Dylan Langston, executive director of the Northeastern Workforce Development Board, told Penobscot County commissioners on Oct. 1 that the regional QUEST grant closed on Oct. 1 and that the board has an awarded contract from the Maine Department of Labor for fiscal year 2025.

Langston said the board received a roughly 9% cut in its current contract and that the U.S. Department of Labor has recommended an approximately 30% reduction to WIOA funding for program year 2026, a level of reduction that the board said would be “very difficult to overcome.”

The funding outlook matters locally because WIOA (the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act) and related grants pay for job training, supportive services and work‑based learning that serve youth, adults and dislocated workers in Penobscot County.

“The QUEST grant has ended effective today,” Langston said, and the board has been working to co‑enroll QUEST participants into other eligible WIOA programs so services can continue.

Susan Sarini, senior workforce development director at Eastern Maine Development Corporation (EMDC), told commissioners the region served 646 people in the program year running July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025. Of those, 583 were served with formula (WIOA) funds and 41% of enrollees were in Penobscot County (268 people), Sarini said.

Commissioners pressed for numbers about Job Corps pauses and enrollment; Langston said both Bangor Job Corps sites have resumed operations but noted pending litigation by the National Job Corps Association that could affect long‑term funding and enrollment patterns.

Local program changes and pilots were highlighted as evidence the workforce system is adapting. Langston said the board raised the minimum reimbursement for work experience placements from the state minimum wage to 75% of the entry‑level wage, intending to make placements more attractive to employers. Sarini described a pilot that supplied e‑bikes to participants who lack reliable transportation; the pilot’s follow‑up showed improved employment rates and higher earnings six months after program exit.

“We created a line item cap on vehicle repair, and we’ve created a new cap for e‑bikes,” Langston said, describing policy changes to supportive services. Sarini added the Maine Department of Labor and the Maine Department of Transportation contributed additional funds to expand the e‑bike pilot into other regions after seeing local results.

Sarini also described ARPA‑funded stipends for occupational skills training: the program paid stipends to 158 participants and achieved an 89% rate of participants employed or enrolled six months after completion compared with about 71% for other programs in program year 2024.

Commissioners asked about program monitoring. Langston said the board is undergoing programmatic and fiscal monitoring by the Maine Department of Labor and expected a report to the commission when the process concludes. He also said the board had completed a comprehensive one‑stop certification and had asked each site to return corrective‑action plans by July 2025 where needed.

Why this matters: WIOA and related funding support training and hiring services for hundreds of county residents each year. Commissioners were told a steep federal cut in FY2026 would materially reduce services unless new funds or program changes are found. Meanwhile, local pilots such as e‑bikes and stipends showed measurable short‑term gains that county officials said they wanted to preserve.

Commissioners asked staff to track contingency plans for a potential federal shutdown and to request more detailed enrollment and outcome counts from providers where numbers were not yet final.

The board representatives left commissioners with two clear points: the QUEST grant has closed but many participants are being co‑enrolled to maintain services, and proposed federal WIOA cuts for FY2026 could force program reductions unless state or local mitigation is found.