The GOP's War On UBI: How Bettencourt Is Pushing Texas To A Dystopian Future

Fighting poverty or preserving inequality? The stakes of Bettencourt’s UBI war.

https://www.lonestarleft.com/p/the-gops-war-on-ubi-how-bettencourt




After Ken Paxton sued Harris County earlier this year for their Uplift Harris Program, a guaranteed income pilot, the Republican-led Texas Supreme Court brought it to a screeching halt. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Harris County Commissioners voted on Uplift Harris 2.0 three weeks ago, passing this newly revised guaranteed income program. This led to a whole new freakout from Republicans, particularly Senator Paul Bettencourt.

Yesterday, the Texas Senate Committee on Local Government, chaired by Senator Bettencourt, met to discuss UBI (Universal Basic Income) programs—and not in a good way.

This is significant because this was the first hearing in the Texas Legislature ever held regarding UBI. Even though previous bills have been filed to ban any form of UBI, they have never been considered.

However, because of this grudge between Senator Bettencourt and Judge Hidalgo, he seems bent on picking up the torch. He plans to push legislation banning UBI programs in Texas in the 89th Legislature (which starts in January).