Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth Activities

Indiana’s local areas received initial designation approval from the Governor to maintain current local area designations during WIOA implementation in 2015 (WIOA Implementation Guidance WIOA T1-(107) P1) following written requests for designation pursuant to WIOA 106(b)(2) and TEGL 27-14. 

In determining current local area (and regional) designations under WIOA, the State took part in a taskforce of the Indiana Career Council, which was focused on assessing system alignment. This taskforce thoroughly reviewed and discussed the workforce development board areas to determine if the 12 areas should be modified. After several meetings, which included input from local boards, the recommendation of the task force was to have the standing (WIA) local areas remain intact. 

For initial designation, all 12 of the existing local areas met the criteria for performing successfully and maintaining fiscal integrity, as outlined in WIOA section 106(b)(2) and (3). Indiana verified, and continues to verify on an ongoing basis, these requirements through data reporting and monitoring efforts. Indiana has continued this structure through the State and local planning process, aligning its twelve local areas with its twelve WIOA regions. Indiana’s policy and criteria for identifying regions and designating local areas is available at: https://www.in.gov/dwd/activepolicies.htm. Currently, Regions 5 and 12 participate in joint planning, and Region 10 participates in bistate planning with Kentucky.

*Since initial designations were approved, there have been no requests to retract or change designation status, and thus, the local areas and CEOs are considered to have requested continued designation pursuant to 20 CFR 679.250(e). 

Consistent with 20 CFR 679.230 - 290 and other federal guidance, Indiana’s local area designation process is summarized below:

General procedural requirements for designation of local areas: The Governor will consult with the Governor’s Workforce Cabinet (GWC), the Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD), the Chief Elected Officials (CEOs) and affected local workforce development boards (LWDBs). The process will include a public comment period before approval of a local area designation. 

New requests for designation: Designation or redesignation will take into consideration the extent to which the proposed area: 

• is consistent with the labor market; 

• is consistent with regional economic development within the State; and 

• Has available Federal and non-Federal resources necessary to effectively administer activities and provisions required by WIOA, including whether the areas have the appropriate education and training providers, such as institutions of higher education and area career and technical education schools. 

The Governor may approve a request at any time for designation as a workforce development area from any unit of general local government, including a combination of such units, if the GWC determines that the area meets applicable designation requirements and recommends designation. 

Regardless of whether a local area has been newly designated, or designated via initial or subsequent designation, the Governor may re-designate a local area if the re-designation has been requested by a local area and the Governor approves the request. 

Subsequent designations: The Governor may review a designated local area at any time to evaluate whether the area continues to meet the requirements for subsequent designation under that paragraph. After initial designations, if the chief elected official and LWDB in local area submits a request for subsequent designation, the Governor must approve the request if the following criteria are met for the two most recent program years of initial designation: 

• The local area performed successfully; 

• The local area sustained fiscal integrity; and 

• In the case of a local area in a planning region, the local area met the regional planning requirements described in WIOA 106(c)(1) 

Regarding subsequent designation, as part of the bi-annual local board certification process, DWD Policy 2019-02 requires local areas to assure that they have performed successfully and have sustained fiscal integrity for the preceding two program years. These assurances are also reviewed as part of the State and Local Planning processes. *For purposes of subsequent designation, the local area and chief elected official must be considered to have requested continued designation unless the local area and chief elected official notify the Governor that they no longer seek designation. The following definitions apply to “performed successfully” and “sustained fiscal integrity”: 

• Performed successfully – means the local area met or exceeded all levels of performance and the local area has not failed any individual measure for the last two (2) consecutive program years 

• Sustained fiscal integrity - as defined in WIOA sec. 106(e)(2), means that the Secretary has not made a formal determination, during either of the last 2 consecutive years preceding the determination regarding such integrity, that either the grant recipient or the administrative entity of the area misexpended funds provided under subtitle B due to willful disregard of the requirements of the provision involved, gross negligence, or failure to comply with accepted standards of administration. 

Any units of general local government or grant recipients that request but are not granted initial or subsequent designation as a local area will have the opportunity to submit an appeal to the State Workforce Board (the GWC) in alignment with WIOA 106(b)(5), 20 CFR 683.630-640, and the Appeals process outlined in VI.a.1.C.