Announcement of Integrity Grants to States Funding Opportunity under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA)

Background
The U.S. Department of Labor’s (Department) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is announcing a comprehensive and strategic approach to deploying remaining Unemployment Insurance (UI) modernization funds to strengthen the integrity of the UI system under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The purpose is to prevent and detect fraud, promote equitable access, and ensure timely payment of benefits concerning the UI program.

Grant Details
The grant opportunities include up to $100 million in Integrity Grants to states to protect the UI program from fraudulent activity, increase resources dedicated to overpayment recovery, strengthen ID verification, and implement recommended and required fraud prevention and overpayment recovery strategies. Additionally, there are funding opportunities for Information Technology (IT) Modernization grants and Tiger Team grants. The IT Modernization grants aim to help states adopt new strategies to modernize and rearchitect their UI programs to better defend against fraud threats now and prepare for challenges in the future. The Tiger Team grants provide funding for states to implement negotiated recommendations that directly and indirectly address fraud prevention, timely payment of benefits, and equitable access to benefits.

Eligibility Requirements
State Workforce Agency Administrators are requested to review the funding opportunities and coordinate with appropriate state staff to develop Initial Applications for the opportunities they wish to apply for. States must submit all Initial Application materials electronically no later than 11:59 pm Eastern Time on August 18, 2023. The grant application process will be completed in two stages, an Initial Application and a later Full Project Plan.

Period of Performance
The periods of performance for each funding opportunity are described in the respective subsections of the document.

Grant Value
The total value of the grant is up to $100 million in Integrity Grants for states. Additionally, there are separate grant opportunities for IT Modernization grants and Tiger Team grants.