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The report presents the results of the evaluation’s implementation study, a multi-method effort intended to provide an up-to-date understanding of states’ current Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments (RESEA) programs, their evaluation plans, and recent programmatic changes in response to new statutory requirements for RESEA established through amendments to the Social Security Act (SSA) and related U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) guidance. Program changes in the wake of the COVID-pandemic are also examined.

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Research Questions

• What are the types and packages of services provided under current RESEA programs?
• What are the common RESEA program components?
• Who is selected to participate in RESEA?
• In what ways do states’ programs differ and why?
• How have RESEA strategies and populations served changed over time?
• What strategies appear particularly unique or innovative?
• What changes do states anticipate making to their RESEA programs?
• What issues and challenges do states face in implementing and operating RESEA programs?
• How have states’ RESEA programs responded to the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic?
• What are states’ views on evidence-based requirements and how are they preparing to meet these requirements?

Key Takeaways

• RESEA programs vary substantially across the country. States use various strategies for promoting RESEA meeting attendance and reducing the rate of participants that fail to attend. The subject matter of RESEA meetings also varies by state and meetings may involve staff from other public workforce programs instead of or in addition to RESEA dedicated staff.
• Staff noted few changes from 2018 to the onset of COVID but indicated interest in more changes. These changes included implementing strategies to enhance reemployment services and changes to the criteria used to select UI claimants for RESEA to include claimants at lower risk of exhausting their unemployment insurance (UI) benefits.
• Eligibility issues identified when meeting with claimants are often not adjudicated. Staff interviews and survey responses indicated that enforcing UI eligibility requirements often made it more difficult to establish necessary trust with claimants. For this reason, staff often prioritized educating claimants of requirements and job search strategies rather than using meetings as enforcement activity.
• RESEA service delivery changed dramatically post-COVID. UI applications surged as a result of COVID, with agencies reassigning RESEA staff to process new applications. Delivery of RESEA services shifted from in-person to remote. The number of claimants served decreased precipitously early in the pandemic, recovering (though not completely) in late 2020.
• Most states are making progress toward launching evaluations and interest exists for testing new strategies. Most state administrators expressed an understanding of and support for evidence-building and performance requirements. Three-fifths of states were confident in their capacity to design, administer, and undertake evaluations of their RESEA programs.

Citation

Trutko, J., Trutko, A., Clarkwest, A., Souvanna, P., Klerman, J., Briggs, A., Spaulding, S., Hecker, I., Islam, A., Katz, B., Scott, M., Nightingale, D. (2022). Abt Associates. RESEA Program Strategies: State and Local Implementation. Chief Evaluation Office, U.S. Department of Labor.

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The Department of Labor’s (DOL) Chief Evaluation Office (CEO) sponsors independent evaluations and research, primarily conducted by external, third-party contractors in accordance with the Department of Labor Evaluation Policy and CEO’s research development process.