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Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel will form a working group that will consider implementing the so-called "universal basic income" program in the city.
The idea of the program, which would make monthly payments to a number of Chicago families without any conditions, has been circulating for months in the city.
In June, the North Side Ald of Chicago. Ameya Pawar presented a resolution asking the mayor to launch the program's pilot program and pay 1,000 families per month to 1,000 families.
According to the Chicago Tribune, the new working group set up by Emanuel will have a panel that will decide whether such a social protection initiative could work in the city.
Pawar, who will be part of the panel, says that universal basic income is a way to fight poverty because of the loss of jobs due to automation and the relocation of industries.
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But the creation of the working group risks opening the door to Emmanuel's criticism, who comes just less than a week after announcing that he would not run for a third term. The decision to implement a potentially expensive program will rest on the shoulders of another mayor.
Pawar told The Tribune that he did not think that Emmanuel was creating the working group solely to claim credit without implementing it.
"Chicago would be the biggest city in the country to take this step," he said. "I think the mayor sees this as a chance to lead the way, as cities try to fight poverty and income inequality at a time when the federal government is not attacking these problems. It would be a legacy problem [for Emanuel]. "
"I think the mayor sees this as a chance to lead the way as cities try to fight poverty and income inequality at a time when the federal government is not addressing these issues. This would be a problem inherited from the past [for Emanuel]. "
A number of US cities have discussed or adopted a similar version of the program. The city of Stockton, California, will start paying 100 wealthy residents monthly, without any conditions, in 2019.
The city, once known as the US capital of foreclosure, has recently had a hard time, with 1 in 4 living below the poverty line and a median income of nearly $ 8,000 below the national median.
In Oakland, California, Y Combinator, a start-up incubator, pays $ 1,500 per month to randomly selected residents. It is expected that the money will soon be distributed to 100 recipients with a view to extending the program to 1,000 people who will receive $ 1,000 per month.
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