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ST. LOUIS — A study released Tuesday offered new details on the one-time payments of $500 the city sent to low-income residents over the past year and how they used the money.

The report from , a progressive group that advocates for such programs, came out just before the Board of Aldermen approved plans for a larger guaranteed-income program that will pay eligible families $500 a month for 18 months. And it mostly mirrored the rhetoric from Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, who has said the unrestricted cash payments, funded by federal pandemic aid, will help people in poverty meet basic needs.

The vast majority of the 9,300 residents who received the initial payments were poor, Black and female, according to the information they supplied on their applications. Forty-five percent had at least one child in the home. And a majority lived in predominantly Black areas, including those in north St. Louis, which Jones has pledged to revitalize after years of neglect.

Many also appeared to be members of the working poor: about a quarter said they had full-time jobs, and nearly a fifth had part-time gigs.

“These direct payments went to the people who need them most,” said Nick Desideri, communications director for Jones.

Data on recipients’ spending, tracked via debit cards where the money was deposited, also mostly dovetailed with the mayor’s message: Groceries, utilities, restaurants and service stations were listed as the top categories for expenses.

But there was a caveat: more than 33% of the money was converted to cash at an ATM or transferred to another bank account, rendering it untraceable. The report said those decisions could indicate recipients had needs they could only pay for in cash, or that “flexibility was highly valued by recipients.”

That raised some concerns Tuesday with Alderman Tom Oldenburg, 16th Ward, who has argued against the guaranteed income program at the board. “There is no way to track that,” he said.

But Alderman Shameem Clark Hubbard, 26th Ward, who is sponsoring the bill containing the larger program, said she trusts residents to do what’s best. “I don’t feel the need to micromanage people in need,” she said in an interview.

The board approved Clark Hubbard’s bill 21-2 on Tuesday. It is expected to send money to roughly 440 households in the city with parents or guardians of children attending city public schools. Eligibility will be limited to those making 170% of federal poverty line or less — about $39,000 for a family of three.

The bill also budgets money for early childhood education, health care centers, and the expansion of a youth summer jobs program.

It now goes to Jones’ desk for final approval.