Cook County, Illinois, is working on a pilot program that will provide guaranteed income to some residents. Under the program, selected residents will get $500 guaranteed monthly checks from Cook County. October 21, the last date to apply for the program, has already passed.
If you applied before the deadline, then detailed below is everything you need to know about when to expect the payment.
Promise Guaranteed Income Pilot Program: What Is It?
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Cook County’s Promise Guaranteed Income Pilot program aims to provide aid to thousands of low-income residents. The program is funded through the federal American Rescue Plan Act, which was approved last year.
To qualify for the guaranteed monthly checks from Cook County, residents must live in Cook County and be over 18 years old. Also, the applicants must live at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level.
Even immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, are eligible for the program. Once selected, applicants will need to remain within Cook County during the duration of the program.
As of Monday last week, the authorities have received about 184,000 applications. Of these, the majority of the applicants were identified as women, including 64% who listed their race as Black. According to Cook County officials, 24% of applicants identified as Hispanic and about 19% as white.
About half of the applicants indicated that they have gone to an emergency room within the last year. About 22% of the applicants lacked health care insurance, while about 28% delayed medical care due to lack of money, the county officials informed, according to NBC Chicago.
Guaranteed Monthly Checks From Cook County: When To Expect Them
Cook County will send a notification by mid-November to inform applicants if they have been selected. The notification will be sent to the email address and/or mobile number that applicants provided in their application.
Most selected applicants will get the first payment in December 2022. The authorities expect to send all first payments by the end of January 2023. The payment will be sent via bank transfer (direct deposit) or prepaid reloadable debit card. Recipients will be free to use the money on anything they want.
“Participants can use the money however they see fit to meet their needs, except to buy or support anything that would harm the safety and security of other participants in the Cook County Promise Guaranteed Income Pilot and/or other community members. Such activities will lead to removal from the pilot,” the program’s website says.
Recipients won’t have to pay taxes on their guaranteed monthly checks from Cook County because it “qualifies as a tax exempt charitable gift under IRS rules.”
