DIRECTIVE	:	TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT INFORMATION NOTICE NO. 13-95
TO	:	ALL STATE JTPA LIAISONS ALL STATE EMPLOYMENT SECURITY ADMINISTRATORS ALL STATE WORKER ADJUSTMENT LIAISONS
FROM	:	BARBARA ANN FARMER Administrator for Regional Management
SUBJECT	:	Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) State Oversight Technical Assistance Guides (TAGs)

1. Purpose. To announce the publication and distribution of the State Oversight Technical Assistance Guides.

2. Reference. Training and Employment Information Notice (TEIN) No. 20-92, JTPA Amendments Implementation Strategy.

3. Background. The State Oversight TAGs were prepared by a contractor, Kerber, Eck and Braeckel, under a competitively awarded contract with the Employment

   and Training Administration. The Illinois Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, as contractor for regional JTPA technical assistance and training funds, and the Region V ETA office managed this activity. There was also an advisory group composed of States in Region V that guided this activity from its inception. The contractor also conducted several surveys of all States to ascertain their primary needs regarding oversight. These TAGs are a reflection of those needs expressed by the States and the State advisory group.

4. General Statement of Purpose/Design

   The State Oversight TAGs address the complex area of State oversight, but go beyond what is the required minimum (i.e., compliance areas) so that States can address the

   issues of quality and continuous improvement in the context of their specific State concerns. This gains increasing value as the employment and training system moves into an environment where States can modify programs to address their specific priority issues, and where continuous improvement and customer-driven systems are paramount.

   The five volumes of this technical assistance product are divided into three TAGs which provide a framework for the evaluation of a State's oversight system, guidance and information that assists in the modification of the oversight system to ensure coverage of all required areas and, lastly, a guide that assists a State in developing a framework for oversight of program quality. Other objectives include a user-friendly abstract for the requirements in the Act and Regulations, training tools for new staff/new responsibilities and a risk analysis process that allows a State to determine where to expend shrinking resources. These TAGs are as follows:

   o JTPA REQUIREMENTS ABSTRACT AND INDEX (3 volumes)

   This is an easy-to-use alternative resource for obtaining information on requirements that affect States and subrecipients under JTPA. Each abstract summarizes and simplifies JTPA statutory and regulatory requirements and provides a detailed index so that specific requirements can be found quickly. They are designed to simplify and expedite the requirements research process by addressing difficulties often associated with statutory and regulatory federal program requirements, such as technical style and manner, need to consult more than one source and need for frequent cross-referencing. This TAG is in three volumes:

   Part I - General Administrative and Program (which applies to both Titles II and III).

   Part II - Requirements Under Title II

   Part III - Requirements Under Title III

   o STATE OVERSIGHT OF COMPLIANCE AND PERFORMANCE

   This TAG contains materials intended to assist States as they continue to manage and improve this aspect of their

   oversight responsibilities.

   Effective compliance oversight makes a critical contribution to improving and maintaining high levels

   of performance related to customer needs and customer satisfaction.

   This TAG also contains a risk assessment process that can assist a State in identifying vulnerable areas and making decisions about deployment of resources.

   o STATE OVERSIGHT OF PROGRAM QUALITY

   This TAG is based on the premise that specific measures

   of program quality are best developed by each State

   and structured appropriately to the circumstances and priorities of that State. Therefore, this TAG does not directly define specific measures of program quality that can be applied across the board to local programs.

   This TAG provides a framework and guidance to States on how to structure oversight activity oriented toward the quality of local programs. It assumes that the quality of local programs is determined primarily by and through the operation of local program processes, e.g., the planning process. This TAG guides States in oversight of those processes which are believed to be the ones affecting program quality. This orientation also allows States to develop a cogent, rational technical assistance plan which focuses on improving program quality at the local level.

5. Technical Assistance

   There is no national, formal training being planned for these TAGs. Rather, funds are available in the contract

   to provide technical assistance to the system as is deemed most appropriate by ETA regional offices in consultation with the States. Resources are available to provide

   on-site technical assistance or training with each region. This assistance could cover any or all of the TAGs, or focus on a specialized area such as risk analysis or

   the State Oversight of Program Quality TAG.

6. Distribution. Copies of the TAG have been provided under separate cover to all State JTPA Liaisons for distribution to appropriate State staff.

7. Electronic Distribution.

   All three TAGs are also available electronically via ETA's Training Technology Resource Center (TTRC) FTP server. Please note, all files are in Wordperfect 5.1 format. Should you have any problems or questions about retrieving these files, please call the TTRC at (800) 488-0906 and ask for "ETA TAG Support."

   1. Direct your FTP client program to: ftp.ttrc.doleta.gov

   2. Log in as "anonymous" and enter your e-mail address as your password.

   3. Make sure your FTP client program is set to transfer BINARY files.

   4. Once connected, change directory to the \tags directory.

   5. In the \tags directory you will find the following three subdirectories.

      compliance.9505 for State Oversight of Compliance

      and Performance Under JTPA.

      quality.9505 for State Oversight of Program Quality

      Under JTPA.

      req-abs.9505 for JTPA Requirements Abstract and Index

      The following is a listing of the files found in each of the subdirectories:

      Subdirectory: compliance.9505

      comptag1.wp5 Full text of TAG except for the checklists.

      comptag2.wp5 Exhibit 2.1: Compliance Review Checklist.

      comptag3.wp5 Exhibit 3.1: Performance Review Checklist.

      comptag4.wp5 Exhibit 4.1: Checklist of State's Direct. Responsibilities

      comptag5.wp5 Exhibit 4.2: Checklist for Review of Job Training Plans and Plan Modification.

      comptag6.wp5 Exhibit 4.3: Checklist for Review of PICs.

      Subdirectory: quality.9505

      qualtag.wp5 Full text of TAG.

      Subdirectory: req-abs.9505

      defin.wp5 TAG Instructions.

      instr.wp5 TAG Definitions.

      1. parti.wp5 Part I: General Administrative and Program Requirements.

      2. partii.wp5 Part II: Requirements Under Title II.

      3. partiii.wp5 Part III: Requirement Under Title III.

   6. Change directory to the appropriate TAG directory.

   7. Use the transfer feature capability of your FTP software to transfer file to your PC. If using a Windows based product, click on the transfer arrow, or if using a command line FTP, issue the appropriate 'get' or 'mget' command to retrieve one or more of the documents.

8. Action Required. States are requested to review these materials. They will be contacted by their Regional Office to determine the type of follow-up technical assistance desired.

9. Inquiries. Questions may be directed to James Wiggins (202) 219-7533, or Nola Penn, Region V, (312) 353-5063.