WIOA unified and combined state plan requirements

CLASSIFICATION
   EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION                  WIOA State Planning
               ADVISORY SYSTEM                             CORRESPONDENCE SYMBOL
          U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR                         OWI
             Washington, D.C. 20210                        DATE
                                                           March 4, 2016

ADVISORY:        TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT GUIDANCE LETTER WIOA NO: 14-15
                 OPERATING GUIDANCE for the WORKFORCE INNOVATION AND
                 OPPORTUNITY ACT (WIOA or Opportunity Act)

TO:              STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES
                 STATE WORKFORCE ADMINISTRATORS
                 STATE WORKFORCE LIAISONS
                 STATE AND LOCAL WORKFORCE BOARD CHAIRS AND DIRECTORS
                 STATE LABOR COMMISSIONERS
                 STATE LMI DIRECTORS
                 SENIOR COMMUNITY SERVICE EMPLOYMENT PROGRAM GRANTEES
                 STATE APPRENTICESHIP AGENCIES
                 STATE DIRECTORS OF THE OFFICE OF APPRENTICESHIP
                 STATE DIRECTORS FOR VETERANS’ EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING
                 STATE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE DIRECTORS
                 STATE WORKFORCE AGENCY VETERANS COORDINATORS

FROM:            PORTIA WU /s/
                 Assistant Secretary

SUBJECT:         Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Requirements for Unified
                 and Combined State Plans

1. Purpose. This Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) conveys the following to
   States:
       • The vision and content requirements for Unified and Combined State Plans under WIOA;
       • The deadline and submission process for Unified and Combined State Plans under WIOA
           (Section 11);
       • The requirements to have approved Unified or Combined State Plans in place for
           Program Year (PY) 2016 and beyond for the six core programs of WIOA; and
       • The options for States to incorporate all or portions of partner programs into their State
           plan submissions if they choose to submit a Combined State Plan.

   This guidance—developed jointly by the Departments of Labor (DOL), Education (ED),
   Health and Human Services (HHS), Agriculture (USDA), and Housing and Urban
   Development (HUD) (Departments) — provides an overview of the Administration’s
   priorities in relation to the WIOA planning requirements, explains the planning requirements
   where necessary, and instructs States regarding submission procedures. Each of these
   Departments will issue similar guidance separately. This guidance also provides the

 RESCISSIONS                                              EXPIRATION DATE
 TEGL 21-11                                               Continuing

   deadlines for the Unified or Combined State Plan, depending on which option the State
   chooses to submit, as well as modification requirements. The Departments recognize that
   States have been engaged in the planning process for the initial Unified or Combined State
   Plan for some time and commend States for their efforts while awaiting finalization of the
   requirements and guidance from the Departments.

   For the initial four-year Unified and Combined State Plans, States must submit their Unified
   or Combined State Plans to the Departments by March 3, 2016; however, Plans submitted by
   April 1, 2016 will be considered timely. States should submit the Plans via the online portal
   described in Section 11.

   WIOA became law on July 22, 2014 and supersedes titles I and II of the Workforce
   Investment Act (WIA) of 1998, and amends the Wagner-Peyser Act and the Rehabilitation
   Act of 1973. The Departments of Labor and Education published a set of proposed
   regulations for implementing WIOA through the posting of five Notice of Proposed
   Rulemaking (NPRMs) documents. These NPRMs were open for public comment until June
   15, 2015, and the Federal agencies are reviewing, analyzing and considering all the
   comments received. The final WIOA rules will be issued in 2016.

   To continue implementation prior to issuance of the final rules, a series of WIOA Operating
   Guidance documents are being issued which inform the workforce system of the important
   planning and organizational work necessary to comply with the WIOA statutory
   requirements. The Operating Guidance TEGLs provide a framework for program activities
   until the publication of the final rules, and this TEGL is one in a series of the WIOA
   Operating Guidance.

2. References. See Attachment I.

3. Background. WIOA requires the Governor of each State to submit a Unified or Combined
   State Plan to the Secretary of Labor that includes a four-year strategy for the State’s
   workforce development system. States must have Federally-approved State Plans to receive
   funding for the six core programs.. At a minimum, States must submit a Unified State Plan,
   which encompasses the six core programs under WIOA. States have the option to submit a
   Combined State Plan, which includes the six core programs of the Unified State Plan, plus
   one or more other partner programs, described at Section 4 of this TEGL. For purposes of
   the Unified or Combined State Plans, the term “State” refers to the 50 States, the District of
   Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Northern
   Mariana Islands, and, as appropriate for certain programs, the Republic of Palau.

4. Unified and Combined State Plan Options. A State has two options for submitting a
   WIOA State Plan— a Unified State Plan or a Combined State Plan. Section 102(a) of WIOA
   requires each State, at a minimum, to submit a Unified State Plan that fosters strategic
   alignment of the core programs, which are:

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       •   the Adult program (Title I),
       •   the Dislocated Worker program (Title I),
       •   the Youth program (Title I),
       •   the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act program (Adult Education or AEFLA)
           (Title II),
       •   the Wagner-Peyser Act program (Wagner-Peyser Act, as amended by Title III), and
       •   the Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program (Title I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973,
           as amended by Title IV).

In addition, WIOA permits a State to submit a Combined State Plan including the
aforementioned core programs plus one or more of the Combined State Plan partner programs
listed in section 103(a)(2). States choosing to submit a Combined State Plan must incorporate 1)
all of the common planning elements required in the Unified State Plan; 2) additional elements
describing how the State will coordinate the optional programs with the core programs; and 3)
additional elements required by the Combined State Plan partner program(s) that are included
(WIOA sec. 103(b)(3)).

More specifically, when a State includes a Combined State Plan partner program in its Combined
State Plan, the State need not submit a separate plan or application for that particular program,
with certain exceptions identified in section 9 of this guidance. If included in the plan as a
partner, Combined State Plan programs are subject to the “common planning elements” (Sections
II-IV of the State Plan Requirements in the Unified and Combined State Plan Information
Collection Request (ICR) discussed in section 5) and program-specific requirements for that
program when such planning requirements exist separately for the program outside of WIOA.
The Combined State Plan partner programs are—

       •   Career and technical education programs authorized under the Carl D. Perkins Career
           and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.);
       •   Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.);
       •   Employment and training programs under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
           Program (programs authorized under section 6(d)(4) of the Food and Nutrition Act of
           2008 (7 U.S.C. 2015(d)(4)));
       •   Work programs authorized under section 6(o) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008
           (7 U.S.C. 2015(o));
       •   Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers programs (Activities authorized under
           chapter 2 of Title II of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 2271 et seq.));
       •   Jobs for Veterans State Grants program (programs authorized under 38 U.S.C. 4100
           et. seq.);
       •   Unemployment Insurance (UI) programs (UI Federal-State programs administered
           under State unemployment compensation laws in accordance with applicable Federal
           law);
       •   Senior Community Service Employment Program (programs authorized under title V
           of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3056 et seq.));
       •   Employment and training activities carried out by HUD;

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           •    Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) (employment and training activities
                carried out under the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9901 et seq.) 1;
                and
           •    Reintegration of Ex-Offenders program (programs authorized under section 212 of
                the Second Chance Act of 2007 (42 U.S.C. 17532)).

5. Planning Requirements. States must use the ICR Workforce Innovation and Opportunity
   Act (WIOA) Unified and Combined State Plan Requirements published under Office of
   Management and Budget (OMB) control number 1205-0522 to develop and submit the
   WIOA Unified or Combined State Plan and in accordance with instructions described in
   Section 11. A copy of the ICR, which complies with statutory requirements set forth in, as
   appropriate, sections 102 and 103 of WIOA, is available at
   https://www.doleta.gov/wioa/State_Plan_Resources.cfm. A copy of these requirements is
   also available through the web-based platform, discussed in Section 11 of this guidance,
   developed specifically for the required electronic submission 2.

6. Purpose and Summary of the State Plan. Under WIOA, the Unified and Combined State
   Plans communicate the State’s vision for the State workforce system and serve as a vehicle
   for aligning and integrating this system across Federal programs. Previously governed by
   WIA, WIOA improves planning requirements to foster better alignment of Federal
   investments in job training and education, to integrate service delivery across programs, to
   improve efficiency in service delivery, and to ensure that the workforce system is job-driven
   and matches employers with skilled individuals. Specifically, this reform promotes a shared
   understanding of the workforce needs within each State; fosters development of more
   comprehensive and integrated approaches, such as career pathways and sector strategies, for
   addressing the needs of businesses and workers; and enables the system to provide a wider
   range of coordinated and streamlined services to their shared customers. WIOA requires
   States to plan across core programs and include this planning process in the Unified or
   Combined State Plans. Economic, education, and workforce partners at the State, regional,
   and local level should be engaged in this planning process with the goal of improving the
   workforce development system.

     State Plans should reflect strategies that advance these key WIOA principles:

           •    Increase access to and opportunities for the employment, education, training, and
                support services that individuals, particularly those with barriers to employment, need
                to succeed in the labor market;

1 States that elect to include employment and training activities carried out under the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Act (42 U.S.C.
9901 et seq.) under a Combined State Plan would submit all other required elements of a complete CSBG State Plan directly to the Federal agency
that administers the program. Similarly, States that elect to include employment and training activities carried out by the Department of Housing
and Urban Development that are included would submit all other required elements of a complete State Plan for those programs directly to the
Federal agency that administers the program.
2 The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Unified and Combined
State Plan Requirements under OMB Control Number 1205-0522 in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act.

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       •   Align workforce investment, education, and economic development systems in
           support of a comprehensive, accessible, accountable, and high-quality workforce
           development system;
       •   Improve the quality and labor market relevance of workforce investment, education,
           and economic development efforts;
       •   Promote improvement in the structure and delivery of services;
       •   Increase the prosperity of workers and employers, the economic growth of
           communities, regions and States, and the global competitiveness of the United States;
       •   Provide innovative workforce investment activities, through integrated workforce
           development systems, that increase employment, retention, and earnings of
           participants and that increase postsecondary credential attainment and, as a result,
           improve the quality of the workforce, reduce welfare dependency, increase economic
           self-sufficiency, meet skill requirements of employers, and enhance productivity and
           competitiveness of the nation; and
       •   Measure effectiveness, improve transparency, and support informed consumer choice
           through performance reporting, evaluation, and data systems that support these
           activities.

7. Plan Structure. The Departments envision that this plan will describe how the State will
   develop and implement a unified, integrated workforce system, rather than a plan that
   separately discusses the State’s approach to operating each program individually. The major
   content areas of the Unified or Combined State Plan include strategic and operational
   planning elements. WIOA separates the strategic and operational elements to facilitate cross-
   program strategic planning. The Strategic Planning and Operational Planning Elements are
   the “common elements” of the plan. They should incorporate all of the core programs, any
   Combined State Plan partner programs that are included and required one-stop partners. This
   new approach enables States to involve different levels of the workforce system in
   developing the appropriate sections of the plan. For example, the State Workforce
   Development Board may focus on developing the State vision or setting strategic direction in
   the Strategic Plan section, while the State agency may focus on the Operational Plan.

   The Strategic Planning Elements of the Unified or Combined State Plan must include an
   analysis of the State’s current economic environment and identification of the State’s overall
   vision for its workforce development system, including analyses of the State’s workforce
   characteristics and workforce development activities. These analyses drive the required
   vision and goals for the State’s workforce development system and alignment strategies for
   workforce development programs to support economic growth. For Combined State Plans,
   the Strategic Planning Elements apply to Combined State Plan partner programs included in
   the plan as well as to all of the core programs.

   The Operational Planning Elements section identifies the State’s planned actions to
   implement and support the State’s strategic vision and goals as identified in the Strategic
   Planning Elements section. This section ensures that the State has the necessary
   infrastructure, policies, and activities to meet its strategic goals, implement its alignment
   strategy, and support ongoing program development and coordination. The State Operational

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   Plan must elaborate on the Strategic Plan section relating to the State’s plans and resources
   for an aligned and integrated workforce system by discussing how the programs included in
   the State Plan will serve various individual participants. For instance, the State Operational
   Plan should discuss how services for employers and various job seekers will be delivered.
   Similarly, the State Plan must also describe the State’s plans to align data systems and
   support evaluations. The structure of the Operational Planning Elements in the law and ICR
   is:

         •   State Strategy Implementation;
         •   State Operating Systems and Policies;
         •   Common Assurances;
         •   Program-Specific Requirements for the Core Programs; and
         •   Program-Specific Requirements for the Combined State Plan partner programs.

8. Creating High Quality Strategic and Operational Planning Elements. The Departments
   encourage States to include the following factors in the development and ongoing process of
   planning over time for the common elements of the State Plan.

    a.       Strategic and Operational Planning Elements should incorporate WIOA’s key
             principles (noted above), as well as the Departments’ current policy priorities. In
             particular, the strategic and operational planning elements should align with the
             Departments’ shared Vision for the Workforce System, as described in TEGL 19-14,
             and the Departments’ shared Vision for the One-Stop Career Center System, as
             described in TEGL 04-15. States should also review program specific TEGLs,
             available at www.doleta.gov/wioa, to include program priorities as a part of state
             planning where appropriate.

    b.       Workforce programs operate within the context of a regional labor market. States
             must use reliable labor market information and workforce information as the basis for
             the development of policies, strategic investments, program design, and service
             delivery, in order to ensure that customers have high quality information available to
             inform their decisions. The State Plan must include a description of the labor market
             and economic conditions in the state to identify critical industries, including
             population and workforce trends, and describe the economic challenges facing the
             State that need to be addressed to meet the needs of businesses, workers, and job
             seekers. Strategies and program decisions at the State and local levels should be
             based on, connected to, and aligned with the labor market trends and economic
             analysis. The professional analysis of available data should result in labor market
             relevant goals, strategies and planned outcomes that make an impact on regional labor
             markets, and that advance the economic prosperity of customers served.

    c.       Strategic and Operational Planning Elements should also reflect a robust analysis of
             the State’s current workforce development, education, and training activities,
             including their opportunities, strengths, and weaknesses; their capacity to serve the

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     needs of businesses and individuals; their current level of cross-program alignment;
     and their use of evidence-based practices.

d.   Operational Planning Elements should clearly articulate the specific actions,
     milestones and activities that the State will undertake to increase program alignment
     and integration of services, and describe ongoing assessment of those activities, as
     allowable by law. While not all-inclusive, some important examples of program
     alignment and integration include:

        i.   Partnering across the Adult, Dislocated Worker, Youth, TANF, Adult
             Education, VR, and other programs to implement comprehensive career
             pathway approaches that align and bridge training, education, employment,
             and supportive services at the local and State levels. This partnership should
             engage employers and enable individuals to move beyond adult basic
             education and succeed in postsecondary education, earn industry-recognized
             credentials, and advance along a career path.

       ii.   Partnering across the core programs, economic development, education, and
             other programs to develop sector strategies and other aligned services geared
             to serving businesses. Examples include:

                o outreach and marketing to the business sector;
                o development of business engagement goals in collaboration with
                  members of the State Board;
                o training for Business Service Representatives (BSRs), Rapid Response
                  Coordinators and other staff that work directly with businesses;
                o development of sector partnerships among State, local businesses,
                  professional service organizations, and trade associations including
                  linkages with sponsors of registered apprenticeship programs;
                o services and resources provided to business, including on-the-job-
                  training (OJT), customized training, incumbent worker training,
                  recruitment, toolkits, data visualization, among others; and
                o development of standardized metrics of success for business
                  engagement activities such as repeat business, return on investment,
                  and new hires.

      iii.   Improving the connection between the WIOA core programs and UI systems
             to enhance access to reemployment services for all unemployed job seekers,
             including UI claimants and transitioning veterans, and enhancing service
             delivery through integrated service strategies and the creative use of
             technology.

      iv.    Using Registered Apprenticeships, on-the-job training, and other work-based
             training strategies to meet the training needs for all job seekers served by One-

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       Stop Career Centers as well as satisfying employer needs for access to skilled
       workers and talent pipelines.

 v.    Connecting the multiple systems that serve disconnected youth such as
       partnering with human service agencies to support summer employment and
       work experiences throughout the year; coordinating with Adult Education to
       ensure integrated education and training opportunities; working with VR to
       serve in-school youth as they transition from the secondary education system
       to postsecondary education, training and employment; developing innovative
       pre-apprenticeship and youth apprenticeship programs that lead to successful
       placement in Registered Apprenticeship programs; or improving coordination
       among existing programs, such as Job Corps and YouthBuild.

vi.    Comprehensively serving dislocated workers impacted by economic
       displacement. The variety of programs that serve dislocated workers—Rapid
       Response, TAA, the WIOA Dislocated Worker program, and UI and
       Reemployment Assistance Services—should be strategically coordinated to
       maximize efficient use of funds and to provide the most comprehensive
       supports and services available to impacted workers. This can include
       integrating data systems, streamlining case management and assessment, and
       ensuring needed job search or training services are provided.

vii.   Connecting the multiple systems that address the specific needs of individuals
       with barriers to employment (as defined in WIOA sec. 3(24)), such as
       individuals with disabilities or English language learners, and articulating how
       programs will collaborate to provide the following:

          o conducting outreach activities to individuals with barriers to
            employment;
          o conducting training activities for One-Stop Career Center and partner
            staff on how to work with these populations and the available
            community-based resources and Federal resources such as the toolkit
            available at https://doors.workforce3one.org/page/resources;
          o partnering with agencies and organizations serving specific
            populations;
          o collaborating with the business sector to make the business case for
            hiring populations with barriers;
          o implementing strategies to increase access to on-the-job-training,
            mentoring, Registered Apprenticeship, internship and job-shadowing
            opportunities;
          o providing educational and training services that lead to career
            pathways opportunities and the development of talent pipelines;
          o implementing plans to improve securing a job, retaining employment,
            and return-to-work strategies for job seekers who are disconnected
            from the workforce; and

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                      o implementing designs to create a universally accessible, welcoming,
                        user-and customer-friendly environment for the delivery of
                        employment services, including remote services to rural areas. For
                        examples of strategies to achieve universal accessibility see Training
                        and Employment Notice 1-15 available at:
                        https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/attach/TEN/TEN_01-15.pdf.

9. Special Considerations for Combined State Plan Partner Programs. The information
   collections for the program-specific portion of the State plans for the Combined State Plan
   partner programs will continue to exist under existing state planning ICRs for those
   programs, as governed by those programs’ authorizing legislation. Once a Combined State
   Plan is approved, the State is not required to submit any other State plan to receive federal
   funding for any optional program covered under that Combined State Plan, with some
   exceptions described below.

   Note that some of the other programs that a State may include in the Combined State Plan
   currently fulfill their program-specific State planning requirements through a separate
   information collection administered by the program’s appropriate Department. For example,
   section 103(b)(2) of WIOA (referring to sec. 103(a)(2)(J) and (K)) specifically allows the
   employment and training activities—rather than the full program—carried out under the
   CSBG Act administered by HHS and employment and training activities funded by HUD to
   be included in a WIOA Combined State Plan. Therefore, if States choose to include
   programs such as these in the Combined State Plan, only the portion of the existing planning
   requirements that address the employment and training activities should be included in the
   Combined State Plan. States still must submit all other required elements of a complete State
   Plan for those programs directly to the relevant Departments.

   Portions of the Combined State Plan covering a program or activity, excluding those related
   to the core programs, are subject to approval by the head of the Federal agency that
   administers such program (WIOA sec. 103(d)(2)). The portions of the Combined State Plan
   related to the core programs are subject to the same approval requirements applicable to the
   Unified State Plan (WIOA sec. 102(c)).

   States that include UI in their Combined State Plan, carried out under Title III, Section 302,
   of the Social Security Act, including Sections 303(a)(8) and (9) which govern the expenditure
   of funds, should submit their UI State Quality Service Plan (SQSP) following the cycle as
   outlined in the current Employment & Training Handbook No. 336, UI SQSP Planning and
   Reporting Guidelines.

   The Jobs for Veterans State Grant (JVSG) programs, carried out under chapter 41 of title 38
   of the U.S. Code, require both a JVSG State Plan and a separate annual application for
   funding. States that include the JVSG programs in their Combined State Plan would submit
   the JVSG State Plan information in their Combined State Plan, and would submit their
   funding applications annually, as required by current VETS guidance.

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   For Combined State Plans, the common elements of the State Plan, those portions covering
   the core programs, and programs administered by the DOL or ED, will be considered
   approved 90 days after receipt unless either Secretary informs the State in writing, during the
   90-day period, that the plan is inconsistent with WIOA’s State Plan requirements or the
   requirements authorizing the core program, as appropriate. Those portions of the plan
   covering programs administered by HUD, USDA and HHS must be approved or disapproved
   within 120 days of receipt, by those Departments. For the six core programs, decisions
   regarding approval or disapproval and funding status may be determined separately from the
   determination of approval, disapproval, or completeness of the program-specific
   requirements of Combined State Plan partner programs and activities described in the
   Combined State Plan. For example, if all the common planning elements and program-
   specific requirements for the core programs are met, approval and funding may proceed
   regardless of specific issues that may be identified in the program-specific sections for any
   Combined State Plan partner programs.

10. Stakeholder Collaboration and Comment is Key. Stakeholder collaboration, review and
    comment are key requirements of the planning process. State Workforce Development
    Boards are responsible for overseeing the development, implementation, and modification of
    the plan and for convening all relevant programs, required partners, and stakeholders. The
    State Plan must be developed with the assistance of the State Board, as required by sec.
    101(d) of WIOA, and must be developed in coordination with administrators that have
    optimum policymaking authority for the core programs and required One-Stop partners. For
    Combined State Plans, entities responsible for planning or administering other programs
    included in the plan also must have an opportunity for review and comment.

   Effective joint planning is fundamental to both Unified and Combined State Plans. Whether
   the State chooses to submit a Unified State Plan or a Combined State Plan, the State must
   develop the State Plan through joint planning and coordination across core programs and
   with required One-Stop partner programs and other programs and activities in the State Plan.
    Prior to submitting the Unified or Combined State Plan, the State agencies responsible for
   the administration of the core programs must have reviewed and commented on the
   appropriate operational planning portion of the State Plan and approved the elements as
   meeting the needs of the population served by such programs (see WIOA sec.
   102(b)(2)(E)(iii)(I)).

   States must provide the opportunity for public comment, which allows interested
   stakeholders to participate actively, effectively, and transparently in the development of the
   plan. The Governor must ensure that the State Plan is developed with an opportunity for
   public comment and input from representatives of Local Boards and chief elected officials;
   businesses; labor organizations; economic development entities; community-based
   organizations; adult and youth education and workforce development providers; institutions
   of higher education; disability service entities; youth-serving programs; veterans’ service
   organizations; foster care, juvenile justice and other stakeholders with an interest in the
   services provided by the six core programs; any optional program included in a Combined
   State Plan; and the general public, including individuals with disabilities. See WIOA sec.

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    102(b)(2)(E)(iii)(II). Programs included in the Combined State Plan may require
    consultation with other specific individuals or groups. The State Board also must make
    information regarding the State planning process publicly available by holding regular open
    meetings (WIOA sec. 101(g)).

11. Instructions for Plan Submission. For the initial four-year Unified and Combined State
    Plans (covering the period July 1, 2016-June 30, 2020), States must submit their Unified or
    Combined State Plans to the Departments by March 3, 2016; however, Plans submitted by
    April 1, 2016, will be considered timely. 3 States must submit the Plans via the online portal
    hosted by the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), which allows the entire State
    Plan to be made available concurrently to DOL and ED, as well as other Departments if their
    programs are included. The submission portal is available along with other State Plan
    resources at https://rsa.ed.gov/login.cfm?mode=form&usp=Y#skipnav. Instructions on how
    to request State user accounts are available on the web link provided on this site. The
    Departments will deliver training on the portal to State users, and Federal staff will be
    available to provide basic technical guidance and to authorize individuals from the States to
    have read-only, and/or edit, access to the State Plan portal, as appropriate.

    The portal will permit multiple users within a State to enter portions of the State’s plan at the
    same time, thereby, allowing program partners to enter content that is common to all State
    plan partners as well as content that is specific to their program directly. In States where
    there is a separate VR program serving the blind, each VR program must complete a separate
    VR services portion of the Unified or Combined State Plan. Once State users enter all data
    and text into the portal, they may review the plan in its entirety, make edits and updates
    where needed, and view progress in entering plan information across programs. While
    multiple individuals in the State may enter content into the portal, only one State individual
    may submit the entire plan on behalf of all included programs through the portal for Federal
    review. The portal includes a certification that the official State “submitter” has the authority
    to do so.

    States that include the Perkins program as part of their Combined State Plans will submit to
    the WIOA State Plan portal their currently approved Perkins State Plan, including any
    revisions the State determines are necessary. The portal will then redirect States from the
    WIOA State Plan portal via a link to the Perkins State Plan portal. On the Perkins State Plan
    portal, States will submit: (1) Request to Extend Perkins State Plan; (2) updated budget; and
    (3) proposed performance levels for the upcoming program year. ED will provide State
    Career and Technical Education Directors training, passwords, and technical support to
    upload their information into the WIOA State Plan portal and the Perkins State Plan portal.

    States that include Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment and
    Training (E&T) as part of their Combined State Plan will submit their SNAP E&T specific
    State Plans into the WIOA State Plan portal, but must submit component details, participant

3 This extension was announced via a Question and Answer posted at http://www.doleta.gov/WIOA/FAQs.cfm on
January 21, 2016.

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   levels, operating budget and fiscal year planned program costs to their Food and Nutrition
   Service (FNS) Regional Office.

12. Performance Negotiations for Core Programs. Separately, DOL and ED will disseminate
    joint guidance on the WIOA performance negotiation process. For the first Plan, the
    Departments will work with States during the negotiation process to establish the adjusted
    levels of performance for each of the primary indicators for the core programs. If necessary,
    some may be adjusted after the release of the final regulation and Joint Performance ICR.
    Additionally, DOL and ED acknowledge that for some indicators of certain core programs
    there is insufficient or no historical data available on which to build the required statistical
    adjustment model and consequently establish levels of performance using the statistical
    model as part of the negotiation process. Therefore, DOL and ED will use a “phased-in”
    approach to set levels of performance for certain indicators for certain programs. The
    appendix in the Unified and Combined State Plan ICR discussed in Section 5 and in
    Attachment II of this guidance reflects this approach and displays which indicators/programs
    DOL and ED have proposed to negotiate for PY 2016. See Attachment II of this guidance for
    more instructions on establishing performance levels and acceptable baseline indicators.

13. State Plan Modifications. Given the multi-year life of the State Plan, States must revisit
    State Plan strategies regularly, reassess their effectiveness and labor market relevance, and
    when needed, adjust these strategies to respond to the changing economic conditions and
    workforce needs of the State. At a minimum, States must submit a modification to the
    Unified or Combined State Plan at the end of the first two-year period of any four-year plan,
    and under specific circumstances described in sec. 102(c)(3)(A) of WIOA.

   The Departments have determined that for any Combined State Plan program included in the
   plan with a different planning cycle from WIOA, States should submit program-specific
   modifications that align with the natural planning cycles for that specific program, unless the
   2-year WIOA modification cycle can accommodate that program’s planning and modification
   cycle. For example, if a State chooses to include Career and Technical Education Programs
   under the Perkins Act, as a part of its Combined State Plan, the State would submit program-
   specific plan modifications annually to align with the Perkins Act’s annual State plan cycle.
   Such modifications must be submitted to the relevant Secretary for that program directly, in
   addition to the DOL and ED via the web portal. As another example, the TANF law requires
   a State to have submitted a plan within 27 months of the end of the first fiscal quarter in order
   to receive TANF funds for that fiscal year. Therefore, adopting the more frequent two-year
   WIOA cycle for modifications should accommodate TANF’s cycle, allowing a State to make
   all changes to each portion of the Combined State Plan concurrently. In its Combined State
   Plan, the State may choose to describe in the State Plan the planning cycles of the Combined
   State Plan programs. In addition, the State may describe intentions to submit future
   modifications to comply with those planning cycles. HHS intends to publish separate
   guidance that outlines how a State could align its WIOA and TANF plan renewal cycles.

14. Special Instructions for Single-Area States. Item VI(d), in the Title I program-specific
    State Plan requirements (in the Unified and Combined State Plan ICR discussed in Section 5)

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   is directed at Single-Area States. It requires them to “submit any information required in the
   local plan” with the submission of its State Plan. DOL is exercising its transition authority
   provided in WIOA sec. 503 to delay the requirement that Single-Area States include a local
   plan with their initial four-year State Plan submission until DOL provides guidance to those
   specific States.

15. Action Requested. In accordance with the Information Collection Request, Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Unified and Combined State Plan Requirements,
    States must submit a WIOA Unified or Combined State Plan to the Departments on March 3,
    2016, but no later than April 1, 2016, using the web portal described in Section 11 of this
    guidance.

16. Resources and Tools.
       • WIOA Related Guidance,
         https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/All_WIOA_Related_Advisories.cfm
       • WIOA Fact Sheets, https://www.doleta.gov/WIOA/FactSheet.cfm#
       • Resources and Tools for Workforce Professionals,
         https://www.doleta.gov/usworkforce/
       • Guide to State and Local Workforce Data, Third Edition,
         https://winwin.workforce3one.org/view/2001212365477234753/info
       • Section 188 Disability Reference Guide,
         https://wdr.doleta.gov/directives/attach/TEN/TEN_01-15.pdf
       • State Plan Resources
         https://www.doleta.gov/wioa/State_Plan_Resources.cfm

17. Inquiries. Direct inquiries to the relevant Employment and Training Administration
    Regional Office.

18. Attachments.
       • Attachment I — References
       • Attachment II — Appendix I for State Plan ICR

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