Boulder County approves $3.77 million extension of direct cash aid program
The Nurturing Futures contract runs through March 2028, with a three-month bridge for up to 528 current households and $600 monthly payments for up to 410 households in 2027.
Boulder County commissioners approved a maximum $3.77 million contract Aug. 18 to extend the Nurturing Futures direct-cash-assistance program for low-income families with young children. The contract runs through March 31, 2028, with payments planned through December 2027.
The contract passed as part of a 2-1 consent-agenda vote. Commissioner Ashley Stolzmann voted against the consent agenda; Commissioners Marta Loachamin and Claire Levy voted for it, according to the county’s meeting record.
Nurturing Futures is intended for Boulder County households with income at or below 30% of area median income and at least one child from birth through age 3. Interest earned on the county’s American Rescue Plan Act dollars funds the program.
Two phases of assistance
The extension begins with a three-month bridge period from October through December 2026. During that period, all currently enrolled pilot households — capped at 528 — are slated to receive $300 per month without reapplying or undergoing new eligibility screening.
A 12-month extension period is planned for January through December 2027. Up to 410 households will receive $600 per month. Current pilot participants may reapply, and new households may apply. Current participants receive priority, with a lottery and waitlist process if needed, the county’s contract scope says.
The contract includes up to $3,428,100 for direct cash assistance, $52,890 for incentive payments and $289,429.40 in AidKit administrative fees. The total maximum budget is $3,770,409.40.
The contract targets a live application system eight weeks after its Aug. 18 effective date, followed by application review, lottery and waitlist selection, and enrollment. If the schedule holds, the system would be targeted to go live in mid-October 2026. That is a contract milestone, not a confirmed public opening date.
The county’s Nurturing Futures program page says the application is closed and that more information about the extension will be posted later.
Pilot results
The original pilot opened applications Aug. 6-27, 2024, selected families by lottery in September and began payments in October 2024. It was designed to provide $300 per month for two years to 725 households, the county’s launch announcement says.
In a 2025 report, the county said the share of surveyed participants who often worried about covering bills fell from 73.51% at baseline to 44.05% after four months of assistance. The share who said they could not afford child care fell from 38.49% to 11.19%.
Those results were preliminary: Only two of seven planned quarterly surveys had been completed at the time of the report. A later county announcement said the share of surveyed participants who often worried about monthly bills fell from 76% to 44% by February 2026, while the share often considering reducing food portions fell from 16% to 8%. The county cited the pilot’s results and rising living costs in announcing the continuation and higher payment, the county reported.
The records do not establish that cash payments alone caused the reported improvements. County Human Services plans to continue collecting data and conduct a six-month follow-up survey during the extension. The records also do not explain why the 2027 household cap was set at 410, although 410 households receiving $600 per month for 12 months would account for $2.952 million of the contract’s direct-assistance budget.