Session: WITHDRAWN: Community-Driven Pilots to Policy: Building the Evidence for a Guaranteed Income (Society for Social Work and Research 26th Annual Conference - Social Work Science for Racial, Social, and Political Justice)

National interest in guaranteed income (GI), cash given to a target population without strings attached and for a finite period, is undeniably on the rise. This may be due to persistent income inequality, exacerbation of inequality due to the COVID-19 pandemic, mainstream news coverage of GI experiments, and high profile political figures' endorsement of GI. However, GI is not a new phenomenon. From prior programs and international experiments, it is clear that GI can have positive impacts on consequences of poverty (Marinescu, 2017). Notably, much of the data regarding GI are dated, outside of the US, employ non-experimental designs, and/or do not utilize community-centered research approaches.

Social work scholars are leading over 40 GI pilots that are active or in planning phases across the country (MGI, 2020). This research is designed to build policy relevant evidence with the expertise of minoritized communities at the fore. This symposium features three papers that trace community-based methods of pilot design, program uptake, and promising results.

The first paper describes the development of the Abundant Birth Project (ABP), the first guaranteed income pilot program for pregnant people in the United States. ABP seeks to reduce inequities in birth outcomes among Black and Pacific Islander pregnant people in San Francisco through a monthly $1000 unconditional income supplement during and after pregnancy. Using a community-based participatory research approach, community members conducted formative qualitative research to inform the pilot and facilitated human-centered design sprints to determine the program design. This paper describes this community-centered approach, implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic, and offers lessons learned for future efforts.

The second paper uses mixed methods data from an RCT of the Stockton Economic Security Demonstration (SEED), a 24-month trial of a $500 monthly GI given to 125 residents of Stockton, California. This paper asks: How did people use the money? What drives their decision-making? What were the barriers to uptake? Findings indicate that attempts at scaling up GI requires attention to the lack of trust in communities targeted for risky products and an understanding of the unpaid care work stressors strain if policymakers wish to avoid gaps in take-up, as well as the possibility of new forms of inequality from those unwilling to engage with systems they do not trust. Second, the data points to a need for understanding how guaranteed income can function alongside other programs, policy, and safety net initiatives that support unpaid care work and alleviate stress within financially strained networks.

The third paper, also from SEED data, uses a mixed methods RCT design and asks: how does GI impact income volatility and financial wellbeing, health and wellbeing, and agency over one's future? Findings suggest a causal link between receipt of a GI and alleviation of consequences of poverty including income volatility, poor mental and physical health, and limited agency over one's future.

This symposium highlights innovative, community-centered social work scholarship on GI and offers insights into policy and research approaches grounded in advancing racial and economic justice.42.49 on 4-30-2021-->