This report highlights 5 key takeaways from the Aspen Institute Financial Security Program's 2022 Benefits Forum, where 55 experts from various sectors discussed solutions for improving public and private benefits to better support workers and their families.
A policy brief outlining concrete actions states can take to regulate tenant screening practices and reduce harm from inaccurate reports, automated scoring, and discriminatory impacts in the rental housing market.
The Lost in the Labyrinth brief examines how fragmented early care and education (ECE) programs across the U.S. create challenges for families seeking services for young children.
This brief examines how direct cash transfers (DCTs) can improve maternal and infant health outcomes, particularly among low-income and racially marginalized populations, by reducing poverty during pregnancy and early parenthood
An infographic-style brief that maps the roles and responsibilities of key state leaders involved in governing the development, acquisition, use, and oversight of artificial intelligence in public-sector programs.
This policy brief explores how federal privacy laws like the Privacy Act of 1974 limit demographic data collection, undermining government efforts to conduct equity assessments and address algorithmic bias.
Policymakers, program administrators, federal leaders, researchers, and advocates are increasingly focused on using administrative data to build evidence for improving government programs. Achieving this goal requires accessible data sources and the capacity to use them, yet stakeholders have little information about the baseline level of state capacity in these areas. How does one measure concepts such as “effective data use” and “analytic capacity?” This brief reports findings from a pioneering and comprehensive needs assessment that examined the capacity of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) programs in 54 U.S. states and territories to analyze data used for program improvement, monitoring, and evidence-building. The needs assessment provides a foundation for technical assistance and continued improvement for the TANF program and may also provide valuable insights and frameworks for other state-administered human services programs.
This policy brief offers recommendations to policymakers relating to the computational and human sides of facial recognition technologies based on a May 2020 workshop with leading computer scientists, legal scholars, and representatives from industry, government, and civil society
Government agencies at all levels collect administrative data in the course of their day-to-day operations. While such information has been used to determine effectiveness through program evaluations for many years, program administrators view it increasingly as a valuable resource that can also be used to improve program performance. For example, administrative data from employment and public benefits programs such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) can offer insights into families’ unmet needs and ways to improve services.
This timeline outlines key Medicaid policy changes introduced by the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBBA / H.R. 1) with the greatest operational impact on state and territory agencies and highlights upcoming implementation deadlines.
