The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) was signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009. The Recovery Act is intended to preserve and create jobs, promote the nation's economic recovery, and assist those most impacted by the recession. Among other funding directed toward the Department of Labor (DOL), the Recovery Act provides $750 million for a program of competitive grants for worker training and placement in high growth and emerging industries. Of the $750 million allotted for competitive grants, the Recovery Act designates $500 million for projects that prepare workers for careers in the energy efficiency and renewable energy sectors described in Section 171(e)(1)(B) of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA), as amended to incorporate the Green Jobs Act of 2007. This notice describes the Employment and Training Administration's (ETA) initial plans for awarding these "green job training" funds under the Recovery Act so that interested organizations can begin to plan for the application process and can strengthen or build partnerships to be successful applicants.

To assist the State Workforce Agencies designated by the Governor as "cooperating state agencies" in implementing the provisions of the Trade and Globalization Adjustment Assistance Act of 2009 that amend the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, and creates or expands programs for Workers, Firms, Communities, and Farmers.

To provide a summary of selected ETA 581 data with associated charts and tables for CY 2008.

To strongly encourage states to: (1) broaden their definition of approved training for Unemployment Insurance (UI) beneficiaries during economic downturns, (2) notify UI beneficiaries of their potential eligibility for Pell Grants and other student aid, and (3) help individuals apply for Pell Grants through One-Stop Career Centers.

To increase awareness of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA) provisions in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and inform states and local areas about resources available to assist dislocated workers, businesses, and partners in understanding the new law.

To announce the Lower Living Standard Income Level for Fiscal Year (FY) 2009.

The purposes of this Training and Employment Notice are to:
(1) Introduce the industry competency models and their value as resources that can support partnership development and engagement among business, the workforce investment system, and the continuum of education;
(2) Illustrate a variety of uses for competency models for workforce investment system partners and industry organizations; and,
(3) Share information about two interactive tools that enable workforce system partners to collaboratively develop customized industry competency models and career ladders/lattices.

This notice announces the launch of the CareerOneStop Worker ReEmployment Portal. The Web site is designed to assist impacted workers following job loss, and to connect laid off workers to needed resources for training, reemployment, career planning, financial and emotional help during the process of job transition. The new ReEmployment portal was launched in conjunction with the ReEmployment Summit held in Baltimore, Maryland in January, 2009 and can be found at www.careeronestop.org/ReEmployment.

To announce the release and availability of Comparison of State Unemployment Insurance Laws 2009.

To announce the release and availability of the Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) Occasional Paper 2009-9:
Trends in the Structure of the Labor Market and Unemployment: Implications for U.S. Unemployment Insurance.