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.
California’s SNAP program faced record application volume due to the COVID-19 crisis, and other states must anticipate similar demand. This post summarizes key takeaways from GetCalFresh’s real-time data and client communications, and offers recommendations for how other states can implement effective responses.
Code for America offers government agencies a general overview of getting started with implementing text messaging services for clear, responsive communication during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This session from FormFest 2024 focused on human centered form improvements from the City of Reykjavik and the German Digital Service’s form simplification project.
This session from FormFest 2024 focused on improving service delivery by hearing about work in multiple cities to rapidly digitize service delivery and work by the Department of Veteran Affairs around implementing service design principles in form revisions.
This mainstage session from FormFest 2024 included conversations about form design, accessibility, user experience, and data collection to show how good forms can build trust and confidence in government.
Hennepin County, Minnesota, implemented an online application system for child care assistance, resulting in increased applications, faster benefit distribution, and reduced administrative burdens.
This article discusses how Code for America enhanced the CalFresh application process to better assist self-employed individuals in accessing their full benefits by clarifying self-employment definitions and simplifying income verification.
This visualized report is a first first-of-its-kind view of the state of benefits applications across the nation from a client perspective, including information on application availability online, combined benefit applications, application completion times, as well as login and identity proofing requirements.
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.
This article details California's Disaster Relief Assistance for Immigrants (DRAI) program, which provided $500 in cash aid to undocumented adults affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the collaborative efforts between the state, community-based organizations (CBOs), and Code for America to distribute $75 million to 150,000 individuals.
GetYourRefund.org is an online portal by Code for America that helps low-income individuals claim thousands of dollars in tax credits, even after the traditional tax deadline has passed.
