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Federally funded services for ARPA unemployment grantees
Summary ETA offered state unemployment agencies operational and technical help for their American Rescue Plan Act grant projects. The support could help with fraud prevention, access to benefits and timely payments without reducing states’ maximum grant awards. The letter explains how existing grants could be modified to use those resources.
Document
Federal guidance
Agency
U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA)
Document number
UIPL No. 3-23
Date issued
March 6, 2023
Status
Active
The letter states that it rescinds nothing and has a Continuing expiration designation.
Status last verified October 24, 2026
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About this page: The full text below is the official document from U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (ETA). Ezel adds the plain-English summary and tracks the document's status. The official source linked on this page is authoritative for any reliance.
CLASSIFICATION
EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION Unemployment Insurance
ADVISORY SYSTEM CORRESPONDENCE SYMBOL
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
OUI/DPM
Washington, D.C. 20210 DATE
March 6, 2023
ADVISORY: UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE PROGRAM LETTER NO. 3-23
TO: STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES
FROM: BRENT PARTON
Acting Assistant Secretary
SUBJECT: Availability of U.S. Department of Labor (Department) Funded Resources
and Services to State American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Grantees.
1. Purpose. To announce the availability of Department-funded operational and technical
resources and services to state ARPA grantees and to provide guidance for modifying grants
that have been previously awarded to grantees that want to avail themselves of these services.
2. Action Requested. The Department’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA)
requests that State Workforce Agency (state) Administrators provide information contained in
this Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) to appropriate staff.
3. Summary and Background.
a. Summary – Since the enactment of ARPA, the Department has made available
funding opportunities to states to take significant action within the administration of
their unemployment compensation (UC) programs to support the goals of ARPA in:
(1) preventing and detecting fraud as well as recovering funds associated with fraud;
(2) promoting equitable access; and (3) ensuring the timely payment of benefits as
well as activities to reduce workload backlogs, for all UC programs.
The Department recognizes that states may have capacity limitations in executing
multiple significant grant projects simultaneously and is committed to assisting with
project execution of ARPA-related grant projects. As such, ETA, inclusive of
partnerships with the Department’s Office of the Chief Information Officer, the
Department’s Office of Unemployment Insurance Modernization, and other
providers, is making available to states Department-funded operational and technical
resources and services to further support execution of their ARPA-formula funded
grant projects, including future ARPA-formula funded projects. Utilization of these
Department-funded resources and services may help to expedite grant projects,
increase the scope or impact of grant projects, and will not impact the maximum
grant awards available to the states (see the References section of this UIPL for
detail on specific funding amounts).
ETA will work directly with states to identify state-specific needs and determine how
RESCISSIONS EXPIRATION DATE
None Continuing
these resources and services can be best leveraged to support execution on existing and
new ARPA grant projects. ETA notes that the Department-funded resources and services
are being made available to states that have been, or will be, awarded grants in one of
the ARPA-formula funded grant programs. Section 4.c. of this UIPL describes the
methodology by which state grantees, in coordination with ETA, can modify existing
ARPA-formula funded grant projects in case the state wants to take advantage of the
Department-funded resources and services.
This UIPL focuses specifically on enhancing a continued partnership between the
Department and states to make investments in all UC programs in furtherance of the
goals articulated in ARPA. ETA will continue to provide states with technical assistance
and future guidance that promote and demonstrate continuous improvement and
enhancement for timeliness, integrity, and equitable access in the Unemployment
Insurance (UI) system.
b. Background – On March 11, 2021, the President signed ARPA into law (Public
Law (Pub. L.) 117-2). Section 9032, ARPA, creates a new Section 2118 of the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act (Pub. L. 116-136)
and provides a $2,000,000,000 appropriation to the Secretary of Labor to detect and
prevent fraud, to promote equitable access, and to ensure timely payment of
benefits to eligible workers with respect to UC programs.
In support of ARPA’s goals, the Department issued UIPL No. 22-21, which
provided states with $140 million in ARPA funding for fraud detection and
prevention, including ID verification and overpayment recovery activities, in all UC
programs, on August 11, 2021.
Additionally, the Department issued UIPL No. 23-21, announcing a grant
opportunity for activities that promote equitable access to UC programs, on August
17, 2021. On April 4, 2022, the Department issued UIPL No. 23-21, Change 3. In
that UIPL, the Department responded to state requests for additional time and
extended the period of performance for awards from September 30, 2023, to March
31, 2024. On December 21, 2022, the Department issued UIPL No. 23-21, Change
4, advising that new grant awards would have a period of performance through the
end of the 27-month period that begins on the award date.
Further, on November 2, 2021, the Department issued UIPL No. 02-22, to notify states
of the availability of up to $200 million in funding to support states in improving UC
systems and processes following a consultative assessment with a team of experts (i.e.,
Tiger Teams) provided by the Department. On September 19, 2022, the Department
issued UIPL No. 02-22, Change 2, to notify states that the deadline for expressing
interest in the grant opportunity was being extended to March 31, 2023.
Finally, the Department is making these Department-funded operational and
technical resources and services available to states to expedite ARPA grant projects,
increase the scope or impact of ARPA grant projects, in part in response to reports
from Government Accountability Office (GAO) highlighting the need for additional
action. In June 2021, a U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report
suggested potential racial and ethnic disparities in the receipt of UI benefits in some
states during the COVID-19 pandemic,1 and in June 2022 a GAO report highlighted
the need for state UI systems to improve customer service and timely payment
issuance,2 as well as to an additional GAO report that added “the UI system to its
list of federal areas at ‘High Risk’ for waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement, or
in need of broad-based transformation.”3 That report explains that the UI system
was added to the list “to bring greater attention to the challenges facing UI and to
help spur needed changes.” Making these Department-funded resources and
services available to states will help them address these challenges in a more
expeditious manner.
4. Guidance.
a. Available Department-Funded Resources and Services.
With the goal of increasing state capacity, the Department is making available to states
operational and technical resources and services, at no cost to the state, to further support
execution of their ARPA-related grant projects, including future ARPA-formula funded
projects. These resources and services are available to states that have been, or will be,
awarded grants in one of the ARPA-formula funded grant programs. Such grants to date
include those identified in UIPL Nos. 22-21, 23-21, and 02-22. The Department has the
means to provide states with scalable resources and services to execute their state-specific
ARPA grant projects.4 These resources provide cross-functional subject matter expertise
across all UC programmatic areas, further complementing the technical assistance provided
by the ETA Regional Offices.
The Department is offering an array of operational and technical resources and services,
including but not limited to:
• Project Management – includes planning, organizing, and managing the completion
of projects; assistance with resource management and coordination
• Change Management – includes developing awareness and communication plan for
changes, preparing training and support resources to sustain successful changes
• State-specific IT programming/development support to facilitate implementations of
applications
• System application enhancements (including for robotic process automation
enhancements) – assistance in identifying common use case areas, establishing
governance structures and metrics of success, and supporting implementation with
vendor solutions
GAO-21-599R, Management Report: Preliminary Information on Potential Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Receipt of Unemployment Insurance
Benefits during the COVID-19 Pandemic, published June 17, 2021, https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-21-599r.
GAO-22-105162, Unemployment Insurance: Transformation Needed to Address Program Design, Infrastructure, and Integrity Risks, published June
07, 2022, https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-22-105162.
GAO Report issued on June 7, 2022, entitled “Unemployment Insurance: Transformation Needed to Address Program Design, Infrastructure, and
Integrity Risks” at https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-22-105162.pdf.
The state has the responsibility to test and sign off on any operational or technical services provided by the Department funded resources.
• Department-led initiatives to support high priority modernization initiatives and
minimize barriers for customers:
▪ Plain language conversions – includes providing sample documentation and
references for common notices, application questions, etc.; providing hands-on
assistance with direct implementation; providing workshops on content
principles and plain language foundations, as well as developing, reviewing,
and testing plain language content directly.
▪ Claimant insights (i.e., evaluation of customer experiences) – providing
guidance and analytical support to states collecting claimant data to help states
identify and prioritize on the most pressing issues claimants are facing at any
given time.
▪ Fraud Prevention and Detection (e.g., identity proofing solutions) – the
Department is actively working with federal partners to pilot the feasibility
and sustainability of Department-backed identity proofing solution(s) to
maximize states’ fraud prevention and detection efforts, as well as ensure
mechanisms are in place to ensure equitable access to UC services.
• UI operations subject matter expertise across all operational areas
If a state has additional operational and/or technical needs other than those identified above
to support its existing or future ARPA-formula funded grant projects or has questions
navigating available options, the Department requests states coordinate with their respective
Regional Office to facilitate a discussion on what resources or services can be leveraged.
b. Coordination with the Department.
The Department encourages states to leverage Department-funded resources and services to
complement the work being done with their ARPA-formula funded projects. Taking
advantage of these resources and services may accelerate project execution, reduce the
state’s project execution costs, and increase the scope or impact of these projects. The
availability of resources and services will depend on the number of requests received, state
needs, and project timelines. The Department cannot guarantee the availability of resources
and services to accommodate state requests.
States that are interested in leveraging the Department-funded resources and services should
coordinate with the appropriate ETA Regional Office Federal Project Officer (FPO) to
initiate communications with the National Office. This process may require states to modify
existing grant awards and, for future grant applications, to factor in the availability of these
no-cost resources (see Section 4.c. of this UIPL). The Department, in coordination with the
state, will work to identify the state’s operational and technical needs, establish the
Department's and state’s roles and responsibilities, and coordinate the appropriate
agreements.
This continued partnership between the Department and states will further investments in all
state UC programs with the funding provided under ARPA. Further, ETA will continue to
provide states with technical assistance and guidance that promotes and demonstrates
continuous improvement and enhancement for timeliness, integrity, and equitable access in
the UI system.
c. Modifications to Existing Grants.
A modification to an existing award is required where ARPA grant funding was previously
provided for these tasks but, because of the use of Department-funded resources and
services, ARPA grant funding is no longer needed for these tasks. As a result, the funding
must be re-purposed or removed. As described above, whether provided directly by
Department staff or by other partners that have received funding for this purpose, a wide
variety of operational and technical resources are available to states to support their efforts
to improve the administration of their UC programs in furtherance of the goals articulated in
ARPA. Since there are several ARPA grants available to states that are intended to
accomplish similar objectives, this guidance is being provided to explain how these
resources can be leveraged to ensure states have sufficient resources for the critical program
improvement projects they are undertaking.
Coordination with the appropriate ETA Regional Office will be essential because there are
important factors to consider whether the state is contemplating modifying a previously
awarded grant or submitting an application for a new grant. The Regional Office will
facilitate state engagement with the National Office to verify that requested services can be
provided to the state in a timely manner and to meet the project completion requirements in
its grant agreement. The Regional Office will also facilitate engagement with the National
Office to develop and execute any needed agreement concerning the services to be provided.
The ETA Regional Office’s FPO will review the state’s request and coordinate meetings
among the National Office, Regional Office, and the state to discuss the desired
modifications.
Once a favorable determination is made on the modification request, the state must follow
the process below, as well as their own state procurement guidelines, to utilize Department-
funded services or resources. States that submit a modification request for Department-
funded operational and technical resources and services must provide the following:
i. Grantees Requesting to Modify Existing Awards and Reallocate Funds to Other
Allowable Activity (i.e., reallocate to another activity already in the grant or change
the scope of work in the grant to include a new allowable activity).
• The state must submit a modification request letter, on official agency
letterhead and signed by its Authorized Representative, along with an updated
budget narrative, through the FPO to the Grant Officer. The letter must specify
that the state is requesting a statement of work modification (amending the
project outline, timelines, and metrics as appropriate) and budget realignment
to remove the previously funded activity and shift grant resources to another
allowable activity covered under the appropriate UIPL grant award.
• In addition to the modification letter, the request must include an updated
grant statement of work, for each affected project, that removes the previously
funded activity and includes the additional allowable activity or activities
under the appropriate grant funding opportunity.
• States are required to submit a revised SF-424A (OMB No. 4040-0006)
reflecting the updated budget information:
https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/instructions/SF424A-V1.0-
Instructions.pdf.
The state will receive a notice of award once the grant modification is complete.
ii. Grantees Requesting to Modify Existing Awards to Deobligate Funds.
• The state must submit a modification request letter, on official agency
letterhead and signed by its Authorized Representative, along with an updated
budget narrative, through the FPO to the Grant Officer. The letter must specify
that the state is requesting a statement of work modification (amending the
project outline, timelines, and metrics as appropriate) and budget realignment
to remove the previously funded activity and deobligate resources that will no
longer be used by the state.
• In addition to the modification request letter, the request must include an
updated grant statement of work that removes the previously funded activity.
• States are required to submit a revised SF-424 (OMB No. 4040-0004)
reflecting the reduced total award amount for the grant:
https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/sample/SF424_4_0-V4.0.pdf.
• States are required to submit a revised SF-424A (OMB No. 4040-0006)
reflecting the updated budget information:
https://apply07.grants.gov/apply/forms/instructions/SF424A-V1.0-
Instructions.pdf.
The state will receive a notice of award once the grant modification is complete.
5. Inquiries. Please direct inquiries to the appropriate ETA Regional Office.
6. References.
• American Rescue Plan Act, Pub L. 117-2, enacted March 11, 2021;
• Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, including Division N, Title II, Subtitle A, the
Continued Assistance for Unemployed Workers Act of 2020 (Pub. L. 116-260);
• Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, Pub. L. 116-136, enacted
March 23, 2020;
• Section 303 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 503);
• 2 CFR Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit
Requirements for Federal Awards;
• 2 CFR Part 2900, Department of Labor Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost
Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards;
• Executive Order 13985 of January 20, 2021; 86 FR 7009, page 7009-7013,
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/25/2021-01753/advancing-racial-
equity-and-support-for-underserved-communities-through-the-federal-government;
• UIPL No. 22-21, Grant Opportunity to Support States with Fraud Detection and Prevention,
Including Identity Verification and Overpayment Recovery Activities, in All Unemployment
Compensation (UC) Programs, issued August 11, 2021,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-letter-no-
22-21;
• UIPL No. 23-21, Grant Opportunity for Promoting Equitable Access to
Unemployment Compensation (UC) Programs, issued August 17, 2021,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-
letter-no-23-21;
• UIPL No. 23-21, Change 1, Extension of Time to Submit Request for Funding under
Grant Opportunity Announced in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) No.
23-21, issued November 1, 2021,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-letter-
no-23-21-change-1;
• UIPL No. 23-21, Change 2, Further Extension of Time to Submit Request for Funding
under Grant Opportunity Announced in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter
(UIPL) No. 23-21, issued December 20, 2021,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-
letter-no-23-21-change-2;
• UIPL No. 23-21, Change 3, Extension of Period of Performance for Awards related
to Grant Opportunity Announced in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter
(UIPL) No. 23-21, issued April 4, 2022,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-
letter-no-23-21-change-3;
• UIPL No. 23-21, Change 4, Updated Guidance for Awards related to Grant
Opportunity Announced in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) No. 23-
21, issued December 21, 2022,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/uipl-23-21-change-4;
• UIPL No. 02-22, Grant Opportunity to Support States Following a Consultative
Assessment for Fraud Detection and Prevention, Promoting Equitable Access, and
Ensuring the Timely Payment of Benefits, including Backlog Reduction, for all
Unemployment Compensation (UC) Programs, issued November 2, 2021,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-
letter-no-02-22;
• UIPL No. 02-22, Change 1, Extension of Time for States to Express Interest in the
Grant Opportunity Announced in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL)
No. 2-22 to Support States Following a Consultative Assessment for Fraud
Detection and Prevention, Promoting Equitable Access, and Ensuring the Timely
Payment of Benefits, including Backlog Reduction, for all Unemployment
Compensation (UC) Programs, issued February 16, 2022,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/unemployment-insurance-program-
letter-no-02-22-change-1;
• UIPL No. 02-22, Change 2, Extension of Time for States to Express Interest in the
Grant Opportunity Announced in Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL)
No. 02-22, to Support States Following a Consultative Assessment for Fraud
Detection and Prevention, Promoting Equitable Access, and Ensuring the Timely
Payment of Benefits, including Backlog Reduction, for all Unemployment
Compensation (UC) Programs, issued September 19, 2022,
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/eta/advisories/uipl-02-22-change-2;
• GAO-21-599R, Management Report: Preliminary Information on Potential Racial and
Ethnic Disparities in the Receipt of Unemployment Insurance Benefits during the COVID-19
Pandemic, published June 17, 2021, https://www.gao.gov/assets/gao-21-599r.pdf; and
• GAO-22-105162, Unemployment Insurance: Transformation Needed to Address
Program Design, Infrastructure, and Integrity Risks, published June 07, 2022,
https://www.gao.gov/assets/730/720919.pdf.
7. Attachment(s). N/A
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