When we think of government, we associate negative connotations, such as bureaucracy and inefficiency at best, and incompetence and the “deep state” at worst.
You can show the good side of government, or at least the side that wants to better serve taxpayers.
A bipartisan group of career civil servants and elected leaders measure and document the effectiveness of government programs, according to a MinnPost report by Michelle Jolin, CEO and co-founder of Results. They say they are quietly transforming government programs by making changes related to their findings based on their assessments. for America is a nonprofit organization that helps governments evaluate programs based on data and evidence.
A recent report by Harvard University details how the federal government is expanding its analysis of programs that have shown improved outcomes for taxpayers. In 2013, there was only one so-called federal clearinghouse with evidence-based evaluations overseeing hundreds of programs. There are currently 10 such clearinghouses overseeing 20,000 programs.
In fact, Jolin reports that one program in Minnesota was evaluated to find that subsidizing day care providers actually raised wages for day care workers and helped alleviate labor shortages. That's what it means. As a result of its success, the state invested $316 million in this program over two years.
In another case in Minnesota, research showed that a mother, infant, and early childhood home visiting program led to healthier births and improved long-term health outcomes for mothers and infants. The state currently serves approximately 7,000 families who benefit from home visits by social workers and nurses.
Jolin also noted that these assessment programs are growing, with the federal government increasing their funding 30-fold since 2013. These programs save taxpayers money and help lawmakers determine whether the programs are working.
Current parliamentary debates should be supported by this type of evidence-based program evaluation. Congress is considering extending the Child Tax Credit, which has been shown to keep 3.7 million children out of poverty during the pandemic. But while that program ended after the pandemic, Minnesota carried on the idea and now offers the state's own child tax credit.
Another good news, Jolin's report said, is that the Minnesota Budget Office has a database to measure the program's effectiveness since bipartisan legislation mandated it in 2015. For example, the database shows that summer school programs are effective in bringing children up to speed at grade level, while certain word identification language programs for English learners have no impact on reading comprehension. is shown.
Taxpayers paying attention to Minnesota's welfare programs are very likely to find many program effectiveness reports, as the state spends $1 billion on the programs it evaluates.
And while elected leaders need to embrace and support this type of evaluation, a University of Minnesota study found that barriers to evaluation include lack of time, fragmented decision-making, and insufficient resources for states. It shows what policy makers are saying.
It's good to know that government programs are seriously evaluated and that taxpayer funds are strictly managed. And we applaud the bipartisan policymakers who championed this nearly a decade ago. However, there is room for further evaluation, and I hope that efforts will be made in this direction.
Government can work for the people in an effective way. Research shows that.
