It would be so nice if we could get a negative income tax or UBI or some sort of social safety net that is not means tested. I can understand not wanting to call the problem “the welfare trap” because of the attached stigma. One other “welfare trap” is ACA healthcare subsidies. Oh, another is Pell Grants.

We have a lot of programs that help the poor and that is good, not good enough but good. It does mean that the standard of living of the working poor is not much better than those almost entirely dependent on social welfare programs. At the margin between those entirely dependent on social welfare programs and those that receive no benefits from those programs are the working but still collecting some benefits like Medicaid, SNAP or WIC.

Let us imagine setting a minimum wage such that a single parent with one child does not qualify for Medicaid for even the child or SNAP or WIC. That would be a 40 hour a week job at $15 per hour. The $15 per hour wage demand is not without some basis. More than $2400 per month.

I have sort of lost where I am going with this but $1000 a month UBI or negative income will not be enough to replace the social safety net. I have yet to see a plan that is a clear winner.

TEK