MEDIA RELEASE

Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona has issued the following statement on the Summer Youth Employment Program, which provides young people, ages 14 through 23, job opportunities in government and non-profit agencies that pay $8 or more an hour:

“More than 1,200 young people have signed-up statewide for the Summer Youth Employment Program. Our teens and young adults are eager to work and gain valuable experiences.

“It was great to see the overwhelming positive response from more than 250 young people on Oahu who came with their families to sign-up for a variety of summer jobs at the Youth Summer Job Enrollment Day.

“I encourage all federal, state and county government offices and nonprofit agencies statewide to participate. As federal funding is available through Sept. 30, there is plenty of time to get more of our young people and worksites involved.

“The program helps young people earn money and gain work experience, it stimulates our economy by bringing in extra federal dollars, and public service agencies get free help at a time when many agencies are short-staffed due to layoffs and funding restrictions.”

Federal officials recently expanded eligibility for the Summer Youth Employment Program to 600 percent of the Federal Poverty Level, which means the vast majority of young people in Hawaii are eligible.

The state Department of Human Services is financing the program using Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) federal stimulus funds. Specifically, a minimum of $3 million in TANF funds will go to the program, with funding for Neighbor Islands totaling $1.8 million. Additional federal funds are available if enrollment in the program is larger than expected.

Aiona is scheduled to visit Kona 10-10:30 a.m. Wednesday, May 26. Location: Workforce Development Division Office, 74-5565 Luhia St., Bldg. C, Bay 4.

Applications can be downloaded at http://hawaii.gov/labor/wdd/summer-youth-employment-program