Utah Valley Times

WASHINGTON—At a Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing on the reauthorization of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), U.S. Senator Mitt Romney (R-UT) emphasized the significance of his One Door to Work Act. The proposed legislation aims to transition individuals from social safety net programs into the workforce by allowing states to adopt Utah's model of consolidating federal workforce development and social safety net programs within a single state entity.

Senator Romney stated, "A governor smarter than me, Mike Leavitt of Utah, had an idea which was instead of having all these offices separate—the job training, and the TANF, and the housing, and so forth—let’s have one office and let that one office help an individual that became unemployed."

Romney explained that this approach has been effective in Utah but is currently prohibited at the federal level for other states. His legislation seeks to enable up to eight additional states to implement a similar model.

Mr. Matthew Dickerson from Louisiana expressed support for the initiative: "Yes, sir. That’s the work of our Louisiana Workforce and Social Service Reform Task Force... It’s not only for the employee but also for the employer." He noted that proper staffing and education are crucial for these centers to function effectively.

Romney added, "Governor Leavitt and the Utah program assign a caseworker as soon as someone becomes unemployed... It’s an extraordinary program working well in the State of Utah."

The background information provided highlights that most federal workforce development funds bypass state agencies, leading to fragmented administration. In 1997, under Governor Mike Leavitt, Utah consolidated these programs under one organization—the Department of Workforce Services—which has since demonstrated improved efficiency in transitioning individuals into employment.

The One Door to Work Act aims to replicate this success in other states on a temporary basis to evaluate its effectiveness.

For more details on Senator Romney's proposal or to subscribe to his email newsletter, further information can be found through provided links.

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