Fiscal year 2024 state unemployment insurance resource allocations

CLASSIFICATION
   EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION                 Unemployment Insurance
               ADVISORY SYSTEM                            CORRESPONDENCE SYMBOL
          U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR                        OUI/DFAS
             Washington, D.C. 20210                       DATE
                                                          June 24, 2024


ADVISORY:         UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE PROGRAM LETTER NO. 13-24

TO:               STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES

FROM:             JOSÉ JAVIER RODRÍGUEZ
                  Assistant Secretary

SUBJECT:          Guidelines for Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 State Agency Unemployment Insurance
                  (UI) Resource Allocations, Supplemental Budget Requests (SBRs), and
                  Above-Base Funding

1. Purpose. To provide information to states about FY 2024 UI State Administration base
   resource allocations, general guidelines for resource planning, above-base funding, and
   SBRs.

2. Action Requested. State Administrators are requested to provide copies of this
   Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) to the appropriate staff.

3. Summary and Background. The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024 (H.R.
   2882, P.L. 118-364), which was enacted on March 23, 2024, provides the U.S Department of
   Labor (Department) with FY 2024 appropriations for state UI operations. The table below
   summarizes the average weekly insured unemployment (AWIU) levels and dollar amounts
   corresponding to the FY 2024 President’s Budget request and the FY 2024 appropriation.

   Summary of FY 2024 UI Budget Authority

                                        Budget Request       Appropriation          Difference
  AWIU Contingency Trigger                    2,365,000           3,075,000            710,000
  State Administration                   $2,956,318,000      $2,759,635,000      -$196,683,000
  RESEA / Integrity                        $550,000,000        $382,000,000      -$168,000,000
  National Activities                      $173,255,000         $18,000,000      -$155,255,000
  Total                                  $3,679,573,000      $3,159,635,000      -$519,938,000

   The appropriation provides that these funds are available for obligation by the states through,
   with exceptions as follows, December 31, 2024. The appropriation extends states’ obligation
   availability for funds used for automation or competitive grants awarded to states for
   improved operations and Reemployment Services and Eligibility Act (RESEA) grants
   through September 30, 2026. If the automation is being carried out through a consortium of
   states, the funds are available for obligation by the states through September 30, 2030, and
   must be expended by September 30, 2031. Funding for the Unemployment Insurance

   RESCISSIONS                                             EXPIRATION DATE
   None                                                    December 31, 2031

   Integrity Center of Excellence is available for obligation by the state through September 30,
   2025.

4. Details.

   Final Base Administration Allocations. The final FY 2024 base allocations are identical to
   the planning targets developed at a 1,800,000 AWIU level, as published in UIPL No. 13-23.
   The attached table shows the total full FY 2024 base allocations for each state.

   Above-Base Administration.

   a. Above-Base and Contingency Funding. The Employment and Training Administration
      (ETA) estimates the FY 2024 appropriation will be insufficient to provide for full
      funding of states’ above-base administrative earnings. ETA provided above base funding
      at $0.50 per $1.00 earned for the first quarter of FY 2024 and plans to continue to provide
      above-base funding at this rate for the remaining three quarters. Additional funding, if
      available, will be included along with the FY 2024 fourth quarter above-base
      distributions. In addition, the AWIU contingency trigger, which is set to 3,075,000, is far
      higher than the Department’s latest estimated AWIU for FY 2024 set at 2,042,000 based
      on the economic assumptions used to develop the FY 2025 President’s Budget. As a
      result, no additional contingency funding is likely to be available in FY 2024.

   b. Administrative Funding for Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES)
      Act Programs. Funding for ongoing administrative costs for certain CARES Act
      programs will be addressed through forthcoming guidance which will be issued though a
      separate UIPL.

   c. Support. The overhead for above-base state UI, Trade Readjustment Allowances (TRA),
      Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance (ATAA), and Reemployment Trade
      Adjustment Assistance (RTAA) administration remains at 19 percent.

   d. Postage. Since FY 2007, ETA has, as possible, provided above-base funding for postage
      directly to state workforce agencies based on the number of weeks claimed workloads not
      included in the base allocations. In recent years, unprecedented volatility in workload
      volumes and insufficient funding levels has forced ETA to withhold postage funding on
      above-base workloads. Based on the current state of above-base administrative funding,
      ETA will once again withhold postage from states’ above-base distributions. If additional
      funding is available at the end of the year, ETA will first prioritize making up partial
      payments for above-base earnings before providing any above base po stage funding.

   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 must follow the UI-3 reporting instructions in
      Employment and Training (ET) Handbook No. 336, 18 th Edition, Change 4.





   Supplemental Budget Requests (SBRs). Instructions for SBRs are provided mostly through
   UIPLs. The State Quality Service Plan Handbook also contains SBR instructions and
   procedures for SBRs. Pending funding availability, states may submit a Standard Form (SF)
   424 (Office of Management and Budget (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. FY 2024 funding for Reemployment Services and Eligibility
      Assessments (RESEAs) will be provided to states to administer these activities in
      accordance with UIPL No. 08-24 and each state’s approved FY 2024 RESEA state plan.

   b. Submission Requirements. To achieve greater efficiency and as part of ETA’s ongoing
      effort to streamline the grant award process, SBR submissions must be made using an
      electronically signed copy of the SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance), and the
      SF-424A (Budget Information for Non-Construction Programs), through Grants.gov
      (https://www.grants.gov/forms). Additional information on use of Grants.gov for SBR
      submission will be included in any guidance announcing SBR opportunities.

   c. Travel. Travel dollars are available for Benefit Accuracy Measurement Peer Reviews,
      National Review of States’ UI Appeals Quarterly Self -Evaluations, and Tax Performance
      System reviews. States should provide travel estimates and reimbursement requests to the
      appropriate Regional Office, rather than submitting a SF 424, for these travel dollars.

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

   State Flexibility. All state UI administrative grant funds must be used in accordance with
   applicable Federal law, including Section 303(a)(8) of the Social Security Act (SSA) and the
   cost principles contained in 2 C.F.R. Part 200 and 2 C.F.R. Part 2900. States have flexibility
   to expend grant funds as they deem appropriate and necessary to manage and operate their UI
   programs to meet established goals and requirements within the parameters of Federal law.
   The only limitation 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 SBRs; funding for these purposes must be
   spent in accordance with the spending plans approved for these respective projects.

5. Inquiries. Questions are to be submitted to the appropriate ETA Regional Office.

6. References.

   •   Section 303(a)(8) of the Social Security Act, (42 U.S.C. Section 503(a)(8));
   •   Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2024, Public Law (Pub. L.) 118-47;





   •   2 C.F.R. Part 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit
       Requirements for Federal Awards, Final Rule;
   •   2 C.F.R Part 2900, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit
       Requirements for Federal Awards (U.S. Department of Labor);
   •   OMB Report to the Congress on the BBEDCA 251A Sequestration for Fiscal Year 2024
       (March 13, 2024);
   •   Unemployment Insurance Program Letter (UIPL) No. 08-24, Fiscal Year (FY) 2024
       Funding Allotments and Operating Guidance for Unemployment Insurance (UI)
       Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessments (RESEA) Grants, issued February 21,
       2024 and UIPL No. 08-24 Change 1, Corrected Attachment to (UIPL) No. 08-24, issued
       March 22, 2024;
   •   UIPL No. 13-23, Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 State Workforce Agency Unemployment
       Insurance (UI) Resource Planning Targets and Guidelines, issued September 13, 2023;
   •   UIPL No. 07-24, Implementation of Sequestration under the Budget Control Act of 2011
       (BCA) for Mandatory Unemployment Insurance Programs for Fiscal Year 2024, issued
       January 25, 2024;
   •   UIPL No. 09-23, Additional Planning Guidance for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024
       Unemployment Insurance (UI) State Quality Service Plan (SQSP), issued June 30, 2023;
       and
   •    ETA Handbook No. 336, 18 th Edition (March 2019), Unemployment Insurance State
       Quality Service Plan (SQSP), Planning and Reporting Guidelines.

7. Attachment.

   •   Attachment I: State UI Base Administrative Grants – FY 2024.





                                                                            Attachment I
State UI Base Administrative Grants - FY2024



                                Administration       Postage     Total Base
         National Totals              2,499,052,000 116,288,000 2,615,340,000
Alabama                                  25,753,603      627,153   26,380,756
Alaska                                   24,040,902      371,761   24,412,663
Arizona                                  36,174,778    1,330,188   37,504,966
Arkansas                                 17,407,052      674,670   18,081,722
California                              338,846,600 24,709,524    363,556,124
Colorado                                 37,934,743    1,983,616   39,918,359
Connecticut                              45,315,162    1,823,180   47,138,342
Delaware                                   8,752,014     314,480    9,066,494
District of Columbia                       9,090,933     460,878    9,551,811
Florida                                  79,527,483    4,128,410   83,655,893
Georgia                                  52,239,949    3,016,779   55,256,728
Hawaii                                   14,443,198      531,908   14,975,106
Idaho                                    14,565,136      482,883   15,048,019
Illinois                                148,149,071    5,459,208  153,608,279
Indiana                                  41,242,515    1,580,618   42,823,133
Iowa                                     27,211,308      897,155   28,108,463
Kansas                                   20,136,738      657,338   20,794,076
Kentucky                                 29,069,842      900,083   29,969,925
Louisiana                                24,947,955      987,256   25,935,211
Maine                                    14,020,319      434,071   14,454,390
Maryland                                 55,987,715    1,460,824   57,448,539
Massachusetts                            55,487,356    3,649,718   59,137,074
Michigan                                131,360,842    3,097,664  134,458,506
Minnesota                                41,988,541    2,841,839   44,830,380
Mississippi                              20,308,026      461,115   20,769,141
Missouri                                 39,049,850    1,444,209   40,494,059
Montana                                    7,890,090     415,840    8,305,930
Nebraska                                 14,198,130      401,334   14,599,464
Nevada                                   23,350,214    1,147,856   24,498,070
New Hampshire                            10,917,468      276,192   11,193,660
New Jersey                              117,938,648    7,206,070  125,144,718
New Mexico                               13,813,698      767,212   14,580,910
New York                                163,746,137    9,561,266  173,307,403
North Carolina                           51,179,878    1,823,154   53,003,032
North Dakota                               7,374,431     236,776    7,611,207
Ohio                                     73,682,288    2,743,185   76,425,473
Oklahoma                                 21,462,471      961,912   22,424,383
Oregon                                   46,151,568    1,792,183   47,943,751
Pennsylvania                            119,640,584    5,006,113  124,646,697
Puerto Rico                              12,023,986      967,121   12,991,107
Rhode Island                             13,143,645      556,568   13,700,213
South Carolina                           27,026,897    1,027,042   28,053,939


                                                     Attachment I
South Dakota       4,720,927     177,459     4,898,386
Tennessee         33,927,687   1,156,321    35,084,008
Texas            142,532,348   7,377,460   149,909,808
Utah              22,144,698     718,069    22,862,767
Vermont            8,014,600     230,841     8,245,441
Virgin Islands     1,640,345      43,710     1,684,055
Virginia          40,105,445   1,762,714    41,868,159
Washington        87,698,620   3,008,790    90,707,410
West Virginia     10,649,664     497,852    11,147,516
Wisconsin         63,189,134   1,914,001    65,103,135
Wyoming            7,836,768     184,431     8,021,199