Title
Recommendation to Receive Rise Up Alameda (Guaranteed Income Pilot Program) 12-Month Interim Report. (Base Reuse and Economic Development 10061810)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
At its May 17, 2022, the Alameda City Council directed staff to implement a guaranteed income (GI) pilot program. Alameda’s pilot program, called Rise Up Alameda (Rise Up), provides $1,000 per month to approximately 150 low-income households over a two-year period to combat poverty and economic instability.
The City partnered with Abt Global (Abt) to serve as the pilot’s research partner, conducting surveys of the participants to measure the statistical significance of the program’s effectiveness after one year. This staff report presents the findings from Abt’s 12-month, mid-program study of Rise Up (see Exhibit 1, Rise Up Alameda Guaranteed Income Study: One-Year Insights). This interim report is not a complete study of the program and staff anticipate a more detailed analysis in September 2026 with Abt’s final, 24-month study.
Analyzing data from the first year of the program, the interim report found that Rise Up participants are doing better than people in the control group across several key evaluation markers. Abt found statistically significant improvements amongst the program group in financial well-being, mental health and sense of community, and no negative effect on employment.
Of the 40 outcomes it measured, Abt identified improvement in 17 of them. Abt stated that Alameda’s interim results are encouraging because they showed improvements in more outcome measures than most other pilot programs across the country. Additionally, Alameda’s GI payments of $1,000 per month were higher than many national GI programs, presenting greater potential to improve outcomes.
BACKGROUND
At its May 17, 2022, the City Council directed staff to implement a GI pilot program and approved the allocation of $4.6 million from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) funds for the pilot program, with $3.6 million to be used for the direct cash payments to program participants. Alameda’s pilot program, called Rise Up Alameda , provides $1,000 per month to approximately 150 low-income households over a two-year period. The goals of the City’s program are to help:
• reduce economic volatility for program participants;
• change local narratives and perceptions surrounding poverty and sense of community belonging; and
• collect data and contribute to information gathered from other GI programs nationally and inform the larger policy discussions regarding anti-poverty measures.
Nearly 200 cities and local jurisdictions are conducting, or have recently conducted GI pilot programs, which provide a monthly cash payment to a defined population of residents. These programs are distinct from other financial assistance programs in that they are:
• Unconditional, without a work requirement or any other conditions;
• Unrestricted, allowing individuals to determine what they need; and
• include regular payments for a period of time, rather than a one-time only grant.
This flexibility empowers recipients to make their own decisions on spending the money in a way that best meets their basic needs, allowing for dignity and self-determination. The defined period of time associated with a pilot program allows valuable data to be collected, which may help inform larger policy and program development designed to alleviate poverty. Academic research has indicated that GI programs increase expenditure on education and training, improve food security, and improve measures of well-being among the recipients.
An Advisory Board was also formed to support Rise Up. The Advisory Board is composed of community and advocacy organizations, individuals with lived experience (i.e., low-income persons) and City staff to help guide and inform decision-making on key program elements.
Research Component On November 15, 2022, following a competitive bidding process, City Council approved an agreement with Abt Associates (which later became Abt Global) to serve as the program research partner responsible for the quantitative analysis of the program’s contribution to the financial stability of the recipients, determine the methodology for the selection of the program participants and to help measure the statistical significant of the program’s effectiveness.
The research component has also been important to obtain benefits waivers from the State so that recipients are not at risk of losing benefits from other assistance programs. The State would not grant waivers without this research component.
Abt’s Selection and Survey Methodology. Rise Up launched on September 8, 2023 with an eleven-day application period that spanned two weekends. Multi-language applications were screened by Abt to meet the following eligibility requirements:
• Participants must be an Alameda resident at the start of the program;
• Be 18 years of age or older; and
• Have an annual income below 50 percent of Area Median Income (AMI), which at the time of the application process was $51,800 for a family of one.
Through a lottery system, Abt randomly selected 150 individuals to participate in the pilot program. On average, the participants reported a household income of $31,836, significantly lower than 50 percent of AMI. Additionally, about half (49%) of the participants were between the ages of 25 and 50, and about one quarter (26%) were age 62 or older. Rise Up’s participant population has an average participant age of 49 years. A majority of participants (64%) reported using public benefits such as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or housing assistance.
Under the agreement, Abt is to conduct follow-up surveys of the participants at the program’s midpoint (12-months) and conclusion (24-months). Abt’s approach is a randomized controlled trial (RCT), which compares outcomes between Rise Up participants (the program group) versus similar Alameda residents who were not offered the monthly payments (the control group). The control group met the eligibility requirements to participate in the pilot but were ultimately not randomly selected to participate -- they did not receive GI payments.
Abt used a standardized survey instrument developed by the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Guaranteed Income Research (CGIR). Using this nationally recognized research tool enables Abt to compare its final Rise Up two-year data and outcomes to other GI pilot programs, while also contributing to a larger body of work. Abt’s methodology and protocols were rigorously vetted and approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB).
Abt has conducted similar studies for eight other pilot GI programs across the country, including the cities of Baltimore, Atlanta, Birmingham, Louisville, and Shreveport.
This staff report presents the findings from Abt’s 12-month, mid-program study (see Exhibit 1, Rise Up Alameda Guaranteed Income Study: One-Year Insights). The current report is not a complete study of the program and staff anticipate a more detailed analysis after the close of the pilot in December 2025. Below are summarized some of the major findings in Abt’s interim, mid-program study. Staff has met with and presented these results to the Rise Up Advisory Board as well as the Social Service Human Relations Board.
DISCUSSION
Analyzing data from the first year of the program, the interim report finds that Rise Up participants are doing better than people in the control group across several key evaluation markers. Researchers found statistically significant improvements amongst the recipient group in financial well-being, mental health and sense of community, and no negative effect on employment.
Of the 40 outcomes it measured, Abt found improvement in 17 of them. Abt found that Alameda’s interim results are encouraging because they showed improvements in more outcome measures than a majority of other guaranteed income pilot programs.
Below are summarized some of the major findings in Abt’s study, which compared outcomes between Rise Up participants (the program group) versus similar Alameda residents who were not offered the monthly payments (the control group).
• Financial Well-being
o Rise Up recipients showed greater financial stability and resilience. They were more likely than the control group to be able to handle a $400 emergency-the definition of “living paycheck-to-paycheck”-and were nearly twice as likely to have $500 or more saved. Only 15% of recipients said they were going into debt, compared to 42% of the control group. Rise Up participants were also more likely to have money left over at the end of each month (13%) than the control group (1%).
• Mental and Physical Health
o Recipients reported improved mental health across a variety of measures: lower stress, increased hopefulness, an improved sense of mattering, and more community engagement. These differences were statistically significant compared to the control group.
• Sense of Community
o Recipients were 10 percentage points more likely to be involved in community activities, including PTAs and parent groups, religious and social clubs, professional associations, and more.
• Employment
o There was no statistical impact on employment but Rise Up recipients who were unemployed at the start of the program reported feeling more hopeful about setting goals and reaching them.
• Housing
o There was no significant improvement in housing outcomes. Due to the small number of program participants who recently experienced or are experiencing homelessness (both sheltered and unsheltered homelessness), Abt was unable to determine if there was any real change in homelessness due to GI. Abt was also unable to detect a significant improvement in other housing outcomes. For example, Abt found no change in the percentage of people who rent or own their homes. In addition, it may take longer for changes in housing to be reflected in the data (e.g. the time to plan and actually move).
Next Steps:
• Notification of Last Disbursements. Starting at the beginning of August, Operation Dignity, the City’s administrative partner, will be regularly notifying the participants-in multiple languages-of their last payments in November 2025. Operation Dignity will also offer free financial and benefits counseling to the recipients.
• Narrative/Storytelling Component. Working closely with the Rise Up Advisory Board, the City will implement the narrative and story-telling component over the next six to twelve months. With funds from a Y & H Soda Foundation grant, the City will work with Maven Collaborative to develop a series of workshops that will guide the narrative storytelling component and to help illustrate the personal value and human aspect of Rise Up through individual lived experiences to a broader audience. The narrative storytelling will help illuminate Abt’s quantitative analysis.
• 24-month Survey and Final Report. Abt will launch its 24-month survey in December 2025, with final report anticipated in September 2026. Through data comparability and Abt’s existing data-sharing agreements, Abt will be able to benchmark Alameda’s results with MGI’s national portfolio of other GI pilot programs.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The Rise Up Alameda program is primarily being funded from the $4.6 million ARPA allocation approved by the City Council in May 2022 (see File 2022-1921) and a $25,000 in Y&H Soda Foundation Grant. There is no financial impact from receiving this report.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action is consistent with the Social Services Human Relations Board Charter and Ordinance authority “to improve social services in the community” (Alameda Municipal Code Section 2-11.5).
This program is a project listed in the City’s Strategic Plan (2023-2026), Transportation, Infrastructure, Economic Opportunities & Historic Resources priority, Project TIE30:
“Implement and manage Rise Up Alameda-the City’s Guaranteed Income Program.”
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action does not constitute a “project” as defined in California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15378 and therefore no further CEQA review is required.
CLIMATE IMPACT
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation to receive Rise Up Alameda (guaranteed income pilot program) 12-month interim report.
Respectfully submitted,
Abigail Thorne-Lyman, Base Reuse and Economic Development Director
By,
Jackie Keliiaa, Development Manager
Eric Fonstein, Development Manager
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Ross McCarthy, Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. Rise Up Alameda Guaranteed Income Study: One-Year Insights. Abt Global.