Authorities and References: Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) of 1996 (Public L. 104-193) and Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (Public L. 105-33) amending Title IV-A of the Social Security Act. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) Proposed Rule (62 Fed. Reg. 62124 (proposed Nov. 20, 1997)). TANF Policy Announcement No. TANF-ACF-PA-97-1, dated January 31, 1997. Welfare-to-Work Grants Interim Final Rule, 20 CFR 645 (62 Fed. Reg. 61588 (Nov. 18, 1997)). Background: Transportation is one of the main challenges facing people making the transition from welfare to work. A mismatch exists between the location of available entry level and service sector jobs and the residences of most welfare recipients. Two-thirds of new jobs are in the suburbs, but three of four welfare recipients live in rural areas or central cities, with few recipients owning cars. Many entry level jobs require evening or weekend hours in areas that are poorly served by existing transit routes or are not within a reasonable commute time. Many parents going to work also need transportation in order to access child care, which further complicates getting to and from work. The transportation barrier is magnified for low-income Americans living in rural counties, 40 percent of which have no public transportation services. Historically, HHS and DOL have defined transportation in terms of the individual client. As a result, funds were used to directly reimburse clients for transportation rather than to develop and support transportation services necessary to meet their needs. Welfare reform calls for a more systemic approach to break down the transportation barriers. For example, supporting and developing services such as connector services to mass transit, vanpools, sharing buses with elderly and youth programs, coordinating with existing human services transportation resources, employer provided transportation, or guaranteed ride home programs may be necessary to address the transportation problems for welfare recipients and other low income persons.

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Background: In response to requests from One-Stop implementation States for training resources appropriate to the One-Stop system, a National curricula "sweep" funded jointly by the U.S. Department of Labor and the State of California was conducted, resulting in a collection which includes listings of over 350 resources (courses, videos, books, audio tapes, etc.) available from private, public, and not-for-profit sources. Resource Collection: This One-Stop Training and Technical Assistance Resources collection includes information about: Skill Clusters; Delivery Modes; Delivery Options; and Support Materials to help the user identify key information when searching for the most desirable training and technical assistance resource. It is sorted in numerous ways including by vendor and by State to help further identify the most appropriate training resources. Delivery options include peer-to-peer, professional vendor, self-study, distance learning, and consulting. Many of the resources are free or available on a material reimbursement basis. While the Resources Collection contains a significant number of offerings, it is by no means all-inclusive. We anticipate that the Resources Collection will be greatly augmented through the One-Stop Capacity Building information gathering project currently underway. The Resources Collection is a vehicle for valuable information sharing; however, as noted in the disclaimer at the front of the Collection, inclusion of materials in the document does not constitute or imply their endorsement by the Department. Distribution and Use of the One-Stop Training and Technical Assistance Resources. Under separate cover, State One-Stop Leads will each receive 10 copies of the curriculum sweep for State use along with one copy each for open One-Stop Career Centers in their State. The copies should arrive by the end of May 1998. This Resources Collection is available on the Internet at www.ttrc.doleta.gov/onestop/collection.htm. Within the next few months the offerings included in the Resources Collection will also be available through the America's Learning Exchange pilot site www.alx.org. All recipients are free to duplicate this information. Action: One-Stop Leads are requested to send one copy of the One-Stop Training and Technical Assistance Resources collection to each open One-Stop Career Center in their State. They are also encouraged to share copies with their other system partners.

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References: Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) No. 5-91, 5-91 Change 1, and Training and Employment Information Notice (TEIN) No. 47-93. Background: The Nontraditional Employment for Women Act (Public Law 102-235), which amended the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA), was signed into law on December 12, 1991. In accordance with the Act, pursuant to Section 104(b)(13), each Service Delivery Area (SDA) is to provide information on the extent to which the SDA has met its goals for the training and training-related placement of women in non-traditional employment. Section 122 (b)(6) and (7) state that the SJTCC shall review these reports to take recommendations for technical assistance and corrective action. The SJTCC is also required to prepare a summary of the SDA reports and detail promising service delivery approaches developed in each SDA for the training and placement of women in nontraditional occupations. Reporting: Departmental records indicate that some States have neglected to submit the reports. The requirements discussed in TEGL No. 5-91, Change 1 and TEIN No. 47-93, on disseminating the summary annually to SDAs, service providers throughout the State, and to the Secretary of Labor, are still in effect. Therefore, States are expected to continue submitting these summary reports to the Department of Labor in compliance with the Act and regulations. Reports must be sent each year no later than May 30. Action required: State JTPA Liaisons should ensure that SJTCC Summary Reports are submitted on an annual basis to: U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., N-4469 Washington, D.C. 20210 Attn: Director, OETP

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References: (a) TEIN 48-93 and TEIN 48-93, Change 1, and (b) TEGL No. 7-95, "JTPA Intertitle Transfer of Funds". Background: The JTPA Annual Summary Program Report (JASPR) (ETA 9047) expired on July 31, 1997. The JASPR was an annual report of non-financial characteristics of Title II-B summer and Title I, Section 123 (8%) program participants. The Department's ability to respond to Congressional and Administration inquiries, measure and evaluate the program's effectiveness, and monitor program imbalances in a timely manner was severely limited because the JASPR only collected participant characteristics data and was submitted only once a year at the end of the program. The JTPA Summary Program Report (JSPR), which replaces the JASPR, addresses these limitations by: 1) collecting financial and cost information in addition to characteristics data for the Title II-B and Section 123 programs, and 2) increasing the frequency of data collection for the Title II-B program. OMB Approval and Reporting Burden: The JSPR require- ments have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) according to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, under OMB Approval Number 1205-0379, with an expiration date of 1/31/99. Persons are not required to respond to this collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Burden hours for this collection of information are estimated to average 3 hours including time for reviewing the information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Job Training Programs, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210 (Paperwork Reduction Project 1205-0379). Reporting Requirements: The JSPR will be submitted three times during the summer program: at the beginning of the summer, planning estimates will be provided; during mid-summer, an interim performance report will be submitted; and a final performance report will be submitted at the end of the summer program. The State will submit a JSPR for the Title II-B summer youth program to the National Office and the appropriate Regional Office simultaneously, using the following schedule: Planning Estimates: Data as of June 15 due to RO/NO June 30 Mid-summer Report: Data as of July 15 due to RO/NO July 31 End of Program: Data as of Sept 30 due to RO/NO Oct 15 A separate single JSPR will be submitted by the State 45 days after the end of the Title I, Section 123 (State Education and Coordination Grants) program year report period (June 30), but no later than August 15. The approved format and instructions for completion of the JSPR are attached. States may submit the JSPR data on a floppy disk or by electronic mail using the JSPR File Format in Attachment II. In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980, ETA continues to encourage States to transmit data electronically. ETA is currently developing the capability to report this information by direct data entry on an Internet website. Revised reporting instructions will be forwarded upon completion. Action Required: State Liaisons are requested to distribute the attached JSPR instructions to all offices within the State which need such information to implement the JSPR reporting requirements.

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References: 20 CFR part 655, subparts H and I; 20 CFR part 656; and Technical Assistance Guide (TAG) No. 656 Labor Certifications. Background: The Department recently published a Final Rule at 63 FR 13756 (March 20, 1998) which changed the way prevailing wage determinations are made for researchers employed by colleges and universities, FFRDC's operated by colleges and universities,and certain Federal research agencies. These policies and procedures apply under the permanent labor certification program as well as under the H-1B program for nonimmigrant professionals in specialty occupations.

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