To provide guidance to grantees, and particularly State Dislocated Worker Units, on the applicability of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, 29 U.S.C., 2101-2109, to layoffs that may occur among Federal contractors, including in the defense industry, as a result of the sequestration mandated by the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (BBEDCA), as amended by the Budget Control Act of 2011 (BCA), 2 U.S.C. 901a(7)(A) and (8).

a. To provide preliminary FY 2013 dollar and staff year base resource planning targets for UI operations to be used in planning and developing State Quality Service Plans (SQSP); b. To provide general guidelines for FY 2013 resource planning; and c. To explain how base resources were allocated among states.

To transmit instructions for implementing the revised TAPR in accordance with reporting guidelines required by the enactment of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Extension Act of 2011 (TAAEA) (P.L. 112-40) and the Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) to Hire Heroes Act of 2011(P.L. 112-56).  This guidance also updates Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) No. 6-09, Change 1, issued February 7, 2012, by:   

• describing the non-substantive changes that have been approved since its issuance;
• replacing TEGL No. 6-09, Change 1, Attachment A:  2012 Data Preparation and Reporting Handbook, including Appendix:  Trade Activity Participant Report, with TEGL No.6-09, Change 2, Attachment A:  2013 Data Preparation and Reporting Handbook and Attachment B:  Data Preparation and Reporting Handbook Appendix:  Trade Activity Participant Report; and
• making available an updated table of data validation edit checks to correspond with modifications and data element additions to the TAPR, as Attachment C to this TEGL.

To provide additional guidance to states on the requirements for approval of demonstration projects under Section 2102 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 (Act; Pub. L. 112-96).

To transmit the subject computation for State Workforce Agency usage in computing minimum weekly DUA amounts for all major disasters declared during the fourth quarter of Fiscal Year (FY) 2012.

To provide State Workforce Agencies or agencies designated by Governors as “Cooperating State Agencies” (CSAs) (also jointly referred to as “states”) with the formula methodology used in developing the FY 2012 Second Distribution of TAA program funds to states, which follows the FY 2012 Initial Allocation of funds, and to describe the process for states to use to request TAA program reserve funds for Training, Employment and Case Management Services, Job Search Allowances, and Relocation Allowances, including the State Administration of these benefits.

To transmit procedures to be used by all ETA grant recipients for reporting allegations of fraud, program abuse or criminal conduct involving grantees or other entities and subrecipients receiving Federal funds either directly or indirectly from ETA.

To initiate the process, provide supplemental instructions, and define additional requirements for the FY 2013 SQSP.

To provide guidance to grantees on compliance with the requirements of handling and protecting PII in their grants.

To advise state workforce agencies of the Department of Labor’s (Department) interpretation of Section 303(a)(6) of the Social Security Act (SSA) and 20 CFR 603.5(i) as requiring states to disclose unemployment compensation (UC) information, including confidential wage and claim information, needed for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved evaluations of UC programs conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor.

To provide an updated directory of Federal civilian and military agencies that requested detailed UCFE or UCX benefit payment data, which support the U.S. Department of Labor’s (Department) quarterly unemployment compensation billings.

To provide resources from ETA investments related to green jobs. ETA strongly encourages workforce practitioners to review the grant products and research cited in this notice, which provide valuable information that can help inform the design and implementation of green training and employment programs.

To transmit corrections for the Services to Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers Report, ETA Form 5148, and the One-Stop Career Center Complaint/Referral Record, ETA Form 8429.

To provide an overview of all of the provisions in Subtitle D of Title II of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 that concern short-time compensation or “worksharing” programs, and to provide guidance to the state agencies about the new definition of short-time compensation in Federal unemployment compensation law, the transition period for states currently administering a short-time compensation program, and 100% Federal reimbursement of certain state short-time compensation benefits.

To inform states of the guidelines for negotiating WIA Title 1B program performance and customer satisfaction goals and performance levels for Wagner-Peyser Act funded activities for PY 2012. These performance goals, once agreed upon between the State and the Employment and Training Administration (ETA), will be incorporated into the State’s Strategic Plan.

To announce availability of funds, in the amount of $60,000, to each state, the District of Columbia, U. S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico through the Wagner-Peyser Act state grants. Funds will be for the purposes of making the necessary adjustments to their management information systems to implement Sections 211, 238, 239 and 261 of the VOW to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 (Title II of Pub. L. 112-56), as well as for collecting performance data related to the Veterans’ Gold Card Initiative. A Notice of Obligation (NOO) indicating the amount obligated to the state and the purpose of funding will be issued to expedite implementation.

To announce the American Job Center network, a unifying name and brand that identifies virtual and in-person publicly-funded workforce development services as part of a single network. In order to increase jobseeker and employer awareness of workforce development resources available across the country, the Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration (ETA) strongly encourages states and local workforce investment areas to implement the American Job Center brand in accordance with state plans.

This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) describes the ways ETA is using the brand, and some of the ways that states and local workforce investment areas may begin using the American Job Center brand immediately. This TEGL strongly encourages the use of the American Job Center brand. In the future, the Department intends to work closely with states and localities to move to a requirement to use the brand.

To inform states of the guidelines and process for the interim collection of data on the provision of intensive services to post-9/11 era veterans through the Wagner-Peyser Employment Service

To notify WIA Section 166 Indian and Native American grantees of the Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) (a) decision to allow existing designated grantees that were granted waivers to extend or modify their current Comprehensive Services Program (CSP) plan and Supplemental Youth Services Program (SYSP) plan through Program Year (PY) 2013 (June 30, 2014) and (b) provision of planning directions for new designated grantees. This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) also gives final funding allotments for designated grantees that were granted waivers, and directions for newly designated grantees.

• Communicate the Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) program and policy priorities for the formula-funded Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Adult, Dislocated Worker and Wagner-Peyser programs in Program Year (PY) 2012.
• Share resources, tools, and strategies the workforce system can use to support the implementation of these program and policy priorities.
• Provide technical assistance and support to states and local areas in the development of 2012 State Workforce Plans as required by TEGL 21-11, “Requirements for 2012 State Workforce Plans.”