The Job Training Partnership Act: Training Programs at a Glance

94-807 EPW

Updated February 19, 1998

CRS Report for Congress

Received through the CRS Web

The Job Training Partnership Act:

Training Programs at a Glance

Molly Forman

Ann Lordeman

Education and Public Welfare Division

The Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA), first enacted in 1982, is the country’s chief

training legislation. JTPA is primarily composed of programs focusing on the training

needs of economically disadvantaged individuals facing serious barriers to employment.

Programs are administered by the Department of Labor; most are permanently authorized.

FY1998 appropriations for JTPA total approximately $5.0 billion. For FY1999, the

President has requested nearly $5.2 billion, an increase of 3% over the FY1998 total.

Unless otherwise noted, FY1998 funds are available for JTPA program year 1998 (July

1, 1998, through June 30, 1999) and FY1999 funds will be available for program year

1999 (July 1, 1999, through June 30, 2000).

The 105th Congress is considering legislation to reform federal education and training

programs. The House has passed the Employment, Training, and Literacy Act of 1997

(H.R. 1385), which includes amendments to JTPA among its provisions, The Senate

Labor and Human Resources Committee has reported the Workforce Investment Act of

1997 (S. 1186), which would (among other things) repeal JTPA and replace it with Title

III of the Act.1

Adult Training Program (Title II-A). Eligibility: age 22 and older, at least 90%

economically disadvantaged, at least 65% “hard to serve;” Administration: formula

grants to state and local entities; FY1998 Appropriation: $955 million; President’s

FY1999 Request: $1 billion.

Summer Youth Training Program (Title II-B). Eligibility: age 14-21,

economically disadvantaged; Administration: formula grants to state and local entities;

FY1998 Appropriation: $871 million for the summer of 1998; President’s FY1999

Request: $871 million for the summer of 1999.

Youth Training Program (Title II-C). Eligibility: age 14-21, at least 90%

economically disadvantaged, at least 65% “hard to serve,” at least 50% out of school;

1

For further information on consolidation legislation, see CRS Report 97-536, Job Training:

Legislation in the 105th Congress, by Ann Lordeman.

Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

CRS-2

Administration: formula grants to state and local entities; FY1998 Appropriation: $130

million; President’s FY1999 Request: $130 million.

Economic Dislocation and Worker Adjustment Assistance (EDWAA) Program

(Title III.) Eligibility: lost job or received notice, unlikely to return to current job or

industry; long-term unemployed; self-employed, unemployed due to economic conditions

or natural disaster; Administration: formula grants to state and local entities; FY1998

Appropriation: $1.4 billion; President’s FY1999 Request: $1.5 billion .

Defense Conversion Assistance Program (Title III-B, section 325). Eligibility:

same as EDWAA and laid off, terminated, or received notice as a result of base closures

or reductions in defense spending or in the export of defense articles and services;

Administration: discretionary grants to states, substate grantees, and others.

Authorization expired at end of FY1997; no funds appropriated for FY1998.

Defense Diversification Program (Title III-B, Section 325(a)). Eligibility: certain

members of the armed forces, certain civilian employees of Departments of Defense and

Energy, and some defense contractor employees; Administration: discretionary grants to

states, substate grantees, and others. Appropriations authorized for FY1993 only.

Clean Air Employment Transition Assistance Program (Title III-B, Section

326). Eligibility: same as EDWAA program and laid off, terminated, or received notice

as a result of compliance with the Clean Air Act; Administration: discretionary grants to

states, substate grantees, and others. Last funded in FY1993; authorization expired at end

of FY1995.

Native Americans Programs (Title IV-A, Section 401). Eligibility: Indians,

Eskimos, Aleuts, Native Hawaiians, or other Native Americans; economically

disadvantaged, unemployed, or underemployed; Administration: discretionary grants to

tribal and other Native American groups; FY1998 Appropriation: $54 million;

President’s FY1999 Request: $54 million.

Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers Program (Title IV-A, Section 402).

Eligibility: migrant and seasonal farmworkers and their dependents; Administration:

discretionary grants to public, private, and nonprofit organizations; FY1998

Appropriation: $71 million; President’s FY1999 Request: $71 million.

Job Corps (Title IV-B). Eligibility: age 14-24, economically disadvantaged;

Administration: federally administered primarily via contracts with corporations and

nonprofit organizations; FY1998 Appropriation: $1.2 billion; President’s FY1999

Request: $1.3 billion.

Veterans’ Employment Programs (Title IV-C). Eligibility: service disabled

veterans, Vietnam veterans, and veterans recently separated from service; Administration:

discretionary grants to states; FY1998 Appropriation: $7 million; President’s FY1999

Request: $7 million.

Youth Fair Chance Program (Title IV-H). Eligibility: age 14-30; 16-19 for job

guarantee program; Administration: discretionary grants to communities. Authorization

expired at end of FY1997; no funds appropriated for FY1998.

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Microenterprise Grants Program (Title IV-I). Eligibility: economically

disadvantaged owners of commercial enterprise with five or fewer employees;

Administration: discretionary grants to states and Title IV-A grantees. Authorization

expired at end of FY1997; no funds appropriated for FY1998.

Disaster Relief Employment Assistance Program (Title IV-J). Eligibility:

eligible for JTPA dislocated workers program, Native American programs, or migrant and

seasonal farmworker programs or unemployed as result of a disaster; Administration:

discretionary grants to states. No funds appropriated for FY1998.

Jobs for Employable Dependent Individuals Incentive Bonus Program (Title

V). Eligibility: states that have provided training to absent parents of children receiving

Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and/or blind or disabled recipients of

Supplemental Security Income (SSI); Administration: bonus payments to states. Program

never funded; authorization expired at end of FY1996.

In addition to these programs, Title IV of JTPA authorizes a number of other

national activities including: pilot and demonstration projects, research and evaluation,

maintenance of a Labor Market Information (LMI) system, and the National Occupational

Information Coordinating Committee (NOICC). For FY1998, Congress has appropriated

$91 million for these four activities, including $25 million for an out-of-school youth

initiative under Title IV pilots and demonstrations. For FY1999, the President has

requested $47 million for pilot and demonstration projects, research and evaluation, and

NOICC. LMI funding would be consolidated with the funding for activities authorized

under the Wagner-Peyser Act. Therefore, no funding for LMI is requested under JTPA.

The FY1998 appropriation also included $250 million in advance funding for a new

Opportunity Areas for Out-of-School Youth (OASY) initiative for FY1999, contingent

upon enactment of authorizing legislation by July 1, 1998. While authorizing legislation

has not yet been enacted, the President is requesting $250 million in advance funding for

Program Year 2000 (July 1, 1999 through June 30, 2000). The program would award

grants to high poverty communities to provide training and other assistance to out-ofschool youth for the purpose of raising their employment rate.

For further information on JTPA programs, see CRS Report 94-862, Job Training

Partnership Act: A Compendium of Programs, by Molly R. Forman and Ann M.

Lordeman.