H.B. No. 2784
AN ACT
relating to the creation of the Texas Industry-Recognized
Apprenticeship Programs Grant Program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 302, Labor Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter I to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER I. TEXAS INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS
GRANT PROGRAM
Sec. 302.251. PURPOSE. The purpose of the Texas
Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Programs Grant Program is to
address the immediate industrial workforce needs of this state
resulting from the impact of Hurricane Harvey and overall workforce
shortages.
Sec. 302.252. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Industry-recognized apprenticeship program"
means a training program that:
(A) provides on-the-job training, preparatory
instruction, supplementary instruction, or related instruction in
an occupation that has been recognized as an apprenticeable
occupation by the Office of Apprenticeship of the United States
Department of Labor; or
(B) is certified as an industry-recognized
apprenticeship program by a third-party certifier that has received
from the United States Department of Labor a favorable
determination of qualification to award that certification.
(2) "Person" does not include a governmental entity.
Sec. 302.253. PROGRAM. The commission shall establish and
administer the Texas Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Programs
Grant Program to encourage the private sector to develop
specialized industry-recognized apprenticeship programs in this
state. Under the program, the commission shall award grants to
persons who meet the requirements of Section 302.255.
Sec. 302.254. TEXAS INDUSTRY-RECOGNIZED APPRENTICESHIP
FUND. (a) The Texas industry-recognized apprenticeship fund is a
dedicated account in the general revenue fund.
(b) The following amounts shall be deposited in the fund:
(1) money appropriated by the legislature for the fund
for purposes described by this subchapter;
(2) interest earned on the investment of money in the
fund; and
(3) gifts, grants, and other donations received for
the fund.
(c) The fund may be used only for an apprenticeship program
that meets the requirements of Section 302.255.
Sec. 302.255. APPLICATION; ELIGIBILITY FOR GRANT. The
commission shall establish eligibility criteria for a person to
receive a grant under this subchapter. The eligibility criteria
must include the requirement that the person:
(1) apply to the commission in the form and manner
prescribed by commission rule;
(2) if the person is an entity, be in good standing
under the laws of the state in which the person was formed or
organized, as evidenced by a certificate issued by the secretary of
state or the state official of another state having custody of the
records pertaining to a person formed or organized under the laws of
that state;
(3) not owe delinquent taxes to a taxing unit of this
state; and
(4) operate an industry-recognized apprenticeship
program that:
(A) provides on-the-job training under an
industry-recognized, accredited training curriculum;
(B) guarantees employment for participants
during and on successful completion of the training period;
(C) pays each participant a wage and provides
eligibility for participants to receive full-time employee
benefits during and on successful completion of the training
period;
(D) requires participants to advance their
skills, at a minimum, to a credentialed, performance-verified
mid-level status in a field related to the industry-recognized
apprenticeship program;
(E) has a duration of not more than 26 weeks; and
(F) gives preference to training and hiring:
(i) unemployed Texans who have filed with
the commission;
(ii) veterans of the United States armed
forces;
(iii) formerly incarcerated individuals;
and
(iv) underemployed individuals who are
working without industry-recognized certifications or other
credentials.
Sec. 302.256. GRANT AWARD; GRANT AMOUNT. (a) The
commission may award grants under this subchapter only to reimburse
an eligible person for the cost of training industry-recognized
apprenticeship program participants who:
(1) complete a program operated by the person that
meets the requirements of Section 302.255(4) having achieved the
skills level required by Section 302.255(4)(D); and
(2) maintain suitable employment for at least 12
consecutive months immediately following completion of the
program.
(b) Grant funds awarded to an eligible person under this
subchapter must be awarded on a per industry-recognized
apprenticeship program participant basis. The amount of a grant
awarded to an eligible person for training a participant described
by Subsection (a) may not exceed the lesser of:
(1) the total cost to the person for training the
participant, excluding wages and benefits; or
(2) $10,000.
(c) In determining the amount of a grant awarded under this
subchapter for an industry-recognized apprenticeship program
participant, the commission may consider the increased economic
value to the state resulting from or reasonably anticipated to
result from the participant's completion of the program, including
by considering any increase or anticipated increase in the amount
of tax revenue generated by the participant, and any decrease in the
participant's use of a state-funded benefit, attributable to the
participant's job placement and earning projections. The
commission by rule may establish guidelines or formulas for
determining an increase in economic value to the state attributable
to a participant's program completion for purposes of this
subsection.
(d) The commission by rule may establish limitations on the
total amount of grant funds that a person may be awarded under this
subchapter.
Sec. 302.257. PROGRAM RULES. (a) The commission shall
adopt rules to administer and enforce this subchapter.
(b) The commission shall post the rules on its Internet
website.
Sec. 302.258. ANNUAL REPORT. (a) Not later than December 1
of each year, the commission shall submit to the lieutenant
governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the
members of the legislature a report on grants made under this
subchapter that states:
(1) the number of direct jobs each grant recipient
created in this state in each job category of the federal Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission's job classification guide;
(2) the median wage of the jobs each grant recipient
created in this state;
(3) the total amount of each grant awarded to a grant
recipient;
(4) the number and categorization of
industry-recognized apprenticeship program participants trained
and employed by each grant recipient under Section 302.255(4)(F);
(5) a determination of whether the grant program
administered under this subchapter has resulted in a positive
return on investment to the state and an explanation of the methods
used by the commission in making that determination; and
(6) if the commission considers it appropriate and
feasible, a list of recommendations for legislative or other
changes to the grant program administered under this subchapter to
increase the return on investment to the state.
(b) The report may not include information that is made
confidential by law.
(c) The commission may require a grant recipient under this
subchapter to submit, on a form provided by the commission,
information required to complete the report.
(d) The commission shall post the annual report on its
Internet website.
SECTION 2. The Texas Workforce Commission is required to
implement a provision of this Act only if the legislature
appropriates money specifically for that purpose. If the
legislature does not appropriate money specifically for that
purpose, the Texas Workforce Commission may, but is not required
to, implement a provision of this Act using other appropriations
available for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2784 was passed by the House on May
10, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 117, Nays 16, 1 present, not
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
No. 2784 on May 24, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 119, Nays 23,
2 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2784 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 27, Nays
4.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor