(Note: this is a revised version of an earlier post, which was a revised version of an even earlier post. Prior versions of the Adult Student Basic Income were much more generous.)

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The Problem

About 10% of Americans are chronically poor or near-poor, most of whom lack the skills to move up the economic ladder.  

The Challenge

  • Alleviate poverty

  • Incentivize skill development

  • Increase social mobility at lower-income levels

  • Increase labor market participation

  • All without raising taxes very much 

The Proposal

Adult Student Basic Income (ASBI): $800/month up to 18 months total, no more than 9 months a year, for adults enrolled in postsecondary training and education programs, such as:

  • College Classes

  • Adult Education

  • ESL Classes

  • GED/HS Diploma Programs

  • Job Readiness Training

  • Vocational Training

  • Internet Classes

  • Modular Courses

  • On-The-Job Training

  • Apprenticeships

Considerations

  • Public and bipartisan buy-in

  • Funded primarily through transfers from budgets of redundant government programs

  • Minimal tax increase on employers and affluent households

  • Employers and households paying higher taxes would also benefit from the ASBI - making the tax increase much more palatable

Requirements

  • American citizens or eligible non-citizens between 18-62

  • Approved institutions and programs only

  • Minimum 20 hours a week participation, including time allotted for homework

  • Minimum one month participation at a time

  • Periodic performance confirmation

A registry would be compiled from existing regional and state agencies that oversee and accredit or approve postsecondary institutions and programs. Participation would include time allotted for homework, based on information from training and education providers. For instance, a standard college course generally involves about 3 hours of study time for every unit of credit, so taking 7 units of college coursework would be enough to qualify. 

Performance requirements would vary according to the institution, class, or program. As a rule, one would be required to get a passing grade or certificate of participation confirming that at least 20 hours a week of class or training time had been satisfactorily completed during the period of review. Those not meeting performance requirements would have their ASBI suspended until they submitted documentation of having completed the required coursework or training.  

Funding

The ASBI would mostly pay for itself through reduced spending on other government programs, such as Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and Social Security Disability Income (SSDI). Funding for Pell Grants would be halved. Other safety-net programs would have smaller budgets because they are means-tested and anyone receiving an ASBI would either receive lower benefits or no longer be eligible for benefits.

In addition, the opportunity to work while receiving an ASBI, if only on an occasional or part-time basis, would attract people who might otherwise have applied for other kinds of government benefits. For example, the chance to earn money through occasional work would likely attract people with disabilities to try the ASBI instead of pursuing disability benefits. Having provided vocational counseling services to hundreds of disabled adults, I'm fairly confident a good number of disabled folks would be more interested in ASBI than in receiving disability benefits, because they may still be able to work some of the time, given the ebb and flow of their conditions. Note too that ASBI participation requirements would be compatible with many disabilities, e.g., flexible, self-paced training with time spent on homework counting towards the overall time requirement. 

Here’s a possible funding scenario:

Perks

The ASBI would not be means-tested, so recipients could work part- or full-time.  Although the ASBI would partly replace federal student aid programs, state aid programs would not be affected.  Unlike Pell Grants, the ASBI would not drive up school fees because it would turn students into cost-conscious consumers. It’s their money, so the more they pay for school, the less available for other expenses. The ASBI would also make students think twice before choosing an expensive private school when a cheaper but perfectly adequate public option is available.

Plus, the ASBI would increase the psychological well-being of its recipients, partly by decreasing financial stress and partly by increasing personal agency: the sense of control and competence that comes from achieving goals by one’s own efforts.