Skip to main content

Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (WIOA Title II) Performance Negotiations

PERFORMANCE NEGOTIATION FACTORS

In reaching agreement on the negotiated levels of performance, states and the Departments must apply the following four factors pursuant to section 116(b)(3)(A)(v) of WIOA. Note that WIOA does not specify more or less weight on any specific negotiation factor.

  1. Take into account how the levels involved compare with the negotiated levels of performance established for other states (section 116(b)(3)(A)(v)(I) of WIOA).
  2. Ensure that the levels involved are adjusted using an objective statistical adjustment model provided by the Departments (section 116(b)(3)(A)(v)(II) of WIOA).
  3. Take into account the extent to which the levels involved promote continuous improvement in performance accountability measures by the state and ensure optimal return on the investment of Federal funds (section 116(b)(3)(A)(v)(III) of WIOA).
  4. Take into account the extent to which the levels involved will assist the state in meeting the performance goals established by the Secretaries of Education and Labor in accordance with the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993 (GPRA) (section 116(b)(3)(A)(v)(IV) of WIOA).

PERFORMANCE NEGOTIATION WORKBOOK

The performance negotiation workbook contains the statistical adjustment model performance estimates for each state (estimate zero), PY 2024 performance quartiles, and federal GPRA targets.

Excel icon Performance Negotiation Workbook for States (Excel)

STATISTICAL ADJUSTMENT MODEL

Section 116 of the Workforce Opportunity and Innovation Act (WIOA) requires the development and dissemination of an objective statistical model that will be used to make adjustments to negotiated levels of performance for actual economic conditions and characteristics of participants. The statistical adjustment model was developed in collaboration and coordination among the WIOA core programs in the federal partner agencies.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) uses a statistical model to generate predicted levels of performance for each indicator. These performance predictions are one of four factors used to inform the process by which the negotiated levels of performance are established by state offices of adult education and OCTAE. Once actual PY data are available for those years, the negotiated levels of performance are adjusted based on actual economic conditions and characteristics of participants within the state. OCTAE’s partners in developing the statistical adjustment model are the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) in the U.S. Department of Education and the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) in the U.S. Department of Labor.

PY 2026-27 AND PY 2027-28 STATISTICAL MODELING TOOL

The PY 2026-27 and PY 2027-28 Statistical Modeling Tool includes information on the model used in the spring of 2026, predicted performance indicator values, and past levels of performance. The tool focuses on the modeling process for the state indicator values used in the PY 2026-27 and PY 2027-28 negotiations process and provides information on how those predicted values were calculated. It includes the relevant data for each state. To look at a particular state in the tool, please download the tool and select the state name from the dropdown menu on the MSG Model sheet. All other indicator sheets will automatically populate with that state’s values.

Excel icon PY 2026-27 and PY 2027-28 Statistical Modeling Tool (Excel)

STATISTICAL ADJUSTMENT MODEL RESOURCES

OCTAE program memoranda can be found here: https://www.ed.gov/adult-programs/adult-education-laws-and-policy/career-technical-and-adult-education-program-memoranda. 

An overview of the statistical adjustment model can be found in this webinar: https://nrsweb.org/training-ta/statistical-adjustment-model. The webinar includes discussion of how the model works; the data used in the models; applying the model for performance assessment; data quality and performance assessment; and resources available online.