this post was submitted on 21 Dec 2023
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If 100 homeless people were given $750 per month for a year, no questions asked, what would they spend it on?

That question was at the core of a controlled study conducted by a San Francisco-based nonprofit and the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.

The results were so promising that the researchers decided to publish results after only six months. The answer: food, 36.6%; housing, 19.5%; transportation, 12.7%; clothing, 11.5%; and healthcare, 6.2%, leaving only 13.6% uncategorized.

Those who got the stipend were less likely to be unsheltered after six months and able to meet more of their basic needs than a control group that got no money, and half as likely as the control group to have an episode of being unsheltered.

Archived at https://web.archive.org/web/20231221131158/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-12-19/750-a-month-no-questions-asked-improved-the-lives-of-homeless-people

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[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 130 points 10 months ago (5 children)

$750 a month would improve the lives of plenty of people who aren't homeless too. Up to and including the middle class.

But I suppose a UBI is a non-starter everywhere in the U.S. but Alaska.

[–] EmpathicVagrant@lemmy.world 60 points 10 months ago (1 children)

You want universal anything it’s an uphill battle because of the cattle shouting about the cost or some nonsense.

[–] deft@ttrpg.network 14 points 10 months ago

Those who will make more money with UBI will just be mad they get taxed slightly more.

[–] ElderWendigo@sh.itjust.works 22 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Our corporate oligarchs already pitch a fit about collective bargaining, universal healthcare, and adjusting minimum wage to match inflation. I can't imagine they'd react well to a universal basic income except by raping the fading middle class even more.

[–] FlyingSquid@lemmy.world 24 points 10 months ago (3 children)

The universal healthcare one baffles me because it would save businesses money and increase employee retention. But corporations still fight against it.

[–] ElderWendigo@sh.itjust.works 35 points 10 months ago (3 children)

Having healthcare tied to your employer is both a way for companies to pay less while offering more benefits to entice new workers and also keep workers from fighting too hard for their own rights because now maintaining a job is directly related to health. If we had universal healthcare, companies would have to compete more directly on wage and that would cost them more. Providing healthcare, while negotiating for deals for said healthcare means they can say that they are providing more benefits than they actually pay for.

[–] GoofSchmoofer@lemmy.world 13 points 10 months ago

And if people's healthcare isn't tied to their jobs there would be more people willing to start their own business increasing the chance of competition.

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[–] doctordevice@lemm.ee 10 points 10 months ago (3 children)

That would basically cover my student loan payments, so it would be equivalent to loan forgiveness for me. Improve is an understatement, that would actually allow me to save money. Right now my wife and I make slightly above area median income and we're just treading water financially. This would be a game changer. We could actually consider having a kid.

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[–] alienanimals@lemmy.world 107 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Almost like the 1% are stealing from each and every one of us. With a fraction of their profits each one of us would live a better life.

[–] Lemminary@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago (1 children)

A fraction of a fraction. It really is mind-boggling how much money is being generated by some of these billionaires that isn't being taxed.

[–] AllonzeeLV@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago

Not taxed, not labored by them for. It's like an exclusive version of Las Vegas where you can bring your own loaded loaded "I make dictate the terms" dice and marked "Heres some insider information" cards.

For this, we are pressured to thank and admire them as benevolent job creators. It's wild how irrational they've manipulated everyone into being.

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[–] MystikIncarnate@lemmy.ca 79 points 10 months ago (22 children)

Giving people money improves their quality of life?

Who would have guessed?

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[–] hperrin@lemmy.world 69 points 10 months ago (1 children)

“What can we do to help these people whose problem is that they don’t have money?”

“Give them money?”

“That’s just crazy enough to work!”

[–] waz@lemmy.world 38 points 10 months ago

Wait a sec. You're telling me that giving money to people that don't have money helps them do things that require money?! I'm shocked.

[–] deweydecibel@lemmy.world 61 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (3 children)

Those who got the stipend were less likely to be unsheltered after six months and able to meet more of their basic needs than a control group that got no money, and half as likely as the control group to have an episode of being unsheltered.

I feel extremely bad for the control group.

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[–] Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world 54 points 10 months ago (17 children)

$750 a month is like $9000 a year.

I spend $500 on groceries!

I think this program would help a lot in so many ways and I hope it passes.

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[–] ares35@kbin.social 39 points 10 months ago (4 children)

$750 a month would be life altering for me.

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[–] Ataraxia@sh.itjust.works 30 points 10 months ago (2 children)

On 750 a month I could live in the forest somewhere and do occasional supply runs to replenish my tree fort. Or do a shit ton of drugs but either way I'd be pretty happy.

[–] Kushia@lemmy.ml 12 points 10 months ago

Tbh as long as you weren't hurting anyone, putting others in danger and were happy I personally wouldn't give a toss what you did with your money even if that came from taxes I paid. Better this then the current homeless situation.

[–] HerbalGamer@sh.itjust.works 11 points 10 months ago

Grow shrooms; do both.

[–] PP_BOY_@lemmy.world 28 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Now watch how out of touch conservatives are when they start claiming that these people are living in luxury. It's a great project and I'm not trying to demerit the people in charge, but $750 doesn't go far at all in a place like San Francisco

[–] themeatbridge@lemmy.world 17 points 10 months ago

Remember when they flipped their shit over obama phones? Like, poor people were getting free or low cost cell phones. The horror! What's next, food stamp steaks? What? You mean food stamps aren't limited to gruel and powdered milk?

[–] Cosmonauticus@lemmy.world 9 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Ppl in SF are sure as shit not turning that down. At the minimum that's your food for the month sorted out.

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[–] charonn0@startrek.website 27 points 10 months ago (14 children)

All these UBI experiments ever seem to demonstrate is the "BI" part.

But the part that needs to be demonstrated, IMHO, is the "U".

[–] Maggoty@lemmy.world 21 points 10 months ago (35 children)

Well we can't do that until we do that. And shitting on the experiments means we'll never do the Universal part.

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[–] AeonFelis@lemmy.world 21 points 10 months ago (7 children)

How did they collect data on what these homeless people were spending the money on? Sounds like some questions were asked after all...

[–] loutr@sh.itjust.works 21 points 10 months ago (1 children)

They asked the questions afterwards...

[–] Pogbom@lemmy.world 10 points 10 months ago

Exactly, they gave it to them and said "do whatever you want with it" then just checked what they did later.

[–] Mongostein@lemmy.ca 13 points 10 months ago

Receipts probably

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[–] Nacktmull@lemm.ee 17 points 10 months ago
[–] anonymous222@lemmy.world 17 points 10 months ago (2 children)

750$ a month changed the lives of people that had nothing? Yeah, right. Obviously!

[–] TheHotze@lemmy.world 32 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Studies that test obvious expectations are actually super important. Sometimes the results are not what you expect, and the rest of the time, you have a study to point to whenever someone tries to say there's no evidence of that outcome.

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[–] pound_heap@lemm.ee 13 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Well, there is an opinion that homeless people would use all money for booze, tobacco and drugs, etc. A study like this helps to contradict such opinion.

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[–] drmoose@lemmy.world 10 points 10 months ago

One red flag here is that they don't mention how they chose whom to give the stipend to.

That being said I think its a great idea and correlates with other studies that show that money is the best thing you can offer someone who's struggling. Not food, not shelter, money.

I'm not an American but this will be tough to sell as you guys are notorious for porking away public funds (e.g. covid payouts) so this is much more complex than the article implies.

[–] SuddenDownpour@sh.itjust.works 10 points 10 months ago
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