Just as we say goodbye to the Child Tax Credit – at least for now – mothers in one US state receive another monthly child benefit. Some mothers of children three years of age and younger, as well as expectant mothers in New York State, will receive a monthly check for $ 500 to $ 1,000 for up to three years through a nonprofit called the Bridge Project.
The bridge project received $ 16 million in funding from the Monarch Foundation, funded by entrepreneur Holly Fogle and her husband, venture capitalist Jeff Lieberman. The aim is to determine the impact of a monthly allowance on low-income families with young children.
The US is one of the few developed countries that does not provide some kind of guaranteed income for parents. Recently, the idea of guaranteed income has taken hold, and some municipalities have tried it — with much success. Former Stockton, California Mayor Michael Tubbs begins the seed program when he took office that guaranteed 125 low-income families $ 500 a month, and the results were pretty incredible. Data from the SEED program showed that parents were less anxious and depressed, could look for better paid jobs and retain jobs more easily, and spend more time with their families. In other words, it was a resounding success.
The Child Tax Credit, which lasted for six months from July to December 2021, was also extremely successful in lifting parents and their children across the country out of poverty. Families were better able to afford their basic necessities and even pay off debts. Unfortunately, the program has fallen into disrepair, and millions of children are at risk of falling back into the poverty from which they have just emerged.
The bridge project is already making a big difference in the lives of some low-income New York families – allowing parents to pay for necessities like rent and utilities and buy necessary equipment like high chairs. A group of 100 mothers began receiving bridge project checks in July — 50 received $ 500, and 50 received $ 1,000, guaranteed for three years.
In the second phase of the program, 100 mothers will receive $ 1000 for 18 months. These two groups will be compared to a control group that does not receive funding. The aim of the Bridge Project is to gauge the impact of the additional income on parents’ ability to parent and evaluate long-term outcomes for low-income children whose families receive a financial boost during their first three years of life. The families will be tracked down to record the children’s developmental progress, rental and housing situations and their mental and physical health.
According to the New York Times, Guaranteed income projects start in at least 17 states. Los Angeles is launching a program that will provide 3,000 low-income families with $ 1,000 a month and Chicago will provide $ 500 a month to 5,000 families.
These programs come at a time when they are in dire need. Rising inflation, the end of the CTC, and the resumption of federal student loan payments will leave parents in the proverbial stream, and many will not be able to pay for even the most basic necessities.
It is known that programs aimed at parents work and have made great differences worldwide. In the US, where we lag behind our European counterparts in both social services and parenting services, child poverty is higher than in any other developed country in the world. The difference that a guaranteed income can make, not only in the present, to pay for food and heat, but also in the long run, where children grow up without food insecurity and do not live in poverty, would be staggering.
