Code For America Labs

CODE FOR AMERICA IS A NONPROFIT THAT BELIEVES GOVERNMENT CAN WORK IN THE DIGITAL AGE.

SAFETY NETIN 2021, WE BEGAN TO TRANSFORM THE SOCIAL SAFETY NET BY UTILIZING THE TOOLS OF HUMAN - CENTERED TECHNOLOGY, MODERNIZING BENEFIT SYSTEMS BY PERMANENTLY ADDRESSING BARRIERS TO ENROLLMENT, USAGE AND RETENTION. SPECIFICALLY WE HELPED 2.8 MILLION PEOPLE ACCESS FOOD AND OTHER BENEFITS EASILY AND WITH DIGNITY, WHILE LAYING THE GROUNDWORK FOR EXPANDING OUR SOCIAL SAFETY NET WORK NATIONALLY. WE HELPED SHOW WHAT'S POSSIBLE WHEN GOVERNMENT USES HUMAN-CENTERED TECHNOLOGY TO SOLVE PROBLEMS BY PILOTING A FLEXIBLE INTERVIEW PROCESS IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CA TO CLOSE THE GAP BETWEEN THOSE WHO NEED FOOD ASSISTANCE AND THOSE RECEIVING BENEFITS.WE WORKED SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH THE STATE OF MINNESOTA AND LAUNCHED MNBENEFITS.MN.GOV, AN EASY-TO-USE, ALL-IN-ONE MULTI BENEFITS APPLICATION. THIS TOOL IS AVAILABLE TO RESIDENTS ACROSS 80+ COUNTIES AND 11 TRIBAL NATIONS APPLYING FOR NINE DIFFERENT BENEFITS PROGRAMS, AND REDUCES APPLICATION TIME FROM 110 MINUTES TO LESS THAN 20 MINUTES.

EITC (EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT)IN 2021, CODE FOR AMERICA HELPED DELIVER A TOTAL OF $766 MILLION IN FLEXIBLE CASH AND HELPED FILE 211,000 ACCEPTED TAX RETURNS. WE DID THIS BY DEVELOPING A NATIONAL TAX FILING SYSTEM THAT IS FREE AND EASY TO COMPLETE, ENSURING THAT EVERYONE RECEIVES THE TAX BENEFITS THEY DESERVE.GETYOURREFUND DELIVERED AN ESTIMATED $327 MILLION IN FLEXIBLE CASH AND ACCEPTED 96,000 RETURNS WITH THE SUPPORT OF 5,439 ACTIVE TAX PREP VOLUNTEERS AND 85 ACTIVE TAX PREP PARTNERS. GETCTC DELIVERED AN ESTIMATED $440 MILLION IN CHILD TAX CREDIT AND STIMULUS PAYMENTS CLAIMED BY 115,000 FAMILIES-ALL IN OUR 10-WEEK PILOT LAUNCH.GETCTC, BUILT IN 2021, WAS THE FIRST TOOL BUILT TO TRULY SIMPLIFY TAX FILING FOR FAMILIES WITH LOW INCOMES. WE PROVIDED A SERVICE THAT THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF FAMILIES COULD FINISH WITHOUT ASSISTANCE IN 10-15 MINUTES ON A MOBILE PHONE IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH. WE LED A NATIONAL MOVEMENT TO REACH NONFILERS, ENGAGING HUNDREDS OF OUTREACH AND NAVIGATION PARTNERS WITH TOOLKITS AND TRAINING SESSIONS. THOUGH IT RAN FOR ONLY 10 WEEKS, GETCTC HELPED UNLOCK MORE THAN $440 MILLION IN TAX BENEFITS DURING A CRITICAL PERIOD.

CLEAR MY RECORD2021 WAS THE CULMINATION OF SEVERAL YEARS OF WORK TO LAUNCH THE AUTOMATIC RECORD CLEARANCE MOVEMENT INTO THE MAINSTREAM AND DEFINE THE VALUE OF OUR PRODUCT, CLEAR MY RECORD, TO THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND AUTOMATIC RECORD CLEARANCE ECOSYSTEM. WE PARTNERED WITH STATES TO ACHIEVE JUST AND EQUITABLE OUTCOMES BY AUTOMATICALLY CLEARING RECORDS WHEN LAWS CHANGE SO NO ONE IS HELD BACK BY OLD SYSTEMS. CLEAR MY RECORD BUILT AND INFLUENCED TECHNOLOGY THAT WILL IMPACT APPROXIMATELY 1 MILLION PEOPLE IN UTAH. BY PARTNERING WITH GOVERNMENT TO BUILD AND SHAPE TECHNOLOGY, WE'RE SHOWING IT'S POSSIBLE TO AUTOMATICALLY CLEAR MILLIONS OF RECORDS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.GROUNDING OUR WORK IS THE LIVED EXPERIENCE. TO ENSURE WE UNDERSTOOD THIS, WE SPOKE TO PEOPLE ACROSS THE COUNTRY LIVING WITH A CRIMINAL RECORD AND CREATED AN AUDIO SERIES THAT DESCRIBES IN THEIR OWN WORDS THE IMPACT OF THEIR RECORD ON THEIR EMPLOYMENT PROSPECTS, HOUSING, AND MENTAL HEALTH.

INTEGRATED BENEFITS: WE'RE BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS SO THAT APPLYING FOR BENEFITS IS EASIER AND FASTER FOR APPLICANTS-AND MORE EFFECTIVE AND LESS COSTLY FOR STATES. THE INTEGRATED BENEFITS PROGRAM USES TECHNOLOGY TO DESIGN A MORE PEOPLE-CENTERED SOCIAL SAFETY NET.