This week, the House Committee on Education and Workforce held a hearing to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (PL 105-220). The bill, HR 4297 Workforce Investment Improvement Act of 2012, was introduced and co-sponsored by Representatives Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Joe Heck (R-NV) and Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-CA). There are numerous changes the bill proposes to make to existing law.

H.R. 4297 would consolidate 27 existing federal workforce programs into a single "Workforce Investment Fund."  Changes include:

• For FY 2013, approximately $6.08 billion is authorized to be appropriated under H.R. 4297, with funding allocated among states based on the following: 25 percent based on the relative number of unemployed individuals in each state to the total unemployed in all states; 25 percent based on the relative number of individuals in the civilian labor force in each state compared to the number in all states; 25 percent based on the relative number of individuals in each state who have been unemployed for 15 weeks or more, compared to the number in all states; and 25 percent based on the relative number of disadvantaged youth in each state compared to the number in all states.
• H.R. 4297 adds new requirements for the way states establish, monitor, and report on performance measures. The State performance measures would consist of a set of core indicators of performance, any additional indicators identified by the State, and a state adjusted level of performance for each of the core indicators. The current customer satisfaction indicator has been removed.
• H.R. 4297 eliminates most of the employment services authorized under the Wagner-Peyser Act. The only provision that remains pertains to Section 15 regarding labor market Information.