State and Federal Labor Guidance
Free state and federal labor-agency opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices, with plain-English summaries, current status, and the official source on every page.
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Revised ETA 191 federal unemployment report Withdrawn
ETA transmitted revised pages for the ETA 191 report, which states use to report federal employee and ex-servicemember unemployment expenditures and adjustments. The attachment contains the updated…
YouthBuild sequential service eligibility clarification Withdrawn
ETA clarified TEGL 11-09, Change 1: a YouthBuild sequential service strategy applies to youth entering a YouthBuild program after at least a year in a YouthBuild-operated charter school that awards…
2014 military pension cost-of-living adjustments Withdrawn
ETA told states that federal military retired pay and survivor annuities had cost-of-living adjustments effective in late 2013. States whose unemployment laws reduce benefits for pension income were…
2014 pension adjustments and UI benefit offsets Withdrawn
ETA told state agencies that Social Security survivor and retirement annuities and federal civilian pensions had a cost-of-living increase for 2014. States whose unemployment laws offset weekly…
Spineboard decontamination and bloodborne pathogens
A device maker asked OSHA to require self-contained machines for decontaminating spineboards. OSHA declined to prescribe a particular device because its bloodborne-pathogens rule allows employers to…
WOTC procedures during the 2014 authorization lapse Withdrawn
During the WOTC authorization lapse that began January 1, 2014, ETA directed state agencies to accept, date stamp, log, and retain new certification requests without issuing eligibility…
2014 military pay schedule for UCX claims Withdrawn
ETA gave states an updated military remuneration schedule for ex-servicemember unemployment claims filed from January 2014. It says states use the schedule to calculate military wages when the…
Bleeder system examination and effectiveness
MSHA explains how underground coal mine operators should examine and evaluate bleeder ventilation systems. The policy covers travel through bleeder entries, measurements of methane, oxygen and air…
2014 Trade Adjustment Assistance sunset instructions Withdrawn
ETA instructed states how to administer Trade Adjustment Assistance for workers covered by petitions filed on or after January 1, 2014, under the 2011 law's sunset provisions. It distinguished those…
Combustible-dust classification enforcement guidance Unknown
OSHA instructed inspectors how to assess whether manufacturers and importers classify combustible-dust hazards correctly under the 2012 hazard-communication rule. It discusses test results, known…
Regular cleanup of coal dust and combustibles
MSHA explains the written cleanup program required for underground coal mine accumulations of coal dust, float coal dust, loose coal, and other combustibles. Operators should describe cleanup…
Electrical approval of industrial machinery
A code official asked whether OSHA’s electrical installation and approval rules cover industrial machinery. OSHA said powered machinery is utilization equipment covered by Subpart S, including its…
Mining under bodies of water
Coal mine operators planning to mine beneath a river, lake, stream, or other body of water must notify the district manager before work starts. MSHA says the notice should give enough detail to…
Employer payment for safety-toe footwear
An elevator workers’ union asked whether an employer must pay for safety-toe shoes required by its policy. OSHA said standard, non-specialty safety-toe shoes need not be employer-paid if workers may…
Interim enforcement of 2013 hazard-communication training Unknown
OSHA told inspectors to cite employers that had not trained potentially exposed workers on the new hazard-label elements and safety-data-sheet format by December 1, 2013. The attached questions…
Rapid HIV testing after workplace exposure Unknown
A federal health agency asked whether source-person HIV testing completed three to four hours after an exposure could be “as soon as feasible.” OSHA said it could under the 2013 guidance and that…
2013 shutdown claims and administrative funding questions Withdrawn
ETA answered further state questions about unemployment claims filed by federal workers furloughed during the October 2013 government shutdown and the effect of retroactive pay. Its attachment…
Disaster unemployment assistance amounts for early 2014 Withdrawn
ETA sent state agencies a table of 50 percent of each state’s average weekly unemployment benefit, rounded for use as the minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly amount. The figures covered…
Ingredients in Section 3 of mixture safety data sheets Unknown
A safety-data-sheet provider asked whether hazardous ingredients must be listed when a mixture is classified using test data for the whole mixture. OSHA said Section 3 ingredient disclosure still…
On-duty meal periods for drivers of hazardous and flammable materials
A law firm asked the Labor Commissioner's Office for general guidance on when on-duty meal periods are lawful for drivers hauling hazardous and flammable materials, building on an earlier 2009 DLSE…
Protection factors for combination respirators
A federal agency asked why a combination supplied-air respirator has an assigned protection factor of 1,000 in normal use but 10,000 in escape mode. OSHA said the protection factor follows the mode…
Deferred prosecution agreements and QPAM eligibility Unknown
An investment manager asked whether an affiliate’s deferred prosecution agreements would disqualify it from acting as a qualified professional asset manager under a prohibited transaction exemption.…
Marking contaminated laundry for reuse
A laundry association asked whether blood-contaminated linens in red bags had to be treated as waste. OSHA said reusable contaminated laundry is separate from regulated waste, and red bags are…
Recovering benefits after 2013 federal shutdown pay Withdrawn
After the October 2013 government shutdown ended and furloughed federal employees received retroactive pay, ETA said they were no longer eligible for federal employee unemployment benefits for the…
Sharing employee medical and exposure records
An asbestos contractor asked whether project owners, consultants or inspectors could demand workers’ medical and exposure records. OSHA said its access rule grants rights to employees, their…
Program year 2012 WIA annual report narrative Withdrawn
ETA set the required and recommended content of states' program year 2012 Workforce Investment Act annual report narratives, including customer satisfaction, evaluation, cost, and veterans service…
Unemployment guidance during the 2013 federal shutdown Withdrawn
During the October 2013 federal shutdown, ETA answered state questions about federal employee unemployment claims and state unemployment administration. The attached questions and answers addressed…
FY 2014 sequestration of federal UI programs Withdrawn
ETA explained to state agencies how potential FY 2014 sequestration would be applied to mandatory unemployment programs, including Emergency Unemployment Compensation and Extended Benefits. The…
Hazard labels on small reference-standard vials Unknown
A reference-standard distributor asked to put only some hazard warnings on tiny chemical vials and direct users to online safety data sheets for the rest. OSHA said that proposal did not meet the…
Disaster unemployment assistance amounts for late 2013 Withdrawn
ETA sent state agencies a table of 50 percent of each state’s average weekly unemployment benefit, rounded for use as the minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly amount. The figures covered…
WOTC requests for Empowerment Zone residents Withdrawn
ETA explained the 2013 nomination extension for Empowerment Zones and when state agencies could process WOTC certification requests for the summer youth and designated community resident groups. The…
Hazard labels on small adhesive containers Unknown
An adhesive maker asked whether a small tube or syringe could carry only selected hazard-label elements when full labeling was difficult. OSHA rejected that proposal and described a narrower…
Benefit accuracy investigations and coding Withdrawn
ETA updated the Benefit Accuracy Measurement handbook with standards for exhausting attempts to obtain claimant information and coding errors when claimants do not respond. It directed state BAM…
FY 2014 funds for EUC sequestration changes Withdrawn
ETA notified states that supplemental funds were available through the budget request process for implementation costs of FY 2014 sequestration changes in Emergency Unemployment Compensation. The…
Summary prospectus delivery under mutual-fund exemption Unknown
A requester asked whether giving a mutual fund’s SEC summary prospectus to a second plan fiduciary meets an ERISA prohibited transaction exemption’s prospectus delivery condition. EBSA said it does…
Using Form MA 8-7 to send state UI materials Unknown
ETA reminded state agencies to use Form MA 8-7 when sending proposed and enacted unemployment laws and other materials to the Department for federal review. It announced an OMB extension of approval…
Native American workforce credential pilot Withdrawn
ETA announced a one-year pilot study of credential attainment among Workforce Investment Act Section 166 Indian and Native American adult program participants. It defined credentials, used quarterly…
Veterans Retraining Assistance Program outreach and reporting Withdrawn
ETA replaced TEGL 8-12 with updated instructions for outreach to Veterans Retraining Assistance Program participants, employment assistance after completion or termination, and reporting outcomes.…
Workforce Investment Act performance reporting system Withdrawn
ETA revised the Workforce Investment Act performance reporting system for program year 2013. States were to submit quarterly participant records through a consolidated system that generated…
2013 significant farmworker and bilingual job centers Withdrawn
ETA designated American Job Centers with significant migrant and seasonal farmworker activity and bilingual service needs for program year 2013. It described those centers' responsibilities and…
OSHA hazard communication and MSHA HazCom compliance
MSHA explains how OSHA’s revised chemical hazard communication standard relates to its existing HazCom requirements. MSHA says operators compliant with the OSHA standard are also compliant with the…
Completing 2013 UI benefit accuracy data Withdrawn
ETA set dates and procedures for states to complete and verify 2013 Benefit Accuracy Measurement paid and denied claims cases before federal publication of improper payment data. It also amended a…
Veterans entered employment performance threshold
ETA explained the uniform national threshold entered employment rate for veterans and eligible persons in Wagner-Peyser Employment Service and Jobs for Veterans State Grants. It gave calculation and…
Two-page WOTC individual characteristics form Withdrawn
ETA corrected the April 2013 edition of WOTC Form 9061, which had inadvertently expanded to three pages. It provided a two-page replacement form without substantive changes and supplemented TEGL…
Employer payment for protective body armor
A union asked whether bullet-resistant or stab-resistant vests count as personal protective equipment under OSHA’s rules. OSHA said that if an employer selects body armor to protect workers from…
FY 2013 grants for UI integrity and systems Unknown
ETA described FY 2013 supplemental funds for states to prevent improper unemployment payments, improve program performance and modernize information systems. The letter sets required strategies,…
FY 2014 state UI resource planning targets Withdrawn
ETA sent state agencies preliminary FY 2014 funding and staff year targets for unemployment administration, with the data inputs and allocation methods used to calculate them. The letter and…
FY 2013 foreign labor certification grant planning Withdrawn
ETA instructed state workforce agencies on funding and management of fiscal year 2013 foreign labor certification grants. It required grant applications within 30 days absent an approved extension…
Radio interference with electric blasting circuits
Coal mines using radio based communication or tracking devices must account for possible interference with electric blasting circuits. MSHA says operators should consider the total radio energy from…
Revenue sharing credits and ERISA plan assets Unknown
A retirement-plan service provider asked whether revenue sharing payments it receives from investments are client plan assets. EBSA said bookkeeping credits were not plan assets before receipt on…
Planning the FY 2014 state UI service plan Withdrawn
ETA gave state unemployment agencies supplemental instructions for their FY 2014 State Quality Service Plans. The letter identifies national priorities, performance measures and planning…
Video promoting electronic UI information exchange
ETA told state agencies that a messaging video was available to help explain the State Information Data Exchange System and its E-Response service to employers and third-party administrators. The…
2013 WIA Section 166 youth and adult allotments Withdrawn
ETA notified Workforce Investment Act Section 166 grantees of final 2013 allotments for Supplemental Youth Services and Comprehensive Services programs and gave instructions for obtaining the funds.…
Allowable construction credentials for YouthBuild
ETA clarified its definition of a credential for YouthBuild grantees and discussed three commonly used construction credentials. It identified full-curriculum completion of NCCER, HBI-PACT and MC3…
Remote restart of coal mine conveyor belts
MSHA explains the fire hazard that can follow a coal mine conveyor belt slipping against a drive roller. It says local inspection and restart are safest, but remote restart can be done under…
Identification numbers for portable coal mining operations
MSHA explains legal identity reporting for portable coal auger and highwall operations. Each machine receives a seven digit mine ID that follows it when moved between districts, and operators must…
Intermediate rail strength under former guardrail rule Unknown
A tank-industry consultant asked whether a smaller intermediate steel guardrail member complied with the then-current rule. OSHA said the described rail missed an old bending-strength detail but…
Methane tests at the coal mining face
MSHA clarifies methane testing at the working face during underground coal mine operations, including roof bolting. It describes when on shift tests are required and how extendable probes or other…
Emergency stops for connected mining equipment
MSHA explains that mobile bridge carriers connected to continuous miners form a single haulage system for the cited emergency stop rule. Each component needs a switch that simultaneously de…
Coal mine machinery repair and maintenance
MSHA explains the coal mine rule requiring power to be off and machinery blocked against motion before repair or maintenance, except when motion is needed for adjustment. The letter defines…
How this guidance is useful
- See how the agency reads the law: An opinion letter shows how a state labor agency actually applied wage-and-hour law to a real employer's or worker's situation.
- Check the status before relying: Every page shows whether the document is still active or has been superseded, rescinded, or withdrawn, and when that status was last verified.
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Browse guidance by state
This library covers 8 states plus federal guidance so far. Every document is checked against the agency's official source before it is published, so states are added as their labor departments' guidance is verified, not all at once. If your state is not listed yet, its labor department's own site is the place to check.