a

GAO

United States General Accounting Office

Report to Congressional Requesters

June 2003 WORKFORCE 

INVESTMENT ACT

One-Stop Centers 

Implemented 

Strategies to 

Strengthen Services 

and Partnerships, but 

More Research and 

Information Sharing is 

Needed

GAO-03-725
Of the 14 one-stop centers in GAO’s study that were identified as exemplary 

by government officials and workforce development experts, all had 

implemented a range of promising practices to streamline services for 

jobseekers, engage the employer community, and built a solid one-stop 

infrastructure. The one-stop centers GAO visited streamlined services for job 

seekers by ensuring access to needed services, educating program staff 

about all of the one-stop services available to job seekers, and consolidating 

case management and intake procedures. In addition, all of the one-stop 

centers GAO visited used at least one of the following three methods to 

engage employers—dedicating specialized staff to work with employers or 

industries, working with employers through intermediaries, such as 

Chambers of Commerce or economic development entities, or tailoring 

services to meet specific employers’ needs. To provide the infrastructure to 

support better services for job seekers and employers, many of the one-stops 

GAO visited found innovative ways to strengthen program partnerships and 

to raise additional funds beyond those provided under WIA. Center 

operators fostered the development of strong program partnerships by 

encouraging partner collaboration through functional work teams and joint 

projects, and they raised additional funds through fee-based services, grants, 

and contributions from partners and state or local governments. 

While Labor currently tracks outcome data--such as job placement, job 

seeker satisfaction and employer satisfaction--and funds several studies to 

evaluate workforce development programs and service delivery models, 

little is known about the impact of various one-stop service delivery 

approaches on these and other outcomes. Labor's studies largely take a 

program-by-program approach rather than focusing on the impact on job 

seekers of various one-stop integrated service delivery approaches, such as 

sharing customer intake forms across programs, or on employers, such as 

dedicating staff to focus on engaging and serving employers. Further, 

Labor's efforts to collaborate with other federal agencies to assess the 

effects of different strategies to integrate job seeker services or to serve 

employers through the one-stop system have been limited. While Labor has 

developed a promising practices Web site to facilitate such information 

sharing, it is unclear how well the site currently meets this objective. 

One-Stop Customers Include Job Seekers and Employers 

Job seekers Employers

One-stop center system

 Job listings

 and job

opportunities

 Available

 labor

 supply

 Services to 

 better meet

 employers'

 labor needs

Job search

 and support

 services

Source: GAO illustration. Clip art source: Art Explosion.

To create a more comprehensive 

workforce investment system, the 

Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of

1998 requires states and localities 

to coordinate most federally 

funded employment and training 

services into a single system, called 

the one-stop center system. This 

report examines how selected onestop centers have used the law’s 

flexibility to implement their own 

vision of WIA and provides 

information on promising practices 

for (1) streamlining services for job 

seekers, (2) engaging the employer 

community, (3) building a solid 

one-stop infrastructure by 

strengthening partnerships across 

programs and raising additional 

funds. In addition, it provides 

information on the actions the 

Department of Labor is taking to 

collect and share information about 

what is working well for job seeker 

and employer customers in onestop centers. 

GAO recommends that the 

Secretary of Labor collaborate with 

the Departments of Education, 

Health and Human Services, and 

Housing and Urban Development to 

develop a research agenda that 

examines the impact of various 

approaches to one-stop program 

integration on outcomes, such as 

job placement and retention, and 

jobseeker and employer 

satisfaction. GAO also recommends 

that the Secretary conduct a 

systematic evaluation of the 

promising practices Web site and 

ensure that it is effective.

WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT

One-Stop Centers Implemented 

Strategies to Strengthen Services and 

Partnerships, but More Research and 

Information Sharing Is Needed 

www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-03-725

To view the full report, including the scope 

and methodology, click on the link above. 

For more information, contact Dianne Blank at 

(202) 512-5654 or blankd@gao.gov. 

Highlights of GAO-03-725, a report to 

Congressional Requesters 

June 2003
Page i GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Contents

Letter 1

Results in Brief 5

Background 7

One-Stops Used Strategies to Streamline Services for Job 

Seekers 12

One-Stops Developed Strategies to Engage and Provide Services to 

Employers in the One-Stop System 17

One-Stop Centers Built a Solid Infrastructure by Strengthening 

Program Partnerships and Raising Additional Funds 23

Little Is Known about the Impact of Strategies to Improve One-Stop 

Services and Management 28

Conclusions 34

Recommendations for Executive Action 35

Agency Comments 35

Appendixes

Appendix I: Characteristics of the 14 One-Stop Centers GAO Visited 37

Appendix II: Promising Practices from Site Visits 39

Aurora, Colorado 39

Blaine, Minnesota 40

Boston, Massachusetts 41

Clarksville, Tennessee 42

Dayton, Ohio 43

Erie, Pennsylvania 44

Kansas City, Missouri 45

Kenosha, Wisconsin 46

Killeen, Texas 47

Pikeville, Kentucky 48

Salt Lake City, Utah 49

Santa Rosa, California 50

Sunnyvale, California 51

Vineland, New Jersey 52

Appendix III: Comments from the Department of Labor 53

Appendix IV: GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments 56

GAO Contacts 56

Staff Acknowledgments 56

Related GAO Products 57
Contents

Page ii GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Tables Table 1: WIA’s Mandatory Programs, Their Related Federal 

Agencies, and Fiscal Year 2003 Program Appropriations 8

Table 2: Selected Studies Supported by ETA 31

Figures Figure 1: GAO Site Visits to One-Stop Centers 4

Figure 2: One-Stop Customers Include Job Seekers and 

Employers 11

Figure 3: Promising Strategies in Streamlining and Integrating 

Services for Job Seeker Customers 13

Figure 4: Promising Strategies for Engaging Employers 18

Figure 5: Promising Strategies for Improving the One-Stop Center 

Infrastructure 24

Abbreviations

ATA Area Transit Authority

ETA Employment and Training

GED General Educational Development

HHS Department of Health and Human Services

HUD Department of Housing and Urban Development

ITA Individual Training Accounts

JTPA Job Training Partnership Act

TANF Temporary Assistance for Needy Families

WIA Workforce Investment Act

This is a work of the U.S. government and is not subject to copyright protection in the 

United States. It may be reproduced and distributed in its entirety without further 

permission from GAO. However, because this work may contain copyrighted images or 

other material, permission from the copyright holder may be necessary if you wish to 

reproduce this material separately.
Page 1 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

United States General Accounting Office

Washington, D.C. 20548

A

June 18, 2003 Lret

The Honorable John A. Boehner

Chairman

Committee on Education and the Workforce

House of Representatives

The Honorable Howard P. McKeon

Chairman

Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness

Committee on Education and the Workforce

House of Representatives

The Honorable Edward M. Kennedy

Ranking Minority Member

Committee on Health, Education,

Labor and Pensions

United States Senate 

The Congress passed the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) in 1998 to begin 

unifying a fragmented employment and training system and to better serve 

job seekers and employers. To create a more comprehensive workforce 

investment system, WIA requires states and localities to bring together over 

$15 billion of federally funded employment and training services into a 

single system, called the one-stop center system. Four separate federal 

agencies—the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), 

Education, and Housing and Urban Development (HUD)—fund about 

17 categories of programs that are required to provide services through the 

one-stop system. Labor takes a lead role in this new system and is 

responsible for assessing the effectiveness of Labor-funded programs and 

for providing guidance to states and localities as programs deliver their 

services through the one-stop system. 
Page 2 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

WIA is designed to give states and localities flexibility in deciding how to 

implement the one-stop system, allowing local one-stops to try new 

approaches and tailor their systems to the needs of local job seeker and 

employer customers. Labor encourages states and localities to create a 

customer-focused one-stop system that uses innovative approaches to help 

job seekers find and maintain employment and help employers find skilled 

workers. In past reports, we identified key areas critical to successfully 

providing services to job seekers and employers, such as providing job 

seeker services that are tailored and seamlessly delivered and serving 

employers in ways that minimize wasted time and reduce frustration.1

 As 

the Congress moves toward reauthorization of WIA, you wanted to know 

how some of the nation’s 1,972 one-stop centers have built on these 

concepts and used their flexibility to streamline and integrate services for 

job seekers, involve the private sector, and coordinate operations and 

service delivery across employment and training programs. 

As requested, this report examines how some one-stop centers have used 

the law’s flexibility to implement their own vision of WIA and provides 

information on promising practices for (1) streamlining services for job 

seekers, (2) engaging the employer community, and (3) building a solid 

one-stop infrastructure by strengthening partnerships across programs and 

raising additional funds. In addition, we are providing information on the 

actions the Department of Labor is taking to collect and share information 

about what is working well for job seeker and employer customers in onestop centers.

Our report is based on in-depth site visits to 14 one-stop centers from 

across the nation that government officials and workforce experts 

identified as exemplary and on interviews with Labor Department officials. 

Because no systemwide data exists by which to judge the success of 

various one-stop approaches, we selected our sites based on information 

about promising practices in one-stop centers and information about the 

potential impact of those practices. We asked the following officials or 

experts to identify exemplary one-stop centers: Labor headquarters and 

regional officials; HHS, Education, and HUD headquarters offices; and 

workforce development experts. We restricted the request for exemplary 

1

U.S. General Accounting Office, Workforce Investment Act: Coordination of TANF 

Services Through One-stops Has Increased Despite Challenges, GAO-02-739T (Washington 

D.C.: May 16, 2002) and Workforce Investment Act: Implementation Status and the 

Integration of TANF Services, GAO/T-HEHS-00-145 (Washington, D.C.: June 29, 2000).
Page 3 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

one-stops to a single site in each of the three key areas—serving job 

seekers, engaging employers, and operating the one-stop center. The 

officials and experts provided us with specific information on each site’s 

innovations and the potential impact of each promising practice. After 

officials and experts identified approximately 50 one-stop centers across 

the three areas, we winnowed down the list of one-stops by considering the 

number of times a site was recommended and each site’s characteristics, 

including its location and the size of its service area. Figure 1 shows the 

locations of the 14 sites we visited. The 14 one-stop centers represented a 

geographic and a demographic mix, ranging from rural to urban centers. 

(See app. I for information on each one-stop site.) Some of the sites, such 

as Kansas City, Missouri, represented a mix of urban, suburban, and rural 

customers. The one-stops we visited varied in the average number of 

customers they served—from 500 to 42,500 each month. The sites also 

represented a mix of one-stop operators—those responsible for 

administering the one-stop centers—including nonprofit organizations, 

consortia of one-stop partners, and local government entities. We 

conducted our work between August 2002 and June 2003 in accordance 

with generally accepted government auditing standards. 
Page 4 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Figure 1: GAO Site Visits to One-Stop Centers

Source: GAO site visits.

CONNECT!

Sunnyvale, CA

Job Link

Santa Rosa, CA

Florida

Maine

Central Texas 

Workforce

Killeen, TX

Full 

Employment 

Council

Kansas City, MO

WorkForce 

Essentials, Inc. 

Clarksville, TN

South County 

Employment Center

Salt Lake City, UT

Arapahoe/

Douglas Works! 

Aurora, CO

Anoka County 

Workforce Center

Blaine, MN

Kenosha County 

Job Center

Kenosha, WI

The Job Center

Dayton, OH

Erie Team 

PA CareerLink

Erie, PA

The Work Place

Boston, MA

Cumberland 

County One-Stop 

Vineland, NJ

Pike County 

JobSight Center

Pikeville, KY
Page 5 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Results in Brief The one-stop centers we visited embraced the customer-focused provisions 

of WIA by streamlining one-stop services for job seekers. All of the centers 

used at least one of three different strategies to build a streamlined onestop system—ensuring that job seekers could readily access needed 

services, educating program staff about all of the one-stop services 

available to job seekers, and consolidating case management and intake 

procedures. Thirteen of the 14 one-stop centers we visited took special 

care to ensure that job seekers could readily access needed services. For 

example, officials in Erie, Pennsylvania, positioned a staff person at the 

entrance to the one-stop to help job seekers entering the center find needed 

services and to ensure that exiting job seekers had received the services 

they sought. To educate program staff on all one-stop services, almost all of 

the one-stop centers we visited used cross-training sessions to help staff 

understand the range of services available at the one-stop. For example, in 

Pikeville, Kentucky, regularly scheduled cross-training workshops 

educated staff about the one-stop’s diverse array of services, such as adult 

education classes and services for the disabled, so that they could better 

ensure that job seekers received the tools they needed to become 

successfully employed. Finally, 10 of the 14 one-stops we visited 

streamlined services for job seekers by consolidating intake procedures or 

case management across multiple programs. For example, in Blaine, 

Minnesota, job seekers received comprehensive services from a team of 

caseworkers who collaborated to meet all job seekers’ needs.

To engage employers and provide them needed services, all of the one-stop 

centers we visited used at least one of three different strategies—

dedicating specialized staff to work with employers or industries; working 

with employers through intermediaries, such as Chambers of Commerce or 

economic development entities; or tailoring services to meet specific 

employers’ needs. All of the centers dedicated specialized staff to work 

with employers or industries. For example, the Killeen, Texas, one-stop 

center dedicated specialized staff to work with employers to identify job 

openings and to act as a central point of contact so that employers were not 

burdened with multiple calls from each of the one-stop programs. In Santa 

Rosa, the specialized staff for employers were dedicated to specific 

industries in order to better address local labor shortages. When the 

tourism industry had a labor shortage, for example, a staff person was in 

place who used his or her existing relationships with tourism employers to 

more effectively match job seekers with job-specific training. In addition to 

employer-focused staff, many of the one-stops worked with employers 

through intermediaries, such as the Chambers of Commerce or economic 
Page 6 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

development entities, to expand the number of employer customers and 

provide these employers with one-stop services. For example, the one-stop 

staff in Clarksville, Tennessee, worked with Chamber members to provide 

math training in order to improve the pool of entry-level employees for the 

banking industry. In addition, almost all of the one-stops we visited went 

beyond providing basic services to employers by tailoring services to meet 

individual employers’ unique labor needs, including specialized recruiting 

and applicant pre-screening, customized training opportunities, and 

assessments using employer specifications. The Pikeville, Kentucky, onestop offered a range of tailored services to employers that were 

instrumental in attracting a major cabinet manufacturer to the area and 

helping this company hire over 105 employees.

To provide the infrastructure to support better services for job seekers and 

employers, many of the one-stops we visited found innovative ways to 

develop and strengthen program partnerships and to raise additional funds 

beyond those provided under WIA. Center operators fostered the 

development of strong program partnerships by encouraging 

communication and collaboration among partners, which enabled them to 

pursue common one-stop goals and to support the development of a shared 

one-stop identity. For example, in Blaine, Minnesota, partners at the onestop center participated in a joint project to apply for a local one-stop 

implementation grant from the state of Minnesota. Blaine one-stop 

managers told us that the planning process involved in applying for the 

grant allowed partners to develop a better understanding of one another’s 

services and enabled them to identify common functions and thereby 

reduce service duplication. Several one-stop managers reported that such 

collaboration among partners was facilitated by the co-location of 

programs in one building, which one-stops encouraged by offering 

attractive physical space and flexible rental agreements. Many one-stops 

also supported a strong infrastructure by raising funds through fee-based 

services, grants, and contributions from partners and state or local 

governments. The centers used the additional funds to improve operations 

and to provide additional services. For example, managers at the one-stop 

in Kansas City, Missouri, told us that their full-time grant writer was able to 

generate two-thirds of the center’s entire operating budget through 

competitive grants available from the federal government as well as from 

private foundations. This money allowed the center to expand its services, 

including a new internship program in high-tech industries for at-risk 

youth.
Page 7 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

While Labor currently tracks outcome data—such as job placement, job 

seeker satisfaction and employer satisfaction—and funds several studies to 

evaluate workforce development programs and service delivery models, 

little is known about the impact of various one-stop service delivery 

approaches on these and other outcomes. Labor’s studies largely take a 

program-by-program approach rather than focusing on the impact on job 

seekers of various one-stop integrated service delivery approaches, such as 

sharing customer intake forms across programs, or on employers, such as 

dedicating staff to focus on engaging and serving employers. Further, 

Labor’s efforts to collaborate with other federal agencies to assess the 

effects of different strategies to integrate job seeker services or to serve 

employers through the one-stop system have been limited. In addition, onestop administrators do not have enough opportunities to share existing 

information about how to improve and integrate services for job seeker and 

employer customers. While Labor has developed a promising practices 

Web site to facilitate such information sharing, it is unclear how well the 

site currently meets this objective.

In order to better understand and disseminate information on how well 

different approaches to program integration are meeting the needs of onestop job seekers and employers, we recommend that the Secretary of Labor 

collaborate with the Departments of Education, Health and Human 

Services, and Housing and Urban Development to develop a research 

agenda that examines the impact of various approaches to program 

integration on job seeker and employer satisfaction and outcomes, such as 

job placement and retention. We also recommend that the Secretary 

conduct a systematic evaluation of the promising practices Web site and 

ensure that it is effective. In its written comments, Labor generally agreed 

with our findings and recommendations.

Background The Workforce Investment Act created a new, comprehensive workforce 

investment system designed to change the way employment and training 

services are delivered. When WIA was enacted in 1998, it replaced the Job 

Training Partnership Act (JTPA) with three new programs—Adult, 

Dislocated Worker, and Youth—that allow for a broader range of services, 

including job search assistance, assessment, and training for eligible 

individuals.2

 In addition to establishing three new programs, WIA requires 

2

While WIA was enacted in 1998, Labor did not require states to implement major provisions 

of WIA until July 1, 2000.
Page 8 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

that a number of employment-related services be provided through a onestop system, designed to make accessing employment and training services 

easier for job seeker customers. WIA also requires that the one-stop system 

engage the employer customer by helping employers identify and recruit 

skilled workers. While WIA allows states and localities flexibility in 

implementing these requirements, the law emphasizes that the one-stop 

system should be a customer-focused and comprehensive system that 

increases the employment, retention, and earnings of participants. 

The major hallmark of WIA is the consolidation of services through the 

one-stop center system. About 17 categories of programs, totaling over 

$15 billion from four separate federal agencies, are required to provide 

services through the system. (See table 1.) 

Table 1: WIA’s Mandatory Programs, Their Related Federal Agencies, and Fiscal Year 2003 Program Appropriations

Source: GAO-03-589 and Labor.

Federal agency Mandatory program Fiscal Year 2003 appropriations

Department of Labor WIA Adult $898,778,000

WIA Dislocated Worker 1,461,145,495

WIA Youth 994,458,728

Employment Service (Wagner-Peyser) 756,783,723

Trade adjustment assistance programs 972,000,000

Veterans’ employment and training programs 167,199,097

Unemployment Insurance 2,634,253,000

Job Corps 1,522,240,700

Welfare-to-Work grant-funded programs 0

Senior Community Service Employment 

Program

442,306,200

Employment and training for migrant and 

seasonal farm workers

77,330,066

Employment and training for Native Americans 55,636,000

Department of Education Vocational Rehabilitation Program 2,506,948,000

Adult Education and Literacy 571,262,500

Vocational Education (Perkins Act) 1,513,170,925

Department of Health and Human Services Community Services Block Grant 645,762,085

Department of Housing and Urban Development HUD-administered employment and training 65,000,000

Total $15,284,274,519
Page 9 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

WIA allows flexibility in the way these mandatory partners provide services 

through the one-stop system, allowing co-location, electronic linkages, or 

referrals to off-site partner programs. While WIA requires these mandatory 

partners to participate, WIA did not provide additional funds to operate 

one-stop systems and support one-stop partnerships. As a result, 

mandatory partners are expected to share the costs of developing and 

operating one-stop centers. However, several of the programs have 

limitations in the way the funds may be used, giving rise to one-stop 

funding challenges.3

Beyond the mandatory partners, one-stop centers have the flexibility to 

include other partners in the one-stop system. Labor suggests that these 

additional, or optional partners, may help one-stop systems better meet 

specific state and local workforce development needs. These optional 

partners may include Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)4

 or 

local private organizations, for example. States have the option of 

mandating particular optional partners to participate in their one-stop 

systems. For example, in 2001, 28 states had formal agreements between 

TANF and WIA to involve TANF in the one-stop system.5

 In addition, 

localities may partner with other programs to meet the specific needs of 

the community.

3

Several of the mandatory one-stop partner programs are subject to restrictions on the use 

of their funds, such as which populations they may serve and limits on the amount of 

allowable administrative spending. See U.S. General Accounting Office, Workforce 

Investment Act: Better Guidance Needed to Address Concerns Over New Requirements, 

GAO-02-72 (Washington D.C.: Oct. 4, 2001).

4

TANF provides low-income families with income support and employment-related 

assistance.

5

For more information on TANF participation in one-stop centers, see GAO-02-739T.
Page 10 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

One-stop centers serve two customers—job seekers and employers (see 

fig. 2). In serving job seekers, one-stop centers are encouraged to develop 

strategies to achieve a streamlined set of services. In past reports, we 

identified key areas critical to successfully integrating services under WIA, 

such as ensuring that job seekers have ready access to employment and 

program information, reducing job seekers’ confusion by providing them 

with a streamlined path from one program to another, providing job seeker 

services that are tailored and seamless, and helping job seekers identify 

and obtain needed program services without the burden of completing 

multiple intake and assessment procedures.6

 One-Stop centers provide job 

seekers with job search and support services, while the job seekers act as 

an available labor pool for the one-stops’ employer customers. In serving 

employers, one-stops have the flexibility under WIA to provide a variety of 

tailored services, including hiring, assessments and training services that 

meet the specific needs of each employer.7

 The degree to which the onestop system engages and provides services to employers is left to the 

discretion of state and local officials. However, Labor suggests that 

employer involvement is critical for one-stop officials to better understand 

what skills are needed, what jobs are available, and what career fields are 

expanding.

6

For more information, see GAO-02-739T and GAO/T-HEHS-00-145.

7

WIA has a general requirement for local boards to promote the participation of private 

sector employers in the workforce investment system and specifically requires that 

employers and the private sector community represent a majority of the state and local 

workforce investment boards’ memberships and that the chairperson of each board be 

elected from those members. 
Page 11 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Figure 2: One-Stop Customers Include Job Seekers and Employers

In order to demonstrate the effectiveness of the WIA programs, WIA 

requires that states and localities track performance and Labor holds states 

accountable for their performance. The measures gauge outcomes in the 

areas of job placement, employment retention, and earnings change, as 

well as skill attainment and customer satisfaction.8

 In addition to the WIA 

programs, most of the 17 employment and training programs have their 

Source: GAO illustration. Clip art source: Art Explosion.

Job seekers Employers

One-stop

center system

17 mandatory partner

programs

Optional programs at state

and local discretion

 Job listings

 and job

opportunities

 Available

 labor

 supply

 Services to 

 better meet

 employers'

 labor needs

Job search

 and support

 services

8

For more information, see U.S. General Accounting Office, Workforce Investment Act: 

Improvements Needed in Performance Measures to Provide a More Accurate Picture of 

WIA’s Effectiveness, GAO-02-275 (Washington D.C.: Feb. 1, 2002).
Page 12 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

own performance measures. There are no overall one-stop performance 

measures.

One-Stops Used 

Strategies to 

Streamline Services for 

Job Seekers

The one-stop centers we visited embraced the customer-focused provisions 

of WIA by streamlining one-stop services for job seekers. All 14 one-stop 

centers we visited used at least one of three different strategies to build a 

streamlined one-stop system—ensuring job seekers could readily access 

needed services, educating program staff about all of the one-stop services 

available to job seekers, and consolidating case management and intake 

procedures (see fig. 3). To ensure that job seekers could readily access 

needed services, one-stops we visited allocated staff to help job seekers 

navigate the one-stop system, expanded services for one-stop customers, 

and provided support to customers with transportation barriers. Ensuring 

access is designed to minimize confusion for job seekers as they navigate 

one-stop services. To educate program staff about one-stop services, 

centers used cross-training sessions in which partners informed one 

another about the range of services available at the one-stop. Finally, 

centers sought to reduce the duplication of effort across programs and the 

burden on job seekers navigating programs by consolidating case 

management and intake procedures across multiple programs through joint 

service plans for customers and shared computer networks. 
Page 13 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Figure 3: Promising Strategies in Streamlining and Integrating Services for Job Seeker Customers

One-Stop Staff Ensured Job 

Seeker Access to Needed 

One-Stop Services 

Nearly all of the one-stop centers we visited implemented specific 

strategies to ensure that job seekers had access to needed services. We 

previously reported that the range of services provided by multiple 

programs in the one-stop center caused confusion for job seekers. To 

minimize confusion, nearly all of the sites we visited looked for ways to 

ensure job seekers would have ready access to program information and a 

clear path from one program to another within the one-stop system. For 

example, when one-stop center staff in Killeen, Texas, and Clarksville, 

Tennessee, referred job seekers to another partner, the staff personally 

introduced the job seeker to the referred program staff to prevent job 

seekers from getting lost between programs. Similarly, officials in Erie, 

 Available

 labor

 supply

Job search

 and support

 services

Source: GAO illustration. Clip art source: Art Explosion.

Job seekers Employers

One-stop

center system

Promising Strategies

Ensuring job seekers

ready access to needed

services

Educating program staff

to better understand all

available one-stop services

Consolidating case

management and intake

procedures for job seekers

Minimize confusion and

frustration when accessing

one-stop services

Improve the job seeker's

ability to receive appropriate

services

Reduce duplication of efforts

and burden on job seeker

when navigating multiple

program services

Designed to:
Page 14 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Pennsylvania, positioned a staff person at the entrance to the one-stop to 

help job seekers entering the center find needed services and to assist 

exiting job seekers if they did not receive the services they sought. (See 

app. II for more examples from each of the sites we visited.)

In addition to improving access to one-stop center services on-site, some of 

the one-stops we visited found ways to serve job seekers who may have 

been unable to come into the one-stop center for services. For example, in 

Boston, Massachusetts, the one-stop placed staff in off-site locations, 

including family courts, correctional facilities, and welfare offices to give 

job seekers ready access to employment and program information. 

Specifically, Boston one-stop staff worked with an offender re-entry 

program that conducted job fairs inside the county prison to facilitate 

incarcerated offenders’ transition back into the workplace.

One-stops also improved job seeker access to services by expanding 

partnerships to include optional service providers—those beyond the 

17 program partners mandated by WIA. These optional partners ranged 

from federally funded programs, such as TANF, to community-based 

organizations providing services tailored to meet the needs of local job 

seekers. The one-stop in Dayton, Ohio, was particularly proactive in 

forming optional partnerships to meet job seekers’ service needs. At the 

time of our visit, the Dayton one-stop had over 30 optional partners on-site, 

including the Montgomery County Combined Health District, which 

operated a health clinic on-site; Clothes that Work!, which provides free 

business attire to low-income women; and an alternative high school. The 

most common optional partner at the one-stops we visited was the TANF 

program—which was an on-site partner at 13 of the 14 sites. One-stop 

managers in Clarksville told us that co-location with the Tennessee 

Department of Human Services, which administers TANF, benefited all job 

seekers because the department helped to fund various services, including 

computer classes, soft skills classes, and parenting classes that could be 

provided to those not eligible for TANF. Additionally, Killeen, Texas, onestop staff told us that co-location with TANF helped welfare recipients 

address barriers to employment by facilitating easier access to other 

services, such as housing assistance and employment and training 

programs.

Many one-stop centers, such as in Killeen, Texas, and Vineland, New Jersey, 

ensured access to one-stop services by addressing customers’ 

transportation challenges. Staff in Killeen partnered with the libraries in 

rural areas to provide computer access to one-stop resume writing and job 
Page 15 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

search services and an on-line TANF orientation. In Kansas City, Missouri, 

the one-stop management decided to locate the one-stop center next to the 

bus company, the Area Transit Authority (ATA). This strategic decision 

meant that all bus routes passed by the one-stop center, thus ensuring that 

customers with transportation challenges could access one-stop center 

services. Additionally, the ATA partnered with the one-stop to create an 

Urban Employment Network program to assist job seekers with 

transportation to and from work. The ATA provided bus service 7 days a 

week from 5:00 in the morning until midnight and set up a van service to 

operate during off-peak hours. 

One-Stops Ensured That All 

Program Staff Understood 

the Range of Services 

Available for Job Seekers

To help ensure that job seekers receive services tailored to meet their 

needs, nine of the one-stops we visited focused on educating all one-stop 

staff about the range of services available through the one-stop.9

 In earlier 

work, we identified challenges for job seekers in receiving the right set of 

services to meet their needs.10 One-stop officials at the centers we visited 

reported that staff who were cross-trained could better assess the 

particular needs of job seekers, including identifying barriers to getting a 

job, and were able to provide job seekers with more appropriate referrals.11 

Cross-training activities ranged from conducting monthly educational 

workshops to offering shadow programs through which staff could become 

familiar with other programs’ rules and operations. Officials in Salt Lake 

City, Utah, reported that cross–training improved staff understanding of 

programs outside their area of expertise and enhanced their ability to make 

referrals. The Pikeville, Kentucky, one-stop supported cross-training 

workshops in which one-stop staff from different partner programs 

educated each other about the range of services they could provide. After 

learning about the other programs, Pikeville staff collaboratively designed 

a service delivery flow chart that effectively routed job seekers to the 

appropriate service providers, providing a clear entry point and a clear path 

from one program to another. In addition, the Vocational Rehabilitation 

9

While WIA requires that specific programs provide services within the one-stop system, 

WIA does not require that one-stop staff are cross-trained to understand the array of onestop services.

10GAO-02-739T and GAO/T-HEHS-00-145.

11Officials from some of the sites we visited told us that they believe the best service delivery 

approach included one-stop staff that specialized in their own program area but were also 

cross-trained in the services and basic eligibility requirements of other programs in the onestop system.
Page 16 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

staff at the Pikeville one-stop told us that cross-training enabled other 

program staff to more accurately identify hidden disabilities and to better 

refer disabled customers to the appropriate services. 

In the one-stop centers we visited, cross-training occurred among the 

majority of on-site co-located partners as well as between some of the onsite and off-site one-stop programs. One-stop managers in Dayton, Ohio, 

told us that cross-training staff resulted in increased referrals to service 

providers that had previously been unknown, such as to smaller programs 

within the one-stop or to local neighborhood programs that could better 

meet the specific needs of particular job seekers. Specifically, Dayton 

managers also reported that cross-training one-stop staff dramatically 

improved referrals to the Child Support program,12 thereby enhancing 

efforts to establish paternity, a requirement for determining eligibility for 

TANF. 

One-Stop Centers 

Streamlined Services for 

Job Seekers through 

Consolidated Intake 

Procedures and Case 

Management

To provide streamlined service delivery, 10 of the 14 one-stops we visited 

consolidated their intake processes or case management systems, reducing 

the need for job seekers to go through multiple intake processes. This 

consolidation took many forms, including having case workers from 

different programs work as a team to develop service plans for customers 

and having a shared computer network across programs. As a result, case 

workers reduced the duplication of effort across programs and job seekers 

were not burdened with completing multiple intake and assessment 

procedures. For example, the Youth Opportunity Program and Workforce 

WIA Youth program staff at the one-stop in Kansas City, Missouri, shared 

intake and enrollment forms to streamline the delivery of services to youth. 

In Blaine, Minnesota, job seekers were originally served by multiple service 

providers, meeting independently with each provider for each program 

service received. Caseworkers from the various one-stop programs in 

Blaine met regularly to collaborate in developing and implementing joint 

service plans for customers who were co-enrolled in multiple programs. As 

a result, the number of caseworkers involved had been reduced 

significantly, and job seekers received a more efficient and tailored 

package of services. To efficiently coordinate multiple services for one-stop 

customers in Erie, Pennsylvania, the staff used a networked computer 

12The Child Support Enforcement and Paternity Establishment Program collects support 

from noncustodial parents and helps establish paternity for TANF families.
Page 17 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

system with a shared case management program, so that all one-stop 

program staff could share access to a customer’s service plan and case file. 

One-Stops Developed 

Strategies to Engage 

and Provide Services to 

Employers in the OneStop System

All of the one-stops we visited implemented at least one of three different 

approaches to engage and provide services to employers—dedicating 

specialized staff to establish relationships with employers or industries, 

working with employers through intermediaries, and providing tailored 

services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs (see fig.4). All of the 

one-stops dedicated staff to establish relationships with employers, 

minimizing the burden on employers who previously may have been 

contacted by multiple one-stop programs. A few of these one-stops also 

had employer-focused staff work with specific industries in order to 

respond better to local labor shortages. Many of the one-stops also worked 

with employers through intermediaries, such as the Chambers of 

Commerce or economic development entities, in order to market one-stop 

services and expand their base of employer customers. Finally, most onestops went beyond providing basic services to employers by tailoring 

services to meet individual employers’ needs, such as specialized recruiting 

and applicant pre-screening, customized training opportunities, and 

assessments using employer specifications. Tailored services were used to 

maintain employer involvement and increase employment opportunities 

for job seekers.
Page 18 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Figure 4: Promising Strategies for Engaging Employers

One-Stops Dedicated 

Specialized Staff to 

Establish Relationships with 

Employers and Industries

To help employers access the workforce development system, all of the 

one-stops we visited dedicated specialized staff to establish relationships 

with employers. One-stop officials told us that engaging employers was 

critical to successfully connecting job seekers with available jobs. 

Specialized staff outreached to individual employers and served as 

employers’ primary point of contact for accessing one-stop services. For 

example, the one-stop in Killeen, Texas, dedicated specialized staff to serve 

not only as the central point of contact for receiving calls and requests from 

employers but also as the primary tool for identifying job openings 

available through employers in the community. A one-stop manager in 

Source: GAO illustration. Clip art source: Art Explosion.

Job seekers Employers

One-stop

center system

Promising Strategies

Dedicating specialized staff

to establish relationships with

employers and industries

Working with intermediaries

to engage and serve

employers

Providing tailored services to

meet employers' specific

workforce needs

Better understand labor market

needs, and minimize time for

employers who had to respond

to multiple inquiries from

programs

Market services and expand

the employer customer base

Provide employers with

services that maintain employer

involvement and increase job

seeker opportunities

Designed to:

 Job listings

 and job

opportunities

 Services to 

 better meet

 employers'

 labor needs
Page 19 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Killeen told us that in the past, staff from each partner agency would 

outreach to employers to find jobs for their own job seekers. Now they 

have eliminated the duplication of effort and burden on employers by 

designating specialized staff to conduct employer outreach for all one-stop 

programs. 

In addition to working with individual employers, staff at some of the onestops we visited also worked with industry clusters, or groups of related 

employers, to more efficiently meet local labor demands—particularly for 

industries with labor shortages. One-stop managers at these sites told us 

that having staff work with industry clusters helped them better respond to 

labor shortages because it enabled staff to develop a strong understanding 

of the employment and training needs of those industries. These one-stops 

were better prepared to match job seekers with appropriate training 

opportunities, enabling those job seekers to become part of a qualified 

labor pool for these industries. For example, the one-stop in Santa Rosa, 

California, assigned staff to work with employers in local high-demand 

industries, including health care, high tech, and tourism. These staff 

established relationships with employers from these industries, assessed 

their specific workforce needs, and shared this information with one-stop 

case workers. Specifically, when Santa Rosa’s tourism industry was in 

need of more skilled workers, the one-stop worked with the local 

community college to ensure there were certification courses in hotel 

management and the culinary arts, for exam. The one-stop in Aurora, 

Colorado, also dedicated staff to work with specific industries. For 

example, in response to a nursing shortage of 1,600 nurses in the Denver 

metro area, staff from the Aurora one-stop assisted in the creation of a 

healthcare recruitment center designed to provide job placement 

assistance and access to health-care training.
Page 20 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

One-Stops Worked with 

Intermediaries to Engage 

and Serve Employers

In addition to dedicating specialized staff, all of the one-stops we visited 

worked with intermediaries to engage and serve employers. 

Intermediaries, such as local Chambers of Commerce or economic 

development entities, served as liaisons between employers and the onestop system, helping one-stops to engage employers while connecting 

employers with one-stop services. For example, the one-stop staff in 

Clarksville, Tennessee, worked with Chamber of Commerce members to 

help banks in the community that were having difficulties finding entrylevel employees with the necessary math skills. To help connect job 

seekers with available job openings at local banks, the one-stop developed 

a training opportunity for job seekers that was funded by Chamber 

members and was targeted to the specific skills needed for employment in 

the banking community.13 Similarly, staff at the one-stop in Kenosha, 

Wisconsin, were in frequent contact with the Kenosha Area Business 

Alliance, a community development corporation, to identify and address 

hiring and training needs of the local manufacturing industry. This 

partnership not only helped employers access human resources 

assistance—such as recruitment, networking, and marketing—but it also 

assisted employers with assessment and training of new and existing 

employees. Specialized staff at most of the one-stops we visited also 

worked with local economic development entities to serve employers or 

recruit new businesses to the area. For example, the staff at the Erie, 

Pennsylvania, one-stop worked with a range of local economic 

development organizations14 to develop an outreach program that assessed 

the workforce needs of employers, linked employers with appropriate 

services, and developed incentive packages to attract new businesses to 

the community. 

13The one-stop in Kansas City, Missouri, provides another example of how specialized staff 

at the one-stop worked with the local Chambers of Commerce to better connect employers 

with job seekers, specifically disabled job seekers. While staff at the Kansas City one-stop 

identified job seekers with disabilities, the Chamber worked with local employers to 

educate them about hiring disabled workers and integrating them into the workplace. 

14Erie CareerLink worked with numerous economic development entities, such as the Erie 

County Executive, Economic Development Corporation of Erie County, and Northwest 

Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Center, which are agencies and organizations dedicated to 

promoting the local economy by attracting new employers to the region and by providing 

support for local employers.
Page 21 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

One-Stops Provided 

Services Tailored to Meet 

Employers’ Specific 

Workforce Needs

In addition to dedicating specialized staff to engage employers and working 

with intermediaries, all of the one-stops we visited tailored their services to 

meet employers’ specific workforce needs by offering an array of job 

placement and training assistance designed for each employer. These 

services included specialized recruiting, pre-screening, and customized 

training programs. For example, when one of the nation’s largest cabinet 

manufacturers was considering opening a new facility in the eastern 

Kentucky area, the one-stop in Pikeville, Kentucky, offered a tailored set of 

services to attract the employer to the area. The services included assisting 

the company with pre-screening and interviewing applicants and 

establishing an on-the-job training package that used WIA funding to offset 

up to 50 percent of each new hire’s wages during the 90-day training period. 

According to a company representative, the incentive package offered by 

the one-stop was the primary reason the company chose to build a new 

facility in eastern Kentucky instead of another location. Once the company 

arrived, the Pikeville one-stop administered the application and assessment 

process for job applicants and held a 3-day job fair, resulting in the 

company hiring 105 people through the one-stop and planning to hire an 

additional 350 employees. 

To help industries address labor shortages and strengthen local businesses, 

several of the one-stops we visited actively developed and marketed 

training opportunities for current and potential new employees, helping to 

keep jobs in the community and promote local economic growth. For 

example, Pikeville, Kentucky, encountered a labor shortage in the local 

coal mining industry. Because of the high cost of training for inexperienced 

miners, many companies considered hiring experienced coal miners from 

foreign countries. To help companies save on training costs and hire 

workers from the local area—one of historically high unemployment—the 

Pikeville one-stop created an on-the-job training program using WIA funds, 

which paid for half of new miners’ salaries during their training period. 

The co-owner of a local mining company, who hired 15 percent of his 

workforce through the one-stop, told us that, without the assistance of the 

one-stop, he would not have been able to hire as many miners. Because he 

saved money on training costs, the co-owner said he was also able to 

promote his experienced workers to more advanced positions and provide 

better benefits, such as health insurance, for all his employees.

Tailored services were used not only to attract new employers, but to retain 

employers in the one-stop system and train new workers for employers 

struggling to find job-ready staff. For example, for over 9 years, the 

Clarksville, Tennessee, one-stop has provided tailored hiring services, 
Page 22 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

including drug-testing and pre-screening of applicants, for a nearby 

manufacturing company. As a result, the company has hired over 75 people 

through the one-stop. One-stops also provided customized workshops and 

classes to help employers train new and current workers. When a local 

nursing home expressed concern about hiring non-English-speaking 

workers, the one-stop in Blaine, Minnesota, created a job-specific English 

as a Second Language course that was taught on-site at the nursing home 

by one-stop staff.

Many of the one-stops we visited also provided employers with tailored 

business support services and educational resources. One-stop managers 

told us that these services helped the one-stops attract and retain employer 

involvement in the one-stop system and enhanced employers’ ability to 

maintain a skilled workforce. For example, some one-stops we visited 

allowed employers to use office space in the one-stop for interviewing job 

applicants. A few of the one-stop centers had specific business centers onsite, such as the Business Resource Center in Killeen, Texas. The center 

served entrepreneurs and over 400 small businesses by providing 

information about starting a small business, such as tax information, 

economic development information, marketing resources, and business 

workshops. Similarly, the Sunnyvale, California, one-stop addressed the 

specific needs of customers seeking entrepreneurial opportunities by colocating with a patent and trademark library that is electronically linked to 

the national trademark office. Finally, several one-stops offered employers 

help with accessing business tax credits. For example, when the employer 

services staff at the one-stop in Vineland, New Jersey, realized the 

application process for tax credits was cumbersome for employers, they 

began automatically completing the required paperwork for employers so 

that the employers could more readily apply for the tax credit incentives.15 

15Officials at the Vineland one-stop told us that tax credits serve as an incentive for 

businesses to participate in certain federal workforce programs such as the Empowerment 

Zone, Welfare-to-Work, and Education Opportunity Programs.
Page 23 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

One-Stop Centers Built 

a Solid Infrastructure 

by Strengthening 

Program Partnerships 

and Raising Additional 

Funds

To build the solid infrastructure needed to support better services for job 

seekers and employers, many of the one-stops we visited developed and 

strengthened program partnerships and raised funds beyond those 

provided under WIA. Center operators fostered the development of strong 

program partnerships by encouraging communication and collaboration 

among partners through functional teams and joint projects. As shown in 

figure 5, this collaboration allowed one-stop partners to better integrate 

their respective programs and services. Many one-stops also worked 

toward improving one-stop operations and services by raising additional 

funds through fee-based services, grants, and contributions from partners 

and state or local government. The revenue raised through these activities 

helped one-stops improve operations and services despite the lack of WIA 

funding for one-stop operations and restrictions on the ways in which onestop programs can spend their funds.
Page 24 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Figure 5: Promising Strategies for Improving the One-Stop Center Infrastructure

One-Stop Centers Promoted 

Strong Partnerships by 

Facilitating Communication 

and Collaboration among 

Partner Programs

In order to build a cohesive, well-functioning one-stop infrastructure, 

9 of the 14 one-stop centers we visited gave partners the opportunity to 

collaborate through functional teams and joint projects. One-stop 

managers told us that collaboration through teams and joint projects 

allowed partners to better integrate their respective programs and services, 

as well as pursue common one-stop goals and share in one-stop decision 

Source: GAO illustration. Clip art source: Art Explosion.

Job seekers Employers

One-stop

center system

Promising Strategies

Empowering partners to

collaborate through functional

teams and joint projects

Raising funds through feebased services, grants, and

contributions from partners

and state and local government

Better integrate one-stop

programs and services

Improve operations and

services despite lack of WIA

funds for one-stop operations

and restrictions on one-stop

programs' funding streams

Designed to:
Page 25 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

making. For example, partners at the Erie, Pennsylvania, one-stop center 

were organized into four functional teams—a career resource center team, 

a job seeker services team, an employer services team, and an operations 

team—which together operated the one-stop center. As a result of the 

functional team meetings, partners reported that they worked together to 

solve problems and develop innovative strategies to improve services in 

their respective functional area. For instance, to improve intake and 

referral processes, the Erie job seeker services team created a color-coded 

intake form shared by multiple partners. Certain customers, such as 

veterans and dislocated workers, received intake forms that were a 

different color from those of other customers, so that staff could easily 

identify the different customer groups and direct each toward the services 

that best met their needs. Similarly, in Salt Lake City, Utah, partners created 

a committee to address issues of common concern, such as cross-program 

referrals, cross-training of partner staff, and employer involvement. Staff 

from the Vocational Rehabilitation Program in Salt Lake City told us that 

this committee helped to increase referrals to their program by producing 

flow charts of the service delivery systems of various partner programs to 

identify points at which referrals and staff collaboration should occur.

In addition to fostering integration across programs, one-stop managers 

said that the joint decision making done through functional teams 

facilitated the development of a shared one-stop identity. Pikeville, 

Kentucky, one-stop managers told us that shared decision-making was 

instrumental in developing a common one-stop identity and in ensuring 

partners’ support for the one-stop system. The process of creating a shared 

one-stop identity in Pikeville was also supported by the adoption of a 

common logo, nametags, and business cards, and was reinforced by a 

comprehensive marketing campaign, which gave partners a common 

message to rally behind. Pikeville one-stop managers told us that, as a 

result of this shared one-stop identity, partner staff no longer focused 

exclusively on serving their individual program customers; rather, staff 

developed a “can-do” attitude of meeting the needs of all one-stop 

customers. In addition, managers told us that because of their shared onestop identity, partners were more willing to contribute resources to one 

another and to the center as a whole. For instance, in order to streamline 

services for job seekers, the Adult Basic Education Program administered 

skills assessments to all one-stop customers, regardless of which program 

they were enrolled in.
Page 26 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

One-stop managers at several of the sites we visited told us that the colocation of partner programs in one building facilitated communication and 

collaboration. For this reason, one-stop managers at several of the centers 

we visited reported that they fostered co-location by offering attractive 

physical space and flexible rental agreements.16 For example, in Pikeville, 

Kentucky, the local community college donated free space to the one-stop 

on its conveniently located campus, making it easier to convince partners 

to relocate there. Partners were also eager to relocate to the Pikeville onestop because they recognized the benefits of co-location for their 

customers. For instance, staff from the Vocational Rehabilitation Program 

said that co-location at the one-stop increased their customers’ access to 

employers and employment services. Pikeville managers also told us that 

co-location at the community college made it easier for partners to share 

information and made them more visible to students likely to need 

employment services in the near future. In addition, because co-location 

sometimes presents a challenge to partners with limited resources, several 

centers offered flexible rental agreements to make it easier for partners to 

co-locate. For example, the Kansas City, Missouri, one-stop enabled the 

Adult Basic Education Program to co-locate by allowing it to contribute 

instructors and General Educational Development (GED) classes instead 

of paying rent. Partners in some locations, including Dayton, Ohio, and 

Kenosha, Wisconsin, donated space to enable other partners to be on-site.

Several one-stops where all partners were not co-located found ways to 

create strong linkages with off-site partners. For example, in addition to 

regular meetings between on-site and off-site staff, the one-stop in Aurora, 

Colorado, had a staff person designated to act as a liaison and facilitate 

communication between on-site and off-site partners. When an on-site 

partner specializing in senior services raised concerns about the lack of 

employment opportunities for its customers, the liaison set up a meeting 

with Vocational Rehabilitation, an off-site partner, to enable both parties to 

begin exchanging referrals to jobs and services. 

16In fostering co-location of partner programs, the one-stops we visited were following a 

trend toward increased co-location at one-stop centers nationwide. We found that the 

number of states with co-located mandatory and optional programs increased appreciably 

between 2000 and 2001. We considered a mandatory program to be co-located in a state if 

more than 50 percent of the state’s one-stops had the program on-site. For more 

information, see GAO-02-696.
Page 27 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

One-Stop Centers Raised 

Additional Funds to 

Improve One-Stop 

Operations and Expand 

Services for Customers

Managers at all but two of the one-stops we visited said that they were 

using the flexibility under WIA to creatively increase one-stop funds 

through fee-based services, grants, or contributions from partner programs 

and state or local governments. Managers said these additional funds 

allowed them to cover operational costs and expand services in spite of the 

lack of WIA funding to support one-stop infrastructure and restrictions on 

the use of program funds. For example, one-stop operators in Clarksville, 

Tennessee, reported that they raised $750,000 in fiscal year 2002 through a 

combination of business consulting, drug testing, and drivers’ education 

services. Using this money, the center was able to purchase a new 

voicemail and computer network system, which facilitated communication 

among staff and streamlined center operations.17 Similarly, in Sunnyvale, 

California, one-stop managers said they raised $20,000 through downsizing 

and training services for employers, and used this money to expand the 

one-stop’s training services.

Centers have also been proactive about applying for grants from public and 

private sources. For example, the one-stop center in Kansas City, Missouri, 

had a full-time staff person dedicated to researching and applying for 

grants. The one-stop generated two-thirds of its entire program year 2002 

operating budget of $21 million through competitive grants available from 

the federal government as well as from private foundations. This money 

allowed the center to expand its services, such as through an internship 

program in high-tech industries for at-risk youth. One-stop centers also 

raised additional funds by soliciting contributions from local or state 

government and from partner agencies. For instance, Boston one-stop 

managers reported that the state of Massachusetts matched the one-stop’s 

Wagner-Peyser funds dollar for dollar, which enabled the center to fund its 

resource room and library. In addition, the Dayton, Ohio, one-stop received 

$1 million annually from the county to pay for shared one-stop staff salaries 

and to provide services to job seekers who do not qualify for services under 

any other funding stream. Dayton one-stop partners also contributed 

financial and in-kind resources to the center on an as-needed basis.

17While several centers had adopted fee-based services as a method of raising funds, it is 

important to note that managers of at least one center said they chose not to charge for 

services because they felt this might deter some employers or job seekers from accessing 

needed services. 
Page 28 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

In addition to raising money through grants, managers at the one-stop in 

Santa Rosa, California, told us that they made more efficient use of existing 

funds by having staff use a funding source determination worksheet to 

maximize training funds from various sources. The worksheet is 

continually updated to show how much funding is available through each 

program, allowing caseworkers to choose the most economical source for 

eligible customers’ Individual Training Accounts (ITAs)18 based on the 

amount of money available through each funding stream and the date it is 

scheduled to expire. 

Little Is Known about 

the Impact of 

Strategies to Improve 

One-Stop Services and 

Management

While Labor currently tracks outcome data—such as job placement, job 

seeker satisfaction, and employer satisfaction—and funds several studies 

to evaluate workforce development programs and service delivery models, 

little is known about the impact of various one-stop service delivery 

approaches on these and other outcomes. Labor’s studies largely take a 

program-by-program approach rather than focusing on the impact on job 

seekers of various one-stop integrated service delivery approaches, such as 

sharing customer intake forms across programs, or on employers, such as 

dedicating staff to focus on engaging and serving employers. Further, 

Labor’s efforts to collaborate with other federal agencies to assess the 

effects of different strategies to integrate job seeker services or to serve 

employers through the one-stop system have been limited. In addition, onestop administrators do not have enough opportunities to share existing 

information about how to improve and integrate services for job seeker and 

employer customers. While Labor has developed a promising practices 

Web site to facilitate such information sharing, it is unclear how well the 

site currently meets this objective.

18Individual Training Accounts are training vouchers that participants can use to procure the 

training of their choice, so long as the training program is on a state’s eligible training 

provider list.
Page 29 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

While Labor Currently Has 

Several Impact and Process 

Evaluations Underway, the 

Scope of These Studies Is 

Limited

Labor currently tracks performance measures under the three WIA 

programs using 17 separate outcome measures, including job placement 

and job seeker and employer customer satisfaction, designed to gauge the 

success of WIA funded services.19 However, managers at a few of the onestop centers we visited told us that customer satisfaction data, for example, 

could not be linked to specific services or strategies, so one-stop managers 

could not use the data to improve services for their job seeker and 

employer customers. While outcome measures are an important 

component of program management in that they assess whether a 

participant is achieving an intended outcome-such as obtaining 

employment—they cannot measure whether the outcome is a direct result 

of program participation.20 Other influences, such as the state of the local 

economy, may affect an individual’s ability to find a job as much or more 

than participation in an employment and training program. Many 

researchers consider impact evaluations to be the best method for 

determining the effectiveness of a program—that is, whether the program 

itself rather than other factors leads to participant outcomes. 

19WIA’s measures are only tracked for those customers who receive staff-assisted core, 

intensive or training services using WIA funding. They are not tracked for those who 

receive self-service core services. For more information, see GAO-02-275.

20For more information, see U.S. General Accounting Office, Food Stamp Employment and 

Training Program: Better Data Needed to Understand Who Is Served and What the 

Program Achieves, GAO-03-388 (Washington D.C.: Mar. 12, 2003).
Page 30 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

While Labor is currently supporting a large number of impact and process 

evaluations21 of various workforce development programs and initiatives, 

none of these studies include an evaluation of the impact of different 

integrated service delivery approaches on outcomes, such as job placement 

or retention, or job seeker and employer satisfaction (see table 2). 

Examples of integrated service delivery initiatives that we observed at onestops and that Labor could evaluate include cross-training one-stop staff, 

sharing customer intake across programs, and consolidating case 

management for customers enrolled in multiple programs. While these 

integrated service delivery approaches were common at the one-stops we 

visited, little is currently known about their impact on one-stop customer 

outcomes and satisfaction. In addition, there is a lack of information about 

which approaches to serving employers are most effective, such as 

dedicating staff to engage and serve employers or tailoring services for 

employers by offering customized training or pre-screening job applicants, 

for example. Employment and Training Administration (ETA)22 officials 

provided us with information on their current research, such as the 

Microanalysis of the One-Stop—a process evaluation that Labor has 

initiated to analyze how job seekers and employers access the array of 

available one-stop services. While this study offers an analysis of the 

implementation and operation of integrated service delivery, it does not 

measure the impact of this integration on one-stop customers’ satisfaction 

or outcomes. In addition, the impact evaluations that Labor is currently 

undertaking typically take a program-by-program approach and do not 

measure the effectiveness of integrated services. For instance, Labor’s 

evaluation comparing the impact of various approaches to implementing 

21Impact evaluations measure a program’s effect on participant outcomes, such as job 

placement and retention, by isolating the program effect from the effects of other factors. 

Process evaluations, on the other hand, offer an analysis of the processes involved in 

program implementation. To isolate a program’s effect, impact evaluations often divide 

participants into two groups: those who receive program services and a similar group who 

do not (the control or comparison group). Some impact evaluations assign participants 

randomly to one group or the other, which increases the likelihood that the two groups are 

roughly equivalent on all characteristics that could affect outcomes. When participants are 

randomly assigned, the comparison group is called a control group. Aspects of program 

implementation that process evaluations typically assess include the extent to which a 

program is reaching the appropriate target population, whether a program’s delivery of 

services is consistent with its design specifications, and the amount of resources being 

spent on the program.

22ETA is an agency within the U.S. Department of Labor that oversees WIA and provides job 

training, employment, labor market information, and income maintenance services 

primarily through state and local workforce development systems.
Page 31 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Individual Training Accounts only includes WIA program participants, and 

its evaluation of self-directed job search in a one-stop environment focuses 

only on UI recipients. 

Table 2: Selected Studies Supported by ETA 

Title Description of study Expected release date

Center for Employment Training 

(CET) Replication Impact Study

Impact evaluation that examines the post-program impacts on 

employment, earnings, and arrests among youth who participated 

at CET replication sites. Includes control group.

Mid-2003, with a follow-up 

report in late 2004

Connecting UI Remote Services to 

One-Stop Services Demonstration 

Project

Process evaluation that examines how best to strengthen the 

connection between UI and one-stop services.

Information not available

Employment Retention and Career 

Advancement Evaluation

A joint study with HHS, Labor is contributing funds for an impact, 

process and cost-benefit analysis of the role of one-stops in job 

retention and advancement. Includes control groups.

Fall 2007

Evaluation of Self-Directed Labor 

Exchange Services in a One-Stop 

Environment

Impact evaluation that examines the impact, efficiency and 

effectiveness of self-directed labor exchange services on UI 

recipients’ earnings and job search behavior. Includes comparison 

group.

Summer 2005

Evaluation of the Individual Training 

Account Experiment

Impact evaluation to determine the effectiveness of three 

progressively more intensive job search assistance approaches. 

The most intensive approach includes a training component. 

Includes control group.

Late 2003

Evaluation of the School-to-Work 

Out-of-School Youth Demonstration 

and Job Corps Model Centers

A joint study with Education, Labor contributed funds for a process 

evaluation of the implementation of school-to-work strategies at 

Job Corps Model Centers and other programs serving out-ofschool youth.

Released 2000

Evaluation of the Trade Adjustment 

Assistance Program (planned)

Impact evaluation to measure the impacts of the Trade Adjustment 

Assistance Program on participants’ employment, earnings, and 

receipt of fringe benefits. Includes comparison group.

Interim reports 2005/2007, 

final 2008

Evaluation of WIA Implementation Process evaluation to assess the early experience of states 

implementing WIA, including those states that opted to implement 

before July 1, 2000. 

Interim report published, final 

2004

Growing America Through 

Entrepreneurship (GATE) 

Demonstration Project

Process, impact and cost-benefit analysis to measure the 

effectiveness of combining a variety of small business initiatives 

into one program offered through the one-stop system. Study is in 

collaboration with the Small Business Administration. Includes 

control group.

Information not available

H1-B High Skills Training Grant 

Evaluation

Process and impact evaluation to determine the near and longterm impacts of the H1-B Technical Skills training initiative, 

including impacts on society, employers, participants, and the 

government sector. Impact evaluation includes control group. 

Interim report released, 

impact study report late 2006
Page 32 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Source: ETA, 2003.

Note: GAO identified approximately 40 studies supported by ETA of workforce development programs 

and initiatives. This table is indicative of studies that ETA is supporting; we excluded studies that were 

similar to studies listed here or that did not assess programs involved in the one-stop system. For more 

information about these and other studies that ETA is supporting, see the ETA Five-Year Strategic Plan 

for Pilots, Demonstrations, Research, and Evaluations July 2000-June 2005 

(http://wdr.doleta.gov/opr/fulltext/document.asp?docn=6162.)

ETA officials told us that a major barrier they face to conducting a broader 

array of impact studies is their limited research budget—$35 million for 

demonstration grants and $9 million for evaluations in fiscal year 2003. In a 

few cases, Labor has sought to address these funding limitations by 

collaborating with other federal agencies to fund studies. For example, 

Labor is helping HHS fund the $26 million Employment, Retention and 

Advancement Study, an evaluation assessing strategies to promote 

employment retention and advancement among welfare recipients and lowwage workers. Labor is also collaborating with the Department of 

Education on a process evaluation examining the implementation of 

Low-Wage Worker Retention and 

Advancement Demonstration 

Projects

Process evaluation to assess the effectiveness of new strategies 

for improving low-wage workers’ employment status, retention 

rate, wage gain, career advancement, public assistance usage, 

and other elements. 

Oregon in late 2004; 

California in late 2005

Microanalysis of the One-Stop Process evaluation that analyzes how individuals flow through 

one-stops and the extent to which they access the array of 

available services.

Information not available

National Job Corps Study Impact evaluation to evaluate the impact of the Job Corps program 

on student employment outcomes. Includes control group. 

Released 2001

Worker Profiling and Reemployment 

Service Significant Improvement 

Demonstrations

Process evaluation to identify promising strategies for improving 

reemployment services administered to unemployed individuals 

through state worker profiling and reemployment service systems.

Released 2002

Youth Opportunity Areas 

Demonstration Evaluation

Impact and process evaluation to measure the effectiveness of the 

Youth Opportunity Area Demonstration. Impact evaluation 

includes comparison group.

Late 2005

Quantum Opportunities Program 

(QOP) Replication

Impact evaluation to assess whether the QOP program has a 

positive effect on high school graduation rates, enrollment in 

postsecondary education, employment, and earnings. Includes 

control group.

Interim report released 2003, 

final report 2005

(Continued From Previous Page)

Title Description of study Expected release date

Center for Employment Training 

(CET) Replication Impact Study

Impact evaluation that examines the post-program impacts on 

employment, earnings, and arrests among youth who participated 

at CET replication sites. Includes control group.

Mid-2003, with a follow-up 

report in late 2004

Connecting UI Remote Services to 

One-Stop Services Demonstration 

Project

Process evaluation that examines how best to strengthen the 

connection between UI and one-stop services.

Information not available
Page 33 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

school-to-work programs at selected Job Corps centers. Such collaboration 

not only enables Labor to address funding limitations, but it also has the 

potential to facilitate evaluations of service delivery approaches that span 

multiple programs overseen by different agencies. However, in spite of 

these benefits, Labor is currently engaging in only a limited number of such 

collaborations. Moreover, none of these collaborative studies are 

specifically directed towards evaluating the impact of one-stop services or 

integrated service delivery approaches.

One-Stop Administrators Do 

Not Have Enough 

Opportunities to Share 

Information about 

Promising Strategies in 

Serving One-Stop 

Customers

While Labor has developed several mechanisms for providing guidance and 

allowing local one-stop administrators to share information on how to 

move beyond the basic requirements of WIA toward improving and 

integrating one-stop services, these efforts have been limited. Labor’s 

primary mechanisms for disseminating information about promising 

practices at one-stop centers are a Web site, forums, and conferences. 

The promising practices Web site, which is funded by Labor and is operated 

by Northern Illinois University’s Center for Governmental Studies, 

represents a promising step toward building a mechanism to support 

information sharing among one-stop administrators. However, neither ETA 

nor the Web site’s administrators have conducted a customer satisfaction 

survey or user evaluation of the site, so little is known about how well the 

site currently meets its objective to promote information sharing about 

promising practices. Much of the information available on the Web site 

comes from submissions by one-stop centers or research organizations, yet 

Web site administrators told us that these submissions have not been 

screened to ensure that their content is useful. Furthermore, relevant 

literature stresses that information presented through Web sites should be 

accessible, useful, and well organized. When we attempted to use the Web 

site, we found that useful information on the site was difficult to access. In 

order to find information about promising practices through the site, one 

must conduct a search by key word, which often did not yield satisfactory 

results. Search results were organized alphabetically, not by relevance, and 

some of the results addressed the search topic only marginally. In addition, 

search results included a disorganized mixture of external documents, 

links to other Web sites, and submissions. For instance, a search under the 

keywords "service integration" yielded six results, including two links to 

external Web sites, two external documents, and two promising practices 

submissions. Of these six results, two did not directly address promising 

practices in the area of service integration.
Page 34 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

In addition to the Web site, Labor hosts regular regional meetings and 

cosponsors several national conferences to promote information 

dissemination and networking opportunities for state and local grantees 

and stakeholders. Labor also hosted several forums during WIA 

implementation to allow information exchanges to occur between the 

department and state and local one-stop administrators. While these 

conferences and forums provide a venue for one-stop managers to talk with 

one another about what is and is not working at their centers, participation 

is limited to those who can physically take part. 

Conclusions The workforce development system envisioned under WIA represents a 

fundamental shift from prior systems, and barely 3 years have passed since 

it was fully implemented. States and localities are learning how to use the 

flexibility afforded by WIA to develop systems that work for their local 

areas and that implement WIA’s vision of a customer-focused system. The 

one-stop centers we visited are coordinating with the 17 mandatory 

partners, and often multiple optional partners, to create a one-stop system 

that strives to streamline services for job seekers and make employers a 

significant part of the one-stop system. While the one-stops we visited 

ranged in terms of their location—from urban to suburban to rural—we 

saw numerous examples of one-stops streamlining services for job seekers, 

developing business-related services to meet the needs of employers, and 

supporting a one-stop infrastructure that provides the full range of 

assistance needed by job seekers and employers to serve local workforce 

needs. 

While these strategies show promise for improving services to job seekers 

and employers alike, there is no clear understanding of whether these 

integrated service delivery approaches are actually increasing job seeker 

and employer satisfaction or outcomes, such as job placement and 

retention. Labor’s current research efforts focus within individual 

programs and have yet to take into account that customers are now served 

by a one-stop system where multiple programs from four federal agencies 

provide services. Moreover, few efforts have been made to share 

information on promising practices. It is unclear whether one effort, a 

promising practices Web site supported by Labor, is effective in meeting its 

objective to promote information sharing about promising practices. 

Without the right research or information sharing tools, it is difficult to 

know which one-stop practices are, in fact, successful and how the system 

might be improved in the long run. 
Page 35 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Recommendations for 

Executive Action

In order to better understand and disseminate information on how well 

different approaches to program integration are meeting the needs of onestop job seekers and employers, we recommend that the Secretary of Labor 

• collaborate with the Departments of Education, Health and Human 

Services, and Housing and Urban Development to develop a research 

agenda that examines the impacts of various approaches to program 

integration on job seeker and employer satisfaction and outcomes, such 

as job placement and retention and

• conduct a systematic evaluation of the promising practices Web site and 

ensure that it is effective. 

Agency Comments We provided a draft of this report to Labor for comment. Labor agreed with 

our recommendations and expressed appreciation for our 

acknowledgment of the progress made by local one-stop centers. However, 

Labor suggested we recognize other research activities undertaken by ETA 

and its efforts to share promising practices. We have incorporated Labor’s 

comments in our report, as appropriate. A copy of Labor’s response is in 

appendix III.

Specifically, Labor agrees with our recommendation that better 

information is needed to assess the impact of integrated services on 

customer outcomes and satisfaction, but noted that it collects performance 

information that includes job seeker and employer customer satisfaction 

data. In addition, Labor told us it is working on implementing common 

performance measures for the one-stop system. As we noted in the report, 

outcome measures are an important part of program management, but 

alone, do not allow for an understanding of whether the outcome is a direct 

result of program participation. We continue to stress the need for more 

impact studies in order to understand whether integrated services are 

making a difference. 

Labor agrees with our recommendation that Labor conduct a systematic 

evaluation of the Web site to ensure that it is effective. Labor told us that it 

is undertaking a strategic review of its Web sites, including the promising 

practices site that is intended to identify ways to improve customer access 

to information. Labor also said that it is engaged in other activities to 

effectively share information about what is working well in one-stop 

centers. For example, ETA hosts regular regional meetings for state 
Page 36 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

administrators and funds a number of efforts that produce, recognize, and 

share promising practices within the workforce system.

We are sending copies of this report to the Secretary of Labor, appropriate 

congressional committees, and other interested parties. In addition, the 

report will be available at no charge on GAO’s Web site at 

http://www.gao.gov.

Please contact me on (202) 512-7215 if you or your staff have any questions 

about this report. Other major contributors to this report are listed in 

appendix IV.

Sigurd R. Nilsen

Director, Education, Workforce

and Income Security Issues
Page 37 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Appendix I

Characteristics of the 14 One-Stop Centers Apendxeis

GAO Visited ApenIdxi

GAO one-stop 

center site visits

Name of one-stop 

center Operator Geographic location Major industries

Estimated 

monthly 

customer flow

Aurora, CO Arapahoe/Douglas 

Works!

Arapahoe/Douglas 

Works! (local 

government 

consortium)

Suburb of Denver Retail, construction, 

accommodation & 

food services

6,000

Blaine, MN Anoka County 

Workforce Center

Partner consortium Suburb of 

Minneapolis

Manufacturing, retail, 

healthcare

5,100

Boston, MA The Work Place Partnership between 

Jewish Vocational 

Service (nonprofit) 

and the City of Boston

Located in downtown 

Boston

Healthcare, finance & 

insurance, 

professional & 

technical services

800

Clarksville, TN Workforce Essentials, 

Inc.

Workforce Essentials, 

Inc. (nonprofit)

Close to Nashville, 

otherwise rural

Manufacturing, retail, 

healthcare

4,600

Dayton, OH The Job Center Consortium of 

partners, led by an 

independent director

Urban city Manufacturing, retail, 

healthcare

42,500

Erie, PA Erie Team PA 

CareerLink

Partner consortium, 

led by Greater Erie 

Community Action 

Committee (nonprofit)

Small urban 

metropolitan area 

Manufacturing, 

healthcare, retail

2,800

Kansas City, MO Full Employment 

Council

Full Employment 

Council (nonprofit)

Covering rural, urban, 

and suburban areas

Healthcare, retail, 

manufacturing

4,500

Kenosha, WI Kenosha County Job 

Center

Kenosha County Mixed urban and rural 

county located on 

Lake Michigan

Manufacturing, retail, 

healthcare

4,000

Killeen, TX Central Texas 

Workforce

Central Texas 

Workforce Center

Suburban, rural area. 

Fort Hood is nearby.

Healthcare, retail, 

manufacturing

11,000

Pikeville, KY Pike County JobSight 

Center

Eastern Kentucky 

Concentrated 

Employment Program 

(nonprofit)

Located in rural 

Appalachia in eastern 

Kentucky

Retail, mining, 

healthcare

500

Salt Lake City, UT South County 

Employment Center

Utah Department of 

Workforce Services

Located in Salt Lake 

City

Retail, manufacturing 24,500
Appendix I

Characteristics of the 14 One-Stop Centers 

GAO Visited

Page 38 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Sources: U.S. Census county Business Patterns, U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, and GAO site visits, 2003.

Santa Rosa, CA Job Link Partner consortium Largely rural Manufacturing, retail, 

healthcare

Not available

Sunnyvale, CA Connect! NOVA (North Valley 

Job Training 

Consortium), 6 -

county consortium 

with city of Sunnyvale 

as lead member

Urban and suburban, 

located in the heart of 

Silicon Valley

Manufacturing, 

professional & 

technical services

2,500 

Vineland, NJ Cumberland County 

One-Stop

Cumberland County 

Office of Employment 

& Training

A mix of urban, 

suburban, and rural 

communities in 

southwestern New 

Jersey

Manufacturing, retail, 

healthcare

Not available

(Continued From Previous Page)

GAO one-stop 

center site visits

Name of one-stop 

center Operator Geographic location Major industries

Estimated 

monthly 

customer flow
Page 39 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits ApenIdxi

While sites were identified as exemplary based on their promising practices 

in one of three key areas—serving job seekers, engaging employers, and 

operating the one-stop center—we found that all 14 of the one-stops we 

visited exhibited numerous promising practices in multiple areas. The 

selection of promising practices described below represents some of the 

strongest or most unique examples from each site.

Aurora, Colorado Arapahoe/Douglas Works! Colorado Workforce Center

14980 E. Alameda Drive

Aurora, CO 80012

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers -

Arapahoe/Douglas Works! works closely with local Chambers of 

Commerce and economic development entities to conduct outreach to 

employers. Each year Arapahoe/Douglas Works! and the local Chamber 

hold an employer recognition awards event, which not only markets the 

one-stop system to business, but also encourages workplace innovation 

by honoring three employers with awards for work-life balance, 

community partnerships, and outstanding youth employer. 

• Dedicating specialized staff to address local industry needs - 

Because of a local nursing labor shortage, the one-stop dedicated 

specialized staff to establish an on-site healthcare recruitment center to 

help job seekers find training opportunities in the healthcare field. 

• Promoting partner collaboration - In addition to regular meetings 

between on-site and off-site staff, the one-stop has a staff person 

designated to act as a liaison and facilitate communication between onsite and off-site partners.

• Developing optional partnerships to expand services - 

Arapahoe/Douglas Works! partners with the Department of Corrections 

to provide transition services for juvenile offenders. 

• Raising additional funds to expand services - Arapahoe/Douglas 

Works! raised about $620,000 through contracts with local schools to 

provide workforce development services for at-risk high school 

students. The one-stop also raised about $80,000 through an on-site 

learning lab for students at risk of dropping out of school. 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 40 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Blaine, Minnesota Anoka County Workforce Center 

1201 89th Avenue NE

Blaine, MN 55434

• Ensuring partner staff understand the range of services –Staff 

periodically participate in center-wide meetings where they make 

presentations to one another about their program’s services and role at 

the center. In addition, partners lead workshops on how to better serve 

their particular customer base. Officials reported that cross-training 

results in increased referrals across partner programs.

• Streamlining services through consolidated case management - 

The caseworkers from the various one-stop programs meet regularly to 

collaborate in developing and implementing joint service plans for 

customers who are co-enrolled in multiple programs. 

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

The one-stop developed an English-as-a-Second-Language course 

tailored to the needs of a local nursing home. The course was taught onsite at the nursing home by one-stop staff.

• Promoting partner collaboration - Partners collaborate in functional 

teams to manage the one-stop. Collaboration among partners was 

enhanced when they jointly applied for a One-Stop Implementation 

grant from the state of Minnesota. Because of the strong sense of 

cooperation among them, partners pooled their resources when 

possible to ensure the continued funding of services.

• Raising additional funds to expand services - An H1-B grant and a 

grant from the McKnight Foundation enabled the center to expand 

services for customers. The grants enabled the center to implement a 

training program in healthcare-related fields and develop a social 

services and car donation program for people who do not qualify for any 

other program.
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 41 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Boston, Massachusetts The Work Place

99 Chauncy Street

Boston, MA 02111

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - Because the majority of 

the Work Place’s partners are located off-site, the one-stop placed staff 

in off-site locations, including family courts, correctional facilities, and 

welfare offices to give job seekers ready access to employment-related 

services.

• Dedicating specialized staff to establish relationships with 

employers - The Work Place has staff dedicated to recruiting, engaging, 

and maintaining employer involvement. The Work Place has focused on 

measuring employer satisfaction and soliciting employer feedback to 

guide them in improving their employer services. The center has 

established employer focus groups to identify the services employers 

used and their satisfaction with those services. 

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

The Work Place screens applicants and provides referrals to the 

Marriott Hotel’s Pathways to Independence program, a nationwide job 

readiness program for people with multiple barriers to employment. 

About 75 percent of program graduates over the past 5 years were 

recruited through The Work Place.

• Developing optional partnerships to expand services - The Work 

Place has developed an optional partnership with the Suffolk County 

House of Corrections to provide community reintegration services for 

prisoners prior to their release. One of the programs is an offender reentry program that conducts job fairs inside the county jail to facilitate 

incarcerated offenders’ transition back into the workplace.

• Raising additional funds to expand services - The state of 

Massachusetts matches the Boston one-stop’s Wagner-Peyser funds 

dollar for dollar, which enables the center to fund its resource room and 

library. 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 42 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Clarksville, Tennessee WorkForce Essentials, Inc.

110 Main Street

Clarksville, TN 37040

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - The Clarksville one-stop 

provides a clear path for job seekers to follow between one-stop 

services. When job seekers are referred to another partner program, 

staff personally walk them over to the referred program staff to prevent 

them from getting lost between programs. 

• Dedicating specialized staff to establish relationships with 

employers - WorkForce Essentials, Inc., dedicates staff to conduct 

employer outreach in order to provide employer services and identify 

employment opportunities for job seekers. One-stop operators said that 

outreach to employers has helped engender employer trust in the 

organization and the job seekers it serves. 

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - The 

Clarksville one-stop staff worked with Chamber of Commerce members 

to provide math training in order to improve the pool of entry-level 

employees for the local banking industry. This helped connect job 

seekers with available job openings at local banks.

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

The one-stop provided tailored hiring services, including drug testing 

and pre-screening of applicants, for a manufacturing company, resulting 

in the company hiring over 75 people through the one-stop. 

• Developing optional partnerships to expand services- Managers in 

Clarksville told us that co-location with the Tennessee Department of 

Human Services, which administers TANF, benefits all job seekers 

because the department helps fund various services, including computer 

classes, soft skills classes, and parenting classes that can be provided to 

those not eligible for TANF. 

• Raising additional funds to expand services - WorkForce 

Essentials, Inc., raised $750,000 in fiscal year 2002 through drivers’ 

education courses, drug testing, recruitment, and skills assessment 

services. This money was used to pay salaries and to purchase voicemail 

and a computer network system. In addition, the one-stop received a 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 43 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

$2.8 million H-1B Technical Skills Training Grant from DOL, through 

which it has provided high-skills training to over 900 workers so far.

Dayton, Ohio The Job Center

111 S. Edwin C. Moses Boulevard

Dayton, OH 45422

• Streamlining services through consolidated case management - 

Caseworkers from various programs, including TANF, Medicaid, Food 

Stamps, and WIA share caseloads and coordinate their service plans for 

job seekers. 

• Ensuring partner staff understand the range of services - Onestop managers reported that cross-training on-site and off-site partners 

dramatically improves referrals to the Child Support Program, thereby 

enhancing efforts to establish paternity, a requirement for determining 

eligibility for TANF. Additionally, they indicated that their cross-trained 

staff referred job seekers to service providers that had previously been 

unknown, such as to smaller programs within the one-stop or local 

neighborhood programs. 

• Promoting partner collaboration and co-location - Partners 

collaboratively operate the one-stop through four councils. All partners 

are asked to participate and all have equal voice in decision-making. 

Additionally, partners contributed space and other resources to help 

other partners co-locate. The Center is housed in a former shopping 

mall, which offers plenty of flexible space to allow all partners to colocate. 

• Developing optional partnerships to expand services - At the time 

of our visit, the Dayton one-stop had over 30 optional partners on-site, 

including the Montgomery County Combined Health District, which 

operates a health clinic on-site; and Clothes that Work! which provides 

free business attire to low-income women; and an alternative high 

school. 

• Raising additional funds to expand services - The one-stop receives 

$1 million annually from the county to pay for shared one-stop staff 

salaries and to provide services to job seekers who do not qualify for 

services under any other funding stream. Dayton one-stop partners also 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 44 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

contribute financial and in-kind resources to the center on an as-needed 

basis.

Erie, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania CareerLink

1309 French Street

Erie, PA 16501

• Streamlining services through consolidated case management - 

To efficiently coordinate multiple services for one-stop customers, Erie 

one-stop staff use a networked computer system with a shared case 

management program, so that they can share access to a customer’s 

service plan and case file. 

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - The one-stop positions a 

staff person at the doors to the center to help job seekers entering the 

center find needed services and to ensure that exiting job seekers 

received the services they sought. 

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - 

CareerLink staff collaborated with numerous local economic 

development entities to develop an outreach program that assesses the 

workforce needs of employers and links employers with appropriate 

services. 

• Promoting partner collaboration - The one-stop staff is organized 

into four functional teams that meet weekly to work on common goals 

and develop new strategies. These teams have developed innovative 

strategies to improve service delivery, including the creation of a 

resource guide for caseworkers and a color-coded intake form. 

• Strengthening relationships among partners - Staff at CareerLink 

participate in frequent team-building activities, such as social events and 

recognition ceremonies, to promote a positive, integrated working 

environment. 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 45 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Kansas City, Missouri Full Employment Council

1740 Paseo

Kansas City, MO 64108

• Streamlining services through consolidated intake procedures -

Youth Opportunity and the WIA Youth program staff share intake and 

enrollment forms to streamline the delivery of services to youth. This 

process alleviates the burden of multiple intake and assessment forms 

when registering participants. 

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - The one-stop 

management decided to locate the one-stop center next to the bus 

company, the Area Transit Authority, (ATA). This strategic decision 

meant that all bus routes passed by the one-stop center, ensuring that 

customers with transportation problems could access one-stop services. 

Additionally, the ATA partners with the one-stop to create an Urban 

Employment Network program to assist job seekers with transportation 

to and from work, 7 days a week from 5:00 in the morning until midnight 

and has set up a van service to operate during off-peak hours. 

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - The 

Full Employment Council uses the Chamber of Commerce as an 

intermediary with employers. The chamber has a workforce issues 

division that does outreach to educate employers about recruitment and 

retention strategies and services offered at the one-stop center. While 

staff at the Kansas City one-stop assist job seekers with disabilities, the 

Chamber works with local employers to educate them about hiring 

disabled workers and integrating them into the workplace. 

• Promoting partner co-location - The one-stop enabled the Adult 

Basic Education program to co-locate by allowing it to contribute 

instructors and GED classes instead of paying rent. 

• Raising additional funds to expand services - The Kansas City onestop has a staff person specifically designated to researching grant 

opportunities and writing grant applications. Through pursuing grant 

opportunities, the center has been able to raise about $14 million, which 

represents two-thirds of its total budget in program year 2002. These 

additional funds enable the one-stop staff to address local workforce 

concerns and provide services, such as internship opportunities in hightech industries for at-risk youth.
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 46 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha County Job Center

8600 Sheridan Road

Kenosha, WI 53143

• Streamlining services through consolidated and case 

management - Case files for economic support, case management, job 

placement, and childcare services are shared on a networked computer 

system that staff from these four programs can access. Staff from these 

programs collectively develop an action plan for their customers and 

share an electronic calendar for scheduling customers’ appointments 

and workshops. 

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - The 

one-stop collaborates with local community colleges and the Kenosha 

Area Business Alliance, an economic development association, to 

identify labor and skills shortages in local industry. These partnerships 

have not only helped employers with human resources assistance--such 

as recruitment, networking, and marketing--but they have also assisted 

employers with assessment and training of new and existing employees. 

For example, the one-stop’s relationship with a local community college 

led to the development of a Certified Nursing Assistant course taught in 

Spanish.

• Promoting partner collaboration - Regular functional team meetings 

allow partners to share ideas, work together to solve problems, and 

develop strategies to improve services. For example, through functional 

teams, partners were able to establish an on-site childcare center.

• Promoting partner co-location - Goodwill Industries, a one-stop 

partner, pays rent for smaller partners that cannot afford to pay rent on 

their own to expand services for job seekers.
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 47 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Killeen, Texas Central Texas Workforce Center

300 Cheyenne

Killeen, TX 76541

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - To serve customers with 

transportation challenges, staff in Killeen partner with the libraries in 

rural areas to provide computer access to one-stop resume writing and 

job search services. They also provide an on-line TANF orientation, so 

that customers can access it remotely. Additionally, when one-stop 

center staff refer job seekers to one of their many partners, the staff 

personally introduce the job seeker to the referred program staff to 

prevent job seekers from getting lost between programs.

• Developing optional partnerships to expand services - The onestop improved job seeker access to services by forming relationships 

with optional partners such as TANF. One-stop staff told us that colocation with TANF services helps welfare recipients address barriers to 

employment by facilitating easier access to services, such as housing 

assistance and employment and training programs. 

• Dedicating specialized staff to establish relationships with 

employers - The one-stop has specialized staff serving not only as the 

central contact for receiving calls and requests from employers but also 

as the primary source for identifying job openings available through 

employers in the community. 

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

In collaboration with local community colleges and the Chamber of 

Commerce, the one-stop created a Business Resource Center that offers 

services specifically for entrepreneurs and new businesses, including 

tax assistance and workshops on starting or improving a business.

• Raising additional funds to expand services - The one-stop has 

applied for multiple transportation grants to improve access to jobs for 

rural job seekers. In addition, the one-stop raised $309,000 in fiscal year 

2001 by renting out space to local businesses and by providing services 

to employers. 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 48 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Pikeville, Kentucky Pike County JobSight Center

120 South Riverfill Drive

Pikeville, KY 41501

• Ensuring partner staff understand the range of services - Crosstraining workshops taught by partner staff educate staff about the onestop’s diverse array of services. Although partners specialize in a 

particular area of expertise, cross-training has improved referrals and 

enabled staff to better ensure that job seekers get the tools they need to 

become successfully employed. 

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

When eastern Kentucky encountered a labor shortage in the coal mining 

industry, the one-stop recruited a large pool of local applicants and 

created an on-the-job training program using WIA funds, which paid for 

half of new miners’ salaries during their training period. 

• Dedicating specialized staff to establish relationships with 

employers - Specific JobSight staff are dedicated to employer outreach 

and customizing services. These staff were able to help attract a large 

cabinet manufacturer to the area by offering a customized service 

package, including prescreening and assessment, on the job training, 

and a 3-day job fair.

• Promoting partner collaboration - When the one-stop was created, 

partners participated in intensive workshops and collaboratively 

designed a service delivery plan to reduce service duplication. In 

addition, partners collaboratively designed a common intake form and a 

service delivery flow chart.

• Creating a shared one-stop identity - One-stop managers told us that 

shared decision making was instrumental in developing a common onestop identity and in ensuring partners’ support for the one-stop system. 

The process of creating a shared one-stop identity in Pikeville was also 

supported by the adoption of a common logo and nametags, and was 

reinforced by a comprehensive marketing campaign.

• Promoting partner co-location - The local community college 

donated free space to the one-stop on its conveniently located campus, 

making it desirable for partners to relocate there.
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 49 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Salt Lake City, Utah South County Employment Center

5735 S. Redwood Road

Taylorsville, UT 84123

• Streamlining services through consolidated case management - 

The caseworkers at the Salt Lake City one-stop are divided into four 

teams that share case management of customers. The Job Connection 

Team is stationed at the front desk and helps customers by doing quick 

assessments, referrals, UI profiling, and assisting with computer access. 

Caseworkers from the three Employment Teams specialize in a 

particular program and all caseworkers meet once a month to discuss 

program requirements and how to streamline services for co-enrolled 

customers. 

• Ensuring partner staff understand the range of services - 

Department of Workforce Services and Vocational Rehabilitation 

caseworkers participate in frequent cross-training sessions, so they are 

capable of assisting co-enrolled customers. One-stop managers 

reported that cross–training has improved staff understanding of 

programs outside their area of expertise and enhanced their ability to 

make referrals. There is also a shadow program in which staff members 

shadow one another for a few hours to learn about one another’s jobs 

and the programs they administer.

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - The one-stop established 

a Web-based job search program on which job seekers can post resumes 

and look for jobs. This Web site reduces customer flow, saves money, 

and makes it more convenient for people to look for jobs from their 

homes or offices.

• Dedicated specialized staff to establish relationships with 

employers – Employers have a separate one-stop center where they 

can conduct interviews, access labor market information, attend 

seminars, and use computers. The center has specialized employer 

outreach and business services staff that act as liaisons to employers, 

organize job fairs, and assist with job placements.

• Promoting partner collaboration - Partners created a “MOUse” 

committee to address Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) issues, 

including referrals, information systems, employer involvement, crosstraining, and service accessibility. Staff from the Vocational 
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 50 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Rehabilitation Program in Salt Lake City told us that this committee 

helped to increase referrals to their program by producing flow charts of 

the service delivery systems of various partner programs to identify 

points at which referrals and staff collaboration should occur. 

Santa Rosa, California Sonoma County Job Link One-Stop Center

2245 Challenger Way

Santa Rosa, CA 95407

• Dedicating specialized staff to establish relationships with 

industries - In Santa Rosa, staff are dedicated to specific industries in 

order to better address local labor shortages. When Santa Rosa’s 

tourism industry was in need of more skilled workers, the one-stop 

worked with the local community college to ensure that job seekers 

were connected to certification courses in hotel management and the 

culinary arts. Also, the one-stop center has a Small Business 

Development Center, funded by the Small Business Administration, that 

provides consulting services to small businesses.

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - The 

one-stop focuses heavily on using existing partnerships with 

intermediaries, such as the Economic Development Board, to market 

their services to employers and to utilize information gathered from 

employer surveys. Managers told us this partnership has helped 

caseworkers better understand particular industries and job market 

fluctuations. 

• Developing optional partnerships to expand services - The onestop is collaborating with CalWORKS, the state TANF program, which 

allows them to provide additional services, such as the employer 

account representatives. These representatives work with employers, 

the Workforce Investment Board, and caseworkers to gather and 

disseminate information about the labor market, particularly highdemand industries.

• Raising additional funds to expand services - Santa Rosa has been 

better equipped to receive national grants and grants from the state of 

California by collaborating with three other Workforce Investment 

Boards in the area. In addition, this collaboration has improved local 

labor market information and sharing of promising practices.
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 51 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

• Improving one-stop operations - Partner staff use a Funding Source 

Determination Worksheet to ensure that customers’ services are paid 

for by the most appropriate grant or by a variety of funding streams to 

maximize funding in the long run. The funding sheet helps alleviate 

some cost burden on partners with tighter training budgets.

Sunnyvale, California Connect!

420 S. Pastoria Avenue

Sunnyvale, CA 94086

• Dedicating specialized staff to establish relationships with 

employers - Connect! has dedicated staff to providing a variety of 

services (both free and fee-based) to meet business needs, including 

staffing services, such as prescreening of job applicants and on-site 

recruiting; transition/outplacement services to help downsizing 

businesses assist displaced workers; educational resources; and 

training, such as technical training for small business IT workers.

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

The one-stop is co-located with a patent and trademark library that is 

electronically linked to the national trademark office to assist 

customers seeking entrepreneurial opportunities.

• Gathering labor market information on local industries - Connect! 

conducted Labor Market Information Plus (LMI+) studies of local 

industries to gather information on current workforce issues and 

challenges and predict future labor market trends.

• Raising additional funds to expand services - One-stop managers 

raised $20,000 through fee-based downsizing and training services for 

employers and used this money to expand the one-stop’s business 

services.

• Improving one-stop operations - In order to improve its operations,

Connect! conducted an assessment (Voice of the Customer Initiative) to 

better understand customer expectations and needs. As a result, the 

one-stop reorganized its operations, redefined relationships with 

partners, developed a new outcome budget structure, and created 

specialized one-stop centers for businesses, job seekers, and youth.
Appendix II

Promising Practices from Site Visits

Page 52 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Vineland, New Jersey Cumberland County One-stop

415 Landis Avenue

Vineland, NJ 08360

• Ensuring job seekers’ access to services - By addressing customers’ 

transportation challenges, the Cumberland County One-Stop enhanced 

access to training and employment opportunities for rural customers. 

The one-stop now provides transportation to employment sites that are 

difficult for customers to access, such as the Atlantic City casino 

industry.

• Ensuring partner staff understand the range of services - Program 

staff attend monthly meetings to educate one another about various 

program rules, which improves referrals and eligibility determination 

for customers. For example, all program staff attended training on how 

to assess customers’ eligibility for the TANF program.

• Tailoring services to meet employers’ specific workforce needs - 

When employer services staff realized the application process for tax 

credits was cumbersome for employers, they completed the required 

paperwork themselves so that employers could receive the tax credit 

incentives. 

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - The 

Cumberland County One-Stop negotiated an agreement with the local 

Empowerment Zone Office, requiring that new businesses use the onestop center for recruitment before using their own private resources. 

This arrangement allows the one-stop to stay informed of employer 

needs and potential opportunities for job seekers. 

• Working with intermediaries to engage and serve employers - The 

Vineland one-stop belongs to the three Chambers of Commerce in the 

area and attends many of their events. Business services staff make 

presentations about the one-stop’s services at professional conferences, 

chamber meetings, and other local events.
Page 53 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Appendix III

Comments from the Department of Labor ApenIdxi

Now on p. 29.
Appendix III

Comments from the Department of Labor

Page 54 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Now on p. 32.
Appendix III

Comments from the Department of Labor

Page 55 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act
Page 56 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Appendix IV

GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments ApenVIdxi

GAO Contacts Dianne Blank (202) 512-5654

Katrina Ryan (202) 512-3214

Staff 

Acknowledgments

Elisabeth Anderson, Elizabeth Caplick, and Tamara Harris made significant 

contributions to this report. In addition, Shana Wallace assisted in the 

study design; Jessica Botsford provided legal support; and 

Patrick DiBattista assisted in the message and report development.
Page 57 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Related GAO Products

Workforce Investment Act: Exemplary One-Stops Devised Strategies to 

Strengthen Services, but Challenges Remain for Reauthorization. GAO03-884T. Washington D.C.: June 18, 2003.

Workforce Investment Act: Issues Related to Allocation Formulas for 

Youth, Adults, and Dislocated Workers. GAO-03-636. Washington D.C.: 

April 25, 2003.

Multiple Employment and Training Programs: Funding and 

Performance Measures for Major Programs. GAO-03-589. Washington, 

D.C.: April 18, 2003.

Food Stamp Employment and Training Program: Better Data Needed to 

Understand Who Is Served and What the Program Achieves. GAO-03-388. 

Washington D.C.: March 12, 2003.

Workforce Training: Employed Worker Programs Focus on Business 

Needs, but Revised Performance Measures Could Improve Access for 

Some Workers. GAO-03-353. Washington, D.C.: February 14, 2003.

Older Workers: Employment Assistance Focuses on Subsidized Jobs and 

Job Search, but Revised Performance Measures Could Improve Access to 

Other Services. GAO-03-350. Washington, D.C.: January 24, 2003

Workforce Investment Act: States’ Spending Is on Track, but Better 

Guidance Would Improve Financial Reporting. GAO-03-239. Washington, 

D.C.: November 22, 2002. 

Workforce Investment Act: States and Localities Increasingly Coordinate 

Services for TANF Clients, but Better Information Needed on Effective 

Approaches. GAO-02-696. Washington, D.C.: July 3, 2002.

Workforce Investment Act: Coordination of TANF Services Through OneStops Has Increased Despite Challenges. GAO-02-739T. Washington, D.C.: 

May 16, 2002.

Workforce Investment Act: Youth Provisions Promote New Service 

Strategies, but Additional Guidance Would Enhance Program 

Development. GAO-02-413. Washington, D.C.: April 5, 2002.
Related GAO Products

Page 58 GAO-03-725 Workforce Investment Act

Workforce Investment Act: Coordination of TANF Programs and OneStop Center Is Increasing, but Challenges Remain. GAO-02-500T. 

Washington, D.C.: March 12, 2002.

Workforce Investment Act: Better Guidance and Revised Funding 

Formula Would Enhance Dislocated Worker Program. GAO-02-274. 

Washington, D.C.: February 11, 2002.

Workforce Investment Act: Improvements Needed in Performance 

Measures to Provide a More Accurate Picture of WIA’s Effectiveness. 

GAO-02-275. Washington, D.C.: February 1, 2002.

Workforce Investment Act: Better Guidance Needed to Address Concerns 

Over New Requirements. GAO-02-72. Washington, D.C.: Oct. 4, 2001.

Workforce Investment Act: New Requirements Create Need for More 

Guidance. GAO-02-94T. Washington, D.C. October 4, 2001.

Workforce Investment Act: Implementation Status and the Integration of 

TANF Services. GAO/T-HEHS-00-145. Washington, D.C.: June 29, 2000.

(130173)
The General Accounting Office, the audit, evaluation and investigative arm of 

Congress, exists to support Congress in meeting its constitutional responsibilities 

and to help improve the performance and accountability of the federal 

government for the American people. GAO examines the use of public funds; 

evaluates federal programs and policies; and provides analyses, 

recommendations, and other assistance to help Congress make informed 

oversight, policy, and funding decisions. GAO’s commitment to good government 

is reflected in its core values of accountability, integrity, and reliability. 

The fastest and easiest way to obtain copies of GAO documents at no cost is 

through the Internet. GAO’s Web site (www.gao.gov) contains abstracts and fulltext files of current reports and testimony and an expanding archive of older 

products. The Web site features a search engine to help you locate documents 

using key words and phrases. You can print these documents in their entirety, 

including charts and other graphics. 

Each day, GAO issues a list of newly released reports, testimony, and 

correspondence. GAO posts this list, known as “Today’s Reports,” on its Web site 

daily. The list contains links to the full-text document files. To have GAO e-mail 

this list to you every afternoon, go to www.gao.gov and select “Subscribe to daily 

E-mail alert for newly released products” under the GAO Reports heading. 

The first copy of each printed report is free. Additional copies are $2 each. A 

check or money order should be made out to the Superintendent of Documents. 

GAO also accepts VISA and Mastercard. Orders for 100 or more copies mailed to a 

single address are discounted 25 percent. Orders should be sent to: 

U.S. General Accounting Office 

441 G Street NW, Room LM 

Washington, D.C. 20548 

To order by Phone: Voice: (202) 512-6000 

TDD: (202) 512-2537 

Fax: (202) 512-6061 

Contact: 

Web site: www.gao.gov/fraudnet/fraudnet.htm 

E-mail: fraudnet@gao.gov

Automated answering system: (800) 424-5454 or (202) 512-7470 

Jeff Nelligan, Managing Director, NelliganJ@gao.gov (202) 512-4800 

U.S. General Accounting Office, 441 G Street NW, Room 7149 

Washington, D.C. 20548 

GAO’s Mission 

Obtaining Copies of 

GAO Reports and 

Testimony 

Order by Mail or Phone 

To Report Fraud, 

Waste, and Abuse in 

Federal Programs 

Public Affairs 
United States

General Accounting Office

Washington, D.C. 20548-0001

Official Business

Penalty for Private Use $300

Address Service Requested

Presorted Standard

Postage & Fees Paid

GAO

Permit No. GI00