|
New From GAO
Employment and Training Administration: Increased Authority and Accountability Could Improve Research Program.
With current rising unemployment rates and the need for a more skilled workforce, it is important for the Department of Labor’s (Labor) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) to invest in sound research that identifies the most effective and efficient ways to train and employ workers for 21st century jobs. Since 2002, GAO and others have criticized ETA for not focusing sufficient attention on its research program, particularly with regard to complying with congressional mandates, conducting policy-relevant research, and disseminating key research findings in a timely way. In this context, we have examined the structure and processes of ETA’s research and evaluation center in terms of the elements that leading national research organizations cite as essential to a sound program; that is, research independence, transparency and accountability, and policy relevance.
Click here to view the full report
http://www.gao.gov/cgi-bin/getrpt?GAO-10-243
New From CLASP
Using the TANF Emergency Fund to Create Jobs
Subsidized jobs are particularly important for low-income populations so that they can gain the skills necessary to eventually acquire stable employment once the economy rebounds. Extending the TANF Emergency Fund Creates Jobs Now outlines how the program's dollars can be used for subsidized jobs programs and calls on Congress to extend the fund so that states can continue to start and expand jobs programs.
Click here to view the full report.
How Much of the TANF Emergency Fund Has Been Awarded to States?
Bruce Katz
The Department of Health and Human Services reports that as of Jan. 7, 2010, 34 states and the District of Columbia have been awarded $1.07 billion from the TANF Emergency Fund. TANF Emergency Fund: State Applications Approved as of January 7 shows the share of maximum allocations that each state has received.
Click here to view the full report.
New From Brookings
Jobs and the State of the Union
Gary Burtless
The president used the word “jobs” 23 times in his State of the Union address. This emphasis is understandable. Last year the unemployment rate topped 10%, the nation’s highest rate since Ronald Reagan’s first term. Employment fell almost every month in Obama’s first year in office after shrinking for the last 13 months of his predecessor’s term. After reaching a peak in December 2007 employment in the private sector shrank by more than 7.3 million - or 6.3% - through December 2009. The public, the Congress, and the president are unhappy with this record. What did the president propose to do about it?
Click here to view the full article.
President Obama's Plans to Create Jobs and Cut Spending
In his State of the Union address, President Obama recommitted himself to creating jobs and offered a plan to freeze government spending and create a presidential commission to address the budget deficit. Bill Frenzel gives mixed reviews to this flurry of ideas and proposals from the president.
Click here to view the video.
New From Green For All
Clean Energy Works Portland
Green For all released a new report and video about an exciting home-weatherization program in Portland, Oregon which can serve as a model for the entire country. Clean Energy Works Portland is an effort that will cut energy bills, create green jobs, reduce pollution and expand business opportunities. In addition, it will ensure that Recovery Act investment dollars reach those hit hardest by the recession. It's not a silver bullet, but it is a great model on which to build an important component of a new clean energy economy. Green For All's report details why Clean Energy Works Portland has such special appeal. The program includes a revolving loan fund with innovative "on-bill financing" and a Community Workforce Agreement that creates jobs in the communities that need them most.
Click here to access the report and video.
New From the Milken Institute
Jobs for America: Investments and Policies for Economic Growth and Competitiveness
Ross DeVol and Perry Wong With Armen Bedroussian, Anita Charuworn, Anusuya Chatterjee, Candice Flor Hynek, Kevin Klowden and Benjamin Yeo
This report tackles the central question of the day: How can the United States jumpstart and sustain job growth? Utilizing detailed simulations, the report finds that changes to U.S. economic and tax policies can add 2.9 million jobs by 2019, while more than 3.5 million jobs can be created in each of the next three years by supporting investment in 10 key infrastructure project categories.
Click here to access the full report.
|
