[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 98 (Tuesday, May 23, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23595-23601]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-10496]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) 2017; Lower
Living Standard Income Level (LLSIL)
AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Labor.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: Title I of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)
requires the U.S. Secretary of Labor (Secretary) to update and publish
the LLSIL tables annually, for uses described in the law (including
determining eligibility for youth). WIOA defines the term ``low income
individual'' as one who qualifies under various criteria, including an
individual in a family with total family income for a six-month period
that does not exceed the higher level of the poverty line or 70 percent
of the LLSIL. This issuance provides the Secretary's annual LLSIL for
2017 and references the current 2017 Health and Human Services
``Poverty Guidelines.''
DATES: This issuance is effective May 23, 2017.
For Further Information or Questions on LLSIL: Please contact
Samuel Wright,
[[Page 23596]]
Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, 200
Constitution Avenue NW., Room C-4526, Washington, DC 20210; Telephone:
202-693-2870; Fax: 202-693-3015 (these are not toll-free numbers);
Email address: [email protected]. Individuals with hearing or
speech impairments may access the telephone number above via Text
Telephone (TTY/TDD) by calling the toll-free Federal Information Relay
Service at 1-877-889-5627 (TTY/TDD).
For Further Information Or Questions On Federal Youth Employment
Programs: Please contact Sara Hastings, Department of Labor, Employment
and Training Administration, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., Room N-4508,
Washington, DC 20210; Telephone: 202-693-3377; Fax: 202-693-3599 (these
are not toll-free numbers); Email:[email protected]. Individuals
with hearing or speech impairments may access the telephone number
above via TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Information Relay
Service at 1-877-889-5627 (TTY/TDD).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The purpose of WIOA (Pub. L. 113-128) is to
provide workforce investment activities through statewide and local
workforce investment systems that increase the employment, retention,
and earnings of participants. WIOA programs are intended to increase
the occupational skill attainment by participants and the quality of
the workforce, thereby reducing welfare dependency and enhancing the
productivity and competitiveness of the Nation.
LLSIL is used for several purposes under the WIOA. Specifically,
WIOA SEC.3(36)(A)(B) defines the term ``low income individual'' for
eligibility purposes, and SEC.127(b)(2)(c), SEC.132(b)(1)(B)(IV),
(V)(bb) define the terms ``disadvantaged youth'' and ``disadvantaged
adult'' in terms of the poverty line or LLSIL for State formula
allotments. The governor and state/local workforce development boards
(WDB) use the LLSIL for determining eligibility for youth and adults
for certain services. ETA encourages governors and State/local boards
to consult the WIOA Final Rule, for more specific guidance in applying
LLSIL to program requirements. The U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) published the most current poverty-level guidelines in
the Federal Register on January 31, 2017 (Volume 82, Number 19), pp.
8831-8832. The HHS 2017 Poverty guidelines may also be found on the
Internet at https://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty-guidelines. ETA plans to have
the 2017 LLSIL available on its Web site at http://www.doleta.gov/llsil.
WIOA Section 3(36)(B) defines LLSIL as ``that income level
(adjusted for regional, metropolitan, urban and rural differences and
family size) determined annually by the Secretary [of Labor] based on
the most recent lower living family budget issued by the Secretary.''
The most recent lower living family budget was issued by the Secretary
in fall 1981. The four-person urban family budget estimates, previously
published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), provided the
basis for the Secretary to determine the LLSIL. BLS terminated the
four-person family budget series in 1982, after publication of the fall
1981 estimates. Currently, BLS provides data to ETA, which ETA then
uses to develop the LLSIL tables, as provided in the Appendices to this
Federal Register notice.
ETA published the 2016 updates to the LLSIL in the Federal Register
of March 25, 2016, at Vol. 81, No. 58 pp. 16217-16223. This notice
updates the LLSIL to reflect cost of living increases for 2016, by
calculating the percentage change in the most recent 2015 Consumer
Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for an area to the 2016
CPI-U, and then applying this calculation to each of the March 25, 2016
LLSIL figures.
The updated figures for a four-person family are listed in Appendix
A, Table 1, by region for both metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas.
Numbers in all of the Appendix tables are rounded up to the nearest
dollar. Since program eligibility for low-income individuals,
``disadvantaged adults,'' and ``disadvantaged youth'' may be determined
by family income at 70 percent of the LLSIL, pursuant to WIOA Section
3(36)(A)(ii) and Section 3(36)(B), respectively, those figures are
listed as well.
I. Jurisdictions
Jurisdictions included in the various regions, based generally on
the Census Regions of the U.S. Department of Commerce, are as follows:
A. Northeast
Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New
York, Pennsylvania,, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virgin Islands.
B. Midwest
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin.
C. South
Alabama, American Samoa, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia,
Florida, Georgia, Northern Marianas, Oklahoma, Palau, Puerto Rico,
South Carolina, Kentucky, Louisiana, Marshall Islands, Maryland,
Micronesia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia,
West Virginia.
D. West
Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico,
Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.
Additionally, separate figures have been provided for Alaska,
Hawaii, and Guam as indicated in Appendix B, Table 2.
For Alaska, Hawaii, and Guam, the year 2017 figures were updated
from the 2016 ``State Index'' based on the ratio of the urban change in
the state (using Anchorage for Alaska and Honolulu for Hawaii and Guam)
compared to the West regional metropolitan change, and then applying
that index to the West regional metropolitan change.
Data on 23 selected Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) are also
available. These are based on annual average CPI-U changes for a 12-
month period ending in December 2016. The updated LLSIL figures for
these MSAs and 70 percent of LLSIL are reported in Appendix C, Table 3.
Appendix D, Table 4 lists each of the various figures at 70 percent
of the updated 2016 LLSIL for family sizes of one to six persons.
Because Tables 1-3 only list the LLSIL for a family of four, Table 4
can be used to separately determine the LLSIL for families of between
one and six persons. For families larger than six persons, an amount
equal to the difference between the six-person and the five-person
family income levels should be added to the six-person family income
level for each additional person in the family. Where the poverty level
for a particular family size is greater than the corresponding 70
percent of the LLSIL figure, the figure is shaded. On the ETA LLSIL Web
site at http://www.doleta.gov/llsil, a modified Microsoft Excel version
of Appendix D, Table 4, with the area names and the LLSILs, that are
lower than the Poverty level at a given family size will be shaded;
will be available. Appendix E, Table 5, indicates 100 percent of LLSIL
for family sizes of one to six, and is used to determine self-
sufficiency as noted at Section 3(36)(a)(ii) and Section 3 (36)(B),
(C)(ii) in WIOA.
II. Use of These Data
Governors should designate the appropriate LLSILs for use within
the
[[Page 23597]]
State from Appendices A, B, and C, containing Tables 1 through 3.
Appendices D and E, which contain Tables 4 and 5, which adjust a family
of four figure for larger and smaller families, may be used with any
LLSIL designated area. The governor's designation may be provided by
disseminating information on MSAs and metropolitan and non-metropolitan
areas within the state or it may involve further calculations. For
example, the State of New Jersey may have four or more LLSIL figures
for Northeast metropolitan, Northeast non-metropolitan, portions of the
state in the New York City MSA, and those in the Philadelphia MSA. If a
workforce investment area includes areas that would be covered by more
than one LLSIL figure, the governor may determine which is to be used.
A state's policies and measures for the workforce investment system
shall be accepted by the Secretary to the extent that they are
consistent with WIOA and WIOA regulations.
III. Disclaimer on Statistical Uses
It should be noted that publication of these figures is only for
the purpose of meeting the requirements specified by WIOA as defined in
the law and regulations. BLS has not revised the lower living family
budget since 1981, and has no plans to do so. The four-person urban
family budget estimates series has been terminated. The CPI-U
adjustments used to update LLSIL for this publication are not precisely
comparable, most notably because certain tax items were included in the
1981 LLSIL, but are not in the CPI-U. Thus, these figures should not be
used for any statistical purposes, and are valid only for those
purposes under WIOA as defined in the law and regulations.
Appendix A
Table 1--Lower Living Standard Income Level (for a Family of Four
Persons) by Region \1\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2017 adjusted 70 percent
Region \1\ LLSIL LLSIL
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northeast: \2\ .............. ..............
Metro............................... $42,965 $30,075
Non-Metro \3\....................... 42,370 29,659
Midwest: .............. ..............
Metro............................... 37,679 26,376
Non-Metro........................... 36,312 25,418
South: .............. ..............
Metro............................... 36,555 25,588
Non-Metro........................... 35,995 25,197
West: .............. ..............
Metro............................... 42,033 29,423
Non-Metro \4\....................... 41,838 29,287
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ For ease of use, these figures are rounded to the next highest
dollar.
\2\ Metropolitan area measures were calculated from the weighted average
CPI-U's for city size classes A and B/C. Non-metropolitan area
measures were calculated from the CPI-U's for city size class D.
\3\ Non-metropolitan area percent changes for the Northeast region are
no longer available. The Non-metropolitan percent change was
calculated using the U.S. average CPI-U for city size class D.
\4\ Non-metropolitan area percent changes for the West region are based
on unpublished BLS data.
Appendix B
Table 2--Lower Living Standard Income Level (for a Family of Four
Persons), for Alaska, Hawaii and Guam \1\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2017 adjusted 70 percent
Region \1\ LLSIL LLSIL
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alaska: .............. ..............
Metro................................... $48,090 $33,663
Non-Metro \2\........................... 54,109 37,876
Hawaii, Guam: .............. ..............
Metro................................... 53,638 37,547
Non-Metro \2\........................... 57,765 40,436
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ For ease of use, these figures are rounded to the next highest
dollar.
\2\ Non-Metropolitan percent changes for Alaska, Hawaii and Guam were
calculated from the CPI-U's for all urban consumers for city size
class D in the Western Region. Generally the non-metro areas LLSIL is
lower than the LLSIL in metro areas. This year the non-metro area
LLSIL incomes were larger because the change in CPI-U was smaller in
the metro areas compared to the change in CPI-U in the non-metro areas
of Alaska, Hawaii and Guam.
Appendix C
Table 3--Lower Living Standard Income Level (for a Family of Four
Persons), for 23 selected MSAs \1\
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) 2017 adjusted 70 percent
\1\ LLSIL LLSIL
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anchorage, AK........................... $49,293 $34,505
Atlanta, GA............................. 34,954 24,468
Boston-Brockton-Nashua, MA/NH/ME/CT..... 46,026 32,218
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Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL/IN/WI.......... 38,045 26,632
Cincinnati-Hamilton, OH/KY/IN........... 36,945 25,862
Cleveland-Akron, OH..................... 37,876 26,513
Dallas-Ft. Worth, TX.................... 34,653 24,257
Denver-Boulder-Greeley, CO.............. 40,002 28,002
Detroit-Ann Arbor-Flint, MI............. 35,765 25,035
Honolulu, HI............................ 54,603 38,222
Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX.......... 35,399 24,779
Kansas City, MO/KS...................... 35,441 24,808
Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA. 42,947 30,063
Milwaukee-Racine, WI.................... 36,926 25,848
Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN/WI............. 37,533 26,273
New York-Northern NJ-Long Island, NY/NJ/ 45,503 31,852
CT/PA..................................
Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City, 41,101 28,770
PA/NJ/DE/MD............................
Pittsburgh, PA.......................... 45,659 31,962
St. Louis, MO/IL........................ 34,834 24,384
San Diego, CA........................... 47,861 33,502
San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose, CA...... 46,750 32,725
Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton, WA............ 46,008 32,206
Washington-Baltimore, DC/MD/VA/WV \2\... 46,097 32,268
------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ For ease of use, these figures are rounded to the next highest
dollar.
\2\ Baltimore and Washington are calculated as a single metropolitan
statistical area.
Appendix D
Table 4: 70 Percent of Updated 2016 Lower Living Standard Income Level
(LLSIL), by Family Size
To use the 70 percent LLSIL value, where it is stipulated for
the WIOA programs, begin by locating the region or metropolitan area
where the program applicant resides. These are listed in Tables 1, 2
and 3. After locating the appropriate region or metropolitan
statistical area, find the 70 percent LLSIL amount for that
location. The 70 percent LLSIL figures are listed in the last column
to the right on each of the three tables. These figures apply to a
family of four. Larger and smaller family eligibility is based on a
percentage of the family of four. To determine eligibility for other
size families consult Table 4 and the instructions below.
To use Table 4, locate the 70 percent LLSIL value that applies
to the individual's region or metropolitan area from Tables 1, 2 or
3. Find the same number in the ``family of four'' column of Table 4.
Move left or right across that row to the size that corresponds to
the individual's family unit. That figure is the maximum household
income the individual is permitted in order to qualify as
economically disadvantaged under the WIOA.
Where the HHS poverty level for a particular family size is
greater than the corresponding LLSIL figure, the LLSIL figure
appears in a shaded block. Individuals from these size families may
consult the 2017 HHS poverty guidelines found on the Health and
Human Services Web site at https://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty-guidelines
to find the higher eligibility standard. Individuals from Alaska and
Hawaii should consult the HHS guidelines for the generally higher
poverty levels that apply in their States.
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Appendix E
Table 5: Updated 2015 LLSIL (100 percent), by Family Size
To use the LLSIL to determine the minimum level for establishing
self-sufficiency criteria at the State or local level, begin by
locating the metropolitan area or region from Table 1, 2 or 3. Then
locate the appropriate region or metropolitan statistical area and
then find the 2017 adjusted LLSIL amount for that location. These
figures apply to a family of four. Locate the corresponding number
in the family of four in the column below. Move left or right across
that row to the size that corresponds to the individual's family
unit. That figure is the minimum figure that States must set for
determining whether employment leads to self-sufficiency under WIOA
programs.
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Family of one Family of two Family of three Family of four Family of five Family of six
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12482 20455 28077 34653 40901 47828
12550 20560 28221 34834 41110 48072
12585 20626 28324 34954 41251 48239
12754 20895 28678 35399 41777 48857
12759 20914 28716 35441 41825 48915
12880 21102 28974 35765 42205 49354
12968 21245 29159 35995 42478 49676
13085 21425 29416 36312 42861 50123
13166 21573 29609 36555 43144 50459
13293 21789 29914 36926 43577 50962
13304 21806 29935 36945 43602 50989
13517 22150 30410 37533 44298 51804
13566 22237 30522 37679 44463 52008
13638 22357 30684 37876 44700 52270
13697 22456 30816 38045 44900 52513
14407 23609 32411 40002 47205 55209
14805 24255 33296 41101 48509 56723
15064 24688 33896 41838 49378 57750
15133 24800 34050 42033 49600 58014
15256 25008 34330 42370 50006 58471
15462 25339 34789 42947 50678 59275
15473 25359 34805 42965 50707 59295
16384 26853 36859 45503 53694 62805
16446 26950 36993 45659 53888 63018
16572 27160 37292 46026 54318 63518
16573 27148 37272 46008 54295 63495
16602 27207 37345 46097 54405 63627
16839 27592 37870 46750 55171 64526
17239 28240 38774 47861 56481 66057
17321 28376 38960 48090 56752 66376
17754 29093 39932 49293 58175 68026
19321 31650 43456 53638 63299 74032
19488 31925 43833 54109 63852 74670
19665 32218 44229 54603 64434 75363
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20802 34090 46794 57765 68167 79719
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Signed at Washington, DC, this 14 of April, 2017.
Byron Zuidema,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training Administration.
[FR Doc. 2017-10496 Filed 5-22-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-FT-P