Texas Supreme Court Halts Guaranteed Income Program in Harris County
The Texas Supreme Court has ordered Harris County, which encompasses Houston, to suspend a guaranteed income program that aimed to provide monthly cash payments of $500 to nearly 2,000 residents. The program has drawn the ire of Republican Attorney General Paxton, who has accused Democratic local leaders of exploiting the initiative for political gain and filed a lawsuit to block its implementation.
The program is the latest point of contention between state and local policymakers in the Houston region, where Democrats have been making political inroads in recent years. The Texas Supreme Court, comprised entirely of Republican justices, has not ruled on the merits of the program, known as Uplift Harris. However, the nine justices have ordered the county to pause the program while they deliberate on its legality.
If implemented, Harris County would join the ranks of the largest counties in the nation to establish guaranteed income programs, which have proliferated since the pandemic. Major Texas cities such as Austin and San Antonio have previously offered similar programs without facing legal challenges from the state.
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee expressed pessimism about the county receiving fair treatment from the Texas Supreme Court, which could potentially shut down the program indefinitely. Menefee characterized the lawsuit as a political maneuver against an area with rising Democratic influence.
The program was designed to provide cash payments to over 1,900 eligible county residents for a period of 18 months. To qualify, recipients must reside in an area designated as having a high poverty rate and have a household income below 200% of the federal poverty line (approximately $30,000 for a single-person household). The program is funded by $20.5 million from President Biden’s 2021 pandemic relief package and joins a growing number of guaranteed income initiatives across the country aimed at combating poverty and inequality.
Attorney General Paxton contends that the program, which he derides as the “Harris Handout,” violates a provision of the state constitution that prohibits local governments, political corporations, or state entities from granting “public money or thing of value in aid of, or to any individual.”
“Harris County officials cannot continue to abuse their power and the people’s money to score political points, and we will fight every step of the way to hold them accountable,” Paxton stated in a press release following his appeal to the state’s highest civil court.
Harris County officials have vehemently pushed back against these accusations, arguing that the decision to halt the program is politically motivated and contradicting rulings from two lower courts that had allowed it to proceed. According to county officials, they have received more than 82,000 applications for the program and were poised to begin distributing funds.
The lawsuit is part of a pattern of conflicts between the county and Republican state leaders, resulting in multiple legal battles. In 2021, state lawmakers passed voting legislation targeting programs implemented by the county the previous year to facilitate voting during the COVID-19 pandemic for its electorate of over 2 million. During the subsequent legislative session in 2023, GOP legislators passed additional laws seeking to exert greater control over Harris County. Last year, state education authorities assumed control of the Houston school district, the state’s largest, following years of complaints about student performance.
