Guaranteed Income Validation Effort (GIVE Gary)
The Guaranteed Income Validation Effort (GIVE Gary) was a 12-month guaranteed income pilot administered by the City of Gary, Indiana, providing 125 low-income residents with $500 per month in no-strings-attached cash. Launched in 2021 under Mayor Jerome Prince, it was funded through private/philanthropic support tied to the City's membership in Mayors for a Guaranteed Income (MGI), a national mayoral coalition. GIVE Gary was among the earlier pilots to join the MGI network. Unlike many later MGI-affiliated pilots, GIVE Gary does not appear among the cohort with a published, university-partnered outcomes evaluation. No independent published results report for GIVE Gary could be located during this research pass.
Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, Early MGI pilot cohort, Rust Belt city, Site of 1970s Gary Income Maintenance Experiment
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- City of Gary
- City
- Gary
- State / Province
- Indiana
- Country
- United States
Contact
- Website
- https://gary.gov
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Application status
- Timed
- Number of recipients
- 125
- Funding type
- Philanthropic
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Currency
- USD
- Total Amount
- 6,000 USD
- Avg. Per Month
- 500 USD
- Payment frequency
- Monthly
- How long the program lasts
- 12 months
- Benefit details
Selected participants received a flat $500 monthly cash payment for 12 months (totaling $6,000 per participant), unconditional and unrestricted in use. Payments were disbursed to 125 residents beginning in spring 2021 and concluding in spring 2022, per seed program records. As a small early pilot, GIVE Gary does not appear to have included additional in-kind benefits, financial coaching, or case management components documented in some later MGI pilots. The specific disbursement method (e.g., debit card, direct deposit) could not be verified in sources available this session.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Eligibility was limited to low-income residents of Gary, Indiana, with age and household income cited as the primary screening factors in program records. Specific income thresholds, application windows, and the participant selection methodology (e.g., lottery versus targeted outreach) could not be independently verified in sources located during this research pass. No narrower demographic targeting (e.g., parents only, justice-involved individuals) beyond general low-income status was confirmed.
Demographics
- Minimum age
- 18
Geography
- US states covered
- Indiana
- Countries covered
- United States
- Cities covered
- Gary
- Counties covered
- Lake
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
