CHICAGO — A new white paper from the Institute for Responsive Government outlines how government agencies can cultivate more efficient, effective, and democracy-enhancing social programs through more meaningful engagement of the people they serve. The white paper is based on in-depth research interviews with 260 enrollees and 31 agency staff of Medicaid, SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), and WIC (Special Supplemental Program for Women, Infant, and Children) programs; and its release comes amidst increased federal scrutiny of various government agencies and programs.

“The beneficiaries of public programs hold the most valuable information for anyone seeking to make government more efficient, productive, and impactful,” said Jamila Michener, PhD, the report’s author. “When the decisionmakers tasked with operating government programs devote time and resources to understanding the perspectives of the people and communities they seek to support, the knowledge they gain can improve the way government works.” 

“Policymakers can’t fix problems they don’t know about – but the reality is that too many government agencies are falling short when it comes to seeking and addressing the feedback of the constituents they serve,” said Sam Oliker-Friedland, executive director of the Institute for Responsive Government. “One of the most effective ways to create a truly efficient, responsive government is to ensure strong pathways for hearing from those with the deepest knowledge of government programs and their consequences: the millions of Americans who depend on them, and the frontline workers who implement them.” 

Michener, an associate professor at Cornell University and a Responsive Gov Fellow, identified four core principles government agencies can implement to cultivate responsive, democracy-enhancing public programs: 

• Removing the burden to initiate feedback from the beneficiary: Agencies can reorient administrative systems to more proactively gather, incorporate, and act upon the experiential knowledge of beneficiaries.
• Creating multiple pathways for feedback: Multiple, intentionally tailored feedback processes allow for better incorporation of constituent experiences. Government agencies must plan thoughtfully, allocate resources, and develop the institutional capacities necessary for this multipronged approach.
• Ensuring a real path of influence: Establishing concrete and effective mechanisms for conveying and implementing the ideas that stem from constituent feedback is a vital step.
• Communicating early and often: Ensuring constituents understand how their feedback is being acted upon is one way to convey lessons to beneficiaries about the value and importance of their contributions to social and civic communities, and doing so could be an important step in buttressing democracy.

Michener’s white paper is the latest resource from Responsive Gov offering policymakers action-oriented frameworks for adopting more efficient, effective, and transparent government processes. Earlier this year, Responsive Gov released a report exploring how to reduce administrative burdens and improve people’s interactions with government; as well as a case study highlighting how Pennsylvania officials reduced bureaucratic red tape to improve services for constituents.

To speak with Jamila Michener or Sam Oliker-Friedland about the white paper, please contact dan@responsivegov.org. 

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The Institute for Responsive Government is a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to ensuring state and federal governments work effectively for the very people they serve. The Institute for Responsive Government  provides data, research, and expertise to elected officials in order to find practical policy solutions that make government systems more efficient, accessible, and responsive.