LEAP Authorization

Attachment 1: Workforce Investment Act of 1998, Section 171

Linking Employment Activities Pre-Release (LEAP) Evaluation

This page has been left blank for double-sided copying.

Public Law 105-220--Aug. 7, 1998 112 Stat. 936

Public Law 105-220

105th Congress

An Act

To consolidate, coordinate, and improve employment, training, literacy, and vocational rehabilitation programs in the United States, and for

^{other purposes.}

(EXCERPT: SECTION 171)

SEC. 171. DEMONSTRATION, PILOT, MULTISERVICE, RESEARCH, AND MULTISTATE PROJECTS.

(a) Strategic Plan.--

(1) In general.--After consultation with States, localities,

and other interested parties, the Secretary shall, every 2 years,

publish in the Federal Register, a plan that describes the

demonstration and pilot (including dislocated worker demonstration

and pilot), multiservice, research, and multistate project

priorities of the Department of Labor concerning employment and

training for the 5-year period following the submission of the

plan. Copies of the plan shall be transmitted to the appropriate

committees of Congress.

(2) Factors.--The plan published under paragraph (1) shall

contain strategies to address national employment and training

problems and take into account factors such as--

(A) the availability of existing research (as of the date

of the publication);

(B) the need to ensure results that have interstate

validity;

(C) the benefits of economies of scale and the efficiency

of proposed projects; and

(D) the likelihood that the results of the projects will be

useful to policymakers and stakeholders in addressing

employment and training problems.

(b) Demonstration and Pilot Projects.--

(1) In general.--Under a plan published under subsection (a),

the Secretary shall, through grants or contracts, carry out

demonstration and pilot projects for the purpose of developing and

implementing techniques and approaches, and demonstrating the

effectiveness of specialized methods, in addressing employment and

training needs. Such projects shall include the provision of direct

services to individuals to enhance employment opportunities and an

evaluation component and may include--

(A) the establishment of advanced manufacturing technology

skill centers developed through local partnerships of industry,

labor, education, community-based organizations, and economic

development organizations to meet unmet, high-tech skill needs

of local communities;

(B) projects that provide training to upgrade the skills of

employed workers who reside and are employed in enterprise

communities or empowerment zones;

(C) programs conducted jointly with the Department of

Defense to develop training programs utilizing computer-based

and other innovative learning technologies;

(D) projects that promote the use of distance learning,

enabling students to take courses through the use of media

technology such as videos, teleconferencing computers, and the

Internet;

(E) projects that assist in providing comprehensive

services to increase the employment rates of out-of-school

youth residing in targeted high poverty areas within

empowerment zones and enterprise communities;

(F) the establishment of partnerships with national

organizations with special expertise in developing, organizing,

and administering employment and training services, for

individuals with disabilities, at the national, State, and

local levels;

(G) projects to assist public housing authorities that

provide, to public housing residents, job training programs

that demonstrate success in upgrading the job skills and

promoting employment of the residents; and

(H) projects that assist local areas to develop and

implement local self-sufficiency standards to evaluate the

degree to which participants in programs under this title are

achieving self-sufficiency.

(2) Limitations.--

(A) Competitive awards.--Grants or contracts awarded for

carrying out demonstration and pilot projects under this

subsection shall be awarded only on a competitive basis, except

that a noncompetitive award may be made in the case of a

project that is funded jointly with other public or private

sector entities that provide a portion of the funding for the

project.

(B) Eligible entities.--Grants or contracts may be awarded

under this subsection only to--

(i) entities with recognized expertise in--

(I) conducting national demonstration projects;

(II) utilizing state-of-the-art demonstration

methods; or

(III) conducting evaluations of workforce

investment projects; or

(ii) State and local entities with expertise in

operating or overseeing workforce investment programs.

(C) Time limits.--The Secretary shall establish appropriate

time limits for carrying out demonstration and pilot projects

under this subsection.

(c) Multiservice Projects, Research Projects, and Multistate

Projects.--

(1) Multiservice projects.--Under a plan published under

subsection (a), the Secretary shall, through grants or contracts,

carry out multiservice projects--

(A) that will test an array of approaches to the provision

of employment and training services to a variety of targeted

populations;

(B) in which the entity carrying out the project, in

conjunction with employers, organized labor, and other groups

such as the disability community, will design, develop, and

test various training approaches in order to determine

effective practices; and

(C) that will assist in the development and replication of

effective service delivery strategies for targeted populations

for the national employment and training system as a whole.

(2) Research projects.--

(A) In general.--Under a plan published under subsection

(a), the Secretary shall, through grants or contracts, carry

out research projects that will contribute to the solution of

employment and training problems in the United States.

(B) Formula improvement study and report.--

(i) Study.--The Secretary shall conduct a 2-year study

concerning improvements in the formulas described in

section 132(b)(1)(B) and paragraphs (2)(A) and (3) of

section 133(b) (regarding distributing funds under subtitle

B to States and local areas for adult employment and

training activities). In conducting the study, the

Secretary shall examine means of improving the formulas

by--

(I) developing formulas based on statistically

reliable data;

(II) developing formulas that are consistent with

the goals and objectives of this title; and

(III) developing formulas based on organizational

and financial stability of State boards and local

boards.

(ii) Report.--The Secretary shall prepare and submit to

Congress a report containing the results of the study,

including recommendations for improved formulas.

(3) Multistate projects.--

(A) In general.--

(i) Authority.--Under a plan published under subsection

(a), the Secretary may, through grants or contracts, carry

out multistate projects that require demonstrated expertise

that is available at the national level to effectively

disseminate best practices and models for implementing

employment and training services, address the specialized

employment and training needs of particular service

populations, or address industry-wide skill shortages.

(ii) Design of grants.--Grants or contracts awarded

under this subsection shall be designed to obtain

information relating to the provision of services under

different economic conditions or to various demographic

groups in order to provide guidance at the national and

State levels about how best to administer specific

employment and training services.

(4) Limitations.--

(A) Competitive awards.--Grants or contracts awarded for

carrying out projects under this subsection in amounts that

exceed $100,000 shall be awarded only on a competitive basis,

except that a noncompetitive award may be made in the case of a

project that is funded jointly with other public or private

sector entities that provide a substantial portion of

assistance under the grant or contract for the project.

(B) Time limits.--A grant or contract shall not be awarded

under this subsection to the same organization for more than 3

consecutive years unless such grant or contract is

competitively reevaluated within such period.

(C) Peer review.--

(i) In general.--The Secretary shall utilize a peer

review process--

(I) to review and evaluate all applications for

grants in amounts that exceed $500,000 that are

submitted under this section; and

(II) to review and designate exemplary and

promising programs under this section.

(ii) Availability of funds.--The Secretary is

authorized to use funds provided under this section to

carry out peer review activities under this subparagraph.

(D) Priority.--In awarding grants or contracts under this

subsection, priority shall be provided to entities with

nationally recognized expertise in the methods, techniques, and

knowledge of workforce investment activities and shall include

appropriate time limits, established by the Secretary, for the

duration of such projects.

(d) Dislocated Worker Projects.--Of the amount made available

pursuant to section 132(a)(2)(A) for any program year, the Secretary

shall use not more than 10 percent of such amount to carry out

demonstration and pilot projects, multiservice projects, and multistate

projects, relating to the employment and training needs of dislocated

workers. Of the requirements of this section, such projects shall be

subject only to the provisions relating to review and evaluation of

applications under subsection (c)(4)(C). Such projects may include

demonstration and pilot projects relating to promoting self-employment,

promoting job creation, averting dislocations, assisting dislocated

farmers, assisting dislocated fishermen, and promoting public works.

Such projects shall be administered through the dislocated worker

office described in section 173(b).