Unemployment Insurance
Published on AidPage by
IDILOGIC on Jun 24, 2005
Purpose of this program:
To administer this program of unemployment insurance for eligible workers through Federal and State cooperation; to administer payment of trade adjustment assistance; disaster unemployment assistance; unemployment compensation for Federal employees and ex-service members.
Possible uses and use restrictions...
The States have the direct responsibility for establishing and operating their own unemployment insurance programs, while the Federal Government finances the cost of administration. State unemployment insurance tax collections are used solely for the payment of benefits. Federal unemployment insurance tax collections are used to finance expenses deemed necessary for proper and efficient administration of the State unemployment insurance laws; to reimburse State funds for one-half the costs of extended benefits paid under the provisions of State laws which conform to the provisions of the Social Security Act and the Federal Unemployment Tax Act; and to make repayable advances to States when needed to pay benefit costs. Funds used for benefit payments may not be used for any program administration costs nor for training, job search, and job relocation payments. Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) is paid out of funds provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Benefits for former Federal civilian employees after October 1, 1983, former members of the Armed Forces, (including postal workers) are paid out of the Federal Employees Compensation Account (FECA) in the Unemployment Trust Fund, subject to reimbursement by the former employing agency. Under the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program, weekly trade readjustment allowances (TRA), TAA training costs (including subsistence and transportation), job search allowances, relocation allowances, and the administration of TAA training are paid out of funds of the Federal Unemployment Benefits and Allowance Appropriation Account (FUBA).
Who is eligible to apply...
State unemployment insurance agencies, including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
Credentials/Documentation
Award of grants to States are conditioned on the Secretary of Labor's determination that the States' unemployment compensation laws are in conformity with the Social Security Act and the Federal Unemployment Tax Act and that State practice complies with State law. Costs will be determined in accordance with OMB Circular No. A-87 for State and local governments.
Note:This is a brief description of the credentials or documentation required prior to, or along with, an application for assistance.
About this section:
This section indicates who can apply to the Federal government for assistance and the criteria the potential applicant must satisfy.
For example, individuals may be eligible for research grants, and the criteria to be satisfied may be that they have a professional or scientific degree,
3 years of research experience, and be a citizen of the United States. Universities, medical schools, hospitals, or State and local governments may also be eligible.
Where State governments are eligible, the type of State agency will be indicated (State welfare agency or State agency on aging) and the criteria that they
must satisfy.
Certain federal programs (e.g., the Pell Grant program which provides grants to students) involve intermediate levels of application processing, i.e., applications
are transmitted through colleges or universities that are neither the direct applicant nor the ultimate beneficiary. For these programs,
the criteria that the intermediaries must satisfy are also indicated, along with intermediaries who are not eligible.
How to apply...
Application Procedure:
State applies for grants to the regional office of the Employment and Training Administration, based on target performance levels issued to the States through ETA regional offices pursuant to a nationally developed workload estimates. All plans are constructed in terms of selected workloads to be undertaken and the resources and numbers of employees needed to accomplish them. This program is excluded from coverage under OMB Circular No. A-110.
Note: Each program will indicate whether applications are to be submitted to the Federal headquarters, regional or local office, or to a State or local government office.
Award Procedure:
The Regional Administrator for Employment and Training issues a preliminary approval within the dollar target provided by the ETA National Office, based on economic assumptions and program guidelines developed by the National Office.
Note: Grant payments may be made by a letter of credit, advance by Treasury check, or reimbursement by Treasury check.
Awards may be made by the headquarters office directly to the applicant, an agency field office, a regional office,
or by an authorized county office. The assistance may pass through the initial applicant for further distribution by
intermediate level applicants to groups or individuals in the private sector.
Deadlines and process...
Deadlines
State plans are submitted to the appropriate Regional Office for final approval no later than mid-September.
Note:
When available, this section indicates the deadlines for applications to the funding agency which will
be stated in terms of the date(s) or between what dates the application should be received.
When not available, applicants should contact the funding agency for deadline information.
Range of Approval/Disapproval Time
Approximately 45 days at the Regional Office level.
Preapplication Coordination
The standard application forms as furnished by the Federal agency and required by OMB Circular No. A-102 must be used for this program. Eligible applicants are furnished applications (State Quality Service Plan) by the Employment and Training Administration for this program. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.
Note:
This section indicates whether any prior coordination or approval is required with governmental or nongovernmental units
prior to the submission of a formal application to the federal funding agency.
Appeals
Contact Federal agency.
Note:
In some cases, there are no provisions for appeal. Where applicable, this section discusses appeal procedures or allowable rework time for resubmission
of applications to be processed by the funding agency. Appeal procedures vary with individual programs and are either listed in this section or
applicants are referred to appeal procedures documented in the relevant Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).
Renewals
Not applicable.
Note:
In some instances, renewal procedures may be the same as for the application procedure, e.g., for projects of a non-continuing nature renewals will be treated as new, competing applications; for projects of an ongoing nature, renewals may be given annually.
Who can benefit...
All workers whose wages are subject to State unemployment insurance laws, Federal civilian employees, ex- service members, trade readjustment allowance for workers who become unemployed or underemployed becuase of the adverse effect of increased imports or becuase of shifts in production outside the U.S.,and workers whose unemployment is caused by a Presidentially declared disaster under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, are eligible if they are involuntarily unemployed, able to work, available for work, meet the eligibility and qualifying requirements of the State law, and are free from disqualifications. Individual State information and eligibility requirements are available from local employment offices.
Beneficiaries
About this section:
This section lists the ultimate beneficiaries of a program, the criteria they must satisfy and who specifically is not eligible. The applicant and beneficiary will generally be the same for programs that provide assistance directly from a Federal agency. However, financial assistance that passes through State or local governments will have different applicants and beneficiaries since the assistance is transmitted to private sector beneficiaries who are not obligated to request or apply for the assistance.
What types of assistance...
Formula Grants
Allocations of money to States or their subdivisions in accordance with distribution formulas prescribed by law or administrative regulation, for activities of a continuing nature not confined to a specific project.
Direct Payments with Unrestricted Use
Financial assistance from the Federal government provided directly to beneficiaries who satisfy Federal eligibility requirements with no restrictions being imposed on the recipient as to how the money is spent. Included are payments under retirement, pension, and compensatory programs.
How much financial aid...
Range and Average of Financial Assistance
Grants: $2,000,000 to $355,000,000. Average: $42,500,000.
Note:
This section lists the representative range (smallest to largest) of the amount of financial assistance available. These figures are based upon funds awarded in the past fiscal year and the current fiscal year to date. Also indicated is an approximate average amount of awards which were made in the past and current fiscal years.
Obligations
(Grants) FY 02 $2,582,069,000; FY 03 est $2,523,487,000; and FY 04 est $2,504,575,000 and FY (05) est $2,589,617,000. (Benefits) FY 02 $43,060,000,000; FY 03 est $43,735,000,000; FY 04 est $41,582,000,000; and FY 05 est. $40,905,000,000.
Note:
The dollar amounts listed in this section represent obligations for the past fiscal year (PY), estimates for the current fiscal year (CY), and estimates for the budget fiscal year (BY) as reported by the Federal agencies. Obligations for non-financial assistance programs indicate the administrative expenses involved in the operation of a program.
Account Identification
20-8042-0-7-999.
Note:
Note: This 11-digit budget account identification code represents the account which funds a particular program.
This code should be consistent with the code given for the program area as specified in Appendix III of the Budget of the United States Government.
Examples of funded projects...
See Uses and Use Restrictions Section of the program.
About this section
This section indicates the different types of projects which have been funded in the past. Only projects funded under Project Grants or Direct Payments for Specified Use should be listed here. The examples give potential applicants an idea of the types of projects that may be accepted for funding. The agency should list at least five examples of the most recently funded projects.
Program accomplishments...
State agencies pay unemployment compensation to eligible workers and collect State unemployment taxes from employers. These agencies also pay unemployment benefits and adjustment allowances to eligible former Federal civilian employees (UCFE), ex-service members (UCX), disaster unemployment assistance (DUA), and trade-impacted workers (TRA).
Criteria for selecting proposals...
Not applicable.
Assistance considerations...
Length and Time Phasing of Assistance
Annual grants. Financing of administrative costs is accomplished through Letter of Credit drawdowns needed to meet immediate cash requirements.
Formula and Matching Requirements
Matching requirements - not applicable. No formula imposed by law.
Note:
A formula may be based on population, per capita income, and other statistical factors. Applicants are informed whether there are any matching requirements to be met when participating in the cost of a project. In general, the matching share represents that portion of the project costs not borne by the Federal government. Attachment F of OMB Circular No. A-102 (Office of Management and Budget) sets forth the criteria and procedures for the evaluation of matching share requirements which may be cash or in-kind contributions made by State and local governments or other agencies, institutions, private organizations, or individuals to satisfy matching requirements of Federal grants or loans.
Cash contributions represent the grantees' cash outlay, including the outlay of money contributed to the grantee by other public agencies, institutions, private organizations, or individuals. When authorized by Federal regulation, Federal funds received from other grants may be considered as the grantees' cash contribution.
In-kind contributions represent the value of noncash contributions provided by the grantee, other public agencies and institutions, private organizations or individuals. In-kind contributions may consist of charges for real property and equipment, and value of goods and services directly benefiting and specifically identifiable to the grant program. When authorized by Federal legislation, property purchased with Federal funds may be considered as grantees' in-kind contribution.
Maintenance of effort (MOE) is a requirement contained in certain legislation, regulations, or administrative policies stating that a grantee must maintain a specified level of financial effort in a specific area in order to receive Federal grant funds, and that the Federal grant funds may be used only to supplement, not supplant, the level of grantee funds.
Post assistance requirements...
Reports
Weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly statistical reports of unemployment insurance workloads.
Note:
This section indicates whether program reports, expenditure reports, cash reports or performance monitoring are required by the Federal funding agency, and specifies at what time intervals (monthly, annually, etc.) this must be accomplished.
Audits
Subject to audits by the U.S. Department of Labor or other authorized Government agencies. In accordance with the provisions of OMB Circular No. A-133 (Revised, June 27, 2003), Audits of States, Local Governments, and Non-Profit Organizations, nonfederal entities that expend financial assistance of $500,000 or more in Federal awards will have a single or a program-specific audit conducted for that year. Nonfederal entities that expend less than $500,000 a year in Federal awards are exempt from Federal audit requirements for that year, except as noted in Circular No. A-133.
Note:
This section discusses audits required by the Federal agency.
The procedures and requirements for State and local governments and nonprofit entities are set forth in OMB Circular No. A-133.
These requirements pertain to awards made within the respective State's fiscal year - not the Federal fiscal year,
as some State and local governments may use the calendar year or other variation of time span designated as the fiscal year period,
rather than that commonly known as the Federal fiscal year (from October 1st through September 30th).
Records
State requirements are to be in conformity with Federal statutes.
Note:
This section indicates the record retention requirements and the type of records the Federal agency may require.
Not included are the normally imposed requirements of the General Accounting Office.
For programs falling under the purview of OMB Circular No. A-102, record retention is set forth in Attachment C.
For other programs, record retention is governed by the funding agency's requirements.
Regulations...
Authorization
Social Security Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 501- 504, 1101-1109; Trade Act of 1974, as amended, Public Law 93-618, 88 Stat. 2024, 19 U.S.C. 2311; Federal Unemployment Tax Act, as amended, 26 U.S.C. 3404 note; Federal Employees and Ex-Service Members, 5 U.S.C. 8501 and 8521; Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as amended, Public Law 100-707, 88 Stat. 153, 42 U.S.C. 5171.
Note:
This section lists the legal authority upon which a program is based (acts, amendments to acts, Public Law numbers, titles, sections, Statute Codes, citations to the U.S. Code, Executive Orders, Presidential Reorganization Plans, and Memoranda from an agency head).
Regulations, Guidelines, And Literature
"If Imports Cost You Your Job...Apply for Trade Adjustment Assistance"; "Unemployment Insurance, How It Works For You"; "If Disaster Strikes --- You Should Know About Disaster Unemployment Assistance"; "Unemployment Insurance For Ex-Service Members"; "Unemployment Insurance For Federal Workers"; "Significant Provisions of State Unemployment Insurance Laws;" "Comparison of State Unemployment Insurance Laws," available on the Internet at http://workforcesecurity.doleta.gov/unemploy/resource.asp#legislation.