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Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

Program Descriptions

17.248:  Employment and Training Evaluation Projects

Objectives:  To support employment and training studies for developing policy and programs for achieving the fullest utilization of the Nation's human resources; to improve and strengthen the functioning of the Nation's employment and training system; to develop new approaches to facilitate employment of the difficult to employ; and to conduct R&D addressing the employment implications of long-term social and economic trends.

PROGRAM AND AWARD	FINANCIAL AND INFORMATION CONTACTS
ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS	FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO.
APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS	INFORMATION CONTACTS
RELATED PROGRAMS	ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS
PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS	POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS

17.248 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

Applicant Eligibility:  State colleges and universities, public, private, junior and community colleges, State and local government organizations including U.S. Territories, and other organizations and individuals capable of fulfilling the objectives of the programs. There are no formal guidelines or conditions performers must meet other than that they have demonstrated financial responsibility and competence to fulfill the terms of the contract or grant, as well as demonstrated research and development skills in the employment and training area.

Beneficiary Eligibility:  For research projects, State colleges and universities, public, private, junior and community colleges, State and local government organizations including U.S. Territories, and other organizations and individuals. With respect to experimental and demonstration projects, eligibility is determined by the specific design of each project; this is a function of the objectives of the project and the characteristics of the target group. Costs will be determined in accordance with FMC 73-8 for educational institutions.

Credentials/Documentation:  See Applicant Eligibility and Beneficiary Eligibility sections of this program description. For the conduct of research projects all academic institutions must be accredited.

17.248 APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS:

Preapplication Coordination:  None. This program is excluded from coverage under Executive Order No. 12372.

Application Procedure:  (1) Organizations may be placed on the bidding list by writing to: Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, ATTN: Bonnie Coe, 200 Constitution Ave., NW., Room S-4203, Washington, DC 20210. For most Research, Demonstration, and Experimentation projects, the competitive process is used. As topics are determined, Requests For Proposals (RFP) are issued; these specify application procedures for the particular project. This program is subject to the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-110.

Award Procedure:  No special procedural steps; consultation with affected agencies or organizations developed on project-by-project basis. See procedure described in guidelines published in Research and Development Projects: See "Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature" section below.

Deadlines:  Not applicable.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time:  From 45 to 90 days.

Appeals:  Not applicable (except in cases when Request for Proposal is used).

Renewals:  Extensions available upon approval, or refunding may be negotiated.

Criteria for Selecting Proposals:  1) Relevance to program objectives; 2) degree of priority; 3) individual/organizational capability; 4) project design; and 5) economy efficiency.

Examples of Funded Projects:  "At-Risk Youth Multi-Site Youth Pilot Project" (a study which replicates the Argus model in addressing the needs of at-risk youth with an emphasis on education, job training and job placement). "Workplace Literacy: Assessing Unemployed Worker Populations" (a study which besides profiling the literacy proficiencies of three populations served by DOL also develops new instruments for measuring the literacy skills of such populations). "Out-of-School Youth Opportunity Area Pilot and Demonstration Projects" (pilot and demonstration initiative to reach and serve out-of-school youth, with a primary emphasis on improving prospects for employment. The projects provide comprehensive employment, training and education services.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance:  $10,000 to $1,000,000; $175,000. Projects that are primarily research in nature average somewhat less than experimental and demonstration projects.

17.248 RELATED PROGRAMS:

17.248 PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

17.248 FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO:

Federal Agency:  EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Type of Assistance:  Project Grants (Contracts).

Obligations:  (Grants and Contracts) FY 99 $10,196,000; FY 00 est $9,100,000; and FY 01 est $2,000,000.

Budget Account Number:  16-0174-0-1-504.

Authorization:  Job Training Partnership Act of 1982, as amended, Title IV, Part D, Section 452, Public Law 97-300, 29 U.S.C. 1732.

Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature:  "Research and Development Projects," no charge. Available from headquarters office listed below.

17.248 INFO CONTACTS:

Regional or Local Office:  Contact the nearest Employment and Training Administration regional office listed in Appendix IV of the Catalog.

Headquarters Office:  Division of Research and Demonstration, Employment and Training Administration, Department of Labor, Washington, DC 20210. Contact: Steven Wandner. Phone: (202) 219-5677.

(See Appendix IV for more contact info.)

17.248 ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:

Formula and Matching Requirements:  In certain instances the performing organizations are required to make a more than token contribution to the total cost of the project.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance:  Normally 1 to 2 years. Funds are released through Payment Management System or on a pre-determined schedule included as part of the official contract/grant document.

Uses and Use Restrictions:  (1) Research projects are for the purpose of development of new employment and training knowledge with special emphasis on generalized policy and program applications. Studies may be limited to special areas only where they can be shown to provide a basis for generalized conclusions or to have application over a wide area of the country; (2) although service is not the primary function of research efforts having pilot, experimental or demonstration thrusts, the demonstration population participating in them receives services specific to the project design. Projects focus on distinctive training or employment problems which often or generally are not being met effectively by established employment and training service programs across the country and seek to determine how to meet such problems through new techniques; and (3) experimental and demonstration funds are concentrated on developing new techniques which might significantly guide overall policy and programming. They are not available to extend methods developed in given areas or occupations (even though such projects might have distinctive elements and be useful for the particular area), or to make up for perceived inadequacies in the level of resources available for local employment and training programs. Research and development projects facilitating the development of new knowledge about employment and training program operations under JTPA will be considered for review. Such projects should be of general applicability and include a strong experimental and demonstration component.

17.248 POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Reports:  Each grantee is required to file periodic progress reports, and at the end of the grant period each grantee is required to submit a minimum of 11 copies of a formal, comprehensive, final report on project activities and conclusions.

Audits:  Subject to audits for 3 years from date of final payment by the Department of Labor (DOL), other authorized Government agencies, or independent public accountants selected by DOL. "In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised, June 24, 1997), Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations, nonfederal entities that receive financial assistance of $300,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that expend less than $300,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133."

Records:  Contractor and/or grantee is required to maintain books, records, documents, and other evidence of accounting procedures and practices, sufficient to reflect properly all direct and indirect cost of whatever nature claimed to have been incurred for the performance of the contract or grant. Records are to be retained for 3 years from the date of final payment or until the grant officer authorizes earlier disposal.