Announcement of a new initiative to provide coordinated federal resources and support for an Energy Regional Innovation Cluster, and to encourage the public workforce system to become partners in this effort.

To provide updated pages for the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Tax Performance System (TPS) Handbook, ET Handbook No. 407, 4th Edition.

The purpose of this Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) is to provide guidance to states, workforce investment boards, and Workforce Investment Act (WIA) youth service providers on contracting strategies that facilitate service providers to serve the youth most in need, while still achieving performance goals.

To provide State Workforce Agencies (SWAs) with additional information on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) IT security guidelines.

The purpose of this joint issuance from the Assistant Secretary of the Employment and Training Administration and the Deputy Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division is to provide guidance to states that may be considering implementation of subsidized work-based training initiatives for unemployed workers, which could include claimants who are receiving unemployment compensation (UC), exhaustees of UC, and/or other unemployed workers who may not be eligible for UC. This advisory is intended to help states understand applicable Federal laws, regulations, and policies related to the Social Security Act and the Federal Unemployment Tax Act (which govern the Unemployment Compensation program), the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, as amended, as they develop and implement these types of initiatives.

To announce the availability of a new video and informational brief to promote the employment of disabled veterans through the One-Stop Career Center system.

To encourage states to apply for UC Modernization incentive payments.

To ensure states are aware that the social security survivors and old age retirement annuities and the Federal civilian pensions annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will not be increased for 2010 and to provide the U.S. Office of Personal Management Web site where the COLA information is located.

To ensure states are aware that the Federal military retired pay annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) will not be increased for 2010 and to provide the Department of Defense Web site where the COLA information is located.

To inform State Workforce Agencies (SWAs), liaisons, and NFJP grantees, of the 2010 MAFO National Farmworker Conference, and the Monitor Advocate Training sponsored by the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) and the National and Regional Monitor Advocates. The 2010 MAFO National Farmworker Conference will be held in San Antonio, Texas, from March 22 to March 24, 2010.