Richmond Resilience Initiative (RRI) — Cohort 1
The Richmond Resilience Initiative (RRI) was Richmond, Virginia's first guaranteed income pilot, launched in October/November 2020 by the City of Richmond's Office of Community Wealth Building (OCWB) in partnership with the Robins Foundation, UpTogether, and Mayors for a Guaranteed Income. This first cohort gave $500 in unconditional monthly cash payments for 24 months to working parents already connected to OCWB who earned too much to qualify for federal benefits (the 'cliff effect') but still did not earn a living wage. Starting with 18 households, the cohort expanded through additional grant funding to a total of 94 participants by the time it concluded in December 2022. Payments were funded by CARES Act/ARPA dollars plus private philanthropic support, and participants also had access to financial coaching through the Richmond City Treasurer's Office of Financial Empowerment. An independent evaluation by the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Guaranteed Income Research (CGIR) found increased savings, better employment outcomes, and more time for parenting among recipients.
Cliff Effect, Working Families, First Cohort, ARPA/CARES Act-funded, UpTogether Platform
Headquarters
- Organization Name
- City of Richmond Office of Community Wealth Building
- City
- Richmond
- State / Province
- Virginia
- Country
- United States
Contact
- rri@rva.gov
Status & Funding
- Organization status
- Active
- Program status
- Inactive
- Number of recipients
- 94
- Funding type
- Government, Philanthropic, Nonprofit
Benefits
- Currency Type
- Fiat
- Currency
- USD
- Total Amount
- 12,000 USD
- Avg. Per Month
- 500 USD
- Payment frequency
- Monthly
- How long the program lasts
- 24 months
- Distribution Type
- Direct Deposit, UpTogether Prepaid Card
- Benefit details
$500 was disbursed monthly for 24 consecutive months via direct deposit or the UpTogether prepaid card (for participants without a bank account), with no restrictions on how funds could be used. Payments were designed to offset the 'cliff effect' loss of public benefits rather than replace wages. This first cohort was funded by Mayors for a Guaranteed Income, the Robins Foundation, the Richmond Memorial Health Foundation, and federal CARES Act/American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) relief dollars.
Eligibility
Overview
- Eligibility details
Open only to individuals already enrolled as clients of the City of Richmond's Office of Community Wealth Building (OCWB); this was not an open public application. Eligible participants had to be Richmond residents, employed and earning more than $12.71/hour (the full-time wage threshold for federal benefit eligibility), have at least one child under 18 in the household, and no longer qualify for federal benefits such as housing vouchers or Medicaid despite not yet earning a living wage. Participants were chosen via random drawing/lottery from the qualifying OCWB client pool.
Family
- Family Status
- Parent
- Number of dependents (minimum)
- 1
Financial
- Currently receiving government benefits
- Disqualifying
- Employment status
- Employed
Geography
- US states covered
- Virginia
- Countries covered
- United States
- Cities covered
- Richmond
- Residency of Target Geography
- Yes
Participation
- Research / data sharing
- Required
- Complementary program enrollment required
- Financial coaching / financial literacy education offered through the Richmond City Treasurer's Office of Financial Empowerment
- Research / participation requirements
Participants took part in an evaluation conducted by the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Guaranteed Income Research (CGIR), including surveys and qualitative interviews tracking financial well-being, employment, and family outcomes over the 24-month pilot.
Application Process
- How to apply
NA — not an open public application for this first cohort. Participants were selected by random drawing from the existing OCWB client caseload (see Selection process).
- Selection process
Random selection (lottery/drawing) from the existing caseload of Office of Community Wealth Building clients who met the family (child under 18), employment, and benefits-cliff income criteria. The pilot began with 18 households in fall 2020 and was later expanded to 94 total participants through additional Mayors for a Guaranteed Income grant funding.
