ETA News Release: [February 7, 2005]
Contact Name: Mike Volpe
Phone Number: 202-693-3984 or 202-693-4676
Employment and Training Administration Announces FY 06 Budget Plans
Job Training Reform, Increased Flexibility and Accountability Highlighted
WASHINGTON - Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Emily Stover DeRocco today outlined details of a major job training reform proposal as part of the FY 06 budget request. The reform proposal would consolidate four major Department of Labor job training programs and allow states to add to the consolidated grant resources from other federal job training and employment programs. This reform is designed to create greater state flexibility in exchange for increased accountability in preparing people to find and keep good jobs with growing wages.
"The President's proposal offers the new Congress an opportunity to advance the work it almost completed in the last session," said DeRocco. "This proposal will give maximum flexibility in spending job training funds. It requires improved performance and allows governors to design economic development strategies that meet the unique needs of their states' employers and workers."
The President's proposal consolidates three funding streams under the Workforce Investment Act -- Adult, Dislocated Worker and Youth - as well as state Employment Service grants. It also gives governors the option to consolidate into their state grant the resources for Vocational Rehabilitation, Trade Adjustment Assistance training, Adult Education, Veterans Employment, and Food Stamp Employment and Training. The combined budget request for these programs is $7.5 billion.
In addition to consolidating these programs, the President's reform proposal would introduce Innovation Training Accounts (ITAs) to increase workers' access to a wider range of service providers and would set strict limits on overhead costs in federally funded training programs to allow more resources for worker training.
The President's 2006 Budget also proposes legislation to transfer the $58.9 million Youthbuild program from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to ETA, includes $35 million to continue the Department of Labor's role in the President's $75 million Prisoner Re-entry Initiative. It also expands efforts to reduce improper payments, including an initiative to combat identity theft in the Unemployment Insurance program. The complete ETA budget request for fiscal year 2006 is $10.63 billion.
###
U.S. Labor Department (DOL) releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format upon request (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office. Please specify which news release when placing your request. Call (202) 693-7765 or TTY (202) 693-7755. DOL is committed to providing America's employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.
