DOL Has Made Limited Progress in Implementing Recommendations

DOL is in the early stages of implementing several of the report’s  recommendations, but implementation of the remaining recommendations  has not occurred. The agency has begun to take initial steps to respond  to three of the report’s six recommendations: improve interagency  collaboration, create an advisory committee subgroup for Native  American veterans, and conduct a needs assessment. DOL has taken  little to no action on the remaining three recommendations: increase  outreach, pursue program flexibility, and boost economic development. DOL officials told us that leadership transitions and budget challenges  have significantly contributed to their current position and limited  endorsement of these recommendations. To respond to the recommendations to increase  collaboration with federal and state agencies and outreach to tribal  governments, DOL has begun collaborating with agencies that serve  veterans, including VA and BIA, to learn more about how to better serve  Native American veterans and has conducted several listening sessions  with tribal leadership. Advisory subcommittee. DOL is currently  developing a proposal, to be presented to ACVETEO, to establish a  subgroup for Native American veterans, and is also considering  appointing a representative from the Native American veterans’  community to join ACVETEO. Economic development. Since delivering the report in 2010, DOL has not developed a strategy  that specifically establishes roles and responsibilities, goals, and time  frames for implementation of the report’s recommendations. Expanded Efforts Could Improve Implementation of the 2010 Recommendations

DOL could expand on its efforts to implement the 2010 report’s  recommendations to improve employment service delivery to Native  American veterans on tribal land, even within its constrained budget  environment. In addition, DOL can leverage state level collaborations with  other agencies and tribal governments. Advisory subcommittee. While economic development is not DOL’s primary mission,  the agency has an opportunity to better understand and support  economic development on tribal land by reviewing its existing grants and  guidance on this topic and identifying lessons learned to disseminate to  its grantees that provide these critical employment and training services  to Native American veterans on tribal land and forming partnerships with  other agencies that can support these efforts. Ensure it has a written strategy to position the agency to efficiently  and effectively respond to the 2010 recommendations, including the  identification of roles and responsibilities as well as the goals, costs,  and time frames to complete their implementation. 2. To identify such lessons or  practices, DOL could:  a. Regarding our recommendation to expand collaboration with other  agencies, DOL agreed and noted that collaboration with other agencies  has been effective in addressing the needs of Native American veterans  living on tribal land. Key contributors to this report are listed in  appendix V.

Appendix I: Groups Interviewed

Appendix I: Groups Interviewed Department of Labor (DOL), Veterans’ Employment and Training Service, including senior  agency officials, and State Directors for Veterans’ Employment and Training (DVETs) from  Arizona, New Mexico, North Carolina, Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, North Dakota, and  Montana  Department of Labor (DOL), Division of Indian and Native American Programs (DINAP)
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Office of Tribal Government Relations  Department of the Interior, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
Small Business Administration (SBA)
Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC)
State veterans coordinators from Arizona, New Mexico, North Carolina, Alaska, Hawaii, North  Dakota, and Montana  Disabled Veterans’ Outreach Program specialists (DVOPs) and Local Veterans’ Employment  Representatives (LVERs) from Arizona, New Mexico, North Carolina, Alaska, Hawaii, and  Montana  Zuni Tribe of the Zuni Reservation, New Mexico  Navajo Nation, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah  Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians  Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation  Spirit Lake Tribe, North Dakota  White Earth Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota  Papa Alo Lokahi (Uncles and Aunties initiative)

Appendix II: Status of Recommendations from DOL’s 2010 Report and Steps to Improve upon Efforts

Recommendation Summary  The 2010 report found that there  was a need for increased  collaboration across federal and  state agencies with tribal  governments in improving  employment for Native American  veterans. For example, our site visits indicated that some  Native Americans veterans received employment services from  Education’s Vocational Rehabilitation Services for American Indians with  Disabilities program. DOL can consider partnering with this program to  jointly serve Native American veterans. In Montana, a DVOP established a partnership with the mobile VA Vet  Center to provide both health and employment services to Native  American veterans in remote areas (see fig.). Specifically, DOL has identified a potential source for data within DOD that  provides race and ethnicity as well as address information for returning  veterans that could help DVOPs and LVERs target their visits to tribal  land, but its plans to acquire these data are still being negotiated and  could take time to finalize. Assess Needs (cont.) With regard to additional flexibilities that  could help meet the needs of Native American veterans living on tribal  lands, DOL has indicated that it is open to identifying any such  opportunities that exist under current law, although to date it has taken  little action in this area. Boost Economic  Development (cont.)
Why GAO Did This Study

The unemployment rate for all veterans has risen since the beginning of the economic downturn, but the unemployment rate for Native Americans living on tribal land has been higher. In addition, tribal land is frequently located in remote areas characterized by limited economic development, which can make finding a job challenging. DOL administers several grant programs that provide employment assistance to all eligible veterans, including Native Americans. In response to a statutory mandate, in October 2010, DOL submitted a report to Congress recommending that the agency take actions to increase employment and training opportunities for Native American veterans living on tribal lands. GAO assessed (1) the status of DOL efforts to implement the report's recommendations and (2) whether and how DOL can improve on its efforts to implement the report's recommendations. GAO reviewed federal laws, regulations, and DOL guidance; interviewed DOL, state, and tribal officials as well as Native American veterans; and conducted site visits to tribal lands in four U.S. regions.

What GAO Found

The Department of Labor (DOL) is in the early stages of implementing several of the 2010 report's recommendations, but implementation of the remaining recommendations has not occurred. The agency has begun to take steps to respond to three of the report's six recommendations: improve interagency collaboration, create an advisory subcommittee for Native American veterans, and conduct a needs assessment. To increase collaboration, DOL has conducted several listening sessions with tribal leadership and begun collaborating with agencies that serve veterans, including the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Affairs, to learn more about how to better serve Native American veterans. With regard to an advisory subcommittee, DOL is developing a proposal to establish a subgroup for Native American veterans on its existing veterans' employment and training advisory committee, and is considering appointing a representative from the Native American veterans' community to serve on that committee. To assess need, DOL has identified a potential source for data within DOD that provides race and ethnicity and address information for returning veterans that could help better target visits to tribal land, but its plans to acquire these data are still being negotiated and could take time to finalize. However, DOL has taken little to no action on recommendations to increase outreach, pursue program flexibility, and boost economic development. DOL officials told us that leadership transitions and budget challenges have contributed to their limited response to date. In addition, since delivering the report in 2010, DOL has not developed a strategy that specifically establishes roles and responsibilities, goals, costs, and time frames for implementation of the report's recommendations.
DOL could build on its efforts to implement the report's recommendations, even in a constrained budget environment. For example, DOL could expand the collaboration it has begun with other agencies that serve Native American veterans on tribal land, such as the Department of Education (Education). GAO site visits indicated that some Native American veterans received employment services from a vocational rehabilitation program administered by Education. DOL can consider partnering with this program. DOL could also identify and disseminate lessons learned from states that have collaborated with other agencies and tribal governments. For example, a DOL program in Montana has leveraged other agency resources, such as collaborating with the VA Vet Center to provide both health and employment services to Native American veterans in remote tribal areas using mobile units, an approach that may be applicable in other states. To boost economic development, DOL could review information from its existing grants and guidance on economic development to disseminate to DOL grantees that serve Native American veterans.

What GAO Recommends

GAO recommends that DOL develop a written strategy to implement the 2010 recommendations that incorporates roles and responsibilities, goals, costs, and time frames. DOL should also expand collaboration with other agencies to leverage resources and identify and disseminate lessons learned from prior relevant efforts. DOL agreed with GAO's recommendations.