Key provisions relating to the One-Stop delivery system and this Solicitation for Grant Applications are at sections 121, 134(c), and 189(c) of the Workforce Investment Act [29 U.S.C. 2841, 2864(c), 2939(c)]; the Wagner-Peyser Act [29 U.S.C. 49f(d) and (e)]; and Department of Labor Appropriations Act, 2003 [Pub. L. 108–7]. Key regulations governing Workforce Investment Act programs are at 20 CFR parts 652 and 660–671 [65 FR 49294 (August 11, 2000)].
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Please note that the Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) has also awarded a number of grants to the workforce system related to customized employment and youth services for persons with disabilities. Information on these grants can be obtained at
• Improving the One-Stop system for jobseekers with disabilities through implementing strategies for physical, communication and programmatic access to One-Stop services for persons with disabilities, including psychiatric disabilities, and facilitating coordination and collaboration of multiple agencies and providers that impact job seekers with disabilities;
• Enhancing comprehensive services through implementation of Disability Program Navigator strategies; and
• Increasing the number of people with disabilities served under WIA and employment outcomes for jobseekers with disabilities, including psychiatric and other hidden disabilities, accessing WIA Title I and Wagner-Peyser programs.
• The state organizational entity that administers Workforce Investment Act Title I and Wagner-Peyser programs in partnership with its state level Workforce Investment Board;
• The state level Workforce Investment Board in partnership with its state organizational entity that administers WIA Title I and Wagner-Peyser programs;
• A local Workforce Investment Board in partnership with its One-Stop Career Center operators;
• Consortia of local Workforce Investment Boards in partnerships with their One-Stop Career Center operators; and
• Indian and Native American tribal entities, or consortia of tribes.
It is important to note the following eligibility factors:
• The Grant Officer will take into account whether applicants have received a prior grant, or current grant funded in Round III, with the intent of providing preference to workforce investment areas that have not previously received a Work Incentive Grant. In general, additional grant funds will not be awarded to workforce investment areas under Round III WIGs since these grants are funded through June 2005.
• Fourteen (14) states have entered into cooperative agreements with ETA to implement the Disability Program Navigator initiative. Additional funds will be available to those states under the Interagency Agreement between ETA and SSA. In general, additional grant funds under this fourth WIG solicitation will not be awarded to state and/or local areas that are in the fourteen states. The fourteen (14) Navigator states are: Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Vermont, and Wisconsin.
• The grantee will be expected to perform both administrative and operational responsibilities for the grant; subcontracting out of these functions will not be allowed.
• The Department will give preference to states and local workforce area(s) that have not previously received a Work Incentive Grant. Please note that a complete list of prior and current Work Incentive Grants and Disability Program Navigator cooperative agreements is provided at ETA's disability Online Web site:
• ETA encourages state and local workforce area(s) that have previously received a Work Incentive Grant to focus their proposal during this fourth round WIG on implementing Disability Program Navigator positions. We expect that significant progress has already
• Applications involving one or more local workforce investment areas must include letters of commitment from each local board covered under the proposal, or one letter signed by all participating local boards (commitment letter(s) are not counted against the page limits). Please note that letters from local boards are not required for state level proposals.
• Proposals for tribal entities should coordinate services and enhance a One-Stop system approach for jobseekers with disabilities in specific Indian communities or covering multiple tribal entities that may cut across multiple states and/or workforce investment areas. In such cases, letters of commitment from local boards are not required. Grants to Indian and Native American tribal grantees are treated differently because of sovereignty and self-governance principles established under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act allowing for the government-to-government relationship between the federal and tribal governments.
Except as specifically provided, DOL/ETA's acceptance of a proposal and an award of Federal funds to sponsor any program(s) does not provide a waiver of any grant requirement and/or procedures. For example, the OMB circulars stipulate that an entity's entire procurement procedures and transactions, including subcontracts, must provide for free and open competition. If a proposal identifies a specific entity to provide the services, the DOL/ETA's award does not provide the justification or basis to sole-source the procurement,
The Executive Summary, or Abstract, summarizes the proposal and the primary objectives and scope of activities to be covered, including how activities address the Statement of Work criteria. Demonstrate that these activities are new and unique to the geographic area entailed. In addition, include the following information in the Executive Summary:
• The number of workforce investment areas in the state and the number of comprehensive One-Stop Career Centers in the state, and the workforce area(s) to be covered in the grant proposal.
• The extent to which physical, programmatic and communication access has been achieved in the One-Stop Career Center(s) for persons with disabilities and how the proposal will address deficiencies, if applicable.
• The core, intensive and training service levels for persons with disabilities compared to all participants in WIA Title I adult, dislocated worker, and youth programs, and labor exchange services under Wagner-Peyser, and activity levels planned under the proposal.
• The percentage of people with disabilities in the state and/or local area, including the percentage of people who are beneficiaries of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and/or Social Security Income Program (SSI).
• The most recent unemployment rate(s) in the workforce investment area(s) covering the project, including short and long-range employment projections.
• A description of primary industries in the workforce investment area(s), including new or emerging industries that are projected to expand and occupational skills in most demand.
• Partners, if any, who will be collaborating on proposal activities.
The Statement of Work narrative represents your plan to meet the system-building objectives of this SGA to increase, enhance, and improve services for jobseekers with disabilities, including psychiatric disabilities, with verifiable training and employment outcomes, in the nation's workforce investment system.
(i) Statement of Need;
(ii) Workplan to Increase Comprehensive Services and Enhance One-Stop Career Center Services: Choose (1) or (2).
(1) Comprehensive One-Stop Career Center Strategies
(2) Staff Capacity—Disability Program Navigator
(iii) Annotated Project Timeline
(iv) Improve Participation and Employment Outcomes for Persons with Disabilities
(v) Plan to Sustain Activities Beyond WIG IV Funding
The Work Incentive Grant program represents an important element of an overall strategy to improve employment and workforce participation of people with disabilities, including psychiatric disabilities, through access to the One-Stop Career Center system. Your proposal should seek to:
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Part II consists of the following parts; which are described in detail in section V(1) Criteria.
• Was sent by U.S. Postal Service registered or certified mail not later than the fifth day (5th) calendar day before the closing date specified for receipt of applications (
• Was sent by U.S. Postal Service Express Mail Next Day Service, Post Office to Addressee, not later than 5 p.m. at the place of mailing two working days prior to the deadline date specified for receipt of proposals in this SGA. The term “working days” excludes weekends and U.S. Federal holidays.
The only acceptable evidence to establish the date of mailing of an application received after the deadline date for the receipt of proposals sent by the U.S. Postal Service registered or certified mail is the U.S. post mark on the envelope or wrapper affixed by the U.S. Postal Service and on the original receipt from the U.S. Postal Service. The term “post mark” means a printed, stamped, or otherwise placed impression (exclusive of a postage meter machine impression) that is identifiable without further action as having been supplied or affixed on the date of mailing by employees of the U.S. Postal Service.
Your Statement of Need will be evaluated on (1) the overall status of disability-related issues in the workforce investment areas covered by your proposal; (2) the One-Stop Career Center system's strengths and deficiencies that you and the One-Stop Career Center system will address; and (3) your past performance in supporting service delivery to people with disabilities.
• Describe the level of expertise of the One-Stop system in the local area(s) addressed in the grant and the project plans for addressing inadequacies.
• Describe the overall status and actions taken to-date by the One-Stop delivery system to address services to people with disabilities, including levels of participation and outcomes in core, intensive and training services.
• For the state or local workforce area(s) related to your proposal, identify WIA Title I adult, dislocated worker, and youth program and Wagner-Peyser data covering the past two Program Years (PY) for the:
(1) number and percent of people with disabilities participating or exiting the programs compared with that of all individuals served; and
(2) number and percent of people with disabilities that entered employment compared with employment outcomes of all individuals exiting these programs.
• Identify whether a Work Incentive Grant award was received in the October 2000 or May 2002 award announcements along with accomplishments and reasons for application to this solicitation.
• Identify whether Disability Program Navigator(s) have been implemented in the state or local workforce investment area(s) under previous Work Incentive or other grants.
• Identify whether an Office of Disability Employment Policy grant has been received in the workforce investment area(s) and how activities will be coordinated with this project proposal.
• Identify the status of physical accessibility of state and/or local One-Stop Career Center facilities and plans for addressing deficiencies.
• Identify the status of programmatic accessibility and plans for addressing deficiencies.
• Identify the status of communication accessibility—including availability of assistive technology—in your One-Stop Career Centers and plans for addressing deficiencies.
• Describe significant deficiencies in the state or local workforce investment system that represent barriers to employment for people with disabilities and what will be accomplished under this grant to address them.
• Identify ETA, ODEP or other grants and resources in the state or local workforce area(s) which impact the delivery of such services as well as the unmet needs of job seekers with disabilities and can be used to enhance your project.
• Identify additional state and/or local funds and resources, if any, that will be used to support the overall objectives of the grant and will assist in addressing the identified issues of the grant project.
The purpose of the Workplan criteria is to identify the approach proposed by the grantee to establish a welcoming and seamless One-Stop Career Center service delivery system for persons with disabilities, that addresses identified needs described under Section B (Statement of Need), and achieves Work Incentive Grant objectives. In general, achieving a seamless system requires extensive linkages and on-site knowledge of applicable resources that address multiple disability issues and barriers to employment that are commonly experienced by persons with disabilities. Disability issues are often very complex and the disability community is very diverse. These factors present significant challenges to the workforce system in providing effective services to individuals with disabilities. At the same time, the comprehensive nature of the One-Stop Career Center system establishes a workforce infrastructure that is uniquely positioned to provide the kind of seamless service delivery that the disability community has long been seeking. Some workforce investment areas have made great strides in achieving universal access for their customers with disabilities while others are at a more preliminary stage with minimal services or assistive technology available.
Based upon the progress to-date achieved by the applicant and their One-Stop Career Center system, we request that you identify the primary approach of your proposal in terms of addressing Workplan (1) or (2) described below. Although you may select both options when such an approach will best address shortcomings in your current system, your Workplan description must provide your rational for selecting either (1) or (2) or both. As noted above, we are encouraging prior recipients of Work Incentive Grants to focus solely on Workplan (2): establishing Disability Program Navigator positions.
• Describe the activities you will implement to maintain and expand the service structure for individuals with
• Identify plans to address accessibility needs of your One-Stop Career Centers and plans to procure and implement accessible technologies, including video interpreting services for clients who are deaf, and how these activities will meet current system deficiencies.
• Describe plans to improve access to One-Stop Career Center services for customers with disabilities involving: (1) Inclusion in core, intensive and training services; (2) referral processes for Vocational Rehabilitation services or other agency programs; (3) joint funding of training and supportive services with Vocational Rehabilitation or other available resources; and (4) plans for establishing common intake or other administrative procedures that reduce duplication.
• Identify plans to implement assessment tools or procedures to help identify individuals with learning disabilities in the One-Stop delivery system and plans for implementing additional tools, if applicable.
• Describe plans for outreach, marketing, training, or on-going coordination and collaboration to the disability community and organizations that represent or work with people with disabilities. These entities, programs or systems may include but are not limited to: State and local Independent Living Center (CIL) systems, mental health departments, mental retardation/developmental disability agencies, State Councils on Developmental Disabilities, State Vocational Rehabilitation, and other local provider or advocate organizations, Regional Disability Business and Technical Assistance Centers (DBTAC's) and State Governors Committees on Employment of People with Disabilities, Learning Disabilities and Training Dissemination hub centers established under grants from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education, faith-based organizations and other community-based organizations, Benefits Planning, Assistance and Outreach specialists funded by SSA, Medicaid and Medicare system, including infrastructure grants and Medicaid buy-in provisions, Employment Networks (EN) established under the Ticket to Work and Work Incentive Improvement Act (TWWIIA).
• Identify whether you are an EN under the Ticket to Work program and whether you plan to become an EN as part of your grant activities.
• Describe specific state or local area provisions regarding Medicaid and/or Medicare coverage, the current transportation infrastructure, and how individuals with disabilities will access training, employment, housing, food stamps and other supportive services;
• Describe other plans, as applicable, under your proposal that will address or facilitate other improvements to your state or local One-Stop Career Center system.
The ETA/SSA position description (PD) for the Navigator is attached (Attachment D) to this SGA for guidance on establishing Disability Program Navigator positions in the One-Stop Career Center system. The PD is neither prescriptive nor all-inclusive; rather, it provides examples of the roles and functions of such a position depending upon the needs of the One-Stop and the skills and talents of the individual Navigator. We encourage you to consider hiring people with disabilities for the Navigator position(s) since, in general, they are intimately familiar with barriers to employment that others with disabilities face.
Navigators established under this grant will be expected to participate in training and technical assistance activities provided under ETA's Disability Program Navigator initiative that is currently functioning in 14 states. We will also expect that Navigator activities will be coordinated throughout a state, to the extent there is more than one Navigator, funded under this or other WIG or Disability Program Navigator grants (this may not be known at time of proposal and we will facilitate coordination when applicable subsequent to grant award).
Plans to implement Disability Program Navigator positions must identify:
• Administrative support;
• The hiring process;
• Management and supervision responsibility;
• Workforce investment area(s) that will include Navigators;
• One-Stop Career Center(s) to which Navigators will be assigned; and
• Anticipated role the Disability Program Navigator(s) will fill in the workforce investment area(s) over the course of the grant (as it relates to the attached Navigator PD).
State level proposals focused on implementing Disability Program Navigator positions should identify a state project lead to work closely with ETA and the University of Iowa's Law, Health Policy and Disability Center and their Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) that provides training and technical assistance to this national initiative. Proposals involving single or multiple workforce areas will also be expected to coordinate their implementation with ETA and the RRTC, and work with a state Navigator project lead if s/he has been established under this or other ETA grant awards.
You must complete and annotate a Project Timeline related to your activities proposed in the applicable Workplan section above. A model “timeline” is attached (Attachment C). Please provide additional timeline information as applicable. Provide:
• Goals, objectives, responsibilities, implementation strategies and time frames, expected outcomes, and evaluation indicators for assuring your successful completion of critical activities.
• Project organizational chart that identifies key management staff and their responsibilities, with a matrix of organizational responsibilities of key partner organizations, if applicable.
These criteria seek to identify: (1) How you will increase services, skill training, employment outcomes, job retention and career advancement for persons with disabilities utilizing WIA Title I and Wagner-Peyser services and programs to achieve the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) goals for the Work Incentive Grant program; (2) how you will coordinate services and training with other programs or resources for which these individuals may be eligible and that may impact successful employment outcomes; and (3) how you will work to sustain programs and achievements beyond the period of performance.
Employment with special wage provisions authorized under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (29 U.S.C. 214) is not considered a positive employment outcome for the purpose of Work Incentive Grants.
Proposed GPRA goals for PY 2004 and PY 2005 for Work Incentive Grants are:
• Eight percent (8%) of participants served in adult, dislocated worker, and
• Seventy percent (70%) of participants with disabilities that exit the WIA adult, dislocated worker and adult youth programs in workforce areas receiving grants will enter employment (65% of WIA exiters with disabilities entered employment during April 1, 2001–March 31, 2002)
• A measure of efficiency will be calculated. Total costs of the grant will be divided by the total participants in the workforce investment areas funded under the grant.
Please remember that Work Incentive Grant funds are not to be used for direct training of participants; therefore, intensive and training funds must be made available through WIA program and/or other mandated (or non-mandated) partner resources in order to meet participant employment goals and objectives. If you do blend resources across funding streams, it is accepted practice under WIA to report participant services and outcomes for each program involved.
Provide the following levels of planned services under state Wagner-Peyser (
Your narrative must include the following information for this criterion.
• Describe your strategy for increasing the number and percent of people with disabilities served, trained and placed into unsubsidized employment through WIA Title I and Wagner-Peyser programs. Your state or local workforce area(s) may already be serving and achieving employment levels for persons with disabilities that are at or above the GPRA goals identified. If that is the case, please identify actions to be taken to sustain these levels of performance.
• Identify how joint funding of training or employment services may be leveraged across available programs to which job seekers with disabilities may be eligible, including Vocational Rehabilitation services.
• Identify how your planned activities to train and place individuals with disabilities will meet employer skill shortage needs, including how available federal and state tax incentives will be utilized or marketed to improve employment outcomes.
• Identify the extent to which planned training for customers with disabilities will be provided through the state or local community college system.
• Within demand industries and occupations in the labor market to be served, describe a plan for identifying growth occupations with positive earnings trajectories and their education and training requirements and how job seekers with disabilities will be included.
• Describe how public supports needed by people with disabilities may be affected by their employment or training and state or local conditions, and then describe your proposed actions to sustain benefits and services following successful job placement. For example, does the state or local area have provisions to continue supported or Section 8A housing (The Housing Act of 1992, Title IV), where applicable, for individuals who enter unsubsidized employment?
• Provide the following information concerning developing or providing skill training and employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities within the local workforce investment area:
Identify state or local workforce plans to sustain activities or accomplishments to be achieved under your proposal. What approaches do you envision to achieve permanent, systemic change? What approach is planned to assure increased coordination of services of mandated and non-mandated partner programs that impact successful employment of job seekers with disabilities following the end of the grant? If Navigators are planned under your proposal, how will these positions continue to be supported at the end of the grant? We would like to make sure that state and local workforce areas are looking beyond the end of this grant as part of institutionalizing the goals and objectives of the Work Incentive Grant program to increase, enhance and improve services and outcomes for people with disabilities accessing the workforce program.
• Technical review panels will evaluate each application against the rating criteria listed in this SGA. Priority will be given to applicants from states in which a work incentive grant has yet to be awarded.
• The Department may elect to award grants either with or without discussions with the offeror. In situations without discussions, an award will be based on the offeror's signature on the SF 424, which constitutes a binding offer.
• The panel recommendations are advisory and not binding on the Grant Officer. The ETA grant officer will fully consider the panel recommendations but take into account geographic dispersion, program balance, diversity, the availability of funds, and other factors to ensure the most advantageous award of these funds to accomplish the system-building purposes outlined in this SGA. Please note that Disability Program Navigator initiative states may be expanded through cooperative agreements established in June 2003 rather than through awards under this Work Incentive Grant solicitation.
• 29 CFR parts 30, 31, 32, 33 and 36—Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship and Training; Nondiscrimination in Federally Assisted Programs of the Department of Labor-Effectuation of the Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Handicap in Programs or Activities Conducted by the Department of Labor; and Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs Receiving or Benefiting from Federal Financial Assistance;
• 29 CFR part 37—Implementation of the Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity Provisions of the Workforce Investment Act of 1988 (WIA);
• 29 CFR part 93—Lobbying;
• 29 CFR part 95—Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Other Non-Profit Organizations, and with Commercial Organizations;
• 29 CFR PART 96—Audit Requirements for Grants, Contracts and Other Agreements;
• 29 CFR part 97—Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and Cooperative Agreements to State and Local Governments;
• 29 CFR part 98—Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Non-Procurement) and Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace;
• 29 CFR part 99—Audit of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations.
In accordance with section 18 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, Public Law 104–65 (2 U.S.C. 1611) non-profit entities incorporated under Internal Revenue Service Code section 501(c)(4) that engage in lobbying activities are not eligible to receive Federal funds and grants. Further, this program is subject to the provisions of the “Jobs for Veterans Act,” Public Law 107–288, which provides priority of service to veterans and spouses of certain veterans for the receipt of employment, training, and placement services in any job training program directly funded, in whole or in part, by the Department of Labor. Please note that, to obtain priority of service, a veteran must meet the program's eligibility requirements. ETA Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) No. 5–03 (September 16, 2003) provides general guidance on the scope of the veterans priority statute and its effect on current employment and training programs. DOL anticipates updating this guidance at the time of WIA reauthorization and issuing individual guidance on each affected employment and training program.
ETA is responsible for ensuring effective implementation of each competitive grant project through active technical assistance and on-site project monitoring. This monitoring will focus on timely project implementation in accordance with the Workplan and Timeline, the appropriate expenditure of grant funds, integration and coordination with other service providers in the local area, and the effectiveness of project management in achieving project goals. Finally, on-site
We will provide extensive technical assistance over the duration of the Round IV Work Incentive Grant through ETA's contract with the University of Iowa's Law, Health Policy and Disability Center and their Research Rehabilitation and Training Center on Workforce Investment and Employment Policy for Persons with Disabilities. Technical assistance and training will include extensive information sharing across grantees as well as numerous topical phone conferences. The selected grantees will also share responsibility for identifying, showcasing and replicating successful instances of involvement in the One-Stop system by partners and organizations assisting jobseekers with disabilities.
Questions should be faxed to Eric Luetkenhaus, Grant Officer, Division of Federal Assistance at (202) 693–2705 (This is not a toll free number). All inquiries should include the SGA/DFA 04–107 and a contact name, fax and phone number. For more information contact Mr. Luetkenhaus at 202–693–3109 (This is not a toll free number). This solicitation will be also published on the Internet, on ETA's disability online home page at