References: 5 U.S.C. 8502(b) and 8521; 20 CFR 614.6(c), 614.9(a)(1) and 20 CFR 614.22(d); and UIPL 25-83 and Changes 1-9. Background: UIPL 25-83, Change 10 transmitted a letter to all SESAs that was issued by the Air Force in lieu of reissuing DD Forms 214 or issuing DD Forms 215 to certain Air Force ex-servicemembers separated after November 5, 1991, to correct, for UCX eligibility purposes, the narrative reason for separation reflected in Block 28 of their DD Forms 214. The Secretary of the Air Force, in consultation with the DOL, determined that one of the unacceptable narrative reasons for separation, "Voluntary - Miscellaneous Reasons" was incorrectly applied to Air Force separatees after November 5, 1991. These separatees were in fact, separated for the convenience of the government under an early release/force reduction program and item (Block) 28 of their DD Forms 214 should have contained the acceptable narrative reason for separation "Early Separation Program - Force Reduction". Instructions: This Department has been informed by the Air Force that the early release program to which the narrative reason for separation "Voluntary - Miscellaneous Reasons" was incorrectly applied ended on October 31, 1992. The Air Force further informed this Department that it would cease issuing letters to the affected Air Force separatees on October 31, 1992. Therefore, the instruction in Section 4. of UIPL 25-83, Change 10 is not applicable to Air Force separations occurring after October 31, 1992. As provided in 5 U.S.C. 8502(b) and 20 CFR 614.9(a)(1), State UI law claims filing provisions are applicable to UCX claims. Furthermore, 20 CFR 614.6(c) provides that any redetermination or reconsideration of previously eligible UCX claims will be undertaken according to State law provisions applicable to UI claims. Action Required: The above information should be provided to appropriate staff.

Background: Section 143(a) of the 1992 Amendments to JTPA provides that "standardized records for all individual participants" shall be maintained by Service Delivery Areas (SDAs). Such records are to be made available to the Secretary "to facilitate the uniform compilation, cross tabulation, and analysis of programmatic, participant, and financial data, on statewide and service delivery area bases," pursuant to Section 143(c) of the Amendments. The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) has for some time been concerned about the need for more meaningful feedback on whether policies that create changes in program design and client targeting actually result in program improvements. Effective program management is dependent on adequate and timely information on what local JTPA programs are accomplishing and how they are achieving these results. In addition, there has been a need for uniform participant-level data that will address important issues regarding program accountability, such as the scope of services and the nature of employment that JTPA is providing to participants, particularly the hardest-to-serve. These concerns have culminated in the development of the Standardized Program Information Reporting (SPIR) system, which was published in final form in the Federal Register on November 12, 1992. In addition, the Department's Directorate of Civil Rights has issued regulations that may affect reporting and record keeping requirements. To comply with DCR and SPIR requirements, State and SDA management information systems may have to be redesigned. Policy: Section 202(b)(3)(B) provides that funds shall be used "to provide incentive grants . . . If the full amount reserved . . . is not needed to make incentive grants . . . the Governor shall use the amount not so needed for technical assistance . . . ." Pursuant to the authority granted to the Secretary at Section 701(i) of the Amendments to issue procedures necessary for the orderly implementation of the Amendments, the following policy guidance is provided: a. Technical assistance funds under Section 202(b)(3) of the Amendments may be used if needed for MIS redesign to accommodate the SPIR and DCR data collection requirements. b. Incentive funds awarded to SDAs may be used by the SDAs for local MIS redesign, or they may be returned to the State if SDAs wish to participate in a statewide MIS redesign. c. Subject to a. and b., PY 1992 Section 202(b)(3) "six percent" funds may be used for purposes of MIS redesign. In addition, any unexpended Section 202(b)(3) funds from prior years may be used, if still available. d. PY 1992 funds need not be spent in PY 1992. They may be expended for such purposes next year or even in PY 1994 if not expended earlier. Action If MIS redesign is necessary to meet the new SPIR reporting requirements and the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity requirements of the Amendments, States and SDAs may do so immediately, using their "six percent" funds.

References. DINAP Bulletins No.-94-07 and 94-12. Background. Pursuant to the designation instructions published in the FEDERAL REGISTER (59 FR 50001) and transmitted to current JTPA section 401 Indian and Native American grantees in DINAP Bulletin No. 94-07, the Department published a list of those grantees applying for and receiving waivers and tentative waivers of competition for the PY 1995-96 Designation Period (59 FR 60663). These lists were transmitted to section 401 grantees in DINAP Bulletin No. 94-12. Those grantees receiving tentative waivers in that FEDERAL REGISTER notice had ten (10) calendar days to resolve the problems which resulted in their receiving a tentative waiver. This bulletin transmits the final list of section 401 grantees receiving waivers of competition for the PY 1995-96 Designation Period. This final list includes the disposition of those entities originally granted tentative waivers and corrects the previous list. Waivers of competition have been implemented in accordance with the provisions of section 401(l) of the Act, as amended, which states that if a grantee has performed satisfactorily according to plan for the current 2-year grant period, the Department may waive the requirement for competition upon receipt of a satisfactory plan for the succeeding 2-year grant period. To be considered for a waiver, current grantees were required to submit an Advance Notice of Intent in accordance with the instructions contained in DINAP Bulletin No. 94-07. Action Required. a. Grantees receiving waivers must still submit a Final Notice of Intent pursuant to the instructions contained in DINAP Bulletin No. 94-07, except that they need only submit a Standard Form (SF) 424 in lieu of a full Notice of Intent. There will be no competition for their existing service area. b. All grantees not waived for competition and still interested in being designated as a JTPA section 401 grantee should submit an original and two copies of the Final Notice of Intent, along with all appropriate materials, postmarked not later than January 1, 1995, to: Inquiries. Questions should be directed to your Federal representative on (202) 219-5504. Thomas M. Dowd Chief Division of Indian and Native American Programs ATTN: Designation Desk U.S. Department of Labor 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W. Room N-4641 Washington, D.C. 20210 Inquiries: Questions should be directed to your Federal representative on (202) 219-5504.

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References: Section 4 of P.L. 103-152; Titles III and IX of the Social Security Act (SSA); P.L. 103-6; P.L. 102- 318; UI Occasional Papers 89-3 and 91-1; and UIPL 45-93, dated September 23, 1993. Background: On November 24, 1993, the President signed into law the Unemployment Compensation Amendments of 1993, P.L. 103-152. P.L. 103-152 extended the Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) program, and amended the SSA to require States, as a condition of receiving administrative grants, to establish and utilize a system of profiling all new claimants for regular UC for purposes of identifying claimants who are likely to exhaust UC and will need job search assistance to make a successful transition to new employment. The SSA was further amended to require States to disqualify an individual identified pursuant this profiling system if the individual fails to participate in reemployment services. In addition, P.L. 103-152 made a technical change to Title IX of the SSA. States have already been advised of those provisions affecting the EUC program in GAL 12-92, Change 6. This issuance is limited to those amendments to the SSA affecting the Federal-State UC program. These amendments are as follows: (a) a new requirement that States establish and utilize a system of profiling all new claimants for regular UC; (b) a new requirement that State law require claimants identified as most likely to exhaust regular UC to participate in reemployment services as condition of UC eligibility; and (c) a technical amendment to Title IX of the SSA pertaining to the Unemployment Trust Fund. Action Required: SESAs are requested to take the action necessary to assure consistency with Federal requirements as amended by P.L. 103-152. The effective dates for implementation of these amendments are found in Attachment III.

References: ETA Handbook No. 365, Second Edition and ETA Handbook No. 361, Revised October 1, 1986. Background: UIPL No. 10-93 provided answers to questions that had arisen at a training session held at the Latham Hotel in Georgetown in August. The information given in the second answer in the attachment to UIPL No. 10-93 was inadvertently given and is incorrect. Correct Answer: ETA Handbook No. 365, Second Edition, Page 9, states, "If a potential issue arises and is detected prior to the claimant certifying for the week which would be affected, it is not to be considered an issue (detected) until the week is claimed." To further clarify, the start date for timeliness is the week ending date of the week in which the affected week is certified. Action Required: Line out the second answer in the attachment to UIPL No. 10-93, write in the correct answer, and provide this change to UIPL No. 10-93 to all Quality Appraisal staff.

References: Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) No. 7-92, "Eagle Pass Task Force - Recommended Actions for Deterring and Detecting Fraud Activity in the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Program." Background: The validity of UI claims filed by claimants who use a third party to assist in filing has long been a concern of Federal and State UI administrators. Increased attention was focused on this concern in the early 1990's by the results of the Texas Employment Commission (TEC), the Office of Inspector General (OIG) and the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) investigation of a third party fraud scheme in Eagle Pass, Texas. A similar third party fraud scheme was subsequently uncovered in the Roma/McAllen, Texas, area. The Dallas OIG, with the cooperation of ETA and the SESAs, has successfully pursued prosecution and conviction of several individuals involved in these fraud schemes. Additional information concerning these operations can be found in UIPL No. 7-92. Further investigations have uncovered a total of fourteen third party fraud schemes along the Texas/Mexico border to date. These investigations disclosed that the third party filed weeks claimed on behalf of claimants, certified to false work search contacts, and perhaps falsified answers to other eligibility questions in the claimants' absence. The third party also forged the claimants' signatures and cashed UI benefit checks. The majority of the claimants identified during the third party investigations were filing interstate claims. These claims involved a total of thirty-three States, although most of the claims involved the States of California and Texas. Normally, after claimants file an interstate initial claim through an agent State local office, they correspond directly with the liable State by mail or telephone and only report again to the agent State local office if directed to report for eligibility review interview (ERI) purposes by the liable State. UIPL No. 7-92 indicated the actions that had been initiated in response to the Eagle Pass fraud scheme which included the establishment of a Task Force to look into the issues involved in the scheme with the goal of identifying lessons to be learned for the prevention of such occurrences in the future. Also included in UIPL No. 7-92 were numerous Task Force recommendations for SESA administrators to consider for use in their own systems and procedures for deterrence and detection of fraud activity. In addition to States taking specific actions to attempt to address the potential of fraud in the individual claims associated with cases in the Eagle Pass and Roma/McAllen fraud schemes, other significant activities that have been initiated since the issuance of UIPL No. 7-92 include: - In September 1993, UIS signed a Cooperative Agreement with the State of California to conduct a study to develop a prototype third party fraud profile system. The profile system will be directed toward early detection of potential third party UI benefit fraud. - A claimant benefit rights interview video and an informational booklet have been produced in both English and Spanish for use with interstate claimants in response to one of the Task Force's recommendations. UIPL No. 21-94, announcing the development of these materials and making them available to each of the States, was issued in April 1994. - A comprehensive Benefit Payment Control (BPC) Technical Assistance Guide (TAG) containing guidance on fraud detection and prevention was developed through a Cooperative Agreement between UIS and the State of Maryland. During 1994, three training sessions were held for State BPC staff in conjunction with the issuance of the BPC TAG to all States. - ETA Regional Offices hosted Regional and Multi-Regional BPC Conferences which have included information regarding third party fraud activity as well as other types of fraud activity. Additionally, State agency officials from California and Texas and ETA and OIG officials from the Regional and National Offices have met on several occasions to discuss efforts toward detection and deterrence of third party fraud. During one of these meetings, it was agreed that in- depth ERIs and investigations could be conducted to assess the cost effectiveness of these actions in addressing the problems of third party fraud. TEC developed and submitted a proposal, with input from ETA and OIG officials, to provide an analysis of third party involvement in the UI process and related integrity issues and to attempt to quantify the detection/deterrence effect of in-depth ERIs and investigations. This project was approved by ETA. Project Objectives: This project will extend for a 3-year period from October 1, 1994 through September 30, 1997, to allow for sufficient annual workload cycles to be able to accurately evaluate the effectiveness and determine the cost of the in-depth ERIs and investigations. The objectives of the project include: - Ascertaining the nature of third party involvement and the factors contributing to their use in the UI process. - Measuring the impact of increased investigative efforts and claimant interviews on third party fraud incidence. - Estimating the cost effectiveness of in-depth ERIs and investigations in detection and deterrence of improper payments. - Documenting the types of issues resulting in disqualifications and/or overpayments (e.g., able and available issues, and/or work search issues). - Developing recommendations for procedures designed to detect and deter third party fraud. - Ascertaining how agent and liable States may better coordinate efforts in detecting and deterring third party fraud. Project Design: Six local offices will be selected based on an analysis of claimant addresses, historical significance in prior investigations, and other local area characteristics and demographics. Three local offices will be "test" offices and three will be "control" offices. In each of these local offices, the project population will be: a. All claimants who are utilizing a single address used by multiple claimants as determined by a review of Texas files; and b. Any claimants with prior third party involvement who have active claims with Texas addresses associated with the six selected local offices. In the three "test" offices, such intrastate and interstate claimants will be called in for in-depth ERIs and all potential issues detected will be investigated. To ensure that all "test" offices are asking claimants the same questions, TEC will develop a comprehensive questionnaire. This questionnaire will provide for obtaining specific information such as residence address, labor market area attachment, work search activities, intervening/casual employment, etc. Fact-finding results from the ERIs and investigations will be provided to the appropriate TEC adjudication unit or liable State for determination and appropriate action. In the three "control" offices, ERIs for intrastate and interstate claimants will continue to be scheduled and conducted based on current policy and procedures. Comparable data will be accumulated at all phases to compare activity and results in the "test" and "control" offices. TEC Activities: TEC will perform all the following activities under this project: a. Utilize the Interstate Benefit Rights Interview (BRI) in the agent State claims process. b. Identify project population, e.g., multiple claimants utilizing a single address, OIG list of claimants with prior third party involvement. c. Call in all selected claimants in the "test" offices for in-depth ERIs that will focus on able and available issues, such as labor market attachment, work search, method(s) of seeking work, and other potential issues. d. Thoroughly investigate all potential issues identified including: (1) visiting, inspecting, or investigating single addresses used by multiple claimants and/or contacting third parties, as appropriate. (2) establishing contact sources for information at utility companies, law enforcement authorities, postal service, and State and Federal Courts, as needed. e. Refer potential issues and investigative results to appropriate adjudication units (TEC or liable State). f. Conduct special supplemental interviews/ investigations as requested by adjudication or prosecution units and/or liable States. g. Coordinate assistance from DOL-OIG regarding fraud cases as appropriate. h. Document the cost of conducting the in-depth ERIs and investigations (e.g., staff time, travel dollars, etc.). i. Collect and compile project data with respect to "test" and "control" offices for reporting purposes. j. Request liable States to provide information pertaining to the disposition of each case investigated and referred by TEC. k. Develop a follow-up form for use by liable States to provide the requested information on the disposition of each case to TEC. Data Analysis and Reports: Efforts are being made to ensure that data captured with respect to the "test" and "control" offices will provide sufficient information to address the project objectives so that meaningful conclusions can be reached and fraud detection and deterrent procedures for the UI system can be recommended. The identification of all data collection elements has not been completed. However, some of the information that will be compiled and separately arrayed by interstate and intrastate program for analysis with respect to claimants and third parties in the "test" and "control" offices is as follows: Claimant Information - Number of identified claimants; - Characteristics of claimants filing from suspect addresses-- - Occupation - Age - Sex - Mailing address - Residence address (if available) - Distance of residence from labor market area - Work history - Claim history; - Number of ERIs scheduled, conducted and results; - Number of claimant investigations conducted; - Number of determinations (fraud/non-fraud); - Amount of fraudulent and non-fraudulent overpayments established; - Number of claimants living outside the local labor market area while filing a UI claim; - Number of claimants working while filing a UI claim; - Number of claimants identified in prior investigations; - Number of claimants referred for prosecution; - Number of claimants convicted; and - Number of claimants prosecuted under Federal mail fraud statutes. Third Party Information - Number of third party interviews/contacts conducted; - Number of third party fraud investigations initiated; - Number of third party cases referred for criminal prosecution; - Number of third parties convicted; - Number of third parties referred to OIG for prosecution; and - Number of third parties contacted/investigated that were involved in prior OIG investigations. Liable State Assistance: As mentioned above, this project will be on-going through September 30, 1997. Each State, therefore, is requested to designate a contact person to coordinate interstate communications for this project during this period. Although TEC and the Dallas OIG will identify potential claimant fraud cases involving interstate and third parties and will be able to collect information regarding the issue, this project will be successful only with each liable State's assistance and cooperation. The TEC Project Director, Mr. Ken Helm, will be sending a letter to all SESAS informing them of the selected local offices and providing additional information regarding the project. Mr. Ken Helm will also be transmitting to SESAs a State specific OIG list of Social Security Numbers (SSNs) and addresses utilized by claimants with prior third party involvement. SESAs will be requested to conduct file searches of the information on the list against their active claim files in order to identify any active claims with Texas zip code addresses associated with the selected local offices. This will allow TEC to include in the project population, claimants with prior third party involvement who are not in TEC's agent State files but who are in an active claim filing status. To attempt to facilitate the use of the OIG information lists, these lists are being made available on floppy disks using Lotus spreadsheets. SESAs can use the OIG lists for their own integrity related purposes as they may deem appropriate. OIG Assistance Available: The Dallas OIG has agreed to work with TEC and the Dallas ETA Regional Office in order to ensure a comprehensive approach. The Dallas OIG will assist TEC in investigating the interstate cases and in preparing cases for prosecution. In addition, in order to assist liable States in prosecuting cases related to these interstate and third party cases, the Dallas OIG has agreed to assist liable States by providing testimony as to the OIG investigation of the third party, including evidence obtained. In some cases, as appropriate, the OIG will pursue Federal prosecution via the mail fraud statutes. Action Required: SESA Administrators are requested to: a. Ensure all appropriate SESA staff are aware of and familiar with the material in this UIPL and UIPL No. 7-92. b. Designate a contact person to coordinate interstate communications for this project and provide the name, telephone number, and address by December 30, 1994, to: Texas Employment Commission Kenneth Helm, Director Benefit Payment Control Department 101 East 15th Street Travis Building, Suite 200 Austin, Texas 78731 Phone Number - (512) 502-3701 Fax Number - (512) 502-3704 c. Establish a means to provide follow-up data to TEC pertaining to the disposition of each case referred by TEC utilizing the form which TEC develops. Information requested will include: - Disposition of issue. - Determination (fraud/non-fraud). - Overpayment (fraud/non-fraud). - Amount of overpayment. - Prosecution pursued. - Results of prosecution. d. Provide TEC with the PS/NPS cost of providing the follow-up information requested.

Background: The Job Training Amendments of 1992 are the culmination of a four year review of the JTPA system and its programs. The legislation that resulted from this review will offer persons with a high risk of failure in the job market an improved second chance at workplace success. The Amendments, which will become effective July 1, 1993, are designed to improve the targeting of programs on those disadvantaged persons who face serious barriers to employment and enhance the guilty of services provided. A service strategy will be required for each participant, based on individual need. The Amendments also provide additional linkages between JTPA and other human resource programs and strengthen fiscal and procurement accountability. The Amendments will bring about major changes in program design, intensity, quality, and administration, and their impact on the job training and employment community will be significant. Successful implementation of the Amendments will require an in-depth understanding of the new law and regulations. It also will need the full support of persons involved in the implementation of the Amendments at all levels -- Federal, State, and the local community. The Department of Labor's overall strategy for implementing the JTPA Amendments includes a number of training events described below. The training will be based on the principles identified by the Department as being central to overseeing and guiding the implementation process. These principles are: -- A substantive role for the private sector is key to an effective JTPA program. -- Training services provided by JTPA should be of the highest quality and responsive to the needs of individual participants. -- The JTPA performance standards will be the basic measure of the accomplishments of the JTPA system. -- JTPA programs must meet the highest possible standards for the use of public funds. -- JTPA and other human resource programs must have a workable system of relationships to jointly serve their participants. Based on these principles and with information and advice sought from the job training and employment And education programs and other related programs, the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) plans an active role in delivery and interpretation of the vision of the JTPA Amendments of 1992 and the rule making process to the JTPA system. Strategy: ETA will employ a three-phase strategy as outlined below for delivery of training related to full implementation of the Amendments. (a) Phase I: Regional Discussions during Comment Period Following publication of the regulations, Regional Offices will call States together to discuss issues and address initial State questions. The purpose of these meetings will be to provide for a two-way exchange of information about the regulations and to allow States to share perspectives and identify joint concerns. These discussions will help the Regional Offices develop strategies for assisting States with the implementation process. Questions raised during this first phase will help the National Office tailor the Regional Amendments Implementation Seminars to address system concerns. (b) Phase II: Regional Amendments Implementation Seminars National Office training teams will conduct 10 regional seminars for State-led JTPA teams based on the interim final rule. The purpose of the Regional Amendments Implementation Seminars is to provide background on the philosophy behind the Amendments, guidance to the system on regulatory issues, and an opportunity for States to discuss implementation related issues and share implementation strategies. It is expected that States will then provide turn around training to service delivery areas and service providers to ensure that the philosophy of the Amendments and the Federal interpretation of the vision behind the Amendments and regulatory interpretation is shared throughout the system. Regional Amendments Seminars will be held in a mix of regional and non-regional office cities, with one session being held within each region. Each State may send 6 to 8 representatives to the seminar in its Region. States should identify and send Title II staff with a mix of programmatic, administrative, and training backgrounds to the regional seminar. At their discretion, States may include SDA staff as participants. A State equal opportunity specialist should also attend. In addition to Title II staff, States may send several Title III staff to the Title III workshop. (Schedule to be issued at a later date with specific dates and times of Title III coverage.) We anticipate that the representatives sent to the regional seminar will have a working knowledge of the Amendments and the regulations and will come prepared with issues they want to discuss. The seminar will begin with policy highlights and an overview of the major legislative changes to JTPA and Federal expectations for State Administrators, the State Job Training Coordinating Councils, and other high level policy makers. The rest of the seminar will provide interpretation of the Amendments, Federal expectations regarding implementation of the Amendments and the regulations, and opportunities for State staff to attend two simultaneous tracks of workshops on critical issues and topics. See Attachment I for a list of topics being considered for coverage during the concurrent workshops. A more detailed announcement will be forthcoming. It is anticipated that Amendments training will begin in February and continue through March. As mentioned above, State staff who attend the Federal training seminars will be expected to deliver training on the Amendments and regulations for other State JTPA staff, SDA staff, service providers, and other interested parties at the State and local level. National and Regional office ETA staff will be available to serve as resources for State delivered sessions. Travel and per diem costs related to attendance at the Amendments Implementation Seminars will be borne by States. (c) Phase III: Subject-Specific Train-the-Trainer Sessions Approximately one month after the Regional Amendments Seminars, delivery of a series of in-depth subject-specific train-the-trainer sessions will begin. The purpose for providing subject-specific training is to build skills in subjects identified as integral to implementation of the JTPA Amendments. Given the limited number of slots in subject matter training which could be provided this fiscal year, and in order to maximize access to training, the National Office has chosen to employ a train-the-trainer approach for this training. This approach relies upon the States as full partners in turning the training around for SDA's and service providers at the local level. A State may send two participants to training in each topical area (preferably, one will be an SDA representative). To the extent possible, train-the-trainer participants should be subject matter experts who also have training experience. Regional Office staff may be called upon to augment State teams based on Regional-State consultations. Each team sent to a train-the-trainer session will be expected to turn around the subject matter training for the SDA's within their State, and/or to participate in the training of other States as part of an overall Regional strategy. Once again, travel and per diem costs related to attendance at train-the-trainer sessions will be borne by States. Train-the-trainer sessions will be provided in each of the following subjects: 1) Adult Assessment; 2) Youth Assessment; 3) Out-of-School Youth Program Models; 4) SDA Monitoring; 5) Case Management; 6) On-the-Job Training; 7) Targeting, Outreach and Recruitment; and 8) Oversight. Train-the-trainer sessions in subjects (1) through (4) are tentatively scheduled to be delivered during the spring and summer of 1993. Sessions in subjects (5) through (8) will begin in the summer and continue through the fall of 1993. Additional information is available in Attachment II. Every topic will be provided once in each of three multi regional sites: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Dallas, Texas or Kansas City, Missouri; and the San Francisco Bay Area, California. In addition to training in each of the 8 topics listed above, training on eligibility documentation will be provided to States and SDA's by Regional Office staff. Next Steps: States will be informed under separate cover of specific logistical information relating to Phase II and Phase III training as soon as that information is available. Action: State Liaisons are requested to: (a) Inform SDAs of the training plans outlined in this TEIN. (b) Develop State training strategies to address the multiple training challenges outlined above so that States are able to participate fully once regulations are published. (c) Inform the Regional Office within two weeks of the date of this TEIN of the name, address, and telephone number of the State's designated contact regarding training. Also discuss with the Regional office their training strategy, i.e., whether they will be using State Training Institutes, whether they will be working jointly with other States to co-train and whether they would like Regional Office participation in their training. (d) Begin compiling lists of State and local representatives who will attend the Amendments Seminars and each of the subject-specific train the trainer sessions listed above. As training participants will be expected to deliver sessions on the Amendments and the various training subjects listed above to the SDAs consideration should be given to assistance with coverage of normal duties for those nominated to perform training roles for the State. (e) Once their strategies are in place, the Liaisons are asked to inform SDAs and others as appropriate of their training plans.

References: Section 3304(a)(9)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code, as amended; 20 CFR 616; ET Handbook No. 399; UIPL No. 55-89; and UIPL No. 11-91. Background: To address the need for prompt communication of wage transfer requests and responses for claims filed under the Interstate Arrangement for Combining Employment and Wages, a software package to telecommunicate the requests and responses using the INTERNET was distributed in September 1989. States were previously requested in UIPL No. 55-89 to be operational on the TC-IB4 application as of April 2, 1990. The TC-IB4 application was subsequently updated to address additional needs, identified by the States, and re-released in August 1990. The Report on the Determination of a Combined Wage Claim, Form IB- 5 (TC-IB5), is an integral part of the combined wage program. This report is used by a paying State to advise a transferring State of its potential benefit liability and to advise a transferring State when wages are returned and need to be restored to the wage file and made available. It is extremely important to use this report to return wages immediately so that they may be available for use for a substitute claim that may result from a combined wage claim cancellation or ineligibility. It is also important that States process the incoming TC-IB5s before incoming initial claims (TC- IB1s) to prevent the substitute initial claim from resulting in an ineligible monetary determination because the wages have not been restored. This application was distributed in December 1990, and SESAs were requested to implement the new automated procedure by April 1, 1991. Before and after the distribution of the TC-IB4 and TC-IB5 applications, several meetings were held with State representatives to explain the requirements, provide assistance and answer any installation questions. Additionally, SESAs were and continue to be allocated special funding for data processing support of the automation necessary to telecommunicate data under the interstate and combined wage program procedures. During the past year, all States have been contacted by the Regional Offices and offered on- site assistance. Yet some SESAs have not requested assistance and have not installed the required applications necessary to telecommunicate the data. SESAs' failure to telecommunicate the required data is having an adverse affect on all other States as they must continue to maintain a manual system in order to handle requests and responses to and from such States. Requirement for Conformity and Compliance: Section 3304(a)(9)(B) of the Federal Unemployment Tax Act requires States to participate in any combined wage claim arrangement approved by the Secretary of Labor (in consultation with the State agencies). 20 CFR 616.13, in pertinent part, implements this arrangement by providing that: Each State agency will cooperate with every other State agency by implementing such rules, regulations, and procedures as may be prescribed for the operation of this [combined wage] arrangement. Effective April 5, 1993, electronic data communication, as described in Section 5, is the prescribed procedure for handling wage transfer requests and responses, and reports on the determination of combined wage claims. Action Required: State Administrators are requested to take the necessary actions to ensure that effective April 5, 1993: a. all requests for wage transfers are sent and received via INTERNET; b. all responses to wage transfer requests are sent and received via INTERNET; c. all reports on the disposition of transferred wages (IB- 5) are sent and received via INTERNET; and d. the use of hard copy forms for these purposes are discontinued.

Background: The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1990 amended the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) with a new Section 325, The Defense Conversion Adjustment (DCA) Program. The Department of Labor published a notice in the May 12, 1992 Federal Register to solicit grant applications from eligible grantees for demonstration projects to provide services to workers experiencing defense related dislocations. The Department of Labor (DOL) and the Department of Defense are providing nearly $5 million in support of the demonstration projects selected pursuant to the May 12 announcement to provide retraining and readjustment services to workers dislocated as a result of military reductions and base closures.