By ANDREW J. YAWN, USA Today/The American South undefined
NEW ORLEANS Each week, high school senior Joia’ White’s phone pings with a Cash App notification. Her school, The Rooted School in New Orleans, just transferred another $50 to her account.
“I’m like, ‘Okay. $50 more to add to the bank,’” said the 17-year-old.
It’s $50 White wouldn’t have had otherwise. And that’s the point of The Rooted School’s guaranteed income experiment, which will pay 10 seniors $2,600 each over the course of a year.
White is one of the seniors to receive weekly payments, which started last month and continues through October 2021.
Ben Depp for WWNO
Among the tasks on New Orleans’ long new year list: launch guaranteed income.
The city recently secured $500,000 to pilot unconditional cash payments to a select group of residents. But getting guaranteed income up and running takes more than just money, and the city has a long way to go before it can start distributing funds.
“Administratively there are a lot of components to it,” said Joshua Cox, director of strategic initiatives for the City of New Orleans. “How are you evaluating it? How are you making sure that the cash payments are getting delivered? How do you do the selection process?”
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