Stimulus check update: Deadline to apply for direct monthly payments worth $500 open in 22 days

Misty Severi

May 08, 04:58 PM May 08, 04:58 PM

A new guaranteed income program in Massachusetts, which will give recipients monthly payments of $500, will begin accepting applications in just over three weeks.

The payments are intended to help households with at least one child and are being funded by a $22 million commitment from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Recipients selected for this program, which has been titled Rise Up Cambridge, will be given $500 once a month for 18 months, giving recipients a total of $9,000 overall.

SOCIAL SECURITY UPDATE: DIRECT PAYMENT WORTH $914 ARRIVES IN 25 DAYS

Applications for the program will open on June 1 and close on July 31, with applications being approved on a rolling basis.

To be eligible for this program, applicants must be a resident of Cambridge, be at least 18 years old, and have at least one person in their household under the age of 21. Additionally, the household must have an income at or below 250% of the federal poverty level.

The income for a household's eligibility varies depending on how many people live in a household. Households of two people will be eligible if they make no more than $49,300 a year, while households of three will be eligible if the annual income does not go over $62,150, with the income limit increasing slightly with every additional household member.

In addition to receiving the monthly payments, recipients can make additional money by participating in voluntary surveys or by documenting their experiences during the program. These surveys will be optional, but those who partake in them are expected to be compensated for the time spent on the surveys and documents.

The money recipients get from the monthly installments will not need to be reported as taxable income.

Additional information regarding this program can be found on the Rise Up Cambridge website.

Stimulus update: Direct payment worth $500 for more than 300 families to be sent in nine days

Brady Knox

May 08, 12:12 PM May 08, 12:12 PM

A program that will send $500 monthly to 305 families in Sonoma County, California, is set to send its next payment in nine days.

The Pathway to Income Equity pilot program selected 305 families out of 6,450 applicants. To be eligible, applicants had to have at least one child under 6 years of age, be affected in some way by the coronavirus pandemic, and have a household income of no more than 185% above the federal poverty level, according to the Sonoma County Administrator's Office. Its first payment was issued in March, and its next payment will be on May 17.

SOCIAL SECURITY UPDATE: DIRECT PAYMENT WORTH $914 ARRIVES IN 25 DAYS

The program is partially an experiment to see how guaranteed income affects impoverished families.

“These payments will help families with young children who are often struggling under the double burden of the high costs of housing and child care — typically the two highest household expenses,” said Supervisor Chris Coursey, the chairman of the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors. “The information we gain from this pilot program will help shape future efforts to improve the health and welfare of our community.”

Angie Dillon-Shore, the executive director of First 5 Sonoma County, an independent public agency focused on early childhood development, defended the program as essential to fighting familial poverty and preempted criticisms that it may incentivize laziness.

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“The number of applications we received speaks to the issue that so many in our community are struggling,” she said. “The idea that giving people cash is a disincentive to work is a myth. Most of our selected recipients are already working, many working more than one job or more than 40 hours a week just to survive. This extra income will allow them to spend more time with their families, find a better job, or improve their financial well-being, resulting in better outcomes for their kids.”

She told the Washington Examiner that the group is using an "external evaluator to conduct qualitative research (surveys, interviews, and focus groups) with the participants over the two years" and will publish a preliminary and final report in spring 2024 and early 2025, respectively.