In 2018, amendments to Section 306(c) of the Social Security Act (SSA) permanently authorized the Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments (RESEA) program and introduced substantive changes, including formula-based funding to states and a series of requirements intended to increase the use and availability of evidence-based reemployment interventions and strategies. The Department of Labor (DOL) provides funding and technical assistance to states to operate the RESEA program, which aims to help Unemployment Insurance (UI) claimants return to work quickly and improve employment outcomes. It is also intended to strengthen UI program integrity and promote alignment between UI and the broader workforce development system. The RESEA legislation includes provisions that laid the groundwork for using and building evidence as a central component in the program. This brief describes the technical assistance provided by DOL to help states with well-conducted, credible impact studies that inform the design of states’ RESEA programs.

Lessons from delivering evaluation technical assistance (EvalTA) indicate that:

• Federal-level leadership and cross-agency coordination supported delivery of EvalTA. Such support helped the states’ progress as they developed and launched evidence-building evaluations of their RESEA programs.
• EvalTA was adapted to responded to state needs as they planned and implemented evaluations. The three primary areas included helping states with 1) understanding the evaluation related RESEA legislation; 2) planning and conducting high-quality evaluations; and 3) using evaluations for implementing new strategies and interventions or making improvements.
• EvalTA activities ranged from both generalized to customized support and made evaluations accessible to all states. A subset of states ready to conduct evaluations also received more-intensive assistance to implement high-quality, rigorous impact studies, which led to early contributions to the evidence base.
• Engaging states early and often to solicit feedback about their preferred modes of delivery, cadence, and research topics was a valuable element of the EvalTA. DOL’s experience implementing RESEA and its evidence-building requirements demonstrates the need to develop a wide continuum of EvalTA materials. The experience also demonstrates the importance of remaining responsive to the states as they change over time and as staff advance in their ability and capacity to plan, implement, and conduct evaluations.

Brief: Lessons From Delivering Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments (RESEA) Evaluation Technical Assistance