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Event serves food for thought on guaranteed income

With technology automating jobs once performed by humans, there is a growing concern that new jobs will not necessarily follow the technological advancements. As a possible antidote to this impending economic crisis, thought leaders on both sides of the political spectrum are talking about how a universal basic income (or U.B.I.) could provide a safety net for displaced workers in the not-too-distant future.

Under U.B.I., all citizens would receive a guaranteed income to meet their basic needs – supplanting human service programs such as food stamps and other so-called entitlements. The idea, which has its roots in the Nixon Administration, has been espoused by author and columnist Charles Murray of the conservative American Enterprise Institute. Last May, a startup accelerator announced plans to launch a pilot U.B.I. program for 100 families in Oakland, Calif. Other pilot programs will soon be tested in Kenya, Finland, and the Netherlands. Earlier this year, Judith Shulevitz, a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times, raised the feminist argument that U.B.I. could be a way to reimburse mothers and other caregivers for work they currently do free of charge.

One of U.B.I.’s leading proponents, Andy Stern, will discuss the concept and other issues pertaining to the U.S. workforce and health care as the keynote speaker at Colorado Center on Law and Policy’s Third Annual Pathways from Poverty Breakfast, Oct. 6 at the History Colorado Center in Denver. Currently a senior fellow at Columbia University, Stern is regarded as a visionary problem-solver on poverty and inequality. Modern Healthcare magazine identified him as “one of the key architects of healthcare reform.” As the former president of SEIU, CBS News once called Stern the “most important labor boss in America.” His book about U.B.I., “Raising the Floor: How a Universal Basic Income Can Renew Our Economy and Rebuild the American Dream,” was published in June of this year.

“While CCLP does not necessarily endorse U.B.I., we appreciate innovative ideas that advance the public dialogue on forging pathways from poverty,” said Claire Levy, Executive Director of CCLP. “Andy Stern’s keynote is sure to provide participants with nutritious food for thought.”

The Pathways from Poverty Breakfast attracts opinion leaders from Colorado’s health care, public policy, philanthropic, governmental and nonprofit sectors. The breakfast benefits the Colorado Center on Law and Policy, a nonprofit nonpartisan research and advocacy organization that engages in legislative, administrative and legal advocacy on behalf of low-income Coloradans. In recent years, CCLP has backed legislation to help more Coloradans secure affordable housing, led the charge to expand Medicaid in Colorado and backed proposals to raise the state’s minimum wage.

The event also will celebrate the work of Sen. Pat Steadman and David Butler, a longtime CCLP board member, with the Champion for Economic Justice Awards – a special honor recognizing legislative leaders and community members who have devoted their careers to helping low-income families or addressing access to health care.

Register now for what is sure to be an engaging, inspiring and thought-provoking morning.

Colorado Center on Law and Policy is a nonprofit, non-partisan research and advocacy organization that engages in legislative, administrative and legal advocacy on behalf of low-income Coloradans.