Bridge to Benefits is a multi-state project by Children’s Defense Fund Minnesota to improve the well-being of low-income families and individuals by linking them to public work support programs and tax credits.
The project relies on an online screening tool designed to help families and individuals understand if they are eligible for an array of public work support programs and tax credits and find helpful information to guide them through the application process. Work support programs and tax credits were implemented by federal and state governments to help low-income workers meet basic needs. Yet hundreds of thousands of eligible families across the country are not participating in these programs or claiming the tax credits that could provide increased economic stability for their families.
In Minnesota, the Bridge to Benefits project includes the following public work support programs and tax credits:
General Assistance Medical Care
WIC (Women Infants and Children)
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
Working Family Credit (WFC)
Public Programs are Underutilized
There are many reasons why families do not participate in public programs. They don’t know about the programs, don’t understand the eligibility criteria, or assume they don’t qualify. The applications and enrollment processes are often complex and time consuming to complete. Literacy issues, language, transportation and stigma all add to the obstacles families face in enrolling. The result is that all of these programs are underutilized in Minnesota. Click here to see the underutilization rates of programs.
Bridge to Benefits was created to help overcome many of these barriers. It provides a one-stop shop for families and organizations to find information on this array of programs. It includes a screening tool that is anonymous and quick to help determine a family’s potential eligibility for all the programs. It also provides detailed program information, downloadable applications, program contacts, and information on how to apply.
Bridge to Benefits Goals
The goals of Minnesota’s Bridge to Benefits project are to:
- Increase awareness and participation in seven public work support programs and two tax credits;
- Improve economic stability and well-being of low-income families by connecting them to work support programs that help meet basic needs;
- Promote healthy child development;
- Help families navigate complicated public program enrollment processes;
- Assist service providers by forming a “network of support” to ensure families receive the help they need;
- Strengthen communities by bringing in more federal and state dollars through the increased number of families who are participating in public programs and tax credits.
Impact of Public Programs
To learn more about how public programs can impact the economic stability of low-income families, click here.
To learn more about how public programs affect communities, click here.
Partnership Opportunities
Anyone can use the Bridge to Benefits website to screen themselves and find out about public work support programs. However, Children’s Defense Fund–Minnesota believes the project is most efficient when used in partnership with community-based organizations. CDF–Minnesota seeks to work with organizations that are willing to use the screening tool on a regular basis to help their clients enroll in public programs. CDF also looks to partner with organizations that will provide one-on-one application assistance for one or more of the programs included in the screening tool.
When using the website, screening partners are able to connect families with application assistance partners through an e-mail referral process. Not all families require one-on-one assistance with enrollment processes but for those who do the e-mail referral and follow up is extremely valuable. To find out more about partnership opportunities, click here.
Spread the Word
Bridge to Benefits is a completely free program. Anyone can access the screening tool, download information, and connect with services at partnering organizations at no charge. Help us spread the word about the project and help families find more economic stability through the use of public programs.
Click here to download a Bridge to Benefits brochure.
Click here to download a Bridge to Benefits information handout.
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The Children’s Defense Fund Leave No Child Behind® mission is to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities.