To truly take an anti-racist approach to prevention, child welfare and safety net policies must address the organizational structures and injustices contributing to and perpetuating underlying economic and concrete needs of children and families. This Center for the Study of Social Policy brief highlights policies that can make a significant impact for children and families when implemented as part of a multi-pronged approach to supporting the needs of children and families outside of child welfare.

In 2023, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released a report on reducing intergenerational poverty. Jesse Rothstein, a member of the committee that developed the report, is on the Institute for Research on Poverty’s newest podcast episode to share the research and findings on several of the key drivers of intergenerational poverty. In this episode, Rothstein discusses policy approaches that may help to interrupt the poverty cycle and why that matters.

While there are many ways to structure direct cash programs, this EMPATH paper focuses on guaranteed income: monthly, no-strings-attached infusions of meaningful amounts of money. This paper shares highlights from interviews with eight social service organizations around the country that are implementing guaranteed income in tandem with an economic mobility coaching approach.

Women continue to experience economic inequities—from wages that are too low to costs that are too high—and do so at every stage of their lives. The underutilized economic capabilities of women leave them and their families with a precarious future and limits the United States’ economic potential. This Center for American Progress report promotes women’s economic prosperity, including thirteen policy concerns with accompanying recommendations.

Many learners face financial and other barriers to accessing and completing occupational training courses. The cost of education has also increased across different types of institutions, while financial aid has declined. In 2019, Social Finance, Inc. launched the UP Fund, a $50 million fund that aims to improve economic mobility by expanding access to job training programs to underserved learners and learners from low-income backgrounds. MDRC conducted a study of UP Fund and its Career Impact Bond (CIB) model with four main goals:

• Build knowledge on whether the CIB model can increase affordability and access to short-term training courses;
• Document the experiences of learners in these programs;
• Examine learners’ short- and long-term outcomes; and
• Assess whether the CIB model is a sustainable and scalable financial model.

This brief provides an overview of the study, details of the UP Fund’s CIB model, and early implementation findings.

This brief from the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation’s Office of Human Services Policy overviews a project that developed a calculator to help people anticipate how a change in earnings from employment would affect their net income, which in turn provided public benefit recipients with their estimated effective marginal tax rate on new earnings. The calculator was designed to support program participants and caseworkers. Demo calculators were developed for New Hampshire, Maine, Allegheny County in Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C., and were completely customized under their local programs and rules. Local governments and local organizations can download the open-source code to start creating a customized calculator for their families.

While some secondary schools incorporate lessons on budgeting, saving, and investing into their curricula, often there is no formal venue to learn about money that is accessible to all communities. For those who experience economic victimization, including individuals who have experienced human trafficking, education and resources may also be needed to address the financial trauma to improve their relationship with money. Economic empowerment programming demystifies financial wellbeing by providing education, tools, and resources for people to attain financial literacy, stability, and professional growth. This Office of Planning, Research and Planning resource addresses strategies for survivor economic empowerment and provides additional resources, including a guide for anti-trafficking service providers.

Economic empowerment is a critical need for many people who have experienced human trafficking and is increasingly being recognized by social service providers. Economic empowerment is a multifaceted concept and there is much to learn about what it is, why it matters, and how people can achieve it. Informed by the expertise of people with lived experience of human trafficking and anti-trafficking professionals who represent organizations providing economic empowerment programming, this Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation infographic defines key terms related to economic well-being and opportunity, specifically in the context of recovery from human trafficking victimization. These definitions can help enhance the anti-trafficking field’s shared understanding of the needs of this population. The infographic is intended to be read alongside the full guide, Economic Empowerment for People Who Have Experienced Human Trafficking: A Guide for Anti-Trafficking Providers.

Economic empowerment is often a critical need for people who have experienced human trafficking, from their moment of exit through their long-term recovery. An increasing number of anti-trafficking service providers are beginning to address these needs, offering programs focused on financial literacy, job training, cash assistance, and more. Yet there is little guidance for practitioners as they support the economic well-being of anti-trafficking program participants. This Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation guide is intended to serve as a foundation for organizations considering starting, expanding, or refining programs addressing economic empowerment of people with lived experience of human trafficking.