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Welcome to AMACG’s Monday Morning Brief, a weekly roundup of consequential developments gathered from government agencies, regulators, funders, and other credible sources.
This week’s developments include a federal-contractor regulatory change taking effect today, approaching federal funding deadlines, and the latest employment data for Georgia.
Status: Final rule; effective October 26, 2026
What changed: The U.S. Department of Labor’s final rule formally rescinds the regulations that implemented Executive Order 11246. The underlying executive order, which governed race- and sex-based nondiscrimination and affirmative-action requirements for covered federal contractors and subcontractors was revoked in January 2025.
The final rule removes the related provisions from multiple parts of Title 41 of the Code of Federal Regulations and modifies associated administrative enforcement procedures.
Why it matters: Federal contractors and subcontractors may need to distinguish the requirements that have been rescinded from employment obligations that remain in effect under other federal, state, local, contractual, disability, veteran, and civil-rights laws.
Existing policies, employee handbooks, contract-compliance documents, applicant-tracking practices, and subcontractor communications may still reference the former regulatory framework.
Affected organizations should review their documentation and compliance processes carefully. Questions about the legal effect of the rescission or continuing employment obligations should be directed to qualified employment or government-contracting counsel.
Learn more: Review the Department of Labor’s final rule
Status: Open competitive funding opportunities
What changed: The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention has several open funding opportunities with approaching first-stage Grants.gov deadlines.
The FY 2026 Community and Schools Youth Drug Prevention Program supports eligible nonprofits, state and local governments, and federally recognized Tribal governments providing youth substance-use-prevention services in schools and extracurricular settings. Coordination with law enforcement and community coalitions is included within the program’s focus.
The application deadlines are:
Other OJJDP opportunities, including multistate mentoring and selected child-protection programs, use the same two-stage October 29 and November 5 schedule. Additional youth-reentry opportunities have early-November deadlines.
Why it matters: These are competitive, program-specific opportunities, not general operating grants available to every nonprofit.
Eligibility requirements, required partnerships, program models, target populations, performance measures, budgets, and submission instructions vary by opportunity. Organizations considering an application should also account for the time and organizational capacity required to complete submissions in both Grants.gov and JustGrants.
Before applying, organizations should verify eligibility and assess whether they have the necessary program design, partnership documentation, staffing plans, measurable outcomes, budgets, implementation timelines, and post-award reporting capacity.
Learn more: Review the Community and Schools Youth Drug Prevention opportunity | View current OJJDP funding opportunities
Status: Preliminary September 2026 data
What changed: Georgia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.3% in September, compared with the national rate of 4.2%. Georgia’s unemployment rate increased slightly from 3.2% in August but remained below its September 2025 rate of 3.4%. Nationally, payroll employment increased over the year in only seven states, remained essentially unchanged in 43 states, and decreased in the District of Columbia.
Why it matters: Georgia’s comparatively low unemployment rate may indicate continued competition for qualified workers, even as broader economic uncertainty affects hiring decisions.
Small businesses and nonprofits may face simultaneous pressure to manage compensation, control payroll growth, retain employees, and fill specialized positions.
Workforce plans should connect staffing levels to workload, revenue capacity, service demand, position priorities, and the total cost of employment. Nonprofits should also consider how staffing assumptions affect grant budgets and program-delivery commitments.
Learn more: Review the September state employment report
This brief is provided for general educational and informational purposes. It does not constitute legal, tax, accounting, investment, or financial advice. Organizations should review the official sources and consult professionals when determining how a development applies to their specific circumstances.
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