Establishes "Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act."

S3459

SENATE, No. 3459

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 9, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� JAMES BEACH

District 6 (Burlington and Camden)

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes �Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income
Pilot Program Act.�

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
establishing the �Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income
Pilot Program Act.�

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� This act shall be known
and may be cited as the �Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program
Act.�

���� 2.��� The Legislature finds
and declares that:

���� a.���� Each year, an estimated
4,200,000 youth and young adults experience homelessness in the United States.

���� b.��� According to a report by
the Chapin Hall Voices of Youth Count project, one in 10 young adults between
the ages of 18 and 25 experience some form of homelessness over the course of a
year.

���� c.���� Youth and young adults
face many barriers to safe and stable housing, such as systemic and structural
racism, age discrimination, and a scarce supply of affordable housing suitable
for occupancy.

���� d.��� Prior to the COVID-19
pandemic, one in five young people of color were living in poverty, as opposed
to one in nine young white people, and the impact of the pandemic has resulted
in a significant widening of the inequities faced by young adults of color when
seeking safe housing and careers of their choice with stable income.

���� e.���� Full-time minimum-wage
earners cannot afford the average cost of a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in
the United States.

���� f.���� The changing nature of
the economy, including the growth of the �gig economy� in which workers earn
income providing on-demand work, services, or goods; unemployment risks posed
by automation; and the fluctuating nature of waged labor will result in increased
income volatility and prevent upward economic mobility, especially among young
adults.

���� g.��� According to the Hudson
County 2025 Point-in-Time Count, 1,091 individuals were identified as
experiencing homelessness on a single night, with disproportionate impacts
along racial lines.

���� h.��� The federal strategic
plan to prevent and end homelessness has identified homeless youth as a
priority population for targeted intervention and supports the use of local and
systems-level plans.

���� i.���� Guaranteed income pilot
programs in other states have demonstrated the potential value of cash stipends
in improving economic stability and outcomes for individuals in need.

���� 3.��� As used in this act:

���� �Adequate nighttime residence�
means:

���� (1)�� a supervised publicly or
privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations;

���� (2) �an institution or a
publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living
accommodations;

���� (3) �transitional housing;

���� (4) �a temporary placement
with a peer, friend, or family member that has not offered permanent residence,
a residential lease, or temporary lodging for more than 30 days; or

���� (5) �a public or private place
not designed for, nor ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for
human habitation.

���� �Commissioner� means the
Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development.

���� �Homeless youth� means an
emancipated minor or an individual who is of 18 to 24 years of age who lacks an
adequate nighttime residence.�

���� �Program� means the �Youth
Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program� established pursuant to this act.

���� �Wraparound services� means
supportive services that address barriers to housing and employment including,
but not limited to, housing navigation services, financial coaching, mental
health services, education support, employment services, transportation, child
care services, and retention services.

���� 4.��� a.� The Commissioner of
Labor and Workforce Development shall establish a one-year �Youth Homelessness
Guaranteed Income Pilot Program,� including an enrollment, service delivery,
and evaluation period, to provide a one-time payment of $5,000 and a monthly
direct cash stipend of $1,200 for nine months to 50 homeless youth in Hudson
County.� The program shall be designed to meet the needs of underserved
communities.

���� b.��� The commissioner, in
consultation with the Office of Homelessness Prevention in the Department of
Community Affairs and providers of services to individuals experiencing
homelessness, shall:

���� (1) �collect data relating to
homeless youth under the program which shall include information necessary to
determine the eligibility of the individual to participate in the program or
administer the program with the individual as a participant and shall not include
information regarding the citizenship status, immigration status, or Social
Security number of any individual participating in the program;

���� (2) �provide technical
assistance and wraparound services to program participants;

���� (3)�� assist in identifying,
applying for, and using any service or assistance available to a program
participant that is funded under the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance
Act (42 U.S.C. s.11301 et seq.);

���� (4)�� study the data collected
from participants in the program regarding housing status, economic stability,
and other information relevant to the program; and

���� (5)�� submit a report to the
Governor and the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1), no later than the first day of the sixth month following the
conclusion of the one-year pilot program.� The report shall include findings
and recommendations that would enhance the effectiveness of the program and a
recommendation on whether the program should be continued or expanded.

���� c.���� Notwithstanding any
law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a cash stipend provided under this
section shall not be considered income, assets, or personal property for the
purpose of determining eligibility for a State-funded public assistance program
for which the State has discretion to define income eligibility.

���� d.��� The Office of
Homelessness Prevention in the Department of Community Affairs, in consultation
with providers of services to individuals experiencing homelessness, shall
provide recommendations to the commissioner on the following:

���� (1)�� the selection criteria
for program participants that are consistent with the objectives of the program
established pursuant to section 4 of this act;

���� (2)�� the forms of assistance
to be provided under the program; and

���� (3)�� improvements to the
performance and administration of the program.

���� e.���� The commissioner may
promulgate regulations pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure
Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.) necessary to effectuate the
purposes of this act.

���� 5.��� This act shall take
effect the first day of the fourth month next following the date of enactment,
except that the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development may take such
anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall be necessary for the
implementation of the act.

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes �Youth
Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program Act.�

���� The bill
requires the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development to establish a
one-year �Youth Homelessness Guaranteed Income Pilot Program� to provide a
one-time payment of $5,000 and a monthly direct cash stipend of $1,200 for nine
months to 50 homeless youth in Hudson County.
� �Homeless youth� is defined
as an emancipated minor or an individual who is of 18 to 24 years of age who
lacks an adequate nighttime residence.

���� Under the bill, the
commissioner,
in consultation with the Office of
Homelessness Prevention in the Department of Community Affairs and certain
service providers,
is required to provide technical assistance and
wraparound services to participants, assist participants in accessing other
housing and assistance programs, and collect and analyze data related to housing
status, economic stability, and other information relevant to the program.�

���� The bill requires
the commissioner to submit a report no later than the
first day of the sixth month following the conclusion of the one-year pilot
program including findings, recommendations to improve the program, and a
recommendation on whether the program should be continued or expanded.

���� The bill provides that cash
stipends are not considered income, assets, or personal property for the
purpose of determining eligibility for a State-funded public assistance program
for which the State has discretion to define income eligibility.