# Workforce Investment Act; Lower Living Standard Income Level

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URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3AE7-10662

## Record

- **Collection:** Federal Register
- **Document type:** Notice
- **Published:** June 4, 2007
- **Citation:** 72 FR 30858

## Text

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Workforce Investment Act; Lower Living Standard Income Level

AGENCY:

Employment and Training Administration, Labor.

ACTION:

Notice of determination of lower living standard income level.

SUMMARY:

Under Title I of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-220), the Secretary of Labor annually determines the Lower Living Standard Income level (LLSIL) for uses described in the law. WIA defines the term “Low Income Individual” as one who qualifies under various criteria, including an individual who received income for a six-month period that does not exceed the higher level of the poverty line or 70 percent of the LLSIL. This issuance provides the Secretary's annual LLSIL for 2007 and references the current 2007 Health and Human Services “Poverty Guidelines.”

DATES:

Effective Date:
This notice is effective on the date of publication in the
Federal Register
.

ADDRESSES:

Send written comments to: Mr. Evan Rosenberg, Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Room N-4464, Washington, DC 20210.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Please contact Mr. Evan Rosenberg, telephone 202-693-3593; fax 202-693-3532 (these are not toll free numbers).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

It is the purpose of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 “to provide workforce investment activities, through statewide and local workforce investment systems,

that increase the employment, retention, and earnings of participants, and increase occupational skill attainment by participants, and as a result, improve the quality of the workforce, reduce welfare dependency, and enhance the productivity and competitiveness of the Nation.”

The LLSIL is used for several purposes under WIA. Specifically, WIA Section 101(25) defines the term “low income individual” for eligibility purposes, and Sections 127(b)(2)(C) and 132(b)(1)(B)(v)(IV) define the terms “disadvantaged youth” and “disadvantaged adult” in terms of the poverty line or LLSIL for state formula allotments. The Governor and state/local workforce investment boards (WIBs) use the LLSIL for determining eligibility for youth, eligibility for employed adult workers for certain services and for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). We encourage the Governors and state/local WIBs to consult WIA regulations and the preamble to the WIA Final Rule (published at 65 FR 49294 August 11, 2000) for more specific guidance in applying the LLSIL to program requirements. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published the annual 2007 update of the poverty-level guidelines in the
Federal Register
at 72 FR 3147-3148 on January 24, 2007. The HHS 2007 Poverty guidelines may also be found on the Internet at:
http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/07fedreg.htm.
ETA plans to have the 2007 LLSIL available on its Web site at
http://www.doleta.gov/llsil/
.

WIA Section 101(24) defines the LLSIL as “that income level (adjusted for regional, metropolitan, urban and rural differences and family size) determined annually by the Secretary [of Labor] based on the most recent lower living family budget issued by the Secretary.” The most recent lower living family budget was issued by the Secretary in the fall of 1981. The four-person urban family budget estimates, previously published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), provided the basis for the Secretary to determine the LLSIL. BLS terminated the four-person family budget series in 1982, after publication of the fall 1981 estimates. Currently, BLS provides data to ETA through which it develops the LLSIL tables.

ETA published the 2006 updates to the LLSIL in the
Federal Register
of June 1, 2006, at 71 FR 31215. This notice again updates the LLSIL to reflect cost of living increases for 2006, by applying the percentage change in the December 2006, Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), compared with the December 2005, CPI-U to each of the June 1, 2006, LLSIL figures. Those updated figures for a family-of-four are listed in Table 1, by region for both metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas. Figures in all of the accompanying tables are rounded up to the nearest tenth. Since low income individuals, “disadvantaged adult” and “disadvantaged youth” may be determined by family income at 70 percent of the LLSIL, pursuant to WIA Sections 101(25), 127(b)(2)(C), and 132(b)(1)(B)(v)(IV), respectively, those figures are listed below as well.

Jurisdictions included in the various regions, based generally on Census Divisions of the U.S. Department of Commerce, are as follows:

Northeast

Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Virgin Islands.

Midwest

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

South

Alabama, American Samoa, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Northern Marianas, Oklahoma, Palau, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Kentucky, Louisiana, Marshall Islands, Maryland, Micronesia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

West

Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Additionally, separate figures have been provided for Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam as indicated in Table 2.

For Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam, the year 2006 figures were updated from the June 1, 2006, “State Index” based on the ratio of the urban change in the state (using Anchorage for Alaska and Honolulu for Hawaii and Guam) compared to the West regional metropolitan change, and then applying that index to the West regional metropolitan change.

Data on 23 selected MSAs are also available. These are based on semiannual CPI-U changes for a 12-month period ending in December 2006. The updated LLSIL figures for these MSAs and 70 percent of the LLSIL are reported in Table 3.

Table 4 below lists each of the various figures at 70 percent of the updated 2007 LLSIL for family sizes of one to six persons. For families larger than six persons, an amount equal to the difference between the six-person and the five-person family income levels should be added to the six-person family income level for each additional person in the family. Where the poverty level for a particular family size is greater than the corresponding LLSIL figure, the figure is indicated in parentheses. Table 5, 100 percent of LLSIL, is used to determine self-sufficiency as noted at 20 CFR 663.230 of WIA Regulations and WIA Section 134(d)(3)(A)(ii).

Use of These Data

Governors should designate the appropriate LLSILs for use within the state from Tables 1 through 3. Tables 4 and 5 may be used with any of the levels designated. The Governor's designation may be provided by disseminating information on MSAs and metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas within the state, or it may involve further calculations. For example, the State of New Jersey may have four or more LLSIL figures for Northeast metropolitan, Northeast non-metropolitan, portions of the State in the New York City MSA, and those in the Philadelphia MSA. If a workforce investment area includes areas that would be covered by more than one figure, the Governor may determine which is to be used.

Under 20 CFR 661.110, a state's policies and measures for the workforce investment system shall be accepted by the Secretary to the extent that they are consistent with the WIA and the WIA regulations.

Disclaimer on Statistical Uses

It should be noted, the publication of these figures is only for the purpose of meeting the requirements specified by WIA as defined in the law and regulations. BLS has not revised the lower living family budget since 1981, and has no plans to do so. The four-person urban family budget estimates series has been terminated. The CPI-U adjustments used to update the LLSIL for this publication are not precisely comparable, most notably because certain tax items were included in the 1981 LLSIL, but are not in the CPI-U. Thus, these figures should not be used for any statistical purposes, and are valid only for those purposes under WIA as defined in the law and regulations.

Lower Living Standard Income Level for 2007

Under Title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (Pub. L. 105-220) (WIA), the Secretary of Labor annually determines the Lower Living Standard Income Level (LLSIL). This Notice announces the LLSIL Tables for 2007. WIA requires the Department of Labor to update and publish the LLSIL tables annually. The LLSIL tables are used for several purposes under WIA, determining eligibility for youth and for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit.

Signed at Washington, DC, this 29th day, of May, 2007.
Emily Stover DeRocco,
Assistant Secretary, ETA.

Attachments

Table 1.—Lower Living Standard Income Level (for a Family of Four Persons) by Region
1

Region
2

2007
adjusted
LLSIL

70 percent
LLSIL

Northeast:

Metro
$36,070
$25,250

Non-Metro
3

34,630
24,240

Midwest:

Metro
32,110
22,480

Non-Metro
30,450
21,320

South:

Metro
30,790
21,550

Non-Metro
29,700
20,790

West:

Metro
35,220
24,660

Non-Metro
4

34,080
23,860

1
For ease of use, these figures have been rounded to the next highest ten dollars.

2
Metropolitan area measures were calculated from the weighted average CPI-Us for city size classes A and B/C. Non-metropolitan area measures were calculated from the CPI-Us for city size class D.

3
Non-metropolitan area percent changes for the Northeast region are no longer available. The Non-metropolitan percent change was calculated using the U.S. average CPI-U for city size Class D.

4
Non-metropolitan area percent changes for the West region are unpublished data.

Table 2.—Lower Living Standard Income Level (for a Family of Four Persons)—Alaska, Hawaii and Guam
1

Region

2007
adjusted
LLSIL

70 percent
LLSIL

Alaska:

Metro
$43,340
$30,340

Non-Metro
2

42,760
29,930

Hawaii, Guam:

Metro
46,370
32,460

Non-Metro
2

45,650
31,960

1
Rounded to next highest ten dollars.

2
Non-Metropolitan percent changes for Alaska, Hawaii and Guam were calculated from the CPI-Us for city size Class D in the Western Region.

Table 3.—Lower Living Standard Income Level (for a Family of Four Persons) 23 MSAs
1

Metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs)

2007
Adjusted
LLSIL

70 percent
LLSIL

Anchorage, AK
$43,340
$30,340

Atlanta, GA
30,470
21,330

Boston-Brockton-Nashua, MA/NH/ME/CT
39,520
27,670

Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL/IN/WI
33,580
23,510

Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH/KY/IN
32,410
22,690

Cleveland-Akron, OH
33,020
23,120

Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX
29,510
20,660

Denver-Boulder-Greeley, CO
34,040
23,830

Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI
31,710
22,200

Honolulu, HI
46,370
32,460

Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX
28,700
20,090

Kansas City, MO/KS
31,250
21,870

Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA
37,220
26,050

Milwaukee-Racine, WI
31,860
22,300

Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN/WI
32,350
22,640

New York-Northern NJ-Long Island, NY/NJ/CT/PA
38,160
26,710

Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City, PA/NJ/DE/MD
35,230
24,660

Pittsburgh, PA
38,510
26,960

St. Louis, MO/IL
30,920
21,650

San Diego, CA
39,980
27,990

San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA
37,480
26,240

Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton, WA
37,810
26,470

Washington-Baltimore, DC/MD/VA/WV
2

38,290
26,800

1
Rounded to next highest ten dollars.

2
Baltimore and Washington are now calculated as a single metropolitan statistical area.

Table 4.—Seventy Percent of Updated 2007 Lower Living Standard Income Level (LLSIL), by Family Size

To use the seventy percent LLSIL value, where it is stipulated for WIA programs, individuals must begin by locating the region or metropolitan area where they reside. These are listed in Tables 1, 2 and 3. Individuals must locate their region or metropolitan statistical area and then find the seventy percent LLSIL amount for that location. The seventy percent LLSIL figures are listed in the last column to the right on each of the three tables. These figures apply to a family of four. Larger and smaller family eligibility is based on a percentage of the family of four. To determine eligibility for other size families consult the table below.

To use Table 4, locate the seventy percent LLSIL value that applies to the

individual's region or metropolitan area from Tables 1, 2 or 3. Find the same number in the “family of four” column of Table 4. Move left or right across that row to the size that corresponds to the individual's family unit. That figure is the maximum household income the individual is permitted in order to qualify as economically disadvantaged under WIA.

Where the HHS poverty level for a particular family size is greater than the corresponding LLSIL figure, the LLSIL figure appears in a shaded block. Individuals from these size families may consult the 2007 HHS poverty guidelines found in the
Federal Register
, Vol. 72, No. 15, January 24, 2007, pp. 3147-3148 (on the Internet at
http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/07fedreg.htm
) to find the higher eligibility standard. Individuals from Alaska and Hawaii should consult the HHS guidelines for the generally higher poverty levels that apply in their states.

Family of one
Family of two
Family of three
Family of four
Family of five
Family of six

$7,240
$11,860
$16,280
$20,090
$23,710
$27,730

7,440
12,190
16,740
20,660
24,380
28,520

7,490
12,270
16,840
20,790
24,540
28,700

7,680
12,580
17,270
21,320
25,160
29,430

7,680
12,590
17,280
21,330
25,170
29,440

7,760
12,720
17,460
21,550
25,430
29,740

7,800
12,780
17,540
21,650
25,550
29,880

7,880
12,910
17,720
21,870
25,810
30,190

8,000
13,100
17,990
22,200
26,200
30,640

8,030
13,160
18,070
22,300
26,320
30,780

8,100
13,270
18,210
22,480
26,530
31,030

8,160
13,360
18,340
22,640
26,720
31,250

8,170
13,390
18,380
22,690
26,780
31,320

8,330
13,650
18,730
23,120
27,290
31,910

8,470
13,880
19,050
23,510
27,750
32,450

8,580
14,060
19,310
23,830
28,120
32,890

8,590
14,080
19,330
23,860
28,160
32,930

8,730
14,310
19,640
24,240
28,610
33,460

8,880
14,550
19,980
24,660
29,100
34,040

9,090
14,900
20,460
25,250
29,800
34,850

9,380
15,370
21,110
26,050
30,740
35,950

9,450
15,490
21,260
26,240
30,970
36,220

9,530
15,620
21,450
26,470
31,240
36,530

9,620
15,760
21,640
26,710
31,520
36,860

9,650
15,820
21,710
26,800
31,630
36,990

9,710
15,910
21,840
26,960
31,820
37,210

9,970
16,330
22,420
27,670
32,660
38,190

10,080
16,520
22,680
27,990
33,030
38,630

10,780
17,660
24,250
29,930
35,320
41,310

10,930
17,910
24,580
30,340
35,810
41,870

11,510
18,860
25,890
31,960
37,720
44,110

11,690
19,160
26,300
32,460
38,310
44,800

Table 5.—Updated 2007 LLSIL (100%), by Family Size

To use the LLSIL to determine the minimum level for establishing self-sufficiency criteria at the state or local level, begin by locating the metropolitan area or region from Table 1, 2 or 3. The individual must locate their region or metropolitan statistical area and then find the 2007 Adjusted LLSIL amount for that location. These figures apply to a family of four. Locate the corresponding number in the family of four in the column below. Move left or right across that row to the size that corresponds to the individual's family unit. That figure is the minimum figure States must set for determining whether employment leads to self-sufficiency under WIA programs.

Family of one
Family of two
Family of three
Family of four
Family of five
Family of six

$10,340
$16,940
$23,250
$28,700
$33,870
$39,610

10,630
17,420
23,910
29,510
34,830
40,730

10,700
17,530
24,060
29,700
35,050
40,990

10,970
17,970
24,670
30,450
35,940
42,030

10,970
17,980
24,690
30,470
35,960
42,050

11,090
18,170
24,940
30,790
36,340
42,500

11,140
18,250
25,050
30,920
36,490
42,670

11,250
18,440
25,320
31,250
36,880
43,130

11,420
18,710
25,690
31,710
37,420
43,760

11,470
18,800
25,810
31,860
37,600
43,970

11,560
18,950
26,010
32,110
37,890
44,320

11,650
19,090
26,210
32,350
38,180
44,650

11,670
19,130
26,260
32,410
38,250
44,730

11,890
19,490
26,750
33,020
38,970
45,570

12,090
19,820
27,200
33,580
39,630
46,350

12,260
20,090
27,580
34,040
40,170
46,980

12,270
20,110
27,610
34,080
40,220
47,040

12,470
20,440
28,060
34,630
40,870
47,790

12,680
20,780
28,530
35,220
41,560
48,610

12,690
20,790
28,540
35,230
41,580
48,620

12,990
21,290
29,220
36,070
42,570
49,780

13,400
21,960
30,150
37,220
43,920
51,370

13,500
22,120
30,360
37,480
44,230
51,730

13,620
22,310
30,630
37,810
44,620
52,180

13,740
22,520
30,910
38,160
45,030
52,670

13,790
22,600
31,020
38,290
45,190
52,850

13,870
22,730
31,200
38,510
45,450
53,150

14,230
23,320
32,020
39,520
46,640
54,540

14,400
23,590
32,390
39,980
47,180
55,180

15,400
25,230
34,640
42,760
50,460
59,010

15,610
25,580
35,110
43,340
51,150
59,810

16,440
26,940
36,980
45,650
53,870
63,000

16,700
27,360
37,560
46,370
54,720
64,000

[FR Doc. E7-10662 Filed 6-1-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-FT-P

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Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/fr%3AE7-10662. Public record. Not legal advice.