5 Facts on the Trade Adjustment Assistance Phaseout

Here are five things to know about the trade adjustment assistance phaseout:

TAA Program termination means the program “phases out” over several years.

Under the phaseout termination, eligible workers continue to be entitled to the benefits and services available under the version of the trade adjustment assistance (TAA) Program in effect when the petition covering them was filed. The TAA Program will allocate funds to states to cover the costs of providing TAA benefits and services to eligible workers as long as states can justify the need for them.

States must continue to reach out to workers eligible for trade adjustment assistance under the TAA Program. 

More than 300 workers have become TAA Program participants since the program entered phaseout termination in July 2022. While the program phases out, the law requires states to continue to find and serve workers who may be eligible to apply for TAA benefits and services. States must conduct outreach activities that explain available TAA Program benefits and services and who’s eligible to receive them.  

Workers who found new jobs after being separated from their trade-affected employment who are now unemployed may be eligible for TAA benefits and services.

Workers covered by petitions the Department of Labor certified on and before June 30, 2022 are eligible to apply for TAA benefits and services. All eligible workers can apply for TAA benefits and services. 

We’re still accepting petitions for TAA group eligibility. 

As of July 21, 2023, 401 petitions covering 41,133 workers are pending investigation.  While Section 285 of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (TAARA) requires the department to discontinue issuing  determinations on petitions filed after June 30, 2022, we can continue to accept TAA Program petitions.

States are using innovative tools and techniques such as geofencing, job referrals, and on-the-job training to find, train and employ trade-affected workers.

States are inventing new ways to serve TAA program participants, including teaming with local stores, implementing location services, providing gas card incentives, and streamlining human resources processes to facilitate faster enrollment in on-the-job training. Read about these innovative practices here.

Renata Adjibodou is the administrator of the Office of Trade Adjustment Assistance in the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.