HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A court hearing on a lawsuit challenging the legality of the Uplift Harris guaranteed income program is scheduled for Thursday morning.
The program is set to start this month, but Texas is asking the court to stop that from happening. A judge could grant or deny that request Thursday morning.
Uplift Harris is a Harris County pilot program designed to give eligible families who are living in poverty $500 a month for 18 months.
Last week, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the county, calling the program unconstitutional and an abuse of public funds. He said taxpayer money cannot be "redistributed with no accountability or reasonable expectation of a general benefit."
The county is pushing back, asking the court to allow to program to proceed. The county argues that the program provides social and economic benefits to both participating families and the broader community.
Around 1,900 families were chosen for the program.