MPI Comments

January 29, 2016
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
Attn: OMB Desk Officer for DOL-ETA
Office of Management and Budget
Room 10235
725 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20503

Comments on Required Elements for Submission of the Unified or Combined State Plan and Plan
Modifications under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (OMB Control Number: 12050522)
The Migration Policy Institute’s National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy (NCIIP) is pleased to
submit the following comments on the Required Elements for Submission of the Unified or Combined
State Plan and Plan Modifications under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to the
Office of Management and Budget.
1) Implementation of Priority of Service Provisions
WIOA’s automatic priority of service requirement represents a significant policy and operational change
since few of those now designated a priority have been able to access training services in the past. In
program year 2014 for example, just 1.2 percent of exiters from Title I Adult Intensive and Training
Services were limited English proficient (LEP) and just 11.7 percent of all exiters from all Adult programs
had less than a high school diploma or equivalent.1 National and state level sociodemographic analyses
recently published by MPI demonstrate that immigrants and refugees are a large share of the potential
priority population in many parts of the United States due to their high rates of low-income, loweducated, and LEP status. 2 Given the extremely weak record of federally funded training programs in
providing services to LEP individuals in particular, it is critical to ensure they and others entitled to
priority for career and training services under the Title I Adult Formula program are equitably
represented among those ultimately served with those funds.
Section VI(b)(4) requires all unified and combined plans to “describe how the state will implement and
monitor the priority for public assistance recipients, other low-income individuals, or individuals who are
1

Social Policy Research Associates, Program Year 2014 WIASRD Data Book (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Labor, Employment and Training Administration, Office of Performance and Technology, 2016),
https://www.doleta.gov/performance/results/pdf/PY_2014_WIASRD_Data_Book.pdf.
2
See Margie McHugh and Madeleine Morawski, Immigrants and WIOA Services: Comparison of Sociodemographic
Characteristics of Native- and Foreign-Born Adults in the United States (Washington, DC: Migration Policy Institute,
2015), http://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/immigrants-and-wioa-services-comparison-sociodemographiccharacteristics-native-and-foreign.

basic skills deficient in accordance with the requirements of WIOA sec. 134(c)(3)(e), which applies to
individualized career services and training services funded by the Adult Formula program.”
While we support this requirement, we believe the following additions and changes are necessary to
effectively implement WIOA’s priority of service provision.
A. We recommend that the Department of Labor correct language regarding priority populations
wherever it appears to match WIOA’s statutory language by changing “or individuals who are
basic skills deficient” to read “and individuals who are basic skills deficient” in accordance with
section 134(c)(3)(E) of WIOA. This will clarify that the priority applies to all populations identified
in WIOA section 134(c)(3)(E).
B. In order to effectively comply with the requirement in section VI(b)(4) to implement and
monitor the priority of service for recipients of public assistance, low income individuals, and
individuals who are basic skills deficient, we recommend that the Workforce Analysis required in
section II(a)(1)(B) be expanded to include the following:
(v) Priority of Service. Provide an analysis of potential clients designated as a priority for
services in accordance with WIOA sec. 134(c)(3)(e) including an estimate of the number and
share of individuals in the state that are a) recipients of public assistance; b) low-income; c)
basic skills deficient including those who lack a high school diploma or equivalent, are limited
English proficient, or both.
This analysis should use the most recent sociodemographic data available from the U.S. Census
Bureau in order to ensure fidelity in implementation of the service priority: states and localities
should use the most accurate service-priority population estimates possible to plan the initial
design of adult training services; to guide implementation of the priority at the local level; and
to monitor and appraise the performance of all levels of the system to determine whether those
designated for priority under the law were in fact represented in equitable proportions among
those served.
C. We also recommend that the Assessment required in section II(b)(4) be expanded to include the
following language (in bold):
(4) Assessment. Describe how the State will assess the overall effectiveness of the workforce
development system in the State in relation to the strategic vision and goals stated above in
sections (b)(1), (2), and (3), and in implementation of priority of service requirements in
accordance with WIOA sec. 134(c)(3)(e) and how it will use the results of this assessment and
other feedback to make continuous or quality improvements.
D. Finally, we recommend that State plans be required to describe how local workforce boards, all
one-stop center operators and one-stop delivery system providers will make publicly available

the state’s policy regarding the priority of service for individuals who are public assistance
recipients, other low-income individuals, and individuals who are basic skills deficient.
2) Assessment of Need for Provision of Title II Adult Education Services
In order to develop data-driven goals and to ensure that adult education services are provided to target
populations set forth in the law, we recommend that all unified and combined state plans be required to
include a needs assessment in section II(a)(1)(B)(iii) as follows:
(iii) Education and Skill Levels of the Workforce. Provide an analysis of the education and skill
levels of the workforce, and an analysis of key populations that are a focus of WIOA Title II
Adult Education and Literacy Services, including: a) adults with less than a high school degree
or equivalent; b) individuals with very low levels of education and/or basic skills; c) individuals
who are limited English proficient; d) low-educated and/or LEP parents of young children; e)
foreign-born individuals who have not attained U.S. citizenship. This analysis should crosstabulate population characteristics where possible in order to identify the number and share
of individuals in need of services to address multiple barriers.
3) Accessibility of WIOA Services for Individuals with Limited English Proficiency
Section III(b)(9) requires that states describe how they will ensure that one-stop centers are able to
meet the needs of limited English proficient individuals, a population that has historically comprised an
extremely low share of those receiving Title I intensive and training services.3 We applaud the
Department for recognizing the importance of access to services for limited English proficient
individuals. However, in order to ensure implementation of new provisions in WIOA that provide an
automatic priority of service for LEP individuals (among others) we recommend the addition of the
following policy to section III(b):
(10) Addressing the Accessibility of Title I Career and Training Services for Individuals with
Limited English Proficiency. Describe how the State will ensure that all Title I career and
training services are accessible to individuals who are limited English proficient. States should
also describe how limited English proficient individuals will be identified and provided priority
access to training services for which they are otherwise eligible, in accordance with WIOA
section 134(c)(3)(E).

For more information please contact Margie McHugh, Director of MPI’s National Center on Immigrant
Integration Policy (mmchugh@migrationpolicy.org) or Madeleine Morawski, NCIIP Associate Policy
Analyst (mmorawski@migrationpolicy.org).

3

Social Policy Research Associates, Program Year 2014 WIASRD Data Book.