Without much fanfare, Sanya has been distributing a small unconditional basic income to its residents. The Chinese calls this "all citizen dividend". The amount is about 60 rmb per month per resident. It has been doing this for 5 years. This unconditional payment is small, but to the poor, it is still a meaningful amount. The payment is about twice a year (every six months). Since 2011, this has been a regular payment and part of the operating budget.
In 2014, the payments covering 6 months reach 620,000 people and total 223.2 million rmb (that is 360 rmb per person). Over 5 years, Sanya city has distributed 1.29 billion rmb. Early in 2014, Sanya distributed an additional 200 rmb per person. According to one estimate, the amount is about 1000 rmb per resident annually. According to China Labour Bulletin, the minimum wage in Hainan is about 1000 to 1150 rmb. So the unconditional "all citizen dividend" is about 1 month of minimum wage. As a percentage of salary, this Sanya payment looks comparable to or even better than the Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend (US$900 in 2014).
Many people admire this Sanya city system and suggest that this could be done in other cities all over China. They highlight that this is really people equally sharing in the city's progress. Others say that returning wealth to the people is the right and just way to go. An analyst suggests that Xiamen city has a strong budget and can easily afford a similar "all citizen dividend" for its residents.
According to this online survey, 22695 (83%) support this unconditional cash distribution while 4396 (17%) are against it. If this survey is representative of people around the world, there is great hope for an unconditional basic income in many countries.
However, Sanya's unconditional basic income is under threat.
A writer proposed that the payments should be legislated so that future payments will be according to the law instead of depending on the politicians' "mood and sense of generosity." Shortly after, in July 2014, Sanya announced that the payments will be modified and will no longer be unconditional. It will become a traditional targeted welfare payment. This is attributed to a directive from the Hainan Provincial government. As a result, only about one third of the residents will get paid, with a drastic drop in the total payment.
Some see the Provincial directive as a defensive response to the popularity of Sanya's unconditional basic income. The central governments are afraid of more demands for other cities, provinces, or even at the national level. Some see the Provincial directive as a regression in the country's progress.
In comparison, Macau's unconditional cash payment has not be curtailed by the central government since Macau is a semi-autonomous "Special Administrative Region".
At this moment, it remains to be seen how the Sanya system will evolve eventually, and whether other cities will want to do the same.
References (in Chinese)
三亚给居民发“红包”：改革发展红利 人人有份
事实上，全民分红，不仅只有现金发放的形式。清华大学教授崔之元认为，我国完全可以学习美国阿拉斯加州、英国的做法，把166家中央直属国有企业利润的50%作为这个基金的本金，然后每年把基金投资收益的50%拿出来作为对全体国民的分红。Translated:
In fact, universal citizen dividend is not only a simple form of cash distribution. Tsinghua University Professor Cui believes that China can learn the Alaska and the UK approach. Place 50% of the 166 state-owned enterprises' profits as the principal of a fund. Then, each year, 50% of the fund's investment income can be used for the universal citizen dividend.
根据统计局的数据，三亚城镇居民2012平均一年在食物上的消费支出是7604元，这么一看720元的补贴还是能够很有用处的Translated:
According to Statistics, the average food consumption expenditure for Sanya urban residents in the year 2012 was 7,604 yuan. A subsidy of 720 yuan can still be useful.
三亚5年发物价补贴12.9亿元 外地网友称羡慕 作者：蔡东成
据统计，三亚市物价补贴发放工作从2010年下半年开始启动，至2014年春节前夕发放的追加补贴，已累计发放物价补贴约12.9亿元，惠及约463.79万人次。其中，2010年发放1次，发放标准为每人180元/半年，补贴51.12万人次，发放补贴资金9201.6万元；2011年发放2次，发放标准为每人510元/年，补贴111.08万人次，发放补贴资金28120.94万元；2012年发放2次，发放标准为每人600元/年，补贴115.96万人次，发放补贴资金34789.17万元；2013年发放2次，发放标准为每人720元/年，补贴123.24万人次，发放补贴资金44364.92万元；2014年春节前夕追加发放物价补贴每人200元，补贴62.39万人次，发放补贴资金12479.36万元。也就是说，按照目前的标准来算，符合条件的三亚居民每年可获得政府物价补贴近千元。Translated:
According to statistics, Sanya price subsidies payments started from the second half of 2010. Up to the additional subsidy on the eve of Spring Festival in 2014, the total price subsidies paid is approximately 1.29 billion, benefiting approximately 4,637,900 people*payment. Among them, the 2010 payment 1, the standard amount is 180 yuan per person / half a year, reaching 511,200 persons, totaling 92,016,000 yuan; 2011 payments 1 and 2, the amount is 510 yuan per person / year, reaching 1,110,800 persons*payment (double counted for 2 payments), totaling 281,209,400 yuan; 2012 payments 1 and 2, the amount is 600 yuan per person / year, reaching 1,159,600 person&payment (double counted for two payments), totaling 347,891,700 yuan; 2013 payments 1 and 2, 720 yuan per person / years, reaching 1,232,400 person*payment, totaling 443,649,200 yuan; Spring Festival eve 2014 an additional payment of 200 yuan per person price subsidies, reaching 623,900 people, totaling 124,793,600 yuan. In other words, qualified residents of Sanya receive government price subsidies each year of nearly a thousand dollars.
全民发钱是朴素的收入分配调节 作者：叶祝颐
在我看来，政府全民发钱除了让民众收入跑赢物价，抵消CPI增长的影响，让人民直接分享发展成果以外，更重要的是体现了政府的公共责任。而且向民众分红，国有企业特别是垄断企业责无旁贷。财政部曾要求央企提高利润上缴比例。何不把央企利润用来藏富于民、改善民生？Translated:
In my opinion, the government distributing money to everyone not only allows people's income to run ahead of prices to offset the impact of CPI growth, allowing the people to have a direct share of the fruits of development, but more importantly, it embodies the government's public responsibility. And about distributing dividends to the people, the state-owned enterprises, especially the monopolies, should bear this responsibility. Ministry of Finance has asked the central enterprises to improve the proportion of profits paid. Why not put the central enterprises profit for the wealth of the people, to improve people's livelihood?
毕晓哲：三亚全民发“红包”行为应尽快“法定化”
令人担忧的是，这一政府发放“红包”举措并未形成一种固定的或法定制度安排。地方政府并未为此立法，今后还发不发，发多发少主要取决于政府决策者“心态”和“大方程度”，而不是民意和制度安排，这一现状不能不让公众对于三亚市“居民红包”的未来如何表示担忧。Translated:
It is worrying that this government-issued "bonus" initiative has not formed into a fixed or statutory system. The local government did not implement a legislation for it. In future, whether this will continue or not depends on the government policy-makers' "mood" and "generosity level", rather than the public opinion and institutional arrangements. With this situation, the public has to worry for the future of Sanya city's "resident bonus".
评论：三亚的全民红包为何玩不下去 作者为上海媒体人士
上级不准“全民分红”违反财税体制改革精神 作者：许斌
除了三亚，他们也发全民红包 编辑：朱碧怡
目前大家热议的方向是，三亚之后会不会还有其他城市跟进？而作为老工业基地的辽宁，是否会有哪个城市效仿？Translated:
What we are hotly discussing is: will other cities follow up after Sanya? In Liaoning province, the old industrial base, will any city follow suit?
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