The Low-Income Bus Pass Program Subcommittee met Thursday concerning a proposal to provide cheaper bus passes for people at or below the poverty level by next year.
Committee member Steven Schooler from Porchlight Inc. said, “The goal is to make (an) assessment of the low-income program … and to (consider) continuation of the program.”
Committee member Ald. Shiva Bidar-Sielaff, District 5, pointed out an additional goal.
“To make sure that low-income people have a way to get on the bus,” she said.
Nineteen percent of the population of Madison in 2008 had a household income of less than $10,000, and 25 percent was between $10,000 and $25,000 in 2008, according to statistics provided at the meeting.
The committee had problems determining how to define eligibility for these discounted bus passes, considering a range between 100 to 200 percent below poverty level to be the eligibility standard.
For example, a $22,000 a year salary is considered 150 percent below poverty level for a household of four, according to statistics supplied by the committee.
Another issue the committee discussed was a way to obtain proof a person is within the standard poverty level.
“(Should) someone come up and pay for their ticket with their tax return?” Schooler said.
Another problem the committee discussed was how to classify someone who has financial difficulties for a short period of time.
For example, a person who would normally be above the poverty standard may hit a rough patch and the person should then be allowed access to the cheaper tickets, Bidar-Sielaff said.
Schooler thought an additional problem would be determining who the person would be that judges whether or not a person’s situation is dire enough to obtain benefits reserved for below-poverty individuals.
“I’m a social worker, you come in and say I’m really down on my luck and I say OK … how (are we sure) that (this) social worker uses (the) same judgment?” Schooler said.
This type of project has been embarked upon before; in the past, Porchlight Inc., along with other agencies, purchased discounted bus passes from Metro and handed them out to people, but the Metro ended this program.
Porchlight then became the lead agency providing discounted bus passes and used the $40,000 remaining from the discontinued program to buy tickets that were then distributed to agencies.
The city government would like one of these to work out, according to committee member Ray Harmon, assistant to the mayor, but there is still research to be done pertaining to the finances.
“I haven’t heard a funding source yet that I think is viable,” Schooler said.
In their next meeting, the committee will have to determine what percentage of the population they will be catering to, what level of poverty the recipients need to be at, who the target consumer is and what agency will provide a viable source of income.
