This report examines the phenomenon of "churn" in public benefit programs, where eligible participants temporarily lose benefits due to administrative processes, analyzing its impact on both recipients and state agencies, and suggesting strategies to reduce its occurrence.
Delve into our exploration of the executive orders, legislation, and administrative rules and guidance that shape government digital transformation across states and territories with our database and visualization tools.
PolicyEngine is a nonprofit that provides a free, open-source web app enabling users in the US and UK to estimate taxes and benefits at the household level, while also simulating the effects of policy changes. By combining tax and benefits data, PolicyEngine helps individuals and policymakers better understand the impacts of existing policies and proposed reforms, using microsimulation models built from legislation and enhanced survey data.
This guide outlines how states can use TANF funds to provide direct cash assistance to families, particularly through flexible mechanisms like nonrecurrent short-term benefits (NRSTs).
Many low-income households lack the savings to weather financial shocks like layoffs, and SNAP plays a crucial role in helping them manage essential expenses during difficult times.
This report outlines state Medicaid program priorities, including expanding access to services, addressing health disparities, and implementing cost-containment measures amid post-pandemic uncertainties.
This case study describes Nava's with the state of Montana’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) agency to build an eligibility screener tool.
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.
Report by the Aspen Institute discussing Benefits21, a multi-stakeholder, multi-faceted initiative to integrate and modernize benefits systems. This paper provides an overview of Benefits21, along with a discussion of the shortcomings of current public and private benefit systems.
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.
This analysis explores the potential reduction in poverty rates across all U.S. states if every eligible individual received full benefits from seven key safety net programs, highlighting significant decreases in overall and child poverty.
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) leaders, policymakers, and researchers all recognize the need for TANF agencies to use the data they collect to better understand how well their programs are working and how to improve them, given the impact on the families they serve. It is often difficult, however, for agencies already stretched to capacity to prioritize and execute data use and analytics. State TANF leaders are seeking roadmaps for how to transform their organizations and become data-driven.
