This includes during the summer months, when youth labor force activity tends to be higher than other times of the year. One potential policy option for addressing youth employment is providing support for summer job programs, which are generally administered by cities with funding from both the public and private sectors. The current federal workforce law, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA, P.L. 113-128 ), was enacted in 2014 and shifted summer employment from being an optional to a mandatory activity under the Youth Activities program. This program provides funding to localities across the United States for youth job training and employment activities. Other recent federal programs and initiatives have sought to expand employment opportunities for youth during the summer months. This report provides information about summer youth employment, including for those youth who are low-income and face challenges with securing employment. The E/P ratio was 64.1% in July 1996 and 53.2% in July 2016. The research literature has not fully explored the labor force participation of low-income youth during the summer. A survey of 40 cities found that nearly 116,000 youth were placed in such jobs in 2015. There is scant information about how localities fund their summer employment programs. The rationale for these programs may include the following: 
providing income to youth and their families; encouraging youth to develop "soft skills" and professional skills that can help them navigate their environments and work well with others; improving the academic outcomes and prospects for employment of youth in the future; deterring youth from activities that could lead to them getting in trouble or being harmed; and providing greater economic opportunities to youth in areas with few employment prospects. Recent Federal Efforts

Federal workforce laws since 1964 have included summer job training and employment activities. The Workforce Investment Act (WIA, P.L. Approximately 18,000 to 20,000 eligible youth annually participated in summer employment activities under the WIA Youth Activities program in recent years. In light of changes to workforce law with regard to summer employment opportunities, recent federal initiatives have sought to bolster the summer employment prospects for young people, as summarized in Table 1 . The initiative supports 11 communities in developing and expanding work opportunities for youth during the summer. The 11 communities that received Summer Jobs and Beyond funding are pursuing projects that include providing in-school youth who are refugees with summer jobs and academic support; providing courses and summer jobs in health care, information technology (IT), and manufacturing and infrastructure; and providing employment-related services to eligible Native American youth with limited work experience, among other activities. Engaging Multiple Sectors

Beyond using federal programs to expand summer employment opportunities, the executive branch has created partnerships with the private, nonprofit, and other sectors for this purpose. Considerations for Congress

In considering whether to further support localities in their efforts to expand summer employment, Congress may want to examine the efficacy of summer employment programs and promising approaches to serving young people in these programs. Thus, summer jobs may not necessarily lead to changes in behavior or may have unintended consequences. Evaluations of the One Summer Plus (OSP) program in Chicago and the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) in New York City indicate that summer jobs can reduce violent crime committed by youth participants, reduce the probability of incarceration or death, or improve academic outcomes. P rogram design encompasses many elements, including (1) recruiting employers and worksites to provide the maximum number of job opportunities; (2) matching young people with opportunities that are well aligned with their abilities and skills; (3) preparing young people to succeed with professional training and financial literacy skills; (4) supporting youth and supervisors, such as having staff that provide coaching at the worksite; and (5) ensuring that youth connect to other opportunities in the community, such as year-round employment and programs to prepare youth for employment the following summer. Monthly Labor Force Trends for Youth 
Appendix B.
Labor force activity for youth ages 16 to 24 has been in decline since the late 1990s. This trend has been consistent even during the summer months, when youth are most likely to be engaged in work. Labor force data from the month of July highlight changes in summer employment over time. For example, the employment rate—known as the employment to population (E/P) ratio—for youth was 64.1% in July 1996 and 53.2% in July 2016. Congress has long been concerned about ensuring that young people have productive pathways to adulthood, particularly for those youth who are low-income and have barriers to employment. One possible policy lever for improving youth employment prospects is providing jobs and supportive activities during the summer months.
Generally, cities and other local jurisdictions carry out summer employment programs in which youth are placed in jobs or are otherwise participating in activities to facilitate their eventual entry into the workforce. Summer employment may serve multiple policy goals, including supporting low-income youth and their families, encouraging youth to develop "soft skills" that can help them navigate their environments and work well with others, and deterring youth from activities that could lead to them getting in trouble or being harmed. Data are limited on the number of youth engaged in summer employment. A survey of 40 cities reported that nearly 116,000 youth had summer jobs in 2015. This represents a small portion of the approximately 20 million youth ages 16 to 24 in the U.S. labor force during the summer.
Localities fund summer employment activities with public and private dollars. Federal workforce laws since 1964 have authorized funding to local governments for their summer employment activities, primarily for low-income youth with barriers to employment; however, the laws' provisions about summer employment have shifted over time. The existing federal workforce law, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA, P.L. 113-128), was enacted in 2014 and made summer employment an optional activity under the Youth Activities program. This program provides the major federal support for youth employment and job training activities throughout the United States. The Workforce Investment Act (WIA, P.L. 105-220) and other prior laws required localities to use Youth Activities funding for summer youth employment.
Other recent federal efforts have sought to bolster the summer employment prospects for young people. Under the Summer Jobs and Beyond grant, the Department of Labor provided $21 million in FY2016 for 11 communities to expand work opportunities for youth during the summer. The executive branch has also encouraged other federal programs, including the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program, to provide employment to eligible youth during the summer. Separately, the Obama Administration forged partnerships with the private and nonprofit sectors to expand summer jobs. For example, the My Brother's Keeper initiative has engaged the private sector in providing job and other opportunities for young men of color.
Summer youth employment is short in duration and can range in intensity for youth participants. Therefore, it may not necessarily lead to changes in behavior or employment outcomes. In considering whether to further support localities in expanding summer employment, Congress may want to examine the efficacy of existing summer employment programs and promising approaches to serving young people in these programs. A small number of rigorously evaluated summer job programs show promise on selected youth outcomes, including programs in Chicago and New York City. A recent study has identified features of high-quality summer employment programs. Such features include a focus on recruiting and supporting youth and employers, a well-trained staff that coordinates with employers and other partners, and technologies to administer the program and facilitate communication with stakeholders.