Authority: Title 2.2, Chapter 2, Article 6.1; § 2.2-214.2, Code of Virginia.

The Secretary of Labor shall competitively procure a national firm with expertise in evaluating the efficiency of an organization's staffing structure, delegation of staff duties, and work processes to conduct a comprehensive efficiency review of the Unemployment Insurance (UI) operations of the Virginia Employment Commission (VEC) to (i) identify specific actions that could be taken to improve the efficiency of VEC's UI operations, including through more efficient and effective use of staff and technology; (ii) recommend improvements to the agency's staffing and workflows to most effectively use existing federal funding for UI operations; and (iii) determine whether current funding is adequate to ensure effective UI operations. The Secretary shall issue an interim report of its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly no later than December 1, 2022 and a final report no later than September 1, 2023.