Patricia Doxsey is reporting for the Daily Freeman thousands of Ulster County residents have applied to take part in that county's Universal Basic Income pilot program. County Executive Pat Ryan launched the program on February 16, and as of March 11, more than 3,500 residents have signed on and there are still four days left before the application deadline. "It really is eye-opening how many in Ulster County need help this year," said Deputy County Executive Anna Markowitz during a question-and-answer session held this week. Of the thousands of applicants only 100 will be chosen by University of Pennsylvania researchers to receive a guaranteed income of $500 a month for 12 months beginning in May. To be eligible a person must be a resident of Ulster County with an income of no more than $49,600 a year. The initiative is a partnership among Project Resilience, the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Guaranteed Income Research, Community Foundations of the Hudson Valley and Ulster Savings Bank. Some participants in the recent Zoom meeting expressed concern about the fate of program participants once the funding runs out and whether the $500 monthly stipend is enough to help the poorest residents of the county. Markowitz said the county understands that when the funding ends it might be jarring for some participants. She said Penn will conduct a follow-up interview six months after the program terminates to determine how the additional income affected participants' lives. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.