[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 114 (Wednesday, June 16, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32063-32065]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-12604]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration


Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Program Year (PY) 
2021; Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Section 167, 
National Farmworker Jobs Program (NFJP) Grantee Allotments

AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This Notice announces Program Year (PY) 2021 allotments to 
States for the National Farmworker Jobs Program (NFJP), which is 
authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), 
Section 167. These allotments are based on the funds appropriated in 
the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (from this point forward will 
be referred to as the ``the Act'').

DATES: The PY 2021 NFJP allotments become effective for the grant 
period that begins July 1, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Questions on this notice can be submitted to the Employment 
and Training Administration, Office of Workforce Investment, Attention 
at: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laura Iba[ntilde]ez, Unit Chief, at 
(202) 693-3645. Individuals with hearing or speech impairments may 
access the telephone numbers above via TTY by calling the toll-free 
Federal Information Relay Service at 1-877-889-5627 (TTY-TDD).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published according to 
Section 182(d) of the WIOA, Prompt Allotment of Funds. ETA developed 
the formula to distribute funds geographically by state service area, 
based on each state service area's relative share of persons eligible 
for the program. The formula's original methodology is described in the 
Federal Register notice 64 FR 27390, May 19, 1999. That information is 
accessible at https://www.federalregister.gov/. In PY 2018, ETA 
incorporated two modifications to the allotment formula to provide more 
accurate estimates of each state service area's relative share of 
persons eligible for the program. The formula also used updated data 
from each of the four data files serving as the basis of the formula 
since 1999. The revised formula methodology is described in the Federal 
Register notice 83 FR 32151, July 11, 2018.
    Two modifications were incorporated into the formula for PY 2021. 
These modifications improve the formula's accuracy in terms of 
estimating the true NFJP-eligible population in state service areas, 
and one of the modifications is necessitated by a recent statutory 
change to the NFJP eligibility criteria, which Congress enacted in the 
FY 2021 appropriation. Section II includes further explanation of these 
modifications.
    This notice represents the final of a two-stage process. ETA 
published a notice requesting public comments on May 10, 2021, 
regarding the formula methodology and modifications. Additionally, ETA 
hosted a webinar on May 5, 2021, to share the preliminary allotments, 
explained the data sources, and encourage response to the notice 
published shortly thereafter. ETA did not receive any comments through 
the public comment process. In this final stage, ETA is publishing the 
final formula and final allotment levels.

I. Background

    The Department is announcing the final PY 2021 allotments for the 
National Farmworker Jobs Program (NFJP). This notice provides 
information on the amount of funds available during PY 2021 to state 
service areas awarded grants through Funding Opportunity Announcements 
FOA-ETA-20-08 and FOA-ETA-20-08-A for the NFJP Career Services and 
Training grants and Housing grants. Funds to implement NFJP are 
appropriated in the Act. In appropriating these funds, Congress 
provided $87,083,000 for formula grants (of which $86,946,000 was 
allotted after $137,000 was set aside for program integrity), 
$6,256,000 for migrant and seasonal farmworker housing (of which not 
less than 70 percent shall be for permanent housing), and another 
$557,000 for discretionary purposes. Included below is the table 
listing the PY 2021 allotments for the NFJP Career Services and 
Training grants. Individual grants are awarded for Housing as a result 
of the grants competition and are further distributed according to 
language in the appropriations law requiring that of the total amount 
available, not less than 70 percent shall be allocated to permanent 
housing activities, leaving not more than 30 percent to temporary 
housing activities.

II. Description of Data Files and Review of PY 2021 Modifications to 
the Allotment Formula

    As with all state planning estimates since 1999, the PY 2021 
estimates are based on four data sources: (1) State-level, 2017 hired 
farm labor expenditure data from the United States Department of 
Agriculture's (USDA) Census of Agriculture (COA); (2) regional-level, 
2017 average hourly earnings data from the USDA's Farm Labor Survey; 
(3) regional-level, 2010-2018 demographic data from the ETA's National 
Agricultural Workers Survey (NAWS); and, (4) 2015-2019 (5-year file) 
data from the United States Census Bureau's American Community Survey 
(ACS). A detailed description of how each data source is used within 
the formula is in the Federal Register notice 64 FR 27390, May 19, 
1999). In addition to populating the formula with updated data, ETA 
incorporated two modifications that will improve the formula's accuracy 
in terms of estimating the true NFJP-eligible population in state 
service areas. One of the modifications is necessitated by the change 
to the NFJP eligibility criteria applicable to the PY 2021 
appropriation.
    (1) First, the Act expands program eligibility for grants funded by 
the PY 2021 appropriation to include farmworkers who are in families 
with total family incomes at or below 150 percent of the poverty line. 
Therefore, the PY 2021 allocations used special tabulations of data 
from the ACS and the NAWS to estimate the share of farmworkers with 
total family incomes at or below 150 percent of the poverty line. ETA 
will subsequently revise the PY 2022 guidance regarding the definition 
of ``low-income individual,'' as needed if the same provision is not 
included in subsequent appropriations.
    (2) Second, and to more closely align the formula with the 
definition of eligible migrant and seasonal farmworker under WIOA 
Section 167(i) and 20 CFR 685.110 and clarified in the Training and 
Employment Guidance Letter 18-16, ETA modified how the formula accounts 
for crop workers who are primarily employed in agriculture. This 
formula considers a crop worker to be primarily employed in agriculture 
if at least 50 percent of their total individual income is from farm 
work or

[[Page 32064]]

at least 50 percent of their total employment time is in farm work.\1\ 
As with all state planning estimates since 1999, ETA used NAWS data to 
determine the share of crop labor hours in each state that was 
performed by crop workers who were primarily employed in agriculture, 
per this eligibility criterion.
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    \1\ To determine ``primarily employed in agriculture'' criteria, 
which has two parts, ETA uses individual income from farm work.
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III. Description of the Hold-Harmless Provision

    ETA has incorporated the hold-harmless provision as instituted in 
PY 2018. The updated data resulted in significant changes for a few 
states and the hold-harmless provision provides for a stop loss/stop 
gain limit to transition to the use of the updated data. This approach 
is based on a state service area's previous year's allotment 
percentage, which is its relative share of the total formula 
allotments. ETA will implement the staged transition of the hold-
harmless provision as follows:
    (1) In PY 2021, each state service area will receive an amount 
equal to at least 95 percent of their PY 2020 allotment percentage, as 
applied to the PY 2021 formula funds available;
    (2) In PY 2022, each state service area will receive an amount 
equal to at least 90 percent of their PY 2021 allotment percentage, as 
applied to the PY 2022 formula funds available;
    (3) In PY 2023, each state service area will receive an amount 
equal to at least 85 percent of their PY 2022 allotment percentage, as 
applied to the PY 2023 formula funds available.
    In PY 2021, 2022, and 2023, the stop gain provision provides that 
no state service area will receive an amount that is more than 150 
percent of their previous year's allotment percentage.
    In PY 2024, since the Department has a responsibility to use the 
most current and reliable data available, amounts for the new awards 
will be based on updated data from the sources described in Section II, 
pending their availability. At that time, the Department will determine 
whether the changes to state allotments are significant enough to 
warrant another hold-harmless provision. Otherwise, allotments to each 
state service area will be for an amount resulting from a direct 
allotment of the funding formula without adjustment.

IV. Minimum Funding Provisions

    A state area that would receive less than $60,000 by application of 
the formula will, at the option of the DOL, receive no allotment or, if 
practical, be combined with another adjacent state area. Funding below 
$60,000 is deemed insufficient for sustaining an independently 
administered program. However, if practical, a state jurisdiction that 
would receive less than $60,000 may be combined with another adjacent 
state area.

V. Program Year 2021 State Allotments

    The state allotments set forth in the Table appended to this notice 
reflect the distribution resulting from the allotment formula described 
above. For PY 2020, $85,229,000 was appropriated for migrant and 
seasonal farmworker training grants and allotted based on the PY 2018 
formula updates. The figures in the first numerical column show the 
actual PY 2020 formula allotments to state service areas. The next 
column shows the percentage share of each allotment to the total 
available.
    For PY 2021, the funding level provided for in the Act for the 
migrant and seasonal farmworker program is $93,896,000 of which 
$87,083,000 was appropriated for training grants. After allowable funds 
are set aside for program integrity ($137,000), the Department will 
allot $86,946,000 for training grants based on the formula and data 
outlined in this notice. For purposes of illustrating the effects of 
the updates to the allotment formula, columns 3 and 4 show the state 
service area allotments with the application of the first-year (95 
percent) hold-harmless and minimum funding provisions, followed by the 
percentages. The difference between PY 2021 and PY 2020 allotments is 
shown in column 5. Column 6 of the Table shows the allotments based on 
the formula without the application of the hold-harmless or minimum 
funding provisions. The percentages are reported in column 7.

         U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, National Farmworker Jobs Program--Career Services and Training Grants
                                                     [Impact of final PY 2021 allotments to states]
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                                                      PY 2020                                                 PY 2021
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                                                                                        With hold harmless                     Without hold harmless
                  State                                                  -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             Allotment      Percentage                                    Difference (PY
                                                               share         Allotment      Percentage      2021 vs. PY      Allotment      Percentage
                                                                                               share           2020)                           share
                                                     (1)             (2)             (3)             (4)             (5)             (6)             (7)
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    Total...............................     $85,229,000       100.00000     $86,946,000       100.00000      $1,717,000     $86,946,000       100.00000
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Alabama.................................         801,605         0.94053         776,866         0.89350        (24,739)         774,531         0.89082
Alaska..................................  ..............         0.00000  ..............         0.00000  ..............  ..............         0.00000
Arizona.................................       2,538,153         2.97804       2,459,822         2.82914        (78,331)       2,547,948         2.93049
Arkansas................................       1,144,067         1.34234       1,193,276         1.37243          49,209       1,262,754         1.45234
California..............................      23,333,261        27.37714      22,613,160        26.00828       (720,101)      23,114,407        26.58478
Colorado................................       1,347,060         1.58052       1,662,689         1.91232         315,629       1,759,499         2.02367
Connecticut.............................         402,388         0.47213         501,264         0.57652          98,876         530,450         0.61009
Delaware................................         155,864         0.18288         154,593         0.17780         (1,271)         163,594         0.18816
Dist of Columbia........................  ..............         0.00000  ..............         0.00000  ..............  ..............         0.00000
Florida.................................       3,763,684         4.41597       3,647,531         4.19517       (116,153)       3,159,183         3.63350
Georgia.................................       1,671,697         1.96142       1,656,566         1.90528        (15,131)       1,753,019         2.01622
Hawaii..................................         322,061         0.37788         312,122         0.35898         (9,939)         157,635         0.18130
Idaho...................................       1,777,707         2.08580       2,194,625         2.52412         416,918       2,322,406         2.67109

[[Page 32065]]

 
Illinois................................       1,746,897         2.04965       1,829,288         2.10394          82,391       1,935,797         2.22644
Indiana.................................       1,145,731         1.34430       1,229,140         1.41368          83,409       1,300,706         1.49599
Iowa....................................       1,588,068         1.86330       1,756,778         2.02054         168,710       1,859,065         2.13818
Kansas..................................       1,220,211         1.43169       1,243,435         1.43012          23,224       1,315,834         1.51339
Kentucky................................       1,044,219         1.22519       1,011,993         1.16393        (32,226)         836,164         0.96170
Louisiana...............................         798,040         0.93635         782,626         0.90013        (15,414)         828,194         0.95254
Maine...................................         328,886         0.38589         408,044         0.46931          79,158         431,802         0.49663
Maryland................................         386,681         0.45370         521,061         0.59929         134,380         551,400         0.63419
Massachusetts...........................         364,444         0.42761         512,780         0.58977         148,336         542,637         0.62411
Michigan................................       2,129,494         2.49856       2,073,573         2.38490        (55,921)       2,194,306         2.52376
Minnesota...............................       1,629,902         1.91238       1,579,601         1.81676        (50,301)       1,664,564         1.91448
Mississippi.............................       1,026,761         1.20471         995,074         1.14447        (31,687)         922,368         1.06085
Missouri................................         985,363         1.15614       1,219,415         1.40250         234,052       1,290,415         1.48416
Montana.................................         628,528         0.73746         699,452         0.80447          70,924         740,177         0.85131
Nebraska................................       1,295,534         1.52006       1,255,552         1.44406        (39,982)       1,319,642         1.51777
Nevada..................................         190,893         0.22398         223,924         0.25754          33,031         236,962         0.27254
New Hampshire...........................         115,590         0.13562         145,953         0.16787          30,363         154,451         0.17764
New Jersey..............................         602,990         0.70749         769,856         0.88544         166,866         814,680         0.93700
New Mexico..............................       1,049,022         1.23083       1,067,856         1.22818          18,834       1,130,032         1.29969
New York................................       1,574,968         1.84793       2,169,172         2.49485         594,204       2,295,471         2.64011
North Carolina..........................       2,638,326         3.09557       2,556,903         2.94079        (81,423)       2,107,580         2.42401
North Dakota............................         828,016         0.97152         802,462         0.92294        (25,554)         778,997         0.89595
Ohio....................................       1,417,710         1.66341       1,437,210         1.65299          19,500       1,520,892         1.74924
Oklahoma................................       1,007,381         1.18197         976,292         1.12287        (31,089)         926,713         1.06585
Oregon..................................       2,447,454         2.87162       2,371,922         2.72804        (75,532)       2,335,380         2.68601
Pennsylvania............................       1,485,920         1.74344       1,762,208         2.02678         276,288       1,864,813         2.14479
Puerto Rico.............................       2,420,800         2.84035       2,346,090         2.69833        (74,710)       2,043,240         2.35001
Rhode Island............................          60,713         0.07124          64,858         0.07460           4,145          68,635         0.07894
South Carolina..........................         811,276         0.95188         786,239         0.90428        (25,037)         695,074         0.79943
South Dakota............................         610,598         0.71642         665,710         0.76566          55,112         704,471         0.81024
Tennessee...............................         894,737         1.04980         867,124         0.99731        (27,613)         631,232         0.72600
Texas...................................       5,281,950         6.19736       5,118,941         5.88749       (163,009)       4,630,482         5.32570
Utah....................................         466,894         0.54781         653,979         0.75217         187,085         692,057         0.79596
Vermont.................................         185,768         0.21796         204,723         0.23546          18,955         216,643         0.24917
Virginia................................       1,002,595         1.17635         971,653         1.11754        (30,942)         784,640         0.90245
Washington..............................       4,518,313         5.30138       4,510,391         5.18758         (7,922)       4,773,008         5.48962
West Virginia...........................         155,408         0.18234         150,612         0.17322         (4,796)         112,164         0.12900
Wisconsin...............................       1,639,775         1.92396       1,719,060         1.97716          79,285       1,819,152         2.09228
Wyoming.................................         245,597         0.28816         312,536         0.35946          66,939         330,734         0.38039
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Suzan G. LeVine,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training, Labor.
[FR Doc. 2021-12604 Filed 6-15-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-FN-P