Report highlights participant feedback and impacts from the city’s guaranteed income pilot project, Elevate Boulder.

The City of Boulder has released the Elevate Boulder Interim Evaluation report, which highlights participant feedback from the first eight months of Boulder’s guaranteed income pilot project.

“We’re thrilled that with just eight months of direct cash assistance through Elevate Boulder, participants are seeing significant improvements in household food security, mental health and their ability to pay for basic needs like rent and utilities,” said Elizabeth Crowe, Housing and Human Services deputy director.

Launched in January 2024, Elevate Boulder is providing 200 low-income Boulder households $500 per month in direct cash assistance for two years, no strings attached. Through this pilot project, the city and partners hope to foster equity and help community members meet basic needs and become more financially stable.

The report summarizes Elevate Boulder participant feedback collected in August and October 2024. Key findings include:

  • Fewer people are experiencing difficulty in paying for housing and utilities;
  • Fewer people are experiencing food insecurity;
  • Fewer people are struggling to afford wellness activities;
  • There was a reduction in psychological distress;
  • Most respondents feel better prepared to meet their long-term financial goals; and
  • Nearly all respondents said they were treated with dignity and respect through the process and felt empowered by their participation.

Visit the city’s website to learn more about Elevate Boulder and to view the full report.

“Before I was accepted into this program, I was struggling really hard to make ends meet. The extra $500 per month has changed my life for the better in ways that are impossible to describe,” said one participant. “Sometimes the payment lands at that point between paychecks where I am struggling for groceries or gas, and it’ll see me through until the next payday. Or I’ve used it when the car desperately needed an oil change and I didn’t have it in my weekly budget from my wages . . . My daughter and I are doing so much better with this little boost in our lives.”

“These early results are promising, with positive findings that are similar to some other direct cash assistance projects,” said Ana Nunes, Director at OMNI Institute. “We look forward to the 20-month follow-up to assess the change in participants’ financial stability and other longer-term outcomes.” The Center for Social Investment at OMNI is the evaluation partner for Elevate Boulder.

The city allocated $3 million in one-time revenue from its American Rescue Plan Act funds for the project. Additionally, the Community Foundation Boulder County and donors to the Elevate Boulder Fund are supporting this project.

If you have questions about Elevate Boulder, please email Elizabeth Crowe at crowee@bouldercolorado.gov.

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