WIOA Youth Activities

Authority

WIOA Youth Activities is authorized by Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Title I, Subtitle B, Chapter 2 (secs. 126-129); use of funds at sec. 129; state allotments at sec. 127, administered by DOL / ETA, as a formula program. Statute.

State allotment formula under WIOA sec. 127 (29 U.S.C. 3162), three factors each weighted one-third: (1) relative number of unemployed individuals in Areas of Substantial Unemployment (ASUs); (2) relative number of excess unemployed individuals (or excess unemployed in ASUs, whichever is higher); (3) relative number of disadvantaged youth (ages 16-21, from Census/ACS special tabulations). Minimums and caps: no state below 90 percent of its prior-year allotment percentage and 0.25 percent state minimum floor; no state above 130 percent of its prior-year allotment percentage. For PY 2025 and PY 2026 the state total was below the $1 billion threshold in WIOA sec. 127(b)(1)(C)(iv)(IV), so additional minimum provisions did not apply. Reservations off the top: 4 percent of the amount exceeding $925,000,000 for MSFW Youth (when appropriation exceeds $925M); up to 1.5 percent for Native American Youth; 0.25 percent for Outlying Areas. No match requirement on the formula allotment.

Allocations by jurisdiction

60 jurisdictions, from the published allocation table.

Where the money lands

Place-of-performance obligations by state, with per-capita, sealed in the location chain.

Top recipients

Source documents

12 primary documents, parsed and sealed by content hash.

• 29 U.S.C. 3164 - Use of funds for youth workforce investment activities (WIOA sec. 129) statute
• 29 U.S.C. 3162 - State allotments (WIOA sec. 127) statute
• Public Law 113-128 - Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act statute
• 20 CFR Part 681 - Youth Activities Under Title I of WIOA regulation
• 20 CFR Part 681 Subpart B - Eligibility for Youth Services regulation
• Federal Register: PY 2026 WIOA Title I Allotments (Youth Activities Table A), 90 FR (Apr. 28, 2026) allocation-table
• Federal Register: PY 2025 WIOA Title I Allotments (Youth Activities Table A), 90 FR 21339 (May 19, 2025) allocation-table
• WIOA Youth Formula Program (official ETA program page) fact-sheet
• TEGL No. 11-24 - PY 2025 WIOA Title I Allotments and application instructions (Appendix I: Youth allotments) guidance
• TEGL No. 10-25 - PY 2026 WIOA Title I Allotments and application instructions guidance
• Grants.gov opportunity ETA-TEGL-10-25-YOUTH (PY 2026 WIOA Youth allotments) grants-gov, 1 tables
• Grants.gov opportunity ETA-TEGL-11-24-YOUTH (PY 2025 WIOA Youth allotments) grants-gov, 1 tables

Questions

How does WIOA Youth Activities money reach recipients?

Direct formula (non-competitive) allotment to states. ETA allots Youth Activities funds to each state by statutory formula; the Governor reserves a portion for statewide activities and distributes the remainder by formula to local Workforce Development Boards, which procure or operate youth services delivered through American Job Centers and youth service providers. Outlying Areas receive funds by an administrative formula (competition waived for PY 2025 and PY 2026); a Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Youth reservation and a Native American Youth reservation are awarded separately under WIOA sec. 127.

How much federal funding does WIOA Youth Activities represent?

As of 2026-06-05, $2.5B was obligated across 136 active awards to 47 recipients in 56 states and 5 counties. This is a sealed point-in-time figure from USAspending, the federal system of record.

What law authorizes WIOA Youth Activities?

WIOA Youth Activities is authorized by Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Title I, Subtitle B, Chapter 2 (secs. 126-129); use of funds at sec. 129; state allotments at sec. 127, administered by DOL / ETA.