Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Reauthorization
In May 2003 the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation reauthorizing the Workforce Investment Act (WIA)–the largest source of federal funding for employment and training programs, including job training, adult basic education, and English-as-a-second-language (ESL) instruction. The Workforce Reinvestment and Adult Education Act (H.R. 1261) contains several provisions that move the WIA program in the right direction. However, taken as a whole, the legislation fails to respond to the needs of Latino workers and job seekers in a meaningful way.