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Project Description

The evaluation examines the extent to which Colorado Works participants are obtaining employment and achieving self-sufficiency; the impact of Colorado Works on the well-being of children and families of participants; the effectiveness of program services in preparing participants for employment; the availability of adequate child care for program participants; the impact of Colorado Works on other state and local assistance programs; and the economic costs and benefits of the program.

This evaluation will focus on the following six areas: Employment and Self-Sufficiency; Impact on Children and Families; Employment Preparation Services; Child Care; Impact on State and Local Programs, and Costs and Benefits.

Project duration: Oct 1998 - Nov 2003

Sites studied include Colorado

Sample Characteristics and Sites Studied

All participants and leavers of the Colorado Works program, July 1997 — June 2003.

Recent Findings in Brief

11/01/03: Colorado Works Evaluation: Fifth Annual Report

Final Implementation Findings:

• Between July 1997 and June 2003 the Colorado Works Basic Cash Assistance (BCA) caseload decreased by about 46 percent, from 27,898 to 15,159.
• Total Colorado Works Program spending declined during State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2003 for the first time since the start of the program.
• Overall, less than 1 percent (on average, 74 cases) of the average monthly adult headed caseload of 9,051 in SFY 2003 received cash assistance due to an extension to the 60-month time limit.
• Re-entry rates among Colorado Works leavers have been increasing for several years.
• The recent economic slowdown appears to have had a significant impact on the employment rate of recent Colorado Works leavers.

• Colorado Works participants often have difficulty achieving self-sufficiency due to substance abuse problems or mental illness.
• The counties have undertaken a variety of endeavors to assist Colorado Works participants with mental illness or substance abuse problems.
• The Colorado Department of Human Services met the legislative mandate to designate a nationally recognized screening instrument to identify substance abuse and mental illness among Colorado Works participants and to provide training to county staff on the use of this screening.
• Cost data on providing mental health and substance abuse screening, referral, and assessment are very limited, precluding a thorough analysis of the cost effectiveness of these services.
• Rates of both tax filing and Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) participation have improved compared with the 1999 rates reported in BPA’s Second Annual Report.
• The issue of transportation as a barrier to self-sufficiency has not changed since BPA first discussed the problem in the 2000 Second Annual Report.

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