Building on our February 2022 report Benefit Eligibility Rules as Code: Reducing the Gap Between Policy and Service Delivery for the Safety Net, the Beeck Center’s Digital Benefits Network (DBN) hosted Rules as Code Demo Day on June 28, 2022 where there were eight demonstrations of projects and code followed by a collaborative problem solving session on how to continue advancing rules as code for the U.S. social safety net.
In this webinar, a panel of experts discuss what states can do right now to improve EBT security, how to use data to analyze theft patterns, and how EBT payment technology needs to evolve to ensure efficiency, security, and dignity for beneficiaries.
This academic paper examines how federal privacy laws restrict data collection needed for assessing racial disparities, creating a tradeoff between protecting individual privacy and enabling algorithmic fairness in government programs.
ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency (ACM FAccT)
This study examines public attitudes toward balancing equity and efficiency in algorithmic resource allocation, using online advertising for SNAP enrollment as a case study.
This report recommends updating the methodology used by the Census Bureau to calculate the Supplemental Poverty Measure (SPM) to reflect household basic needs and replace the current Official Poverty Measure as the primary statistical measure of poverty. The report assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the SPM and provides recommendations for updating its methodology and expanding its use in recognition of the needs of most American families such as medical care, childcare, and housing costs.
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
This toolkit offers strategies and tools to help agencies build the culture and infrastructure needed to apply data analysis routinely, effectively, and accurately – referred to in this publication as “sustainable data use.”
This study examines how individuals assess administrative burdens and how these views change over time within the context of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
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.
This article explores how anticipatory logics—drawing from foresight, futures thinking, and design—are shaping the future of government by creating space for innovative policy approaches, public participation, and proactive governance.
