Reentry Employment Opportunities (REO): Reentry Employment in Skilled Trades, Advanced Manufacturing, Registered Apprenticeships, and Training (RESTART) Initiative
REO is DOL's reentry workforce program. The FY2026 round, branded RESTART, funds states, tribes and intermediaries to train people with criminal records for in-demand work, with an emphasis on Registered Apprenticeships, on-the-job training and industries such as shipbuilding, advanced manufacturing and AI infrastructure. Project design carries 58 of 100 points, and required partnerships must be documented in signed MOUs or letters of commitment.
Program facts
- Agency
- Employment and Training Administration (ETA), U.S. Department of Labor
- Assistance Listing
- 17.270
- Statutory authority
- Section 169 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (evaluation and research authority) and section 1101 of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2025 (Pub. L. 119-4)
- Award ceiling
- $1,000,000 to $5,100,000 per award
- Awards
- The FY2026 RESTART FOA (FOA-ETA-26-17) expected 20 awards from $81 million, with DOL reserving the option to add up to $110 million more
- Period of performance
- 42 months, including a three to six month planning period and at least 12 months of follow-up
- Cost share
- None required
- Cycle
- REO competitions have posted annually under different names (Pathway Home, Growth Opportunities, RESTART), usually between January and March with spring deadlines. RESTART posted February 25, 2026 and closed April 15, 2026.
Program goals
- Place participants in training that leads to industry-recognized credentials
- Increase unsubsidized employment and retention among people leaving incarceration
- Connect participants to Registered Apprenticeships and on-the-job training
- Co-enroll eligible participants in WIOA programs to integrate with the public workforce system
Scoring rubric
Statement of Need14
Data on the target age group and service area, community need for reentry services, and evidence of local support.
Expected Outcomes and Outputs6
Projected numbers for enrollment, credentials, placement and retention tied to WIOA primary indicators.
Project Design58
A dated plan with recruitment and a 3 to 6 month planning period, evidence for the model, labor market data for targeted industries, separate service for youth and young adults, contingencies for facility access limits, and comprehensive partner MOUs (18 points alone).
Past Performance: Programmatic Capability14
Results from comparable prior grants serving people with criminal records, with verifiable outcomes.
Budget and Budget Narrative8
Costs linked to outcomes, a reasonable cost per participant, and SF-424A totals that match the budget narrative.
Point values from the FY2026 RESTART FOA (FOA-ETA-26-17). Up to 6 bonus points were available: 2 for shipbuilding-related training and 2 or 4 for Registered Apprenticeship sponsors among employer partners, claimed in the abstract. Confirm against the current REO announcement.
Eligibility
- State governments and state agencies, and U.S. territories
- Federally recognized and other tribal governments and tribally designated organizations
- National or regional intermediaries (nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status) with sub-grantees in three or more non-contiguous metro or rural areas, which may be in one state
- Institutions of higher education are not considered intermediaries
- Participants must have criminal justice system involvement; projects serve youth (15 to 17), young adults (18 to 24) or adults (25 and older)
Required attachments
- Abstract of up to three pages, including bonus point claims
- MOUs or letters of commitment from each required partner, including employer partners
- Documentation that employer partners are Registered Apprenticeship sponsors, if claiming bonus points
- Past performance documentation
- Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement, if applicable
Formatting rules
- Project Narrative limited to 25 double-spaced, single-sided 8.5 x 11 pages
- Times New Roman 12-point font with 1-inch margins
- Attachments do not count toward the page limit; unlisted attachments are not scored
- File names without special characters; underscores are acceptable
Why applications lose points
- Proposing to serve youth or young adults together with adults in one application, which is nonresponsive
- Serving youth and young adults in the same project without describing how they are kept separate
- Partner MOUs missing the components the FOA requires, which costs most of the 18 partnership points
- Naming a targeted industry without local labor market evidence
- Training for occupations where licensing rules bar people with criminal records
How ELIXIR CONSUMERS helps with DOL REO / RESTART
- 1.Drafts partner MOUs that include every component listed in the FOA, with signatures tracked in the vault
- 2.Pulls local labor market data you export for the targeted industries and cites each figure in the narrative
- 3.Builds outcome projections from your prior reentry grant results so targets match what you have achieved before
- 4.Checks the SF-424A and budget narrative totals line by line before export
Questions, answered
Is RESTART a new program?
It is the FY2026 Reentry Employment Opportunities competition under ALN 17.270. Earlier REO rounds were called Pathway Home and Growth Opportunities.
Can a local nonprofit apply directly?
Not in the FY2026 round. Local organizations typically take part as sub-grantees of a state, tribe or national or regional intermediary.
Can we serve people still incarcerated?
Yes, pre-release services are allowed, but the plan must cover what happens if internet or staff access inside the facility is restricted.
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