Breaking Even: How Micro-Income Could Pay for Itself

-


📷 Image from iStock illustrating economic stability.

Imagine fighting poverty didn’t drain budgets but instead balanced them.  Across Oregon, many families are feeling the financial squeeze as the cost of everyday life rises exponentially. This financial strain isn’t just blowing out their wallets, it’s violating their sleep, health, and sense of security.  With nearly 15,000 Portlanders experiencing houselessness, it is no secret that the system that was meant to protect us is failing (Parfitt, 2025).


📷 Chart from the Multnomah County Homelessness Services Data Dashboard (2025).



One promising solution to alleviate the financial strain is through a micro-income program. This program is essentially small, government issued cash allowances designed to provide economic stability for those with lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

📷 Image from the SEED program website

  

An example of this kind of program comes from the SEED pilot in Stockton, California, where 125 residents below the city’s median income were given $500 a month for two years (Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration, 2021). 

Recipients of this guaranteed income not only reported lower levels of anxiety and depression, but also higher rates of full-time employment compared to those who did not receive payments (West & Castro, 2023). 

The SEED pilot was funded with around $3.8 million in private philanthropic funding, which not only covered the $500 monthly payments but also the research team that evaluated the programs outcome. 

Now you might be thinking, “That’s great and all, but are we just relying on rich donors?”  Well, that’s the beauty of it. Research suggests that programs like this might actually pay for themselves in the long run. A 2021 modeling study showed that by providing a universal basic income, we could lower the costs associated with healthcare, crisis response, and welfare programs (Johnson et al., 2021). 


📷 Chart from Common Sense Institute showing Oregon’s 2024 cost breakdown


To put it into perspective, Oregon alone spends nearly $40 billion a year on healthcare (Oregon Health Authority, 2025), much of it influenced by financial instability and preventable medical crises. 

Studies show that these preventable ER visits are nearly three times higher among low-income households, suggesting that increased financial security could significantly reduce these expenses. A micro-income program could potentially save the state billions, freeing up resources that could be used to fund the program itself, education initiatives, and public infrastructure. 

So, if we ever want a future where fighting poverty doesn’t drain our budgets but instead balances them, a micro-income program is the place to start!



References

Johnson, M. T., Johnson, E. A., Webber, L., Friebel, R., Reed, H. R., Lansley, S., & Wildman, J. (2021). Modelling the size, cost and health impacts of universal basic income: What can be done in advance of a trial?. Health services & outcomes research methodology, 21(4), 459–476. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10742-021-00246-8

Oregon Health Authority. (2025, June). Health care cost growth trends in Oregon, 2022–2023: 2025 sustainable health care cost growth target annual report. Oregon Health Authority.https://www.oregon.gov/oha/HPA/HP/Cost%20Growth%20Target%20documents/Oregon-Health-Care-Cost-Trends-Report-2022-2023.pdf

Parfitt, J. (2025, April 16). Better data shows scale of homelessness. KGW News. https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/multnomah-county-homeless-data-by-name-dashboard-numbers-population/283-6e7140ee-5aec-435f-8fc1-f427823e5f2e

Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration. (2021). A guaranteed income changes lives. https://www.stocktondemonstration.org

West, S., & Castro, A. (2023). Impact of guaranteed income on health, finances, and agency: Findings from the Stockton randomized controlled trial. Journal of Urban Health, 100(2), 227–244. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-023-00723-0


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Access to Healthcare for Homeless Individuals with Disabilities

-
Image
Photo by Sarwer e Kainat Welfare from Pexels. Healthcare access is still a major obstacle for the homeless, especially those with disabilities. The complexity of homelessness and the obstacles faced by people with disabilities in Oregon and elsewhere pose a serious threat to public health. This blog post examines the particular difficulties and potential solutions to enhance access to healthcare for this vulnerable population. Unique Healthcare Challenges for Homeless Individuals with Disabilities A study by Oxford Academic published in "Social Work" highlights several key barriers to healthcare access for homeless individuals with disabilities. These barriers include: Absence of Accessible Services Inadequate care results from many healthcare facilities' lack of capacity to address the unique requirements of people with disabilities. Transportation Problems It can be challenging for homeless people to regularly attend medical visits since they frequently lack access to...
Read more

Hostile Architecture: A Harmful Solution

-
Image
  As homelessness starts to rise in many states, many actions have started to take place, one of them being hostile architecture.   Hostile architecture is an architectural design intended to deter certain activities and restrict people from using that public space. Hostile architecture goes unnoticed by most people, as they don't affect them. Some examples of hostile architecture involve: Armrests on benches Curved or slanted benches Rocky pavements Bike racks and planter boxes in a line Window sills with spikes In Portland, Oregon, the hostile architecture are focused towards the homeless and preventing camping. Since 2013, the state agency has spent over $1 million on what is described as "rockscape landscaping" to keep homeless campers off property owned by the Oregon Department of Transportation. In downtown Portland, NW Broadway, dozens of lined up bike racks were installed in. The area isn't an active destination, so the need for that many bike racks i...
Read more

Camp Clearing on the West Coast

-
 On The west Coast homelessness is a serious problem. When considering the homeless crises, Los Angeles is one of the places that comes to mind. Homelessness sweeps beyond “Skid Row” in Los Angeles, in fact it has become widespread throughout California. As of July 25 th, 2024, Gov. Newsom has issued an order to remove all homeless camps in the state of California. Will this be beneficial, will it be improving the lives of homeless individuals, or will it be another pointless tax on Californians? Improving to the lives of homeless individuals; appears to be uncertain as far as we know. Gov. Newsom has decided to invest $24 billion to clean up homeless camps. Gov. Newsom said, “We must act with urgency to address dangerous encampments which subject unsheltered individuals living in them to extreme weather, fires, predatory and criminal activity, and widespread substance use, harming their health, safety and well-being, and which also threaten the safety and viability of nearby busin...
Read more