"The survey data clearly indicates that $500 a month improves the financial well-being of participants.”
—Ashley Baber, Equity and Transformation Chicago
The Chicago Future Fund: Building Economies of Belonging
Evaluations and Assessments Jan-05-2024 3-min read
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Report Publish Date: January 5, 2024
This research brief describes a six-month evaluation of round two of the Chicago Future Fund’s pilot program.
Primary Takeaways
Providing cash payments to formerly incarcerated people decreased the number who were late paying bills and the number who had experienced homelessness the month before being surveyed. Monthly earnings improved overall.
Participants who were interviewed said receiving cash payments from The Chicago Future Fund improved their physical, mental, and financial wellbeing. They felt generally less stressed and motivated to “do more” because of the support they got.
The authors write, “Overwhelmingly, the CFF has had a positive impact for participants. Taken together, the surveys and interviews reveal near unanimous improved financial and mental well-being. Despite concerns that are sometimes expressed regarding [guaranteed basic income programs], participants have not experienced decreased work motivation.”
Overview and Objectives
The Chicago Future Fund is a guaranteed income program that provides $500 a month to people who spent time in prison. It is run by the Chicago nonprofit Equity and Transformation, or EAT, which was founded in 2018 by Black people who had experienced incarceration. The program aims to reduce housing instability, improve health, and prevent recidivism among formerly incarcerated people in three Chicago neighborhoods. An evaluation aimed to show how the income affected young people who received it.
Hypothesis or Approach
The authors surveyed 100 participants over six months to track program outcomes over time. They also interviewed 20 participants to get more detailed insights on how the cash payments had helped them and the challenges they faced finding work and housing and interacting with their community.
How This Influences Change
The evaluation provides additional evidence of the ways providing cash payments can help bolster the income and wellbeing of people struggling with poverty, housing instability, job instability, and returning to their communities after being incarcerated.
Grant Details
Amount awarded:
$178,812
Awarded on: 06/01/2023
Timeframe: 2023-2025
Grant number: 80811
Location: Chicago, IL
About Grantee:
Research: Go Deeper
The six-month evaluation of the Chicago Future Fund pilot program round two, finds that direct cash payments facilitate financial and housing stability, decreases in reported stress levels, and a sense of hope and planning for the future among participants.
The key findings show:
- Decrease (15 percentage points) in the number of the people who report being late on bills last month compared to the beginning of the program (Figure 1).
- Decrease (9 percentage points) in the number of participants that experienced
- homelessness in the prior month compared to last year (Figure 2).
- Overall decline in the percentage of people reporting less than $500 a month in income (Figure 3) suggesting that the lowest wage earners have seen an increase in monthly income.
- Extremely low levels of recidivism (3 reports out of 100).
- During interviews, many participants explained that the program provides improved physical, mental and financial wellbeing and has helped them to feel less stressed overall.
- Interview respondents often share that they can think about and plan for the future as a result of the direct cash payment.
- Interview respondents report that they feel motivated to do more because of the Chicago Future Fund and EAT leadership.
Research Team
This report was prepared by Ashley Baber.
About the Grantee
Equity and Transformation EAT is a non-profit community-led organization founded by and for post-incarcerated people. Continuously system-impacted individuals face significant barriers in their everyday lives; they are shut out of the workforce forced into informality and criminalized for surviving. These systemic inequalities often lead to extreme poverty and additional periods of incarceration. EAT is committed to building social and economic equity for informal workers.
Additional Research to Explore
Brief
Guaranteed Income: An Unconditional Investment in Children and Families
This research highlights evidence from programs that provide unconditional, recurring payments and policy recommendations to scale and sustain guaranteed income.
Research
Advancing Solutions for Reproductive Justice
This series highlights some evidence-based policy solutions that can help advance reproductive justice.
Research
SNAP Benefits Remained Too Low to Help Families Afford Food in 2023
This brief contains the latest data on the gap between SNAP benefits and meal costs.