30138 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

B. Industry Competency Models 

ETA supports an Industry 

Competency Model Initiative to promote 

an understanding of the skill sets and 

competencies that are essential to an 

educated and skilled workforce. A 

competency model is a collection of 

competencies that taken together define 

successful performance in a particular 

work setting. Competency models serve 

as a starting point for the design and 

implementation of workforce and talent 

development programs. To learn about 

the industry-validated models visit the 

Competency Model Clearinghouse 

(CMC) at http://www.careeronestop.org/ 

CompetencyModel/. The CMC site also 

provides tools to build or customize 

industry models, as well as tools to 

build career ladder and/or career lattice. 

C. Federal Collaboration 

DOL encourages other Federal 

partners to recommend or require, 

where appropriate, that organizations 

receiving Recovery Act funding list jobs 

created with their State public labor 

exchange. The Department is 

developing specific strategies to link job 

listings, training opportunities and 

placement among programs funded by 

Departments of Housing and Urban 

Development, Energy, Education, and 

the Environmental Protection Agency. 

Where the grantee is not the public 

workforce system, they are strongly 

encouraged to work with the local One 

Stop Career Center to make these 

connections. 

D. Links to Federal Recovery Sites 

For specific information on a range of 

Federal agency Recovery Act activities 

and funding opportunities: 

• Department of Education: http:// 

www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/ 

index.html. 

• Department of Energy: http:// 

www.doe.gov/recovery. 

• Department of Housing and Urban 

Development: http://www.hud.gov/ 

recovery. 

• Department of Transportation: 

http://www.dot.gov/recovery/. 

Environmental Protection Agency: 

http://www.epa.gov/recovery. 

E. Promising Research Approaches 

ETA encourages applicants to 

research promising training approaches 

in order to inform their proposals. The 

following list of Web sites provides a 

starting place for this research, but by 

no means should be considered a 

complete list: 

• ETA’s home site (http:// 

www.doleta.gov) and the ETA Research 

Publication Database (http:// 

www.doleta.gov/research/keyword.cfm). 

• ETA’s knowledge sharing site 

(http://www.workforce3one.org), 

including the ‘‘workforce solutions’’ 

section that contains over 6,000 

additional resources applicants may 

find valuable in developing workforce 

strategies and solutions. 

• The National Governors Association 

Center for Best Practices (http:// 

www.nga.org). 

• The National Association of State 

Workforce Agencies (http:// 

www.workforceatm.org). 

• The National Association of 

Workforce Boards (http:// 

www.nawb.org). 

IX. Other Information 

OMB Information Collection No. 

1225–0086. Expires September 30, 2009. 

According to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are 

required to respond to a collection of 

information unless such collection 

displays a valid OMB control number. 

Public reporting burden for this 

collection of information is estimated to 

average 20 hours per response, 

including time for reviewing 

instructions, searching existing data 

sources, gathering and maintaining the 

data needed, and completing and 

reviewing the collection of information. 

Send comments regarding the burden 

estimated or any other aspect of this 

collection of information, including 

suggestions for reducing this burden, to 

the OMB Desk Officer for ETA, 

Department of Labor, in the Office of 

Management and Budget, Room 10235, 

Washington, DC 20503. Please do not 

return the completed application to 

omb. send it to the sponsoring agency as 

specified in this solicitation. 

This information is being collected for 

the purpose of awarding a grant. The 

information collected through this SGA 

will be used by DOL to ensure that 

grants are awarded to the applicant best 

suited to perform the functions of the 

grant. Submission of this information is 

required in order for the applicant to be 

considered for award of this grant. 

Unless otherwise specifically noted in 

this announcement, information 

submitted in the respondent’s 

application is not considered to be 

confidential. 

Signed at Washington, DC, this 19th day of 

June 2009. 

Donna Kelly, 

Grant Officer, Employment and Training 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. E9–14930 Filed 6–23–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–FN–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Employment and Training 

Administration 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009; Notice of Availability of 

Funds and Solicitation for Grant 

Applications for Pathways Out of 

Poverty 

Announcement Type: Notice of 

Solicitation for Grant Applications. 

Funding Opportunity Number: SGA/ 

DFA PY 08–19. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number: 17.275. 

DATES: The closing date for receipt of 

applications under this announcement 

is September 29, 2009. Applications 

must be received no later than 4 p.m. 

Eastern Time. A Webinar for 

prospective applicants will be held for 

this grant competition on July 14, 2009 

from 2–3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Access 

information for the Webinar will be 

posted on the ETA Web site at: http:// 

www.workforce3one.org. The Webinar 

will be recorded and will be accessible 

for viewing by July 17, 2009 at 3 p.m. 

Eastern Time, at the Web site above. It 

is encouraged but not mandatory that 

applicants attend or view this recording. 

ADDRESSES: Mailed applications must be 

addressed to the U.S. Department of 

Labor, Employment & Training 

Administration, Division of Federal 

Assistance, Attention: Melissa 

Abdullah, Grants Officer, Reference 

SGA/DFA PY 08–19, 200 Constitution 

Avenue, NW., Room N4716, 

Washington, DC 20210. For complete 

‘‘Application and Submission 

Information,’’ please refer to Section IV. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor 

(DOL, or the Department) announces the 

availability of approximately $150 

million in grant funds authorized by the 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009 (the Recovery Act) for 

projects that provide training and 

placement services to provide pathways 

out of poverty and into employment 

within the industries described in the 

Supplementary Information, Part B of 

this SGA. Grantees selected from two 

separate types of applicants will be 

funded through this solicitation: (1) 

National nonprofit entities with 

networks of local affiliates, coalition 

members, or other established partners; 

and (2) local entities. Additional 

specific eligibility guidance is included 

in Section III.A, ‘‘Eligible Applicants 

and Required Partnerships.’’ ETA 

intends to fund grants ranging from 

approximately $3 to $8 million for 

national grantees, and grants ranging 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30139 

from approximately $2 to $4 million for 

local grantees. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Recovery Act: Competitive Grants 

for Green Job Training 

This section of the SGA provides 

general background on the American 

Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 

(Recovery Act), the competitive grants 

funded through the Recovery Act to 

prepare workers for careers in the 

energy efficiency and renewable energy 

industries, and the occupations and 

industries on which these grants should 

focus. On February 17, 2009, President 

Barack Obama signed into law the 

Recovery Act, through which Congress 

intended to preserve and create jobs, 

promote the nation’s economic 

recovery, and assist those most 

impacted by the recession. Among other 

funding directed toward the 

Department, the Recovery Act provides 

$750 million for a program of 

competitive grants for worker training 

and placement in high growth and 

emerging industries. Of the $750 million 

allotted for competitive grants, the 

Recovery Act designates $500 million 

for projects that prepare workers for 

careers in the energy efficiency and 

renewable energy industries described 

in Section 171(e)(1)(B) of the Workforce 

Investment Act (WIA). DOL intends to 

use a portion of the $500 million for 

providing technical assistance for this 

program of grants. 

The purpose of these green job 

training grants is to teach workers the 

skills required in emerging energy 

efficiency and renewable energy 

industries. These efforts will lead 

program participants to job placement 

while leveraging other Recovery Act 

investments intended to create jobs and 

promote economic growth. For 

additional information about the series 

of competitive grants for green job 

training, please refer to Training and 

Employment Notice (TEN) 44–08 

available at http://www.doleta.gov/ 

Recovery/legislation.cfm. 

B. Green Industries and Occupations 

The Department will award grants to 

workforce development projects that 

focus on connecting target populations, 

including workers affected by 

significant automotive industry 

restructuring, to career pathways in 

green industries. Training programs will 

prepare individuals for careers in any of 

the seven energy efficiency and 

renewable energy industries defined in 

Section 171(e)(1)(B)(ii) of the WIA, 

which include: 

• The energy-efficient building, 

construction, and retrofit industries; 

• The renewable electric power 

industry; 

• The energy efficient and advanced 

drive train vehicle industry; 

• The biofuels industry; 

• The deconstruction and materials 

use industries; 

• The energy efficiency assessment 

industry serving residential, 

commercial, or industrial sectors; and 

• Manufacturers that produce 

sustainable products using 

environmentally sustainable processes 

and materials. 

Additionally, the Department is 

interested in applicants contributing to 

our understanding of green industries 

and jobs that clean and enhance our 

environment. Initial research supported 

by the Department of Labor, described 

later in this SGA, shows that there are 

‘‘growth, enhanced and emerging’’ green 

occupations across a number of 

industries. Applicants may propose 

strategies that train for those 

occupations from among the following 

industries: Transportation; green 

construction; environmental protection; 

sustainable agriculture including 

healthy food production; forestry; and 

recycling and waste reduction (see the 

O*NET report at http:// 

www.onetcenter.org/reports/ 

Green.html). The Department will 

consider proposals that focus on these 

occupations within these industries if 

applicants can offer supporting data 

demonstrating these are emerging 

industries which are producing jobs in 

their communities. 

For the purpose of these SGAs, the 

Department defines energy efficiency 

and renewable energy as follows. 

Section 203(b)(2) of the Energy Policy 

Act of 2005, Public Law 109–58, 119 

Stat. 595, defines ‘‘renewable energy’’ as 

‘‘electric energy generated from solar, 

wind, biomass, landfill gas, ocean 

(including tidal, wave, current, and 

thermal), geothermal, municipal solid 

waste, or new hydroelectric generation 

capacity achieved from increased 

efficiency or additions of new capacity 

at an existing hydroelectric project.’’ 

‘‘Energy efficiency’’ can be broadly 

defined as programs aimed at mitigating 

the use of energy, reducing harmful 

emissions, and decreasing overall 

energy consumption. 

The Department of Labor’s Bureau of 

Labor Statistics (BLS) is working to 

develop a definition for green sectors 

and jobs, which will be used to ensure 

that workforce development efforts 

identify and target these green jobs and 

their training needs. The Department 

has also supported occupational 

research that begins to define green jobs, 

review sectors impacted by green 

investments and understand how new 

green technology and materials will 

affect occupational requirements. The 

Occupational Information Network 

(O*NET) project has drafted a research 

paper titled, Greening of the World of 

Work: Implications for O*NET–SOC and 

New and Emerging Occupations. This 

study reflects three general categories of 

occupations, based on different 

consequences of green economy 

activities and technologies: (1) Existing 

occupations expected to experience 

primarily an increase in employment 

demand; (2) existing occupations with 

significant change to the work and 

worker requirements; and (3) new and 

emerging green occupations. This 

research may be used as a starting point 

for identifying green industries and 

occupations and informing the 

development of training and job 

placement programs. For a copy of the 

O*NET report and a listing of the 

identified occupations go to http:// 

www.onetcenter.org/reports/Green.html. 

C. Working With Other Recovery Act 

Programs 

The Recovery Act made funds 

available to a number of other Federal 

programs that will impact the creation 

and expansion of green jobs. DOL is 

partnering with other Federal agencies 

to support the creation of jobs by 

developing a pipeline of skilled workers 

in the energy efficiency and renewable 

energy industries. Where possible, ETA 

encourages applicants to connect their 

workforce development strategies to 

other Recovery Act funded projects that 

create jobs or impact the skill 

requirements of existing jobs. ETA 

recommends that applicants review 

other parts of the Recovery Act, with a 

focus on the activities funded through 

the Department of Energy (Energy), the 

Environmental Protection Agency 

(EPA), the Department of Housing and 

Urban Development (HUD), the 

Department of Transportation (DOT), 

the Department of Education 

(Education) and others. For additional 

resources and information about our 

Federal partners, please see Sections 

VIII.D and VIII.E. 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Competitive grants under this SGA 

will fund projects that provide training 

and placement services to prepare 

individuals seeking pathways out of 

poverty for careers in the industries 

described in the Supplementary 

Information: Part B of this SGA. 

Grantees selected from two separate 

types of applicants will be funded 

through this solicitation: (1) National 

nonprofit entities with networks of local 

30140 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

affiliates, coalition members, or other 

established partners; and (2) local 

entities. Populations eligible to receive 

services through grants funded through 

this SGA include unemployed 

individuals, high school dropouts, 

individuals with a criminal record, and 

disadvantaged individuals living in 

areas of high poverty. As part of the 

technical review process, points will be 

awarded for applications that 

demonstrate that the proposed project 

serves areas of high poverty, as 

described in Section V.A.1.i, ‘‘Statement 

of Need.’’ 

Successful training programs funded 

through this SGA will prepare 

participants for employment within the 

industries described in Supplementary 

Information: Part B of this SGA, and 

will: (1) Include sound recruitment and 

referral strategies for targeted 

populations; (2) integrate basic skills 

and work-readiness training with 

occupational skills training, as 

necessary; (3) combine supportive 

services with training services to help 

participants overcome barriers to 

employment, as necessary; and (4) 

provide training services at times and 

locations that are easily accessible to 

targeted populations. 

The current economic downturn has 

impacted individuals in communities 

across the United States, and has left 

many workers seeking to transition into 

new industries or new careers. For 

individuals who are living below or 

near the poverty level, the current 

economic downturn has created a 

unique set of challenges, and has 

heightened the need to find pathways 

out of poverty and into employment. 

These individuals may lack basic 

literacy and job readiness skills, and 

they may face other barriers to 

employment, such as the need for 

childcare or transportation. 

For individuals who face immense 

difficulties in meeting their basic needs, 

finding employment opportunities in 

today’s labor market presents many 

obstacles. In order to succeed, these 

individuals need to not only acquire the 

basic skills that will provide the 

foundation for their employability, but 

they also need to learn entry-level 

technical skills and need access to 

support systems that allow them to meet 

the needs of their families while they 

concentrate on gaining new 

competencies. 

To assist individuals in meeting these 

challenges, projects funded through this 

SGA will integrate training and 

supportive services into cohesive 

programs that will help target 

populations find pathways out of 

poverty and into economic selfsufficiency, through employment in the 

energy efficiency and renewable energy 

industries. Despite the economic 

downturn, these ‘‘green’’ industries 

present many potential opportunities for 

individuals to learn new skills and 

competencies, gain employment, and 

advance along career pathways. 

National and local applicants are 

expected to implement project activities 

at the community level. Projects in each 

community served must be 

implemented by a strategic partnership 

that includes, at a minimum: nonprofit 

organizations, such as community and 

faith-based organizations; the public 

workforce investment system; the 

education and training community; 

labor organizations; and employers and 

industry-related organizations. By 

including all of these types of 

organizations in a comprehensive 

partnership, applicants can ensure that 

they are maximizing available resources 

for each project, and that individual 

participants within the project can 

access an array of training and 

supportive services that they need to 

successfully complete training, 

overcome barriers to employment, 

obtain jobs and advance along career 

pathways. 

II. Award Information 

A. Award Amount 

Under this SGA, ETA intends to 

award approximately $150 million in 

grant funds. ETA intends to fund grants 

ranging from approximately $3 to $8 

million for national grantees, and grants 

ranging from approximately $2 to $4 

million for local grantees. ETA does not 

expect to fund any project for less than 

$2 million. However, this does not 

preclude funding grants at a lower 

amount based on the type and the 

number of quality submissions. ETA 

will not fund projects for more than $8 

million, and applications requesting 

more than $8 million will be considered 

nonresponsive. Within the funding 

ranges specified above, applicants are 

encouraged to submit proposals for 

quality projects at whatever funding 

level is appropriate to the project. 

B. Period of Performance 

The period of grant performance will 

be up to 24 months from the date of 

execution of the grant documents. This 

performance period includes all 

necessary implementation and start-up 

activities as well as participant followup. The Department intends that all 

grantees implement the training and 

placement programs funded under this 

SGA as soon as possible. Further, 

applicants should plan to fully expend 

grant funds during the period of 

performance, while ensuring full 

transparency and accountability for all 

expenditures. 

III. Eligibility Information 

A. Eligible Applicants and Required 

Partnerships 

All applicants must have experience 

serving at least one of the following 

groups: unemployed individuals, high 

school dropouts, individuals with 

criminal records, and/or disadvantaged 

individuals within areas of high 

poverty. To be eligible to apply for these 

grants, applicants must fall into one of 

two categories: (1) National entities; or 

(2) local entities. These two applicant 

types will compete separately for 

funding under this SGA. ETA expects to 

publish two SGAs during the summer of 

2009: Energy Training Partnerships SGA 

[SGA/DFA PY 08–18] and the Pathways 

Out of Poverty SGA [SGA/DFA PY 08– 

19]. ETA will not fund any one 

organization as a grantee more than 

once through these two SGAs. An 

applicant may choose to submit an 

application for the Energy Training 

Partnerships SGA [SGA/DFA PY 08–18] 

and the Pathways Out of Poverty SGA 

[SGA/DFA PY 08–19]; however, DOL 

does not encourage applicants to submit 

applications to both competitions. An 

organization that submits an application 

for one SGA is not precluded from 

participating as a suggested or required 

partner in applications submitted in 

response to the other SGA. Finally, an 

organization may not submit multiple 

applications in response to any one 

SGA. The applicant categories for this 

SGA, along with the required 

partnerships for each, are defined 

below. 

1. National Entities 

For the purposes of this SGA, 

applicants qualify as national entities if 

they are private nonprofit organizations 

that have the following characteristics: 

(a) They deliver services through 

networks of local affiliates, coalition 

members, or other established partners 

(such as a network of affiliated 

community or faith-based 

organizations); and (b) their local 

affiliates, coalition members, or other 

established partners have the ability to 

provide services in 4 or more States. 

These entities, along with their partners, 

are expected to implement projects in 

multiple communities across the 

country. In order to apply as a national 

entity, an applicant must propose a 

project that serves communities (see 

Section III.C.2 for the definition of 

community) located in at least 2 States, 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30141 

with a minimum of 1 community 

located in each State, and a range of 3– 

7 total communities served. (For the 

purposes of this SGA, the term ‘‘State’’ 

means each of the 50 States of the 

United States, the District of Columbia, 

and U.S. territories as defined in Section 

VI.B.2.iv). By serving a range of 3–7 

total communities, national applicants 

can ensure that each community has 

adequate funding to implement training 

and job placement programs. National 

entities will be required to fund subgrants or sub-contracts in each 

designated community, through which 

the local affiliates, coalition members, 

or other established partners will 

implement each project in collaboration 

with the required partners detailed in 

Section III.A.3.i. 

2. Local Entities 

For the purposes of this SGA, 

applicants qualify as local entities if 

they are public organizations (such as 

community colleges or workforce 

investment boards) or private nonprofit 

organizations (such as community or 

faith-based organizations) whose service 

area is limited to a single sub-State 

geographic area, such as a 

neighborhood, city, county, sub-State 

region, or interstate region comprised of 

multiple sub-State regions (such as 

Kansas City). In order to apply as a local 

entity, an applicant must propose a 

project that serves one single 

community (see Section III.C.2 for the 

definition of community). Local entities 

must implement the project in 

collaboration with the required partners 

detailed in Section III.A.3.i. A local 

entity that receives an award under this 

SGA may not receive sub-grant or subcontract funding through a grant 

awarded to a national entity under this 

SGA. 

3. Strategic Partnerships 

To be eligible for funding under this 

SGA, national and local applicants must 

demonstrate that the proposed project 

will be implemented by a robust 

strategic partnership. 

i. Required Partners 

In each community served, the 

strategic partnership must include at 

least one entity from each of the 

following five categories: 

• Nonprofit organizations, such as 

community or faith-based organizations, 

which have direct access to the targeted 

populations; 

• The public workforce investment 

system, such as local Workforce 

Investment Boards and their One Stop 

systems; 

• The education and training 

community, which includes the 

continuum of education from secondary 

schools to community and technical 

colleges, four-year colleges and 

universities, apprenticeship programs, 

technical and vocational training 

institutions, and other education and 

training entities; 

• Public and private employers and 

industry-related organizations, 

including those involved in the 

industries identified in the 

Supplementary Information: Part B of 

this SGA; and 

• Labor organizations, including but 

not limited to labor unions and labormanagement organizations that 

represent the interests of workers in 

energy efficiency or renewable energy 

industries. 

Applicants that include a labormanagement organization as a partner 

will satisfy the requirement for both the 

labor organization and the employer/ 

industry-related organization partners. 

By including all of these types of 

organizations in a comprehensive 

partnership, applicants can ensure that 

they are maximizing available resources 

and organizational expertise for each 

project, and that individual participants 

within the project have all of the 

support that they need to successfully 

complete training, overcome barriers to 

employment, and obtain jobs and 

advance along career ladders. These 

partners can contribute a wide array of 

knowledge and activities to each 

project, and should work together to 

ensure that they leverage each other’s 

expertise and resources. Education and 

training providers should partner with 

labor organizations and industry-related 

organizations to ensure that education 

and training programs address the skills 

required for the targeted industries, lead 

to industry-recognized certificates or 

credentials if appropriate, and ensure 

that the training strategies reflect the 

needs of both workers and employers. 

Nonprofit organizations can provide a 

range of services and activities to 

support local projects, such as 

delivering supportive services to 

participants and ensuring that these 

services are integrated with the 

education and training strategies. The 

role of the workforce investment system 

may include identifying, assessing, and 

referring candidates for training, 

connecting and placing participants 

with employers that have existing job 

openings, and providing supportive 

services to support the employment and 

training needs of participants. 

ii. Other Partners 

In addition to the required partners 

listed in Section III.A.3.i, applicants are 

strongly encouraged to include other 

partners that can provide resources or 

expertise to the project. These 

organizations could include: 

• Public Housing Agencies 

implementing programs through the 

Department of Housing and Urban 

Development; 

• Community Action Agencies 

implementing the Department of 

Energy’s Weatherization Assistance 

Program; 

• Organizations implementing 

projects funded by the Recovery Act 

that will create or support jobs in the 

energy efficiency or renewable energy 

industries; 

• National, State, and local 

foundations, which focus on assisting 

participants served through the project; 

and 

• State and local social service 

agencies that provide supportive 

services to participants served through 

the project. 

B. Cost Sharing 

Cost sharing or matching funds are 

not required as a condition for 

application, but leveraged resources are 

strongly encouraged and may affect the 

applicant’s score in section V.A.2 of the 

evaluation criteria. 

C. Other Eligibility Requirements 

1. Proposed Activities 

The purpose of this SGA is to fund 

projects providing training, education, 

and job placement assistance for 

individuals seeking pathways out of 

poverty and into employment 

opportunities in the industries 

described in the Supplementary 

Information: Part B of this SGA. 

i. Characteristics of Training Activities 

All projects must lead to employment 

for program participants, and must 

incorporate training activities that: 

• Address skills and competencies 

demanded by the industries described 

in the Supplementary Information: Part 

B of this SGA; 

• Support participants’ advancement 

along a defined career pathway, such as 

an articulated career ladder and/or 

career lattice, if such a pathway exists 

in the targeted industry or industries; 

• Result in an industry-recognized 

degree or certificate (see definition in 

Section VI.B.2.iii) that indicates a level 

of mastery and competence in a given 

field or function, where such a degree 

or certificate exists. The degree or 

certificate awarded to participants 

30142 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

should be based on the type of training 

provided through the grant and the 

requirements of the targeted occupation, 

and should be selected based on 

consultations with employer and labor 

partners; 

• Take place at times and locations 

that are convenient and easily accessible 

for the targeted populations; 

• As appropriate, integrate 

occupational training with basic skills 

training to ensure that participants have 

the foundational skills necessary to 

attain and retain employment; and 

• As appropriate, integrate training 

activities with supportive services to 

ensure that participants have the 

necessary support to overcome barriers 

to employment. 

In implementing projects that meet 

the requirements outlined above, 

applicants may propose a wide range of 

activities. When designing the proposed 

activities, DOL encourages applicants to 

look at program models with previous 

success in serving disadvantaged 

individuals, especially those with strong 

program evaluations showing positive 

impacts on participants. Promising 

models include the following: 

• Strategies that integrate academic 

instruction with occupational skills 

training in a specific career field have 

shown promising employment and 

earnings outcomes for low-income 

young adults. Applicants who are 

proposing to serve low-income young 

adults and high school dropouts should 

consider program models that strongly 

link opportunities to improve basic 

literacy and mathematics skills and 

obtain a high school diploma or GED 

with work-based learning in the targeted 

industries. 

• Programs for ex-offenders which 

provide integrated services both before 

and after release from prison or jail have 

had positive impacts on employment 

outcomes. 

• Providing on-the-job training with a 

specific employer who agrees to hire 

individuals pending successful 

completion of the training has been an 

effective way for some programs to 

place disadvantaged individuals into 

employment. 

ii. Allowable Activities 

Allowable activities under this SGA 

include: 

• Classroom occupational training; 

• On-the-job training activities, 

including activities related to 

transitional jobs programs, that lead to 

permanent employment; 

• The development and 

implementation of registered 

apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship 

programs; 

• Internship programs; 

• Customized training; 

• Basic skills training, such as adult 

basic education, English as a second 

language (ESL), and job readiness 

training; 

• Initial assessment of skill levels, 

aptitudes, abilities, and supportive 

service needs; 

• Job search and placement 

assistance, and where appropriate, 

career counseling; 

• Case management services; 

• Supportive services that will allow 

individuals to participate in the training 

provided through the grant; and 

• Updating curriculum to support 

direct training provided through the 

grant. Some grants funded under this 

SGA may produce tangible products and 

deliverables, such as updates to existing 

curriculum and outreach materials. 

Curriculum development is only 

appropriate if this curriculum is used in 

direct training and/or education 

activities provided through this grant 

and is necessary to achieve the training 

and employment outcomes proposed for 

the grant. (See Section IV.E.4 for 

information regarding intellectual 

property rights.) 

2. Communities To Be Served 

Applicants must identify the 

community or communities that will be 

served by the grant. National entities 

must identify targeted communities to 

be served by their local affiliates, 

coalition members, or other established 

partners in at least 2 States, with a 

minimum of 1 community located in 

each State, and a range of 3–7 total 

communities served. Local entities must 

identify a single community. 

For the purposes of this SGA, a 

community is defined as a geographic 

area located within one or more 

contiguous Public Use Microdata Areas 

(PUMAs), which are geographic 

statistical areas designated by the U.S. 

Census Bureau (see Section VIII.A for 

detailed information and links to 

Census poverty data). The Department 

expects that applicants will focus their 

projects on a geographic portion of a 

PUMA in order to most effectively serve 

the specific populations targeted by the 

project. For urban applications, the 

Department expects that designated 

communities will be neighborhoods 

within cities rather than entire cities. 

For rural applications, the Department 

expects that designated communities 

will be 1–3 entire counties, or American 

Indian Areas, Alaska Native Areas, or 

Hawaiian Homelands. There is no 

requirement for the minimum or 

maximum size of populations in the 

designated communities, but the 

Department anticipates that the 

communities will have populations that 

range from 10,000 to 100,000 people. 

In order to ensure that high poverty 

areas receive priority for grant awards, 

points will be awarded in the technical 

review process (see Section V.A.1.i for 

the relevant evaluation criterion) for 

applications that demonstrate that each 

Public Use Microdata Area (or other 

appropriate statistical area for American 

Indian Areas, Alaska Native Areas, or 

Hawaiian Homelands, or outlying areas) 

served by the project has a poverty rate 

of at least 15%, as demonstrated by data 

from the Poverty Data.xls spreadsheet 

available for download at http:// 

www.workforce3one.org/view/ 

2000916359251042484/info. 

D. Other Grant Specifications 

1. Participants Eligible to Receive 

Training 

This SGA addresses the priorities of 

both the Recovery Act and the Green 

Jobs Act by funding projects that 

provide education and training, job 

placement, and supportive services to 

individuals who are seeking pathways 

out of poverty and into employment in 

the industries described in the 

Supplementary Information: Part B of 

this SGA. Accordingly, projects funded 

through this solicitation must serve only 

individuals who are at least 18 years of 

age and fall into one or more of the 

following categories: 

i. Unemployed individuals; 

ii. High school dropouts; 

iii. Individuals with a criminal record; 

and 

iv. Disadvantaged individuals within 

areas of high poverty. 

For specific definitions for these 

target populations, applicants must refer 

to Section VI.B. 

Projects funded through this 

solicitation must serve individuals who 

live within the community(ies) to be 

served (see Section III.C.2 for the 

definition of community), except that 

up to 10% of the individuals served 

may live outside of the community(ies) 

if the grantee determines that these 

individuals live in areas of high poverty, 

which is defined as a PUMA (or other 

appropriate statistical area) with a 

poverty rate of 15% or greater. 

2. Veterans Priority 

The Jobs for Veterans Act (Pub. L. 

107–288) provides priority of service to 

veterans and spouses of certain veterans 

for the receipt of employment, training, 

and placement services in any job 

training program directly funded, in 

whole or in part, by DOL. Grantees are 

required to provide priority of services 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30143 

for veterans and eligible spouses 

pursuant to 20 CFR part 1010, the 

regulations implementing priority of 

service for veterans and eligible spouses 

in Department of Labor job training 

programs under the Jobs for Veterans 

Act published at 73 FR 78132 on 

December 19, 2008. In circumstances 

where a grant recipient must choose 

between two equally qualified 

candidates for training, one of whom is 

a veteran, the Jobs for Veterans Act 

requires that grant recipients give the 

veteran priority of service by admitting 

him or her into the program. To obtain 

priority of service a veteran must meet 

the program’s eligibility requirements. 

Grantees must comply with DOL 

guidance on veterans’ priority. 

Currently, ETA Training and 

Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) 

No. 5–03 (September 16, 2003) provides 

general guidance on the scope of the Job 

for Veterans Act and its effect on current 

employment and training programs. 

TEGL No. 5–03, along with additional 

guidance, is available at the ‘‘Jobs for 

Veterans Priority of Service’’ Web site: 

http://www.doleta.gov/programs/vets. 

3. Grantee Training 

Grantees are required to participate in 

all ETA training activities related to 

orientation, financial management and 

reporting, performance reporting, 

product dissemination, and other 

technical assistance training as 

appropriate during the life of the grant. 

These trainings may occur via 

conference call, webinar, and in-person 

meetings. Applicants should include 

costs for two staff to attend two 

trainings that are each two full days in 

Washington, DC during the grant’s 

period of performance. 

IV. Application and Submission 

Information 

A. How To Obtain an Application 

Package 

This SGA contains all of the 

information and links to forms needed 

to apply for grant funding. 

B. Content and Form of Application 

Submission 

The proposal will consist of three 

separate and distinct parts: (I) A cost 

proposal; (II) a technical proposal; and 

(III) attachments to the technical 

proposal. Applications that fail to 

adhere to the instructions in this section 

will be considered non-responsive and 

will not be considered. Please note that 

it is the applicant’s responsibility to 

ensure that the funding amount 

requested is consistent across all parts 

and sub-parts of the application. 

Part I. The Cost Proposal. The Cost 

Proposal must include the following 

four items: 

• The Standard Form (SF) 424, 

‘‘Application for Federal Assistance’’ 

(available at http://www07.grants.gov/

agencies/forms_repository_

information.jsp and http://

www.doleta.gov/grants/find_

grants.cfm). The SF 424 must clearly 

identify the applicant and be signed by 

an individual with authority to enter 

into a grant agreement. Upon 

confirmation of an award, the 

individual signing the SF 424 on behalf 

of the applicant shall be considered the 

authorized representative of the 

applicant. 

• Applicants must supply their 

D–U–N–S® Number on the SF 424. All 

applicants for Federal grant and funding 

opportunities are required to have a 

D–U–N–S® (Data Universal Numbering 

System) Number. See Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) Notice 

of Final Policy Issuance, 68 FR 38402, 

Jun. 27, 2003. The D–U–N–S® Number 

is a non-indicative, nine-digit number 

assigned to each business location in the 

D&B database having a unique, separate, 

and distinct operation, and is 

maintained solely by 

D&B. The D&B D–U–N–S® Number is 

used by industries and organizations 

around the world as a global standard 

for business identification and tracking. 

If you do not have a D–U–N–S®

Number, you can get one for free 

through the SBS site: http://

smallbusiness.dnb.com/webapp/wcs/ 

stores/servlet/Glossary?fLink=glossary&

footerflag=y&storeId=

10001&indicator=7. 

• The SF 424A Budget Information 

Form (available at http://

www07.grants.gov/agencies/forms_

repository_information.jsp and http://

www.doleta.gov/grants/find_

grants.cfm). In preparing the Budget 

Information Form, the applicant must 

provide a concise narrative explanation 

to support the request, explained in 

detail below. 

• Budget Narrative: The budget 

narrative must provide a description of 

costs associated with each line item on 

the SF–424A. It should also include 

leveraged resources provided to support 

grant activities. In addition, the 

applicant should address precisely how 

the administrative costs support the 

project goals. The entire Federal grant 

amount requested should be included 

on both the SF 424 and SF 424A (not 

just one year). No leveraged resources 

should be shown on the SF 424 and SF 

424A. 

Please note that applicants that fail to 

provide a SF 424, SF 424A, a 

D–U–N–S® Number, and a budget 

narrative will be removed from 

consideration prior to the technical 

review process. 

• Applicants are also encouraged, but 

not required, to submit OMB Survey N. 

1890–0014: Survey on Ensuring Equal 

Opportunity for Applicants, which can 

be found under the Grants.gov, Tips and 

Resources From Grantors, Department of 

Labor section at http://

www07.grants.gov/applicants/tips

_resources_from_grantors.jsp#13 (also 

referred to as Faith Based EEO Survey 

PDF Form). 

Part II. The Technical Proposal. The 

Technical Proposal demonstrates the 

applicant’s capability to implement the 

grant project in accordance with the 

provisions of this solicitation. The 

guidelines for the content of the 

Technical Proposal are provided in Part 

V.A. of this SGA. The Technical 

Proposal is limited to 25 double-spaced 

single-sided pages with 12 point text 

font and 1 inch margins. Any materials 

beyond the 25-page limit will not be 

read. Applicants should number the 

Technical Proposal beginning with page 

number 1. Applicants that do not 

provide Part II, the Technical Proposal 

of the application will be removed from 

consideration prior to the technical 

review process. 

Part III. Attachments to the Technical 

Proposal. In addition to the 25-page 

Technical Proposal, the applicant must 

submit a letter or letters of commitment 

signed by all required partners for each 

community served (preferably one letter 

for each community, co-signed by all 

required partners for that community) 

that describes the roles and 

responsibilities of each required partner. 

Commitment letters must accompany 

the application. Applicants should not 

send letters of commitment separately to 

ETA because these letters will be 

tracked through a different system and 

will not be attached to the application 

for review. ETA will not accept or 

review general letters of support 

submitted by organizations or 

individuals that are not partners in the 

proposed project and that do not 

directly identify the specific 

commitment or roles of the project 

partners. The applicant must provide an 

Abstract, not to exceed one page, 

summarizing the proposed project 

including applicant name; applicant 

category (national entity or local entity); 

project title; identification of the 

community or communities to be 

served, including whether the 

community(ies) are located in urban, 

suburban, or rural areas; and the 

funding level requested. These 

additional materials (commitment 

30144 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

letters and one-page abstract) do not 

count against the 25-page limit for the 

Technical Proposal, but may not exceed 

20 pages. Any additional materials 

beyond the 20-page limit will not be 

read. 

Applications may be submitted 

electronically on Grants.gov or in 

hardcopy by mail or hand delivery. 

These processes are described in further 

detail in Section IV.C. Applicants 

submitting proposals in hardcopy must 

submit an original signed application 

(including the SF 424) and one (1) 

‘‘copy-ready’’ version free of bindings, 

staples or protruding tabs to ease in the 

reproduction of the proposal by DOL. 

Applicants submitting proposals in 

hardcopy are also required to provide an 

identical electronic copy of the proposal 

on compact disc (CD). 

C. Submission Process, Date, Times, 

and Addresses 

The closing date for receipt of 

applications under this announcement 

is September 29, 2009. Applications 

must be received at the address below 

no later than 4 p.m. Eastern Time. 

Applications sent by e-mail, telegram, or 

facsimile (FAX) will not be accepted. 

Applications that do not meet the 

conditions set forth in this notice will 

not be considered. No exceptions to the 

mailing and delivery requirements set 

forth in this notice will be granted. 

Mailed applications must be 

addressed to the U.S. Department of 

Labor, Employment and Training 

Administration, Division of Federal 

Assistance, Attention: Donna Kelly, 

Grant Officer, Reference SGA/DFA, PY 

08–19, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Room N4716, Washington, DC 20210. 

Applicants are advised that mail 

delivery in the Washington area may be 

delayed due to mail decontamination 

procedures. Hand-delivered proposals 

will be received at the above address. 

All overnight mail will be considered to 

be hand-delivered and must be received 

at the designated place by the specified 

closing date and time. 

Applicants may apply online through 

Grants.gov (http://www.grants.gov), 

however, due to the expected increase 

in system activity resulting from the 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009, applicants are encouraged 

to use an alternate method to submit 

grant applications during this 

heightened period of demand. While not 

mandatory, DOL encourages the 

submission of applications through 

professional overnight delivery service. 

Applications that are submitted 

through Grants.gov must be successfully 

submitted at http://www.grants.gov no 

later than 4 p.m. Eastern Time on 

September 29, 2009, and then 

subsequently validated by Grants.gov. 

The submission and validation process 

is described in more detail below. The 

process can be complicated and timeconsuming. Applicants are strongly 

advised to initiate the process as soon 

as possible and to plan for time to 

resolve technical problems if necessary. 

The Department strongly recommends 

that before the applicant begins to write 

the proposal, applicants should 

immediately initiate and complete the 

‘‘Get Registered’’ registration steps at 

http://www.grants.gov/applicants/get_

registered.jsp. These steps may take 

multiple days or weeks to complete, and 

this time should be factored into plans 

for electronic submission in order to 

avoid unexpected delays that could 

result in the rejection of an application. 

The Department strongly recommends 

that applicants use the ‘‘Organization 

Registration Checklist’’ at http://

www.grants.gov/assets/Organization

_Steps_Complete_Registration.pdf to 

ensure the registration process is 

complete. 

Within two business days of 

application submission, Grants.gov will 

send the applicant two e-mail messages 

to provide the status of application 

progress through the system. The first email, almost immediate, will confirm 

receipt of the application by Grants.gov. 

The second e-mail will indicate the 

application has either been successfully 

validated or has been rejected due to 

errors. Only applications that have been 

successfully submitted and successfully 

validated will be considered. It is the 

sole responsibility of the applicant to 

ensure a timely submission; therefore, 

sufficient time should be allotted for 

submission (two business days), and if 

applicable, subsequent time to address 

errors and receive validation upon 

resubmission (an additional two 

business days for each ensuing 

submission). It is important to note that 

if sufficient time is not allotted and a 

rejection notice is received after the due 

date and time, the application will not 

be considered. 

To ensure consideration, the 

components of the application must be 

saved as either .doc, .xls or .pdf files. If 

submitted in any other format, the 

applicant bears the risk that 

compatibility or other issues will 

prevent our ability to consider the 

application. ETA will attempt to open 

the document but will not take any 

additional measures in the event of 

issues with opening. In such cases, the 

non-conforming application will not be 

considered for funding. 

Applicants are strongly advised to 

utilize the plethora of tools and 

documents, including FAQs, that are 

available on the ‘‘Applicant Resources’’ 

page at http://www.grants.gov/

applicants/app_help_reso.jsp#faqs. To 

receive updated information about 

critical issues, new tips for users and 

other time sensitive updates as 

information is available, applicants may 

subscribe to ‘‘Grants.gov Updates’’ at 

http://www.grants.gov/applicants/email_subscription_signup.jsp. 

If applicants encounter a problem 

with Grants.gov and do not find an 

answer in any of the other resources, 

call 1–800–518–4726 to speak to a 

Customer Support Representative or email support@grants.gov. 

Late Applications: For applications 

submitted on Grants.gov, only 

applications that have been successfully 

submitted no later than 4 p.m. Eastern 

Time on the closing date and 

successfully validated will be 

considered. Applicants take a 

significant risk by waiting to the last day 

to submit by grants.gov. 

Any application received after the 

exact date and time specified for receipt 

at the office designated in this notice 

will not be considered, unless it is 

received before awards are made, it was 

properly addressed, and it was: (a) Sent 

by U.S. Postal Service mail, postmarked 

not later than the fifth calendar day 

before the date specified for receipt of 

applications (e.g., an application 

required to be received by the 20th of 

the month must be postmarked by the 

15th of that month); or (b) sent by 

professional overnight delivery service 

to the addressee not later than one 

working day prior to the date specified 

for receipt of applications. 

‘‘Postmarked’’ means a printed, stamped 

or otherwise placed impression 

(exclusive of a postage meter machine 

impression) that is readily identifiable, 

without further action, as having been 

supplied or affixed on the date of 

mailing by an employee of the U.S. 

Postal Service. Therefore, applicants 

should request the postal clerk to place 

a legible hand cancellation ‘‘bull’s eye’’ 

postmark on both the receipt and the 

package. Failure to adhere to the above 

instructions will be a basis for a 

determination of non-responsiveness. 

Evidence of timely submission by a 

professional overnight delivery service 

must be demonstrated by equally 

reliable evidence created by the delivery 

service provider indicating the time and 

place of receipt. 

D. Intergovernmental Review 

This funding opportunity is not 

subject to Executive Order 12372, 

‘‘Intergovernmental Review of Federal 

Programs.’’ 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30145 

E. Funding Restrictions 

Determinations of allowable costs will 

be made in accordance with the 

applicable Federal cost principles. 

Disallowed costs are those charges to a 

grant that the grantor agency or its 

representative determines not to be 

allowed in accordance with the 

applicable Federal cost principles or 

other conditions contained in the grant. 

Successful and unsuccessful applicants 

will not be entitled to reimbursement of 

pre-award costs. 

1. Indirect Costs 

As specified in OMB Circular Cost 

Principles, indirect costs are those that 

have been incurred for common or joint 

objectives and cannot be readily 

identified with a particular final cost 

objective. In order to use grant funds for 

indirect costs incurred the applicant 

must obtain an Indirect Cost Rate 

Agreement with its Federal cognizant 

agency either before or shortly after 

grant award. 

2. Administrative Costs 

Under this SGA, an entity that 

receives a grant to carry out a project or 

program may not use more than 10 

percent of the amount of the grant to 

pay administrative costs associated with 

the program or project. Administrative 

costs could be direct or indirect costs, 

and are defined at 20 CFR 667.220. 

Administrative costs do not need to be 

identified separately from program costs 

on the SF 424A Budget Information 

Form. They should be discussed in the 

budget narrative and tracked through 

the grantee’s accounting system. To 

claim any administrative costs that are 

also indirect costs, the applicant must 

obtain an Indirect Cost Rate Agreement 

from its Federal cognizant agency. 

3. Salary and Bonus Limitations 

Under Public Law 109–234 and 

Public Law 111–8, Section 111, none of 

the funds appropriated in Public Law 

111–5 or prior Acts under the heading 

‘‘Employment and Training’’ that are 

available for expenditure on or after 

June 15, 2006, shall be used by a 

recipient or sub-recipient of such funds 

to pay the salary and bonuses of an 

individual, either as direct costs or 

indirect costs, at a rate in excess of 

Executive Level II. These limitations 

also apply to grants funded under this 

SGA. The salary and bonus limitation 

does not apply to vendors providing 

goods and services as defined in OMB 

Circular A–133. See Training and 

Employment Guidance Letter number 

5–06 for further clarification: http:// 

wdr.doleta.gov/directives/ 

corr_doc.cfm?DOCN=2262. 

4. Intellectual Property Rights 

The Federal Government reserves a 

paid-up, nonexclusive and irrevocable 

license to reproduce, publish or 

otherwise use, and to authorize others to 

use for Federal purposes: (i) The 

copyright in all products developed 

under the grant, including a subgrant or 

contract under the grant or subgrant; 

and (ii) any rights of copyright to which 

the grantee, subgrantee or a contractor 

purchases ownership under an award 

(including but not limited to curricula, 

training models, technical assistance 

products, and any related materials). 

Such uses include, but are not limited 

to, the right to modify and distribute 

such products worldwide by any means, 

electronically or otherwise. Federal 

funds may not be used to pay any 

royalty or licensing fee associated with 

such copyrighted material, although 

they may be used to pay costs for 

obtaining a copy which are limited to 

the developer/seller costs of copying 

and shipping. If revenues are generated 

through selling products developed 

with grant funds, including intellectual 

property, these revenues are program 

income. Program income is added to the 

grant and must be expended for 

allowable grant activities. 

If applicable, grantees must include 

the following language on all products 

developed in whole or in part with grant 

funds: 

‘‘This workforce solution was funded 

by a grant awarded by the U.S. 

Department of Labor’s Employment and 

Training Administration. The solution 

was created by the grantee and does not 

necessarily reflect the official position 

of the U.S. Department of Labor. The 

Department of Labor makes no 

guarantees, warranties, or assurances of 

any kind, express or implied, with 

respect to such information, including 

any information on linked sites and 

including, but not limited to, accuracy 

of the information or its completeness, 

timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, 

continued availability, or ownership. 

This solution is copyrighted by the 

institution that created it. Internal use 

by an organization and/or personal use 

by an individual for non-commercial 

purposes is permissible. All other uses 

require the prior authorization of the 

copyright owner.’’ 

F. Use of Funds for Supportive Services 

Supportive services for adults and 

dislocated workers are defined at WIA 

sections 101(46) and 134(e)(2) and (3). 

They include services such as 

transportation, child care, dependent 

care, housing, and needs-related 

payments that are necessary to enable 

an individual to participate in training 

activities funded through this grant. 

Grantees may only use grant funds to 

provide these services to individuals 

who are participating in training 

services provided through the grant, 

who are unable to obtain services 

through other programs providing such 

services, and when such services are 

necessary to enable individuals to 

participate in these training activities. 

Grantees should ensure that their use of 

grant funds on supportive services is 

consistent with their established written 

policy regarding the provision of 

supportive services. Grantees may use 

no more than 5% of their grant funds on 

these services. However, to support the 

employment and training needs of the 

targeted populations, ETA encourages 

grantees to leverage other sources of 

funding for supportive services, 

including WIA Adult formula funds 

provided under the Recovery Act. 

G. Other Submission Requirements 

Withdrawal of Applications: 

Applications may be withdrawn by 

written notice at any time before an 

award is made. 

V. Application Review Information 

A. Evaluation Criteria 

This section identifies and describes 

the criteria that will be used to evaluate 

the grant proposals. These criteria and 

point values are: 

Criterion Points 

1. Statement of Need ............... 20 

2. Project Management and Organizational Capacity ............ 15 

3. Strategy and Project Work 

Plan ....................................... 45 

4. Outcomes and Deliverables 20 

1. Statement of Need (20 Points) 

Applicants must fully demonstrate a 

clear and specific need for the Federal 

investment in the proposed activities. It 

is critical throughout this section that 

applicants are as explicit and specific as 

possible in citing sources of data and 

analysis. Points for this section will be 

awarded based on the following factors: 

i. Demonstration of Poverty Rate for 

Each Community Served (0 or 10 Points) 

The applicant identifies the Public 

Use Microdata Area (PUMA) where each 

community to be served is located, and 

provides, for each PUMA, the poverty 

rate that is listed in the Poverty Data 

spreadsheet available for download at 

http://www.workforce3one.org/view/

2000916359251042484/info. Applicants 

will receive 10 points for this subsection 

if the Poverty Data spreadsheet lists a 

30146 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

poverty rate of 15% or more for each 

PUMA to be served. Otherwise, 

applicants will receive 0 points for this 

subsection. 

For more information about how to 

determine the appropriate PUMA, 

please see the instructions in Section 

VIII.A. Note that applicants proposing to 

serve American Indian Areas, Alaska 

Native Areas, or Hawaiian Homelands 

may use data from the appropriate 

statistical areas listed on Tab 2 of the 

Poverty Data spreadsheet, instead of 

PUMA-based data listed on Tab 1. 

Applicants proposing to serve outlying 

areas should use the data listed on Tab 

3 of the Poverty Data spreadsheet. 

Applicants proposing to serve PUMAs, 

American Indian Areas, Alaska Native 

Areas, Hawaiian Homelands, or outlying 

areas that are not listed in the Poverty 

Data spreadsheet should utilize, and 

cite, another appropriate data source for 

poverty rate information. If the data for 

the community to be served is on the 

spreadsheet, that data must be used. 

ii. Overview of Current Economy and 

Workforce (10 Points) 

The applicant clearly and fully 

demonstrates the need for training in 

each designated community by 

describing the overall economy and 

workforce needs for each community. 

Given the rapidly changing economic 

conditions that many States and regions 

are currently facing, applicants should 

utilize the most current and relevant 

sources of labor market data available. 

Points for this subsection will be 

awarded based on the following factors: 

• The applicant fully describes the 

specific community(ies) that the project 

will serve, and provides a 

comprehensive description of the 

workforce needs in each community, 

including the unemployment rate(s) and 

a discussion of any significant layoffs in 

specific industries, as well as estimates 

of the number of individuals in each 

community who are: (a) Unemployed 

individuals; (b) high school dropouts; 

(c) individuals with a criminal record; 

and (d) disadvantaged individuals 

within areas of high poverty. See 

Section VI.B.2.iv for definitions of these 

terms. 

• The applicant should provide 

strong evidence of job seeker need for 

training by identifying one or more of 

the populations listed above that the 

project will target, providing a general 

description of the current level of skills 

and educational attainment of those 

populations, and identifying the specific 

training needs of those populations. 

• The applicant fully identifies other 

barriers to employment faced by the 

targeted populations, such as lack of 

child care and access to transportation. 

Applicants may draw from a variety 

of resources for supporting data, which 

include but are not limited to: 

Traditional labor market information, 

such as projections; industry data; data 

from trade associations or direct 

information from the regional industry; 

and information on the regional 

economy and other transactional data, 

such as job vacancies, that are available. 

2. Project Management and 

Organizational Capacity (15 Points) 

Applicants must fully describe the 

capacity of the applicant, its required 

partners and, if applicable, its local 

affiliates, coalition members, or other 

established partners, to effectively staff 

the proposed initiative. The application 

must also fully describe the applicant’s 

fiscal, administrative, and performance 

management capacity to implement the 

key components of this project, and the 

track record of the applicant, its 

required partners, and, if applicable, its 

local affiliates, coalition members, or 

other established partners, in 

implementing projects of similar focus, 

size, and scope. 

Scoring under this criterion will be 

based on the extent to which applicants 

provide evidence of the following: 

i. Staff Capacity (5 Points) 

Applicants should provide strong 

evidence that the applicant, its required 

partners, and, if applicable, its local 

affiliates, coalition members, or other 

established partners, will have the staff 

capacity to implement the proposed 

initiative, including the capacity in each 

designated community. Discussion 

should include: 

• The proposed staffing pattern for 

the project, including program 

management and administrative staff, 

and program staff involved in each local 

project, which demonstrates that the 

role(s) and time commitment of the 

proposed staff are sufficient to ensure 

proper direction, management, 

implementation, and timely completion 

of each project. 

• The applicant must demonstrate 

that the qualifications and level of 

experience of the proposed project 

manager in each community served are 

sufficient to ensure proper management 

of the project, where such a project 

manager has been identified. Where no 

project manager is identified, applicants 

should discuss the minimum 

qualifications and level of experience 

that will be required of the position. 

ii. Fiscal, Administrative, and 

Performance Management Capacity (5 

Points) 

Strong evidence that the applicant, its 

required partners, and, if applicable, its 

local affiliates, coalition members, or 

other established partners, have the 

fiscal, administrative, and performance 

management capacity to effectively 

administer this grant. Discussion should 

include: 

• A full description of the applicant’s 

capacity, including its systems, 

processes, and administrative controls 

that will enable it to comply with 

Federal rules and regulations related to 

the grant’s fiscal and administrative 

requirements. 

• A full description of the applicant’s 

capacity, including its systems and 

processes that will support the grant’s 

performance management requirements 

through effective tracking of 

performance outcomes. Applicants 

should include an explanation of the 

applicant’s processes to collect and 

manage data in a way that allows for 

accurate and timely reporting of 

performance outcomes. Applicants may 

cite relationships with the public 

workforce system, as appropriate, to 

assist with performance reporting, and 

should describe access to specific data 

management software and/or resources 

for performance reporting. 

iii. Experience of Applicant (5 Points) 

The applicant’s demonstrated 

experience leading or participating 

significantly in a comprehensive 

partnership, and the demonstrated 

experience of the applicant, its required 

partners, and, if applicable, its local 

affiliates, coalition members, or other 

established partners, in implementing 

and operating training, education, and 

job placement initiatives of similar 

focus, size and scope. Discussion should 

include: 

• Specific examples of the applicant’s 

experience in leading or participating 

significantly in a partnership that 

included a wide range of stakeholders, 

including a description of the 

programmatic goals of the project, and 

a demonstration of the results achieved 

by that project. 

• Specific examples of the applicant’s 

track record administering Federal, 

State, and/or local grants, including the 

programmatic goals and results from 

these projects; and 

• A description of the experience of 

the applicant, its required partners, and, 

if applicable, its local affiliates, 

coalition members, or other established 

partners, in Federal, State, and/or local 

projects providing education, training, 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30147 

and placement services to the specific 

populations noted in Section III.C.3 

(unemployed individuals, high school 

dropouts, individuals with criminal 

records, and disadvantaged individuals 

within areas of high poverty), including 

the programmatic goals and results of 

the projects. 

3. Strategy and Project Work Plan (45 

Points) 

The applicant should provide a 

complete, very clear explanation of its 

proposed strategy and its plans to 

implement it. The applicant must 

describe the proposed workforce 

development strategy in full, explain 

how the proposed training addresses the 

applicant’s statement of need, and 

demonstrate how the proposed project 

will expeditiously and effectively 

deliver training. ETA is interested in 

applicants describing any evidencebased research that they considered in 

designing the strategy. The applicant 

must present a comprehensive work 

plan for the project, following the 

format provided later in this section. 

Points for this criterion will be awarded 

for the following factors: 

i. Addressing Conditions Described in 

the Statement of Need, and Targeted 

Industries and Occupations (5 Points) 

• The applicant summarizes the 

proposed strategy. 

• The applicant explains how the 

proposed project comprehensively 

addresses the needs and challenges of 

the targeted populations laid out in the 

Statement of Need. 

• The applicant provides a complete 

description of the targeted industries 

and occupations within those industries 

that the proposed project will focus on, 

including: 

• The specific energy industry(ies) 

targeted by the project, and an 

explanation of how the targeted 

industry(ies) meet the requirements 

identified in the Supplementary 

Information: Part B of this SGA; 

• The specific occupation in the 

targeted industries for which 

participants will be trained, including 

the work performed by that occupation 

and its major tasks; and 

• The specific knowledge, skills, and/ 

or abilities required by the occupation. 

• The applicant fully describes the 

employment needs of the targeted 

industries and occupations in the 

designated community(ies), including: 

total current and projected employment 

in the industry; total current and 

projected employment in the targeted 

occupations; and the current hiring 

needs of specific employers and how job 

seekers served through the project will 

be placed in those jobs. 

ii. Roles and Level of Commitment of 

Project Partners (10 points) 

Scoring on this section will be based 

on the extent to which the applicant 

fully demonstrates the breadth and 

depth of their partners’ commitment to 

the proposed project, by addressing the 

following factors: 

• The applicant fully describes the 

specific roles of each of the project 

partners in each community, including 

training, supportive services, expertise, 

and/or other activities that partners will 

contribute to the project. 

• The applicant demonstrates a strong 

partnership by providing, for each 

community served, the applicant must 

submit a letter or letters of commitment 

signed by all required partners 

(preferably one letter for each 

community, co-signed by all required 

partners for that community) that 

describes the roles, responsibilities, and 

resources committed by each partner. 

(See Section IV.B for instructions on 

submitting letters of commitment). 

iii. Proposed Recruitment, Training, 

Placement, and Retention Strategies (10 

points) 

• Recruitment: The applicant must 

provide a comprehensive outreach and 

recruitment strategy that defines a clear 

process for finding and referring 

workers to the training programs. The 

applicant must clearly identify the 

populations that will be targeted by the 

project, and explain how the proposed 

strategy will enable the project to 

effectively recruit those populations. 

• Training: DOL encourages 

applicants to base their training 

strategies on program models that have 

shown promising outcomes for serving 

disadvantaged populations. The 

applicant must provide a detailed 

explanation of the proposed training 

activities that describes how the project 

will comprehensively address the 

training needs of the targeted 

populations, including a discussion of 

how the design of the training activities 

will account for the current skill level, 

age, or level of work experience of the 

targeted populations. The applicant 

must also describe how the project will 

address barriers to employment by 

combining training services with 

supportive services, such as child care 

or transportation, as appropriate for 

each targeted population. The applicant 

must demonstrate that the project will 

place participants on a pathway to 

economic self-sufficiency; that training 

will focus on the specific industries and 

occupations it has proposed to target 

and focuses on skills and competencies 

demanded by the selected industries 

and occupations; the project will 

integrate basic skills training where 

appropriate, and lead to an appropriate 

industry-recognized degree or certificate 

(if such a degree or certificate exists), 

and employment. Where there is no 

standardized industry-recognized 

degree or certificate in place, applicants 

should provide evidence that such a 

degree or certificate does not exist and 

the search they conducted for the degree 

or certificate. Applicants that provide 

this evidence will not lose points in the 

evaluation process. 

• Placement: The applicant must 

provide a clear strategy for placing 

individuals into employment. The 

applicant should describe the methods 

for engaging employers, identifying 

specific job needs, and referring 

participants to employers. Wherever 

possible, the applicant should identify 

specific employers that indicate plans to 

hire project participants that complete 

training. 

• Retention: The applicant must 

provide a clear strategy for job retention. 

This should include strategies for 

engaging employers, as well as for 

identifying the barriers to retention that 

participants face after placement and for 

providing them with supportive services 

to address these barriers. 

iv. Leveraged Resources (5 Points) 

Applicants should clearly and fully 

describe any funds and other resources 

that will be leveraged to support grant 

activities and how these funds and other 

resources will be used to contribute to 

the proposed outcomes for the project, 

including any leveraged resources 

related to the provision of supportive 

services for program participants. This 

includes funds and other resources 

leveraged from businesses, labor 

organizations, education and training 

providers, and/or Federal, state, and 

local government programs. Applicants 

will be scored based on the extent to 

which they fully demonstrate the 

amount of leveraged resources provided, 

the type(s) of leveraged resources 

provided, the strength of commitment to 

provide these resources (such as in 

commitment letters), the breadth and 

depth of the resources provided, and 

how well these resources support the 

proposed grant activities. 

v. Project Work Plan (15 Points) 

Applicants can earn up to 15 points 

based on the presentation of a 

comprehensive project work plan. 

Factors considered in evaluating the 

project work plan will include: (1) The 

presentation of a coherent plan that 

30148 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

demonstrates the applicant’s complete 

understanding of all the activities, 

responsibilities, and costs required to 

implement each phase of the project and 

achieve projected outcomes; (2) the 

demonstrated feasibility and 

reasonableness of the timeline for 

accomplishing all necessary 

implementation activities, including the 

ability to expeditiously begin training; 

and, (3) the extent to which the budget 

aligns with the proposed work plan and 

is justified with respect to the adequacy 

and reasonableness of resources 

requested. Applicants must present this 

work plan in a table that includes the 

following categories: 

• Project Phase: Lay out the timeline 

in five phases—Startup, Recruitment, 

Training, Placement, and Retention. 

• Activities: Identify the major 

activities required to implement each 

phase of the project. For each activity, 

include the following information: (a) 

Start Date; (b) End Date; (c) Project 

partner(s) that will be primarily 

responsible for performing each activity; 

(d) Key tasks associated with each 

activity; (e) At key project milestones, 

list the target dates and associated 

outcomes projected for recruitment, 

training, placement, and retention 

activities; and (f) As accurately as 

possible, list the sub-total budget dollar 

amount associated with each activity. 

4. Outcomes and Deliverables (20 

points) 

Applicants must demonstrate a 

results-oriented approach to managing 

and operating their project by providing 

projections for all applicable outcome 

categories relevant to measuring the 

success or impact of the project, 

describing the products and deliverables 

that will be produced as a result of the 

grant activities, and fully demonstrating 

the appropriateness and feasibility of 

achieving these results. Applicants must 

include projected outcomes, which will 

be used as goals for the grant. 

Applicants may earn up to 20 points by 

comprehensively addressing each of the 

areas outlined below. 

i. Projected Performance Outcomes (5 

Points) 

Applicants must provide projections 

and track outcomes for each of the 

following outcome categories for all 

participants served with grant funds: 

• Total participants served; 

• Total number of participants 

beginning education/training activities; 

• Total number of participants that 

receive basic education services; 

• Total number of participants that 

receive supportive services funded by 

the grant; 

• Total number of participants 

completing education/training 

activities; 

• Total number of participants that 

complete education/training activities 

that receive a degree/certificate; 

• Total number of participants that 

complete education/training activities 

that are placed into unsubsidized 

employment; 

• Total number of participants that 

complete education/training activities 

that are placed into training-related 

unsubsidized employment; and 

• Total number of participants placed 

in unsubsidized employment who retain 

an employed status in the first and 

second quarters following initial 

placement. 

Please note that applicants will need 

to be prepared to collect participantlevel data on individuals who receive 

training and other services provided 

through the grant. These data should be 

the basis for reporting against the 

outcomes listed above, and may be 

required for reporting on other 

employment-related outcomes in the 

future. ETA will provide appropriate 

technical assistance to the grantees in 

collecting these data, including the 

development of a participant tracking 

system for the grantees. Please note that 

in some cases, the data requested below 

may require appropriate partnerships 

with state and local workforce 

investment system entities. 

Applicants will be required to collect 

participants’ Social Security numbers as 

part of individual level data collection. 

Social security numbers will be used for 

the calculation of employment history 

and program outcomes. It is anticipated 

that by collecting Social Security 

numbers of participants, ETA will be 

able to calculate most employment 

outcomes administratively through the 

use of Unemployment Insurance wage 

record information. Applicants must 

ensure that Social Security numbers 

will be maintained in a secure and 

confidential manner. 

Applicants should be prepared to 

collect and report participant-level data 

from the following categories: 

• Demographic and socioeconomic 

characteristics 

• Employment history 

• Services provided 

• Outcomes achieved 

Applicants should describe their 

capacity to collect both participant level 

data and aggregate outcomes. 

ii. Appropriateness and Feasibility, 

Degrees or Certificates Resulting From 

Training, and Deliverables (10 points) 

• The applicant must fully 

demonstrate the appropriateness and 

feasibility of its projections of the 

project outcomes by addressing three 

factors: (1) The extent to which the 

expected project outcomes are realistic 

and consistent with the objectives of the 

project and the needs of the community; 

(2) the ability of the applicant to achieve 

the stated outcomes and report results 

within the timeframe of the grant; and 

(3) the appropriateness of the outcomes 

with respect to the requested level of 

funding. 

• Project activities leading to an 

industry-recognized degree or certificate 

must identify the degree or certificate 

that participants will earn as a result of 

the proposed training, and the 

employer-, industry-, or State-defined 

standards associated with the degree or 

certificate. If the degree or certificate 

targeted by the training project is 

performance-based, applicants should 

either: (a) Demonstrate employer 

engagement in the curriculum 

development process, or (b) demonstrate 

that the degree or certificate will 

translate into concrete job opportunities 

with an employer. 

• If applicable, applicants must 

provide a comprehensive list of 

expected deliverables consistent with 

the project work plan that includes a 

brief description of the deliverable (such 

as updated curriculum and outreach 

materials), the anticipated completion 

date, and an estimated timeframe and 

method for electronic delivery to ETA. 

Electronic delivery may include e-mail 

for smaller documents, DVDs or other 

electronic media for transmission of 

larger files. 

iii. Suitability for Evaluation (5 Points) 

Under this Solicitation, the 

Department of Labor seeks to support 

programs that will provide training that 

improves participants’ employment 

outcomes. The Department is committed 

to evaluating program results to assess 

whether programs meet this goal and 

which models are most effective, 

providing a basis for future program 

improvements and funding decisions. 

The Department intends to select some 

portion of grantees to participate in a 

rigorous evaluation. This section asks 

for evidence that applicants will be able 

to participate productively in an 

evaluation. To receive points under this 

section, applicants must describe their 

plans for meeting the following criteria. 

Specifically, the applicant must: 

• Explain a recruitment plan that 

could yield a large number of qualified 

applicants for the program, and 

potentially more applicants than the 

number of positions available; 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30149 

• Be able to collect participant-level 

information on individuals who apply 

to participate in the program; 

• Have project retention strategies to 

minimize client attrition and help 

researchers track those who leave the 

program before completion; 

• Work collaboratively with an 

outside evaluator selected by the 

Department of Labor; 

• Be willing to work with academics 

who are independent researchers 

qualified to conduct rigorous research; 

and 

• Provide additional information 

about why funding this proposal will 

enhance knowledge about effective 

programs in a way that has the potential 

to benefit individuals and communities 

not directly served by the program. 

B. Review and Selection Process 

Applications for grants under this 

solicitation will be accepted after the 

publication of this announcement and 

until the closing date. A technical 

review panel will make careful 

evaluation of applications against the 

selection criteria. These criteria are 

based on the policy goals, priorities, and 

emphases set forth in this SGA. Up to 

100 points may be awarded to an 

application, depending on the quality of 

the responses to the required 

information described in Section V.A. 

The ranked scores will serve as the 

primary basis for selection of 

applications for funding, in conjunction 

with other factors such as urban, rural, 

and geographic balance; representation 

across industries specified in this SGA 

and applicant types; the availability of 

funds; and which proposals are most 

advantageous to the government. The 

panel results are advisory in nature and 

not binding on the Grant Officer. The 

Grant Officer may consider any 

information that comes to his/her 

attention. The government may elect to 

award the grant(s) with or without 

discussions with the applicants. Should 

a grant be awarded without discussions, 

the award will be based on the 

applicant’s signature on the SF 424, 

which constitutes a binding offer by the 

applicant including electronic signature 

via E-Authentication on http://

www.grants.gov. 

VI. Award Administration Information 

A. Award Notices 

All award notifications will be posted 

on the ETA Homepage (http://

www.doleta.gov). Applicants selected 

for award will be contacted directly 

before the grant’s execution and nonselected applicants will be notified by 

mail. Selection of an organization as a 

grantee does not constitute approval of 

the grant application as submitted. 

Before the actual grant is awarded, ETA 

may enter into negotiations about such 

items as program components, staffing 

and funding levels, and administrative 

systems in place to support grant 

implementation. If the negotiations do 

not result in a mutually acceptable 

submission, the Grant Officer reserves 

the right to terminate the negotiation 

and decline to fund the application. 

B. Administrative and National Policy 

Requirements 

1. Administrative Program 

Requirements 

All grantees will be subject to all 

applicable Federal laws, regulations, 

and the applicable OMB Circulars. The 

grant(s) awarded under this SGA will be 

subject to the following administrative 

standards and provisions: 

i. Non-Profit Organizations—OMB 

Circulars A–122 (Cost Principles) and 

29 CFR part 95 (Administrative 

Requirements). 

ii. Educational Institutions—OMB 

Circulars A–21 (Cost Principles) and 29 

CFR part 95 (Administrative 

Requirements). 

iii. State and Local Governments— 

OMB Circulars A–87 (Cost Principles) 

and 29 CFR part 97 (Administrative 

Requirements). 

iv. Profit Making Commercial Firms— 

Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)— 

48 CFR part 31 (Cost Principles), and 29 

CFR part 95 (Administrative 

Requirements). 

v. All entities must comply with 29 

CFR parts 93 and 98, and, where 

applicable, 29 CFR parts 96 and 99. 

vi. 29 CFR part 2, subpart D—Equal 

Treatment in Department of Labor 

Programs for Religious Organizations, 

Protection of Religious Liberty of 

Department of Labor Social Service 

Providers and Beneficiaries. 

vii. 29 CFR part 31— 

Nondiscrimination in Federally 

Assisted Programs of the Department of 

Labor—Effectuation of Title VI of the 

Civil Rights Act of 1964. 

viii. 29 CFR part 32— 

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of 

Handicap in Programs and Activities 

Receiving or Benefiting from Federal 

Financial Assistance. 

ix. 29 CFR part 33—Enforcement of 

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of 

Handicap in Programs or Activities 

Conducted by the Department of Labor. 

x. 29 CFR part 35— 

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Age 

in Programs or Activities Receiving 

Federal Financial Assistance from the 

Department of Labor. 

xi. 29 CFR part 36— 

Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex 

in Education Programs or Activities 

Receiving Federal Financial Assistance. 

The following administrative 

standards and provisions may be 

applicable: 

i. The American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act of 2009, Public Law 

111–5, 123 Stat. 115, Division A, Title 

VIII (February 17, 2009). 

ii. The Green Jobs Act of 2007, Public 

Law 110–140, 121 Stat. 1748 (codified at 

29 U.S.C. 2916). 

iii. The Workforce Investment Act of 

1998, Public Law 105–220, 112 Stat. 939 

(codified as amended at 29 U.S.C. 2801 

et seq.) and 20 CFR part 667 (General 

Fiscal and Administrative Rules). 

iv. 29 CFR part 29 and 30— 

Apprenticeship and Equal Employment 

Opportunity in Apprenticeship and 

Training; and 

v. 29 CFR part 37—Implementation of 

the Nondiscrimination and Equal 

Opportunity Provisions of the 

Workforce Investment Act of 1998. The 

Department notes that the Religious 

Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), 42 

U.S.C. section 2000bb, applies to all 

Federal law and its implementation. If 

your organization is a faith-based 

organization that makes hiring decisions 

on the basis of religious belief, it may be 

entitled to receive Federal financial 

assistance under Title I of the Workforce 

Investment Act and maintain that hiring 

practice even though Section 188 of the 

Workforce Investment Act contains a 

general ban on religious discrimination 

in employment. If you are awarded a 

grant, you will be provided with 

information on how to request such an 

exemption. 

vi. Under WIA Section 181(a)(4), 

health and safety standards established 

under Federal and State law otherwise 

applicable to working conditions of 

employees are equally applicable to 

working conditions of participants 

engaged in training and other activities. 

Applicants that are awarded grants 

through this SGA are reminded that 

these health and safety standards apply 

to participants in these grants. 

In accordance with Section 18 of the 

Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (Pub. 

L. 104–65) (2 U.S.C. 1611) non-profit 

entities incorporated under Internal 

Revenue Service Code section 501(c)(4) 

that engage in lobbying activities are not 

eligible to receive Federal funds and 

grants. 

Except as specifically provided in this 

SGA, DOL’s acceptance of a proposal 

and an award of Federal funds to 

sponsor any programs(s) does not 

provide a waiver of any grant 

requirements and/or procedures. For 

30150 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

example, the OMB Circulars require that 

an entity’s procurement procedures 

must ensure that all procurement 

transactions are conducted, as much as 

practical, to provide open and free 

competition. If a proposal identifies a 

specific entity to provide services, the 

DOL’s award does not provide the 

justification or basis to sole source the 

procurement, i.e., avoid competition, 

unless the activity is regarded as the 

primary work of an official partner to 

the application. 

2. Special Program Requirements 

i. Evaluation 

To measure the impact of grants 

funded under the SGA, ETA intends to 

fund one or more independent 

evaluations, which could include a 

random-assignment impact evaluation. 

By accepting funding, grantees must 

agree to participate in such an 

evaluation, should their site(s) be 

selected to participate. Grantees must 

agree to make records on participants, 

employers, and funding available and to 

provide access to program personnel 

and participants, as specified by the 

evaluator(s) under the direction of ETA, 

including after the expiration date of the 

grant. 

ii. Definition of Certificates 

A certificate is awarded in recognition 

of an individual’s attainment of 

measurable technical or occupational 

skills necessary to gain employment or 

advance within an occupation. These 

technical or occupational skills are 

based on standards developed or 

endorsed by employers. Certificates 

awarded by workforce investment 

boards are not included in this 

definition. Work readiness certificates 

are also not included in this definition. 

A certificate is awarded in recognition 

of an individual’s attainment of 

technical or occupational skills by: 

• A state educational agency or a state 

agency responsible for administering 

vocational and technical education 

within a state. 

• An institution of higher education 

described in Section 102 of the Higher 

Education Act (20 U.S.C. 1002) that is 

qualified to participate in the student 

financial assistance programs 

authorized by Title IV of that Act. This 

includes community colleges, 

proprietary schools, and all other 

institutions of higher education that are 

eligible to participate in Federal student 

financial aid programs. 

• A professional, industry, or 

employer organization (e.g., National 

Institute for Automotive Service 

Excellence certification, National 

Institute for Metalworking Skills, Inc., 

Machining Level I credential) or a 

product manufacturer or developer (e.g., 

Microsoft Certified Database 

Administrator, Certified Novell 

Engineer, Sun Certified Java 

Programmer) using a valid and reliable 

assessment of an individual’s 

knowledge, skills, and abilities. 

• A registered apprenticeship 

program. 

• A public regulatory agency, upon 

an individual’s fulfillment of 

educational, work experience, or skill 

requirements that are legally necessary 

for an individual to use an occupational 

or professional title or to practice an 

occupation or profession (e.g., FAA 

aviation mechanic certification, state 

certified asbestos inspector). 

• A program that has been approved 

by the Department of Veterans Affairs to 

offer education benefits to veterans and 

other eligible persons. 

• Job Corps centers that issue 

certificates. 

• Institutions of higher education 

which is formally controlled, or has 

been formally sanctioned, or chartered, 

by the governing body of an Indian tribe 

or tribes. 

iii. Definitions of Populations and Other 

Key Terms 

Organizations submitting an 

application in response to this SGA 

should use the following definitions for 

any of the following populations and/or 

other key terms that are specifically 

identified in this SGA: 

• Disadvantaged individuals within 

areas of high poverty: For the purposes 

of this SGA, disadvantaged individuals 

are defined as individuals with no 

incomes or low incomes who live in 

areas where the poverty rate is 15% or 

greater and who can benefit from skill 

training that will help them enter or 

advance in the energy efficiency and 

renewable energy industries identified 

in WIA section 171(e)(1)(B)(ii), and/or 

will enable them to acquire or enhance 

skills needed to enter occupations 

within one or more of the ‘‘growth, 

enhanced, and emerging’’ green 

industries referenced in Supplementary 

Information: Part B of this SGA. 

• High school drop-outs: For the 

purposes of this SGA, ETA defines 

‘‘high school drop-out’’ as an individual 

who is no longer attending any 

secondary school and who has not 

received a secondary school diploma or 

its recognized equivalent. 

• Individuals in need of updated 

training related to the energy efficiency 

and renewable energy industries: For 

the purposes of this SGA, this term 

refers to individuals who are currently 

employed; or were terminated or laid-off 

or have received a notice of termination 

or lay-off from employment; or were 

self-employed but are now unemployed; 

and can benefit from training that will 

help them enter or advance in the 

energy efficiency and renewable energy 

industries identified in WIA section 

171(e)(1)(B)(ii), and/or will enable them 

to acquire or enhance skills needed to 

enter occupations within one or more of 

the ‘‘growth, enhanced, and emerging’’ 

green industries referenced in 

Supplementary Information: Part B of 

this SGA. 

• Individuals with a criminal record: 

For the purposes of this SGA, ETA 

defines this term as an individual who 

is or has been subject to any stage of the 

juvenile or criminal justice process, for 

whom services under this Act may be 

beneficial; or who requires assistance in 

overcoming artificial barriers to 

employment resulting from a record of 

arrest or conviction. ETA includes 

individuals with a juvenile or criminal 

record in the definition for this term. 

• Unemployed individuals: For the 

purposes of this SGA, ETA defines 

‘‘unemployed individual’’ as an 

individual who is without a job and 

who wants and is available to work. 

• Veterans: For the purposes of this 

solicitation, ETA follows the WIA 

definition of veteran under 29 U.S.C. 

2801(49)(A), which defines the term 

‘‘veteran’’ as ‘‘an individual who served 

in the active military, naval, or air 

service, and who was discharged or 

released from such service under 

conditions other than dishonorable.’’ 

Active military service includes fulltime duty (other than full-time duty for 

training purposes) in Reserve 

components ordered to active duty, or 

in National Guard units called to 

Federal Service by the President. 

• Workers impacted by national 

energy and environmental policy: For 

the purposes of this SGA, ETA defines 

this term as individuals who: (1) Are 

currently employed in an occupation in 

the utilities; transportation and 

warehousing; manufacturing; 

construction; mining, quarrying, and oil 

and gas extraction; or other sectors that 

have been adversely affected by national 

energy and environmental policies; and 

have received a notice of termination or 

lay-off from employment; or (2) were 

employed in an occupation in the 

utilities; transportation and 

warehousing; manufacturing; 

construction; mining, quarrying, and oil 

and gas extraction; or other sectors that 

have been adversely affected by national 

energy and environmental policies; and 

are now unemployed. 

Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 30151 

• National labor-management 

organization: A national labormanagement organization is a nonprofit 

entity, such as a training fund, training 

trust fund, or an education trust fund, 

with joint participation of employers 

and labor organizations on its executive 

board or comparable governing body. 

This entity must have a formalized 

agreement between the employer(s) and 

labor organization(s) to operate a joint 

labor management training program(s) 

in multiple sites across the country 

through the state, local, or regional 

networks affiliated with the nonprofit 

entity. 

• U.S. territories: For the purposes of 

this SGA, the term ‘‘U.S. territories’’ 

includes the Commonwealth of Puerto 

Rico, as well as the following outlying 

areas: the United States Virgin Islands, 

Guam, American Samoa, the 

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 

Islands, the Republic of the Marshall 

Islands, the Federated States of 

Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau. 

3. American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009 (Pub. L. 111–5) Provisions 

Prospective applicants are advised 

that, if they receive an award, they must 

comply with all requirements of the 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009 [Pub. L. 111–5]. Applicants 

are advised to review the Act and 

implementing OMB guidance in the 

development of their proposals. 

Requirements include, but are not 

limited to: 

• Adherence to all grant clauses and 

conditions as they relate to Recovery 

Act activity. 

• Prohibition on expenditure of funds 

for activities at any casino or other 

gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, 

golf course or swimming pool. 

• Compliance with the requirements 

to obtain a D–U–N–S® Number and 

register with the Central Contractor 

Registry (CCR). ETA will issue 

additional guidance related to this 

requirement shortly. 

• Submission of required reports in 

accordance with Section 1512 of the 

Recovery Act. These reports will be due 

quarterly within 10 days of the end of 

the reporting period and are in addition 

to the ETA required reports addressed 

in Section VI.C of this SGA. ETA will 

issue additional guidance related to 

these reports and their submission 

requirements shortly. 

Implementing OMB guidance may be 

found at http://www.recovery.gov. 

C. Reporting 

Quarterly financial reports, quarterly 

progress reports, and MIS data will be 

submitted by the grantee electronically. 

The grantee is required to provide the 

reports and documents listed below: 

1. Quarterly Financial Reports 

A Quarterly Financial Status Report 

(ETA 9130) is required until such time 

as all funds have been expended or the 

grant period has expired. Quarterly 

reports are due 45 days after the end of 

each calendar year quarter. Grantees 

must use DOL’s On-Line Electronic 

Reporting System and information and 

instructions will be provided to 

grantees. 

2. Quarterly Performance Reports 

The grantee must submit a quarterly 

progress report within 45 days after the 

end of each calendar year quarter. In 

order to submit these quarterly reports, 

grantees will be expected to track 

participant-level data regarding the 

individuals that are involved in training 

and other services provided through the 

grant and report on participant status in 

a variety of fields and outcome 

categories, as well as provide narrative 

information on the status of the grant. 

The last quarterly progress report that 

grantees submit will serve as the grant’s 

Final Performance Report. This report 

should provide both quarterly and 

cumulative information on the grant’s 

activities. It must summarize project 

activities, employment outcomes and 

other deliverables, and related results of 

the project, and should thoroughly 

document the training or labor market 

information approaches utilized by the 

grantee. DOL will provide grantees with 

formal guidance about the data and 

other information that is required to be 

collected and reported on either a 

regular basis or special request basis. 

Grantees must agree to meet DOL 

reporting requirements. 

3. Record Retention 

Applicants should be aware of 

Federal guidelines on record retention, 

which require grantees to maintain all 

records pertaining to grant activities for 

a period of not less than three years 

from the time of final grant close-out. 

VII. Agency Contacts 

For further information regarding this 

SGA, please contact Melissa Abdullah, 

Grants Management Specialist, Division 

of Federal Assistance, at (202) 693–3346 

(This is not a toll-free number). 

Applicants should e-mail all technical 

questions to Abdullah.Melissa@dol.gov 

and must specifically reference SGA/ 

DFA PY 08–19, and along with 

question(s), include a contact name, fax 

and phone number. This announcement 

is being made available on the ETA Web 

site at http://www.doleta.gov/grants and 

at http://www.grants.gov. 

VIII. Additional Resources of Interest to 

Applicants 

A. Instructions for Identifying Public 

Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) and 

Locating Poverty Rates 

Refer to the guidance below for help 

in locating the poverty data information 

described in Section V.A.1.i: 

1. Identify PUMA(s) To Be Served 

As described in Section III.C.2 and 

Section V.A.1.i, applicants must 

identify, for each community served, the 

one or more contiguous Public Use 

Microdata Areas (PUMAs) that the 

project will serve. PUMAs are 

geographic statistical areas designated 

by the U.S. Census Bureau. To locate the 

appropriate 5-digit PUMA code(s), 

applicants can find PUMA maps for 

each State at http://www.census.gov/

geo/www/maps/puma5pct.htm. 

Applicants can also utilize the PUMA 

Lookup spreadsheet available for 

download at http://

www.workforce3one.org/view/ 

2000916359265073156/info. This 

spreadsheet provides PUMA codes 

sorted by State and area name (such as 

townships, cities, and counties). 

2. Locating Poverty Rate for Each PUMA 

As described in Section V.A.1.i, 

applicants must provide the poverty rate 

for each PUMA identified. After locating 

the appropriate 5-digit PUMA code(s), 

utilize the Poverty Data spreadsheet to 

identify the poverty rate for each 

PUMA, which is found in the rightmost 

column of the spreadsheet on Tab 1. 

Note that this spreadsheet has three 

Tabs, listing poverty rates for: (1) United 

States, DC, and Puerto Rico; (2) 

American Indian Areas, Alaskan Native 

Areas, and Hawaiian Home Lands; and 

(3) Outlying Areas. Download the 

spreadsheet from http://

www.workforce3one.org/view/ 

2000916359251042484/info. The data 

for Tab 1 were obtained from the U.S. 

Census Bureau’s 2005–2007 American 

Community Survey (ACS) 3-Year 

Estimates. Because ACS data is not 

currently available for many American 

Indian Areas, Alaska Native Areas, 

Hawaiian Homelands, and outlying 

areas, data for Tabs 2 and 3 were 

obtained from the 2000 Decennial 

Census. Applicants proposing to serve 

PUMAs, American Indian Areas, Alaska 

Native Areas, Hawaiian Homelands, or 

outlying areas that are not listed in the 

Poverty Data spreadsheet should use, 

and cite, another appropriate data 

source for poverty rate information. 

30152 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 120 / Wednesday, June 24, 2009 / Notices 

B. Other Web-Based Resources 

DOL maintains a number of Webbased resources that may be of 

assistance to applicants. America’s 

Service Locator (http://www.service

locator.org) provides a directory of our 

nation’s One Stop Career Centers. 

C. Industry Competency Models 

ETA supports an Industry 

Competency Model Initiative to promote 

an understanding of the skill sets and 

competencies that are essential to an 

educated and skilled workforce. A 

competency model is a collection of 

competencies that taken together define 

successful performance in a particular 

work setting. Competency models serve 

as a starting point for the design and 

implementation of workforce and talent 

development programs. To learn about 

the industry-validated models visit the 

Competency Model Clearinghouse 

(CMC) at http://www.careeronestop.org/ 

CompetencyModel. The CMC site also 

provides tools to build or customize 

industry models, as well as tools to 

build career ladders and career lattices. 

D. Federal Collaboration 

DOL encourages other Federal 

partners to recommend or require, 

where appropriate, that organizations 

receiving Recovery Act funding list jobs 

created with their state public labor 

exchange. The Department is 

developing specific strategies to link job 

listings, training opportunities and 

placement among programs funded by 

Departments of Housing and Urban 

Development, Energy, Education, and 

the Environmental Protection Agency. 

Where the grantee is not the public 

workforce system, they are strongly 

encouraged to work with the local One 

Stop Career Center to make these 

connections. 

E. Links to Federal Recovery Sites 

For specific information on a range of 

Federal agency Recovery Act activities 

and funding opportunities: 

• Department of Education: http:// 

www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/recovery/ 

index.html. 

• Department of Energy: http:// 

www.doe.gov/recovery. 

• Department of Housing and Urban 

Development: http://www.hud.gov/ 

recovery. 

• Department of Transportation: 

http://www.dot.gov/recovery/. 

• Environmental Protection Agency: 

http://www.epa.gov/recovery. 

F. Promising Training Approaches 

ETA encourages applicants to 

research promising training approaches 

in order to inform their proposals. The 

following list of Web sites provides a 

starting place for this research, but by 

no means should be considered a 

complete list: 

• ETA’s home site (http:// 

www.doleta.gov) and the ETA Research 

Publication Database (http:// 

wdr.doleta.gov/research/keyword.cfm). 

• ETA’s knowledge sharing site 

(http://www.workforce3one.org), 

including the ‘‘workforce solutions’’ 

section that contains over 6,000 

additional resources applicants may 

find valuable in developing workforce 

strategies and solutions. 

• The National Governors Association 

Center for Best Practices (http:// 

www.nga.org). 

• The National Association of State 

Workforce Agencies (http:// 

www.workforceatm.org). 

• The National Association of 

Workforce Boards (http:// 

www.nawb.org). 

IX. Other Information 

OMB Information Collection No. 1225– 

0086 

Expires September 30, 2009 

According to the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are 

required to respond to a collection of 

information unless such collection 

displays a valid OMB control number. 

Public reporting burden for this 

collection of information is estimated to 

average 20 hours per response, 

including time for reviewing 

instructions, searching existing data 

sources, gathering and maintaining the 

data needed, and completing and 

reviewing the collection of information. 

Send comments regarding the burden 

estimated or any other aspect of this 

collection of information, including 

suggestions for reducing this burden, to 

the OMB Desk Officer for ETA, 

Department of Labor, in the Office of 

Management and Budget, Room 10235, 

Washington, DC 20503. Please do not 

return the completed application to the 

OMB. Send it to the sponsoring agency 

as specified in this solicitation. 

This information is being collected for 

the purpose of awarding a grant. The 

information collected through this SGA 

will be used by DOL to ensure that 

grants are awarded to the applicant best 

suited to perform the functions of the 

grant. Submission of this information is 

required in order for the applicant to be 

considered for award of this grant. 

Unless otherwise specifically noted in 

this announcement, information 

submitted in the respondent’s 

application is not considered to be 

confidential. 

Signed at Washington, DC, this 19th day of 

June, 2009. 

Donna Kelly, 

Grant Officer, Employment and Training 

Administration. 

[FR Doc. E9–14928 Filed 6–23–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–FN–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Employment and Training 

Administration 

American Recovery and Reinvestment 

Act of 2009; Notice of Availability of 

Funds and Solicitation for Grant 

Applications for Energy Training 

Partnership Grants 

Announcement Type: Notice of 

Solicitation for Grant Applications. 

Funding Opportunity Number: SGA/ 

DFA PY 08–18. 

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number: 17.275. 

DATES: The closing date for receipt of 

applications under this announcement 

is September 4, 2009. Applications must 

be received no later than 4 p.m. (Eastern 

Time), or submitted electronically by 

the deadline and in accordance with the 

instructions in Section IV.C of this 

Solicitation. A Webinar for prospective 

applicants will be held for this grant 

competition on July 13 from 2–3:30 p.m. 

ET. Access information for the Webinar 

will be posted on the U.S. Department 

of Labor’s (DOL), Employment and 

Training Administration (ETA) Web site 

at: http://www.workforce3one.org. 

Potential applicants are encouraged to 

participate in this webinar, but 

attendance is not mandatory. A 

recording of the webinar will be 

available on http:// 

www.workforce3one.org by 3 p.m. ET, 

July 17. 

ADDRESSES: Mailed applications must be 

addressed to the U.S. Department of 

Labor, Employment and Training 

Administration, Division of Federal 

Assistance, Attention: Donna Kelly, 

Grant Officer, Reference SGA/DFA PY– 

08–18, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Room N4716, Washington, DC 20210. 

For complete ‘‘Application and 

Submission Information’’ please refer to 

Section IV. 

SUMMARY: Under the American Recovery 

and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the 

Recovery Act), DOL announces the 

availability of approximately $100 

million in grant funds to 20–30 projects 

ranging from approximately $2 to $5 

million each. Projects will provide 

training and placement services in the 

energy efficiency and renewable energy 

industries for workers impacted by