Shapiro Administration Launches New Tools to Improve Customer Experience, Lower SNAP Error Rate, and Ensure Public Assistance Benefits Reach Those Who Need Them | Department of[...]

New tools and technology will improve customer service, application tracking, and processing to ensure all eligible Pennsylvanians are able to receive the benefits they are entitled to despite new barriers created by the Republican Budget Bill.

Pennsylvanians will now be able to check the status of their COMPASS application in real-time and reset their password on their own, while DHS caseworkers will have new tools to confirm the accuracy of submitted documents and income eligibility.

Tools will help Commonwealth staff prioritize efficiency and accuracy as Pennsylvania faces new, unfunded federal mandates.

Harrisburg, PA - The Shapiro Administration today launched a suite of new and improved technology and tools to support the Commonwealth's administration and management of public assistance programs and improve customer experience. The new tools will allow Pennsylvanians to track their benefits applications in real-time, help Pennsylvania continue to reduce its SNAP Error Rate, and save millions in taxpayer dollars and thousands of hours in staff overtime.

DHS and CODE PA have piloted these new tools for the last two months, demonstrating positive results that have saved hundreds of hours of staff time and helped caseworkers catch - and resolve - common errors. During the pilot, the use of intelligent document processing cut down on the number of illegible documents submitted by 80 percent, saving 700 hours of staff time. Likewise, the new SNAP case checker helped staff prioritize more than 1,000 cases for additional review, helping reduce the risk of additional SNAP case errors.

The launch of these new tools will modernize applications and benefits management and improve both staff and client experience, and will blunt the harmful impacts of the Republican Budget Bill that President Trump signed into law last July. Immediately after the Republican Budget Bill was signed into law, the Department of Human Services began working with the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience (CODE PA) to develop tools to address the unfunded federal mandates included in the legislation.

"Staff at DHS' County Assistance Offices work tirelessly every day to help Pennsylvanians in difficult situations access assistance that can help weather a crisis or take a step forward. This work requires constant attention to detail and focus on accuracy to make proper eligibility determinations - often under pressure from people who do not understand the care and diligence this team brings to their work," said Human Services Secretary Dr. Val Arkoosh. "These new resources will help both our staff and our clients as they navigate the complex eligibility process - continuing our constant focus on improving customer service and supporting efficiency and accuracy as our staff and our clients face new pressures and potential barriers to these essential, life-sustaining supports."

New resources and solutions include:

• My Benefits Status Tracker: A new tool that will show applicants and clients where their application is in real-time. Users will be able to check their status anytime without needing to log into their COMPASS account. Users will verify their identity using simpler methods that remain secure. The initial launch will allow users to track new applications and will be expanded to include renewals. The tracker is accessible at trackmybenefits.pa.gov.
• Intelligent Document Processing: Documents will be scanned for legibility when users upload required documentation to COMPASS to verify information in their application or renewal. This AI-driven tool will screen for blurriness, image quality, and relevance to assist users in submitting accurate and readable information and help caseworkers quickly process information, cutting time spent trying to decipher poor scans or time spent working with clients to resubmit. The tool will not determine eligibility but will support DHS staff and improve accuracy and efficiency in case processing. Approximately 12,000 documents have been scanned through this tool's pilot period, identifying concerns in 25 percent of cases. These flags allow clients to resubmit unclear scans of necessary documents immediately, decreasing instances of illegible or incorrect documents by 80 percent and saving CAO staff more than 700 hours of work.
• Consent-Based Income Verification: Clients applying for or renewing DHS benefits will be able to opt-in to allow DHS to verify income data directly with a person's listed employer(s). This adds yet another tool for DHS to verify income. Caseworkers will be receive income information from employers and payroll processors directly to verify an applicant's information, reducing delays created by missing, incomplete, or unclear documentation and improving accuracy and efficiency in case processing. This feature is supported by a federal grant.
• Self -service Password Reset: Pennsylvanians can now reset their passwords directly through COMPASS without a caseworker's assistance, improving prior processes which required an actual staff member's time and attention to authorize resets. This added convenience for COMPASS users will mean Pennsylvanians get answers faster because caseworkers will spend less time on the phone resetting passwords and more time processing benefits.
• SNAP Case Checker: Supervisors within DHS' Office of Income Maintenance Operations team, who process and oversee eligibility determinations when a person applies for or renews their benefits, now receive daily reports flagging common potential case errors like missing signatures or calculations of wages and deductions before a case is submitted for quality control reviews. This allows caseworkers to identify and correct potential issues with a case record sooner, furthering Pennsylvania's continued work to reduce its SNAP case processing error rate. A pilot of this case tracker helped staff prioritize more than 1,000 cases for additional review, helping reduce the risk of additional SNAP case errors.

The new tools implemented today will also support staff as they meet new demands while simultaneously prioritizing accuracy, efficiency, and customer experience throughout the application process - giving the Commonwealth new tools to build on Pennsylvania's progress to lower its SNAP error rate.

Today's launch is a partnership between the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services' (DHS) Office of Income Maintenance and the Office of Administration's (OA) IT team in collaboration with the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience (CODE PA), Deloitte, Amazon Web Services, Nava PBC, and Digital Public Works.

"We are leveraging modern technology, including AI, to improve access to benefits that are a vital lifeline to millions of Pennsylvanians and empower caseworkers with tools to do their jobs more effectively," said Secretary of Administration Neil Weaver. "This project exemplifies the Shapiro Administration's no-wrong-door approach to delivering effective, efficient services to Pennsylvanians."

The new tools were piloted beginning in October to a portion of applicants and will be rolled out to assist all clients over the next few weeks.

This work sets the foundation for Pennsylvania's IT response to the new requirements and our efforts to protect vulnerable Pennsylvanians targeted by the Republican Budget Bill by improving application processing and efficiency, prioritizing data security, and modernizing our digital infrastructure to improve employee and user experience.

For more information on changes mandated by the Republican Budget Bill and SNAP work reporting requirements, visit https://www.dhs.pa.gov/work.