What's New in RSA

In a February 2024 Dear Colleague Letter, RSA Commissioner Danté Allen prioritized elevating community expectations for competitive integrated employment by showcasing success stories of individuals with disabilities who receive services from RSA Programs. 

From June through November 2024, RSA will publish a series on OSERS' Blog: 

• June: Discovering a New Career through Vocational Rehabilitation
• July: Career Advancement through the Disability Innovation Fund
• August: Gaining Independence through the IL-OIB Program 

On July 9, 2024, RSA announced that FFY 2024 reallotment will run July 15-August 15, 2024 for the following formula grant programs: 

• State Vocational Rehabilitation Services (Assistance Listing Number (ALN) 84.126A).
• Client Assistance Program (ALN 84.161A);
• Independent Living Services for Older Individuals Who Are Blind (ALN 84.177B);
• State Supported Employment Services-A (ALN 84.187A);
• State Supported Employment Services-B (ALN 84.187B); and
• Protection and Advocacy of Individual Rights (ALN 84.240A)

For more information, please review these instructions. 

Through joint policy guidance issued on March 22, 2024, ED and DOL announced the Departments would update the joint policy guidance related to the WIOA Performance Accountability system to incorporate the regulatory definition of Effectiveness in Serving Employers during FFY 2024. 

On June 11, 2024, ED and DOL announced this update is complete and RSA reissued TAC-17-01 titled Performance Accountability Guidance for WIOA Core Programs. This joint policy guidance rescinds and replaces TAC 17-01, published on September 15, 2022.

RSA is seeking qualified peer reviewers for the FY 2024 Disability Innovation Fund (DIF): Creating a 21st Century Workforce of Youth and Adults with Disabilities through the Transformation of Education, Career, and Competitive Integrated Employment Model Demonstration Project (Assistance Listing Number 84.421F). Individuals who have subject matter expertise in the following area(s) of interest are encouraged to apply:

• Youth and/or Adults with Disabilities
• Competitive Integrated Employment
• Advanced Technology and/or Assistive Technology
• Justice-Involved Youth with Disabilities or with the Juvenile Justice System
• Acquired Disabilities
• Disconnected Youth and/or Disconnected Adults with Disabilities
• Special Education
• Vocational Rehabilitation or related discipline

More information is available here. Please direct all questions to Alexander Fu with Lux Consulting Group. 

On May 20, 2024, RSA published a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL 24-03) from Commissioner Allen in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month and to highlight the importance of mental health and the power of the VR program to help individuals with mental health conditions live fulfilling and meaningful lives. The letter also highlights mental health resources from a range of Federal government agencies and encourages the VR agencies to support participants as they navigate mental health-related barriers and seek competitive integrated employment and integration into the community.

RSA is pleased to support the U.S. Department of Education’s Raise the Bar initiative, specifically its goal of ensuring every student has an onramp to postsecondary education and training by establishing and scaling innovative systems of college and career pathways that integrate high schools, colleges, careers, and communities and lead to students earning industry-recognized credentials and securing in-demand jobs.

In supporting this goal, RSA is pleased to announce significant improvement in the delivery of pre-employment transition services to students with disabilities, which is one of the metrics the Department tracks under Raise the Bar: Postsecondary and Career Pathways: 

• In FFY 2022, 42 States met the requirement to reserve and expend 15 percent of the State’s matched Federal VR allotment to provide pre-employment transition services to students with disabilities. This is an increase of 14 States from FFY 2021. 
• From FFY 2021 to FFY 2022, 37 States increased the percentage of Federal funds reserved and expended for these services. This amounted to over $46 million in additional Federal dollars being spent on pre-employment transition services in FFY 2022. 
• In Program Year 2022, VR agencies provided over 1.6 million pre-employment transition services to roughly 280,000 students with disabilities.

This progress is highlighted in a new Data Visualization that the Department recently published. 

On April 10, 2024, RSA participated in the Spring 2024 conferences of the Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation (CSAVR) and National Council of State Agencies for Blind (NSCAB) in Bethesda, MD. 

• At CSAVR, RSA shared this presentation, which includes fiscal and performance updates along with news from the Training and Service Programs Division. This session also included panelists from the Administration for Community Living's Assistive Technology Program and the Maryland Department of Disabilities. 
• At NCSAB, RSA shared a similar presentation highlighting success stories of the 22 Blind VR agencies.

On April 9, 2024, RSA issued a Notice Inviting Applications (NIA) for its next Disability Innovation Fund (DIF) project and announced that it intends fund multiple projects focused on activities aimed at increasing competitive integrated employment, as defined in Rehabilitation Act of 1973, for youth and other individuals with disabilities under the umbrella of Creating a 21st Century Workforce of Youth and Adults With Disabilities Through the Transformation of Education, Career, and Competitive Integrated Employment. 

Applications are due by July 8, 2024. The application package is available on Grants.gov. Eligible Applicants, including State Educational Agencies, State Juvenile Justice agencies, State Developmental Disabilities agencies, State Department of Health, State Department of Human Services agencies, VR agencies, and Public, Private, and Nonprofit Entities, including Indian Tribes and Institutions of Higher Education, are invited to compete for grants totaling $236 million.

Learn more about the new DIF project here. On May 1, 2024, RSA will host a pre-application webinar; pre-register here. Email any questions related to this DIF project to [email protected]. 

On April 5, 2024, RSA published new policy guidance, Use of VR Program Funds for Initial Stocks and Supplies and Operating Expenses for Vendors Under the Randolph-Sheppard Vending Facilities Program (RSA-TAC-24-03). 

This TAC clarifies pertinent Federal requirements and describes flexibilities in determining the “initial establishment period” and when “initial stocks and supplies” and “initial operating expenses” are allowable under the VR program, authorized under Title I of the Rehabilitation Act, for the benefit of the Randolph-Sheppard Vending Facilities Program. 

VR agencies and BEP programs should contact the Financial Management Specialist assigned to their State with any questions. 

On March 22, 2024, RSA shared the Negotiations Tool it will use to establish Negotiated Levels of Performance with State VR programs for the performance indicators for PYs 2024 and 2025. Like the prior tool for PYs 2022 and 2023, this tool also includes the Estimated Levels of Performance, produced by RSA's Statistical Adjustment Model (SAM), and data related to the other negotiation factors (e.g., continuous improvement and comparative performance). In April 2024, RSA and State VR programs will finalize Negotiated Levels of Performance. 

On February 23, 2024, RSA published its SAM for PYs 2024 and 2025. The SAM provides the Estimated Levels of Performance, including the coefficients and State-specific values for each variable, for each of the five WIOA performance indicators. 

For more information related to how RSA uses the SAM in both the negotiations and performance assessment processes, please review the joint policy guidance RSA issued with its Federal partners: RSA-TAC-20-02 (May 10, 2023).