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 alloc...
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