For comparison, current Federal welfare spending divided across all households is equivalent to ~$3000/year: http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/us_welfare_spen

For comparison, current Federal welfare spending divided across all households is equivalent to ~$3000/year: http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/us_welfare_spending_40.html http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/us_welfare_spending_40.h... I think the expectation is that income taxes would increase so that above a certain income level it becomes a net negative or break even at least - in that case it's pretty easy to get $1000 or $2000 / month equivalent for the bottom quarter of households or so. It's interesting that you describe $1000/year as "Exceeds combination of all federal spending on healthcare and education." given that it would be a savings over current welfare programs - doesn't seem like a very balanced comparison.