This week, Acting Secretary of Labor Seth D. Harris released the U.S. Department of Labor's fiscal year 2014 budget request.
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Get Your Report Now!According to a DOL press release, the budget for the DOL requests $12.1 billion in discretionary funding. In addition, the budget request provides $150 million for a competitive Workforce Innovation Fund to test new evidence-based workforce development strategies and bold systemic reforms coming from states and localities.
Highlights of the FY 2014 budget request also include:
- Nearly $14 million to combat the misclassification of workers as independent contractors.
- An additional $3.4 million for the Wage and Hour Division to support greater enforcement of the Fair Labor Standards Act and the Family and Medical Leave Act.
- $5 million for the creation of a State Paid Leave Fund to assist workers who need to take time off to care for a child or other family member.
- An initiative to encourage companies to fully fund their pension benefits by authorizing the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). board to adjust premiums and take into account the risks that different retirement plan sponsors pose to their retirees. Under the initiative, the PBGC is estimated to save $25 billion over the next decade.
Finally, says the press release, the DOL’s FY 2014 budget request continues existing efforts to enhance program effectiveness and improve efficiency. The Department will invest in program evaluations to be overseen by the chief evaluation officer and requests increased authority to set aside funds from major program accounts for more evaluations. These investments will provide the department with valuable information about strategies and approaches that work so that resources can be allocated strategically.
For more information on the FY 2014 budget request for the Department of Labor, go to http://www.dol.gov/budget.