This guide provides practical insights for benefits administrators on redesigning benefits systems using human-centered design to ensure all eligible residents can access crucial social safety net resources.
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.
The DBN’s Rules as Code Community of Practice (RaC CoP) creates a shared learning and exchange space for people working on public benefits eligibility and enrollment systems — and specifically people tackling the issue of how policy becomes software code.
This landscape analysis examines data, design, technology, and innovation-enabled approaches that make it easier for eligible people to enroll in, and receive, federally-funded social safety net benefits, with a focus on the earliest adaptations during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This guidebook aims to equip state and local agencies with the practical insights they need to develop a text messaging outreach program for SNAP recertification.
This primer introduces two foundational software types that can support organizations that are committed to accessible benefits information: content management systems (CMS) and application program interfaces (APIs).
The California Integrated Travel Project (Cal-ITP) simplifies transit benefits eligibility by developing the Benefits App, which uses Login.gov to securely verify age-based discounts for public transit riders. The project aims to create a standardized, interoperable system for verifying transit benefits, improving accessibility for low-income and special groups while reducing administrative burdens for transit agencies.
beta.gouv.fr, a French government incubator, developed Mes Aides, an online benefits simulator launched in 2014 to help residents assess their eligibility for various social programs, addressing the issue of unclaimed benefits. The tool, built with open-source technology, enabled users to quickly estimate their potential benefits but was later integrated into a broader platform in 2020 following internal government disputes over authority.
The NYC Mayor’s Office for Economic Opportunity (NYC Opportunity) developed the NYC Benefits Platform, including ACCESS NYC, to help residents easily discover and check eligibility for over 80 social programs.
In our research announcement on theories of change (ToC) for digital government, the Digital Service Network shared our belief that all Digital Service (DS) teams should work to develop a ToC.
