Job Corps Training Centers: Concerns About Admission Procedures and
Agreements With State and Local Prison Authorities to Enroll Prisoners
(Correspondence, 12/12/2000, GAO/GAO-01-182R).

GAO investigated a complaint about improper activities at the Keystone
Job Corps Training Center in Drums, Pennsylvania. The complaint alleged
the center was enrolling individuals who were at a state prison
facility, the Youth Services Agency. The complaint alleged that these
individuals posed a threat to the safety and well being of the regular
student population at the Keystone Job Corps Training Center. GAO found
that, contrary to the allegations, the Youth Services Agency is not a
state prison. It is a facility for youths convicted of
delinquency-related offenses. GAO also found that enrollees were
screened to determine whether they were disruptive or dangerous.

--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------

 REPORTNUM:  GAO-01-182R
     TITLE:  Job Corps Training Centers: Concerns About Admission
	     Procedures and Agreements With State and Local Prison
	     Authorities to Enroll Prisoners
      DATE:  12/12/2000
   SUBJECT:  Youth employment programs
	     Juvenile correctional facilities
	     Federal/state relations
	     Juvenile offender rehabilitation
IDENTIFIER:  FBI National Crime Information Center Information System

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GAO-01-182R

Job Corps Training Centers

United States General Accounting Office Washington, DC 20548

December 12, 2000 The Honorable Alexis M. Herman Secretary of Labor

Subject: Job Corps Training Centers: Concerns About Admission Procedures and
Agreements With State and Local Prison Authorities to Enroll Prisoners

Dear Madam Secretary: GAO's Office of Special Investigations received a
complaint concerning alleged improper activities at the Keystone Job Corps
Training Center at Drums, Pennsylvania. Specifically, the complainant
alleged that (1) the center was enrolling individuals then incarcerated at a
state prison facility, the Youth Services Agency of Pennsylvania (YSP), and
(2) these prisoners posed a threat to the safety and wellbeing of the
regular student population at the Keystone Training Center.

We conducted our investigation between September and November 2000. We
interviewed officials of the Job Corps, Department of Labor (DOL), and Bucks
County Juvenile Facility. We also conducted a physical examination of the
Keystone Job Corps Training Center and reviewed pertinent DOL documents. We
performed our work in accordance with investigative standards established by
the President's Council on Integrity and Efficiency.

In brief, we determined that YSP is an Adventure Challenge Treatment program
whose attendees are remanded by the juvenile court for delinquency- related
offenses. Contrary to the allegations, YSP is not a state prison facility;
and the attendees are not considered prison inmates but detainees under the
juvenile court system. Thus, the initial allegation lacked merit. Secondly,
these enrollees were screened before acceptance into the program to
ascertain that they were neither disruptive nor dangerous.

However, in conducting this work, we identified two related issues that we
believe warrant your attention. These issues concern (1) the background
screening of Job Corps applicants and attendees and (2) the potential for
abuse of the Job Corps program by state and local prison authorities.

Applicant Screening Procedures

The current statute governing the Job Corps program requires entities
responsible for selecting Job Corps participants to determine that
applicants are eligible to

GAO- 01- 182R Job Corps Training Centers Page 2 participate in the training
offered. 1 A factor in the eligibility determination is the

“reasonable expectation” that the applicant is “not likely
to engage in behavior that would prevent other enrollees from receiving the
benefit of the Job Corps program or be incompatible with the maintenance of
sound discipline and satisfactory relationships between the Job Corps center
to which the individual might be assigned and communities surrounding the
Job Corps center .” 2

The statute permits consultation with various law enforcement, health, and
educational authorities to determine that applicants are able to benefit
from training opportunities 3 and further requires that applicants have
“passed a background check conducted in accordance with procedures
established by the Secretary.” 4 According to the Job Corps program
manual, the background screening requires a check of the past 3 years of
local judicial system records based upon the listing of prior residences on
the prospective trainee's application. However, if an applicant
misrepresents previous addresses, the background check may not reveal
pertinent information that would affect eligibility.

Currently, according to the Director of the Keystone Training Center, Job
Corps applicants self- certify their eligibility to participate in the
program to admissions recruiters and may withhold negative information from
the recruiters. The Director told us that, as a result, he frequently
receives calls from law enforcement agencies looking for fugitives who are
enrolled in the Keystone Job Corps Program. When a fugitive is determined to
be enrolled, the individual is removed from class and returned to the
requesting jurisdiction. These situations result in class disruptions at the
Keystone Training Center and place an additional burden on staff who assist
in returning the fugitives.

In contrast to self- certification, the Juvenile Court certifies the
backgrounds of YSP enrollees in the Keystone Job Corps. This enhanced
screening prevents unnecessary disruptions and aids in the selection of
appropriate YSP applicants and enrollees. DOL's Region II District Director
and the former Job Corps Program Manager both concurred with us that the
background information provided through DOL Job Corps recruiters is not as
reliable as the information provided by YSP applicants.

While the statute provides that “[ n] o individual shall be denied a
position in the Job Corps solely on the basis of individual contact with the
criminal justice system,” 5 Job Corps recruiters do not independently
search for information concerning criminal records to supplement or confirm
the information provided in the self- certified applications. Confirmation
is obtainable through such measures as requesting a National Crime
Information Center (NCIC) check of the applicant's criminal record, if any,
or performing an outstanding warrant check on program applicants prior to
admission into the program.

1 29 U. S. C. sect. 2885( a)( 3) (1998). 2 29 U. S. C. sect. 2885( b)( 1)( A)
(1998). 3 29 U. S. C. sect. 2885( a)( 4) (1998). 4 29 U. S. C. sect. 2885( b)( 1)(
C) (1998). 5 29 U. S. C. sect. 2885( b)( 2) (1998).

GAO- 01- 182R Job Corps Training Centers Page 3 Indeed, background screening
of program applicants is required by the statute.

Reliable information is needed to make the required eligibility
determination that an applicant is not likely to be disruptive or dangerous
to other enrollees or the community. According to the Director of the Job
Corps, there is currently no system in place to regularly audit or review
the work of program recruiters to ensure that background screening is
conducted in accordance with statute and agency policy. Such reviews are
conducted only in reaction to contract performance problems of the
recruiter. The Director added that determining whether a criminal record
exists by checking for outstanding warrants would assist recruiters in
determining the eligibility and suitability of applicants to the program and
increase the recruiter's reliability.

Potential Abuse of the Job Corps Program by Prison Authorities

During our investigation, we learned that the Keystone Training Center and
YSP had entered into an agreement to enroll YSP clients who were referred by
the Juvenile Court for delinquency- related offenses. Enrollment of YSP
participants appears to be consistent with the statute. This agreement was
made at the local level with the concurrence of the DOL Region II District
Director, but the national office was not informed. There is currently no
agency policy concerning agreements that Job Corps officials enter into with
local jurisdictions to enroll offenders remanded by the courts. According to
the Director of the Job Corps, the program itself discourages centers from
entering into such agreements because their contracts are performance based
and too high a concentration of more troubled enrollees could negatively
effect performance outcomes. However, the Director did state that based upon
our investigation of this one instance, he would consider examining the
issue and, based upon the results of such a review, it would be determined
whether policies and procedures need to be established.

Recommendations for Executive Action

On the basis of these findings, we recommend that you direct the Director of
the Job Corps to require that the individuals implementing Job Corps
eligibility standards

ï¿½ conduct criminal background checks on program applicants by using NCIC
operated by the Department of Justice rather than rely on information from
the applicant's self- certified application and

ï¿½ review their position on agreements between Job Corps and state and local
authorities regarding enrollment of individuals while under the supervision
of the courts or prisons in Job Corps programs to determine whether it would
be appropriate to establish a written policy to address this issue.

Agency Comments

We met with and discussed the findings of our work with the Director of the
Job Corps. He agreed that NCIC checks would be beneficial to the program in
that they would assist recruiters and counselors in assessing whether an
applicant was eligible for the program and to address other applicant issues
prior to enrollment. He also

GAO- 01- 182R Job Corps Training Centers Page 4 concurred with us that,
based upon the results of our investigation of this one

instance, program officials should examine the program's position on
agreements between Job Corps centers and local judicial or corrections
authorities to determine whether a policy should be established.

---- As you know, the head of a federal agency is required by 31 U. S. C.
720 to submit a written statement on actions take on the recommendations in
this letter to the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs and the House
Committee on Government Reform not later than 60 days after the date of this
letter. A written statement must also sent to the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations with the agency's first request for
appropriations made more than 60 days after the date of this letter.

We are sending copies of this letter to interested congressional committees.
The letter will also be available on GAO's home page, www. gao. gov. If you
have questions about this matter, please call me at (202) 512- 6455 or
Assistant Director William Hamel at (202) 512- 7433. Senior Special Agent
Kevin Craddock was a key contributor.

Sincerely yours, Robert H. Hast Managing Director Office of Special
Investigations

(600765)
*** End of document ***