{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,27]],"date-time":"2026-02-27T03:47:27Z","timestamp":1772164047900,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":11,"publisher":"Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2020,11,9]],"date-time":"2020-11-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1604880000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/www.acm.org\/publications\/policies\/copyright_policy#Background"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Science Foundation","award":["2029746,1937061"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2029746,1937061"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["dl.acm.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Digit. Gov.: Res. Pract."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,31]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>The COVID-19 public health emergency caused widespread economic shutdown and unemployment. The resulting surge in Unemployment Insurance claims threatened to overwhelm the legacy systems state workforce agencies rely on to collect, process, and pay claims. In Rhode Island, we developed a scalable cloud solution to collect Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims as part of a new program created under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act to extend unemployment benefits to independent contractors and gig-economy workers not covered by traditional Unemployment Insurance. Our new system was developed, tested, and deployed within 10 days following the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, making Rhode Island the first state in the nation to collect, validate, and pay Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claims. A cloud-enhanced interactive voice response system was deployed a week later to handle the corresponding surge in weekly certifications for continuing unemployment benefits. Cloud solutions can augment legacy systems by offloading processes that are more efficiently handled in modern scalable systems, reserving the limited resources of legacy systems for what they were originally designed. This agile use of combined technologies allowed Rhode Island to deliver timely Pandemic Unemployment Assistance benefits with an estimated cost savings of $502,000 (representing a 411% return on investment).<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1145\/3428125","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2020,10,30]],"date-time":"2020-10-30T13:09:25Z","timestamp":1604063365000},"page":"1-11","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Delivering Unemployment Assistance in Times of Crisis"],"prefix":"10.1145","volume":"2","author":[{"given":"Mintaka","family":"Angell","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Improving People's Lives, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Samantha","family":"Gold","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Improving People's Lives, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Mark","family":"Howison","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Improving People's Lives, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Victoria","family":"Kidd","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Improving People's Lives, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Daniel","family":"Molitor","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Improving People's Lives, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Casey","family":"Burns","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Amazon Web Services, Seattle, WA, USA"}]},{"given":"Chris","family":"Johnson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Amazon Web Services, Seattle, WA, USA"}]},{"given":"Matthew","family":"Kahn","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Amazon Web Services, Seattle, WA, USA"}]},{"given":"Stuart","family":"Venzke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Amazon Web Services, Seattle, WA, USA"}]},{"given":"Sandra","family":"Deneault","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Donald","family":"Doweiko","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Stephen","family":"Dziembowski","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Bijay","family":"Kumar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Patrick","family":"O'donnell","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Chirag","family":"Patel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Andrew","family":"Reidl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Brian","family":"Tardiff","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Information Technology, Providence, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Justine S.","family":"Hastings","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Improving People's Lives; Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University; Department of Economics, Brown University; and National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA, USA"}]},{"given":"Scott","family":"Jensen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, Cranston, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Angelika","family":"Pellegrino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, Cranston, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Amelia","family":"Roberts","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training, Cranston, RI, USA"}]},{"given":"Rahul","family":"Sarathy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Rhode Island Division of Taxation, Providence, RI, USA"}]}],"member":"320","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,11,9]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_2_1_1_1","article-title":"How many workers are employed in sectors directly affected by COVID-19 shutdowns, where do they work, and how much do they earn","author":"Dey Matthew","year":"2020","unstructured":"Matthew Dey and Mark A. Loewenstein . 2020 . How many workers are employed in sectors directly affected by COVID-19 shutdowns, where do they work, and how much do they earn ? Monthly Labor Review. Retrieved October 22, 2020 from https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/opub\/mlr\/2020\/article\/covid-19-shutdowns.htm DOI:https:\/\/doi.org\/10.21916\/mlr.2020.6 10.21916\/mlr.2020.6 Matthew Dey and Mark A. Loewenstein. 2020. How many workers are employed in sectors directly affected by COVID-19 shutdowns, where do they work, and how much do they earn? Monthly Labor Review. Retrieved October 22, 2020 from https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/opub\/mlr\/2020\/article\/covid-19-shutdowns.htm DOI:https:\/\/doi.org\/10.21916\/mlr.2020.6","journal-title":"Monthly Labor Review. Retrieved"},{"key":"e_1_2_1_2_1","volume-title":"Retrieved","author":"Information Technology Support Center","year":"2019","unstructured":"Information Technology Support Center . 2019 . Status of State UI IT Modernization Projects . Retrieved May 27, 2020 from http:\/\/itsc.org\/Documents\/Status%20of%20State%20UI%20IT%20Modernization%20Projects.pdf. Information Technology Support Center. 2019. Status of State UI IT Modernization Projects. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from http:\/\/itsc.org\/Documents\/Status%20of%20State%20UI%20IT%20Modernization%20Projects.pdf."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_3_1","volume-title":"Retrieved","author":"Information Technology Support Center","year":"2020","unstructured":"Information Technology Support Center . 2020 . Learn About ITSC . Retrieved May 27, 2020 from http:\/\/itsc.org\/Pages\/learn.aspx. Information Technology Support Center. 2020. Learn About ITSC. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from http:\/\/itsc.org\/Pages\/learn.aspx."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_4_1","volume-title":"Retrieved","author":"National Association of State Workforce Agencies.","year":"2010","unstructured":"National Association of State Workforce Agencies. 2010 . A National View of UI IT Systems . Retrieved May 27, 2020 from http:\/\/itsc.org\/itsc%20public%20library\/NationalViewUI_IT%20Systems.pdf. National Association of State Workforce Agencies. 2010. A National View of UI IT Systems. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from http:\/\/itsc.org\/itsc%20public%20library\/NationalViewUI_IT%20Systems.pdf."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_5_1","unstructured":"John Pallasch. 2020. Importance of including labor market information stakeholders in planning and implementation for unemployment insurance (UI) information technology modernization projects. U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration Training and Employment Notice No. 14-19. Retrieved May 27 2020 from https:\/\/wdr.doleta.gov\/directives\/corr_doc.cfm?docn=3285.  John Pallasch. 2020. Importance of including labor market information stakeholders in planning and implementation for unemployment insurance (UI) information technology modernization projects. U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration Training and Employment Notice No. 14-19. Retrieved May 27 2020 from https:\/\/wdr.doleta.gov\/directives\/corr_doc.cfm?docn=3285."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_6_1","volume-title":"Unemployment Insurance Program Letter No. 16-20. Retrieved","author":"Pallasch John","year":"2020","unstructured":"John Pallasch . 2020. Coronavirus aid, relief, and economic security (CARES) Act of 2020\u2014Pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA) program operating, financial, and reporting instructions. U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration , Unemployment Insurance Program Letter No. 16-20. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/wdr.doleta.gov\/directives\/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=4628. John Pallasch. 2020. Coronavirus aid, relief, and economic security (CARES) Act of 2020\u2014Pandemic unemployment assistance (PUA) program operating, financial, and reporting instructions. U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration, Unemployment Insurance Program Letter No. 16-20. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/wdr.doleta.gov\/directives\/corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=4628."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_7_1","volume-title":"Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved on","author":"Swagel Phillip L.","year":"2020","unstructured":"Phillip L. Swagel . 2020 . CBO's current projections of output, employment, and interest rates and a preliminary look at federal deficits for 2020 and 2021 . Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved on May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/www.cbo.gov\/publication\/56335. Phillip L. Swagel. 2020. CBO's current projections of output, employment, and interest rates and a preliminary look at federal deficits for 2020 and 2021. Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved on May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/www.cbo.gov\/publication\/56335."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_8_1","volume-title":"Sixteenth supplemental emergency declaration\u2014Increasing access to unemployment insurance","author":"Raimondo Gina M.","year":"2020","unstructured":"Gina M. Raimondo . 2020. Sixteenth supplemental emergency declaration\u2014Increasing access to unemployment insurance . State of Rhode Island , Executive Order 20-19. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/governor.ri.gov\/documents\/orders\/Executive-Order-20-19.pdf. Gina M. Raimondo. 2020. Sixteenth supplemental emergency declaration\u2014Increasing access to unemployment insurance. State of Rhode Island, Executive Order 20-19. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/governor.ri.gov\/documents\/orders\/Executive-Order-20-19.pdf."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_9_1","volume-title":"Retrieved on","year":"2020","unstructured":"Tripetto. 2020 . Tripetto\u2014Smart Conversational Forms and Surveys with Visual Form Builder . Retrieved on May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/tripetto.com. Tripetto. 2020. Tripetto\u2014Smart Conversational Forms and Surveys with Visual Form Builder. Retrieved on May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/tripetto.com."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_10_1","series-title":"Series LNS14000000. Retrieved","volume-title":"Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey","author":"U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2020.","year":"2020","unstructured":"U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2020. Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey . Series LNS14000000. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/data.bls.gov\/timeseries\/LNS14000000. U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2020. Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey. Series LNS14000000. Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/data.bls.gov\/timeseries\/LNS14000000."},{"key":"e_1_2_1_11_1","volume-title":"Retrieved","author":"Congress U. S.","year":"2020","unstructured":"U. S. Congress . 2020 . 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Retrieved May 27, 2020 from https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/116th-congress\/house-bill\/748."}],"container-title":["Digital Government: Research and Practice"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/10.1145\/3428125","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1145\/3428125","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"syndication"},{"URL":"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/pdf\/10.1145\/3428125","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,17]],"date-time":"2025-06-17T17:24:23Z","timestamp":1750181063000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/10.1145\/3428125"}},"subtitle":["Scalable Cloud Solutions Can Keep Essential Government Programs Running and Supporting Those in Need"],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2020,11,9]]},"references-count":11,"journal-issue":{"issue":"1","published-print":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,31]]}},"alternative-id":["10.1145\/3428125"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/3428125","relation":{"has-preprint":[{"id-type":"doi","id":"10.31219\/osf.io\/p9yk7","asserted-by":"object"}]},"ISSN":["2691-199X","2639-0175"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2691-199X","type":"print"},{"value":"2639-0175","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2020,11,9]]},"assertion":[{"value":"2020-08-01","order":0,"name":"received","label":"Received","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2020-10-01","order":1,"name":"accepted","label":"Accepted","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}},{"value":"2020-11-09","order":2,"name":"published","label":"Published","group":{"name":"publication_history","label":"Publication History"}}]}}