Title 20

SECTION 679.630

679.630 Under what conditions may the Governor submit a workforce flexibility plan

§ 679.630 Under what conditions may the Governor submit a workforce flexibility plan?

(a) A State may submit to the Secretary, and the Secretary may approve, a workforce flexibility (workflex) plan under which the State is authorized to waive, in accordance with the plan:

(1) Any of the statutory or regulatory requirements under title I of WIOA applicable to local areas, if the local area requests the waiver in a waiver application, except for:

(i) Requirements relating to the basic purposes of title I of WIOA described in § 675.100 of this chapter;

(ii) Wage and labor standards;

(iii) Grievance procedures and judicial review;

(iv) Nondiscrimination;

(v) Eligibility of participants;

(vi) Allocation of funds to local areas;

(vii) Establishment and functions of local areas and Local WDBs;

(viii) Procedures for review and approval of local plans; and

(ix) Worker rights, participation, and protection.

(2) Any of the statutory or regulatory requirements applicable to the State under secs. 8 through 10 of the Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C. 49g-49i), except for requirements relating to:

(i) The provision of services to unemployment insurance claimants and veterans; and

(ii) Universal access to basic labor exchange services without cost to job seekers.

(3) Any of the statutory or regulatory requirements applicable under the Older Americans Act of 1965 (OAA) (42 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.), to State agencies on aging with respect to activities carried out using funds allotted under OAA sec. 506(b) (42 U.S.C. 3056d(b)), except for requirements relating to:

(i) The basic purposes of OAA;

(ii) Wage and labor standards;

(iii) Eligibility of participants in the activities; and

(iv) Standards for grant agreements.

(b) A workforce flexibility plan submitted under paragraph (a) of this section must include descriptions of:

(1) The process by which local areas in the State may submit and obtain State approval of applications for waivers of requirements under title I of WIOA;

(2) A description of the criteria the State will use to approve local area waiver requests and how such requests support implementation of the goals identified State Plan;

(3) The statutory and regulatory requirements of title I of WIOA that are likely to be waived by the State under the workforce flexibility plan;

(4) The statutory and regulatory requirements of secs. 8 through 10 of the Wagner-Peyser Act that are proposed for waiver, if any;

(5) The statutory and regulatory requirements of the OAA that are proposed for waiver, if any;

(6) The outcomes to be achieved by the waivers described in paragraphs (b)(1) through (5) of this section including, where appropriate, revisions to adjusted levels of performance included in the State or local plan under title I of WIOA, and a description of the data or other information the State will use to track and assess outcomes; and

(7) The measures to be taken to ensure appropriate accountability for Federal funds in connection with the waivers.

(c) A State's workforce flexibility plan may accompany the State's Unified or Combined State Plan, 2-year modification, or may be submitted separately as a modification to that plan.

(d) The Secretary may approve a workforce flexibility plan consistent with the period of approval of the State's Unified or Combined State Plan, and not for more than 5 years.

(e) Before submitting a workforce flexibility plan to the Secretary for approval, the State must provide adequate notice and a reasonable opportunity for comment on the proposed waiver requests under the workforce flexibility plan to all interested parties and to the general public.

(f) The Secretary will issue guidelines under which States may request designation as a work-flex State. These guidelines may require a State to implement an evaluation of the impact of work-flex in the State.

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