Title
AZ QUEST Grant - Request to Amend Contracts with Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity and Maricopa County Community College District (Ordinance S-51204)
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to extend the term of the Intergovernmental Agreements (IGAs) 158733-0 and 159695-0 with the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) and Maricopa County Community College District (MCCCD) to administer the Arizona Quality Jobs, Equity, Strategy, and Training (AZ QUEST) Disaster Recovery National Dislocated Worker Grants.
Report
Summary
The U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (US DOL) issued $199 million in Quality Jobs, Equity, Strategy, and Training (QUEST) Disaster Recovery National Dislocated Worker Grants to create jobs and provide employment and training services to individuals impacted by COVID-19. OEO was awarded a two-year grant for approximately $15 million, and in partnership with the City of Phoenix Community and Economic Development Department (CEDD) on behalf of the Phoenix Business and Workforce Development Board (Board), and the Cochise, Mohave/La Paz, Yavapai, and Yuma County Workforce Development Boards, designed the AZ QUEST program.
CEDD, on behalf of the Board, was awarded approximately $5 million in AZ QUEST funding to support up to 925 participants impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The grant provides tuition assistance and covers other expenses such as books, fees, and support services, ensuring alignment in objectives and maximizing the impact of resources for dislocated workers. CEDD executed an IGA with MCCCD to cover staffing, tuition, support service, equipment, marketing, and indirect costs for AZ QUEST participants attending a Maricopa County Community College.
AZ QUEST funding was used to leverage existing Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)-funded programs. The additional funding allowed the City to enhance service delivery and maximize resources to better support laid-off workers by providing access to training offered by the WIOA-eligible training provider list. This includes apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs in high-demand industries such as manufacturing, logistics, healthcare, science, and professional and technical services. Additional assistance included support for expenses such as books, fees, and support services. To date, 521 participants have been enrolled in the City's AZ QUEST program, and $879,973.11 has been utilized for tuition and support services.
Contract Term
If approved, the MCCCD and OEO IGAs will be amended to add a one-year extension to the contract terms, to expire in August 2025 and September 2025 respectively.
Financial Impact
There is no impact to the General Fund. AZ QUEST grant funds are from the US DOL thru the OEO. To date the program has utilized $879,973.11 in funding with a remaining $4 million left to be spent during the extension year.
Concurrence/Previous Council Action
City Council approved IGAs 158733-0 and 159695 (Ordinance S-49218) on December 7, 2022.
Department
Responsible Department
This is submitted by Deputy City Manager John Chan and the Community and Economic Development Department.