Living Guidance

Workforce rules change. A useful training site should tell you not only what the rule is, but when the page was last checked, which sources control, and what changed when new guidance arrived.

The promise

Workforce Foundations should never ask a reader to guess whether a page is current. Pages that have completed the new source-check workflow should show a Source checked as of date and the major sources checked. Legacy pages that have not completed that workflow should instead say automated source re-check pending. A WordPress modified date is never presented as a source-verification date.

Source hierarchy: what controls?

Source	How to use it
Federal statute	The law itself, such as WIOA. It establishes authority and core requirements.
Federal regulation	Binding rules implementing the statute, including 20 CFR and 2 CFR requirements.
DOL guidance	TEGLs, TENs, UIPLs, and other federal guidance explain implementation, funding, and interpretation.
California directive / notice	EDD Workforce Services Directives and Information Notices translate federal/state requirements into California operations and announce program-year details.
Grant award / waiver / agreement	Can add conditions that apply to a specific funding stream, project, waiver, or recipient.
Local Board policy	Exercises local discretion within federal and state boundaries.
Local procedure	Explains how staff carry out the rule. A procedure cannot override a higher authority.

What every substantive Workforce Foundations page should show

Source checked as of
The date of the most recent completed source check. If no check has been completed under the new workflow, the page should say so.

Source basis
The major federal, California, grant, agreement, or local sources that control or materially affect the topic.

What changed recently?
A short note only when a new policy materially changes the guide.

Local policy alert
A reminder when the reader must check their own Local Board policy before acting.

When should a page be re-reviewed?

Automatic review triggers: a new or revised WSD; a TEGL that changes program rules; an enacted federal or California law; an approved waiver; a new annual reporting notice; a new negotiated performance cycle; a change to ETPL, AJCC certification, monitoring, EO, procurement, or fiscal rules; a court/regulatory development that changes the operating rule; or a discovered error in the page.

Not every new policy requires a rewrite. Some items only need a source update, a note, or a link to a current brief.

Recommended change-log format

Date	Source	What changed on the page
Sep. 2026	Example only	Updated a threshold, added a waiver note, or clarified a performance definition.
Aug. 2026	Example only	Reviewed. No material change to the operating guidance.

How to use an older Workforce Foundations page safely

Check the page’s Source checked as of status. If it says the automated source re-check is pending, treat the page as legacy orientation.
Open the linked controlling policy.
Check the site’s Policy Library for newer guidance on the same topic.
Check your Local Board policy when the topic includes local discretion.
If the page and current policy conflict, the current governing policy controls.

Where to check for current guidance

EDD Active Workforce Services Directives →
EDD Workforce Services Information Notices →
U.S. DOL ETA Advisories →
Workforce Wonkery Policy Library →

Living guidance is a discipline, not a disclaimer. The goal is to make changes visible, traceable, and easy for staff to act on.

Site-wide Workforce Foundations connection standard

Every substantive policy brief should identify the concepts a new WDB employee needs first

For each new brief or Intelligence Review story, identify the 2–4 prerequisite Workforce Foundations concepts that materially affect comprehension. Add a collapsed Workforce Foundations connection only when the concept is likely to slow a newer reader.

Keep the refresher short: usually 50–120 words.
Keep it in the article: the reader should not have to leave the brief for the basic explanation.
Use the canonical lesson for depth: “Go deeper ↗” opens the full Workforce Foundations guide in a new tab.
Do not duplicate the whole lesson: the brief explains the rule; Workforce Foundations explains the enduring concept.
Connect both directions: major Workforce Foundations pages should point to current briefs that show the concept in practice.

Editorial test: What would a competent new WDB employee need to understand before this brief makes complete sense?