A Stronger Start for Illinois Families

A friend recently confided in me — something they felt nervous to share —that they had once relied on monthly cash support from a government program. It made me reflect on my own upbringing in the ’90s and the people around me on the South Side and suburbs. I had many friends and family who wanted stability but often faced dead ends, masking their fears with confidence or apathy.

Conversations about guaranteed income come back to what we believe about work and worth. Many of us were raised to value “pulling yourself up by your bootstraps,” so direct cash can feel like a handout instead of a path to stability. But with more than 35 million Americans living in poverty, it’s clear we need to be open to bold solutions.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. understood this decades ago. In Where Do We Go From Here?, he called for a guaranteed income and stood beside underpaid sanitation workers in Memphis because he believed economic security was essential to dignity. Closer to home, Cook County’s guaranteed income program shows what this can look like: beyond reducing debt and stress, participants reinvested an estimated $8.3 million into local small businesses.

I saw momentum for this firsthand in Austin, Texas, at a guaranteed income conference that brought together advocates, researchers, policymakers, and participants to share strategies for expanding direct cash programs and turning pilots into lasting policies.

One story has stayed with me. I met a woman from Detroit who became pregnant while working as a low-paid doula. She received guaranteed income support during that time and told me, through tears, that without it she doesn’t know how she or her baby would have survived.

Her experience deepened my commitment to advancing NEST (Newborn Equity Support Transfer), a proposal that the Trust supported through the Illinois Cost-of-Living Refund Coalition led by Economic Security Illinois. Modeled after a program in Flint, Mich., NEST would provide mothers on Medicaid with $1,500 during their third trimester and $500 per month during their child’s first six months. With Medicaid covering about 40 percent of births in Illinois, this could help thousands of families build a more stable start. This guaranteed income initiative aligns with our values at the Trust as our work encompasses ensuring everyone can feel financially secure and care for their families.

This legislative session, the Illinois General Assembly, led by Rep. Kelly Cassidy and Sen. Graciela Guzman, authorized the Department of Human Services to support guaranteed income pilot programs with public and private partners, laying the groundwork for efforts like NEST.

Expanding guaranteed income in Illinois will require broad support. Philanthropy, policymakers, and community partners all have roles to play. If we’re serious about addressing today’s affordability crisis, we must embrace promising solutions wherever the evidence leads, even when they challenge long-held beliefs. The question isn’t whether we can afford to invest in families — it’s whether we can afford not to.