And in SIBsame street, today’s letter is “P”:
There are 4 of them centred on “Partnership” from the good folks of Living Cities while “Pennsylvania” goes RFI and Austin discusses “Philanthropy.”
(Sorry, I couldn’t resist that poor pun on a staple of American/Anglosphere childhood! …Now go and visualise “Big Bird” explaining “Pay for Success” to those adorable kids sitting cross legged at his feet… and my attempt at crowding your mind with one whacky concept too many of a morning is arguably complete).
Back to SIB News, three great stories, although I suppose as a “P” myself I may have to declare a conflict of interest:
Pennsylvania Releases Request for Information on ‘Pay for Success’ Opportunities
PRNewswire-USNewswire
Governor Tom Wolf announced that Pennsylvania has released a Request for Information to obtain feedback to assist the Commonwealth in developing its proposal for evidence-based, innovative Pay for Success (PFS) financing.
PFS performance contracts – also known as “Social Impact Bonds” – are rigorous, binding agreements based on a straightforward proposition: taxpayers will only pay for services that actually get results and save money in the long-run.
In the Pay for Success model, governments partner with private sector investors who provide up-front funding to promising service providers. Investors only receive a repayment from the government if objective benchmarks for savings and other benefits are achieved. Because governments pay only if the programs work, the PFS model has the potential to effectively allocate taxpayer dollars while increasing funding for programs that deliver improved social outcomes. These public-private partnerships will be selected on a competitive basis, and payment will only occur after validation by an independent, third-party evaluator.
Governor Wolf’s FY2015-16 Executive Budget includes proposed legislation that would enable the Commonwealth to enter into Pay for Success contracts. The Governor’s proposal identifies five high-priority areas for possible Pay for Success initiatives:
Early childhood care and education, including pre-kindergarten education and services that address maternal and child outcomes from pregnancy through age 2;
Education, workforce preparedness and employment, including school-to-work programs and alternative education services;
Public safety, including programs that reduce recidivism;
Health and human services, including addiction treatment, chronic homelessness, supportive housing and child welfare; and
Long-term living and home- and community-based services.
Earlier this month, Governor Wolf announced that Pennsylvania was selected as one of five states and localities to receive technical assistance from the Harvard Kennedy School to help develop Pay for Success projects.
The 4 Ps of Pay for Success: Partnership
Andy Rachlin & Ellen Ward – Living Cities
Last week we shared our “4 Ps” framework for underwriting the credit worthiness of Pay for Success (PFS) transactions. Similar to the 4 Cs of Credit, the 4 Ps of PFSserve to break down the complexities of Pay For Success deals and provide a simple and systematic method for investors to understand the risks of any PFS transaction.
Today, we’ll explore the first of the 4 Ps of PFS we identified: “Partnership”.
Growth Not Without Struggle For Austin’s Philanthropic Groups
Joe Lanane – Impact News
A new concept called social impact bonds could provide another funding avenue for Austin’s philanthropic organizations.
Austin-Travis County area and six other communities nationwide were selected to receive federal-issued social innovation funds. The money enables city and county officials to conduct a feasibility study to see if this area can support Pay For Success, a social-impact bond that pays back investors for money spent on programs that prove successful and capable of being expanded upon. The study will focus on whether a Pay For Success model could effectively expand existing programs that attempt to reduce teen pregnancies among Hispanic youth and another program that seeks to improve birth outcomes among African-Americans. A third Pay For Success feasibility study grant from a separate grantor was received by Ending Community Homeless Coalition Inc., or ECHO, to consider expanding efforts to house vulnerable Austin populations.