COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE

FOR

H. B. 4019

(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chambers, and Delegate Burk)

[By Request of the Executive]


(Originating in the Committee on Government Organization)


[February 9, 1994]


A BILL to amend and reenact sections three and seven, article two-d, chapter five-b of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to further amend said article two-d by adding thereto a new section, designated section eight, relating to work force development; continuing training program for new or expanding businesses; creating a governor's work force development council; legislative findings; plan of action; requiring quarterly reports to Legislature; termination of council; and updating references.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That sections three and seven, article two-d, chapter five-b of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that said article two-d be further amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section eight, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 2D. WEST VIRGINIA GUARANTEED WORK FORCE PROGRAM.

§ 5B-2D-3. Training program.

The governor's office of community and industrial development shall develop a business and industrial training program, the purpose of which is The training program heretofore created within the governor's office of community and economic development to provide assistance for new or expanding businesses for the training, retraining or upgrading of the skills of potential employees is hereby continued within the West Virginia development office. The program shall emphasize employee training specifically designed to accommodate the needs of individual employers. The program shall encourage the expansion of existing businesses and industries within the state, promote retention of businesses and industries within the state, promote retention of existing jobs within the state, prevent economic and industrial out-migration, and assist in the relocation of out-of-state businesses and industries in the state. Under this program, the governor's office of community and industrial development West Virginia development office may pay up to one hundred percent or one thousand dollars per employee, whichever is less, of training costs of new employees in firms creating at least ten jobs in a one-year period. Training assistance may also be provided to existing businesses in cases in which training, retraining or upgrading services will result in the retention of existing jobs or the creation of additional jobs, or both: Provided, That the governor's office of community and industrial development West Virginia development office may pay up to one hundred percent or one thousand dollars per employee, whichever is less, for the training, retraining or upgrading. Training costs associated with this program will be paid directly by the training provider.

Provision of training services will depend upon the employer meeting program requirements as set forth by the governor's office of community and industrial development West Virginia development office and this article. The state of West Virginia guarantees if employer satisfaction is not achieved, the governor's office of community and industrial development West Virginia development office will carefully review the effectiveness of the recently completed training plan and program with the employer and the training provider. After such review, if the governor's office of community and industrial development West Virginia development office determines it is determined that the training program was inadequate to meet the employer's specifications and satisfaction as originally agreed to, then those employees so trained shall be eligible for retraining under the guarantee provision except when the training program curriculum and/or provider were selected solely at the discretion of the employer, then no such additional training shall be considered or approved: Provided, That in no instance may the cost of training and retraining an employee exceed two thousand dollars.
§ 5B-2D-7. Marketing.

The Governor's Office of Community and Industrial Development West Virginia development office shall market and promote the program.

§ 5B-2D-8. Governor's work force development council created; legislative findings; plan of action; quarterly reports; conclusion of work and termination date.

(a) The Legislature finds that:

(1) Numerous jobs training programs exist in various agencies of state government, consuming a great quantity of state resources;
(2) A need exists for overall coordination of existing programs, consistent with the needs of local communities and businesses and a comprehensive statewide plan;
(3) In the reorganization of economic development programs which accompanied the creation of the West Virginia development office, the Legislature required that the initiative of creating a consortium for work force readiness be considered;
(4) Specific areas for action have been identified in the interim of the Legislature in the year one thousand nine hundred ninety-three in the Legislature's "Investing in People" initiative; and
(5) The future of the state is dependent of the quality of its work force.
(b) A governor's work force development council is hereby created to develop and implement a plan of action consistent with the findings set forth in this section. At a minimum, the plan of action shall address:
(1) Strong linkages between public education, higher education, and the wide range of state job training programs;
(2) Modification of existing programs to better meet the workforce needs of businesses and other potential employers;
(3) Strong coordination with state, local and regional economic development strategies, which may include linkages with county administrators, local businesses, or local or regional development authorities;
(4) Easy access to information for individuals and businesses relating to available options and all education and jobs training programs available within a community or region, and consideration of how and where such information will be made available;
(5) Analysis of the relationship between available training and available jobs;
(6) For each vocational or jobs training program receiving state or federal funding, analysis of the numbers of persons served, the numbers of persons successfully completing training, the cost of training and the numbers of persons entering employment within one year of completing training;
(7) Analysis of the geographical distribution of existing programs classified by the type of training offered and by the entity offering the training; and
(8) Other initiatives for workforce development, which may include mobile technology training centers.
(c) The governor's work force development council shall be composed of the governor, who shall be the chair of the council, or the governor's chief of staff serving as the governor's designee; the secretary of the department of commerce, labor and environmental resources, or the commissioner of the bureau of employment programs serving as the secretary's designee; the director of the West Virginia development office; the secretary of education and the arts, or the assistant director for community colleges in the higher education central office serving as the secretary's designee; the secretary of health and human resources, or the director of the office of work and training serving as the secretary's designee; the state superintendent of schools, or the assistant superintendent for technical and adult education serving as the superintendent's designee; the chair of the council for community and economic development, or another private sector member of the council serving as the chair's designee; a labor representative who shall be a member of the joint apprenticeship and training council appointed by the governor; a small business representative who shall be from a firm with twenty-five or less employees appointed by the governor; an industry representative appointed by the governor; and the chair of the joint commission for vocational-technical-occupational education, or the executive director of the joint commission serving as the chair's designee. Staff of the West Virginia development office shall serve as staff of the council, with the assistance and cooperation of staff of the various state agencies and programs represented on the council.
(d) Beginning in the first quarter of the fiscal year, one thousand nine hundred ninety-five, the governor's work force development council shall make written quarterly reports to the Legislature at such time and in such form as the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of Delegates shall direct. Such quarterly reports shall include preliminary data, conclusions and recommendations relating to the plan of action and may include specific recommendations for administrative and statutory change.
On or before the thirtieth day of November, one thousand nine hundred ninety-five, the governor's work force development council as created and composed under the provisions of this article shall conclude its work with the issuance of a final report summarizing its plan of action and specific recommendations for reallocation of resources, modification of programs, geographic distribution of services, proposals for administrative change, and any proposals for legislation, in the form of specific bills recommended to the Legislature.
(e) The governor's work force development council and the state steering committee for development and implementation of a statewide school-to-work opportunities system shall coordinate their work to the extent feasible and desirable.
(f) Any vocational or jobs training program receiving state funds, or whose students or trainees receive state funds for educational costs, shall provide any requested data, fiscal information, or nonidentifying information in compilation or summary form relating to persons served and job placement, upon request of the council.
(g) The governor's work force development council shall terminate on the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, unless extended by legislation enacted prior to the termination date.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create a Governor's Work Force Development Council which will develop and implement a plan of action to improve accountability, coordination and performance throughout the state's work force development system. The Council will focus on major areas identified by the Legislature's "Investing In People" initiative and will coordinate with the state's federal School-to-Work Opportunities System initiative.

The Governor's Work Force Development Council will be composed of the Governor, the Secretaries of Commerce, Labor and Environmental Resources, Education and the Arts, and Health and Human Resources, the Chair of the West Virginia Development Council, the State Superintendent of Schools, a labor representative, a small business representative, an industry representative and the Chair of the Joint Commission for Vocational-Occupational-Technical Education or their designees as specified in the bill. The Council will make quarterly reports to the Legislature beginning July 1, 1994 and will issue its final report on or before November 30, 1995, and terminate July 1, 1996.

FINANCE COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS


On page three, section three, line thirteen, following the word "determine", by striking out the words "it is determined".
On page four, section eight, line nineteen, following the word "dependent", by striking out the word "of" and inserting in lieu thereof the word "on".
On page five, section eight, line thirteen, by striking out the words "analysis of the numbers of persons served, the number" and inserting in lieu thereof the words "an unduplicated count of the numbers of persons served by each such program, and an unduplicated count".
And,
On page six, section eight, line eighteen, following the word "council", by striking out the remainder of the sentence and inserting a colon followed by the words " Provided, That the West Virginia development office may not hire additional staff to staff the council unless the Legislature expressly appropriates funds therefor: Provided, however, That the West Virginia development office shall coordinate staff activities performed for the council with the office of the governor in order to draw upon resources presently existing in the various state agencies and programs represented on the council."