.
In some politically liberal corners of the country, including Hawaii and the San Francisco Bay area, the idea of distributing a guaranteed income has begun to gain support.
In Oakland, California, Y Combinator, a startup incubator, is giving about $1,500 a month to a handful of people selected randomly and will soon expand distribution to 100 recipients. It eventually plans to provide $1,000 monthly to 1,000 people and study how recipients spend their time and how their financial health and well-being are affected.
Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.
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