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Workforce Florida Weekly Update 7-5-06 |
CONTENTS The State & RegionsDepartment of Labor awards $4 million in funding for Faith-Based and Community Organizations – two Florida organizations receive funds. 6/28/2006 12:08:00 PM. WASHINGTON, June 28 /U.S. Newswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Labor announced $4 million in grants to 55 faith-based and community organizations competitively chosen to help hard-to- serve populations prepare for and succeed in employment opportunities. "This administration appreciates the effectiveness of faith- based and community organizations in helping workers find jobs and build a brighter future for themselves and their families," said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. "The grassroots projects funded through this $4 million initiative will reach out to those most in need by providing guidance and support in making use of employment services available through local One-Stop Career Centers." The two Florida organizations receiving funds are:
Projects receiving awards will serve individuals who face
significant hurdles to employment, including welfare recipients,
high school dropouts, and ex-offenders. Grantees will provide
personalized care and supportive services, such as mentoring
or life skills coaching, to enable individuals to fully utilize
the employment services offered at local One-Stop Career
Centers. "Faith-based and community organizations reach
into communities, connecting individuals with barriers to
employment to the resources available through local One-Stop
Career Centers," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Employment and Training Emily Stover DeRocco. "These
organizations often provide the bridge to assistance that
changes lives and contributes to the stability of families
and communities." The grants are part of the Labor Department's
ongoing effort to partner its existing programs with effective
faith-based and community organizations to better serve the
needy. Today's awards more than triple last year's funding
and will allow recipients to expand services into their communities. "We
can always do better for Americans in need when we work together
with every willing partner," said Jedd Medefind, director
of the Labor Department's Center for Faith-Based and Community
Initiatives. "The personal involvement and caring touch
of faith-based and community organizations often make the
critical difference between recurring struggles and new beginnings." For
more information on the Department of Labor's employment
and training programs, please visit http://www.doleta.gov. 5 Days of DCA - Coming Soon to a Community Near
You! The Florida Department of Community Affairs (DCA)
is hosting
five community meetings to introduce and discuss programs
that impact and improve communities across Florida. The DCA
is inviting businesses, public agencies and the general public
to attend events hosted throughout July in Ft. Walton Beach,
St. Augustine, Ocala, Belle Glade and Tampa to learn about
programs that are benefiting communities across the State.
The DCA includes the Division of Community Planning, and
the Division of Housing and Community Development. The DCA
programs include Affordable Housing, Areas of Critical State
Concern, Fiscal Impact Analysis, Front Porch Florida, Individual
Disaster Assistance Programs, Low Income Energy Assistance
Program, etc. Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance awards local businesses for their excellence in hiring practices - Acuity Solutions, All Medical Personnel, HomeBanc Mortgage Corporation and CIBER, Inc. announced as winners. TAMPA, Fla. – July 5, 2006 - Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance (TBWA), the region’s leading organization for workforce development and the largest source of employment candidates in the area, honored four local businesses at its inaugural Business Excellence Awards, June 29 at The Tampa Club. As the only awards of its kind in Tampa Bay, the TBWA Business Excellence Awards recognized three Hillsborough County companies that have demonstrated sound hiring and retention practices and presented them with $15,000 training awards. The awards were presented in categories of Emerging, Expanding, Growth and Economic Impact. These companies have demonstrated excellence in diversity hiring, training initiatives, advancement opportunities and efficient use of technology in recruiting and retaining talent. Special recognition was awarded to CIBER, Inc. for its relocation and significant economic development within Hillsborough County. Acuity Solutions, which specializes in data security solutions, was presented with the Emerging Business Award. Acuity recognizes the importance of family to the well-being of employees by offering flexible work schedules and not tracking sick or vacation days. It also provides a number of opportunities for advancement, including training and tuition reimbursement. The company beach condo is available to employees upon their request. All Medical Personnel was presented the Expanding Business Award. In addition to offering an array of work schedules to accommodate individual lifestyles, All Medical Personnel, a staffing resource specializing in medical professions also provides child care reimbursement, referral bonus programs, employee appreciation programs, uniform and equipment discounts, work/family balance programs and safety training. HomeBanc Mortgage Corporation earned the Growth Business Award. As one of the largest residential mortgage loan originators in the United States with store locations in Georgia, Florida and North Carolina, HomeBanc employs a non-technical system of peer reviews so that prospective and current associates have an opportunity to decide together the best fit candidates for the organization. Its continuing education program, HomeBanc University, keeps employees abreast and active through leadership and training, including individual learning plans. The Economic Development Impact award was presented to CIBER, Inc., a leading international systems integration firm founded in 1974 with 8,000 employees worldwide and more than 200 employees in Tampa Bay. CIBER came to Hillsborough County in 2005, in large part because of the technology talent pool available in our area. CIBER is an alternative to offshore outsourcing, offering competitive wages and considerable safety with regard to intellectual property and security. “Hillsborough County’s unemployment of 2.8% can be considered close to full employment,” said Renée Benton, TBWA president and CEO. “The awards were designed to recognize the tremendous efforts of local businesses working to attract and retain talented employees, especially in this competitive marketplace. Their commitment to the economic health of Tampa Bay makes our region better poised for future workforce growth and development. TBWA commends their initiatives and looks forward to continued support of their success.” Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance works with businesses and candidates to leverage their training, retraining and competitive opportunities in the workforce. Nearly 100,000 job candidates annually access its four career centers, making TBWA the single largest source of job candidates in the region. More than 3,000 businesses annually access TBWA's wide range of services, including employee recruiting; customized training; targeted career fairs; workshops and business seminars; and retention support strategies. Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance is a member of the Employ Florida statewide network of workforce services and resources. For more information, visit www.workforcetampa.com. Business Woman of the Year finalists named – two Tampa Bay RWB professionals on the list. The finalists for the 3rd annual Tampa Bay Business Journal Business Woman of the Year awards have been determined. Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance’s (Region 15) very own, Renée Benton and Jamie Melendez have been selected as finalists for the Tampa Bay Business Journal’s Business Woman of the Year! Renée A. Benton is the president and chief executive officer, for the Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance. Jamilette B. "Jamie" Melendez is the director of communications for the Tampa Bay WorkForce Alliance. The awards recognize the contributions that women are making to Tampa Bay's growing and dynamic business community. Winners will be announced at the Tampa Convention Center on August 18. For the complete article go to: http://tampabay.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2006/06/26/daily40.html. The NationNASWA’s Workforce Bulletin - June 30, 2006
Bush Administration Releases Interim Final Regulation Implementing The Next Phase Of Welfare Reform. HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt today announced interim final regulations for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program to implement statutory changes to the TANF program in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. The regulations ensure consistent measurement of work participation rates in state welfare programs. "These regulations complete what President Bush has called 'the unfinished business of welfare reform,'" Secretary Leavitt said. "We are rebooting the system to help more individuals transition from welfare dependency to work and self-sufficiency." The new regulations further strengthen work participation requirements by:
"
The Bush Administration believes in supporting people through
work instead of welfare dependency," said HHS Assistant
Secretary for Children and Families Wade F. Horn, Ph.D. "These
new regulations implement important changes to improve the
effectiveness of work programs, because we know that the only
way to escape poverty is through work." Since welfare
reform became law in 1996, welfare rolls for families have
declined by 57 percent. The most recent caseload numbers show
that 1,870,039 families remain on the TANF rolls. The 1996
law stipulated that 50 percent of welfare recipients in state
programs must participate in productive work activities, but
it also allowed states to reduce the required participation
rate by the percentage decline in their caseloads since 1995.
With welfare reform's dramatic caseload reductions, many states'
work participation requirements were reduced to zero or near
zero. In a typical month in FY 2004, nearly 60 percent of adults
on the TANF caseload did not participate in any work or work
preparation activities. That is why the Congress passed and
President Bush signed a TANF reauthorization bill that recalibrates
the caseload reduction credit so that states only receive credit
for caseload reductions after FY 2005. The effect of this is
that states must engage significantly higher percentages of
their caseload in work or work preparation activities. The
new law and regulations also add new categories of individuals
in the calculation of state work participation rates, including
those receiving assistance in separate state programs and certain
families in which only children currently receive assistance.
The 2005 welfare reform reauthorization maintains the program's
overall funding and basic structure and provides $150 million
annually for healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood initiatives.
Access this HHS press release at: http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2006pres/20060628.html.
Access the Fed Register RULES 37454–37483 [06–5743]
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program: Reauthorization;
statutory changes; implementation at: Grant and Competitive Award Opportunities and NoticesFor additional information go to, visit the External Grant Opportunities page.Featured Opportunity:NEW! Community-Based Job Training Grant SGA released. On July 3, the Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), announced the availability of approximately $125 million in grant funds for Community-Based Job Training Grants. Community-Based Job Training Grants will be awarded through a competitive process to support workforce training for high-growth/high-demand industries through the national system of community and technical colleges. Funds will be awarded to individual community and technical colleges, community college districts, state community college systems, and One-Stop Career Centers to support or engage in a combination of capacity building and training activities for the purpose of building the capacity of community colleges to train for careers in high-growth/high-demand industries in regional economies. This Solicitation contains an exception for rural areas and other communities that are educationally underserved due to their lack of access to community or technical colleges. For more information on the Solicitation, please review SGA/DFA –PY-05-11 in the Federal Register or on grants.gov. For more information on the Virtual Prospective Applicant Conferences, please visit: http://www.doleta.gov/Business/Community-BasedJobTrainingGrants.cfm State GrantsWorkforce Florida’s First Jobs/First Wages Council has issued a grant solicitation titled ‘Replication of the CHOICE Career Institute’. (REPEAT) Only Regional Workforce Boards are eligible to apply. The purpose of this Grant Solicitation is to seek applications for projects that replicate the Community High Okaloosa Institutes for Career Education (CHOICE) developed and implemented by the Okaloosa County School District in school year 2003-04. This is Phase II of CHOICE replication which was started under a similar grant solicitation issued in November 2004. Submissions are due July 25, 2006; 5:00 PM, Eastern For more information go to: http://www.workforceflorida.com/wages/wfi/rfp/index.htm#grant. Federal Grants(none) Foundation Grants(none) Scholarships/Awards(none) Upcoming Meetings, Conferences and
Events
Workforce Florida Board and Related Meetings Schedule:For up-to-date WFI board meeting info please check the calendar at the WFI website. July 19, 2006 August 23, 2006 August 24, 2006 August 24, 2006 Other Meetings/Conferences/Events:
July 11, 2006 July 11-13, 2006
Watch the Conference website for further program updates and to register at: http://www.workforceinnovations.org/. August 21 –August 23, 2006 August 30 – September 1, 2006 Nov. 30 - Dec. 2, 2006 Odds and EndsA Picture of the Voucher Homeownership Program. A new two-volume
report by the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s
Office of Policy Development and Research, Voucher Homeownership
Study, provides a national snapshot of the Housing Choice
Voucher Homeownership program and its many successes. This
is one of HUD’s most important initiatives, in that
the program’s homeownership option allows public housing
authorities (PHAs) to provide voucher assistance to low-income,
first-time homebuyers. The vouchers can be used for monthly
homeownership expenses, rather than for monthly rental payments.
Since the first voucher homeownership programs began in 1999,
the number of public housing agencies implementing the program
has grown exponentially – from 12 pilot sites to over
450 today. In like manner, the number of homeowners has increased
from less than 100 households at the outset to 5,000 households
as of June 7, 2006. Combined with the Family Self Sufficiency
and Moving to Work programs (not analyzed in this study),
HUD has helped 8,000 families achieve homeownership as of
June 7, 2006. This report is essential reading for PHAs and
others interested in increasing homeownership among low-income
and minority households. The characteristics and outcomes
of voucher homeownership programs are described through in-depth
case study assessments of 10 selected sites operating particularly
active or note-worthy programs. A survey was also conducted
of more than 200 PHAs that have reported at least one VHO
purchase. Topics covered in Volume 1 of this report include
program planning and design, financing homeownership, characteristics
of VHO purchasers and their neighborhoods, characteristics
of housing markets in VHO communities, and the relationship
between program & market factors and the rate of home
purchases. Volume 2 presents case studies. The report is
available as a free download online at: http://www.huduser.org/publications/homeown/ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services provides online tool - The Marriage Calculator: Financial Consequences of Marriage Decisions (from Florida Monitor Weekly - June 30, 2006). This website provides a set of tools for assessing the financial consequences of marriage for low-income families. The Marriage Calculator tool allows users to see how taxes and public assistance may change when a couple’s living arrangement changes from living apart to cohabiting (both reported and not reported to government programs) to married. The State Policies Database allows users to search through tax and transfer program rules to learn how state policies influence the financial consequences of couples' decisions. The Prepared Tables-all created by the Marriage Calculator- illustrate how incomes change upon marriage or cohabitation for sample families with a range of characteristics. Access the site at: http://marriagecalculator.acf.hhs.gov/marriage/index.php. Recycle Those Computers! Dell and HP both announce major computer recycling initiatives. Dell's new recycling policy calls for free recycling of Dell-branded products globally. And you don't need to buy a new Dell product, as its policy currently stands (the current policy also accepts computers from any manufacturer). The move drew applause from the National Recycling Coalition as well as the Computer Takeback Campaign. Details on Dell’s program can be accessed at: http://www.csrwire.com/PressRelease.php?id=5876. HP's new program will accept computer products from any manufacturer at collection events held from June through September in Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New Mexico and Oregon. HP offsets $13 to $34 recycling costs by providing a rebate coupon. Details on HP’s program can be accessed at: http://www.csrwire.com/PressRelease.php?id=5868. Both Dell and HP have set public computer takeback goals, while their competitor Apple, which announced a new recycling policy this Spring, has not. Quote for the Week:“A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle; and patriotism is loyalty to that principle.” George William Curtis |
