Yesterday, DCFPI released a “resource map“ of workforce development in the District of Columbia. The map is a visual snapshot of services and funding to help DC residents get and retain jobs.
In its efforts, the District uses both federal and local funds. So what are the main sources of federal funding?
The Workforce Investment Act (WIA) is responsible for much of the federal workforce funding to the District. WIA, as it is known, was put in place to consolidate many of the services the federal government funds. Title I of the act funds training for adult workers, dislocated workers, seniors and youth. You can see where the funds land in DC by looking at the “Federal Grants” line in the map. For example, WIA adult funding goes toward DC Works! Career Centers’ One-Stops, in the government lingo’ as well as toward Employer Services and Program Performance Monitoring in within the Department of Employment Services. What is program performance monitoring? It is a catchall category in the local Department of Employment Services budget which includes federal as well as local monies for adult job training.
WIA youth money funds the city’s year-round program for youth, and the Senior Community Service Employment grants helps low-income residents 55 and older find work. Once again, you can see this by looking in the “Federal Grants” line.
Yet the Workforce Investment Act goes beyond adult and youth job training. Title II of the act authorizes funding for adult and family and literacy programs. The funding for this is found within the Office of the State Superintendent and comes through the U.S. Department of Education.
Title IV addresses training for adults with disabilities. The federal funds come through the Rehabilitation Act and fund work readiness and job training services within the District’s Department of Disability Services.
Another source of federal funding is in the human services cluster. The employment program within the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) uses some federal monies, though a majority is done with local dollars. There is also a federal match for the employment program within the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps.
Tomorrow we’ll go more in depth on how we spend local dollars on workforce development here in DC.
