California was the recent beneficiary of some federal funds, as the U.S. Department of Labor announced the award of more than $7.4 million to support continued disaster-relief employment and workforce training for state residents affected by severe winter storms that occurred in late 2022 and early 2023.

On April 13, 2023, the department announced a National Dislocated Worker Grant of up to $22 million – with an initial award of $7.4 million – for the California Employment Development Department to provide people with temporary jobs focused on debris removal, water damage cleanup and the delivery of humanitarian assistance to those in need after the storms. Funding also supports career and training services.

Between Dec. 27, 2022, and Jan. 31, 2023, a series of winter storms and atmospheric rivers swept through California and caused damage in 51 of the state’s 58 counties. The storms produced flooding and mudslides, toppled trees, created sinkholes and damaged public and private lands. The Federal Emergency Management Agency issued a major disaster declaration on Jan. 14, 2023, enabling California to request federal assistance for recovery efforts.

Administered by the department’s Employment and Training Administration, and supported by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014, National Dislocated Worker Grants provide funding assistance to temporarily expand the service capacity of dislocated worker programs at the state and local levels when large, unexpected economic events cause significant job losses.