DIRECTIVE	:	UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE PROGRAM LETTER NO. 24-01
TO	:	ALL STATE EMPLOYMENT SECURITY AGENCIES
FROM	:	GRACE A. KILBANE Administrator Office of Workforce Security
SUBJECT	:	Evaluation of the Department of Labor's (DOL) Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS) Transition Assistance Program (TAP)

1. Purpose. To announce the evaluation of the DOL's VETS TAP and inform State employment security agencies (SESAs) that selected SESAs will be contacted by contractors conducting the TAP evaluation.

2. Background. The TAP provides seminars on job search skills to assist separating military personnel to successfully enter the civilian labor force. A survey of a sample of ex-servicemembers who have filed unemployment compensation for ex-servicemembers (UCX) or joint UCX/unemployment insurance (UI) claims is planned to evaluate the benefits of the TAP. LISBOA, Inc. is the principal contractor for the evaluation and Washington Consulting Group is a subcontractor. The contractor anticipates contacting approximately twenty (20) States to obtain current address and benefit history information on the sampled military separatees. The DOL has authorized the contractor to collect this data solely for the purposes of the TAP evaluation.

3. Scope of Work. The TAP evaluation will involve a survey of ex-servicemembers with military separation dates between January 1, 2000, and November 30, 2000. This survey will include an analysis of the benefits received through the UCX and UI programs. To conduct this evaluation, the contractor will:

   1. Obtain from the Louisiana Claims Control Center (LCCC) a listing of the ex-servicemembers to be included in the sample for the evaluation. The list will include ex-servicemembers entered into the LCCC data base in calendar year 2000 who have filed a claim for UCX or joint UCX/UI benefits in one of approximately 20 States serving as the "clusters" for the nationally representative TAP survey sample. The 20 States that are recommended to serve as "clusters" for the sample include: California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington. For each ex-servicemember selected for the sample, the LCCC will provide to the Contractor the ex-servicemember's SSN, the State from which the UCX inquiry was made, and the date that the ex-servicemember was discharged from active duty.

   2. Contact the DOL ETA Regional Offices to discuss scheduling and any issues that may arise in obtaining UCX and UI data from SESAs. Regional Office contacts will be initiated in February/March 2001.

   3. Notify the selected SESAs in the States selected as "clusters" for the TAP survey sample. The contacts with SESAs will also be initiated in February/March 2001. Information sought from the SESAs will be limited to a current mailing address and benefit history information for individual claimants included in the TAP survey sample.

4. Conditions Affecting Release of UCX and UI Data. LISBOA has been advised that any requests for information from the LCCC or the SESAs must be made under the terms and conditions of the Privacy Act, State confidentiality laws, and the Computer Matching Act, and any costs incurred for obtaining the data must be absorbed by LISBOA or the subcontractor. Participating States are expected to execute agreements governing the terms and conditions under which the information is disclosed to LISBOA or the subcontractor.

5. Action Required. SESA Administrators are requested to provide the above information to appropriate staff.

6. Inquiries. Direct inquiries to the appropriate Regional Office.