NC House bill targets guaranteed-income programs for poor individuals, families
In 2022, the city of Durham launched one of the state’s first guaranteed-income programs, offering cash payments to people returning to Durham after prison.
For almost a year, the Excel program gave 109 people $600 a month with no strings attached to help them re-enter society.
Although the pilot program ended in 2023, some Durham City Council members have pushed for some kind of guaranteed-income program to continue, with Mayor Pro Tem Mark-Anthony Middleton proposing $1 million in city money. The $500,000 Excel pilot was funded partly by a grant from Mayors for Guaranteed Income.
“The results were incredibly positive,” Middleton said in an interview. “Folks used the money for bills, to get to job interviews. The recidivism rate of the people who participated was close to zero.”
However, a new bill introduced by a Republican state lawmaker could threaten such initiatives, program supporters say.
House Bill 859, currently moving through House committees, would prohibit cities and counties from implementing guaranteed income programs unless authorized by local or general state laws, which would require approval by the General Assembly.
The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Cody Huneycutt of Montgomery and Stanly counties, was approved on April 29 in the House Committee on Commerce and Economic Development and referred to the House Committee on State and Local Government. The bill has several more steps before it reaches the House and Senate floors for a vote.
The News & Observer reached out to Huneycutt through email and a phone call last week but has not gotten a response.
The case for, and against, guaranteed incomes
Guaranteed income programs are designed to provide a financial safety net, and many local governments across the country have been testing them.
In 2023, there were about 100 programs around the country. The largest, which ended in 2023 in Chicago, gave 5,000 households $500 a month for a year.
Advocates say people who receive the money pay for necessities like housing, food and utility bills, as well as transportation to get to work and child care.
The Magnolia Mother’s Trust, which gave poor Black mothers $1,000 a month in Jackson, Mississippi, saw a dramatic increase in women being able to buy food and have money left over for emergencies.
Durham County is planning to launch DCo Thrives with the Durham Children’s Initiative which will give 125 families $750 a month for a year. Qualifying families must make below 30% of the area median income, or $31,750 for a four-person household.
County Manager Claudia Hager said the pilot program would serve families who are “hardworking residents who struggle to afford housing, food, child care, and utilities despite being employed.”
“Durham County opposes House Bill 859,” Hager said in a statement. “While the future of the DCo Thrives pilot faces uncertainty due to potential legislative restrictions and funding challenges, Durham County remains steadfast in our commitment to supporting residents in need through whatever lawful mechanisms remain available to us.”
Earlier this year Raleigh launched Bringing Neighbors Home, a program that will pay 45 families and individuals experiencing homelessness at least $1,450 every month for two years to spend however they see fit.
“We know through years of research and practice that a large majority of people, 80% to 90% of people, just need that two years of assistance and then they’re able to stabilize after that time,” Emila Sutton, the city’s Housing and Neighborhoods director, said in a previous interview with The News & Observer.
Critics of guaranteed-income programs say the payments could discourage people from working and don’t contribute to reducing overall costs. In an article, Doug MacKay, a professor in UNC’s public policy department, said there is a “reciprocity worry” about the programs.
“The thought is, you should only get access to public benefits if you are participating in the formal labor market and earning an income,” MacKay said. “The question they ask is, ‘Why should some group of individuals be participating in the labor force and paying taxes to fund a [universal basic income program] for other people who aren’t participating in the labor market?”
“One of the responses to this is that UBI recognizes all those forms of contribution to society that aren’t remunerated,” he added. “Think about parents taking care of their children or poor people taking care of elderly family members. There’s lots of ways in which people contribute to society.”
Middleton said the programs are a “matter of principle” and that “economically secure people and stable people make better neighbors” when they aren’t trying to figure out how to pay bills or feed children.
“Poor people work more than just about anybody else in the country,” he said. “Many of these people piece together two and three jobs to make ends meet. … The notion that we’re seeing people just getting checks and staying at home is not what the data is bearing out.”
Next steps for the bill
How cities with guaranteed-income programs will respond to the bill if it becomes law is unknown.
The city of Raleigh “doesn’t speak to pending litigation,” said Julia Milstead, the city’s public information officer. Mayor Janet Cowell said she hasn’t seen the bill yet and declined to weigh in.
Beverly Thompson, Durham’s public information officer, said “any kind of parameters or restrictions imposed by House Bill 859 could certainly have an impact on our ability to manage such programs in a way that we deem most helpful to the city’s residents.”
This story was originally published May 5, 2025 at 5:30 AM.