On February 15, 2023, Melody R. Webb, Executive Director of Mothers Outreach Network and lead of the DC Guaranteed Income Coalition, delivered powerful testimony before the DC City Council’s Committee on Business & Economic Development. Her message was clear: DC must expand and protect guaranteed income initiatives to ensure all residents— especially Black mothers and low-income families— can live above the poverty line with dignity and stability.
Representing an organization that combines legal advocacy with community organizing, Webb highlighted both the promise and the current limitations of guaranteed income programs in the District. She celebrated Councilmember McDuffie’s support of pilot programs like Strong Families, Strong Futures, but emphasized that one-time pilots are not enough. With over 100,000 DC residents living below the poverty line, and over 40% of single mothers in poverty pre-pandemic, Webb called for the Council to:
- Create a permanent guaranteed income program to supplement the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), not replace it.
- Expand the reach of pilots beyond Wards 5, 7, and 8, to include areas like Ward 6 where poverty is still concentrated.
- Address the “benefits cliff”—where increased income from programs can result in the loss of vital public benefits—by seeking federal waivers and pushing for policy changes at both the federal and local levels.
Webb also announced that MON is preparing to launch a privately funded guaranteed income pilot for mothers involved with DC’s Child and Family Services Agency—recognizing the role poverty plays in family separation and surveillance.
Her testimony was a call to moral action rooted in solidarity, not charity: a vision for a DC where every resident has the economic foundation to thrive.
