U.S. House and Senate committees recently introduced a bicameral agreement to reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Although the proposed bill includes some positive policy changes, several provisions raise concerns about reducing local flexibility and stakeholder involvement. Key issues include redesignation of local workforce development areas which may reduce local accountability and slow innovation by enabling single-area designations in many states. There have also been several One-Size-Fits-All mandates. These Federal mandates on training and work-experience requirements for youth could negatively impact underserved populations. There has also been an increased governor's set-aside for critical industries fund expanding state-level set-asides to 25% could limit resources for local implementation.

Advocacy efforts, including letters from the National League of Cities (NLC), U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM), and National Association of Counties (NACo), continue to push for greater flexibility, though movement on local redesignation provisions remains unlikely. Members are encouraged to engage Congress and share concerns here.