Opinion: Expand on the successes of Tacoma’s guaranteed income pilot
“What does it mean to be in poverty? The federal poverty line for a single person is an annual income of $14,580 or less. For a family of four, it is $30,000 or less. With six in 10 Americans unable to afford an unexpected $500 emergency, though, is it time to reexamine whether these definitions have kept pace with today’s reality? The answer is yes. In Tacoma, 40% of the community struggles to afford necessities like food and groceries, housing and utilities, home goods, and transportation, and local rent prices annually average out to be far above the federal poverty line.”