	Background on the American Job Center System

Many federally funded programs to assist unemployed workers are coordinated through state- and locally run Ame rican Job Centers (AJCs; also known as One-Stop Career Centers). The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 (WIOA; P.L. It emphasizes eligibility requirements and the scope of benefits and services available to individuals. Unemployment insurance provides weekly cash payments to workers who have involuntarily lost a job, have a demonstrated work history, and meet other requirements. G rant programs with national scope support employment and training services and have a presence in every state. Other partner programs are mandatory AJC partners but may not typically provide benefits to individuals or may have a primary purpose other than placing individual jobseekers in employment. Some federally funded programs with employment and training components are not required partners with AJCs and therefore are not discussed in this report. As such, the group of programs included in this report may vary from other reviews of federal employment training programs and should not be considered exhaustive. The specifics of regular UC benefits are determined by each state. Individuals who exhaust UC benefits may be eligible for additional weeks of UI benefits through the permanent EB program, depending on worker eligibility, state law, and economic conditions in the state. In most states, regular UC benefits are available for up to 26 weeks. Employment and Training Programs

The AJC network co-locates and coordinates federally funded employment and training programs. Unlike UI, funding levels for employment and training programs are capped by statute or appropriation level. Grants with National Scope

The largest portion of AJC funding is from a group of grants that have a presence in all states. This report divides these partner programs with national scope into three groups:
Programs available to all jobseekers , which have no eligibility criteria; Programs targeted by circumstances of job loss , which provide services to workers whose job loss and work history meet certain conditions; and Programs targeted by jobseeker characteristics , which provide services to workers based on their personal characteristics (such as veteran status or disability) rather than their work history or reason for unemployment. Once a group is certified, individual workers may receive benefits through the AJC system. Competitive Grant Programs

Several competitive grant programs are mandatory AJC partners. In some cases, CSBG funds may support employment and training activities. Postsecondary activities supported under this act are a mandatory AJC partner.
Many federally funded programs that assist unemployed workers are co-located and coordinated through state and locally run American Job Centers (AJCs; also known as One-Stop Career Centers). The specific set of benefits and services available to a worker through the AJC network varies by the worker's characteristics and reason for unemployment.
Unemployment insurance (UI) is a federal-state system and mandatory AJC partner. UI benefits are available to workers who have involuntarily lost their jobs and have demonstrated a required level of labor force attachment. UI provides weekly cash payments to replace a portion of the eligible workers' earnings, up to a statewide maximum. Eligibility and benefit levels vary by state, though most states offer up to 26 weeks of state-financed UI benefits through each state's Unemployment Compensation (UC) program. Certain economic conditions may extend the duration of UI benefits through the permanent Extended Benefit (EB) program.
To assist workers in obtaining employment, AJCs coordinate a number of programs that provide career services and training benefits. These efforts include both broadly available programs and targeted programs. Unlike UI benefits, which are mandatory entitlements, these employment and training programs are subject to funding caps. The primary AJC partner programs can generally be characterized as follows:
Grants with a national scope support employment and training activities in all states. The activities supported by each grant vary. Some programs are available to all jobseekers while others limit eligibility based on a jobseeker's reason for unemployment or personal characteristics. Competitive grants support more targeted employment and training services. These grants may not have a presence in all states. Other partner programs are mandatory AJC partners that indirectly support employment and training activities or support employment and training activities among other functions.
This report is limited to mandatory AJC partners under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014. Some federally funded programs with employment and training components are not AJC partners and some AJC partners have primary purposes other than employment. As such, the group of programs discussed in this report may vary from other reviews of federal workforce programs and should not be considered conclusive nor exhaustive.