Hawaii could become the first state to offer its citizens universal basic income

Young_Chitlin
Young_Chitlin Members Posts: 23,852 ✭✭✭✭✭
Http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4613984/Hawaii-trail-blazes-race-universal-basic-income.html#article-4613984

It may have been the last state to join the United States, but Hawaii may trail blaze and become the first to offer guaranteed basic income.

A bill was recently passed through both the houses and state legislature in a unanimous vote that declares that all Hawaiians 'deserve basic financial security' and prompts state agencies to look over 'universal basic income' along with other policy.

'As innovation and automation and inequality disrupt our economy, we want to make sure that everybody benefits and nobody is left behind,' said state Representative Chris Lee of Kaliua to Mother Jones.
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Comments

  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2017
    If they can afford it, cool. Cost of living is gonna rise anyway though, but what Hawaii is trying to do is pretty cool, as long as they realize it's not a long term solution to their problems.
  • rickmogul
    rickmogul Members Posts: 1,961 ✭✭✭✭✭
    It has begun. Wow! In my lifetime!
  • anduin
    anduin Members Posts: 1,080 ✭✭✭✭✭
    How could they possibly afford it? There's so many homeless people living there and poverty is rife in areas outside the tourist spots.
  • HafBayked
    HafBayked Members Posts: 16,248 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited June 2017
    free pineapples and boogie boards for everybody
  • _Jay_
    _Jay_ Members, Administrators Posts: 3,689 My Name Is My Name.
    I'm curious to see how this works out...surprised that it's an American state this soon, figured somewhere like Norway or Iceland would've been first to try to implement it.
  • rickmogul
    rickmogul Members Posts: 1,961 ✭✭✭✭✭
    @_Jay_ And they picked the out in the ocean disconnected state they could find. So when it goes 2 ? , they can keep it all contained.
  • BIGG WILL
    BIGG WILL Members Posts: 2,611 ✭✭✭✭✭
    a lot of billionaires are saying this is the nx step. I wonder if they are going to put their money where their mouth is tho.

    they doing test runs in Oakland and San Fran.
  • VulcanRaven
    VulcanRaven Members Posts: 18,859 ✭✭✭✭✭
    If they can afford it, cool. Cost of living is gonna rise anyway though, but what Hawaii is trying to do is pretty cool, as long as they realize it's not a long term solution to their problems.

    This country can afford it period. All the billions it makes. What good is living in the US the so called vest country if you are struggling to the point of homelessness?
  • 808HiLife808
    808HiLife808 Members Posts: 1,072 ✭✭✭✭✭
    If they can afford it, cool. Cost of living is gonna rise anyway though, but what Hawaii is trying to do is pretty cool, as long as they realize it's not a long term solution to their problems.

    This country can afford it period. All the billions it makes. What good is living in the US the so called vest country if you are struggling to the point of homelessness?

    homelessness it out of fkn control over here. on top of that, we have a ? load of micronesians that come here freely and set up shop under cofa..
  • BIGG WILL
    BIGG WILL Members Posts: 2,611 ✭✭✭✭✭
    The study made economic forecasts for three proposals: a full universal basic income in which every adult gets $1,000 a month ($12,000 a year), a partial basic income in which every adult gets $500 a month ($6,000 a year) and a child allowance in which parents get $250 a month ($3,000 a year).

    The larger the universal basic income, the greater the benefit to the economy, according to the report.
    A $1,000 cash handout to all adults would grow the economy by 12.56 percent after eight years, the study finds. Current Congressional Budget Office estimates put the GDP at $19.8 trillion. The cash handout would therefore increase the GDP by $2.48 trillion.



    http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/a-dollar1000-per-month-cash-handout-would-grow-the-economy-by-dollar25-trillion-new-study-says/ar-AAr35pQ?li=BBmkt5R&ocid=spartanntp
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    If they can afford it, cool. Cost of living is gonna rise anyway though, but what Hawaii is trying to do is pretty cool, as long as they realize it's not a long term solution to their problems.

    This country can afford it period. All the billions it makes. What good is living in the US the so called vest country if you are struggling to the point of homelessness?

    This country also owes 20 trillion and has badly underfunded infrastructure and pension plans. I hope Hawaii gets this done though cuz so many are homeless there.

    But I hear what you're saying, so many are struggling out here for real. In NYC, there are more homeless people now then during the Great Depression. Things are so uncertain in this country now, big reason why I don't want kids.
  • osirus1
    osirus1 Members Posts: 151 ✭✭
    It sounds great in theory, but in the long run I wonder if it could bring problems, this has already been done in Finland on an experimental basis. It yielded poor results but the control group they used was people already recieving un employment benefits, they plan to expand this program to people that fit more the average disposition to get a more realistic outcome.
  • Plutarch
    Plutarch Members Posts: 3,239 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I think it sounds good and could work in theory, but I've heard good cases against it. The problem is definitely here, but there are better remedies, imo.
  • uncle gunnysack
    uncle gunnysack Members Posts: 86 ✭✭
    edited September 2017
    Would they get ebt benefits and medical as well as the 1,000 a month?
  • uncle gunnysack
    uncle gunnysack Members Posts: 86 ✭✭
    The only problem that I see is when (just like welfare) when you passing out checks on a monthly basis then people tend not to look for a job
  • 808HiLife808
    808HiLife808 Members Posts: 1,072 ✭✭✭✭✭
    they already dont
  • janklow
    janklow Members, Moderators Posts: 8,613 Regulator
    This country can afford it period. All the billions it makes. What good is living in the US the so called vest country if you are struggling to the point of homelessness?
    this country can afford it... in theory. but i would rather see a serious policy explain HOW it will be paid for than someone waving their hands around in the air saying "eh, we can afford it!"

  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    janklow wrote: »
    This country can afford it period. All the billions it makes. What good is living in the US the so called vest country if you are struggling to the point of homelessness?
    this country can afford it... in theory. but i would rather see a serious policy explain HOW it will be paid for than someone waving their hands around in the air saying "eh, we can afford it!"

    I agree, but since Hawaii has a big amount of debt, how are they gonna cut back on other spending? I hear their state pension fund is underfunded, so where is this money gonna come from? More debt I guess? Then it's unsustainable. Hopefully Hawaii explains this, but I don't think this idea has gone anywhere so far.
  • jetlifebih
    jetlifebih Guests, Members, Writer, Content Producer Posts: 4,655 ✭✭✭✭✭
    More debt how lol with us owning 20trillion who the ? is going to loan us that....

    I couldn’t get a dam credit card if I owed 20 dollas....

    It’s crazy how America can just increase its debt yet inside the country the citizens have so many dam restrictions that won’t allow us to build a 20 trillion dollar debt...
  • janklow
    janklow Members, Moderators Posts: 8,613 Regulator
    I agree, but since Hawaii has a big amount of debt, how are they gonna cut back on other spending? I hear their state pension fund is underfunded, so where is this money gonna come from? More debt I guess? Then it's unsustainable. Hopefully Hawaii explains this, but I don't think this idea has gone anywhere so far.
    it's a blue state, so it'd be a combination of raising taxes and raising deficits.

    but that's also while they'll sell it talking about how awesome it is and how rich America is and NOT discussing the nuts and bolts of the actual policy.
  • 808HiLife808
    808HiLife808 Members Posts: 1,072 ✭✭✭✭✭
    janklow wrote: »
    I agree, but since Hawaii has a big amount of debt, how are they gonna cut back on other spending? I hear their state pension fund is underfunded, so where is this money gonna come from? More debt I guess? Then it's unsustainable. Hopefully Hawaii explains this, but I don't think this idea has gone anywhere so far.
    it's a blue state, so it'd be a combination of raising taxes and raising deficits.

    but that's also while they'll sell it talking about how awesome it is and how rich America is and NOT discussing the nuts and bolts of the actual policy.
    idk if thatd fly...theyve already been raising taxes paying for this over budget bs rail
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    jetlifebih wrote: »
    More debt how lol with us owning 20trillion who the ? is going to loan us that....

    I couldn’t get a dam credit card if I owed 20 dollas....

    It’s crazy how America can just increase its debt yet inside the country the citizens have so many dam restrictions that won’t allow us to build a 20 trillion dollar debt...

    America better enjoy these days while it lasts, we can't keep printing dollars like this forever. Britain and Spain learned that lesson the hard way, so did the Soviet Union. Republicans are already working on cutting spending for social programs and who knows what else.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    janklow wrote: »
    I agree, but since Hawaii has a big amount of debt, how are they gonna cut back on other spending? I hear their state pension fund is underfunded, so where is this money gonna come from? More debt I guess? Then it's unsustainable. Hopefully Hawaii explains this, but I don't think this idea has gone anywhere so far.
    it's a blue state, so it'd be a combination of raising taxes and raising deficits.

    but that's also while they'll sell it talking about how awesome it is and how rich America is and NOT discussing the nuts and bolts of the actual policy.

    That sounds about right. Similar to Bernie Sanders' idea of Medicaid for all, sounds great in theory, but hard to make it actually work. I could see this working in a temporary basis for maybe a year or two, but after that the math gets tough.

    And even then I don't know if Hawaiians would want their taxes going up more, they're high already.
  • Madame_CJSkywalker
    Madame_CJSkywalker Members Posts: 940 ✭✭✭✭
    janklow wrote: »
    I agree, but since Hawaii has a big amount of debt, how are they gonna cut back on other spending? I hear their state pension fund is underfunded, so where is this money gonna come from? More debt I guess? Then it's unsustainable. Hopefully Hawaii explains this, but I don't think this idea has gone anywhere so far.
    it's a blue state, so it'd be a combination of raising taxes and raising deficits.

    but that's also while they'll sell it talking about how awesome it is and how rich America is and NOT discussing the nuts and bolts of the actual policy.

    That sounds about right. Similar to Bernie Sanders' idea of Medicaid for all, sounds great in theory, but hard to make it actually work. I could see this working in a temporary basis for maybe a year or two, but after that the math gets tough.

    And even then I don't know if Hawaiians would want their taxes going up more, they're high already.

    if you scrap most social programs, basic pensions, all the red tape and the millions of bureaucrats that currently manage these programs it could work maybe

    plus the money is to going right back into the economy

    having a minimum wage and unemployment payments is expensive too, which basic income for all could eliminate
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited October 2017
    janklow wrote: »
    I agree, but since Hawaii has a big amount of debt, how are they gonna cut back on other spending? I hear their state pension fund is underfunded, so where is this money gonna come from? More debt I guess? Then it's unsustainable. Hopefully Hawaii explains this, but I don't think this idea has gone anywhere so far.
    it's a blue state, so it'd be a combination of raising taxes and raising deficits.

    but that's also while they'll sell it talking about how awesome it is and how rich America is and NOT discussing the nuts and bolts of the actual policy.

    That sounds about right. Similar to Bernie Sanders' idea of Medicaid for all, sounds great in theory, but hard to make it actually work. I could see this working in a temporary basis for maybe a year or two, but after that the math gets tough.

    And even then I don't know if Hawaiians would want their taxes going up more, they're high already.

    if you scrap most social programs, basic pensions, all the red tape and the millions of bureaucrats that currently manage these programs it could work maybe

    plus the money is to going right back into the economy

    having a minimum wage and unemployment payments is expensive too, which basic income for all could eliminate

    Those are some good points. If all that could be put in a budget, it might work but I guess that would depend on how much is cut from the social programs.

    A lot of people would fight any cuts to medical programs though, and we all know unions will raise hell if their pensions are cut. Democrats are pretty much owned by unions these days, and that's a big reason why so many of them let union pensions bankrupt cities, word to New York, CT, and Illinois among many. Many Republicans are scared of unions too, so that's gonna be hard to sell, although I mostly agree with you.