United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2001-08-24 monographic deposited born digital 83 p. GA 1.13:GAO-01-838 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838 P0b002ee180385f23 f:d01838 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-23 GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838 GAO-01-838 Community development programs Foreign trade agreements Economically depressed areas Employment or training programs International trade regulation Unemployment rates NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement Transitional Adjustment Assistance Program Trade Adjustment Assistance Program Treasury Community Adjustment and Investment Program Other Written Product A01661 This report reviews how trade adjustment assistance and other assistance programs, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement Transitional Adjustment Assistance (NAFTA-TAA) program, have helped distressed communities deal with the adverse impacts of trade. GAO conducted case studies in six such trade-impacted communities. The communities in GAO's case study all experienced major trade-related plant closures and layoffs in the mid- to late-1990s. Two communities lost a large percentage of local jobs in sudden plant closures and experienced economic crises. The other communities experienced rolling layoffs or a series of smaller plant closures that dislocated as many or more workers but did so gradually. Experiences in the communities GAO visited indicate that Temporary Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and NAFTA-TAA assistance to dislocated workers, while substantial, could be implemented more effectively. Program administrators and training providers in each community said that the programs have structural problems that impede effective service delivery. One factor that influenced the implementation of training benefits in many communities is that a significant percentage of dislocated workers needed to earn a high school equivalency degree or take remedial courses before they could even start a training program. Case study communities' experience with economic adjustment showed that the assistance available to them was limited and that there are no easy answers to community recovery, even when funds are available. These communities had relied on low-skilled manufacturing jobs, which are disappearing, and now face the difficult task of diversifying their economies while addressing fundamental human capital issues. These communities' experiences with efforts to assist dislocated workers and adjust to changing economic conditions offer several lessons. Program administrators and training providers said that bureaucratic rigidities in dislocated workers programs limited their flexibility in addressing dislocated workers' diverse training needs. Also, local officials believe that dislocated worker training programs are more effective and job placements much higher when strong links exist between training and local business needs. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838.pdf GAO-01-838 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-838 Other Written Product GAO-01-838; Trade Adjustment Assistance: Experiences of Six Trade-Impacted Communities; Community development programs Foreign trade agreements Economically depressed areas Employment or training programs International trade regulation Unemployment rates NAFTA North American Free Trade Agreement Transitional Adjustment Assistance Program Trade Adjustment Assistance Program Treasury Community Adjustment and Investment Program Public Law 87-794 Public Law 93-618 Public Law 103-182