As has always been the case, there are some huge problems with this type of program. This is why Judicial Watch has filed a lawsuit against the city to put a stop to it.

San Francisco’s GIFT program will provide 55 trans people living in the city with $1,200 per month for up to 18 months — and the deadline to apply is approaching fast.

GIFT — which stands for Guaranteed Income for Transgender People — is the first guaranteed income program in the Bay Area that focuses solely on serving trans people. It’s a creation of San Francisco officials in partnership with Lyon-Martin Community Health Services — an organization that provides medical care for trans, nonbinary and intersex people, along with cisgender women who are part of the LGBTQA+ community — and SF’s Transgender District, which works to empower trans people, and to make trans people and history more visible.

The deadline to apply for GIFT is Thursday, Dec. 15. There’s an online GIFT application form, where you can upload all the required documents in the same portal. GIFT’s site is also available fully in Spanish.

Aubrey Davis, executive associate with the Transgender District, touted the program, arguing that many trans folks are facing financial difficulties due to the economy and discrimination. She explained that the program is aimed at making it possible “for people to support themselves” in order to “have a little bit more ease with their finances.”

The program is intended to benefit trans people but will prioritize those who are black. “Sixty percent of people that we’re going [to] try to have in the program are Black trans folks,” said Samual Favela with the Transgender District.

But don’t worry. Hispanic trans folks will also benefit – as long as they are residing in the country illegally. In fact, those who only speak Spanish will enjoy priority status in the program.

To qualify for GIFT, one has to be over the age of 18 and making less than $600 per month. They will also be required to take a survey every three months while using the program.

The lawsuit filed by Judicial Watch alleges that the GIFT program violates the equal protection clause of the state’s Constitution by providing “preferential treatment” to those suffering from gender dysphoria.

The legal action argues that,

"any expenditure of taxpayer funds or taxpayer-financed resources on the GIFT program is illegal under Article 1, section 7 of the California Constitution because the requirement that eligible participants be transgender, non-binary, gender nonconforming, or intersex is immediately suspect and presumptively invalid and cannot survive strict scrutiny review.”

The plaintiffs are seeking “[a]n injunction permanently prohibiting Defendants from expending or causing the expenditure of taxpayer funds and taxpayer-financed resources on the GIFT program.”

There are plenty of issues with the program.

For starters, the fact that it is not simply being allocated for low-income residents is an issue. Don’t get me wrong. I oppose any instance in which the government uses the money it steals from us to give to other folks. But let’s say I was in favor of this type of welfare. Would it not make more sense to shell out dollars to anyone who is low-income, regardless of their gender identity? This would benefit those in the trans community, as well as others who are facing tough economic times.

Moreover, what is to stop folks from pretending to be transgender, just so they can get their hands on this free cash? There are no mechanisms in the program to make sure that the money won’t go to people for whom it is not intended.

Theoretically, if I were a San Francisco resident, I could don a dress, change my name to Jefferina, and collect some extra cash. Hey, times are tough, aren’t they?

When I see programs like this, I immediately assume the officials involved are simply looking for new and innovative ways to signal their unending virtue to the rest of the country. Unfortunately, this type of program isn’t the way to go.