Politics

Come on, Congress, Let’s At Least Do a Token UBI

It doesn’t matter how small

Photo by Giorgio Trovato on Unsplash

Hey, Congress: I know you guys want to squabble over another stimulus check, and unemployment, and the rest. While you are doing that, people all over the country are struggling. Many will be facing eviction in January. This is not a good look for either side of the aisle.

Let’s fix it. I realize that it would be impossible to pass a real Universal Basic Income, but perhaps you could all agree on a small token effort. Call it an experiment, make it something like $400 a month, or even less. Set it low for the budget hawks not to get flapping their wings and squawking. Send it to everyone, man, woman, and child. Don’t bother with a qualifying means test; just get the payments on the way.

Come tax time, claw it back from everyone who doesn’t need it. Set that bar as low as you want, because this is just an experiment. If you want to set it at the poverty level, that’s fine. Again, do whatever the budget hawks need to keep them no more than mildly grumpy.

Index both the payment and the clawback floor to inflation. Every bill you pass that involves money should be indexed!

Add interest on the unneeded money the high income folks got. That will help pay for the little bit that…