Located in:
- Program-specific Requirements for Adult, Dislocated Worker, and Youth Activities under Title I-B
The Unified or Combined State Plan must include the following with respect to activities carried out under subtitle B—
e. Waiver Requests (optional) (e1-e6)
States wanting to request waivers as part of their title I-B Operational Plan must include a waiver plan that includes the following information for each waiver requested:
1. Identifies the statutory or regulatory requirements for which a waiver is requested and the goals that the State or local area, as appropriate, intends to achieve as a result of the waiver and how those goals relate to the Unified or Combined State Plan;
2. Describes the actions that the State or local area, as appropriate, has undertaken to remove State or local statutory or regulatory barriers;
3. Describes the goals of the waiver and the expected programmatic outcomes if the request is granted;
4. Describes how the waiver will align with the Department’s policy priorities, such as:
A. Supporting employer engagement;
B. Connecting education and training strategies;
C. Supporting work-based learning;
D. Improving job and career results, and
E. Other guidance issued by the department.
5. Describes the individuals affected by the waiver, including how the waiver will impact services for disadvantaged populations or individuals with multiple barriers to employment; and
6. Describes the processes used to:
A. Monitor the progress in implementing the waiver;
B. Provide notice to any local board affected by the waiver;
C. Provide any local board affected by the waiver an opportunity to comment on the request;
D. Ensure meaningful public comment, including comment by business and organized labor, on the waiver.
E. Collect and report information about waiver outcomes in the State’s WIOA Annual Report.
7. The most recent data available regarding the results and outcomes observed through implementation of the existing waiver, in cases where the State seeks renewal of a previously approved waiver.
Current Narrative:
The North Carolina Division of Workforce Solutions (DWS) is seeking a waiver of the requirement under WIOA §129(a)(4) and 20 CFR 681.410 that the state and local workforce areas spend no less than 75 percent of youth funds to provide services to Out-of-School Youth (OSY).
The North Carolina Division of Workforce Solutions (DWS) is requesting this waiver in order to allow flexibility to lower the expenditure requirement of OSY Formula funding from 75% to 50%, for both statewide and local activities, based on service needs of the Youth population.
North Carolina’s goal is to increase the number of ISY served, which will increase at risk ISY’s access to opportunities to education, training, employment, and support services. This goal directly relates to goals and strategies outlined in the strategic plan.
There are no state or local statutory or regulatory barriers to implementing the requested waiver. North Carolina regulations and policies are in compliance with current federal law.
North Carolina’s goal is to increase the number of ISY served by 10%, which would be approximately 727 ISY for PY 23-24. As a result of more ISY served, the programmatic outcomes include an increase in the obtainment of industry recognized credentials and an increase in measurable skills gains obtained by ISY.
This waiver will allow for the expansion of already successful provisions of work-based learning programs and other WIOA services, such as pre-apprenticeship programs, and services to at-risk and disadvantaged youth to assist with increasing enrollments, secondary education attainment, and workforce readiness to the additional In-School Youth (ISY) served.
Approval of this waiver would permit Boards the opportunity to determine how best to meet the educational and training needs of youth, regardless of school status, and specific to the population, geographical location, and economic and employment conditions of each local area. Increasing outreach to ISY while maintaining a focus on serving OSY will help develop a larger pool of young people qualified and prepared to meet the current and future needs of employers in their workforce areas and throughout the state.
The decreased requirement in OSY expenditures to 50% and increase of ISY expenditures to 50% will affect multiple populations of the public workforce system, including, but not limited to:
- North Carolina’s at-risk and disadvantaged youth population who face barriers to education, training, and employment;
- Local Workforce Boards through increased flexibility to develop unique solutions to better serve youth according to local conditions; and
- Number of ISY served who meet one or more of the following WIOA defined ISY barriers:
- Justice involved;
- Homeless individual; a homeless child or youth; a runaway; in foster care or has aged out of the foster care system; a child eligible for assistance under Section 477 of the Social Security Act, or in out-of-home placement; or
- Pregnant and parenting
While all boards may not choose to utilize this waiver, DWS anticipates that the implementation of this waiver will allow North Carolina to increase ISY enrollments by 10% which will lead to an increase in the number of ISY that obtain measurable skills gains and industry recognized credentials.
Annual WIOA programmatic reviews will include an evaluation of the impact of the waiver on local programs to ensure programmatic goals and outcomes are being met and implementing the waiver. these strategies will ensure that our goals mentioned in this request, as well as those outlined in the existing state and local WIOA plans, are consistent with the established objectives of WIOA, and federal and state regulations.
Prior to this waiver request, all local workforce development board directors were notified of the intent of this request and have been provided an opportunity to comment during the public review and comment period.
;
All boards have had the opportunity to comment on the waiver directly to the DWS staff when provided notice and during the public comment period.
The meaningful public comment period is provided along with the posting and notification of the unified state plan, this includes an opportunity for comments by business and organized labor during the unified state plan public comment period.
;
DWS will submit any findings with the annual WIOA report.
While North Carolina does not have data for Program Year 2023, which began on July 1, 2023,
the chart provided below details the number of ISY served, as well as the number of ISY that received industry recognized credentials and obtained measurable skills gains for Program Years 2019 – 2022.
| Program Year | Number of ISY Served | Number of ISY that received Credentials | Number of ISY that obtained Measurable Skills Gains |
|---|---|---|---|
| PY 19-20 | 823 | 317 | 352 |
| PY 20-21 | 668 | 259 | 301 |
| PY 21-22 | 654 | 188 | 322 |
| PY 22-23 | 661 | 137 | 341 |