Below is a bill ready to send to your congress person. Feel free to copy and paste and send to congressional leaders. Also contained below is a pitch for the bill.
The Creative Freedom Act
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. ____
To establish a guaranteed annual basic income of $100,000 for professional creatives in the United States, thereby ensuring their ability to focus on artistic, cultural, and intellectual contributions without the burden of financial insecurity.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
[Date]
Mr./Ms. [Sponsor Name] introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.
A BILL
To establish a guaranteed annual basic income of $100,000 for professional creatives in the United States.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Creative Freedom Act of 2025.”
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS. - Congress finds the following:
(1) Professional creatives - including artists, writers, musicians, performers, and independent thinkers - are vital to the cultural and intellectual development of society.
(2) Financial precarity and lack of institutional support inhibit creative productivity and innovation.
(3) A guaranteed creative income will promote a thriving, diverse, and independent cultural landscape.
(b) PURPOSE. - The purpose of this Act is to:
(1) Ensure that professional creatives have the financial stability necessary to pursue their work full time.
(2) Affirm the societal value of creative labor and thought leadership.
(3) Remove economic barriers to cultural innovation and artistic freedom.
SEC. 3. CREATIVE BASIC INCOME PROGRAM.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT. - The Department of the Treasury shall establish and administer a program to provide a guaranteed annual income of $100,000 to eligible professional creatives.
(b) ELIGIBILITY. - To qualify for the program, an individual must:
(1) Demonstrate a sustained and serious commitment to a creative practice or discipline.
(2) Be a citizen or legal permanent resident of the United States.
(3) Submit a professional portfolio or record of work as defined by program guidelines.
(c) PAYMENT STRUCTURE. - The guaranteed income shall be distributed in monthly installments of $8,333.33.
(d) TAX STATUS. - The creative basic income shall be considered non-taxable income.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) “Creative” means an individual engaged in the production of original works in the fields of art, music, writing, design, performance, philosophy, or interdisciplinary innovation.
(2) “Professional” means an individual who has produced a body of work or demonstrated consistent engagement in their field for a period of no less than three years.
SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this Act.
Here's a concise and compelling policy pitch for the Creative Freedom Act, written in a style suitable for presentation to lawmakers, foundations, or civic leaders:
Policy Brief: The Creative Freedom Act
Summary
The Creative Freedom Act proposes a guaranteed annual income of $100,000 for professional creatives in the United States. This policy recognizes the indispensable role of artists, writers, musicians, performers, and independent thinkers in shaping a vibrant, reflective, and innovative society. In an age of accelerating automation and cultural fragmentation, the Act offers both economic security for creatives and long-term investment in national well-being.
Problem
America’s artists are facing a crisis of sustainability. Despite their vital contributions to culture, education, public discourse, and mental health, most professional creatives live in precarious economic conditions, often juggling multiple jobs just to survive.
Over 60% of professional artists report annual incomes below the poverty line.
The gig economy has eroded stable pathways for creatives.
Funding for the arts remains volatile and inequitably distributed.
Creative burnout is driving talented individuals out of the field entirely.
This is not only a personal loss for artists—it is a collective loss for the nation’s cultural imagination, innovation potential, and democratic vitality.
Vision
The Creative Freedom Act reimagines how America supports its creative class. It offers financial stability not as a reward, but as a foundation for deeper cultural labor.
Key Goals:
Remove economic obstacles that inhibit creative productivity and experimentation.
Democratize access to creative careers regardless of background or class.
Enrich national life through a flourishing ecosystem of arts, ideas, and public imagination.
Prepare for a post-work economy by elevating human creativity as a cornerstone of civic identity.
How It Works
Eligibility: Professional creatives with a sustained body of work and U.S. citizenship or permanent residency.
Annual Income: $100,000 per person, distributed in monthly installments.
Administration: Overseen by a new Creative Economy Division within the Department of the Treasury.
Accountability: Participants submit annual portfolios or statements of creative activity (non-competitive, narrative-based).
Why Now?
1. Cultural Crisis
Polarization, disinformation, and social fragmentation demand the reflective and connective power of the arts.
2. Technological Shift
As automation replaces routine labor, we must cultivate non-automatable domains: creativity, care, wisdom, vision.
3. Economic Stimulus
Creatives reinvest in local economies—studios, materials, communities. The creative sector generates spillover effects in tourism, education, health, and civic pride.
4. Moral Imperative
A nation that funds its weapons more reliably than its artists must reexamine its soul. This is not charity. It’s infrastructure.
Support & Precedent
Inspired by historic models: WPA, NEA, and universal basic income pilots.
Public support for guaranteed income is rising, especially among younger voters.
Major cities (e.g., San Francisco, New York, Austin) have already launched basic income pilots for artists with measurable success.
Conclusion
The Creative Freedom Act is not just a bold economic experiment—it is a declaration of national values. It asserts that culture is not a byproduct of prosperity, but one of its engines. That imagination is not a luxury, but a civic necessity.
We have funded the future with machines. It’s time we fund the future with meaning.
Let us pay our artists—not to entertain us, but to guide us.
OK, thanks.
Hi Cecil,
I'm not well versed to the point that you are about submitting legal proposals, so I have a couple of questions for you: what, if anything, do I put in the H. R. slot? For the Sponsor Name do I put your name or my name? Thanks for all the work you have been doing for this cause.
Christine
H. R. ____
To establish a guaranteed annual basic income of $100,000 for professional creatives in the United States, thereby ensuring their ability to focus on artistic, cultural, and intellectual contributions without the burden of financial insecurity.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
[Date]
Mr./Ms. [Sponsor Name] introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.