Would you join a club where the goal is to redistribute money?

Last spring, Finan Adamson was job hunting in Baltimore. He’d recently graduated with a master’s degree from the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University. But there wasn’t a lot going on in public health at the time.

“With big cuts to the public health agencies, there were a lot of out-of-work public health professionals who were more qualified than me, for a lot of the jobs I was interested in,” Adamson said.

When the Trump administration made massive cuts to the federal workforce, Maryland was hit hard. It lost close to 25,000 federal jobs last year, more than any other state. One Marylander, Alex Zhu, saw friends lose jobs and wanted to create some financial certainty for them. So, he created the Community Guaranteed Income Club, where the goal is to redistribute money. It’s now been running for over a year and has redistributed over $25,000.

When Adamson became a member last year, he received some money each month while he was out of work — up to $180. He said it felt good to receive support from people he knew.

“It was a small relief valve to get some money for groceries, mostly,” he said.

The club now has over 50 members. They each self-report their monthly income, subtract taxes and student loan payments, and then the club uses a formula to redistribute the money.

“We calculate the average, and the people who make above the average send money to the people who make below the average, and we tell them who to send to,” said club founder Alex Zhu.

Right now, the person in the club with the highest income makes about $10,000 a month, post-tax. That member’s sending out $700, split between multiple people. People who have no money coming in each get about $200.

Some members have incomes that vary, including Elisheva Pront. She’s a classically trained singer who works as a performer and teacher. She gets paid for about half of her performance gigs.

“My voice teaching is pretty consistent, but my performance work is not,” Pront said.

In months where she has more paying gigs lined up, she usually gives money — about $80 or so. When she doesn’t, she gets money, up to $100, and puts it toward groceries.

“It's just been a little bit more of a cushion,” she said.

Pront said she’s thankful to feel supported by people in her community, and is also happy when she’s on the giving end. “I want to be a part of a community where everyone has enough, and everyone gives to those who don't,” she said.

Most UBI programs so far have been experimental. But a more consistent income is one of the main benefits, said Stacia West, a professor at the University of Tennessee who studies UBI.

“When that income volatility is smoothed, we often see reductions in things like anxiety and depression,” West said.

There are other benefits: one of West’s studies of a program in Stockton, California, found people who received $500 a month for two years had more time and energy to look for jobs. Meanwhile, in Baltimore, some club members who were unemployed when they first joined have since found jobs, and then turned from being receivers to givers. That includes Finan Adamson, who got a job last summer.

“I have enough money to live, and it feels good to give back to some friends,” he said.

However, he’s planning to leave the club. He thinks the money he’s giving each month (about $180) could go farther if he gives it to someone in a less wealthy country. Also, as the club’s grown, he doesn’t know as many of the people he’s helping out.

“I do want to be able to give to friends who I know who are struggling,” he said.

Other members have left for different reasons. These departures do create a challenge for the club: Right now, there’s a wait list for people who make less money, and a constant hunt for members who can give it.