Lawmakers propose nationwide monthly basic income experiment

A group of Democratic lawmakers wants to test a new type of social safety net: a monthly salary provided by the federal government, to spend as you see fit.

New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman said she is reintroducing a bill to establish a three-year guaranteed basic income pilot program that would provide a cohort of Americans across the country a monthly payment with no strings attached – enough to cover the rent on a two-bedroom house.

“Events such as the coronavirus pandemic, economic fluctuations, increasing automation and job losses threaten to wipe out what little savings they have, ultimately pushing them into homelessness, reinforcing the fact that in the world’s richest country, too many families are just one accident away from financial devastation,” Watson Coleman said in a press release.

The legislation is called the Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act of 2025. A guaranteed basic income occurs when the government distributes recurring, unrestricted payments to a certain demographic group. It differs from a universal basic income, which would provide payments to the entire population. Many American cities have already experimented with guaranteed basic income programs with varying degrees of success.

According to the bill, co-sponsored by nine other lawmakers, the pilot program would involve 20,000 people ages 18 to 65. Of that group, 10,000 would receive monthly payments equal to the “fair market” rent of a two-bedroom house where they live, or a similar amount to be determined by Health and Human Services. The other half would be the control group.

Lawmakers said the proposed basic income would not only protect Americans from economic instability, but also from the potential impact of the AI ​​revolution.

“Increasing automation and advances in AI have the potential to expand human flourishing. However, concentrating control of these technologies in the hands of a few billionaires could mean the eventual loss of livelihoods for millions of Americans,” the lawmakers said in the press release.

AI leaders, such as Tesla CEO Elon Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, have long supported the idea of ​​a universal basic income in response to AI. Altman helped fund a massive basic income study that concluded last year.

Passage of such legislation would be a major step forward in the current political climate. While Democrats generally support a basic income, some Republicans have criticized the cost of operating such programs and expressed concerns that it could discourage Americans from working. Some Republican-controlled state lawmakers have sought to prevent basic income experiments in their states.

Representatives for Rep. Watson Coleman did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.