To provide an answer, this project builds on the successful steps Washington State has taken in criminal justice, juvenile justice, education, child welfare, and several other significant areas of state government policymaking. The project is funded by the MacArthur Foundation and Pew Center on the States.

In April 2012, the Institute delivered to the Legislature an updated and expanded return on investment analysis regarding what works in the following areas:

K–12 education Criminal justice Juvenile justice Child welfare Substance abuse

Mental health Public health Public assistance Employment Housing

Our current work focuses on two key outcomes:

• Increasing high school graduation rates; and
• Reducing crime via policing policies.

Previous benefit-cost analyses by the Institute examined impacts on outcomes from individual policy choices. The current project involves building a “portfolio” of policy choices in order to forecast the overall impact on outcomes given a combination of policies and programs.

The Institute has developed a software-based application that allows analysts to examine the cost and benefits of various policy choices that impact these outcomes. In past years, representatives from other states have contacted us with an interest in duplicating Washington’s approach. This project incorporates a novel idea to take advantage of this market demand: a new software-based application that allows other states to tailor the Washington approach for their state.

Thus, the twin goals of the project are to:

• Provide a new economic analysis of a portfolio of evidence-based program and policy options for state governments that provide citizens with better outcomes and a more efficient use of taxpayer dollars; and
• Make this innovative approach more accessible to other interested states.

Lead Researcher: Steve Aos, (360) 586-2740