The politics of evaluation research: A case study of community development block grant funding for human services

Abstract

This paper examines the ramifications of conducting evaluation research within a very politically sensitive area. The evaluation project discussed in this paper involved an assessment of six human service agencies within a city that were receiving Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) public service funds. The city's Office of Policy Planning and Management (OPPM) contracted for this research in order to evaluate the CDBG funded agencies and to provide technical assistance so they could make informed policy decisions concerning the allocation of the Seventh Year Community Development public service funds. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) had stipulated that there be a 20% limitation in CDBG public service funding. The city involved in this study had allocated over 25% of its CDBG funding to public services. Thus, the city was over the stipulated limitation and was therefore requested by HUD to either justify the expenditure or cut back its allocation of funds to the 20% level. As a result of this mandate by HUD, the city requested and received a technical assistance grant from HUD. This paper provides a specific example of how the conduct of evaluation can become entwined in the politics of human service agencies and their funding sources, Moreover, the implications of this experience for evaluation as a field of endeavor are explored.