In TNG, Picard says that the Federation has evolved past a need for money. Indeed, we never see any.
In DS9 though, Quark talks a lot about bar tabs and costs. Surely O’Brien and Bashir don’t get free drinks, so how do they pay? I’d assume that any Ferengi worth his lobes won’t accept anything that can be replicated, so do Federation officers get a stipend of tradeable “value” when interacting with cultures that still expect payment?
I think there’s also a reference to Quark paying rent to Sisko for running the bar. Presumably that’s denominated in latinum. I wonder where it goes? Maybe the secret “Garak black ops” fund.
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Another time money comes up is the episode, In the Cards, where Jake wants to buy a Willie Mays baseball card to cheer up his dad. He talks Nog into paying for it because as a Federation citizen Jake doesn’t have any money.
I found some of the dialogue on Memory Alpha:
It’s my money, Jake! If you want to bid at the auction, use your own money.
I’m Human, I don’t have any money.
It’s not my fault that your species decided to abandon currency-based economics in favor of some philosophy of self-enhancement.
Hey, watch it. There’s nothing wrong with our philosophy. We work to better ourselves and the rest of Humanity.
What does that mean exactly?
It means… it means we don’t need money!
Well, if you don’t need money, then you certainly don’t need mine!
I also imagine Starfleet officers in a non-Federation posting getting stipends. Or maybe Quark and other business owners bill the Federation for whatever Federation citizens buy? And maybe that arrangement doesn’t extend to the auction with the baseball card?
There are references to Jake buying from some of the station’s businesses. I think I remember him buying jom-jom sticks, and dining at the Klingon restaurant. (Did Jake ever use a holosuite on his own?) I’m thinking either Jake has some sort of allowance or stipend, and is exaggerating when he says he “doesn’t have money”, or those businesses make special arrangements for Federation citizens.
This leads me to another thought: are station residents charged for using the replicators in their quarters? I imagine the replimat charging like other station businesses; so what about private replicators? Or maybe I’m wrong, and the replimat is a free public service?
I’m guessing replicator use would be free under Federation jurisdiction the same way Quark isn’t charged rent. But on the other hand, it’s a Bajoran station - Starfleet only administers it. Now I’m wondering what kind of negotiating went on to get the struggling provisional government to pass up revenue from DS9 rental spaces.
You just know Bajor happily relinquished the potential income from rental spaces on the station in exchange for the Federation keeping their military presence there.
@hallettj The replimat is probably free. They likely don’t set up account for every Skreea. It’s just the public replicator place.
I’m thinking either Jake has some sort of allowance or stipend, and is exaggerating when he says he “doesn’t have money”
I mean, having walking around money and having Mom-style “now that’s walking around money” (i.e. enough to buy a Willy Mays rookie card) are two different things.
I think the officers do get some form of stipend. I can’t recall if this was mentioned directly in the show though.
Do we know if any Federation members use money?
To my knowledge the federation is completely post monetary. But, we do see individual people who in it that use money. Riker mentioned a few times owing debts or being owed debts from card games and the like, iirc. I think it’s largely a personal choice, as money is unnecessary in their society. Nothing that matters has a monetary cost, like shelter, food, etc. And luxuries within the federation itself seem to also be free at the point of use, but I think there is some kind of credit system in use. Sisko mentions using up a months worth of transporter credits to come home for dinner during his time at the academy, if I’m remembering right.
Given the whole schtick of being a post capitalist, but not quite fully communist, society that the franchise has, combined with my personal knowledge of various socialist ideas around transitionary societies, my best guess is that they function off a form of labor voucher. Non transferable credits to be used for whatever goods are restricted or scarce. But with some kind of loophole around the transferability when it comes to dealing with non federation members who still use money.
Bolarus has an operational bank (which Morn robbed) and Crusher pasys with Federation Credits in Mission Farpoint.
Also note that it’s called New Earth Economy. It’s earth that has no money.
Is bolarus federation? I’m not great at knowing which planets are and aren’t. The federation credits beverly uses at far point could still be in line with my labor voucher theory, but I think you’re right about it being earth, not the federation, that’s entirely post monetary. Now that you mention that, I’ve seen episodes where they say you have to be a unified planet to join the federation, no caste system, etc. But never have they mentioned on screen you have to be post monetary. Also, as up thread it was mentioned, quark is paying rent on a bajoran station, so probably bajor has money, and they were all set to join on a few occasions, so yeah. You’re right. The moneyless folks are Earthicans, not federation members.
@DharmaCurious There is a DS9 episode where Lwaxana and a Bolian do what seems like parliamentary oversight. So I suppose they are.
I’m very unclear on what exactly makes “transporter credits” or “labor vouchers” different from “money.”
Edit: I am sorry for this wall of text. I understand if you don’t read it. Lol…I have COVID right now, and for someone reason I’m either wired like a coke head, or exhausted like a coke head on Monday. You caught me wired.
Transporter credits I can’t speak to, but labor vouchers are something that has been tried in limited fashion in the past.
Basically, the idea is that they are not accunulatable by anyone but the person doing labor to earn them.
Let’s say you work, doing some kind of worky type work. You earn 1 labor voucher per hour. You live in a society in which housing, electricity, water, transportations, and food are free at the point of use. Your labor voucher provides proof that you are, indeed, laboring. You have your eye on a nice luxury item or an item that is genuinely scarce and not strictly necessary for life, and thus not provided free to everyone (I have COVID right now, and can’t think of an example. Game system? Aren’t computers made with rare elements? See footnote). You could spend your labor vouchers for this item. Let’s say it costs 20 labor vouchers. You work 20 hours, give the shopkeep those 20 vouchers. The vouchers aren’t money, though. They’re either digital credits, or little pieces of paper with “DrChaotica’s proof of labor” on it. The shopkeep would be unable to spend them anywhere, as she is not DrChaotica. They are either destroyed outright, or given back to the local governing body to be re-given to you upon completion of more laboring.
It’s an idea for socialism by people who are socialist, and also think we’d have the whole bUt nObOdY WiLl WoRk problem. We incentivize work through the voucher system, while preventing the accumulation of wealth by making them non transferable and no accunulatable by anyone other than the worker. In theory, you could be “rich,” but only by working a shit ton, and your wealth couldn’t come at the expense of making someone else poor. You wouldn’t be able to extract the value of other workers, and you wouldn’t be able to hoarde mass amounts of wealth, only modest wealth, as you’d have to be doing the work yourself.
Footnote:
So, among socialists, this is still a fairly controversial topic. Labor vouchers are often seen as a way of preventing the Socialist Billionaire problem that China faces, while also preventing the common critique thrown at left wing communists and anarchists, that none would actively work in their communities, especially in less hobby-like jobs like wood working or fuggin sculpting or whatever. No one wants to be a plumber after the glorious revolution. This allows for the community to have things that are entirely free, and provide a base level of life that is pretty high, while also ensuring that things get done, and no one is rigging the system in their favor. It’s not a system supported by all socialists, and it’s not always clear which group would or would not support that type of system.
Footnote the second, because COVID brain and I couldn’t figure out where else to slot it in. Labor vouchers could also be used on food, depending on the system. A ration system is often a scary concept, because people think the ration is the most the food you can have. But there’s also the type of rationing where the ration is the minimum amount of food anyone can have. You are provided with a base level of calories, staple items, and whatever is locally produced. You will always have access to that, and will never go hungry. But let’s say your community is trying to increase the amount of plant based food and decrease animal farming. Dairy may be on the ration, but meat is not. Labor vouchers could be used to buy meat, increasing the number of people willing to do work for the vouchers, while decreasing the amount of meat produced, and simultaneously ensuring no one goes hungry, and no one is forced to go veg if they don’t want to.
They get a per diem of like 2 slips of latinum specifically while on the station. This is mentioned in one of the first season episodes.
Having watched DS9 several times, I’ve never noticed this. Now I must find this reference…
I only caught it this last time I watched it from start to finish because I, too, had questioned how they pay for stuff. I mean, the holodeck they have allotted time for which was part of the deal Sisko made to keep Quark on the station for morale (and info), but they also drink at the bar and play Dabo. Those definitely couldn’t be just gratis lol
Quark doesn’t pay rent for the bar, Sisco mentions this at one point when Quark is trying to sell weapons via the holodeck. Because he’s annoyed with him he points out that he doesn’t pay rent and he doesn’t pay taxes and the federation let him get away with a lot, but there is a line.
Yeah. I kind of feel like Quark takes as much per diem from Federation officers as possible in exchange for no rent or tax. It isn’t like the Federation is asking for top shelf liquor, so this is a quid pro quo for him.
It is like giving Damar whatever top shelf liquor he wanted if it meant keeping the Cardassians on DS9 happy.
My working theory is that Federation Economists make a distinction between a monetary system and a credit system. Credits can buy food, clothing, shelter, and nice things to enjoy. Money does all that, as well, but also can be invested with the hope of making more money than you started with. There is no Federation stock market.