29 U.S.C. § 3224 — Evaluations and research

Page 913 TITLE 29—LABOR § 3224 (E) assistance in the development and im- plementation of integrated, technology-en- abled intake and case management informa- tion systems for programs carried out under this Act and programs carried out by one- stop partners, such as standard sets of tech- nical requirements for the systems, offering interfaces that States could use in conjunc- tion with their current (as of the first date of implementation of the systems) intake and case management information systems that would facilitate shared registration across programs; (F) assistance regarding accounting and program operations to States and localities (when such assistance would not supplant assistance provided by the State); (G) peer review activities under this sub- chapter; and (H) in particular, assistance to States in making transitions to implement the provi- sions of this Act. (2) Form of assistance (A) In general In order to carry out paragraph (1) on be- half of a State or recipient of financial as- sistance under section 3221 or 3222 of this title, the Secretary, after consultation with the State or grant recipient, may award grants or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements. (B) Limitation Grants or contracts awarded under para- graph (1) to entities other than States or local units of government that are for amounts in excess of $100,000 shall only be awarded on a competitive basis. (b) Dislocated worker technical assistance (1) Authority Of the amounts available pursuant to sec- tion 3172(a)(2)(A) of this title, the Secretary shall reserve not more than 5 percent of such amounts to provide technical assistance to States that do not meet the State perform- ance accountability measures for the primary indicators of performance described in section 3141(b)(2)(A)(i) of this title with respect to em- ployment and training activities for dislocated workers. Using such reserved funds, the Sec- retary may provide such assistance to other States, local areas, and other entities involved in providing assistance to dislocated workers, to promote the continuous improvement of as- sistance provided to dislocated workers, under this subchapter. (2) Training Amounts reserved under this subsection may be used to provide for the training of staff, in- cluding specialists, who provide rapid response services. Such training shall include instruc- tion in proven methods of promoting, estab- lishing, and assisting labor-management com- mittees. Such projects shall be administered through the Employment and Training Ad- ministration of the Department. (c) Promising and proven practices coordination The Secretary shall— (1) establish a system through which States may share information regarding promising and proven practices with regard to the oper- ation of workforce investment activities under this Act; (2) evaluate and disseminate information re- garding such promising and proven practices and identify knowledge gaps; and (3) commission research under section 3224(b) of this title to address knowledge gaps identified under paragraph (2). (Pub. L. 113–128, title I, § 168, July 22, 2014, 128 Stat. 1566.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This Act, referred to in subsecs. (a)(1)(E), (H) and (c)(1), is Pub. L. 113–128, July 22, 2014, 128 Stat. 1425, known as the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which enacted this chapter, repealed chapter 30 (§ 2801 et seq.) of this title and chapter 73 (§ 9201 et seq.) of Title 20, Education, and made amendments to nu- merous other sections and notes in the Code. For com- plete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 3101 of this title and Tables. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the first day of the first full pro- gram year after July 22, 2014 (July 1, 2015), see section 506 of Pub. L. 113–128, set out as a note under section 3101 of this title. § 3224. Evaluations and research (a) Evaluations (1) Evaluations of programs and activities car- ried out under this subchapter (A) In general For the purpose of improving the manage- ment and effectiveness of programs and ac- tivities carried out under this subchapter, the Secretary, through grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements, shall provide for the continuing evaluation of the programs and activities under this subchapter, includ- ing those programs and activities carried out under this section. (B) Periodic independent evaluation The evaluations carried out under this paragraph shall include an independent eval- uation, at least once every 4 years, of the programs and activities carried out under this subchapter. (2) Evaluation subjects Each evaluation carried out under paragraph (1) shall address— (A) the general effectiveness of such pro- grams and activities in relation to their cost, including the extent to which the pro- grams and activities— (i) improve the employment com- petencies of participants in comparison to comparably-situated individuals who did not participate in such programs and ac- tivities; and (ii) to the extent feasible, increase the level of total employment over the level Page 914 TITLE 29—LABOR § 3224 that would have existed in the absence of such programs and activities; (B) the effectiveness of the performance accountability measures relating to such programs and activities; (C) the effectiveness of the structure and mechanisms for delivery of services through such programs and activities, including the coordination and integration of services through such programs and activities; (D) the impact of such programs and ac- tivities on the community, businesses, and participants involved; (E) the impact of such programs and ac- tivities on related programs and activities; (F) the extent to which such programs and activities meet the needs of various demo- graphic groups; and (G) such other factors as may be appro- priate. (3) Evaluations of other programs and activi- ties The Secretary may conduct evaluations of other federally funded employment-related programs and activities under other provisions of law. (4) Techniques Evaluations conducted under this subsection shall utilize appropriate and rigorous method- ology and research designs, including the use of control groups chosen by scientific random assignment methodologies. The Secretary shall conduct at least 1 multisite control group evaluation under this subsection by the end of fiscal year 2019, and thereafter shall en- sure that such an analysis is included in the independent evaluation described in paragraph (1)(B) that is conducted at least once every 4 years. (5) Reports The entity carrying out an evaluation de- scribed in paragraph (1) or (2) shall prepare and submit to the Secretary a draft report and a final report containing the results of the evaluation. (6) Reports to Congress Not later than 30 days after the completion of a draft report under paragraph (5), the Sec- retary shall transmit the draft report to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives and the Com- mittee on Health, Education, Labor and Pen- sions of the Senate. Not later than 60 days after the completion of a final report under such paragraph, the Secretary shall transmit the final report to such committees. (7) Public availability Not later than 30 days after the date the Secretary transmits the final report as de- scribed in paragraph (6), the Secretary shall make that final report available to the general public on the Internet, on the Web site of the Department of Labor. (8) Publication of reports If an entity that enters into a contract or other arrangement with the Secretary to con- duct an evaluation of a program or activity under this subsection requests permission from the Secretary to publish a report result- ing from the evaluation, such entity may pub- lish the report unless the Secretary denies the request during the 90-day period beginning on the date the Secretary receives such request. (9) Coordination The Secretary shall ensure the coordination of evaluations carried out by States pursuant to section 3141(e) of this title with the evalua- tions carried out under this subsection. (b) Research, studies, and multistate projects (1) In general After consultation with States, localities, and other interested parties, the Secretary shall, every 2 years, publish in the Federal Register, a plan that describes the research, studies, and multistate project priorities of the Department of Labor concerning employ- ment and training for the 5-year period fol- lowing the submission of the plan. The plan shall be consistent with the purposes of this subchapter, including the purpose of aligning and coordinating core programs with other one-stop partner programs. Copies of the plan shall be transmitted to the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, the Department of Education, and other rel- evant Federal agencies. (2) Factors The plan published under paragraph (1) shall contain strategies to address national employ- ment and training problems and take into ac- count factors such as— (A) the availability of existing research (as of the date of the publication); (B) the need to ensure results that have interstate validity; (C) the benefits of economies of scale and the efficiency of proposed projects; and (D) the likelihood that the results of the projects will be useful to policymakers and stakeholders in addressing employment and training problems. (3) Research projects The Secretary shall, through grants or con- tracts, carry out research projects that will contribute to the solution of employment and training problems in the United States and that are consistent with the priorities speci- fied in the plan published under paragraph (1). (4) Studies and reports (A) Net impact studies and reports The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Education and other relevant Federal agencies, may conduct studies to determine the net impact and best practices of programs, services, and activi- ties carried out under this Act. (B) Study on resources available to assist dis- connected youth The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Education, may con- duct a study examining the characteristics Page 915 TITLE 29—LABOR § 3224 of eligible youth that result in such youth being significantly disconnected from edu- cation and workforce participation, the ways in which such youth could have greater opportunities for education attainment and obtaining employment, and the resources available to assist such youth in obtaining the skills, credentials, and work experience necessary to become economically self-suffi- cient. (C) Study of effectiveness of workforce devel- opment system in meeting business needs Using funds available to carry out this subsection jointly with funds available to the Secretary of Commerce, the Adminis- trator of the Small Business Administra- tion, and the Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, and the Secretary of Education, may conduct a study of the effectiveness of the workforce development system in meeting the needs of business, such as through the use of industry or sector partnerships, with particular at- tention to the needs of small business, in- cluding in assisting workers to obtain the skills needed to utilize emerging tech- nologies. (D) Study on participants entering nontradi- tional occupations The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Education, may con- duct a study examining the number and per- centage of individuals who receive employ- ment and training activities and who enter nontraditional occupations, successful strat- egies to place and support the retention of individuals in nontraditional employment (such as by providing post-placement assist- ance to participants in the form of exit interviews, mentoring, networking, and leadership development), and the degree to which recipients of employment and train- ing activities are informed of the possibility of, or directed to begin, training or edu- cation needed for entrance into nontradi- tional occupations. (E) Study on performance indicators The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Education, may con- duct studies to determine the feasibility of, and potential means to replicate, measuring the compensation, including the wages, ben- efits, and other incentives provided by an employer, received by program participants by using data other than or in addition to data available through wage records, for po- tential use as a performance indicator. (F) Study on job training for recipients of public housing assistance The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Housing and Urban De- velopment, may conduct studies to assist public housing authorities to provide, to re- cipients of public housing assistance, job training programs that successfully upgrade job skills and employment in, and access to, jobs with opportunity for advancement and economic self-sufficiency for such recipients. (G) Study on improving employment pros- pects for older individuals The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, may conduct studies that lead to better de- sign and implementation of, in conjunction with employers, local boards or State boards, community colleges or area career and technical education schools, and other organizations, effective evidence-based strategies to provide services to workers who are low-income, low-skilled older indi- viduals that increase the workers’ skills and employment prospects. (H) Study on prior learning The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with other heads of Federal agencies, as ap- propriate, may conduct studies that, through convening stakeholders from the fields of education, workforce, business, labor, defense, and veterans services, and ex- perts in such fields, develop guidelines for assessing, accounting for, and utilizing the prior learning of individuals, including dis- located workers and veterans, in order to provide the individuals with postsecondary educational credit for such prior learning that leads to the attainment of a recognized postsecondary credential identified under section 3152(d) of this title and employment. (I) Study on career pathways for health care providers and providers of early edu- cation and child care The Secretary of Labor, in coordination with the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall conduct a multistate study to develop, implement, and build upon career advance- ment models and practices for low-wage health care providers or providers of early education and child care, including faculty education and distance education programs. (J) Study on equivalent pay The Secretary shall conduct a multistate study to develop and disseminate strategies for ensuring that programs and activities carried out under this Act are placing indi- viduals in jobs, education, and training that lead to equivalent pay for men and women, including strategies to increase the partici- pation of women in high-wage, high-demand occupations in which women are underrep- resented. (K) Reports The Secretary shall prepare and dissemi- nate to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of Representatives, and to the public, including through elec- tronic means, reports containing the results of the studies conducted under this para- graph. Page 916 TITLE 29—LABOR § 3224a (5) Multistate projects (A) Authority The Secretary may, through grants or con- tracts, carry out multistate projects that re- quire demonstrated expertise that is avail- able at the national level to effectively dis- seminate best practices and models for im- plementing employment and training serv- ices, address the specialized employment and training needs of particular service popu- lations, or address industry-wide skill short- ages, to the extent such projects are con- sistent with the priorities specified in the plan published under paragraph (1). (B) Design of grants Agreements for grants or contracts award- ed under this paragraph shall be designed to obtain information relating to the provision of services under different economic condi- tions or to various demographic groups in order to provide guidance at the national and State levels about how best to admin- ister specific employment and training serv- ices. (6) Limitations (A) Competitive awards A grant or contract awarded for carrying out a project under this subsection in an amount that exceeds $100,000 shall be award- ed only on a competitive basis, except that a noncompetitive award may be made in the case of a project that is funded jointly with other public or private sector entities that provide a substantial portion of assistance under the grant or contract for the project. (B) Time limits A grant or contract shall not be awarded under this subsection to the same organiza- tion for more than 3 consecutive years un- less such grant or contract is competitively reevaluated within such period. (C) Peer review (i) In general The Secretary shall utilize a peer review process— (I) to review and evaluate all applica- tions for grants in amounts that exceed $500,000 that are submitted under this section; and (II) to review and designate exemplary and promising programs under this sec- tion. (ii) Availability of funds The Secretary is authorized to use funds provided under this section to carry out peer review activities under this subpara- graph. (D) Priority In awarding grants or contracts under this subsection, priority shall be provided to en- tities with recognized expertise in the meth- ods, techniques, and knowledge of workforce investment activities. The Secretary shall establish appropriate time limits for the du- ration of such projects. (c) Dislocated worker projects Of the amount made available pursuant to sec- tion 3172(a)(2)(A) of this title for any program year, the Secretary shall use not more than 10 percent of such amount to carry out demonstra- tion and pilot projects, multiservice projects, and multistate projects relating to the employ- ment and training needs of dislocated workers. Of the requirements of this section, such projects shall be subject only to the provisions relating to review and evaluation of applications under subsection (b)(6)(C). Such projects may in- clude demonstration and pilot projects relating to promoting self-employment, promoting job creation, averting dislocations, assisting dis- located farmers, assisting dislocated fishermen, and promoting public works. Such projects shall be administered by the Secretary, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Employ- ment and Training. (Pub. L. 113–128, title I, § 169, July 22, 2014, 128 Stat. 1568.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT This Act, referred to in subsec. (b)(4)(A), (J), is Pub. L. 113–128, July 22, 2014, 128 Stat. 1425, known as the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which en- acted this chapter, repealed chapter 30 (§ 2801 et seq.) of this title and chapter 73 (§ 9201 et seq.) of Title 20, Edu- cation, and made amendments to numerous other sec- tions and notes in the Code. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 3101 of this title and Tables. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE Section effective on the first day of the first full pro- gram year after July 22, 2014 (July 1, 2015), see section 506 of Pub. L. 113–128, set out as a note under section 3101 of this title. § 3224a. Job training grants (1) In general The Secretary of Labor shall use funds avail- able under section 1356(s)(2) of title 8 to award grants to eligible entities to provide job training and related activities for workers to assist them in obtaining or upgrading employment in indus- tries and economic sectors identified pursuant to paragraph (4) that are projected to experience significant growth and ensure that job training and related activities funded by such grants are coordinated with the public workforce invest- ment system. (2) Use of funds (A) Training provided Funds under this section may be used to pro- vide job training services and related activi- ties that are designed to assist workers (in- cluding unemployed and employed workers) in gaining the skills and competencies needed to obtain or upgrade career ladder employment positions in the industries and economic sec- tors identified pursuant to paragraph (4). (B) Enhanced training programs and informa- tion In order to facilitate the provision of job training services described in subparagraph (A), funds under this section may be used to assist in the development and implementation