Workforce Innovation Fund Grant Program Solicitation for Grant Applications Supplemental Supporting Statement

Solicitation for Grant Applications,

Workforce Innovation Fund Grant Program

Supplemental Justification

Supplemental Supporting Statement A: Justification

This request seeks OMB approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act for the unique information collection requirements in the Workforce Innovation Fund (WIF) Grant Program Solicitation for Grant Applications (SGA). The Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor will announce the availability of up to $53 million in grant funds to be awarded under the WIF grant program and anticipates awarding between 8 - 15 grants. These funds will support innovative approaches that generate long-term improvements in the performance of the public workforce system, outcomes for job seekers and employers, and cost-effectiveness. All projects funded under the WIF will be rigorously evaluated in order to build a body of knowledge about what works in workforce development. The availability of approximately $43 million in WIF grants is authorized by the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2013 (P.L. 113-6). ETA also intends to use up to $10 million of Fiscal Year 2014 WIF funds, the availability of which is authorized in the Consolidated Funding Act, 2014 (P.L. 113-76).

Applications include the following information collections: 1) Form SF-424 “Application for Federal Assistance;” separately cleared under OMB control number 4040-0004; 2) Project Budget; 3) Project Narrative; 4) Program Evaluation Plan and Supplementary Evaluation Budget Narrative; and 5) Attachments to the Project Narrative.

Electronic availability:

This grant solicitation is available on the grants.gov Web site. Based on past DOL experience, the Department anticipates 80 percent of responses will be submitted electronically.

Small Entities:

This information collection will not have a significant impact on a substantial number of small entities.

Assurances of confidentiality:

These grant solicitations do not offer applicants assurances of confidentiality.

Special circumstances:

This SGA implicates no special circumstances.

Burden:

Based on past experience, the DOL expects to receive approximately 150 applications. The ETA estimates public reporting burden for the information collection to average 20 hours per response for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining needed data, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

150 applications x 20 hours =3,000 hours.

The DOL has increased the October 2013, average hourly earnings in the professional and business services industry of $30.38 by 40 percent (total $42.53) to monetize this burden. See The Employment Situation—December 2013, DOL, Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/empsit_01102014.pdf at 35.

3,000 hours x $42.53 = $127,590.

The DOL associates no other burden costs with this information collection. In addition to the application, each grantee will be required to submit quarterly financial, performance, and narrative reports to the ETA. Those information collection requirements will be cleared under a separate control number.

Total burden: 150 respondents, 150 responses, 3,000 hours, $0 other cost burden.

Supplemental Supporting Statement B: Statistical Methods

This information collection does not employ statistical methods.

- 2 -