Even as the Biden administration faces sustained opposition from the Republicans in its bid to get through the infrastructure bill, the 4th stimulus check is on hold for now. But several local and state governments have got into the act and are providing funds to citizens in dire need.
The pandemic has proved that timely government aid in the form of direct stimulus checks can mean a world of food for low-wage earners during difficult times. Dozens of states and cities have funds and programs of their own, targeting selective groups of residents with one-time or recurring stimulus checks.
State support has existed before the pandemic. The Permanent Fund Dividend of $1,114 is paid to a resident of Alaska who has lived within the state for a full calendar year and intends to remain a resident of the state indefinitely.
Stimulus Check For Specific Groups For Extended Periods Under Focus
But guaranteed income is made to a specific group of people. They are mainly for low-income and similar groups. For instance, low-income parents received a $500 stimulus check in South Carolina in September in the form of a debit card. A similar amount was given the following year each month.
A pilot project in Minnesota used federal funding to give $500 a month to families with low-income. The stimulus checks will continue for 2 years and will favor homes run by colored women.
These two projects are under the management of a national group named the Guaranteed Income Market. It hopes to analyze the figures from such experimental aids to ramp up guaranteed federal checks in the future.
Such schemes help promote equality among genders, races, and financial backgrounds and do not advocate replacing traditional nets of social safety.
Critics of such schemes guaranteed stimulus checks regularly worry that recipients may be less inclined to apply for jobs. A study by Pew Research Center found that 54% of citizens oppose any idea of federal stimulus checks of $1,000 every month to every adult.
