"Accessing public benefits has never been easy for low-income people in the United States. But now digital platforms, automated interfaces, and algorithmic verification systems are adding to what Ray Suarez had aptly described in NPQ years ago as a system predicated on administrative burden. In short, as public services become increasingly digitized, new forms of structural exclusion are emerging. The people most affected are individuals without stable internet access, up-to-date devices, digital literacy, or the time or support to navigate systems that do not speak their language."
"Angela Siefer is executive director of the National Digital Inclusion Alliance (NDIA), a nonprofit dedicated to advancing digital equity and inclusion. As Siefer told NPQ, "The digitization of public services has definitely deepened preexisting structural inequalities." As public services become increasingly digitized, new forms of structural exclusion are emerging. Food stamps or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) was among the programs most starkly cut in the July 2025 budget and tax bill passed by Congress. Digital exclusion only deepens the wounds. In SNAP, this takes the form of facial recognition systems that exclude groups based on biased software programming- disproportionately people of color -without offering human alternatives. "There is no avenue of redress if they don't consider you eligible; it's really cruel," Siefer explained."
Digital transformation of public services creates new structural exclusions for people lacking connectivity, devices, digital literacy, or time to navigate automated systems. Automated platforms, algorithmic verification, and biased facial recognition tools disproportionately block people of color and those without up-to-date hardware from accessing critical supports. Policy changes such as the July 2025 SNAP cuts intersect with digitization to reduce food assistance access. The lack of human alternatives and meaningful redress mechanisms compounds harm and leaves eligible individuals without recourse. Community-based trusted relationships and digital inclusion efforts are essential to restore equitable access to healthcare, housing, education, and civic participation.
Read at Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
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