Long Beach will implement its guaranteed income pilot program later this year, providing direct payments of $500 monthly to 250 families in the 90813 zip code, Mayor Robert Garcia announced today.
The zip code has a median household income 25% lower than any other zip code in the city—around $38,449 annually according to 2019 Census estimates. The area contains the Washington, Willmore, Lincoln and Cambodia Town neighborhoods.
“Our guaranteed income program will help single parents and families with direct assistance and basic needs in a community that has long struggled with poverty,” Garcia said in a statement. “The research collected from this pilot will help us build a national case for these programs across the country and our city.”
Families will receive payments for a one-year period, paid through funds from the Long Beach Recovery Act. The city is expecting a match from the State of California to fund an additional 250 families, according to the City.
The program will focus on single-parent households, specifically single mothers, with incomes below the poverty line. In addition to the payments, each parent will receive free child care, transportation support, workforce training and access to digital resources like cell phones and internet connections, the City said.
The City will partner with Cal State Long Beach’s Office of Economic Research to analyze the program’s outcomes.
The Economic Development Department will begin to accept applications this summer and expects to distribute funds by the end of the year.
