To remind state workforce agencies of the revised requirements in Regulation E for government programs that issue prepaid debit cards as a mechanism for paying non-needs tested benefits and for the financial institutions that provide the prepaid debit cards; and to announce that the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Bureau) has extended the deadline for implementation of these requirements.

To request Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Section 166 grantees to submit nominations for consideration by Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, for appointment to fill expiring terms of membership on the Native American Employment and Training Council (Council).

To provide INA grantees with Comprehensive Services Program (CSP) and Supplemental Youth Services Program (SYSP) funding allotments for PY 2018 for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), Section 166 programs, and to notify grantees of the required revisions to their Standard Form (SF) 424 – Application for Federal Assistance, SF 424A – Budget Information (Non-Construction Programs), and Budget Narrative. This TEGL also provides guidance on high carry-in of funding at the end of PY 2018.

To advise states of an amendment relating to unemployment compensation (UC) modernization incentive payments.

To remind state workforce agencies (SWAs) that Federal law requires all states to participate in the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Treasury Offset Program (TOP) to recover delinquent unemployment compensation (UC) debts for benefit overpayments due to fraud, benefit overpayments due to a claimant’s failure to report earnings, and delinquent UC taxes.

The Department of Labor (DOL) invites the workforce development system to participate in the Tools for America’s Job Seekers Challenge (hereafter called the “Challenge”). The Challenge seeks to help jobseekers and workforce development professionals identify and use online job search and career advancement tools. The Challenge utilizes an innovative method called crowdsourcing to allow jobseekers and workforce development professionals to recommend and comment on job search and career advancement tools. The effort is a collaboration among the White House, the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA), IdeaScale.com, job-related online tool providers, workforce development professionals, and jobseekers.

To provide sequestration rules for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 to State Workforce Agencies (SWAs) that apply to mandatory Unemployment Insurance (UI) programs and information on how the U.S. Department of Labor (Department) will apply those rules. These rules include the application of sequestration on delayed benefit payments for prior FYs and the resulting administrative costs.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) announces the release and availability of four reports on the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program:

• Initial Implementation of the Trade Act of 2002;
• Assessment, Case Management, and Post-Training Assistance for TAA Participants;
• Linkages between TAA, One-Stop Career Center Partners, and Economic Development Agencies; and
• Rapid Response and TAA.

To ensure that states are aware that: 1) the social security survivors and old age retirement annuities and the Federal civilian pensions annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will increase for calendar year 2019 and 2) COLA information is located on the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) website.

To announce the release and availability of ETA Occasional Paper: The Power of Partnership: American Regions Collaborating for Economic Competitiveness, 2009 Generation I WIRED Interim Evaluation Report