Section 2003(f) of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)provides for unemployment insurance (UI) Âmodernization incentive payments to be made from the Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF) to the states. The total amount available for all states is $7 billion dollars. To obtain its share, the state must make an application to the Department of Labor demonstrating that its UI law contains certain benefit eligibility provisions. The last date on which an incentive distribution may be made is September 30, 2011. When applying for a share of the UI modernization incentive payments, a state must document that the provisions of its law meet the requirements for obtaining an incentive payment. The state is also required to describe how it intends to use any incentive payment to improve or strengthen its UI program.
The burden has been reduced because 17 states have already submitted their applications. This is a one-time data request, so once a state has submitted its application, it may not do so again. As a result, the burden is decreased to from 424 to 288 hours to reflect the smaller universe of respondents. This is again a conservative estimate in that some states may choose not to access these modernization funds.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.