The GBI Coalition of Prince George’s County, formed by PG Change Makers  with our community advocacy partners including Prince George’s County Chapter of the NAACP, Life After Release, Progressive Maryland, and Casa are in support of this groundbreaking pilot legislation for Prince George’s County.  The wealth disparities in our community need to be addressed through various means and we believe that a pilot program for Guaranteed Basic Income through our county would be one very impactful tool to do so. The Guaranteed Basic Income program has been piloted throughout the Country with our own neighbors of Montgomery County, Alexandria City and Baltimore City currently operating such programs in their jurisdiction. This a type of cash transfer program that provides continuous, unconditional cash payments to individuals or households for a set period of time based on specific parameters and would be a fund-matching public-private partnership focusing on a specific group of residents that would include those in our Senior population, re-entry, young families, and residents at or below the poverty line.

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The purpose of this program is to address and help alleviate poverty and wealth inequality while ensuring that our most vulnerable residents are able to move to financial stability. GBI allows recipients to meet their financial needs and work towards improving their economic situation and we support it within our County. The organizations in our coalition: The NAACP- an over a hundred-year organization focused on the advancement of Colored People, Life After Release- a critical on-the-ground organization helping and supporting directly impacted incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals, Progressive Maryland- a statewide organization nonprofit advocacy organization promoting racial, social, economic, and environmental justice, and CASA- the foremost immigrant organization in the mid-Atlantic region and a national leader in supporting immigrant families and ensuring that all individuals have the core supports necessary for full participation in society, have all joined together to not only support the GBI program within Prince George’s county Maryland, but also to ensure that the community organizations and people that are on the ground and in the community are the ones helping to support and guide the program to truly invest in our community and uplift the most vulnerable in our County. Our Coalition believes it is vital that community members and community-led organizations be at the table during the creation and implementation of this program to ensure that this program has a community-centered approach to have the greatest impact on the residents of our county. 

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Recently, through legislation presented by Prince George's County Council member for District 7, Krystal Oriadha, with the help and support of the efforts of the Prince George's County GBI coalition and the Greater Washington Community Foundation, Prince George's County has their first GBI pilot program through a public-private partnership.