"Lame duck" includes CR, TAA extension.

The final days of 2010 saw a flurry of activity on Capitol Hill, as the 111th Congress completed work on a wide range of legislation. However, on at least two issues of interest to the workforce development community – Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 appropriations for federal job training and education programs, and an extension of the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program – political pressures forced lawmakers to adopt stopgap measures that will leave final decisions on these priorities to the incoming Congress. 
 
FY 2011 Appropriations
 
On December 21, lawmakers approved a continuing resolution(CR) that extends discretionary funding for most federal programs at current FY 2010 levels through March 4, 2011. The bill level-funds most workforce and education programs, but includes additional Pell Grant funding to cover a projected shortfall and maintain the maximum award level at $5,550 in 2011.

Prior to passing the stopgap funding bill, the House passed a long-term CR on December 8 that capped FY 2011 discretionary funding at FY 2010 levels. At the same time, Senate leaders sought to move an omnibus appropriations bill that would have increased overall discretionary funding by about $18 billion, including new funding to support “workforce innovation funds” at the Departments of Labor and Education and increased funding for green jobs training. Republicans refused to support either approach, pushing instead for a short-term CR that will allow them to revisit spending levels in the new Congress, where they will have a majority in the House and increased representation in the Senate.

Republicans have indicated that they will seek in the new Congress to reduce non-defense domestic discretionary spending to FY 2008 levels, about 22 percent below current levels. While the details of such a proposal remain unclear, the workforce development community should be prepared to educate lawmakers on the importance of job training and education programs in supporting economic growth, and to urge them to resist efforts to reduce funding for these critical programs at a time of continuing high demand for services. 

Trade Adjustment Assistance

On December 22, Congress approved the Omnibus Trade Act of 2010 (HR 6517), which provides a six-week extension (through February 12) of key provisions governing the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program, including: expanded eligibility for service and public sector workers; increased spending caps for training services; simplified enrollment; and a sector partnership grant program for trade-impacted communities. The provisions, originally passed as part of TAA reauthorization under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act), were set to expire on December 31. The program would have reverted to pre-Recovery Act funding levels and eligibility requirements had Congress not extended the program. The law also includes a six-week extension of tariff provisions under the Andean Trade Preferences Act (APTA).

The House passed a version of the bill on December 15 that included an 18-month extension of TAA as well as a range of other trade-related provisions. However, Senate Republicans held up consideration of the bill, seeking a deal to advance several stalled free trade agreements in exchange for support of the longer-term TAA extension. The House agreed to several concessions in an effort to reach a compromise – including delaying the implementation of a Department of Labor (DOL) regulation requiring TAA services to be administered by state merit staff – but ultimately the chambers were unable to reach an agreement on a longer-term measure.
 
The short-term extension omitted language included in the House-passed bill amending the TAA Community College and Career Training Grant (TAACCCT) program, which provides capacity-building grants to community colleges and other higher education institutions. DOL has developed a grant solicitation for the TAACCCT program – the agency issued a FAQ in October providing preliminary details on the grants – but has delayed releasing the solicitation in hopes of securing the proposed changes, which would expand participant eligibility, exclude proprietary institutions, and set aside funding for evaluation and administration of the program. DOL has not yet released the Solicitation for Grant Applications (SGA) for this program; while it is expected that they will do so shortly, it is possible that they will continue to delay the SGA in the hopes that Congress may yet address these legislative fixes.

The workforce field should encourage lawmakers to support a long-term extension of TAA to ensure that as many trade-impacted workers as possible are able to take advantage of training and other services under the programs.

National Skills Coalition will continue to monitor developments relating to the FY 2011 appropriations process and TAA reauthorization, and provide updates as new information becomes available.