If this Pew survey (1) is correct, then 148 million (45%) people in the US favor a universal basic income (UBI).
However, many people--such as myself--oppose a tax-subsidized universal basic income on the grounds that
a) we have many other higher priorities for our charitable giving
b) existing subsidies (such as Social Security) are on track to bankrupt many countries
c) no strings attached giving subsidizes bad behavior (drug abuse, gambling, wasteful spending)
d) we object on principle to extortion as a means of funding goods.
But must UBI supporters coerce everyone else to get what they want?
148 million people is more than the population of Japan (126 million people).
Can a UBI can "work" in Japan?
If so, then the 148 million people who want a UBI should be able to provide one to each other. No need to involve the people who don't want a UBI.
People who support a UBI could sign contracts with each other enforcing the donation of a fixed amount/percentage of their income for the rest of their lives. The donated money could then be restributed equally among all the participants.
The German organization Mein Grundeinkommen (My Basic Income) has been running a voluntary basic income lottery program since 2014:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mein_Grundeinkommen
You don't even have to be German to participate:
https://www.mein-grundeinkommen.de/infos/in-english
Perhaps Free Staters should start a voluntary "My Basic Income" for New Hampshire?
Let's call the non-profit organizing a voluntary basic income (VBI) the Porcupine VBI (PVBI).
I'd do a survey first, and get people to publicly sign a petition to express their support for a government UBI. If the same proportion of New Hampshire citizens support a UBI as the national population, that's ~615,000 people.
Then I'd follow up with them to sign a contract with the PVBI, committing them to donate 10% of their gross monthly income to the PVBI capital pool. The 10% number was chosen as it is the amount that Christians are commonly enjoined to donate to their churches. Since the PVBI would presumably reduce welfare use, make it partially tax deductible.
To provide a $1000/month VBI to 615 K people would require $615 M per month, or $7.4 billion per year.
To generate $7.4 billion/year in perpetuity would require $185 billion in investment capital (assuming a 4% real rate of return).
NH has a median per capita income of about ~$50 K/year. 10% of that is $5 K/person, so 615 K people would generate ~$3.1 billion per year. Let's round down to $3 billion. $3 billion would generate $120 million/year in perpetuity. Therefore, every year, the PVBI could provide $12 K/year in perpetuity to an additional 10 K individuals.
At this rate, it would take the PVBI ~62 years to provide a VBI in perpetuity for every participant. At that point, assuming that the 4% real rate of return continues to hold true, no additional funds would be required to provide a VBI for the original 615 K members.
No coercion required. Everyone who wants a VBI gets a VBI.
Of course, these are just ballpark figures. The number of VBI supporters who would actually follow through is likely much lower, the amount they would actually agree to give is probably much less, etc.
But it would be fun to try! Put up a leader board so that people could see who the most generous donors are.
Progessive and conservative politicians could compete on how mcuh they’ve donated to the PVBI.