The notion of a basic income for all citizens has circled the fringes of Canadian politics for years. Now, the Ontario Liberal Party has announced plans to investigate a basic income pilot project this year as part of the 2016 budget, which was published on Thursday.

In other words, every single person in one lucky Ontario community may soon receive a payday from the government for doing nothing at all, with no strings attached—sort of. The Liberal Party has indicated that the handout may come at the cost of "savings" in some social services currently provided by the government.

"We will be testing the potential of a basic income to determine if it will provide more consistent support to clients, streamline the delivery of income support, and achieve savings in other areas, such as health and housing supports," Alissa von Bargen, a spokesperson for the Office of the Minister of Community and Social Services, wrote me in an email.