Yolo County presents preliminary findings from two-year basic income pilot for families with young children

Yolo County and UC Davis researchers on Feb. 25 presented preliminary findings from a two-year guaranteed income pilot that provided monthly stipends to households on CalWORKs with children under age 6.

The Yolo Basic Income pilot (YOBO), which ran 2022–24, provided an average stipend of $1,289 per family month and targeted families already enrolled in CalWORKs and the county's Housing Support Program (HSP). Dr. Katherine Brinkley of UC Davis told the board that researchers carried out more than 260 long-form surveys and 37 participant interviews and found statistically significant improvements on several measures of stability.

Why it matters: Participants reported increased housing stability and reduced financial stress; UC Davis researchers said the share of YOBO recipients who reported they could afford rent or ownership rose substantially (for example, a reported increase from about 53% to 82% for YOBO recipients overall). Participants also reported caregivers felt more confident and were better able to attend to children's needs, school involvement and healthcare. The county noted about half of program recipients had been one paycheck away from losing housing before the pilot.

Selected findings and participant comments presented: - A statistically significant increase in participants reporting that “my life feels more stable” (a 62% increase among YOBO families reported by researchers). - Housing stability gains: YOBO-only participants moved from roughly 53% able to afford rent/own at baseline to 82% at follow-up; YOBO+HSP participants rose from about 64% to 93%, per the presentation. - Participant testimonials highlighted uses of funds for rent, childcare, transportation and medical needs; staff and participants said the guaranteed income gave families a reprieve from immediate crises and helped some qualify for housing.

Researchers and county staff stressed two caveats: the pilot cohort was small (243 individuals served) and qualitative accounts showed families were anxious about the program’s end; several presenters suggested a tapered or phased-off exit would be less disruptive than a sudden stop. The research team said full quantitative and qualitative results are in a draft 30-page report to be shared with the board for review and comment; staff said the report will be embargoed briefly to allow supervisors to provide input.

Board discussion covered program costs, scalability and next steps. County staff noted the entire pilot cost about $3.3 million and that roughly 95% of funding went directly to participants. Board members and presenters discussed possible state-level scaling and the need for advocacy; researchers said other California localities are showing interest and the team plans to produce a playbook for other counties.

No vote was taken; the presentation was informational and the draft report will be circulated to the board for comment before public release.