Groundbreaking Independent Study Links Short-Term Cash Aid to Long-Term Stability & Reduced Parole Violations for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals
CEO’s ‘Returning Citizen Stimulus,’ Largest-ever Reentry Cash Assistance Program for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals, Shows Year-Long Reduction of Parole Violations After Only 60-Day Intervention
CEO Media Contact:
Claire Gross, Sr. Manager Public Relations
[email protected] | (646) 370-8292
New York, NY–April 22, 2025–A groundbreaking and independent impact study by MDRC finds that the Center for Employment Opportunities’ (CEO) Returning Citizens Stimulus (RCS) program significantly reduced parole violations in the year following release from incarceration— despite the cash installments lasting only 60 days.
Launched in 2020 in response to COVID-19 restrictions that limited CEO’s ability to provide participants with the same level of paid on-the-job training, the RCS program provided up to $2,750 in cash assistance to formerly incarcerated people in 28 cities nationwide. Through a network of partners, CEO distributed payments to over 10,000 individuals while ensuring connection to critical services. Participants received three payments over 60 days upon completion of personalized milestones, such as preparing a resume to support their journey toward stability and employment.
Providing cash assistance is a net benefit for the economy and the wellbeing of communities.
Parole and probation violations accounted for 27% of all admissions to state and federal prisons in 2025, and the cost to the US amounts to over $10 billion a year. The significant results of RCS in reducing parole violations should signal to lawmakers that, if implemented, direct cash assistance could lead to a decrease in the incarcerated population and provide substantial cost savings to taxpayers as a result. Preliminary results also suggest reduced rates of reincarceration beginning at the 18-month mark. Although these findings were not significant, they align with the time period in which reincarceration rates traditionally begin to increase.
“Every person deserves a fair chance—and that starts with real, tangible assistance the moment they return from incarceration,” Sam Schaeffer, CEO of the Center for Employment Opportunities. When we give people autonomy and agency in the reentry journey, they achieve amazing things. This research underscores the urgent need to shift how we support people returning home and strengthens the growing body of evidence demonstrating the need to focus on cost-effective, data driven solutions that provide a sound foundation during the most vulnerable stage of reentry.”
Key findings include:
- Parole violations were reduced by over 41% within the first 6 months post-release (8% of RCS participants had parole violations vs. 14% of comparison group members).
- Young adults (ages 18-24) demonstrated a 33% reduction in violent parole violations at 12-month follow up.
- Violent parole violations dropped by 64% in the same period. (0.99% of RCS participants had parole violations vs. 2.77% of comparison group members)
- According to MDRC, the RCS program may have been effective at reducing reincarceration among program participants in the 18-, 24-, and 30-month follow-up periods.
- 80% of participants met their program milestones and received the full three payments.
- Over 60% of participants used RCS money to buy food and groceries, 57% spent money on regular expenses such as rent, utilities, and transportation, and over 20% on credit card and medical bills.
The period immediately following release is particularly vulnerable for people returning from incarceration. 40% of justice-impacted people experience joblessness over multiple years, live with food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population, and are seven times more likely to be unhoused. RCS participants overwhelmingly used the cash assistance for essential needs: food, rent, transportation, and bills, demonstrating the importance of a financially sound foundation to build stability and thrive.
“These findings demonstrate that the Returning Citizens Stimulus program is promising as a model intervention for reducing parole violations and reincarceration during the critical first year following release from prison,” said Sarah Picard, Director of the MDRC Center for Criminal Justice Research. “Given the link between early reentry success and improved longer term outcomes for returning citizens, the program makes a critical contribution to establishing cash stimulus as an evidence-based strategy.”
The study comes on the heels of the launch of CEO’s At What Cost campaign. The campaign highlights the significant social and economic costs of incarceration, specifically reincarceration, and the better economic and community return of investing in reentry services and direct financial support for people returning from incarceration.
Funding for the RCS program was led by the Blue Meridian Partners, Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies, and the Ford Foundation through the Justice and Mobility Fund, with additional support from the Robin Hood Foundation, Art for Justice, George Kaiser Family Foundation, and the Agnes Gund Foundation. The subsequent evaluation efforts are supported by funds from the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Philanthropies and W.K Kellogg Foundation.
Full report linked here.
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About the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO)
The Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) provides immediate, effective, and comprehensive employment services exclusively to people recently released from incarceration. CEO currently operates in over 30 cities across 12 states and is dedicated to ensuring that justice-impacted individuals have opportunities to achieve socioeconomic mobility. For more information, visit ceoworks.org.
