Commission Meeting Materials September 21, 2017 1:30 P.M. - Workforce Innovation and Opportunity

1 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Waivers 2 for Hurricane Harvey Recovery Efforts 3 Discussion Paper 4 5 Background 6 On August 25, 2017, Texas took a direct hit from Hurricane Harvey. The severe flooding, storm 7 surge, and damaging winds devastated our coastal communities, leaving Houston—the nation’s 8 fourth-largest city—under water and flooding even inland communities far from the coast. 9 Thirty-nine Texas counties have been declared federal disaster areas. Seven local workforce 10 development areas (workforce areas) have been approved for federal public and individual 11 assistance. Additionally, four counties in four workforce areas with limited or no storm damage 12 have been approved for federal public-assistance resources to help manage the influx of 13 evacuees. Many communities and counties outside the declared disaster areas also have been 14 affected. Hurricane Harvey is likely the costliest natural disaster in Texas history. 15 16 Issue 17 The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) needs increased flexibility to design and deliver 18 workforce services that will allow it to respond effectively to the disaster and its consequences 19 for our state’s workforce system. Therefore, staff would like to request eight Workforce 20 Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) waivers from the Department of Labor for use at the 21 state level to benefit workforce areas affected by the hurricane or for use at the local level in 22 disaster-affected workforce areas. Staff base this request on its experience with similar waivers 23 approved under Hurricanes Ike and Dolly in 2008 and Katrina and Rita in 2005. 24 25 Decision Point 26 Staff seeks direction on requesting the following WIOA waivers: 27 28 a.i.1. Waiver of the language in WIOA §134(b) that limits the use of funds allocated 29 under §§133(b)(2)(A), 133(b)(2)(B), and 133(b)(3) to the required and permissible local 30 employment and training activities described in §§134(c) and 134(d) and limits the use of 31 funds allocated under §128(b) to the youth program elements described in §129(c)(2). A 32 waiver would allow Local Workforce Development Boards (Boards) to request the use of up 33 to 100 percent of workforce area formula-allocated funds to provide the statewide 34 employment and training activities described in §134(a) and the required and allowable 35 statewide youth activities described in §129(b). (This waiver was approved in 2005 for 36 Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.) 37 38 2. Waiver of the limitation on the use of funds for capitalization of business at WIOA 39 §181(e) to permit funds to be used to capitalize small businesses that were affected by 40 Hurricane Harvey, up to $5,000 per affected business. This would allow the state to assist 41 disaster-affected businesses and create new employment opportunities. The state will ensure 42 that entrepreneurial or microenterprise training is provided for the individuals benefiting 43 from the capitalization. (This waiver was approved in 2005 for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita 44 and in 2008 for Hurricanes Ike and Dolly.) 45

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1 3. Waiver of requirement under WIOA §129(a)(4) and 20 CFR §681.410 that the state and 2 workforce areas must spend not less than 75 percent of youth funds to provide services to 3 out-of-school youth. This waiver would apply statewide because the four workforce areas 4 hardest hit by Hurricane Harvey—Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast (which includes 5 Houston), Workforce Solutions Southeast Texas, Workforce Solutions of the Coastal Bend, 6 and Workforce Solutions Golden Crescent—account for approximately one-third of the 7 state’s youth allocation and related performance results. This waiver would allow Boards to 8 extend funding to serve the many in-school youth who have been dislocated by the disaster. 9 This waiver also could be used to support pre-apprenticeship programs and at-risk youth. 10 11 4. Waiver of 20 CFR §681.580(c) under WIOA §129(c)(2)(I) that requires that all youth 12 participants receive some form of follow-up services for a minimum of 12 months. Many 13 youth participants may receive services in temporary locations and then return to their homes 14 or move to new locations. The state understands that this waiver would apply only in cases in 15 which the 12-month requirement for follow-up services cannot be met because of the 16 movement of disaster-affected youth out of a workforce area. (This waiver was approved in 17 2005 for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and in 2008 for Hurricanes Ike and Dolly.) 18 19 5. Waiver of the requirement that local programs provide each of the 14 youth program 20 elements at WIOA §129(c)(2) as options available to youth participants affected by the 21 disaster. Such a waiver would allow affected workforce areas to focus on the youth services 22 that are most needed. (This waiver was previously approved in 2005 for Hurricanes Katrina 23 and Rita and in 2008 for Hurricanes Ike and Dolly.) 24 25 6. Waiver to permit the state to exclude individuals affected by the disaster from the 26 calculation of state and local performance measures identified at WIOA §§116(b) and (c). 27 We seek to apply this waiver to those participants who have been displaced from their 28 workforce area because of the disaster or who are unable to participate in planned WIOA 29 activities because of damage to a facility or entity such as a training provider or on-the-job 30 training employer. The state understands that it must include these participants in various 31 reports and the annual state Participant Individual Record Layout (PIRL) submissions, using 32 a special notation of their status in the global exclusions field. (This waiver was approved in 33 2008 for Hurricanes Ike and Dolly.) 34 35 7. Waiver of the requirements under 20 CFR §681.550 to permit the use of individual 36 training accounts for disaster-affected in-school youth. This would allow Boards the 37 necessary flexibility to use Youth formula funds when appropriate to meet the individual 38 training and employment needs of all youth affected by or displaced by the storm. (This 39 waiver was approved in 2005 for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.) 40 41 8. Waiver of the requirement at WIOA §134(c)(3)(C) that training services be provided 42 through providers identified in accordance with WIOA §122, giving Boards in disaster- 43 affected areas the local flexibility to permit instructors and providers not on the list of 44 eligible training providers—but whom the Boards deem qualified—to provide training 45 services for occupations that are now in-demand because of the disaster.

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