Accountability

Kids Impact Initiative provides research, analysis, and recommendations for how the public sector measures and is accountable for the well-being of children. Our goal is to strengthen policymaker accountability by which we mean that lawmakers are clear about and incentivized to promote policies and practices that help children thrive, and mechanisms are in place to ensure shared expectations for children are met.

Using Child Impact Assessments in Your Community or State:
A Starter Guide 

This guide is a “ how-to” for getting started with child impact assessments and includes templates, samples, and resources to make this strategy a valuable addition to your advocacy for kids. It also includes steps to address racial equity impacts of proposed policies.

• View the guide
• Planning Checklist: Youth Impact Assessments (YIAs)
• Fact Sheet #1: Youth Impact Assessments—Putting Kids Front and Center in Policy Decisions
• Fact Sheet #2: Youth Impact Assessments—Making Sure Kids Get Their Fair Share of American Rescue Plan Funds
• Fact Sheet #3: Youth Engagement—A Key Ingredient for Effective Youth Impact Assessments
• Key Decisions Roadmap
• Child Impact Assessments Can Help Put Kids at the Forefront of Pandemic Recovery (blog post)
• Sample Tools and Forms
• Racial Equity Impact Assessments
• Other Child Impact Assessment Resources

Child Impact Assessments: A Missing Piece to Spur Progress for U.S. Children (2020)

An Action Brief for Cities, Counties, and States

Child impact assessments have been used successfully in other countries and other fields but not yet in the U.S. to achieve shared goals for children. This brief provides policymakers background research and an action-oriented roadmap for using child impact assessments at the city, county, and state levels.

Full brief
Executive summary
Print version

See Related Links:

COVID-19 and Child Impact Assessments
As the COVID-19 virus has upended business as usual for governments, there is an urgent need and opportunity to put in place accountability measures that promote the well-being of children during the COVID-19 recovery period. COVID-19 Action Memo outlines ways to get started immediately.

See “A ‘New Normal’ for the Country’s Children: How We Can Put Kids’ Needs Front and Center as We Recover from the COVID-19 Crisis.”

See resources for further information.

Policymaker Accountability for U.S. Kids’ Well-Being: Charting the Course & A Call to Action (2019)

Kids Impact Initiative has completed an analysis of policymaker accountability for children’s well-being in the present political times. It finds that strengthening policymaker accountability for kids is more urgent than at any time in this century. Leaders for children understand this and recognize that kids’ issues need more clout. This report describes promising models from other social movements, other countries, and within child advocacy that can help lead the way. Kids Impact has developed a Policymaker Accountability Accelerator Model and a three-part action plan in the report. Read More.

“Policymaker Accountability for U.S. Kids’ Well-Being: Charting the Course & A Call to Action”: Executive Summary

See our article from the The Chronicle of Social Change: Accountability is Key to Capitalizing on New Political Leadership on Child Well-Being

View the Report Announcement.

The Policymaker Accountability Accelerator Model: Report graphic

Twelve Types of Accountability Activities: Report graphic

See our accountability-related resources.

Related Links
See our blog post: “We Measure and Are Accountable for the Things We Care About”