California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) is a major safety net program. A recent study estimated 40% of eligible families are not enrolled in CalWORKs. The Office of Data and Innovation (ODI) worked with the Department of Social Services to explore enrollment barriers.
We learned that:
- Reduced burdens will improve enrollment and retention
- Burdens to applicants and enrollees are also burdens to county staff
- Communication to applicants and enrollees needs to be more clear, timely, and streamlined
- Simpler policy guidance to counties would ease administrative burden
Learn more about the details of helping more eligible families enroll in CalWORKs.
This project was part of the Data and Innovation Fund (DIF), one way the Office of Data and Innovation (ODI) helps improve state services for all Californians. ODI works in partnership with the California Department of Technology (CDT), which improves state technology infrastructure through its Technology Modernization Fund (TMF) and Technology Stabilization Service (TSF). Together, these three funds ensure California state departments innovate by applying human-centered design, data, and IT investments to yield quick and meaningful results. Email dif@innovation.ca.gov to learn more about DIF or this project.