Narrative: I. b.

(a)        Florida submits its Combined State Plan which includes the following core and combined partner programs:

• The Adult Program (Title I of Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)).
• The Dislocated Worker Program (Title I).
• The Youth Program (Title I).
• The Adult Education and Family Literacy Act Program (Title II).
• The Wagner-Peyser Employment Service Program (authorized under the Wagner-Peyser Act, as amended by title III).
• The Vocational Rehabilitation Program (authorized under Title I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1972, as amended by Title IV) including the Florida Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Program and the Florida Division of Blind Services.

Consistent with multi-partner efforts focused on implementation of Florida’s transformational workforce legislation in 2021, the Reimagining Education and Career Help (REACH) Act, and Florida Workforce System Transformation Plan, Florida’s Combined State Plan includes the following Combined State Plan partner programs (per WIOA sec. 103(a)(1) and (2)):

• Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (under 42 U.S.C. § 601 et seq.). (Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF)).
• Employment and training programs in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) authorized under Section 6(d)(4) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. § 2015(d)(4)). (DCF).
• Work programs under Section 6(o) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. § 2015(o)). (Florida Department of Commerce (FloridaCommerce) and DCF).
• Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers program authorized under Chapter 2 of Title II of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. § 2271 et seq.). (FloridaCommerce).
• Jobs for Veterans State Grants program authorized under 38 U.S.C. § 4100 et. seq. (FloridaCommerce).
• Unemployment Insurance (UI) programs, known as Reemployment Assistance (RA) in Florida,  (UI Federal-State programs administered under state unemployment compensation laws in accordance with applicable federal law). (FloridaCommerce).
• Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) authorized under Title V of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. § 3056 et seq.) and updated by the OAA Reauthorization Act of 2016, Pub. L. No. 114-144. (Florida Department of Elder Affairs).
• Employment and training activities carried out under the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) Act (42 U.S.C. § 9901 et seq.). (FloridaCommerce).

The Florida Workforce Development System continues building on WIOA core and combined partnerships including collaboration with the REACH Office, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Florida College System, Florida Chamber of Commerce, The Able Trust, Florida Economic Development Association, and other stakeholders. Florida will collaborate with organizations to identify opportunities for partnerships and system updates. This approach allows Florida to be deliberate and thorough in its strategic planning efforts across programs.

(b) INTRODUCTION

Florida’s workforce system has long been committed to helping Floridians achieve economic independence — helping a job seeker identify and enter an in-demand career pathway, providing opportunities for an employee to access training and certification opportunities that grow their skills, and working side-by-side with businesses of all sizes to provide support so they can thrive. In 2019, Governor DeSantis furthered that commitment by challenging the Florida workforce system to be number one in workforce education by 2030.

The clearest demonstration of the Governor’s dedication to improving outcomes across Florida’s workforce system is the unique collaboration happening across workforce, economic development, education, state agencies, and partners. Steps are being taken to transform and elevate Florida’s workforce system, uniting all entities that have a role to play in the system, aligning on shared objectives, and coordinating operations and services around a common goal of ensuring economic self-sufficiency of its residents. 

Since 2021, Florida has passed several pieces of legislation to advance system transformation statewide. The REACH Act was unanimously approved by the Florida Legislature and signed into law by Governor DeSantis in 2021. The REACH Act addresses the evolving needs of Florida’s economy by increasing the level of collaboration and cooperation among state businesses and education. It demands customer-focused improvements to reimagine and modernize complementary, but often siloed, systems for education, workforce development, and public assistance directly affecting the state’s talent pipeline through both policy and performance.  

In 2023, Senate Bill 240 positioned Florida to help people with barriers to education and employment become self-sufficient through enhanced access to jobs and career pathways that offer sustainable economic prosperity.  

The Florida Workforce System Transformation Plan is a key example of the system transformation empowered by both the REACH Act and Senate Bill 240. The plan is focused around three pillars — Alignment and Consolidation, System-wide Improvements, and Regional Planning Implementation — that will increase collaboration among economic, educational, and governmental agencies; enhance services to customers to be consistent across the state; use resources more effectively and strengthen the state’s economy by supporting regional economies. 

Additionally, initiatives like Hope Florida, spearheaded by First Lady Casey DeSantis, connect partners such as DCF, FloridaCommerce, and CareerSource Florida to ensure the state’s most vulnerable residents receive the support needed to find and retain meaningful employment.  

Florida’s 2024 WIOA Combined Plan is another example of this unification. In addition to demonstrating compliance, Florida’s workforce system and its partners will articulate a collective vision with well-defined quantitative and qualitative goals, speaking not as differentiated partners but as a cohesive workforce development system.  

This approach better reflects our emphasis on access, alignment, and accountability. These priorities come to life, respectively, as we ensure ease and efficiency for Floridians seeking services, increase collaboration among ourselves as partners, and provide greater accountability and transparency to stakeholders.  

In implementing the WIOA Combined Plan, CareerSource Florida and its partners in education and workforce development continue to improve alignment, consistency, and outcomes. The following reflects pride in our systemwide approach to workforce development and education in Florida. Through our individual and combined efforts, we are working to ensure all Floridians have opportunities to achieve self-sufficiency. 

As required by WIOA and its commitment to providing a consumer-first workforce system, Florida continues seeking opportunities to improve outcomes, grow partnerships, and enhance overall customer service. States and local workforce development boards regularly revisit state plan strategies and recalibrate those strategies to respond to the changing economic conditions and workforce needs of the state (20 CFR, Unified and Combined Plans Under Title I of the WIOA Act, §676.135).

Florida’s first WIOA Combined Plan is consistent with the requirements of federal and state law with an emphasis on:

• Streamlining services: Florida’s employment and training programs must be coordinated and consolidated at locally managed one-stop delivery system centers.
• Empowering individuals: Eligible participants will make informed decisions, choosing the qualified training program that best meets their needs.
• Enabling universal access: Through a one-stop delivery system, every Floridian will have access to employment services.
• Promoting increased accountability: The state, localities, and training providers will be held accountable for their performance.

Florida’s unemployment rate decreased 0.2% to 2.4% over the most recent program year, marking the 32^nd consecutive month in which Florida’s unemployment rate remained lower than the national rate. Florida’s labor force also showed consistent growth during the year, increasing by 2.4% and adding 257,000 individuals. Private sector employment increased 3.6%, adding 296,100 jobs over the year which continued a trend of 27 consecutive months of outpacing the national rate.

As the Governor’s principal workforce policy and investment board, CareerSource Florida, in collaboration with its network of 24 local workforce development boards and 100 career centers, continues to connect employers with qualified, skilled talent and Floridians with employment and career development opportunities to achieve economic prosperity. During the year, the CareerSource Florida network assisted 63,855 job seekers in securing employment, including 3,763 veterans.

Subsequent sections of this four-year plan address in more detail key workforce system initiatives undertaken and milestones achieved since the submission of Florida’s most recent Two-Year Modification in early 2022 — including workforce system letter grades, the work of the Credentials Review Committee, and the cross-partner Hope Florida initiative. These efforts connect to Florida’s Workforce System Transformation Plan and reflect Florida’s keen focus on strengthening access, alignment, and accountability across the state’s entire workforce system.

The Governor’s priorities and those of the state workforce development board are reflected in this combined plan.