Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Office of WorkForce Investment (OWI) Federal Bonding Program

The Department of Labor (DOL), on behalf of the Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Office of Workforce Investment (OWI), has a requirement for a contractor to administer the Federal Bonding Program as defined in the attached Performance Work Statement (PWS). The Federal Bonding Program (FBP) was developed in the late 1960s by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to help employment service counselors place justice-involved and other at-risk individuals in private sector jobs. The program provides fidelity bonds to employers willing to hire at-risk individuals and protect employers from losses due to theft or other illegal acts of the bonded persons that they hire. The FBP remained a relatively small program, serving about 900 persons a year until 2019, when DOL expanded the program by competitively awarding $2.2 million in grants to 24 states to fund the purchase of fidelity bonds for employers hiring previously incarcerated individuals. In 2020, DOL awarded $725,000 in grant funds for states and territories that did not receive awards in 2019. DOL seeks an underwriting company or agency to administer the Federal Bonding Program. The contractor shall provide expertise and perform all activities/tasks described in Part 5 in order to administer the FBP. The contractor shall also work with federal staff to identify measures of success and collect data to demonstrate the reach and impact of the program.