Location: Colorado (CO)
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Balancing at the Edge of the Cliff: Experiences and Calculations of Benefit Cliffs, Plateaus, and Trade-Offs
As family’s earnings rise, those earnings increases are often offset by declines in public assistance benefits (commonly called “benefit cliffs” when the declines are sharp) and increases in taxes owed. At the same time, refundable tax credits—which offset taxes owed and are delivered as a tax refund—can boost income. These interactions can be confusing and make it difficult for parents to anticipate how increasing their work hours, hourly wage rate, or both will affect their benefits, taxes, and income to support their families. This study estimates what happens to benefits and taxes when earnings increase and also explores how people perceive public benefit interactions, trade-offs, and benefit cliffs as they increase their work hours or earn higher wages.
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Human-Centered Design 
Proof Points for Human-Centered Benefits Administration
Code for America’s Integrated Benefits Initiative has been working in partnership with the State of Colorado to demonstrate how user-centered approaches lead to measurably better delivery of safety net programs. This article describes their work with the state of Colorado in simplifying how clients report common life changes that can affect their eligibility.
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Human-Centered Design 
Mapping the Applicant Experience of Benefit Enrollment
Applicants to federal aid programs face numerous barriers in accessing benefits they are eligible for. The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare conducted an extensive qualitative user research study to better understand applicant experience in enrolling in public assistance programs. Based on the results, the study emphasizes the need for simplified, streamlined and less burdensome application processes.
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Data 
Using Data Matching and Targeted Outreach to Enroll Families With Young Children in WIC
WIC enrollment has declined over the past decade, but evidence from randomized control trials indicates that using data from other programs to identify WIC-eligible families and following up with text-based outreach can boost program participation.
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Communications 
Targeted Text Message Outreach Can Increase WIC Enrollment, Pilots Show
WIC enrollment has declined over the last decade, preventing millions of eligible low-income individuals from accessing its benefits. This report examines state WIC outreach pilots and discusses the effectiveness of text message outreach and key considerations when developing and launching targeted text outreach campaigns.
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Lessons Churned: Measuring the Impact of Churn in Health and Human Services Programs on Participants and State and Local Agencies
Paper presenting preliminary lessons learned about SNAP churn derived from states participating in the Work Support Strategies project. It defines churn and outlines its consequences, explores approaches to measuring churns and looks at possible approaches to reduce churn.
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Procurement 
Procuring Differently: How Colorado Used User Research and Active Vendor Management for COVID-19 Technology
In June 2020, the state implemented an innovative and entirely virtual vendor selection process to evaluate these solutions under the direction of the Colorado Digital Service (CDS).
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Human-Centered Design 
User Experience Playbook
A guide for State of Colorado employees to integrate human-centered activities and results into web services.