UChicago Inclusive Economy Lab Releases First Report on the Chicago Resilient Communities Pilot

CHICAGO – Today, the Inclusive Economy Lab released its ‘First Look’ at the Chicago Resilient Communities Pilot (CRCP), a guaranteed income program launched by Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot and Department of Family and Support Services Commissioner Brandie Knazze in April 2022. This $31.5 million program was designed to improve the financial stability, health, and wellbeing of Chicago residents living in poverty.

The Chicago Resilient Communities Pilot is one of the largest monthly cash assistance programs in the nation and supports 5,000 low-income households with $500 monthly for one year. The pilot was open to all Chicago residents who are at least 18 years old, reside in a household with an income less than 250 percent of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), and experienced hardship due to COVID-19. Priority was given to applicants living in poverty and in communities experiencing pre-existing economic hardship.

At the request of the City of Chicago, the University of Chicago Inclusive Economy Lab is conducting a mixed methods evaluation to examine the impacts of the pilot on residents’ experiences. Results from the study will help the City understand the efficacy of cash assistance programs and determine best practices for future programs. This initial report by the Inclusive Economy Lab describes who applied to the CRCP, what their stated needs, goals, and priorities were prior to the pilot starting, and their self-reported physical and mental health. Also interspersed throughout the report are applicants’ experiences from qualitative interviews conducted last summer.

“This latest data underscores how critical it is to address poverty as a root cause of so many other challenges our city and residents face,” said Chicago Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot. “The stress of not being able to pay bills or of being able to provide for one's family takes a heavy toll. To alleviate this burden, my administration continues to fund innovative pilots like monthly cash assistance, which gives our residents extra cash in their pockets to support themselves and their families. I look forward to reviewing the findings from future reports about the effect of monthly cash assistance on our residents’ wellbeing and remain committed to eliminating the impacts of poverty in Chicago once and for all.”

“DFSS saw first-hand how COVID-19 exacerbated the challenges that vulnerable populations face, and how the pandemic disproportionately impacted communities of color,” said Commissioner Brandie Knazze. “The CRCP was designed to build a more equitable recovery, and our partnership with IEL will help us better understand the needs of Chicago residents and build more effective supports for the future.”

The study population includes 2,613 participants out of the total 5,000 who were randomly selected to receive the monthly $500 cash payments and a control group of 3,624 applicants who applied for and are eligible for the program but were not assigned by the lottery to receive funds. The CRCP application contained optional questions about participating in research activities, and applicants’ responses to these questions did not affect their likelihood of being selected for the pilot.

Highlights from the report include findings that applicants’ top three needs and priorities were paying bills followed by saving money and getting out of debt. Applicants were also asked questions about their mental and physical health and 33 percent of the study population reported that their mental health was not good for more than two weeks of the previous month and cited the toll the pandemic has taken on their quality of life.

“We are deeply honored to have the opportunity to share what we have learned thus far from study participants so that these insights can be used in the design and implementation of future equitable recovery initiatives. While the pandemic state of emergency may be ending in a few months, this report shows us many residents are still grappling with concerns over how to pay bills, meet basic needs, and care for their mental health,” said Misuzu Schexnider, Program Director at the Inclusive Economy Lab.

The Inclusive Economy Lab obtained application data from GiveDirectly, the CRCP program administrator, and AidKit, their technology partner.

The full report can be found on the Inclusive Economy Lab website.

About the Inclusive Economy Lab

The Inclusive Economy Lab partners with policymakers, community-based organizations, and others to generate rigorous evidence that leads to greater economic opportunity for communities harmed by disinvestment and segregation.

About the Department of Family and Support Services

The Chicago Department of Family and Support Services is dedicated to supporting a continuum of coordinated services to enhance the lives of Chicago residents, particularly those most in need, from birth through the senior years. The department works to promote the independence and well-being of individuals, support families and strengthen neighborhoods by providing direct assistance and administering resources to a network of community-based organizations, social service providers and institutions.

About GiveDirectly

GiveDirectly is a nonprofit that sends money directly to the world’s poorest, no strings attached. In the last decade, GiveDirectly has delivered $550M+ to over 1.25 million people across eleven countries, including $205M+ to over 200,000 low-income American households. GiveDirectly brings over a decade of expertise in deploying end-to-end cash programs for both disaster response and longer-term poverty alleviation programs, including guaranteed income programs.

About AidKit

AidKit is an advanced technology platform for delivering cash assistance and guaranteed income to those who need it most. It works with nonprofits and government organizations to serve diverse populations including the unhoused, the undocumented, and the unbanked. Applicants can register for aid on their mobile devices and receive payments via bank transfer, debit card or virtual card. AidKit balances convenience with security, protecting against fraud while ensuring the highest degree of data protection. AidKit powers some of the nation’s largest direct cash and guaranteed income pilots with tools that reduce administrative burden, increase impact, and protect participants’ personal information.