JLARC DDA Study

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1. Who is JLARC?

The Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee (JLARC) is a committee of the Washington State House and Senate with equal numbers of republicans and democrats. Nonpartisan staff to the committee conduct performance audits and program evaluations for the Washington State Legislature. More information about the office is available on the "About us" page of our website.



2. I'd rather give my feedback by phone. Can I?

Yes. Please contact the University of Minnesota staff by phone at (888) 240-8636.



3. Are there language translation services available?

Yes. The sign-up form is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, Hindi, Khmer (Cambodian), Korean, Russian, Spanish, Somali, Tagalog, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese. Additional languages may be added. If you have questions or would like to request an alternative language, please call (888) 240-8636.

The survey will be available in your preferred language.

Translators will be available during the interviews and group discussions.



4. Who can participate? Can my family member or representative respond on my behalf?

You can participate if you are any of the following:



1. A DDA client 19-years of age or older and can respond to survey questions independently or with the support of another person.
2. A family member/representative of a child or adult enrolled in DDA services.
3. If you or the person you represent applied for DDA but were declared ineligible, you can also participate.


Any combination of DDA clients and their family members/representatives can participate (the client only, the family member/guardian only, or both). The survey will ask you to indicate whether you are a DDA client or a family member/representative.



5. Am I required to participate?

No. Participation is voluntary.



6. How will you use my response?

We will combine your responses with those from other clients and families/representatives. We will use the combined information to evaluate DDA's processes for determining eligibility, assessing needs, and ensuring clients have access to services. We want to help DDA improve their processes and services in the state. If we find common issues or concerns, we will include them in our full report to the Legislature.

DDA will not receive positive or negative feedback specific to individual case managers or offices.



7. How will JLARC and the University of Minnesota protect my personal information?

All individually identifiable information you provide will be private and used only for this study. We will not ask for any financial information.

No one outside of the JLARC and University of Minnesota staff will have access to your individual responses.



8. What do I need to do if I sign up?

Everyone who signs up will do a 3-part survey over several weeks. The survey will ask you about your experiences going through DDA's eligibility and assessment process and any barriers you faced accessing services. Each part of the survey is short and will take you no more than 15-20 minutes to complete.

When you sign up, you will be prompted to complete the first of the three short surveys. If you cannot complete the survey when you sign up, you can return to it later using the following link: https://umn.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0ILTCNiPleKM0B0.

The University of Minnesota will contact you when it's time to complete the next two surveys.

Some people will be interviewed by University of Minnesota staff. Interviews will allow them to better understand the experiences clients faced when navigating DDA's eligibility process and accessing services.

Some people will be part of small group discussions. The discussions will allow you and other DDA clients and families/representatives to talk about which barriers to access are most important to address and how to improve DDA processes and procedures. Some of these discussions will be in-person and others will be done by video conference.



9. Can I participate in just one of the steps or do I have to participate in all three?

DDA clients and family members/representatives can take part in one or more steps of the project. Participation in each phase is totally voluntary and does not commit you to take part in future phases of the project.



10. Where and when will study results be available?

The report will be available on JLARC's website at the end of November in 2024. JLARC staff will present key findings to members of JLARC on December 4, 2024 (date subject to change). Following the conclusion of the project, University of Minnesota staff will generate a user friendly summary of findings and recommendations.