Fiscal year 2007 unemployment insurance state quality service plans

UIPL25-06.pdf (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ETA/advisories/UIPL/2006/UIPL25-06.pdf)

EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ADMINISTRATION ADVISORY SYSTEM
U.S. Department of Labor
Washington, D.C. 20210
CLASSIFICATION: UI/SQSP
CORRESPONDENCE SYMBOL: OWS/DPM
DATE: June 28, 2006
ADVISORY: UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE PROGRAM LETTER NO. 25-06
TO: STATE WORKFORCE AGENCIES
FROM: EMILY STOVER DeROCCO, Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training Administration
SUBJECT: Call Memo for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 Unemployment Insurance (UI) State Quality Service Plan (SQSP)

1. Purpose. To initiate the FY 2007 SQSP process and to issue supplemental instructions for
the preparation of the FY 2007 SQSP.

2. References. ET Handbook No. 336, 18th Edition, “Unemployment Insurance State Quality
Service Plan (SQSP) Planning and Reporting Guidelines;” Unemployment Insurance
Program Letter (UIPL) No. 14-05, “Changes to UI Performs;” UIPL No. 14-05, Change 1,
“Performance Criterion for the Overpayment Detection Measure; Clarification of Appeals
Timeliness Measures; and Implementation of Tax Quality Measure Corrective Action Plans
(CAPs);” UIPL No. 41-95, “Draft Narrative Describing the System for Enhancing
Unemployment Insurance Performance: The ‘UI PERFORMS’ System;” Workforce
Investment Act Final Rule, 20 CFR Parts 652, 660 et al; and UIPL No. 22-05,
“Unemployment Insurance Data Validation (UI DV) Program Software and Policy
Guidance.”

3. Background. The SQSP represents an approach to the UI performance management and
planning process that allows for an exchange of information between the Federal and state
partners to enhance the ability of the program to reflect their joint commitment to
performance excellence and client centered services. As part of UI Performs, the
comprehensive performance management system for the UI program, the SQSP is the
principal vehicle that the state UI programs use to plan, record and manage improvement
efforts as they strive for excellence in service. Additionally, it is the grant document through
which states receive Federal UI administrative funding. ET Handbook No. 336, 18th Edition
contains general instructions for the SQSP. The Handbook is designed as a permanent
instruction for the annual planning and budget process and provides states with planning
guidelines and instructions for reporting UI financial and staff year information. The annual
Call Memo supplements those instructions and provides guidance and instructions specific to
the year in question.

UI is one of the Workforce Investment Act Title I partners. While states have the option to
include their UI programs as part of their two-year Strategic Unified State Plan submitted
under Section 501 of the Act, they must participate in the annual UI Performs SQSP process.

RESCISSIONS: None
EXPIRATION DATE: June 28, 2007

4. Federal Emphasis. Each year, the Employment and Training Administration (ETA)
identifies program areas that warrant special attention. The five-year Department of Labor
(Department) Strategic Plan forms the basis for the Federal emphasis for FY 2007. Required
by Congress under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), the
Strategic Plan is an integral part of the budget process and requires a commitment from all
Department programs to attain expressed goals and outcomes.

The UI program goal, shown below, supports the Department’s strategic goal of “A Secure
Workforce.”

Make timely and accurate benefit payments to unemployed workers, and
facilitate their reemployment.

The GPRA goals and targets for FY 2007 are as follows:

• Make Timely Benefit Payments.
  • Target: 90% of intrastate first payments for full weeks of unemployment will be made within 14/21 days after the first compensable week.
• Establish Tax Accounts Promptly.
  • Target: 82.8% of status determinations for new employers will be made within 90 days of the end of the first quarter in which liability occurred.
• Detect Benefit Overpayments.
  • Target: Overpayments detected will be at least 60.0% of the estimated detectable, recoverable overpayments.
• Facilitate the Reemployment of Claimants.
  • The first reports of data from which the reemployment measure will be calculated were due March 31, 2006. The Department will use these data to compute a baseline and set a target for FY 2007 by September 30, 2006. For the FY 2007 SQSP, states are to describe the steps they will take to promote claimant reemployment, e.g., conducting reemployment eligibility assessments, sending reminders about work search requirements to claimants, etc.

Achieving these outcomes requires the combined efforts of the Federal and state partners.
States are expected to describe in the SQSP Narrative the steps they will take to reach these
goals.

5. Program Performance. The Department’s strategic approach to UI Performs is to focus
efforts on raising the performance of states where performance is below minimum criteria
while promoting overall excellence. Corrective Action Plans (CAPs) are expected whenever a
state’s performance is below the Acceptable Levels of Performance (ALPs) for Core
Measures or below the criteria for Secretary Standards established in regulation for the SQSP
measurement period. The measurement period or performance year (PY) for the FY 2007
SQSP is April 1, 2005 — March 31, 2006. CAPs are also expected for improper administration
of Benefits Accuracy Measurement (BAM) or Benefit Payment Control (BPC) activities
resulting in an overpayment detection rate above 95%. States will address all other
performance deficiencies in the SQSP Narrative.

Multi-year CAPs continue to be an option for states so that efforts that, due to their size,
scope, or complexity, must extend beyond a fiscal year can be realistically portrayed. Out-year portions of such multi-year plans need not provide quarterly targets or milestones as are
required for the SQSP year, but should provide sufficient information to explain anticipated
progress and results.

6. Performance Criteria and Planning Requirements for FY 2007. The Department
announced the changes to UI Performs in UIPL No. 14-05, dated February 18, 2005.

Implementation of those changes began with the FY 2006 SQSP. ET Handbook 336, 18th
Edition reflects those changes and should be used when preparing the FY 2007 SQSP.

The cycle of the UI Performs management system requires advanced planning.
Implementation of the changes to the measures is being done systematically so that states
know in advance what will be expected of them. Therefore, CAPs/Narrative will be expected
for annual performance that does not meet ALPs on Core Measures as listed in Attachment
A, with the following exceptions:
• Tax Quality: The Tax Quality Measure has two parts. States are expected to address
Tax Quality in the Narrative if any single function fails the Tax Performance System
(TPS) three consecutive years, i.e., PY 2003, PY 2004, and PY 2005. A CAP is
expected if four or more functions fail TPS in a year.
• Average Age of Pending Lower and Higher Authority Appeals: An ALP has not yet
been established for the Average Age of Pending Appeals Core Measure; however,
states should describe in the Narrative the steps they are taking to minimize the age of
pending appeals and reduce backlogs.
• Detection of Overpayments: The Detection of Overpayments Measure is the percent
of detectable/recoverable overpayments established for recovery. States reporting an
overpayment detection rate below 50% are expected to explain the reasons for the low
performance in the Narrative section of the SQSP. Because states generally cannot
detect and establish more than 80%-90% of estimated overpayments, an upper limit of
95% has been established for monitoring purposes. States reporting ratios over 95%
are expected to explain in the Narrative section the reasons for the higher than
expected ratios.

If an overpayment rate above 95% is the result of improper administration of BAM or BPC
activities, the state is expected to submit a CAP designed to produce valid data for the
Overpayment Detection Measure.

States are not expected to submit CAPs for the Core Measure, Facilitate Reemployment,
because the ALP has not yet been established.

States must take corrective action for Management Information Measures where performance
is so conspicuously poor that compliance with Federal law requirements is in question.

States will be expected to describe in the SQSP Narrative the actions planned to correct
deficiencies regarding program reviews and reporting requirements as defined in the SQSP
Handbook. Special consideration should be given to the following:
• Data Validation (DV). For FY 2007, states are expected to address in the narrative:
  • Failure to implement DV. “Implementing DV” is defined as having built all of the 20 Population extract files (15 Benefits, 5 Tax).
  • Failure to submit results from validating Benefit Timeliness and Quality (BTQ) samples due for the 2006 performance year. These are conducted and submitted independent of the Sun software.
  • Failure to validate TPS Acceptance samples (three Status Determinations samples
and the Field Audit sample) for CY 2005. These validation results were to have
been submitted on or before May 10, 2006 by e-mail using a Microsoft Word
template.
  • Failure to conduct and submit results of Wage Item validations due for the 2006
validation year (April 2005 — March 2006). These are submitted though the Sun
software and were due May 10, 2006.

7. Funding Period. The proposed appropriation language provides for obligation of FY 2007
UI allocations by states through December 31, 2007, with 90 additional days to liquidate the
obligations and complete the expenditure of funds. However, states may obligate FY 2007
UI funds through September 30, 2009, if such obligations are for automation acquisitions.
Therefore, the end of the FY 2007 obligation period is September 30, 2009, for automation
acquisitions and December 31, 2007, for all other funds.

8. Data Availability. The regional offices (ROs) will provide states with reports showing their
performance against the Core Measures, the GPRA goals, and other information relevant to
the SQSP, i.e., reporting deficiencies.

9. Deadline for State SQSP Submittal. Each RO will set a deadline for states to submit their
SQSPs for FY 2007.

10. Electronic Submission of the SQSP. States are required to submit the SQSP electronically
and should contact their RO SQSP Coordinator prior to submittal to coordinate specific
details. Standard forms required as part of the budget reporting process (Chapter II of ET
Handbook No. 336, 18th Edition) are available in PDF format and may be downloaded from
the Office of Management and Budget Web site at
www.whitehouse.gov/omb/grants/index.html. If electronic signatures are approved by the
state for use in the submission of legal documents to the National Office and ROs, states may
submit the SQSP signature page electronically. States that do not submit an electronic
signature page must submit the signature page in hard copy by mail or facsimile by the
deadline set by the RO.

11. Action. State Administrators are requested to:

a. Make this information available to appropriate staff;

b. Prepare their SQSPs in accordance with instructions in this UIPL and the planning and reporting instructions contained in ET Handbook No. 336, 18th Edition;

c. Coordinate specifics, as appropriate, with the RO for electronic submission of the plan; and

d. Submit the FY 2007 SQSP to the appropriate RO by the date specified by the Regional Administrator.

12. Inquiries. Questions should be directed to the appropriate RO.

13. Attachment. Measures to be Addressed in the FY 2007 SQSP

ATTACHMENT A: UIPL25-06_Att1.pdf (https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ETA/advisories/UIPL/2006/UIPL25-06_Att1.pdf)

Attachment A
Measures to be Addressed in the FY 2007 SQSP


Core Measures (to be addressed in CAPs)

First Payment Promptness
Nonmonetary Determination Time Lapse
Nonmonetary Determination Quality – Nonseparations
Nonmonetary Determination Quality – Separations
Lower Authority Appeals Quality
New Employer Status Determinations Time Lapse
Tax Quality (4 or more functions failing TPS in a year)


Core Measures (to be addressed in the SQSP Narrative)

Detection of Overpayments
Average Age of Pending Lower Authority Appeals
Average Age of Pending Higher Authority Appeals
Tax Quality (any single function failing TPS 3 consecutive years)


Secretary Standards in Regulation (to be addressed in CAPs)

First Payment Promptness (IntraState 14/21 Days)
First Payment Promptness (IntraState 35 Days)
First Payment Promptness (InterState 14/21 Days)
First Payment Promptness (InterState 35 Days)
Lower Authority Appeals (30 Days)
Lower Authority Appeals (45 Days)