2022 NASWA Legislative Priorities
WASHINGTON – The National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) recently released its 2022 Legislative Priorities. These initiatives advocate for enhanced investment, flexibility, and alignment of the workforce system; data infrastructure support with reduction to systemic barriers; and improvements to unemployment insurance administration.
“These Legislative Priorities represent a roadmap for Congress to utilize in making critical workforce development investments to rebuild our country’s economic prosperity,” said Scott B. Sanders, NASWA President and CEO. “Each year our membership, in collaboration with our 10 policy committees, develop our priorities, which are then approved by the board of directors.”
NASWA's 2022 Legislative Priorities include:
Workforce System
Increase flexibility for states and enhance federal investment; align workforce with post-secondary and infrastructure investments; and reduction of systemic barriers to successful outcomes and promotion of economic mobility.
- Increase investment in core workforce funding
- Avoid short-term, episodic, and/or competitive funding opportunities
- Promote Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) funding flexibility
- Increase permanent funding for the Wagner-Peyser Act
- Scale up apprenticeships
- Address youth employment needs by providing states more flexibility under the WIOA youth program
- Establish subsidized employment opportunities
- Support the states’ abilities to promote equal opportunity in workforce programs
- Continue funding of the Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment (RESEA) program at full authorization levels
- Maintain investment for governors’ statewide needs at 15%
- Sustain state flexibility for Wagner-Peyser staffing
- Expand eligibility for Disabled Veteran Outreach Program (DVOP) services to veterans aged 50 and over and to veteran spouses
- Maintain and safeguard the vital role of veteran's programs in the workforce development system
- Require partnerships between education, workforce systems, and labor market information systems to support more informed planning and successful outcomes
- Increase access to and availability of child care
- Expand high speed internet access
- Enhance the capacity of state agencies to conduct and fund marketing and outreach efforts
- Improved alignment of workforce, human services, housing and education agencies
- Invest in supporting technologies for integrated service delivery
Data Infrastructure Support
Invest in state-driven data infrastructure.
- Provide adequate funding to support state Labor Market Information (LMI) divisions and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Provide increased funding to states under the federal-state cooperative arrangement
- Increase funding to state LMI/research divisions
- Invest long-term in multistate data collaboratives
Unemployment Insurance Administration
Prepare for future recessions while promoting efficient and equitable administration of UI programs.
- Waive all nonfraudulent pandemic related unemployment compensation
- Authorize state staffing flexibility through 2022
- Hold states harmless for any overpayments made under the federal Lost Wages Assistance (LWA) program
- Waive interest payments and the accrual of interest on federal advances to states
- Increase administrative funding as a whole
- Provide flexibility for states with solvent Trust Funds
- Allow states to waive 2022 evaluation requirements for the Reemployment Services and Eligibility Assessment (RESEA) program
- Provide additional flexibility and deadlines for use of UI above-base funds
- Exempt the UI program from the sequestration requirements
- Update the Extended Benefits program
- Give states flexibility over CARES Act administrative funding by extending their authority and expanding permitted uses of the funding
- Encourage further investments in UI program integrity
- Expand Short Term Compensation (Workshare) coverage
- Amend the Improper Payments Information Act (IPIA) and the Elimination and Recovery Act (IPERIA)
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