California Policy Lab

California Policy Lab
Name	California Policy Lab
Formation	2016
Type	Research institute
Location	Berkeley, California; Los Angeles, California; Sacramento, California
Fields	Public policy research
Affiliations	University of California, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Los Angeles

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California Policy Lab

The California Policy Lab is a California-based research institute that produces evidence to inform policy decisions in areas such as poverty in the United States, criminal justice reform in the United States, labor policy, education policy in the United States, and public health in the United States. The Lab works closely with state agencies, philanthropic organizations, and academic partners to translate administrative data into actionable research used by policymakers including members of the California State Legislature, officials in the California Department of Social Services, and administrators in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Overview

The Lab operates at the intersection of applied social science and policy analysis, leveraging partnerships with institutions such as University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Los Angeles, Stanford University, Harvard University, and state agencies including the California Employment Development Department and the California Department of Public Health. Staff and affiliates include faculty from departments and centers like the Goldman School of Public Policy, the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, the Institute for Research on Poverty, and the National Bureau of Economic Research. The Lab’s outputs have been cited by stakeholders ranging from the Governor of California offices to county-level agencies and nonprofit organizations such as The California Endowment, California Health Care Foundation, and Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Founded in 2016, the Lab emerged amid policy initiatives following high-profile events including debates over Great Recession recovery policy, reforms inspired by the Brown v. Board of Education legacy in schooling debates, and criminal justice shifts related to propositions like California Proposition 47 (2014). Founders and early supporters included scholars affiliated with UC Berkeley, UCLA, philanthropic funders such as the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, and intermediaries like PolicyLink and Rockefeller Foundation-funded programs. Its creation paralleled expansions in administrative data use exemplified by projects at University of Michigan, Columbia University, and Harvard Kennedy School.

The Lab’s research agenda centers on applied analyses of poverty in the United States, unemployment in the United States, criminal justice reform in the United States, child welfare in the United States, and housing in California. Methodologically, the Lab employs causal inference techniques used by scholars at the National Bureau of Economic Research, such as difference-in-differences popularized in work by Joshua Angrist, regression discontinuity designs used in studies by David Card, and randomized evaluations akin to trials run by researchers at the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab. Researchers use linked administrative records from agencies like the California Employment Development Department, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, and the California Department of Health Care Services combined with statistical software and platforms common at The R Project for Statistical Computing and StataCorp LLC.

Major projects have addressed topics such as unemployment insurance during the COVID-19 pandemic, cash assistance programs related to CalWORKs, the impact of reentry services tied to realignment in California (2011), and analyses of school attendance patterns connected to the Every Student Succeeds Act. Studies on pandemic-era unemployment have informed emergency responses by the Governor of California and the California Employment Development Department, while work on reentry has been cited by stakeholders including the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and advocacy groups like the ACLU of Northern California and Jobs Not Jails coalitions. Evaluations of cash assistance have intersected with initiatives by Public Policy Institute of California and practitioners at county human services agencies.

Funding sources and partners include state agencies, philanthropic foundations such as the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the California Endowment, and national funders like the Arnold Ventures and the James Irvine Foundation. Academic partnerships span UC Berkeley, UCLA, collaborative ties with research centers such as the Boots Institute and policy intermediaries including The Brookings Institution, Urban Institute, and RAND Corporation. The Lab frequently signs data-sharing agreements with state entities including the California Department of Public Health, the California Employment Development Department, and county welfare departments.

The Lab produces working papers, peer-reviewed articles, policy briefs, and technical reports used by the California State Legislature, county supervisors, and agencies such as the California Department of Social Services. Its publications have appeared alongside scholarship from authors at Harvard University, Princeton University, Yale University, and the University of Chicago, and have been cited in policy discussions reported by outlets covering state policy like the Sacramento Bee and national reporting by The New York Times. Findings have influenced legislative hearings, administrative rulemaking, and program redesigns in employment services, cash aid programs, and reentry services.

The Lab is governed by directors and faculty affiliates drawn from institutions including University of California, Berkeley and UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. Leadership has included economists and policy scholars with backgrounds connected to institutions such as the U.S. Department of Labor, the White House Office of Management and Budget, and research networks like the National Bureau of Economic Research. Operational staff collaborate with data stewards at state agencies and partner organizations including the Public Policy Institute of California, California Budget & Policy Center, and county human services departments.

Category:Research institutes in California