Employment and Training Administration – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the U.S. Department of Labor (Department) is issuing this final rule to establish, for State Unemployment Compensation (UC) program purposes, occupations that regularly conduct drug testing. These regulations implement the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (the Act) amendments to the Social Security Act (SSA), permitting States to enact legislation that would allow State UC agencies to conduct drug testing on UC applicants for whom suitable work (as defined under the State law) is available only in an occupation that regularly conducts drug testing (as determined under regulations issued by the Secretary of Labor (Secretary)). States may deny UC to an applicant who tests positive for drug use under these circumstances. The Secretary is required under the SSA to issue regulations determining those occupations that regularly conduct drug testing.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL, or the Department, or we), announces the availability of approximately $15.6 million in grant funds authorized by Section 169, subsection (b), of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). The purpose of this program is to provide funding to expand the capacity of American Job Centers (AJCs), also known as One-Stop Centers, to improve the employment outcomes of three population focus areas: (1) Adults (ages 18 and older) with visible and non-visible disabilities, including those who have acquired disabilities in adulthood; (2) youth (ages 14-24) with visible and non-visible disabilities, including those who have chronic health conditions; and (3) individuals (ages 14 and older) with significant disabilities. The DEI plans to accomplish this by increasing their participation in career pathways systems and successful existing programs in the public workforce system in partnership with vocational rehabilitation, community colleges and other education, human service, and business partners. Capitalizing on the flexibility that the career pathways model provides to use innovative service delivery strategies, grantees will use their award to support job-driven approaches in their pre- existing career pathway systems and programs. This will further equip individuals with disabilities with the skills, competencies, and credentials necessary to help them obtain in-demand jobs, increase earnings, and advance their careers. The Department intends to award at least one cooperative agreement in each of three population focus areas: (1) Adults (ages 18 and older) with visible and non-visible disabilities, including those who have acquired disabilities in adulthood; (2) youth (ages 14-24) with visible and non-visible disabilities, including those who have chronic health conditions; and (3) individuals (ages 14 and older) with significant disabilities. We expect to fund approximately 8 cooperative agreements (as defined in 2 CFR 200.24) to state workforce agencies, ranging from $1.5 million to $2.5 million each. Applicants may also include entities receiving funds under WIOA Section 166 grants. An eligible applicant is a tribe, tribal consortium, or tribal non-profit organization that receives funds under WIOA Section 166 Indian and Native American Program. States that received DEI Round VI funds are not eligible for funding under this FOA. The complete FOA and any subsequent FOA amendments in connection with this funding opportunity are described in further detail on ETA's Web site at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm or on https:// www.grants.gov. The Web sites provide application information, eligibility requirements, review and selection procedures, and other program requirements governing this funding opportunity.

The U.S. Department of Labor is issuing this interim final rule to adjust the amounts of civil penalties assessed or enforced in its regulations. The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 as amended by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (Inflation Adjustment Act) requires agencies to adjust the levels of civil monetary penalties with an initial catch-up adjustment, followed by annual adjustments for inflation. The Department is required to calculate the catch-up and subsequent annual adjustments based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers. The Department must publish the interim final rule by July 1, 2016, and the new penalty levels are effective no later than August 1, 2016.

The Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed extension for the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Unemployment Insurance Benefits Operations State Self-Assessment Report of Responses.'' In 2014, ETA embarked on a major multi-year initiative to reengineer its program accountability processes for state unemployment insurance (UI) benefits operations by integrating peer reviews with new operational review processes that recognizes both Federal and state capacity and ensures that the UI program is administered with a focus on accountability and integrity. Recognizing the need to assess and adequately monitor state UI benefit program operations in the 53 jurisdictions with state UI programs, the ETA has developed a new comprehensive state self-assessment tool, which is a set of questionnaires related to state UI benefits operations. The new collection has two distinct and complimentary purposes: (1) Assisting state UI agencies in making improvements to their UI benefits operations; and (2) assisting ETA in oversight and monitoring of state UI benefit program operations. This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), announces the availability of approximately $100 million in grant funds authorized under the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (ACWIA), as amended (codified at 29 U.S.C. 3224a) for America's Promise Job-driven Grant Program. Under this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), DOL will award grants through a competitive process to organizations to create or expand regional partnerships between employers, economic development, workforce development, community colleges, training programs, K-12 education systems, and community-based organizations that make a commitment to provide a pipeline of workers to fill existing job openings. DOL expects to fund approximately 20-40 grants, with individual grant amounts ranging from $1 million to $6 million. The grant period for performance for this FOA is 48 months, including all necessary implementation and start-up activities. The complete FOA and any subsequent FOA amendments in connection with this funding opportunity are described in further detail on ETA's Web site at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm or on https:// www.grants.gov/. The Web sites provide application information, eligibility requirements, review and selection procedures, and other program requirements governing this funding opportunity.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), announces the availability of approximately $80 million in grant funds authorized by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) (Pub. L.113-128) for YouthBuild. Under this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), DOL will award grants through a competitive process to organizations to oversee the provision of education, occupational skills training, and employment services to disadvantaged youth while performing meaningful work and service to their communities. DOL hopes to serve approximately 5,250 participants during the grant period of performance, with approximately 80 projects awarded across the country. Individual grants will range from $700,000 to $1.1 million and require an exact 25 percent match from applicants, using sources other than federal funding. The grant period of performance for this FOA is 40 months, including a four-month planning period. The complete FOA and any subsequent FOA amendments in connection with this funding opportunity are described in further detail on ETA's Web site at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm or on https:// www.grants.gov. The Web sites provide application information, eligibility requirements, review and selection procedures, and other program requirements governing this funding opportunity.

The Department of Labor (Department), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This program helps ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, ETA is soliciting comments concerning the collection of data for Form ETA-232, Domestic Agricultural In-Season Wage Report and Form ETA-232A, Wage Survey Interview Record. Both forms exist under OMB Control No. 1205-0017, and both expire September 20, 2016. These forms are used by the State Workforce Agencies to collect wage information from agricultural employers.

The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA 95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. This notice utilizes standard clearance procedures in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and 5 CFR 1320.12.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor, announces the availability of approximately $5,000,000 in grant funds authorized by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Section 169 for the Pathways to Justice Careers (PJC) program designed to support access and entry into career pathways for at-risk and court-involved youth ages 16-21. This program supports at-risk and court-involved youth that are still in school (``eligible youth'') by providing: (1) Exposure to the world of work in the career fields of justice and emergency services, (2) mentoring to encourage participants to complete a high school diploma or equivalency, and (3) supportive services that engage participants and deter them from engaging or re-engaging with the criminal justice system. The Department plans to award approximately 5 grants of up to $1,000,000 each. These grants will combine case management, mentoring, career exploration, and exposure to the world of work models in the field of justice and emergency services for in-school youth ages 16 to 21, that are eligible to graduate within 2 years and are at risk of dropping out of school or at risk of entanglement in the criminal justice system, or both; the eligible youth must be enrolled in a public secondary school or alternative secondary school. This grant provides these in-school youth the opportunity to work with and be mentored by professionals currently working in justice and emergency services careers. The complete FOA and any subsequent FOA amendments in connection with this funding opportunity are described in further detail on ETA's Web site at https://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm or on https:// www.grants.gov. The Web sites provide application information, eligibility requirements, review and selection procedures, and other program requirements governing this funding opportunity.