61618 Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 201 / Wednesday, October 18, 2006 / Proposed Rules 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Employment and Training 

Administration 

20 CFR Part 618 

RIN 1205–AB40 

Alternative Trade Adjustment 

Assistance Benefits; Amendment of 

Regulations 

AGENCY: Employment and Training 

Administration, Labor. 

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rule Making 

(NPRM); Request for comments. 

SUMMARY: On August 6, 2002, President 

Bush signed into law the Trade 

Adjustment Assistance Reform Act of 

2002 (the Reform Act), which amended 

the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (Act 

or Trade Act). The Reform Act 

reauthorized the Trade Adjustment 

Assistance (TAA) program through 

fiscal year 2007 and made significant 

amendments to the TAA program, 

including the addition of Alternative 

Trade Adjustment Assistance for Older 

Workers (Alternative TAA or ATAA). 

These amendments generally took effect 

on November 4, 2002, and required that 

the Department establish the ATAA 

program ‘‘[n]ot later than one year after 

the date of the enactment of the [Reform 

Act]’’. 

The Department is implementing the 

TAA amendments, including the 

introduction of ATAA, through three 

separate rulemakings. This proposed 

rule implements the ATAA program, a 

demonstration project for older workers. 

On August 25, 2006, the Department 

published a proposed rule governing the 

payment of TAA and the provision of 

related employment services. The 

Department will publish a third 

proposed rule governing TAA and 

ATAA certifications of worker groups 

adversely affected by trade. 

DATES: The Department invites written 

comments on this proposed rule. 

Comments must be submitted on or 

before December 18, 2006. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit written 

comments on this proposed rule, 

identified by Regulatory Identification 

Number (RIN) 1205–AB40, by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• E-mail: AlternativeTAA.comments@ 

dol.gov. Include RIN 1205–AB40 in the 

subject line of the message. Your 

comment must be in the body of the email message; do not send attached 

files. 

• Fax: (202) 693–3584 (this is not a 

toll-free number). Only comments of 10 

or fewer pages (including a Fax cover 

sheet and attachments, if any) will be 

accepted by Fax. 

• Mail: Submit comments to Erica 

Cantor, Administrator, Office of 

National Response, ETA, U.S. 

Department of Labor, 200 Constitution 

Avenue, NW., Room N–5422, 

Washington, DC 20210. Please note that 

due to security concerns, mail delivery 

in Washington, DC, may be delayed. 

Therefore, the Department encourages 

the public to submit comments via email or Internet as indicated above. 

• Hand Delivery/Courier: 200 

Constitution Avenue, NW., Room N– 

5422, Washington, DC 20210. 

Instructions: All comment 

submissions should include the RIN 

(1205–AB40) for this rulemaking and 

must be received on or before the last 

day of the comment period. The 

Department will not open, read, or 

consider any comments received after 

that date. Also, the Department will not 

acknowledge receipt of any comments 

received. Commenters who submit 

comments to the Department by Fax or 

through the Internet as well as by mail 

should indicate that the mailed 

comments are duplicate copies. 

Docket: All comments will be 

available for public inspection and 

copying during normal business hours 

at 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Division of Trade Adjustment 

Assistance, Room N–5422, Washington, 

DC 20210. Copies of the proposed rule 

are available in alternative formats of 

large print and electronic file on 

computer disk, which may be obtained 

at the above-stated address. The 

proposed rule is available on the 

Internet at the Web address http:// 

www.doleta.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Erica Cantor, Administrator, Office of 

National Response, ETA, U.S. 

Department of Labor, 200 Constitution 

Avenue, NW., Room N–5422, 

Washington, DC 20210. Telephone: 

(202) 693–3560 (voice) (this is not a tollfree number); 1–800–326–2577 (TDD). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

preamble is divided into three sections. 

Section I provides general background 

information on the Reform Act and the 

Department’s approach for developing 

implementing regulations for the 

Reform Act. Section II is a section-bysection analysis of this NPRM which 

proposes rules to implement ATAA for 

older workers. Section III covers the 

administrative requirements for this 

proposed rulemaking mandated by 

statute and executive order. 

I. Background 

The Reform Act expanded the scope 

of the TAA program and increased 

certain benefit amounts available under 

that program, repealed the North 

American Free Trade Agreement 

Transitional Adjustment Assistance 

(NAFTA–TAA) program, provided the 

Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) 

administered by the Internal Revenue 

Service (IRS) to provide a tax credit for 

qualified health insurance costs for 

eligible workers, and enacted the 

Alternative TAA demonstration 

program for older workers. These 

amendments augmented the benefits 

and services to workers certified as 

adversely affected by foreign trade 

under the TAA program. 

One of the purposes of the TAA 

program, 19 U.S.C. 2271 et seq., as 

described in section 2 of the Act, 19 

U.S.C. 2102, is ‘‘to assist * * * workers 

* * * to adjust to changes in 

international trade flows.’’ The TAA 

program assists workers adversely 

affected by international trade by 

providing eligible workers with certain 

benefits and services, including income 

support in the form of trade 

readjustment allowances (TRA), 

training, job search allowances, 

relocation allowances, wage subsidies 

under ATAA, and the Health Coverage 

Tax Credit (HCTC). In order for a worker 

to apply to a cooperating State agency 

(CSA) for these benefits and services, 

the worker must be part of a group of 

workers covered under a TAA 

certification. 

To implement the substantial changes 

to the TAA program, including the 

introduction of ATAA, the Department 

proposes creating a new 20 CFR Part 

618. Proposed Part 618 would consist of 

nine subparts: subpart A—General; 

subpart B—Petitions and 

Determinations of Eligibility to Apply 

for Trade Adjustment Assistance; 

subpart C—Delivery of Services through 

the One-Stop Delivery System; subpart 

D—Job Search Allowances; subpart E— 

Relocation Allowances; subpart F— 

Training Services; subpart G—Trade 

Readjustment Allowances (TRA); 

subpart H—Administration by 

Applicable State Agencies; and subpart 

I—Alternative Trade Adjustment 

Assistance for Older Workers. 

The rulemaking for Part 618 is 

divided into three parts: This NPRM 

proposes rules for Subpart I, ATAA for 

Older Workers. The Reform Act 

introduced this demonstration program 

to provide alternate benefits to older 

workers who obtain group certifications 

of their eligibility to apply for both TAA 

and ATAA. These older workers, when 


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they are part of a group certified as 

eligible to apply for ATAA, have the 

option of applying for a wage 

supplement as an alternative to TAA 

when they take work for less 

compensation than they received in 

their adversely affected employment. 

A separate NPRM, published at 71 FR 

50760–50832 (August 25, 2006) (RIN 

1205–AB32), covers six subparts 

governing the payment of TAA and the 

provision of related employment 

services (subpart C through subpart H) 

and related definitions in subpart A. 

The Department will publish a third 

NPRM for subpart B, which will govern 

TAA and ATAA certifications of worker 

groups adversely affected by trade. (A 

worker must be covered under a TAA or 

ATAA certification to apply for TAA or 

ATAA, respectively.) It will also 

provide definitions relating to TAA and 

ATAA certifications that were reserved 

in subpart A. 

The reader should note that since the 

Department initially expected to publish 

subparts B and I as one NPRM, both 

subparts B and I were initially covered 

under the same RIN, 1205–AB40. In 

order to expedite the publication of 

subpart I, the Department has decided to 

publish the NPRM for subpart B 

separately. Therefore, subpart I will 

remain under RIN 1205–AB40, and the 

Department will request a new RIN for 

subpart B and remaining definitions in 

subpart A. 

II. Summary and Discussion of 

Regulatory Provisions: Subpart I— 

Alternative Trade Adjustment 

Assistance for Older Workers 

This proposed subpart governs 

ATAA, a demonstration project 

established by the Reform Act under 

new section 246 of the Act. ATAA is a 

new approach to providing employment 

assistance to workers 50 years of age or 

older through wage subsidies. The goal 

of ATAA is to encourage reemployment 

of older workers who may find it 

difficult to find a new job at the same 

wage level when they change careers 

after long-term employment in a single 

job or industry. Training to improve 

opportunities for a future career, such as 

training individuals may receive 

through TAA, may not be the best 

option for these workers. 

The program allows a worker covered 

by an ATAA certification a choice. An 

eligible worker may receive either an 

ATAA wage supplement to supplement 

income from a new job at lower pay 

than the worker’s adversely affected 

employment, or TAA benefits including 

training and income support (although 

some workers may, under this proposed 

subpart, receive TRA, the income 

support component of TAA, before 

being determined eligible for ATAA). A 

worker under either program may 

receive employment and other related 

services focused on obtaining new 

employment offering compensation at or 

near the wages earned in adversely 

affected employment, and a worker 

under either program may receive the 

Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC) if 

otherwise eligible. 

Some provisions in proposed subpart 

I reference provisions in subpart H of 

Part 618, Administration by Applicable 

State Agencies. All subpart H provisions 

apply to the ATAA program except 

where subpart H or subpart I 

specifically provides to the contrary. 

The absence in subpart I of a reference 

to an applicable subpart H provision 

may not be construed to mean subpart 

H does not apply. 

Proposed § 618.900 describes the 

scope and purpose of ATAA. It explains 

that the Division of Trade Adjustment 

Assistance (DTAA) will determine 

ATAA and TAA certification at the 

same time. ATAA group certification 

will be covered in subpart B of this Part. 

Paragraph (a) of § 618.900 also explains 

that a worker for whom a nonrefundable 

expense is incurred for training 

approved under § 618.605(c) loses the 

option to receive ATAA, whether or not 

TAA funds pay the expense. The basis 

for this requirement appears in the 

preamble explanation of proposed 

§ 618.915. Finally, this provision 

explains that proposed § 618.915 

provides that workers individually 

found eligible for TAA and ATAA may 

not receive any TAA (except for the 

HCTC) after receiving an ATAA wage 

supplement, to highlight the choice of 

benefits that receipt of ATAA imposes 

on an individual worker. 

Proposed paragraph (b) states the 

purpose of the ATAA program: ‘‘to 

provide workers 50 years of age or older 

with the option to receive a temporary 

wage supplement upon prompt 

reemployment at lower pay than their 

previous adversely affected 

employment.’’

Proposed § 618.905 discusses the six 

criteria that section 246 of the Act 

requires the Cooperating State Agencies 

(CSAs) to apply in determining whether 

an individual worker is eligible for 

ATAA. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(1) of § 618.905 

(criterion 1) implements both section 

246(a)(3)(B)(i) of the Act, requiring that, 

to be eligible for the ATAA wage 

supplement, the worker ‘‘is covered by 

a certification under subpart A of this 

Part [providing for group certifications 

for TAA],’’ as well as the section 

246(a)(3)(B) requirement that the worker 

is covered by an ATAA certification. 

Accordingly, proposed paragraph (a)(1) 

requires that the worker be certified as 

eligible to apply for ATAA under an 

ATAA certification (which is issued 

concurrently with a TAA certification). 

Further, the Department interprets the 

statutory phrase ‘‘covered by a 

certification’’ to mean that the worker is 

an ‘‘adversely affected worker,’’ as 

defined in § 618.110(b)(3). To be an 

adversely affected worker, the worker 

must be separated from adversely 

affected employment during the period 

of coverage of the certification. Thus, an 

adversely affected worker is one who is 

‘‘covered by a certification,’’ as required 

by the statutory language. Moreover, the 

definition of adversely affected worker 

requires that the worker be separated 

‘‘because of lack of work in adversely 

affected employment * * *.’’ This 

requirement assures that a worker fired 

for cause or laid off for other reasons 

than lack of work is not eligible for 

ATAA benefits. Accordingly, proposed 

paragraph (a)(1) requires that the worker 

be an adversely affected worker in a 

group of workers certified as eligible to 

apply for TAA and ATAA. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(2) of § 618.905 

(criterion 2) implements section 

246(a)(3)(B)(ii) of the Act, which 

requires that the worker obtain 

reemployment not more than 26 weeks 

after the date of separation from 

adversely affected employment. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(2) implements 

this provision by requiring the worker to 

obtain reemployment by the last day of 

the 26th week after the date of the 

worker’s most recent ‘‘total separation,’’

as defined in § 618.110(b)(76), that 

occurred within the certification period 

of the ATAA certification. The use of 

the term ‘‘most recent total separation’’

recognizes that workers may undergo 

more than one separation from 

employment and, like the regular TAA 

program, permits workers to obtain 

benefits when the employment 

relationship appears to be finally 

severed. 

By making the wage supplement 

available only if reemployment occurred 

within 26 weeks of the worker’s total 

separation, the statute encourages 

workers to begin looking for 

employment as soon as possible. 

However, as provided in proposed 

§§ 618.905(d)(4) and 618.910(a)(3), a 

CSA may approve a wage supplement 

and pay it retroactively to a worker who 

is covered by an ATAA certification but 

is reemployed before the certification is 

issued, if the worker otherwise meets 

eligibility requirements. The 

Department believes that denying the 

supplement to a worker who becomes 


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reemployed before the certification is 

issued is inconsistent with the intent of 

the statute to encourage rapid 

reemployment. In addition, denying 

retroactive approval of ATAA could 

encourage a worker to delay 

reemployment if a petition is pending, 

since the worker would have an 

incentive to wait until a determination 

is made. Further, the statute does not 

preclude retroactive approval of ATAA 

since it requires reemployment within 

26 weeks of separation and does not 

provide an alternate deadline for 

reemployment if the separation occurs 

prior to the certification. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(3) of § 618.905 

(criterion 3) implements section 

246(a)(3)(B)(iii) of the Act, which 

requires that the worker is at least 50 

years of age. Proposed paragraph (a)(3) 

implements this provision by requiring 

that the worker must be at least 50 years 

of age at the time of reemployment. The 

Department proposes using the age of 

the worker at the time of the worker’s 

reemployment because that is the time 

when all 6 criteria must be met. The 

worker’s age may be verified with a 

driver’s license or other appropriate 

documentation. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(4) of § 618.905 

(criterion 4) implements section 

246(a)(3)(B)(iv) of the Act, which 

conditions the wage supplement on the 

worker not earning more than $50,000 a 

year in wages from reemployment. 

Accordingly, proposed paragraph (a)(4) 

requires that the worker may not earn 

more than $50,000 in annualized wages 

from reemployment as calculated under 

proposed § 618.910(a)(2)(ii). 

Computations of annualized wages from 

reemployment include wages from all 

jobs in which the worker is employed. 

When a worker applies for ATAA, a 

paycheck or supporting statement from 

the employer, or from each employer if 

there is more than one, must indicate 

that the annualized wages from 

reemployment with that employer will 

not exceed $50,000. Because the 

$50,000 figure is a prospective 

calculation, a formula to annualize 

reemployment wages, set forth in 

proposed § 618.910(a)(2)(ii), must be 

used to calculate whether the worker’s 

wages project to exceed this amount or 

the annualized wages at separation as 

computed under proposed 

§ 618.910(a)(2)(i). Finally, the proposed 

paragraph provides that annualized 

wages from reemployment must be less 

than the worker’s annualized wages at 

separation from adversely affected 

employment, computed under 

§ 618.910(a)(2)(i). 

Proposed paragraph (a)(5) of § 618.905 

(criterion 5) implements section 

246(a)(3)(B)(v) of the Act, which 

requires that the worker is employed on 

a full-time basis as defined by State law 

in the State in which the worker is 

employed by repeating the statutory 

language. It also adds the requirement 

that the worker must continue to be 

employed on a full-time basis, although 

not necessarily at the same job or for the 

same employer. This is a requirement 

for continuing eligibility which the 

Department believes should be clearly 

stated. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(5)(i) explains 

that either a single full-time job or any 

combination of part-time work that 

meets or exceeds full-time employment 

under that State law may be used. ‘‘State 

law’’ is defined in § 618.110(b)(70) as 

the State Unemployment Insurance (UI) 

law. Following longstanding practice, 

State UI law means not only State 

statutory provisions, but also: State 

court decisions, regulations, program 

letters, manuals, and any other 

documents interpreting State UI law. 

Thus, even if full-time employment 

were not defined in the State code, a 

definition contained in another Stateissued document would apply. If the 

worker is employed in more than one 

State, then the law of the State in which 

the worker has the higher weekly 

earnings applies. If the worker’s weekly 

earnings in that State are reduced, the 

law of that State continues to apply. The 

determination of which State law 

applies is made at the same time as the 

initial determination of eligibility and 

the amount of the supplement or, if the 

worker requalifies for ATAA on the 

basis of subsequent employment in two 

States, at the initial determination for 

that employment. Once the CSA makes 

the determination of the applicable 

State law, that determination continues 

to apply even if the worker’s weekly 

earnings change. If the worker’s wages 

in that State are reduced, it is easier to 

simply continue to apply the law of that 

State. 

State UI law does not need to cover 

the employment, but the employment 

must not present any unusual risk to the 

health, safety, or morals of the worker 

and the employment must not be in an 

unlawful activity under any applicable 

Federal, State, or local law. The 

Department includes this provision 

because it believes that ATAA should 

not serve as an incentive for a worker 

either to accept employment that 

otherwise would jeopardize the 

worker’s own welfare or involve illegal 

activities. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(5)(ii) provides 

an exception to the requirement that 

State law requirements define full-time 

employment. It provides that a worker 

is considered employed full-time for 

any week in which the worker worked 

less than full-time as defined in State 

law, only because the worker was on 

employer-authorized leave. The 

Department believes that a worker 

should not be disqualified from 

receiving ATAA for periods of 

employer-authorized leave, whether 

paid or unpaid, simply because the 

worker actually worked fewer than the 

minimum number of hours required 

under the applicable State law 

definition of full-time employment. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(5)(iii) 

provides that the employment may not 

be TAA- or WIA-sponsored on-the-job 

training (OJT). Under both TAA and 

WIA, OJT is a form of training in which 

a Federal program pays a subsidy to an 

employer to offset the employer’s cost of 

providing training. Since ATAA is 

provided as an alternative to other TAA 

benefits, the choice to enroll in training 

means that a worker becomes ineligible 

for ATAA. ATAA allowances may be 

paid if a WIA-funded OJT, that has not 

been approved as TAA training, ends 

and leads to permanent unsubsidized 

employment within the 26-week 

window for applying for ATAA. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(6) of § 618.905 

(criterion 6) implements section 

246(a)(3)(B)(vi) of the Act, which 

requires that the worker ‘‘does not 

return to the employment from which 

the worker was separated.’’ The 

Department interprets this as meaning 

more than merely a return to the same 

job, with the same facility, of the same 

firm, producing the same article. Rather, 

the provision’s evident intent is to 

prevent the subsidization of wages 

when the worker effectively is returning 

to the adversely affected employment, a 

broader standard. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(6)(i) contains 

the first part of this interpretation, that 

the worker returns to the same facility 

owned by the same firm from which the 

adversely affected worker was 

separated, regardless of whether the 

worker returns to the same job or 

produces the same article as in 

adversely affected employment. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(6)(ii) contains 

the second part of the interpretation, 

that the worker returns to the same 

facility but under ownership by a 

different firm from that which the 

worker was separated, if the worker is 

producing the same article as identified 

in the TAA determination but without 

regard to whether the worker is in the 

same job. Proposed paragraph (a)(6)(iii) 

contains the third part of the 

interpretation, that the worker is 

reemployed at a different facility of the 

same firm from which the worker was 


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separated, and in the same job 

producing the same article identified in 

the TAA determination. 

Proposed paragraph (b) of § 618.905 

contains the basic filing requirement for 

a worker to file an application for 

ATAA. For an ATAA application to be 

timely, it must be filed with the CSA 

within two years from the first day of 

the worker’s reemployment, unless the 

Department extends this two-year 

deadline for workers covered by an 

ATAA certification whose issuance was 

unduly delayed as determined by the 

Department. Although the Act is silent, 

the Department proposes a deadline in 

order to avoid an open-ended 

commitment. ATAA is payable for no 

more than two years and it is reasonable 

that a claimant file the claim within this 

period. 

The Department also proposes to 

permit CSAs to require in-person filing 

because it might, in some cases, help 

prevent fraud by better enabling the 

CSA to verify an applicant’s identity, or 

assist in ensuring an accurate 

calculation of benefits for eligible 

workers. The ATAA payment, unlike 

State UI, is not based upon wage records 

in a database, but pay stubs. The CSA 

may need the claimant present to obtain 

the needed information quickly and to 

speed up the process for deciding on 

eligibility for and the amount of the 

ATAA payment. The Department 

therefore believes that CSA’s should 

have the flexibility of requiring inperson claim filing. 

Proposed paragraph (c) addresses 

situations where, because of the delays 

associated with litigation over the 

denials of certifications of petitions, 

certifications are issued so late that the 

two-year deadline for receiving ATAA 

benefits has expired for workers 

covered. Proposed paragraph (c) 

remedies this by providing that, as long 

as the petitioner or the adversely 

affected worker did not contribute to the 

delay in issuing the certification, for 

example, failing to meet filing deadlines 

or repeatedly requesting extensions of 

filing deadlines, the filing deadline will 

be extended for a reasonable period, 

decided on a case-by-case basis, 

necessary to permit eligible workers to 

file for ATAA. The Department believes 

that, in these cases, the adversely 

affected workers should not be unfairly 

penalized by not receiving ATAA. The 

Department proposes paragraph (c) to 

restore such workers to the position 

they would have occupied had the 

certification covering them been issued 

without the delay. The 26-week 

deadline for obtaining reemployment, in 

§ 618.925(a)(2), is not extended. The 26- 

week deadline is statutory. Under the 

statute, the deadline runs from the 

layoff date, not the certification date. 

Since every certification reaches back 

one year, in every certification there are 

potentially workers for whom the 26- 

week deadline passed long before the 

petition was certified, or even filed. 

Everyone must meet this deadline, 

regardless of whether the worker was 

laid off before a timely certification, or 

the worker was laid off before the 

certification because it was delayed by 

the appeals process. 

Proposed paragraph (d) of § 618.905 

provides that specified provisions in 

subpart H concerning determinations, 

redeterminations, notice, and appeals 

and hearings apply to ATAA. The 

Department proposes to apply the same 

procedural requirements to ATAA as 

apply to TAA because doing so 

promotes efficient ATAA 

administration. Proposed paragraphs 

(d)(1), (d)(2), and (d)(3) provide further 

procedural requirements specific to 

ATAA. 

Proposed paragraph (d)(1) provides 

that in reviewing the application, the 

CSA must verify and document the 

worker’s age, reemployment, and wages 

in determining whether the individual 

meets the individual eligibility criteria 

in proposed § 618.905(a). 

Proposed paragraph (d)(2) provides 

that a determination of eligibility issued 

to a worker must include a notice that 

the benefit amount will be regularly 

recalculated and may change if the 

eligible worker’s annualized wages in 

reemployment vary. Workers’ ATAA 

payments frequently change; therefore, 

this requirement would prevent 

confusion as workers see their benefit 

amounts change. 

Proposed paragraph (d)(3) allows a 

worker to file a new application and 

obtain ATAA if the worker meets the 

criteria of proposed § 618.905(a) at the 

time of filing of the new application, 

even if the CSA has denied a prior 

application. 

Proposed paragraph (d)(4) provides 

that a CSA may approve a wage 

supplement and pay it retroactively to a 

worker who is covered by an ATAA 

certification but is reemployed before 

the certification is issued, and otherwise 

meets eligibility requirements. This was 

explained above in the discussion of 

proposed § 618.905(a)(2). 

Proposed paragraph (e) of § 618.905 

provides that the recordkeeping and 

disclosure of information requirements 

of proposed § 618.865 apply to CSA’s 

ATAA program administration. The 

language of proposed § 618.865 already 

states that it applies to the 

administration of ‘‘the Act,’’ which 

includes ATAA; however, proposed 

§ 618.905(e) ensures there is no 

confusion concerning the applicability 

of proposed § 618.865 to ATAA. 

Proposed § 618.910 addresses the 

wage supplement payments available, 

and the HCTC potentially available, to 

those receiving ATAA. Proposed 

paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this 

section govern the computation of the 

total ATAA wage supplement for an 

eligible worker. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(1) of § 618.910 

provides that the total supplement 

amount, payable for up to a two-year 

period, is the lesser of $10,000 or an 

amount equal to 50 percent of the 

difference between the wages earned 

from the adversely affected employer 

and the new employment obtained after 

separation from adversely affected 

employment. As discussed above 

regarding proposed § 618.905(a)(4), a 

worker is ineligible to receive any wage 

supplement if the worker’s annualized 

wages at separation do not exceed the 

worker’s annualized wages from 

reemployment. 

Proposed paragraphs (a)(2)(i) and (ii) 

of § 618.910 provide the computations 

for, respectively, annualized wages at 

separation, and annualized wages from 

reemployment. Proposed paragraph 

(a)(2)(i) computes the annualized wages 

at separation based upon the amount of 

wages received by the worker during the 

last full week of adversely affected 

employment. Proposed § 618.110(b)(81) 

defines ‘‘wages’’ as ‘‘all compensation 

for employment for an employer, 

including commissions, bonuses, and 

the cash value of all compensation in a 

medium other than cash.’’ Thus, the 

computation of annualized wages at 

separation for ATAA recognizes that 

some eligible workers are paid by means 

other than an hourly wage. However, 

the computation of wages for ATAA 

purposes varies from the definition of 

‘‘wages’’ by excluding overtime wages 

because such wages are too speculative. 

It also varies from the definition of 

‘‘wages’’ by excluding employer-paid 

health insurance premiums and 

employer pension contributions, so as 

not to disqualify workers for ATAA 

because their employer provides health 

insurance or pensions. Lastly, it varies 

from the definition of ‘‘wages’’ by 

excluding bonuses, severance payments, 

buyouts and similar payments, which 

are not reflective of the worker’s weekly 

pay and which therefore should not be 

annualized. The computation of 

annualized wages at separation would 

use wages earned only in the last full 

week of the worker’s regular schedule in 

adversely affected employment, rather 

than, for example, the worker’s wages 

during the preceding 12-month period. 


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This is because the Act describes the 

formula as using the wages received by 

the worker ‘‘at the time of separation.’’

Proposed paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of 

§ 618.910 provides that the initial 

computation of annualized wages from 

reemployment relies on the amount of 

wages received by the worker during the 

first full week of reemployment. This 

computation also requires combining 

wages from all jobs, which is consistent 

with the requirement in proposed 

§ 618.905(a)(5) that ‘‘full-time 

employment’’ may include any 

combination of part-time jobs. However, 

the computation of wages from 

reemployment, like the computation of 

wages at separation, excludes overtime, 

employer-paid health insurance 

premiums, employer pension 

contributions, as well as bonuses, 

severance payments, buyouts and 

similar payments not reflective of 

weekly pay. Tips are not included in the 

proposed definition of wages, and the 

Department specifically invites 

comments on whether they should be, 

and if so, how they should be 

calculated. The computation of 

annualized wages from reemployment 

uses wages earned in the first full week 

of reemployment because that amount is 

the only actual figure available at the 

outset of a worker’s reemployment. 

The Department notes that the 

proposed computation of the wage 

supplement does not address one 

possible problem, that is, where a 

worker’s wages decrease because an 

employer lowers the worker’s wage rate 

immediately prior to separation or 

because piece rate or commission 

earnings are reduced. The Department 

invites comment on this possible 

problem as well as whether there is a 

better way to calculate wages at 

separation. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(3) of § 618.910 

governs the timing of wage supplement 

payments and explains that the CSA has 

the option to distribute the wage 

supplement payments to the worker on 

either a weekly, biweekly, or monthly 

basis for no more than a two-year period 

to a worker under any single ATAA 

certification. Proposed paragraph (a)(3) 

also provides that a worker may receive 

a lump-sum retroactive wage 

supplement payment for a previous 

period for which the worker was eligible 

for such payments, but did not have the 

opportunity to apply. This most 

commonly would occur where a worker 

was separated and found a new job 

before the ATAA certification was 

issued. Retroactive payment was 

explained above in the discussion of 

§ 618.905(a)(2). 

Proposed paragraph (a)(4) of § 618.910 

provides that each wage supplement 

payment will be equal to the 

Annualized Wage Differential divided 

by the number of payments made during 

the year, e.g., divided by 12 in a State 

that pays on a monthly basis and 

divided by 52 in a State that pays on a 

weekly basis. As noted in proposed 

§ 618.905(d)(2), this calculation, and 

thus the payments, may change when 

the Annualized Wage Differential is 

recalculated as a result of changes in 

wages. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(5) of § 618.910 

provides that the CSA will, no less than 

monthly, review whether a worker 

remains eligible for, and the amount of, 

the wage supplement payments. This 

requirement would reduce the risk of 

fraud and error and would reduce the 

number of overpayments that would 

have to be established in the case of 

workers who receive payments to which 

they are not entitled. This requirement 

also is necessary for determinations of 

eligibility and recalculations of wage 

supplement payment amounts if the 

worker’s annualized wages from 

reemployment change, as provided in 

proposed paragraph (a)(6) of § 618.910. 

If the review determines that the 

worker’s annualized wages from 

reemployment have changed, then 

proposed paragraph (a)(6) requires a 

CSA to determine eligibility or 

recalculate wage supplement payment 

amounts based on the new annualized 

wages from the change. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(7) of § 618.910 

provides that if a CSA has verified 

continued eligibility monthly, as 

required by proposed paragraph (a)(5), 

then payments made after a worker’s 

annualized wages from reemployment 

have changed but before the regular 

monthly review, are considered valid 

payments to which the individual was 

entitled and are not overpayments 

subject to § 618.840. The Department 

believes that in these circumstances, 

basic fairness and justice requires that it 

allow a worker to keep wage 

supplement payments received as the 

result of determinations that were 

correct and accurate at the time they 

were made based on all the information 

available at that time. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(8) of § 618.910 

explains how a change in employment 

affects ATAA eligibility. Proposed 

paragraph (a)(8)(i) provides that an 

eligible worker who changes jobs is not 

disqualified from continuing to receive 

wage supplement payments so long as 

the new employment meets the 

applicable requirements in proposed 

§ 618.905(a), that is, proposed 

paragraphs (a)(4), (a)(5) and (a)(6). 

The Department proposes this policy 

because it does not want to preclude 

workers from receiving ATAA benefits 

if they secure different employment 

after their initial reemployment. Also, 

the employment is not required to be 

consecutive. However, ATAA benefits 

are not payable during periods of 

unemployment. If a worker receiving 

ATAA becomes unemployed, the 

worker must complete a new individual 

application for ATAA upon 

reemployment. The worker then will be 

eligible to receive the wage supplement, 

up to the $10,000 maximum, for the 

remainder of the two-year eligibility 

period (the two-calendar year period 

beginning with the first day of initial 

reemployment) if the worker meets 

criteria 4, 5, and 6 of § 618.905. 

If the worker’s initial reemployment 

meets all the criteria for individual 

eligibility found in § 618.905, then the 

worker continues to be eligible for 

ATAA even though the worker obtains 

different employment, as long as it is 

within the worker’s two-year eligibility 

period for benefits and the new job 

meets criteria 4, 5 and 6. Criteria 1, 2 

and 3 do not need to be reevaluated. 

Criterion 1, the worker is covered by a 

certification and criterion 3, the worker 

is at least 50 years of age, will not 

change. The Department also interprets 

criterion 2, that the worker obtained the 

job not more than 26 weeks after the 

date of separation from adversely 

affected employment, as only applying 

to the first reemployment job. Thus, it 

is not necessary that the worker obtain 

subsequent reemployment by the 

statutory deadline described in 

§ 618.905(a)(2), because that deadline 

was met by the initial reemployment. 

Proposed paragraph (a)(8)(ii) specifies 

that a worker already receiving wage 

supplement payments will become 

ineligible for the duration of any period 

of unemployment. However, the worker 

may regain eligibility upon again 

becoming reemployed if the new 

employment meets the same three 

requirements in § 618.905(a). 

Proposed paragraph (a)(8)(iii) 

provides that a worker whose 

recalculated annualized wages from 

reemployment exceed $50,000, may not 

receive any further wage supplement 

payments or any TAA benefit. However, 

if another change reduces the worker’s 

annualized wages from reemployment 

below $50,000 and the job still meets 

criteria 4, 5 and 6, the worker may 

reapply and receive ATAA for the 

remaining portion of the two-year 

eligibility period. The Department 

believes a worker should not be 

permanently barred from further wage 

supplement payments due to a 


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temporary spike in earnings that 

subsides before the worker’s two-year 

eligibility period expires. 

Proposed paragraph (b) of § 618.910 

provides that ATAA recipients are 

‘‘eligible ATAA recipients’’ for purposes 

of the HCTC. Although neither the 

Department nor CSAs make HCTC 

eligibility determinations, proposed 

§ 618.770(b) describes the duties of a 

CSA in administering the HCTC. The 

Internal Revenue Service makes the 

final determination of HCTC eligibility. 

Proposed § 618.915 explains the 

Department’s interpretation of section 

246(a)(5) of the Act, limiting the TAA 

benefits available to workers receiving 

ATAA. That provision prohibits a 

worker who is receiving ATAA benefits 

from receiving benefits under the TAA 

program other than the HCTC, but it 

does not indicate whether a worker may 

receive ATAA after having received 

TAA benefits. Proposed § 618.915 

interprets section 246(a)(5) of the Act as 

permitting a worker to receive TRA, a 

job search allowance, and a relocation 

allowance under a TAA certification 

before receiving a wage supplement 

payment under the accompanying 

ATAA certification. Once such a worker 

receives a wage supplement payment, 

however, that worker may not receive 

any further TAA benefits under that 

TAA certification, except the HCTC, if 

eligible. 

Proposed § 618.915 prohibits a worker 

for whom a nonrefundable expense is 

incurred—whether or not TAA funds 

pay the expense—for training approved 

under § 618.605(c) from receiving a 

wage supplement payment under the 

ATAA certification. The Department 

proposes this prohibition because 

ATAA is a demonstration program 

designed to test whether a wage 

supplement will return older workers to 

work faster than training under the TAA 

program. Therefore, it is reasonable to 

require a worker to choose between a 

longer-term commitment to training and 

the receipt of ATAA to supplement the 

wages earned in employment obtained 

quickly with existing skills. Mere 

approval of training under § 618.605(c) 

does not disqualify a worker from 

receiving ATAA; rather, the 

disqualification for receipt of training 

applies only once an actual and 

nonrefundable expense for TAA 

approved training is incurred from TAA 

or other funds. 

Proposed § 618.920 explains the effect 

of the termination of the ATAA 

program. This program was enacted as 

a demonstration project to better serve 

older workers seeking reemployment. 

Section 246(b) of the Act provides that 

a worker may not receive ATAA after 

the termination date unless the worker 

is ‘‘receiving payments * * * on the 

termination date.’’ Proposed § 618.920 

interprets this provision to mean that an 

eligible worker whose initial application 

for ATAA is approved on or before the 

termination date may receive ATAA 

payments for as long as the worker 

remains eligible for the duration of the 

worker’s ATAA eligibility period. The 

Department believes this interpretation, 

as opposed to one that would permit 

continuing wage supplement payments 

only to workers who had received an 

actual payment by the termination date, 

is reasonable and is more sensible 

because it avoids the inequity of a 

worker having an initial application 

approved before the termination date, 

but then not receiving a payment 

because of an administrative delay. 

III. Administrative Requirements of the 

Proposed Rulemaking 

Executive Order 12866 

This proposed rule for ATAA program 

benefits is not an economically 

significant rule because it will not 

materially alter the budgetary impact of 

entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan 

programs; have an annual effect on the 

economy of $100 million or more; or 

adversely affect the economy, a sector of 

the economy, productivity, competition, 

jobs, the environment, public health or 

safety, or State, local, or tribal 

governments or communities in a 

material way. However, the proposed 

rule is a significant regulatory action 

under Executive Order 12866 at section 

3(f), Regulatory Planning and Review, 

because it raises novel legal or policy 

issues arising out of legal mandates, the 

President’s priorities, or the principles 

set forth in the Executive Order. This 

proposed rule implements a new 

program under the Reform Act for 

individuals who are at least 50 years 

old. Therefore, the Department has 

submitted this proposed rule to the 

Office of Management and Budget for 

review. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

The ATAA program described in this 

proposed rule contains a requirement 

for States to submit to the Department 

the quarterly ATAA Activities Report 

(ATAAAR). These requirements were 

previously reviewed and approved for 

use by the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) and assigned OMB 

control number 1205–0459 under the 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13) (PRA). 

Executive Order 13132: Federalism 

The Department has reviewed this 

proposed rule revising the operation of 

a Federal benefit program in accordance 

with Executive Order 13132 and found 

that it will not have substantial direct 

effects on the States or the relationship 

between the national government and 

the States, or the distribution of power 

and responsibilities among the various 

levels of government, within the 

meaning of the Executive Order. 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 

This regulatory action has been 

reviewed in accordance with the 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 

(Pub. L. 104–4) and Executive Order 

12875. The Department has determined 

that this rule does not include any 

Federal mandate that may result in 

increased expenditures by State, local, 

or tribal governments, in the aggregate, 

or by the private sector, of $100 million 

or more in any one year. Accordingly, 

the Department has not prepared a 

budgetary impact statement. 

Effect on Family Life 

The Department certifies that this 

proposed rule has been assessed 

according to section 654 of Pub. L. 105–

277, 112 Stat. 2681, for its effect on 

family well-being. The Department 

concludes that the rule will not 

adversely affect the well-being of the 

nation’s families. Rather, it should have 

a positive effect on family well-being by 

providing greater choice in for benefits 

to eligible individuals. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act/SBREFA 

We have notified the Chief Counsel 

for Advocacy, Small Business 

Administration, and made the 

certification pursuant to the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act (RFA) at 5 U.S.C. 605(b), 

that this proposed rule will not have a 

significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

Under the RFA, no regulatory flexibility 

analysis is required where the rule ‘‘will 

not * * * have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities.’’ 5 U.S.C. 605(b). A small entity 

is defined as a small business, small 

not-for-profit organization, or small 

governmental jurisdiction. 5 U.S.C. 

601(3)–(5). Therefore, the definition of 

the term ‘‘small entity’’ does not include 

States or individuals. 

This proposed rule provides 

procedures governing a program for 

individuals over age 50 and is 

administered by the States and not by 

small governmental jurisdictions. In 

addition, the program applies to 

individuals who seek benefits under the 

program only, and not small entities as 


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defined by the Regulatory Flexibility 

Act. Therefore, the Department certifies 

that this proposed rule will not have a 

significant impact on a substantial 

number of small entities and, as a result, 

no regulatory flexibility analysis is 

required. 

In addition, the Department certifies 

that this proposed rule is not a major 

rule as defined by section 804 of the 

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Act of 1996 (SBREFA). Under section 

804 of SBREFA, a major rule is one that 

is an ‘‘economically significant 

regulatory action’’ within the meaning 

of Executive Order 12866. Because this 

proposed rule is not an economically 

significant rule under Executive Order 

12866, the Department certifies that it 

also is not a major rule under SBREFA. 

Catalogue of Federal Domestic 

Assistance Number 

This program is listed in the Catalogue of 

Federal Domestic Assistance at No. 17.245. 

List of Subjects in 20 CFR Part 618 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Employment, Fraud, Grant 

programs—labor, Manpower training 

programs, Relocation assistance, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Trade adjustment 

assistance, Vocational education. 

Signed at Washington, DC, on October 12, 

2006. 

Emily Stover DeRocco, 

Assistant Secretary, Employment and 

Training Administration. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the Department of Labor 

proposes to amend 20 CFR part 618 as 

proposed in a Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking entitled Trade Adjustment 

Assistance for Workers, Workforce 

Investment Act; Amendment of 

Regulations, published at 71 FR 50760–

50832 (August 25, 2006) which is 

proposed to be further amended as 

follows: 

PART 618—TRADE ADJUSTMENT 

ASSISTANCE UNDER THE TRADE ACT 

OF 1974 FOR WORKERS CERTIFIED 

UNDER PETITIONS FILED BEFORE 

NOVEMBER 4, 2002 

1. The authority citation for this part 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 19 U.S.C. 2320; Secretary’s 

Order No. 3–81, 46 FR 31117. 

2. 20 CFR part 618 is amended to add 

subpart I to read as follows: 

Subpart I—Alternative Trade 

Adjustment Assistance for Older 

Workers 

Sec. 

618.900 Scope and purpose. 

618.905 Individual eligibility criteria, 

application, and determinations. 

618.910 Benefits. 

618.915 Choice of TAA or ATAA wage 

supplement. 

618.920 Termination of ATAA Program. 

Subpart I—Alternative Trade 

Adjustment Assistance for Older 

Workers 

§ 618.900 Scope and purpose. 

(a) This subpart covers Alternative 

Trade Adjustment Assistance for older 

workers (ATAA), including the 

procedures for applying for individual 

eligibility determinations. ATAA 

certification is determined at the same 

time as TAA certification, both of which 

are governed by subpart B of this Part. 

Workers who are covered under an 

ATAA certification must meet the 

individual eligibility criteria for ATAA 

in order to opt to receive a wage 

supplement. However, a worker for 

whom a nonrefundable expense is 

incurred for training approved under 

§ 618.605(c) loses the option to receive 

ATAA, whether or not TAA funds pay 

for the expense. Under § 618.915 a 

worker who receives an ATAA wage 

supplement may not receive TAA 

benefits and services, but may still be 

eligible to receive the HCTC. 

(b) The purpose of ATAA is to 

provide workers 50 years of age or older 

with the option to receive a temporary 

wage supplement upon prompt 

reemployment at lower pay than their 

previous adversely affected 

employment, as an alternative to 

training and other TAA benefits. 

§ 618.905 Individual eligibility criteria, 

applications, and determinations. 

(a) Criteria for individual eligibility. 

An individual worker must satisfy each 

of the following requirements to qualify 

for ATAA: 

(1) Criterion 1: The worker is covered 

by a certification. The worker must be 

an adversely affected worker, as defined 

in § 618.110(b)(3), in the group of 

workers certified as eligible to apply for 

TAA and ATAA; 

(2) Criterion 2: The worker obtains 

reemployment not more than 26 weeks 

after the date of separation from the 

adversely affected employment. The 

worker’s first day of employment must 

occur before the last day of the 26th 

week after the date of the worker’s most 

recent total separation, as defined in 

§ 618.110(b)(76), within the ATAA 

certification period; 

(3) Criterion 3: The worker is at least 

50 years of age. The worker must be at 

least 50 years of age at the time of 

reemployment; 

(4) Criterion 4: The worker earns not 

more than $50,000 a year in annualized 

wages from reemployment. The worker 

may not earn more than $50,000 in 

annualized wages from reemployment, 

as computed under 618.910(a)(2)(ii). 

Annualized wages from reemployment 

will include wages from all jobs in 

which the worker is employed. When a 

worker applies for ATAA, a paycheck or 

supporting statement from the 

employer, or from each employer if 

more than one, must be used to 

establish that annualized wages from 

reemployment will not exceed $50,000. 

Annualized wages from reemployment 

also must be less than the worker’s 

annualized wages at separation from 

adversely affected employment, as 

computed under § 618.910(a)(2)(i); 

(5) Criterion 5: The worker is 

employed on a full-time basis as defined 

by State law in the State in which the 

worker is employed. The worker must be 

employed, and must continue being 

employed (although the worker need 

not continue to be employed in the 

same job(s) or for the same employer(s)), 

on a full-time basis as defined by State 

law (as defined in § 618.110(b)(70)) in 

the State in which the worker is 

employed. 

(i) Employment on a full-time basis 

may include a single, full-time job or 

any combination of part-time work that 

meets or exceeds full-time employment, 

as defined under State law in the State 

in which the worker is employed. If the 

worker is employed in more than one 

State, then the law of the State in which 

the worker has the highest weekly 

earnings applies. If the worker’s weekly 

earnings in that State are reduced, the 

law of that State continues to apply. 

Such employment need not be covered 

employment under State UI law, but 

must be employment which does not 

present any unusual risk to the health, 

safety, or morals of the individual and 

must not involve activity that is 

unlawful under Federal, State, or local 

law. 

(ii) Notwithstanding State law, a 

worker must be considered employed 

full-time for any week in which the 

worker worked less than full-time as 

defined in State law, only because the 

worker was on employer-authorized 

leave. 

(iii) Such employment may not be 

TAA- or WIA-sponsored on-the-job 

training (OJT); 

(6) Criterion 6: The worker does not 

return to the employment from which 

the worker was separated. The worker’s 

reemployment must not be the same 

employment as the adversely affected 

employment from which the worker was 

separated. An adversely affected worker 


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returns to adversely affected 

employment if reemployed: 

(i) by the same firm at the same 

facility from which the adversely 

affected worker was separated, 

regardless of whether the worker is 

returning to the same job or producing 

the same article as identified in the TAA 

determination; or 

(ii) by a different firm but at the same 

facility from which the adversely 

affected worker was separated, and 

producing the same article identified in 

the TAA determination, regardless of 

whether the worker is returning to the 

same job; or 

(iii) by the same firm but at a different 

facility in the same job and producing 

the same article identified in the TAA 

determination. 

(b) Filing an individual application 

for ATAA. To receive ATAA, an 

adversely affected worker must file an 

application for ATAA with the 

cooperating State agency within two 

years from the first day of the worker’s 

reemployment. The cooperating State 

agency, at its discretion, may require the 

worker to file the application in person. 

(c) The limitation in paragraph (b) of 

this section does not apply where a 

negative determination on a petition 

filed under subpart B of this part 618 

has been appealed to the United States 

Court of International Trade; and the 

certification is later granted; and the 

delay in the certification is not 

attributable to the petitioner or the 

adversely affected worker. In that event, 

the filing period for ATAA will be 

extended by the Department of Labor, 

on a case-by-case basis, for a reasonable 

period in which workers may file for 

ATAA. The 26 week deadline for 

reemployment described in 

§ 618.905(a)(2) remains and is not 

changed by this provision. 

(d) Determinations, redeterminations, 

and appeals. Cooperating State agencies 

must apply the requirements of 

§ 618.825 (determinations and notice) 

and § 618.835 (appeals and hearings) of 

subpart H, respectively, to all 

determinations, redeterminations, and 

appeals under this subpart I. 

(1) Before issuing a determination or 

redetermination, the cooperating State 

agency must verify and document the 

worker’s age, reemployment, and wages 

in determining whether the 

requirements of paragraph (a) of this 

section have been met. 

(2) A determination of eligibility 

issued to a worker must include a notice 

that the benefit amount will be regularly 

recalculated (as required by 

§ 618.910(a)(6)) and may change if the 

eligible worker’s annualized wages in 

reemployment vary. 

(3) A worker who is denied individual 

eligibility based on a first reemployment 

may file a new application and 

subsequently obtain ATAA eligibility if 

the worker meets all of the criteria of 

paragraph (a) of this section at the time 

the worker files the new application. 

(4) A wage supplement may be 

approved retroactively in the case of a 

worker who is covered by an ATAA 

certification but is reemployed before 

such certification actually is issued, and 

otherwise meets the eligibility 

requirements of this section. 

(e) Recordkeeping requirements. The 

recordkeeping and disclosure of 

information requirements of § 618.865 

apply to the cooperating State agencies’

administration of the ATAA program. 

§ 618.910 Benefits. 

(a) Wage supplement. An eligible 

worker under an ATAA certification 

may receive a total wage supplement of 

up to $10,000 over a period of not more 

than two years. 

(1) Computation of total worker 

payment and Annualized Wage 

Differential. The ATAA wage 

supplement supplements an 

individual’s wages for up to two 

calendar years beginning with the first 

day of initial reemployment or $10,000, 

whichever occurs first, by an amount 

equal to the annualized wage 

differential. The Annualized Wage 

Differential is an amount equal to 50 

percent of the result of—

(i) The amount of the worker’s 

annualized wages at separation, as 

computed under paragraph (a)(2)(i) of 

this section, minus 

(ii) The amount of the worker’s 

annualized wages from reemployment, 

as computed under paragraph (a)(2)(ii) 

of this section. 

(2) Computation of annualized wages. 

(i) Annualized wages at separation 

means the product of 52 multiplied by 

the amount of wages received by the 

worker during the last full week of the 

worker’s regular schedule in adversely 

affected employment. The computation 

of wages at separation excludes 

overtime, employer-paid health 

insurance premiums, and employer 

pension contributions, as well as 

bonuses, severance payments, buyouts 

and similar payments not reflective of 

the worker’s weekly pay. 

(ii) Annualized wages from 

reemployment means the product of 52 

multiplied by the amount of wages 

received by the worker during the first 

full week of reemployment. If a worker’s 

wages from reemployment change, then 

annualized wages from reemployment 

means the product of 52 multiplied by 

the amount of wages received by the 

worker during the latest full week of 

reemployment, and the cooperating 

State agency must follow § 618.910(a)(6) 

in recalculating the wage supplement 

payments. The computation of 

annualized wages from reemployment 

excludes overtime, employer-paid 

health insurance premiums, and 

employer pension contributions, as well 

as bonuses, severance payments, 

buyouts and similar payments not 

reflective of the worker’s weekly pay. If 

a worker’s annualized wages from 

reemployment exceed $50,000, then the 

worker is ineligible for any ATAA 

benefit under this subpart I. 

(3) Timing of wage supplement 

payments. The cooperating State agency 

must make wage supplement payments 

on a regular basis, either weekly, 

biweekly, or monthly, for no more than 

a two-year period for a worker under 

any one certification, beginning no 

earlier than the first day of 

reemployment that satisfies the 

requirements of § 618.905. A worker 

may receive retroactive payments, in a 

lump sum, for which the worker was 

eligible under § 618.905(a) and 

approved under § 618.905(d)(4). 

(4) Calculation of wage supplement 

payments. Each wage supplement 

payment will be equal to the 

Annualized Wage Differential divided 

by the number of payments made during 

the year, e.g., divided by 12 in a State 

that pays on a monthly basis and 

divided by 52 in a State that pays on a 

weekly basis. 

(5) Periodic verification of 

employment and annualized wages. No 

less than once a month, the cooperating 

State agency must review whether a 

worker receiving wage supplement 

payments continues to meet the 

eligibility requirements of § 618.905, 

and determine whether changes have 

occurred in the worker’s annualized 

wages from reemployment, as described 

in paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section. 

(6) Change in annualized wages from 

reemployment. The cooperating State 

agency must recalculate the appropriate 

amount of the wage supplement 

payments if, during its review under 

paragraph (a)(5) of this section, it 

determines that the worker’s annualized 

wages from reemployment have 

changed. 

(i) If the worker’s annualized wages 

from reemployment, as computed under 

paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section, 

exceed either $50,000 or the worker’s 

annualized wages at separation, as 

computed under paragraph (a)(2)(i) of 

this section, then the cooperating State 

agency must immediately issue a 

determination that the worker is 

ineligible for further wage supplement 


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payments, notify the worker of this 

determination, and cease such wage 

supplement payments. 

(ii) If the worker’s annualized wages 

from reemployment, as computed under 

paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section, 

change, but still do not exceed either 

$50,000 or the worker’s annualized 

wages at separation, as computed under 

paragraph (a)(2)(i) of this section, then 

the cooperating State agency must 

recalculate the amount of each wage 

supplement payment. 

(7) Overpayments. If a cooperating 

State agency has verified continued 

eligibility monthly, as required by 

paragraph (a)(5) of this section, 

payments made before a worker’s 

annualized wages from reemployment 

are determined, under the computation 

in paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section, to 

have changed will, in the absence of 

fraud, be considered valid payments to 

which the individual was entitled and 

are not overpayments subject to 

§ 618.840. 

(8) Continuing eligibility for wage 

supplement. (i) Changing jobs during 

reemployment does not disqualify an 

otherwise eligible worker from receiving 

subsequent wage supplement payments 

under this subpart I for the remainder of 

the two-year eligibility period if the new 

reemployment meets the requirements 

of § 618.905(a)(4), (a)(5), and (a)(6). 

(ii) A worker already receiving wage 

supplement payments who has a period 

of unemployment will not be eligible to 

receive the wage supplement for that 

period nor any TAA benefit (see 

§ 618.915 (choice of TAA or ATAA 

wage supplement)). Upon 

reemployment, the worker must reapply 

for ATAA to the cooperating State 

agency. If the new reemployment meets 

the requirements of § 618.905(a)(4), 

(a)(5), and (a)(6), the worker may be 

eligible to receive the wage supplement 

in accordance with the requirements of 

this section for the remaining portion of 

the two-year eligibility period. 

(iii) A worker already receiving wage 

supplement payments whose 

recalculated annualized wages from 

reemployment, under 618.910(a)(2)(ii), 

exceed $50,000, may not receive any 

further wage supplement payments or 

any TAA benefit (see § 618.915 (choice 

of TAA or ATAA wage supplement)). 

However, if another change reduces the 

worker’s annualized wages from 

reemployment to $50,000 or less and the 

worker meets the requirements of 

§ 618.905(a)(4), (a)(5), and (a)(6), the 

worker may reapply to the CSA and 

resume receiving ATAA for the 

remaining portion of the two-year 

eligibility period. 

(b) Health Coverage Tax Credit. A 

worker who receives an ATAA wage 

supplement payment is an eligible 

ATAA recipient as defined in 

618.110(b)(33) and may, if determined 

eligible by the Internal Revenue Service, 

receive the HCTC for any month in 

which the worker receives an ATAA 

payment and for one month following 

the last month of ATAA payment 

eligibility. A cooperating State agency 

must meet the responsibilities explained 

in § 618.770(b) (Health Coverage Tax 

Credit). 

§ 618.915 Choice of TAA or ATAA wage 

supplement. 

A worker for whom a nonrefundable 

expense is incurred—whether or not 

TAA funds pay the expense—for 

training approved under § 618.605(c) 

loses the option to receive ATAA and 

may not receive a wage supplement 

under an accompanying ATAA 

certification. A worker who has received 

TRA, a job search allowance, or a 

relocation allowance may still choose to 

receive ATAA benefits. However, a 

worker who receives a wage supplement 

payment under an ATAA certification 

makes an irrevocable election to receive 

ATAA benefits and may not receive any 

concurrent or subsequent TAA benefits, 

except for the HCTC, as provided in 

§ 618.910(b), under the TAA 

certification that accompanies that 

ATAA certification. 

§ 618.920 Termination of ATAA Program. 

A worker may not receive a wage 

supplement under § 618.910(a) after the 

termination date of the ATAA program 

specified in the Act or other law, unless 

the worker received a determination 

approving an initial application for 

ATAA on or before such termination 

date. A worker who has received 

approval of a wage supplement under 

the ATAA program on or before the 

termination date specified in the Act 

will, if otherwise eligible, continue to 

receive payments throughout the 

worker’s eligibility period, in 

accordance with § 618.910(a) of this 

subpart I. 

[FR Doc. 06–8752 Filed 10–17–06; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–30–P 


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