ASPA Center for Accountability & Performance

Updated American Rescue Plan Data and Evidence Dashboard

Results for America

A Mathematica and Results for America analysis of state and local governments’ American Rescue Plan spending identifies 110 notable projects that demonstrate how state and local leaders are using federal funds to deliver better results for residents. The dashboard is based on financial expenditures reported through December 2022.

America’s Biggest Cities Have Seen a Crime Surge, but Not Dallas

Washington Post

An Op-Ed by Karen Tumulty highlights the data-driven crime-reduction efforts by Dallas mayor Eric Johnson, “who obsesses about data, says he is confident that the trend is real and that it is holding. “I’m either the luckiest mayor in the United States,’ he said, ‘or this stuff actually works.’”

Strengthening Randomized Evaluations with Qualitative Research

J-PAL North America

This four-part series on qualitative research examines different case studies and lessons learned about the value of embedding qualitative research methods into randomized evaluations. This link is to Part 3 – the other parts can be accessed at the end of the blog.

How Baltimore Used its ARP Monies to Make a Difference

Twitter Thread by Adam Willis

Willis synopsizes a series of stories in the Baltimore Banner that examined how Mayor Brandon Scott is using its $641 million in State-Local Fiscal Recovery Funding to cut gun violence by one-third, created a universal basic income fund, a Clean Corps, bought a hotel to house the homeless, is closing the City’s digital divide, and more.

Webinar: Building a Culture of Performance in City Government (Friday, June 23, 11 a.m. Eastern)

Pew Charitable Trusts/Committee of Seventy

What does it take to create a sustainable data-driven culture throughout city government? How do leaders at various levels of local government conceive, develop, and sustain an organizational culture centered on performance? Features a panel with leaders from Kansas City, Boston, and Denver.

Resource of the Week:  Performance.gov “Resources” Page

U.S. Office of Management and Budget

This landing page is a one-stop for 13 different sets of resources such as best practices for agency priority goals, performance measurement basics, logic modelling, and a performance principles and practices “playbook.”

Measuring Meaningful Work-in-Office

Federal News Network

Agencies are still mapping out their workforce plans after the White House called for an increase to “meaningful” in-person work at headquarters offices. The Office of Management and Budget defined “meaningful” work as “purposeful, well-planned and optimized for in-person collaboration,” but what that actually looks like depends on the agency.

Social Indicators: 97 Ways to Measure the State of the Nation

U.S. Office of Management and Budget

The social indicators presented . . . illustrate in broad terms how the Nation is faring in selected areas in which the Federal Government has significant responsibilities. Indicators are drawn from six selected domains: economic, demographic and civic, socioeconomic, health, security and safety, and environment and energy. 

Balancing Accountability and Learning in Program Evaluation

LinkedIn

Accountability refers to demonstrating a program’s results, compliance, and value for money to stakeholders, funders, and beneficiaries. Learning refers to improving a program’s design, implementation, and adaptation based on evidence, feedback, and lessons learned. How do you balance these two purposes in your program evaluation?

8 Leading Practices

FEDManager

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) says solving some of the challenges on its high-risk list including fighting infectious diseases, climate change, and improving cybersecurity, will require collaboration between various government agencies. With that spirit of cooperation in mind, GAO released a report on best practices to encourage inter-agency collaboration, break down barriers between agencies, and solve some of these high-risk issues.

Resource of the Week:  How-To Tools for Foresight Projects

Check out the UN Global Pulse’s tools section on its new website. It includes step-by-step guides, workshop templates, and more for conducting Foresight projects!

President’s Management Agenda: Quarterly Update

U.S. Office of Management and Budget

The May updates covered progress made during the second quarter of FY2023 (Jan – Mar) in each of the three priority areas: federal workforce, customer experience, and business operations.

White House Reveals Two New “Life Experience” CX Projects

FedScoop

The White House has revealed details of two governmentwide technology projects focused on improving the user design of systems used by citizens to subscribe for Medicare and apply for federal disaster relief programs.

Resource of the Week:  Problem-Framing Canvas: Making Sense of Problems for Better Responses

Griffith Centre for Systems Innovation

This canvas and workbook help develop better skills to analyze problems and to reflect, test, and learn about possible responses more effectively. 

Eight Leading Practices to Enhance Interagency Collaboration and Address Crosscutting Challenges

U.S. Government Accountability Office

GAO’s eight leading practices for interagency collaboration include key considerations for collaborating entities to use when implementing them. This report also includes examples illustrating how the leading practices apply to a number of different collaboration challenges and successes, including the use of metrics.

Congressional Evidence-Based Policymaking Resolution

U.S. Congress

Bipartisan proposal to establish a new Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking to review, analyze, and make recommendations to Congress to promote its use of federal data for evidence-building and evidence-based policymaking.

Visualization Guide – A Quick Reference

Medium/Data-Driven Investor

Visualizing data is an essential skill for any data analyst; it allows you to communicate insights effectively and engage your audience. This guide helps you select which visual works best for the data you want to communicate.

Five Enablers for a New Phase of Behavioral Science

BehavioralScientist (Michael Hallsworth)

Behavioral science has seen a tremendous amount of growth and interest over the last decade, largely focused on expanding its uses and methods. My sense is it’s ready for a new phase of maturity. That maturity involves behavioral scientists reflecting on the various ways that their actions are shaped by structural, institutional, environmental, economic, and historical factors.

Second Annual Open Data Policy Summit (On-Line, June 12; 9am-12pm, ET)

Open Data Policy Lab

This virtual conference will take the form of three hours of panels and conversations on real-world examples of open data and data reuse initiatives from around the world.

Resource of the Week:  Transforming State Data Systems to Inform Decisions

Data Quality Campaign

This resource describes the types of data access that people need to successfully navigate decisions through education and the workforce, details four use cases in which Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems are necessary to support decisionmaking, and describes clear ways that state and federal leaders can take action to make this vision a reality.

As Data Quantity Explodes, Quality Matter

International Journal of Public Administration

As data has become ever more important to governments, the quality of that data has become an increasingly serious issue. A number of nations, including the United States, are taking steps to deal with it.

VA EHR Contract Has Higher Performance Targets

Federal News Network

The Department of Veterans Affairs is renewing its multibillion-dollar contract for a new Electronic Health Record, with new terms meant to hold the vendor accountable for persistent outages.

Making Evidence Matter

Education Resources for Action

This initiative provides practical, research-based insights for educational leaders, with research briefs on topics such as reducing student absenteeism. 

Using Data to Drive Customer Experience

Federal News Network

Federal Agencies are increasingly turning to design thinking, digital tools and their own data stores to drive forward their “customer experience” initiatives.

Resource of the Week:  Evidence & Policy Journal (Open Access)

Bristol University Press 

Research on knowledge brokers, use of research evidence by legislatures, co-production of evidence, and more.