St. Paul’s basic income experiment: $12K, money for college…

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St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter speaks at the Rondo Center of Diverse Expression’s Juneteenth block party at the Rondo Commemorative Plaza in St. Paul on Sunday, June 19, 2022. (Scott Takushi / Pioneer Press)

St. Paul is expanding its guaranteed basic income experiment, giving monthly checks to more families while also making deposits into some of their children’s college savings accounts. With the city council’s support, Mayor Melvin Carter launched the People’s Prosperity Guaranteed Income Pilot in November 2020, spending $300,000 in federal coronavirus relief grants and $1.2 million from donors. That provided $500 a month for 18 months to 150 low-income families with no strings attached. Carter announced Wednesday that the next phase, which he’s calling CollegeBound Boost, will send money to two groups: 333 families will get $1,000 added to each of their children’s College Bound St. Paul savings accounts. 333 additional families will get the same $1,000 for college, plus two full years of monthly $500 checks. The city will compare the outcomes for those families against a third “control” group of 333 families enrolled in College Bou …