Since March 2020, states have been using temporary SNAP (food stamps) flexibility to provide emergency benefit supplements, and ease program administration during the pandemic. These options have allowed states to deliver more food assistance to struggling families, help manage intense administrative demands, and ensure that participants maintain much-needed benefits.
Well-designed, user-focused tools that allow for simple application are key to ensuring that families most in need receive the Child Tax Credit. Reaching these households will require a robust effort from the IRS to create user-friendly tools in partnership with organizations with a direct connection to eligible recipients.
The ubiquity of mobile devices makes it imperative to build “mobile first” services, i.e. services built with the expectation that they will primarily be accessed on mobile devices. This article also outlines important considerations and suggestions for implementing mobile-first user interfaces.
This book is an in-depth exploration of federal programs and controversial legislation demonstrating that administrative burden has long existed in policy design, preventing citizens from accessing fundamental rights. Further discussion of how policymakers can minimize administrative burden to reduce inequality, boost civic engagement, and build an efficient state.
Accessing safety net benefits can involve complicated and duplicative processes that create barriers to access. Using cross-enrollment strategies can minimize the difficulties community members face in getting access to life-saving resources.
Administrative burden placed on individual citizens are often a function of deliberate political choice, as to enact significant policy changes without broad political deliberation. This is evident in the evolution of Medicaid policies in Wisconsin.
Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory
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.
Hennepin County, Minnesota, partnered with Code for America to develop a six-month long experiment where participants were given the option to submit the normal paper-based application or opt into an online application.
Fast Track is an efficient, inexpensive enrollment option to enroll eligible individuals in Medicaid using data the state already has on hand from other applications. Through Fast Track, states can use TANF, SNAP, and LIHEAP data to determine eligibility and quickly enroll large numbers of individuals.
Code for America partnered with the CBPP, Civilla, and Nava to launch the Integrated Benefits Initiative, testing and piloting human-centered approaches to improve outcomes and learn what an optimal safety net could look like. This article describes key takeaways from short-term pilots implemented as part of this project.
Data-sharing across public benefits programs can help enroll low-income people into other benefits for which they qualify. This guide helps local policymakers and program officials identify opportunities under federal law to streamline the application and enrollment process.
