'We know it works': Denver piloting program to provide some of city's poorest direct cash assistance

A new effort to address both affordability and homelessness in Denver will soon start. 

Monday, Denver's City Council approved using $2 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to partner with the Denver Basic Income Project and Impact Charitable. Much like programs already installed in other North American cities, the project aims to help people in need by issuing them direct cash payments.  

"There was this growing evidence that this is an idea that works really well, and we felt we could build upon the successes of others here in Denver," said Mark Donovan, founder of Denver Basic Income Project.  

With this one-year pilot program, cash payments will go to three randomized groups of eligible participants. The first will get $6,500 upfront followed by $500 per month for 11 months, while the second group will get $1,000 per month for 12 months. The third group will serve as the control, receiving $50 a month for completing the survey.  

"We know it works, but we want to know whether the larger lump sum works better for some versus others and figure out a way to deliver this at a greater scale," said Donovan.  

The goal is to serve hundreds of people in need, and Donovan said the project had raised more than $7 million to do it. Denver's newly approved funding is specifically for 140 women, families and people who are gender nonconforming or nonbinary, a population disproportionately impacted by the last two years.  

"The pandemic has had a really profound impact on the state of homelessness in our community," said Angie Nelson, Deputy Director of Housing Stability and Homelessness Resolution with Denver's Department of Housing Stability. 

"We saw a number of women using our shelter system triple, and we've seen a really significant increase in the need for family shelter options as well," said Nelson.   

Moving forward, the project will rely on community partners to work with applicants. Researchers from the University of Denver's Center for Housing and Homelessness will also study the program's progress.

"By providing this basic income and this basic assistance, it helps to give families a platform to make decisions about what they need to solve their own challenge," Nelson said.  

"We're confident in the resiliency of our residents and their ability to leverage a small amount of basic income to work best in their unique and individual circumstances," she said. 

The program will launch this November and run through 2023. Applicants must be unhoused, working with a service provider, and without mental health or substance needs.