Evidence in Action: A Victory for Children & Families Through Child Support Reform

This week's final regulation on "Employment and Training Services for Noncustodial Parents in the Child Support Program" marks a significant milestone in evidence-based policymaking. It's also a powerful reminder that meaningful policy change requires both rigorous evidence AND patience.

I'm reminded of Vicki Turetsky 's insightful chapter in "Evidence Works," a book I co-edited (with Meron T. Yohannes ), where Vicki detailed her experience as Commissioner of the Office of Child Support Enforcement during the Obama administration. Her leadership in modernizing child support policies based on research evidence laid crucial groundwork for this week's reforms.

The new regulation from HHS which has been a long-time in the making, allows federal funding for employment and training services in child support programs. It exemplifies how evidence-based policy change often unfolds:

1. Building the evidence takes time - Multiple demonstration projects and evaluations over more than 30 years suggested these services could improve outcomes
2. Cultural change matters - Agencies must shift from viewing decisions through just operational or legal lenses to embracing evidence as a key driver
3. Implementation requires persistence - While evidence supporting these services existed years ago, incorporating it into federal policy required sustained effort

The result? A policy that will tangibly improve outcomes for children and families across America. It's a testament to the power of evidence-informed policymaking, even when the process is challenging and time-consuming.

To Vicki, the current team at the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) , and all the evidence champions who've worked tirelessly to build and use evidence in support of better policy - thank you. Your commitment to evidence-based reform, even when progress seems slow, ultimately benefits the American people.

The recent reforms for the child support regulations are a perfect example of what the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act (Evidence) hoped to inspire in government, a law signed by then-President Trump in 2019. Regardless of politics, the benefits accrue across political administrations.

This week's regulation reminds us: evidence-based policymaking is hard work, but the improved outcomes for families make it worth every careful step.

#EvidenceBased #ChildSupport #PolicyReform #EvidenceAct