Plans, Contracts and Policies ELEMENT 3: Review Assurances, Job Training Plans, Contracts and Policies and Procedures
[29 CFR Part 37.20 through 37.22]
Background:
All grant recipients must comply with the requirements of 29 CFR Part 37 which directs all grant recipients to assure full compliance with the nondiscrimination laws under WIA. Federal regulations under WIA further require the following nondiscrimination assurance language appear in certain documents, explained in more detail below, as required by 29 CFR Part 37.
As a condition to the award of financial assistance from the Department of Labor under Title I of the WIA, the grant applicant assures that it will comply fully with the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity provisions of the following laws:
Section 188 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, which prohibits discrimination against all individuals in the United States on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation or belief, and against beneficiaries on the basis of either citizenship/status as a lawfully admitted immigrant authorized to work in the United States or participation in any WIA Title I-financially assisted program or activity;
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color and national origin;
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, which prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities;
Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of age; and
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs.
This assurance applies to the grant applicant’s operation of the WIA Title I-financially assisted programs or activities, and to all agreements the grant applicant makes to carry out the WIA Title I-financially assisted programs or activities. The grant applicant understands that the United States has the right to seek judicial enforcement of this assurance.
Every grant applicant and training provider seeking eligibility under Title I of the WIA must include in its application for financial assistance the written assurance of nondiscrimination set out in the narrative above. Where necessary, language regarding both programmatic and architectural accessibility to accommodate individuals with disabilities is also included. Programmatic and architectural accessibility is addressed in more detail in Element IV Universal Access.
Notice of the Requirement
The Division of Workforce Development informed all local workforce boards, in writing, of the necessity of including this assurance in all contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, applications, or other arrangements. The Notice informs all recipients that this nondiscrimination assurance is considered incorporated by operation of law in the grant, cooperative agreement, contract or other arrangement whereby Federal financial assistance under Title I of the Workforce Investment Act is made available, whether or not it is physically incorporated in such document and whether or not there is a written agreement between the Department of Labor and the recipient, or between the Department and the Governor, between the Governor and the recipient, or between recipients. The assurance also may be incorporated by reference in such grants, cooperative agreements, contracts or other arrangements.
Scope and Duration of Obligation
Each recipient of Federal financial assistance incurs certain obligations by accepting the assistance. The duration of the obligation differs according to the type of assistance received. For personal property, real property, structures on real property, or interest in any such property or structures, the recipient (or subsequent transfer) will be obligated for the longer of the following time periods:
(1) the period during which the property is used either for a purpose for which WIA Title I-financial assistance is extended or for another purpose involving the provision of similar services or benefits; or
(2) the period during which either the recipient retains ownership or possession of the real property or the transferee retains ownership or possession of the property without compensating the Departmental grant making agency for the fair market value of that ownership or possession.
In all other cases, the assurance will obligate the recipient for the period during which WIA Title I-financial assistance is extended.
Assurance Reviews
Local Level EO officers will monitor facilities for compliance in the respective workforce regions. The review of assurances, job training plans, contracts, and policies and procedures are completed by the monitoring unit in conjunction with the Local and State Level EO officers with regard to the duties under 29 CFR 37.20, 37.54 (d)(1)(i) and (d)(2)(i), (iii) and (iv), thus ensuring documents are nondiscriminatory and contain the required language regarding nondiscrimination and equal opportunity. All policies issued at the state or local level, as well as, any other issuances from other recipients of federal funds under Title I of WIA, must not discriminate either in their intent or their effect. To this end, all policies and other documents will be reviewed during the site review phase of a compliance review. Further, all recipients of federal financial assistance under WIA shall provide access to all documents, papers, letters or other materials prepared or received by the recipient regarding the subject matter of the contract, to either the monitoring team or Local EO officers, upon request. The monitors shall have the right to review and copy all such materials for use in monitoring compliance with the nondiscrimination and equal opportunity provisions of WIA. This is discussed in more detail in Element 7, Monitoring Recipients.
Attachment for Element 3
Review Assurances, Job Training Plans, Contracts, Policies and Procedures
III-A Contract Agreement Boilerplate (See page 5 of 9)
III-B Exhibit II Assurances
III-C Assuring Equal Access to Job Seekers with Disabilities in Missouri's One-Stops
III-D Equal Opportunity Review |