Narrative: III. b. 2.

In compliance with WIOA, the Governor has established the WVWFDB to assist in the development of the Unified State Plan that will enhance the capacity and performance of the WDS, align and improve the workforce programs and investments, and promote economic growth. The WVWFDB assists the Governor in achieving the State’s strategic and operational vision by developing and aligning policies.

Action Plan for Policy Development

WFWV establishes policy guidance for the WDS. Moving forward, WFWV plans to implement an 8- step process for policy development.

West Virginia’s 8 Step Process for WIOA Policy Development:

1. Determine policy need
2. Meet with subject matter experts
3. Policy drafting
4. Review and comment period
5. Updates to draft
6. Final approval
7. Policy dissemination
8. Policy modification when applicable

Strategic Functions

• Develop and align policies
• Develop and implement state plans and performance measures
• Develop career pathway strategies
• Develop and expand strategies for partnerships in in-demand sectors/occupations

System Alignment and Effective Operations

• Develop policies and guidance on AJC partner roles and resource contributions
• Develop strategies for aligning technology and data systems
• Develop local area allocation formulas
• Develop a statewide LMI system building system capacity
• Develop strategies to support staff training and awareness
• Disseminate best practices
• Develop and continue improving the AJC system
• Support effective local boards

The State of West Virginia has been pursuing policies of coordinated and integrated workforce development system since the enactment of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The policies embedded in the WV State Code §5B-2B-9 for the implementation of WIA still remain valid in the implementation of WIOA.

To support the implementation of the State’s strategies and to ensure mandatory partners remain aligned and are actively involved in the progress of this plan, West Virginia has included the following statute in state code:

WV State Code: §5B-2B-9. Coordination between agencies providing workforce investment programs, local workforce Development Boards and the Executive Director of WorkForce West Virginia

1. To provide ongoing attention to addressing issues that will build and continually improve the overall workforce investment system, the Workforce Investment Interagency Collaborative Team is hereby created. The team shall be the single state interagency source for addressing issues or concerns related to building and maintaining the most effective and efficient implementation of WIOA and the overall workforce development system in West Virginia. The team shall focus on how best to collaborate between and among the state agencies directly involved in workforce investment activities and shall develop a strategic plan to that end. The team shall serve as a forum for the board to seek information or recommendations in furtherance of its responsibilities under this article. Workforce West Virginia is the entity which shall convene the team at least monthly and shall provide administrative and other services to the team as the team requires.
2. The team shall consist of members from each agency subject to the reporting provisions of section five of this article. Each agency shall appoint two representatives to the team consisting of the chief official of the department or division and the official within that department or division who is directly responsible for overseeing the workforce investment program or activities at the state level. A designee may be selected to represent a member appointed to the team: Provided, That the designee has policy-making decision authority regarding workforce investment activities including program and fiscal issues. The team members have authority to make decisions on behalf of the agency at the level required for the team to address issues and advance system improvements.
3. The team shall coordinate the development of a self-sufficiency standard study for the State of West Virginia. The self-sufficiency standard is to measure how much income is needed for a household of a given composition in a given place to adequately meet its basic needs without public or private assistance. Beginning on November 1, 2004, and every two years thereafter, this study is to be reported to the Speaker of the House of Delegates, the President of the Senate, the board and the Legislative Oversight Commission on Workforce Investment for Economic Development.
4. Beginning January 1, 2003, in order to lawfully continue any workforce investment activities, any agency subject to the reporting provisions of section five of this article shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the Executive Director of Workforce West Virginia and any local board representing an area of this state in which the agency is engaged in workforce investment activities. To the extent permitted by federal law, the agreements are to maximize coordination of workforce investment activities and eliminate duplication of services on both state and local levels.
5. No memorandum of understanding may be effective for more than one year without annual reaffirmation by the parties.
6. Any state agency entering a memorandum of understanding shall deliver a copy thereof to both the board and the Legislative Oversight Commission.

Any state agency entering a MOU shall deliver a copy thereof to both the WVWFDB and the legislative oversight commission.

To solidify the commitment and collaborative efforts of the WIOA core and other participating state agencies at the state level, the WDS has a MOU with the ICT. This MOU details the state-level WDS vision, goals, processes, and system-wide commitments from each agency of the ICT. In conjunction with the WVWFDB, the ICT MOU delineates the State’s processes for developing guidelines for the WDS, including guidelines for contributions, benchmarks, and equitable methods of infrastructure funding.  All signatories to the ICT MOU agree to participate in a common referral system and all AJCs utilize a common intake/referral form.   Having a universal intake process increases service availability for WV WDS consumers and allows partner agencies to maximize resources and improve outcomes.  Partner agencies and co-enrolled consumers also benefit from the interoperability of the core partner agencies’ MIS (for additional information, please see section III.b.6.A.i). The WDS is in the process of updating the ICT MOU, to embody State policies that will support the implementation of the State’s strategies set forth in this WIOA Unified State Plan. The ICT MOU will serve to support the implementation of the State’s goals of: 1) Maximize Efficiency of the WDS 2) Strengthen Relationships with Employers 3) Overcome Employment Barriers of Individuals 4) Promote Career Pathways 5) Identify and Maximize Postsecondary and Employment Opportunities for Youth 6) Closer Align West Virginia’s Labor Force Participation Rate with the National Labor Force Participation Rate.

WFWV also provides guidance to assist local boards, chief elected officials, and AJCWV partner programs in determining equitable and stable methods of funding infrastructure outlined WIOA policy 06-17 titled Memorandum Of Understanding/Infrastructure Guidance  https://workforcewv.org/images/files/PublicInfo/guidance-notices/WIOA_Policy_6-17_Memorandum_of_Understanding_-_Infrastructure_Guidance.pdf.