A custodial parent of a dependent child who fails to notify the W-2 agency of the absence of the dependent child from the home due to child welfare issues by the end of the 5-day period that begins with the date that that the parent knows that the child is absent from the home is not eligible for W-2. The W-2 agency shall accept a report of a child's temporary absence from the home by the child welfare agency as a report from the parent and shall inform the parent of the child welfare agency's report.

The current rules on job access loans provides that W-2 agencies shall issue a job access loan to an eligible individual in an amount not less than $25 and not more than $1,600 in any 12-month period. The maximum allowable amount for all loans and the maximum outstanding balance for each individual receiving a job access loan is $1,600.

The proposed rules will increase the maximum allowable job access loan amount in any 12-month period and the maximum outstanding balance for each individual receiving a job access loan to $2,500 if the loan will be used to purchase a vehicle that is needed to obtain or continue employment. The maximum loan amount and outstanding balance will remain at $1,600 in all other cases.

A longer W-2 eligibility period when the child is absent from the home due to child welfare issues will support service integration between the W-2 and child welfare programs and help stabilize and support families for reunification with their children.

A $2,500 maximum job access loan rather than a $1,600 maximum job access loan is closer to the amount necessary to obtain a vehicle that will be reliable for commuting to work.

42 USC 608 (10) requires denial of assistance for a minor child who has been, or is expected by a parent to be absent from the home for a period of 45 consecutive days, or at the option of the State., such period of not less than 30 and not more than 180 consecutive days as the State may provide for the State plan. The State may establish good cause exceptions to this provision as it considers appropriate if the exceptions are provided for in the State plan.

There are no comparable federal requirements relating to job access loans.

Iowa. Eligibility for temporary absence of child when the reason for the absence not specifically designated is limited to 3 months. Eligibility for temporary absence if the child is in medical institution limited to one year. Eligibility for individual 16 to 19 years old who is enrolled in elementary or secondary school full time is allowed. No special provision for absence due to child welfare issues.

Minnesota. Eligibility for a child out of the home due to placement in foster care if the placement will not be paid under Title IV-E of the Social Security Act is limited to 6 months. Eligibility for a child out of the home due to vacation, incarceration, or run away is limited to 2 months. Eligibility for absence due to hospitalization or illness is limited to 6 months. Eligibility for absence due to child's enrollment in education curricula that cannot be met by the local public school district is allowed.

Illinois. Eligibility for temporary absence when the reason is not specified is limited to an absence of 3 months or less, except if the absence is due to hospitalization, training, or education. A consent decree exists that allows eligibility for parents whose children have been or could be removed from the home due to allegations of environmental neglect or inadequate shelter, beds, food, or clothing or children who are in custody of the child welfare agency, regardless of the reason, and the child welfare agency has required the parents to obtain adequate living arrangements for the family as a condition of return of the children. Active participants may continue to receive benefits for up to 180 days after the children are removed from the home. Applicants may be approved for benefits for up to 90 days prior to the children's return. A family is not eligible if all children are in custody of the child welfare agency, but the reasons do not fall within the terms of the consent decree.

Michigan. Eligibility for temporary absence when the reason is not specified is limited to an absence of 30 days or less, except if the absence is due to hospitalization, training, or education. Eligibility for a parent of a child in foster care is allowed for up to one year if there is a plan to return the child to the parent's home.

The proposed rules affect small businesses, but do not have a significant impact on a substantial number of small businesses.

The DWD Small Business Regulatory Coordinator is Elaine Pridgen, elaine.pridgen@dwd.state.wi.us, (608) 267-9403.

A longer W-2 eligibility period when the child is absent from the home due to child welfare issues may initially increase the amount that private W-2 agencies spend on W-2 benefits. The increased W-2 benefits for families with child welfare issues will help stabilize these families and will address issues that would otherwise be barriers to employment, which will save money that would otherwise need to be spent for W-2 services.

Some private agencies provide child welfare services, especially in Milwaukee. The increased service integration between the W-2 and child welfare programs should decrease costs for child welfare agencies.

A longer W-2 eligibility period when the child is absent from the home due to child welfare issues may initially increase the amount that some counties spend on W-2 benefits. The increased W-2 benefits for families with child welfare issues will help stabilize these families and will address issues that would otherwise be barriers to employment, which will save money that would otherwise need to be spent for W-2 services. The increased service integration between W-2 and child welfare programs should decrease costs for county child welfare agencies.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to Sections 66.0903 (5), 103.49 (3g), 779.14 (1s), and 227.11 (2) (a), Stats., the Department of Workforce Development proposes to hold a public hearing to consider rules affecting chs. DWD 290 and 293, relating to the adjustment of thresholds for application of prevailing wage rates and payment and performance assurance requirements and affecting small businesses.

Interested persons are invited to appear at the hearing and will be afforded the opportunity to make an oral presentation of their positions. Persons making oral presentations are requested to submit their facts, views, and suggested rewording in writing.

Visitors to the GEF 1 building are requested to enter through the left East Washington Avenue door and register with the customer service desk. The entrance is accessible via a ramp from the corner of Webster Street and East Washington Avenue. If you have special needs or circumstances regarding communication or accessibility at the hearing, please call (608) 267-9403 at least 10 days prior to the hearing date. Accommodations such as ASL interpreters, English translators, or materials in audio format will be made available on request to the fullest extent possible.

Julie Eckenwalder, Construction Wage Standards Section Chief, (608) 266-3148, julie.eckenwalder@dwd.state.wi.us.

A copy of the proposed rules is also available at http://adminrules.wisconsin.gov. This site allows you to view documents associated with this rule's promulgation, register to receive email notification whenever the Department posts new information about this rulemaking order, and submit comments and view comments by others during the public comment period. You may receive a paper copy of the rule or fiscal estimate by contacting:

Written comments on the proposed rules received at the above address, email, or through the http://adminrules.wisconsin.gov web site no later than February 15, 2008, will be given the same consideration as testimony presented at the hearing.

Sections 66.0903 (5), 103.49 (3g), 779.14 (1s), and 227.11, Stats.

Sections 66.0903 (5), 103.49 (3g), and 779.14, Stats.

The prevailing wage laws require that when a state agency or local governmental unit contracts for the erection, construction, remodeling, repairing, or demolition of a public works project it must obtain a prevailing wage rate determination from the Department of Workforce Development and require that the contractors and subcontractors on the project pay their employees in accordance with those wage rates. Sections 66.0903 (5) and 103.49 (3g), Stats., set initial estimated project cost thresholds for application of the prevailing wage rate requirements and direct the Department to adjust the thresholds each year in proportion to any change in construction costs since the thresholds were last determined.

Section 779.14, Stats., sets payment and performance assurance requirements that apply to contracts for the performance of labor or furnishing of materials for a public improvement project or public work. Section 779.14 (1s), Stats., requires the Department to biennially adjust the thresholds for various requirements in proportion to any change in construction costs since the last adjustment if the adjustment to be made would not be less than 5%.

Section DWD 290.155 (1) currently provides that the prevailing wage rate requirements do not apply to any single-trade public works project for which the estimated cost of completion is below $44,000 and do not apply to any multi-trade public works project for which the estimated cost of completion is below $216,000. The proposed rule will adjust the thresholds from $44,000 to $45,000 for a single-trade project and from $216,000 to $221,000 for a multi-trade project based on a 2.25% increase in construction costs between December 2006 and December 2007.

Chapter DWD 293 provides adjusted thresholds for various payment and performance assurance requirements that apply to contracts with state or local governments for the performance of labor or furnishing of materials for a public improvement or public work. The proposed rule will adjust these thresholds to reflect a 5.78% increase in construction costs from December 2005 to December 2007.

Sections DWD 290.15 and 293.01 provide that the Department will adjust the thresholds on the basis of the change in the construction cost index as published in the Engineering News-Record, a national construction trade publication. Thresholds are rounded to the nearest thousand.

The threshold for application of the federal prevailing wage law is a contract greater than $2,000. The threshold for application of the federal contractor payment and performance bond requirements is $100,000. These thresholds are in statute and are rarely adjusted.

Minnesota has a statutory threshold of $2,500 for a single-trade project and $25,000 for a multi-trade project. Illinois does not have a threshold in its prevailing wage law. The law covers public works projects and defines public works projects as projects financed under various other specified laws. Michigan does not have a threshold in its prevailing wage law. The law covers projects that must be bid and relies on other agencies to determine the thresholds for what projects must be bid. Iowa does not have a prevailing wage law.

Minnesota has a public contractors' performance and payment bond requirement that applies to a contract that exceeds $75,000. Illinois requires a bond if a contract for a public work exceeds $5,000. Neither state appears to have a mechanism for adjustment of the thresholds, other than statutory amendment. Michigan has a performance bond requirement without a clear statutory threshold. The Department is not aware of a performance bond requirement for public works contracts in Iowa.

The rule affects small businesses as defined in s. 227.114 (1), Stats., but does not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses.

The Department's Small Business Regulatory Coordinator is Elaine Pridgen, elaine.pridgen@dwd.state.wi.us, (608) 267-9403.

Many construction companies are small businesses. The adjustment of the thresholds for application of the prevailing wage and payment and performance bond requirements prevent these provisions from affecting more and more public works projects over time due solely to the effects of inflation.

Under the rule, a state agency or local governmental unit contracting for the construction of a single-trade public works project that costs more than $44,000 but less than $45,000 or a multi-trade project that costs more than $216,000 but less than $221,000 is not covered by the prevailing wage requirement.

The adjustment of the threshold for performance bonds has a negligible effect on governmental bodies. If thresholds were not adjusted for inflation, public works contractors would have been required to get performance bonds on smaller projects and these costs would have been likely added to the project bid.