Harris County Officially Ends Failed ‘Uplift Harris’

June 15, 2025 – Harris County has officially shut down its Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) program after months of delays, administrative costs, and no funds ever being distributed to residents. The program, which was intended to provide direct monthly cash payments to low-income families, ultimately failed to launch despite millions of taxpayer dollars already being spent on planning and administration.

The program, originally launched as Uplift Harris and later rebranded as the Community Prosperity Program, was designed to provide $500 per month to nearly 1,900 low-income residents. 

The initiative was part of a broader national trend to test guaranteed income as a poverty-fighting tool. Harris County leaders originally touted the program as a way to provide economic stability to vulnerable populations by offering no-strings-attached cash payments over an extended period. However, the program encountered persistent operational hurdles, including vendor selection issues, data management problems, and difficulties setting up the necessary infrastructure to begin payments.

Despite these challenges, the county continued to invest in administrative costs with the hope of eventually launching the program. In the end, however, the effort was deemed unworkable, and county officials voted to officially terminate it. Total expenditures appear to be north of $1.7 million so far. No funds were ever disbursed to intended recipients.

Critics have called the program’s collapse a significant waste of public resources, pointing to the millions spent on a project that provided no benefit to residents. Supporters of guaranteed income initiatives expressed disappointment but emphasized the need to pursue more carefully designed and executable programs in the future.