Mayor Ras J. Baraka and Mayors for a Guaranteed Income today held a press conference and panel discussion to welcome the release of independent data from the Newark Movement for Economic Equity (NMEE) guaranteed income pilot, showcasing improvements in financial resilience, housing and food security, mental health, and parent-child time.

Launched by Mayor Baraka in the fall of 2021, NMEE provided cash disbursements to 400 low-income Newark residents for a period of two years. NMEE was designed to examine the impact of recurring payments and lump-sum payments, exploring the unique outcomes of each to understand how to optimally structure unconditional cash payments.

“Poverty is the result of failed policy, period. We structured the NMEE to gather scientific data about the best format for cash interventions, so that state legislators could adopt a proven model,” said Mayor Baraka. “Now that we have results, it’s time for action. Ending poverty will make our neighborhoods safer, our cities healthier and our state more resilient.”

“Again, Newark is leading the way in making concrete recommendations on how to improve the financial resilience of New Jersey residents,” said Office of Newark Philanthropic Liaison Kevin Callaghan. The Newark Movement for Economic Equity would not be possible without a public-private collaboration, because in our collaboration we show our strength. We would like to thank the multiple philanthropic foundations who saw the vision for this pilot program early and followed through with their time and resources. We look forward to the conversations and new policies that our pilot results will assuredly spark.”

To qualify, recipients had to be residents of Newark, have an income below 200 percentof the federal poverty line, and have been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The City of Newark partnered with independent researchers to design a randomized controlled trial (RCT) that included three groups. Of the 400 people randomly selected to receive guaranteed income, 200 were given $250 twice a month (recurring payments group), and 200 received $3,000 twice per year (lump-sum group); both groups received payments for two years. A control group of 478 people, who did not receive any payments, was also randomly selected from the pool of qualified applicants. Key takeaways include:

• Financial Resilience: Six months into the pilot, people receiving recurring payments demonstrated reduced income volatility, and by 18 months, they showed an increased ability to handle a $400 emergency expense, compared to the control group. People receiving lump-sum payments were better able to handle a $400 emergency expense at six, 12, and 18 months, compared to the control group.

• Parenting: Both recurring and lump sum recipients were able to spend more quality time with their children, and their children were more likely to improve their grades at school or enroll in AP courses, compared to children of parents in the control group.

• Housing Security: People receiving recurring payments were better able to maintain stable housing than the control group. Meanwhile, those receiving lump-sum payments were able to handle big transitions, like moving. The rate of homelessness for recipients of recurring payments dropped from 3% to 0%, while for the control group, those rates remained between 2-3% throughout the study period.

• Food Security: Recipients of recurring payments reported significantly improved food security six months after the first disbursement and continued to show meaningful improvement throughout the pilot.

• Mental Health: Recipients of recurring payments demonstrated significant improvements in their stress levels at six months and reported less depression and anxiety during the first 18 months of the pilot compared to the control group.

One recipient featured in the report described how she used the first lump-sum payment to move out of a domestic violence shelter and into a safe and secure home for herself and her children. “It was really tough like not having money, it was really tough not having income and trying to beg your abuser to send you $500.” She described the guaranteed income as “a miracle, I mean, I only say that because like, looking back like, when I think back about...I think back on all that stuff, back then, like I could not see myself being where I am now.”

“Newark has a long and proud history of fighting for economic justice, and Mayor Baraka’s visionary leadership creates the conditions for expansion of guaranteed income as a solution to poverty,” said Michael D. Tubbs, Mayor of Stockton, Calif., and founder of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income. “The results show that recurring payments interrupt cycles of poverty and improve wellbeing, and it’s time for state leaders to pay attention.”

NMEE is affiliated with Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, a coalition of more than 180 mayors and growing. Across the nation, cities that have participated in this initiative have shown greater financial stability, increased employment, more parent-child time, and better levels of overall well-being, among other findings.

In Newark, the pilot was funded by Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the MCJ Amelior Foundation, Prudential Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Stadler Family Charitable Foundation, and the Victoria Foundation.

Read the full report on the Newark Movement for Economic Equity guaranteed income pilot here.

To view an animated video of Newark’s Guaranteed Income program and outcome, click here.

For photographs of the event, click here.

About Mayors for a Guaranteed Income:

Founded in June of 2020 by former Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs, Mayors for a Guaranteed Income is a coalition of nearly 180 mayors committed to advancing a federal guaranteed income – direct, recurring cash payments to middle and low-income people. Expanding to include city and county legislators in 2023 with Counties for a Guaranteed Income, and state legislators with Legislators for a Guaranteed Income in 2025, the network acts as a research and resource hub for municipal pilots around the country–over 70 and counting. An award-winning documentary film, “It’s Basic,” which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in June 2023, follows recipients and illuminates the life-changing impact of guaranteed income programs on families’ economic security and opportunity.

‍