{"id":1116110,"date":"2023-07-03T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-07-03T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/basicincometoday.com\/?p=16583"},"modified":"2023-07-03T13:30:00","modified_gmt":"2023-07-03T13:30:00","slug":"l-a-county-opens-its-1000-a-month-aid-program-to-former-foster-youth-heres-how-to-apply","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2023\/07\/03\/l-a-county-opens-its-1000-a-month-aid-program-to-former-foster-youth-heres-how-to-apply\/","title":{"rendered":"L.A. County opens its $1,000-a-month aid program to former foster youth. Here\u2019s how to apply"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By\u00a0GISSELLE MEDINA<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

See original post here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kipp Kahlia<\/a> spent several decades touring as a guitarist with reggae artists from Jamaica until illness forced her to put a halt to her career. She began offering private guitar and bass lessons as a stopgap solution, still envisioning herself writing and performing songs some day that championed social justice and fostered understanding and empathy among audiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like many people shifting career gears, Kahlia had trouble making ends meet. She found crucial support, though, from Breathe<\/a>, the L.A. County government\u2019s guaranteed income pilot program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kahlia is\u00a0one of 1,000 county residents<\/a>\u00a0who will receive $1,000 a month for 36 months from the program. And now the county is extending the aid to a new group: former foster youth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Specifically, the program will offer $1,000 per month for two years to 200 young adults who were under the care of the L.A. County Department of Children and Family Services.<\/a> This expansion is being carried out in collaboration with the nonprofit Strength-Based Community Change organization and the University of Pennsylvania\u2019s Center for Guaranteed Income Research. Funding for Breathe comes from federal COVID-19 relief dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program will start accepting applications Tuesday, but those interested need to act fast; the application window closes in two weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the 200 participants, the county will select a control group of 450 foster youth who will not receive cash assistance. Both groups will actively participate in research activities conducted by the Center for Guaranteed Income Research, such as surveys and interviews, to better understand participants\u2019 experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For their time, members of the control group will receive $50 gift cards for each survey completed after the application and initial round of questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every year, approximately 4,000 foster youth in California<\/a> who have reached adulthood leave foster care, making them ineligible for further placements and support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c<\/strong>When you compare former foster youth to other cohorts of youth in the same situation as them, their rates of homelessness, unemployment, incarceration, and being involved in the justice system are higher,\u201d said Carrie Miller, executive director of the county\u2019s Poverty Alleviation Initiative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is especially true in Los Angeles County, which has the greatest number of foster care youths<\/a> in California. In January 2017, almost one-third of young people in foster care between the ages of 16 and 21 were enrolled in aid programs for low-income youths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are more details on the county\u2019s program and the application process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who is eligible for the program?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You are eligible if you meet all of these requirements:<\/p>\n\n\n\n