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Guide on Advancing Equity through Quantitative Analysis

Initially created to inform federal staff at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this guide explores opportunities to advance equity in quantitative analysis, including by recognizing common biases (e.g., research and measurement bias). The guide also discusses specific quantitative methods and tools to help quantitative analyses address equity.

Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
Government Documents

Large Language Models (LLMs): An Explainer

In this blog post, CSET’s Natural Language Processing (NLP) Engineer, James Dunham, helps explain LLMs in plain English.

Center for Security and Emerging Technology
No items found.

Best Practices for SNAP Telephonic Signatures

Guide detailing best practices for states, counties, and municipalities to adopt telephonic signatures.

Food Research and Action Center
Policy Brief

Delivering a Multilingual User Experience for Retroactive Pandemic Unemployment Assistance

A state partner needed to reopen applications to claimants who were previously denied benefits and determine if they are eligible to receive retroactive PUA payments. To help combat these issues, the state agency wanted to create a self-guided experience that was clear for claimants as well as reduce load on their call center. The team focused on providing enough contextual information in order to build trust and provide clarity with claimants, and worked to test content and form design before launching the new service in order to preempt and mitigate support issues.

U.S. Digital Response
Case Study

Helping Families Access Public Benefits with AI and Automation

Webinar that shares Nava’s partnership with the Gates Foundation and the Benefits Data Trust that seeks to answer if generative and predictive AI can be used ethically to help reduce administrative burdens for benefits navigators.

Nava PBC
No items found.

Data Coordination at SNAP and Medicaid Agencies: A National Landscape Analysis

Benefits Data Trust (BDT), in collaboration with the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS), conducted a nationwide analysis of how states coordinate across Medicaid and SNAP programs to streamline access to benefits. Between June and August of 2022, BDT and CHCS collected 114 survey responses from Medicaid and SNAP programs in 46 states and the District of Columbia.

Benefits Data Trust, Center for Health Care Strategies
Report

Toolkit: Moving through the Value Curve Stage

Human services is experiencing many of the same challenges that all modern systems face, including rapidly changing economic forces, social structure, demographics, communications and technology. Leaders from all sectors of our field must be able to adapt to this changing environment, and lead a culture change within their organization that supports a more collaborative, creative and innovative way to deliver services in communities across the nation. Indeed, it is impossible to deliver a truly holistic platform of solutions and supports to people, families and communities in need of them, without a highly collaborative partnership approach. This approach results in more efficient and effective intake and eligibility platforms, more effective casework and engagement practices that respond well to any and all root causes for the challenges faced by the people we serve, and more powerful, far-reaching advocacy and capacity-building efforts that are much larger than the needs of any individual or family case.

American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Toolkit

Mass Layoff in Maine: Lessons Learned from the Maine Department of Labor and Peer Workforce Navigators

This report explores the Maine Department of Labor’s (MDOL) remarkable response to this layoff through collaboration with the Peer Workforce Navigator project—a coalition of community-based organizations in partnership with the MDOL—which made a huge difference in the lives of these laid off workers. The report also examines aspects of the state’s unemployment insurance (UI) system that might be improved to account for similar situations in the future.

The Century Foundation
Report

Removing Barriers: Public Benefits and Voter Registration

The GetCalFresh team, the California Department of Social Services, and the California Secretary of State’s office worked together to create a simplified, accessible voter registration experience with clients. When people come to GetCalFresh.org, they are looking to apply for food assistance, so the state of California did not want voter registration to become an obstacle to the goal of getting food assistance. Thus, rather than directing clients to anther website, they offered to text clients a link to the CA Secretary of State’s voter website with directions on how to register.

Code for America
Non-Academic Article

Facial Recognition Technologies: A Primer

This primer is written for a non-technical audience to increase understanding of the terminology, applications, and difficulties of evaluating facial recognition technologies.

Algorithmic Justice League
Report

Study to Identify Methods to Assess Equity: Report to the President

Study by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget assessing methods for determining whether agency policies and actions create or exacerbate barriers to full and equal participation by eligible individuals. This study followed the Executive Order on racial equity.

Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget
Government Documents

Closing the AI accountability gap: defining an end-to-end framework for internal algorithmic auditing

This paper introduces a framework for algorithmic auditing that supports artificial intelligence system development end-to-end, to be applied throughout the internal organization development lifecycle.

ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency
Academic Article

CSNS New Jersey: Sharing Nutrition Program Data to Raise WIC Enrollment

This report outlines how the New Jersey Department of Human Services’ Division of Family Development (DFD) and the Department of Health (NJDOH) are increasing SNAP & WIC co-enrollment through data sharing, outreach, and systems integration.

American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) and No Kid Hungry, Share Our Strength
Case Study

The Government Is Helping People Pay Rent, But Something’s Gone Wrong

Rent relief distribution in 2020 was slow and inequitable, because local programs instituted strict eligibility criteria beyond what was required by the CARES Act. As a result of these hurdles, incomplete applications were a major barrier to distributing funds. This report describes the rent relief challenges during the pandemic, as well as a few possible fixes to help the next round of aid distribution.

New America
Non-Academic Article

Designing Better Programs for Young Parents & Families

This piece highlights lessons learned from the first phase of The Southeastern Cohort on Young Parents and Families—an effort focused on improving economic stability and well-being outcomes for young parent families (January to September 2020)—which has focused on interagency collaboration and community engagement to develop plans for improving policies and program practices to support young parent families. The lessons reflected center on: understanding and engaging young parents, continuous improvement through data and feedback, collaborating and aligning services, and insights related to providing services during COVID-19. These insights can guide government agencies, service providers, or others interested in making efforts at better understanding and supporting young families in their communities through tailored programs and services.

Third Sector, American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Report

Why Framing Matters: Ways to Move Forward

Prior issues of Policy & Practice have introduced framing and what effective framing can do to make our shared narrative more productive and impactful. In this column, APHSA's President and CEO shares two framing strategies that can help us avoid the most common mistakes and produce more effective frames: Widening the lens and using numbers more effectively.

American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Non-Academic Article

What Works Cities Assessment Guide

What Works Cities helps local governments improve residents’ lives by using data and evidence effectively to tackle pressing challenges. The Certification Assessment helps cities benchmark their progress and develop a roadmap for improvement.

What Works Cities
Toolkit

The Qualitative Research Practice Guide

This guide touches on everything from Code for America’s core research philosophy, to our approach to ethics and trauma-informed research, to specific research methods. It also includes plenty of practical tips on planning and executing research, as well as how to synthesize your findings into action.

Code for America
Toolkit

Streamlining Medicaid Renewals Through the Ex Parte Process

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should provide detailed guidance and oversight to help states improve automatic Medicaid renewals using available data, through the ex parte process.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Non-Academic Article

Equity Assessment Tip Sheet

Originally created for use by federal staff at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this tool describes the six steps for conducting equity assessments and provides tips for completing each step. This resource may be relevant for state and local governments, tribal governments, and other private or non-profit organizations focused on programs and policies relating to health and human services

Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
Toolkit

Equitable Name Test

An open source list of names and considerations for names to make systems more equitable.

New America and community contributors
Non-Academic Article

Early Insights on SNAP Modernization through American Rescue Plan Investments

This brief shares findings from a November 2021 survey of state SNAP agencies about their use of the SNAP ARPA funds in fiscal year 2021, and their initial planned activities for fiscal year 2022 and 2023. This brief also draws from learnings from work groups conducted with states in early 2022. The brief looks to explore the following questions: 1. How did state SNAP agencies use 2021 SNAP ARPA administrative funding? 2. What factors influenced how states used 2021 SNAP ARPA administrative funding? 3. What are states aiming to prioritize in 2022 and 2023? 4. What do early insights on implementation convey about national SNAP priorities?

Share Our Strength, No Kid Hungry, American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Report

Eligibility Rules Weekly Recaps

Github page with weekly recaps on the activities taking place during 18F’s Eligibility Rules Service project.

18F
Non-Academic Article

GSA extends login.gov access to states and localities

This article describes the General Services Administration’s efforts to get a limited number of state and local governments to try login.gov with their federally funded programs.

Fed Scoop
News

Delivery-Driven Government: Principles and Practices for Government in the Digital Age

Technology enables governments to engage in “pilot” projects to see where they are headed and course-correct along the way, as opposed to evaluating the results over the course of multiple years. Delivery-driven government utilizes technology and “pilot” projects to see institutions and processes through the eyes of users, allowing for more effective service delivery.

Code for America
News

Access for All: Innovation for Equitable SNAP Delivery

This brief describes the current state of SNAP benefit delivery through the electronic benefits transfer (EBT) card, identifies the features necessary for SNAP benefit delivery to ensure consistency with principles of equity and inclusion, and explores how future SNAP benefit delivery can keep up with rapid changes in commercial payment infrastructure.

Urban Institute
Report

Better Identity in America: A Blueprint for Policymakers

This policy report offers recommendations for improving digital identity practices in the United States, emphasizing the role of government in creating secure, accessible digital identity resources.

The Better Identity Coalition
Report

An Introduction to Digital Identity

This short explainer video introduces digital identity and argues for modernizing identity systems in the United States, in partnership with government.

Better Identity Coalition
Video

Using SNAP Data for Medicaid Renewals Can Keep Eligible Beneficiaries Enrolled

Medicaid enrollees must renew their eligibility every 12 months, resulting in extensive “churn,” whereby eligible people continuously cycle on and off of Medicaid instead of remaining continuously enrolled. States can use detailed SNAP income data to reduce churn and thus reduce the burden on beneficiaries and agencies.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Report

The Equitable Tech Horizon in Digital Benefits Panel

Hear perspectives on topics including centering beneficiaries and workers in new ways, digital service delivery, digital identity, and automation.This video was recorded at the Digital Benefits Conference (BenCon) on June 14, 2023.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University
Video

Summer EBT Playbook

Playbook to implement a human-centered Summer EBT program in 2024 and beyond.

Code for America and No Kid Hungry
Toolkit

FCC Training on Public Benefits Texting

Federal Communications Commission present on how state and local agencies can legally use SMS messaging to engage with public benefits applicants and recipients, including compliance with the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

Performance.gov and Federal Communications Commission
Video

Text to Connect: Evaluation of your Text Messaging Program to Reduce SNAP Churn

This guide is the second in a series designed to help SNAP administrators implement a text messaging program to reduce SNAP churn. This guide focuses on designing an evaluation plan to assess the impact of a text messaging program.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University, Benefits Data Trust
Toolkit

Using Human-Centered Design to Increase Engagement in SNAP E&T

Putting the individual at the core of service delivery is key to successful SNAP E&T programs. This webinar provides insight on behavioral science concepts and how states can put such ideas into practice to tailor engagement, messaging, and independence planning, as well as promote participation in SNAP E&T programs.

Food and Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Video

Digital Identity Glossary

A glossary of key terms related to digital identity.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation
Other

What More States Allowing SNAP Recipients to Buy Food Online Means for Food Security

In early 2019, the USDA launched an online purchasing pilot for SNAP users, making it possible for recipients to order food online. Expansion of this program is necessary during COVID-19, as to prevent people from venturing out of their homes to pay for groceries and compounding the public health crisis.

CivilEats
Non-Academic Article

Ex Parte Options and Recommendations for the non-MAGI Medicaid Population to Reduce Churn

As a part of Benefit Data Trust (BDT)’s Medicaid Churn Learning Collaborative, BDT has created a memo describing policy options and state examples for Medicaid administrators to reduce churn for non-MAGI Medicaid enrollees when the federal public health emergency ends.

Benefits Data Trust
Policy Brief

What is Better Rules?

Better Rules utilizes multidisciplinary teams that include people skilled in policy, legal, business rules, programming, and service design working together in an iterative fashion to develop rules. Several outputs are produced using this approach, each offering an opportunity that can be fed back into that iterative process and re-used to solve other issues.

New Zealand Government
Non-Academic Article

Envisioning a Human-AI collaborative system to transform policies into decision models

This paper introduces the problem of semi-automatically building decision models from eligibility policies for social services, and presents an initial emerging approach to shorten the route from policy documents to executable, interpretable and standardised decision models using AI, NLP and Knowledge Graphs. There is enormous potential of AI to assist government agencies and policy experts in scaling the production of both human-readable and machine executable policy rules, while improving transparency, interpretability, traceability and accountability of the decision making.

IBM Research
No items found.

Eligible Low-Income Children Missing Out on Crucial WIC Benefits During Pandemic

The share of WIC-eligible families participating in the program has declined, though the number of individuals eligible for WIC has likely grown substantially. By working together, state WIC, Medicaid, and SNAP leaders can use data to assess the extent to which WIC is reaching eligible families and enroll more of them.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Report

Design Justice Network Principles

Design justice rethinks design processes, centers people who are normally marginalized by design, and uses collaborative, creative practices to address the deepest challenges our communities face.

Design Justice Network
Toolkit

Using Asset Verification Systems to Streamline Medicaid Determinations

This paper explores the background of the asset verification system requirement, the vendors that administer the systems; and the typical AVS process. It discusses AVSs’ current limitations and highlights best practices for advocates to promote and state agencies to implement to improve the AVS process and streamline eligibility determinations. Finally, it recommends federal action to help AVS states streamline processing.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Non-Academic Article

Digital Identity: Emerging Trends, Debates and Controversies

This academic review covers the broad range of arguments, trends, and patterns from the emerging field of digital identity scholarship.

Women in Identity
Other

Medicaid Churn Toolkit

Benefits Data Trust (BDT)  has developed this “Medicaid Churn Toolkit” to guide Medicaid agencies and their partners in the design and implementation of efforts to reduce churn as they plan for the resumption of normal eligibility and enrollment actions after the after the initial COVID shock.

Benefits Data Trust
Toolkit

Rules as Code - Delivering a personalised citizen experience for GovCMS

Demo and explainer video of the Australian government's implementation of rules as code as part of their enterprise content management platform.

Salsa Digital and Department of Finance
Video

Helping States and Families Prepare for the End of the Pandemic Emergency Declaration

When the COVID-19 public heath emergency declaration ends, so will the expansion of many key safety net programs, causing millions to lose critical assistance nationwide. This article describes some of the steps the Benefits Data Trust is taking to help states transition and allow families to rectify and access benefits they are eligible for.

Benefits Data Trust
News

The Cash Assistance Implementation Playbook

The purpose of this document is to outline possible technical approaches to supporting a cash assistance program. The report aims to both capture individual approaches as well as overarching insights taken from across the approaches taken by different organizations.

New America
Toolkit

Code for America and GetYourRefund.org Non-filer Learnings and Recommendations

This report outlines key lessons and recommendations from Code for America's collaboration with the Voluntary Income Tax Assistance program, which served over 800,000 clients via GetYourRefund.org.

Code for America
Report

Funding Programs for Young Parents & Families

This brief provides a summary of potential federal funding sources and programs that can be used to support programs specifically targeted towards young families. While this list is not exhaustive, it highlights major sources that can serve as a starting point for braiding and blending of funding to create comprehensive programming to serve young families.

American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Policy Brief

Key Practices to Reduce Improper Payments through Identity Verification

This report from the Joint Financial Management Improvement Program outlines efforts to use identity verification to reduce improper payments in government programs, while mitigating bias and disparate impacts.

Report

Tackling the Time Tax: How the Federal Government Is Reducing Burdens to Accessing Critical Benefits and Services

This report summarizes progress made with agencies and members of the public to identify and reduce burdens that individuals, families, and small businesses face every day when interacting with government programs.

Executive Office of the President
Report

Who Did Not Get the Economic Impact Payments by Mid-to-Late May, and Why?

A study by the Urban Institute assessing why around 12 million individuals were at risk of not getting stimulus check payments as provided by the CARES Act.

Urban Institute
Case Study

Moving Because of Unaffordable Housing and Disrupted Social Safety Net Access Among Children

This article shows how moves because of unaffordable housing can disrupt social safety net access for children.

Pediatrics
Academic Article

After the toolkit: anticipatory logics and the future of government

Building on the concept of anticipatory governance, this article aims to show how approaches associated with foresight and design can enact an anticipatory logic which is necessary for public administrations to achieve their goals in the face of uncertainty and dynamic environments.

Policy Design and Practice
Academic Article

How Well Insured are Job Losers? Efficacy of the Public Safety Net

An extensive literature in economics documents large and persistent declines in earnings following involuntary job loss. Though Unemployment Insurance provides the largest buffer against lost income, due to the structure of the program, the neediest are less-well insured (in terms of dollars transferred and percentage of lost earnings replaced) compared to middle and higher income job losers. This has important implications in light of the historic number of job losses during the COVID-19 pandemic.

National Bureau of Economic Research
Academic Article

Envisioning a Federal Rules as Code Approach to Public Benefits Eligibility

Digitizing public benefits policy will make the biggest impact for administrators and Americans, but only if it happens at the highest level of government.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University
Report

Exemplary Data Use by State TANF Agencies: Beyond Routine Reports and Analyses

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) leaders, policymakers, and researchers all recognize the need for TANF agencies to use the data they collect to better understand how well their programs are working and how to improve them, given the impact on the families they serve. It is often difficult, however, for agencies already stretched to capacity to prioritize and execute data use and analytics. State TANF leaders are seeking roadmaps for how to transform their organizations and become data-driven.

MDRC, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago
Policy Brief

Advancing Economic Mobility For Low-Income Families: Policy Options For Governors

As we look to post-pandemic recovery, it will be critical to ensure that individuals have access to resources and supports that not only help them meet basic needs but also provide them with tools to increase their economic security and resilience and build assets that can be passed on to future generations, setting them up for future success.

National Governors Association
Report

Digital Benefits Network Quarterly Call: What’s Next for Digital Identity in Public Benefits?

Identity proofing, authentication, and online access to benefits applications have been increasingly important issues for benefits agencies since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the call, we heard from two speakers: April Dunlap, Policy Administrator for Arizona’s Department of Economic Security and Professor Michele Gilman, Venable Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Faculty Research and Development at the University of Baltimore School of Law.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University
Video

Reddit Is America’s Unofficial Unemployment Hotline

Thousands of Americans have begun frequenting the r/Unemployment subreddit to get help navigating state and federal unemployment systems.

The New York Times
News

Spanish plain language glossary of common Unemployment Insurance terms

This is a working list of plain language Spanish translations and recommended usage for common unemployment insurance terms. All content contained in this glossary has been tested and validated for readability and comprehension with Spanish speakers who have limited English proficiency.

U.S. Digital Response
Toolkit

Overcoming Barriers: Helping Self-Employed Applicants Access Their Full CalFresh Benefit

People who are self-employed can receive a higher CalFresh benefit amount because of a 40% automatic deduction for expenses. Yet, many who would be considered self-employed for the purpose of CalFresh don’t think of themselves as self-employed. Code for America researched how to help CalFresh applicants correctly identify themselves as self-employed. This article describes their various experiments and efforts to help people understand their status as self-employed.

Code for America
Non-Academic Article

Practica: Learn to Design Institutions That Put People First

Online courses from Civilla regarding human-centered design for public institutions.

Civilla
Workshop

An Agile Software Development Solicitation Guide

Government solicitations to procure custom software are often long, complicated, and take months. By using 18F’s agile contract format, agencies can hire an agile software contractor with a quickly-written dozen-page solicitation, allowing for immense savings in time and money.

18F
Toolkit

Better Language Translation Through Machine Learning: Everything I Wish I Knew 6 Months Ago

A discussion of lessons learned in the City of San José’s efforts to provide inclusive digital services for all residents through the San José 311 app.

The Startup
Non-Academic Article

Making Public Benefits More Accessible in Minnesota

This report highlights work with Minnesota and includes nine suggestions for states seeking to launch their own integrated benefits applications

Code for America
Report

Race and Inequity in Identity Proofing Methods

The vast fraud committed through the use of stolen and synthetic identities in UI programs has spotlighted the need for updated identity fraud detection mechanisms. As states are implementing new technologies and systems, they need to consider the ways in which they are impacting racial inequities in UI benefits.

U.S. Digital Response
Toolkit

Tips on Equitable Communication Practices in a Policy Context

Initially created to inform federal staff at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this tip sheet highlights the importance of using equitable communication and includes tips, guiding questions, and additional resources.

Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation
Toolkit

Looking before we leap: Exploring AI and data science ethics review process

This report explores the role that academic and corporate Research Ethics Committees play in evaluating AI and data science research for ethical issues, and also investigates the kinds of common challenges these bodies face.

Ada Lovelace Institute, University of Exeter’s Institute for Data Science and Artificial Intelligence, Alan Turing Institute
Report

Digital Identity and Inclusion: Tracing Technological Transitions

This article explores technological transformations underway in the digital identity sector.

Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
Academic Article

A Tsunami of Volatility: The Impact of the Design and Implementation of CARES Act Supplemental Unemployment Benefits on Lower-Income Households

While CARES Act benefits themselves have been critical to households, their design and implementation have led to more uncertainty and volatility for lower-income households. This report discusses the financial resilience strategies families used to manage gaps before benefits arrived, in addition to providing recommendations for how benefits can be better designed in the future to fit the financial lives of lower-income households.

Commonwealth
Report

What the Digital Benefits Network is Reading on Automation

In this piece, the Digital Benefits Network shares several sources—from journalistic pieces, to reports and academic articles—we’ve found useful and interesting in our reading on automation and artificial intelligence.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University
No items found.

Federal plain language guidelines

Guidelines to help organizations write in compliance with the Plain Writing Act of 2010.

Plainlanguage.gov
Organization Website

Improving Public Programs for Low-Income Tax Filers

To inform future efforts to bring more low-income tax filers into the tax system, this report focuses on the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program and investigates the challenges and opportunities to better serve the American people and improve the experience of tax filing.

New America
Report

Documenting Pandemic EBT for the 2020-21 School Year

The Pandemic Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) program was launched as an effort to address the loss of access to free and reduced-price school meals due to widespread school closures at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. As schools reopened in a shifting mix of fully virtual, hybrid, and inperson formats and families lacked consistent access to school meals, these benefits were extended through the 2020–21 school year and were highly valuable to families in buffering the full extent of food insecurity they may have faced during this uncertain time. However, the complexity of administering this program was a fundamental barrier in providing timely support to families, who ultimately went without benefits for at least half of the school year. In this report, we dive into the challenges state administrators faced in launching this new program during the 2020–21 school year and reflect on considerations for the future.

Urban Institute, American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Report

A Snapshot of Artificial Intelligence Procurement Challenges

Artificial intelligence promises exciting new opportunities for the government to make policy, deliver services and engage with residents. But government procurement practices need to adapt if we are to ensure that rapidly-evolving AI tools meet intended purposes, avoid bias, and minimize risks to people, organizations, and communities. This report lays out five distinct challenges related to procuring AI in government.

The GovLab
Report

Making the Case for Human-Centered Design in Government

Human-centered design is a problem-solving method that puts people at the center of the problem and aims to design solutions that address the needs of the people. Embracing such design methods in government is imperative to finding solutions that work for the people.

GovLoop
Non-Academic Article

Screened & Scored in the District of Columbia

This report explores how automated decision-making systems are being used in one jurisdiction: Washington, D.C.

Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC)
Report

On the Myths of Waste, Fraud, and Abuse

Though the rhetoric of “waste, fraud, and abuse” is ubiquitous when it comes to welfare programs, low-income households receive little relief from benefits programs. Most efforts to make public benefits systems more “efficient” actually just waste time and money in practice. They instead serve to stigmatize low-income families and chip away at the little assistance that remains available to them.

New America
Non-Academic Article

Incremental Steps to Integrated Benefits

By taking on one or more steps to integrate benefits incrementally, on a small, more localized scale, benefits administrators can make progress towards improving resident and staff experiences. This guide outlines ideas for launching an integrated benefits application in stages, and strategies to pilot new tools.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University
Report

Benefits Access for Student Success: A Toolkit For Leveraging Data to Find Eligible Students

Each year, millions of college students struggle to pay for their education and basic needs, including food, childcare, housing, healthcare, and internet service. Among those students are a disproportionate number of first-generation students and students of color. This toolkit aims to build institutional capacity to enable all students to put food on the table, improve health outcomes, focus on school, and graduate.

Benefits Data Trust
Toolkit

Can States Finally Fix Their Unemployment Systems?

Though the economy is rebounding, it is still necessary for states to reform their unemployment systems to provide relief to millions of Americans, as many sectors are still slow to recover.

Governing
Non-Academic Article

Digital Identity Guidelines: Enrollment and Identity Proofing

These guidelines provide technical requirements for federal agencies implementing digital identity services and are not intended to constrain the development or use of standards outside of this purpose. This guideline focuses on the enrollment and verification of an identity for use in digital authentication.

National Institute of Standards and Technology
Report

Top Insights From a Moment in History

APHSA's President and CEO reflects on lessons and opportunities the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted and constructs a national narrative around the moment.

American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Non-Academic Article

Unemployment Insurance Technology Modernization Quarterly Roundup

This quarterly research update aims to highlight key learnings related to improving unemployment insurance (UI) systems in the areas of equity, timeliness, and fraud, and monitor for model UI legislation and policy related specifically to technology. Subscribe to receive future editions.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University
Link to Other Resources

The Pandemic Proved That Cash Payments Work

The $600 cash payments provided by the CARES act prevented joblessness from turning into actual income loss for millions of families. It also gave Americans breathing room to wait for better jobs, rather than settling for bad ones out of desperation.

The Atlantic
News

Unemployment Insurance Equitable Access Toolkit

The Unemployment Insurance Equitable Access Toolkit contains common equity recommendations, promising practices, and insights, represented visually as a different floor of an agency office building, compiled in one interactive document.

U.S. Department of Labor
Toolkit

U.S. Digital Service (USDS) Medicaid Renewals Playbook

This playbook was created by the U.S. Digital Service as a rapid-response guide for civic technologists providing direct technical assistance to states during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) Unwinding. The content in this playbook focuses on strategies to rapidly decrease the burden of Medicaid renewals on members of the public and state staff.

U.S. Digital Service
No items found.

COVID Response Project: Lessons Learned from State Adaptation and Federal Flexibilities

The COVID Response Project was funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to document the real-time impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on state human services agencies and capture state perspectives on lessons learned to guide future federal policymaking and state implementation. The project was completed by the American Public Human Services Association (APHSA) in partnership with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Regional Operations. Insights from the report reflect information obtained through APHSA’s on-going support of state human services agencies’ COVID-19 response efforts as well as a series of in-depth interviews with executive leadership of the 14 state health and human services agencies in ACF’s Region 1 (New England) and Region 4 (Southeast) areas.

Administration for Children & Families, American Public Human Services Association (APHSA)
Report

Spanish Translation Guide for Unemployment Insurance

U.S. Digital Response’s Spanish Translation Guide for Unemployment Insurance provides practical guidelines and resources to help governments improve communication with Spanish speakers seeking access to unemployment insurance (UI) benefits.

U.S. Digital Response
Toolkit

How Louisiana Rapidly Scaled Pilot Solutions to Combat COVID-19

In response to exploding demand for social services during COVID-19, the Louisiana Department of children and Family services implemented text-message alerts and reminders for the state’s entire SNAP caseload, launched a text-based public campaign to help people understand and apply for SNAP benefits, and hired SNAP recipients to provide client feedback on communications and policy decisions.

Code for America
Non-Academic Article

Data Sharing to Build Effective and Efficient Benefits Systems: A Playbook for State and Local Agencies

This playbook is designed to help government and other key sectors use data sharing to illuminate who is not accessing benefits, connect under-enrolled populations to vital assistance, and make the benefits system more efficient for agencies and participants alike. It is a step-by-step guide to conducting smooth and efficient data sharing projects that are permissible and secure.

Benefits Data Trust
Report

Starting Small with Human-Centered Redesign: Approachable Ideas for State and Local Public Benefits Agencies to Improve Applications, Renewals, and Correspondence

This guide highlights approachable ideas for state and local public benefits agencies to improve applications, renewals, and correspondence. As outlined in this resource, even small improvements can be transformative for residents and caseworkers alike.

Beeck Center for Social Impact + Innovation at Georgetown University, Civilla
Toolkit

Healing Policy Papercuts: Aligning small conflicts in application requirements makes public benefits easier to access

Integrating eligibility and enrollment benefits is an increasingly important undertaking for state governments around the country. However, states already in the process of integrating benefits are encountering an issue: differing and contradictory submission requirements dictated by the federal agencies running these benefits programs. Aligning these fragmented requirements is necessary to build a truly human-centered process for state benefits programs.

Nava Public Benefit Corporation
Non-Academic Article

WIC Certification and Eligibility Resource and Best Practices Guide

The WIC Certification and Eligibility Resource and Best Practices Guide is a compilation of existing regulations and best practices that WIC state and local agencies may choose to use when determining eligibility for the program. The guide walks through the certification process.

Food and Nutrition Service, USDA
Government Documents

Improving Outcomes for Families through Better Use of Data: The TANF Data Collaborative

The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Data Innovation project and the TANF Data Collaborative (TDC) Pilot were established to expand the routine use, integration, and analysis of TANF and employment data by agency staff to improve program services and outcomes for families with low incomes. This nine-minute video, produced after the completion of the TDC Pilot, features staff members from the California, Colorado, Minnesota, and Virginia TANF agencies reflecting on their challenges, accomplishments, and general experiences during the pilot.

Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research & Evaluation
Video

Mecklenburg County, North Carolina's Coordinating SNAP & Nutrition Supports Impact Report

Through the Coordinating SNAP & Nutrition Supports program, Mecklenburg County, NC leveraged a Food Security Navigator model and data analysis to increase access to nutrition supports. This report documents best practices and lessons learned from their project.

American Public Human Services Association
Report

Algorithmic Accountability for the Public Sector

This report presents evidence on the use of algorithmic accountability policies in different contexts from the perspective of those implementing these tools, and explores the limits of legal and policy mechanisms in ensuring safe and accountable algorithmic systems.

Ada Lovelace Institute (Ada), AI Now Institute (AI Now), Open Government Partnership (OGP)
Report

Communicating About the Social Implications of AI: A FrameWorks Strategic Brief

Research identified five key obstacles that researchers, activists, and advocates face in efforts to open critical public conversations about AI’s relationship with inequity and advance needed policies.

Frameworks Initiative
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WIC Policy Memorandum #2023-5: Data Sharing to Improve Outreach and Streamline Certification in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)

This policy memorandum from the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) provides guidance on data sharing activities that support targeted outreach and streamlined certification processes aimed at increasing the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) participation and retention.

Food and Nutrition Service
Government Documents
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Automation + AI
Text Messaging
Data Sharing
Outreach + Awareness
Eligibility
Applying + Enrolling
Buying Design + Technology Services
Maintaining Benefits
Human-Centered Design
Digitizing Policy
Digital Services
Diversity, Equity + Inclusion
Policy Analysis
Digital Identity
Basic Income
CCDF: Child Care and Development Fund
COVID-19 Assistance
CTC: Child Tax Credit
EITC: Earned Income Tax Credit
Housing
LIHEAP
Medicaid/CHIP
Other Supplemental Nutrition Programs
P-EBT
Paid Leave
SSDI: Social Security Disability Insurance
SSI: Supplemental Security Income
TANF: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Tax Assistance
UI: Unemployment Insurance
Veterans Benefits
WIC: Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children
SNAP: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
Executive Branch
Academic
Community Members
Community-based Organization
Legislative Branch
Non-profit
Private
Government Agency
Federal/National
State/Provincial
County
Local/Municipal
Territorial
Tribal/Indigenous