> '"Means-testing"—as in welfare programs—specifically refers to payouts that have cliffs...' means-testing doesn't imply cliffs, only checking (e.g., 'means'

> '"Means-testing"—as in welfare programs—specifically refers to payouts that have cliffs...' means-testing doesn't imply cliffs, only checking (e.g., 'means' of otherwise survival) before providing. progressive application is simply the continuous form of means-testing, rather than discontinuous cliffs (which are conceptually simpler, but create adverse incentives). frankly, every fiscal program should phase in/out with income/wealth over the whole range (i.e., be universally progressive), rather than discontinously and/or regressively (e.g., payroll taxes). in this regard, UBI simply says that instead of just being continuous, let's also make the payout function a constant.