Joint Guidance on Data Matching to Facilitate WIOA Performance Reporting and Evaluation

Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)

In July 2014, Congress enacted the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to provide greater training and work search opportunities to unemployed Americans, especially those who exhaust unemployment benefits and continue to be unemployed or underemployed. To achieve that end, Congress required that, in measuring the progress of the state on state and local performance accountability measures that apply across core programs, states use quarterly wage records consistent with state law. WIOA also requires that states, to the extent practicable, cooperate in conducting evaluations (including related research projects), which includes providing data. In addition, under WIOA eligible training providers are required to report employment outcomes, and will benefit from states enabling cross-matching with wage records and education and training provider records. The Departments of Labor and Education issued this joint guidance on data matching to facilitate performance reporting and evaluation.