Political | Process

The city stated that the program is only for individuals who meet a poverty threshold.

Former San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio, a Republican who served as the first openly gay member of the city council, called the program “outrageous and discriminatory.”

“We’re completely opposed to guaranteed or universal basic income programs, because they ultimately cause inflation and raise the cost of living on everyone they don’t work,” DeMaio said in a statement.

“But at least some of them have minimum income requirements to qualify, whereas this one is no-strings-attached ‘woke’ virtue signaling to the LGBT community in a way that is not only offensive but discriminatory,” he continued.

Twenty transgender and nonbinary Palm Springs residents will receive the free money funded by the taxpayers for 18 months, with advocacy-based health center DAP Health and LGBT advocacy group Queer Works managing the program.

A six-month design period will be the precursor of the program’s implementation, in which the group Mayors for a Guaranteed Income will be involved providing guidance.

DAP Health CEO David Brinkman claimed to reporters that the transgendered population is “one of the most marginalized populations in our city who face some of the highest levels of housing insecurity, joblessness and discrimination.”

Queer Works CEO Jacob Rostowsky also claimed in a press release that transgender and nonbinary people “are highly marginalized in our society in general, especially economically,” and told the Desert Sun that the city of Palm Springs would have to match any state funds.

“Our project’s budget is estimated at about $1.8 million,” Rostowsky said. “And so when we look at what other [programs] that have been successfully funded have done, their local cities have provided nearly a match to that funding.”