Fiscal year 2016 state unemployment insurance allocations

CLASSIFICATION
  EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION                UI
              ADVISORY SYSTEM                           CORRESPONDENCE SYMBOL
         U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR                       OUI/DFAS
            Washington, D.C. 20210                      DATE
                                                               March 1, 2016



ADVISORY:         UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE PROGRAM LETTER NO. 10-16

TO:               STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES

FROM:             PORTIA WU /s/
                  Assistant Secretary

SUBJECT:          Guidelines for Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 State Agency Unemployment
                  Insurance (UI) Resource Allocations, Supplemental Budget Requests
                  (SBRs), and Above-Base Funding

1. Purpose. To provide information to states about FY 2016 UI State Administration base
   resource allocations, general guidelines for resource planning, above-base funding, and
   SBRs.

2. References.
   • Section 303(a)(8) of the Social Security Act;
   • Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016, Public Law (Pub. L.) 114-113;
   • Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Chapter
      2, Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit
      Requirements for Federal Awards, Final Rule;
   • Department of Labor (DOL) CFR Chapter 2, Part 2900, Uniform Administrative
      Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards;
   • OMB Report to the Congress on the Joint Committee Reductions for Fiscal Year 2016;
   • Unemployment Insurance Program Letters (UIPL) No. 21-15, FY 2016 State Workforce
      Agency Unemployment Insurance Resource Planning Targets and Guidelines;
   • UIPL No. 17-15, Additional Planning Guidance for the FY 2016 Unemployment
      Insurance State Quality Service Plan (SQSP); and
   • Employment and Training (ET) Handbook No. 336, 18th Edition, Change 3 (April
      2014), Unemployment Insurance State Quality Service Plan (SQSP), Planning and
      Reporting Guidelines.

3. Appropriation. The FY 2016 consolidated spending bill that included the appropriations
   for state UI operations (Pub. L. 114-113) was enacted on December 18, 2015. The table
   below summarizes the average weekly insured unemployment (AWIU) levels and dollar
   amounts corresponding to the FY 2016 President’s Budget request and the FY 2016
   appropriation.


 RESCISSIONS                                            EXPIRATION DATE
 None                                                   September 30, 2022

   Summary of FY 2016 UI Budget Authority

                                     Budget Request    Appropriation            Difference
     AWIU Contingency Trigger              2,507,000         2,680,000             173,000
     State Administration             $2,702,550,000   $2,630,550,000        ($72,000,000)
     RESEA / Integrity                  $180,900,000     $115,000,000        ($65,900,000)
     National Activities                 $14,547,000      $14,547,000                    0
     Total                            $2,897,997,000   $2,760,097,000       ($137,900,000)

   The appropriation allows these funds to be available for obligation by the states through
   December 31, 2016, except that funds used for automation acquisition or competitive grants
   awarded to states for improved operations, conducting in-person assessments and reviews,
   and providing reemployment services and referrals are available for obligation by the states
   through September 30, 2018. If the automation acquisition is being carried out through
   consortia of states, it must be obligated by September 30, 2021, and expended by September
   30, 2022. Funding for the Integrity Center of Excellence is available for obligation through
   September 30, 2017. Please note that misclassification is not an allowable use of FY 2016
   funds.

4. Final Base Allocations. The final FY 2016 base allocations are identical to the planning
   targets at a 2.2 million AWIU. The attached table shows the total full-year base allocation
   to each state in FY 2016.

5. Above-Base Administration.

   a. Above-Base and Contingency Funding. The FY 2016 appropriation is estimated to be
      sufficient to provide adequate resources for workloads associated with an AWIU of
      2.507 million. Current projections expect the FY 2016 AWIU to be 2.297 million, thus
      allowing for 100 percent reimbursement of above-base administrative expenses. If the
      actual workload levels increase and approach an AWIU of 2.507 million, above-base
      payouts may be reconsidered.

   b. Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC). Administrative costs for the expired
      EUC program will continue to be based on quarterly EUC workloads and funded
      through the UI-3 process. EUC administrative funding is subject to sequestration of 6.8
      percent as described in the OMB Report to the Congress on the Joint Committee
      Reductions for Fiscal Year 2016.

   c. Support. The overhead for above-base state UI, Trade Adjustment Assistance,
      Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance, and Reemployment Trade Adjustment
      Assistance administration remains at 19 percent.



   d. Postage. Above-base funding for postage will be issued to states on a quarterly basis
      using the above-base weeks claimed reported on the UI-3 reports. For any quarter,
      above-base weeks claimed will be those in excess of 25 percent of the FY 2016 base
      weeks claimed issued in the planning targets. The above-base postage will be paid at
      33.3 cents per above-base week claimed.

   e. Trade Readjustment Allowance (TRA) Redeterminations. Currently, there are no court
       decisions on the TRA program that would require the states to make monetary
       redeterminations. If one occurs, states should follow the UI-3 reporting instructions in
       ET Handbook No. 336, 18th Edition.

6. Supplemental Budget Requests (SBRs). Generally, instructions for SBRs are provided
   through UIPLs. The SQSP Handbook also contains SBR instructions and procedures for
   SBRs. Pending funding availability, states may submit a Standard Form (SF) 424 (OMB
   Approval No. 4040-0004) and SF 424A (OMB Approval No. 0348-0444) for additional
   funds for certain types of administrative costs (listed below) that are not funded within the
   states’ base and above-base grants.

   a. Special Projects.
           Proposals from states for Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments
              (RESEAs) grants have been solicited. If funds are available, states may also
              have the opportunity to apply for funds for other purposes that improve integrity,
              efficiency and/or information technology (IT) security. Specific instructions will
              be provided to states in separate advisories;
           Proposals for projects that improve program performance and integrity;
           Proposals for Unemployment Insurance IT modernization projects; and
           Other priority projects designed to improve state administration of the UI
              program nationally.

   b. Travel. Travel dollars are available for Benefit Accuracy Measurement Peer Reviews,
      National Benefits Timeliness and Quality Reviews, Tax Performance System reviews,
      and the UI Profiling Seminar. States should provide travel estimates and reimbursement
      requests to the appropriate regional office rather than submitting an SF 424 for these
      travel dollars.

7. Nationally Funded Activities. As provided in the State Unemployment Insurance and
   Employment Service Operations appropriation, the Department will, on behalf of the states,
   make payments to the entities operating the National Directory of New Hires and the State
   Information Data Exchange System for use by the states.

8. State Flexibility. All state UI administrative grant funds must be used in accordance with
   Section 303(a)(8) of the Social Security Act and the cost principles contained in 2 CFR Part
   200, and 2 CFR Part 2900. Beyond this, states have discretion to expend these grant funds
   as they deem appropriate and necessary to manage and operate their UI programs to meet


   established goals and requirements. The only caveat is that states must use the annual
   allocated staff-year level for claims activities for above-base reporting purposes. This
   ensures that states do not earn more above-base resources than they otherwise would have
   been entitled to earn. This flexibility does not pertain to funding issued for special projects
   or supplemental budget requests: funding for these purposes must be spent in accordance
   with the spending plans approved for these respective projects.

9. Action Requested. State Administrators are requested to provide copies of this
   information to the appropriate staff.

10. Inquiries. Questions should be addressed to the appropriate regional office.

11. Attachment. FY 2016 State UI Base Allocations.

FY 2016 State UI Base Allocations


   RG State                         Administration        Postage            Total
     3 Alabama                         27,411,226       1,218,221      28,629,447
     6 Alaska                          22,382,005        555,146       22,937,151
     6 Arizona                         31,127,449       1,712,764      32,840,213
     4 Arkansas                        18,967,720       1,033,862      20,001,582
     6 California                     329,766,239      20,343,978     350,110,217
     4 Colorado                        33,759,350       1,786,087      35,545,437
     1 Connecticut                     45,842,486       1,980,315      47,822,801
     2 Delaware                          8,350,726       365,738         8,716,464
     2 District of Columbia              9,284,192       468,852         9,753,044
     3 Florida                         80,795,336       4,412,003      85,207,339
     3 Georgia                         53,857,675       2,521,354      56,379,029
     6 Hawaii                          13,554,550        473,595       14,028,145
     6 Idaho                           13,834,586        537,373       14,371,959
     5 Illinois                       139,872,703       5,689,541     145,562,244
     5 Indiana                         36,615,997       1,728,106      38,344,103
     5 Iowa                            22,511,297       1,092,654      23,603,951
     5 Kansas                          16,308,852       1,010,312      17,319,164
     3 Kentucky                        25,332,806       1,258,875      26,591,681
     4 Louisiana                       24,238,333       1,034,634      25,272,967
     1 Maine                           11,931,819        515,377       12,447,196
     2 Maryland                        51,092,955       2,066,229      53,159,184
     1 Massachusetts                   52,881,395       3,531,881      56,413,276
     5 Michigan                       109,964,918       3,485,183     113,450,101
     5 Minnesota                       39,955,270       2,228,691      42,183,961
     3 Mississippi                     18,191,414        791,735       18,983,149
     5 Missouri                        33,407,848       1,991,472      35,399,320
     4 Montana                           8,029,010       472,438         8,501,448
     5 Nebraska                        13,729,168        485,591       14,214,759
     6 Nevada                          23,748,888       1,118,546      24,867,434
     1 New Hampshire                   11,534,127        398,230       11,932,357
     1 New Jersey                      99,617,126       5,073,851     104,690,977
     4 New Mexico                      12,645,518        654,381       13,299,899
     1 New York                       164,043,545       9,014,407     173,057,952
     3 North Carolina                  51,386,188       2,576,178      53,962,366
     4 North Dakota                      6,158,267       254,773         6,413,040
     5 Ohio                            75,860,995       3,060,855      78,921,850
     4 Oklahoma                        19,778,803        840,761       20,619,564
     6 Oregon                          46,880,368       1,708,195      48,588,563
     2 Pennsylvania                   117,657,023       6,634,142     124,291,165
     1 Puerto Rico                     14,288,793       1,273,738      15,562,531
     1 Rhode Island                    11,277,689        511,217       11,788,906
     3 South Carolina                  25,701,805       1,019,449      26,721,254
     4 South Dakota                      4,837,759       154,560         4,992,319
     3 Tennessee                       30,969,441       1,398,653      32,368,094
     4 Texas                          116,410,790       6,917,533     123,328,323
     4 Utah                            23,454,928        731,075       24,186,003
     1 Vermont                           6,999,242       281,803         7,281,045
     1 Virgin Islands                    1,413,778        43,668         1,457,446
     2 Virginia                        38,339,559       2,020,875      40,360,434
     6 Washington                      76,602,185       2,747,458      79,349,643
     2 West Virginia                   11,478,727        696,465       12,175,192
     5 Wisconsin                       52,879,477       2,588,170      55,467,647
     4 Wyoming                           7,505,654       222,010         7,727,664
       TOTAL BASE                   $2,344,468,000   $116,733,000   $2,461,201,000