86R7921 SOS-D
By: Campbell S.B. No. 1724
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to certain public school workforce training programs
funded by the skills development fund.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 303.001(a), Labor Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) The purpose of this chapter is to remove administrative
barriers that impede the response of school districts and
open-enrollment charter schools described by Section 303.003(b-3),
public community and technical colleges, community-based
organizations, and the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service to
industry and workforce training needs and to develop incentives for
those entities [public community and technical colleges,
community-based organizations, and the Texas Engineering Extension
Service] to provide customized assessment and training in a timely
and efficient manner.
SECTION 2. Section 303.001(b), Labor Code, is amended by
adding Subdivision (3) to read as follows:
(3) "Open-enrollment charter school" has the meaning
assigned by Section 5.001, Education Code.
SECTION 3. Section 303.002, Labor Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 303.002. WAIVER; RECOVERY OF CERTAIN COSTS. (a) The
commission may review and recommend to the legislature the waiver
of any requirements set forth in the [Title 3,] Education Code, as
they may apply to a school district or open-enrollment charter
school described by Section 303.003(b-3) or public community and
technical college [colleges], that impede the ability of the
district, school, or [such a] college to develop in a timely manner
customized training for demand occupations in particular
industries, including statutes or regulations limiting costs that
may be recovered from state funds by the district, school, or [a
public community or technical] college [from state funds].
(b) A school district or open-enrollment charter school
described by Section 303.003(b-3), a public community or technical
college, or the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service may recover
customized assessment and training costs incurred by the district,
school, college, or service [institution] if:
(1) there is an actual or projected labor shortage in
the occupation in which training is provided that is not being met
by an existing institution or program in the area; and
(2) the wages at the time of job placement for
individuals who successfully complete customized training at the
district, school, [public community or technical] college, or
service [the Texas Engineering Extension Service] are equal to the
prevailing wage for that occupation in the local labor market area.
SECTION 4. Section 303.003, Labor Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b), (b-1), (f), and (g) and adding Subsection
(b-3) to read as follows:
(b) The skills development fund may be used by school
districts and open-enrollment charter schools described by
Subsection (b-3), public community and technical colleges,
community-based organizations, and the Texas A&M Engineering
Extension Service as start-up or emergency funds for the following
job-training purposes:
(1) developing customized training programs for
businesses and trade unions; and
(2) sponsoring small and medium-sized business
networks and consortiums.
(b-1) The commission by rule may establish and develop
additional job incentive programs that use the skills development
fund to create incentives for school districts and open-enrollment
charter schools described by Subsection (b-3) or public community
and technical colleges in partnership with one or more employers,
including prospective employers who commit to establishing a place
of business in this state, to provide workforce training in an
effort to create and retain employment opportunities in this state.
Under a program established under this subsection, the commission
may commit money to a prospective employer described by this
subsection contingent on the employer's establishment of a place of
business in this state.
(b-3) In addition to the programs established under
Subsections (b), (b-1), and (b-2), the commission by rule shall
establish and develop additional programs using the skills
development fund under which a school district or open-enrollment
charter school that includes a high school that provides a career
and technology education program in which at least 35 percent of the
students at the high school are enrolled may provide through that
high school customized workforce training opportunities designed
specifically to meet regional emerging future industry and
workforce training needs identified by the commission for purposes
of this subsection. To participate in a program established under
this subsection, a school district or open-enrollment charter
school is not required to partner with one or more specific
employers or institutions of higher education.
(f) The Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service shall focus
the service's training activities under this chapter on programs
that:
(1) are statewide in nature; or
(2) are not available from a school district or
open-enrollment charter school described by Subsection (b-3), a
local junior college district, a local technical college, or a
consortium of junior college districts.
(g) This section does not prohibit the Texas A&M Engineering
Extension Service from participating in a consortium of junior
college districts or with a school district or open-enrollment
charter school described by Subsection (b-3) or a technical college
that provides training under this chapter.
SECTION 5. Section 303.004, Labor Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 303.004. FUND REVIEW; REPORT BY CERTAIN WORKFORCE
TRAINING PROVIDERS REQUIRED. (a) The Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board shall review all customized training programs
biennially to verify that state funds are being used appropriately
by school districts and open-enrollment charter schools described
by Section 303.003(b-3), public community and technical colleges,
and the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service under this chapter.
The Texas Education Agency shall assist the Texas Higher Education
Coordinating Board as necessary in the board's review of a
customized training program provided by a high school of a school
district or open-enrollment charter school described by Section
303.003(b-3).
(b) Not later than October 1 of each even-numbered year,
each school district and each open-enrollment charter school
described by Section 303.003(b-3), the Texas A&M Engineering
Extension Service, and each public community or technical college
that provides workforce training under this chapter shall:
(1) conduct a review of the district's, school's,
service's, or college's training programs to:
(A) determine the effectiveness of the programs
in improving the wages of participants who complete the programs;
and
(B) identify strategies for improving the
delivery of workforce training in order to more effectively impact
economic development in this state; and
(2) submit to the commission a detailed written report
summarizing the results of the review for inclusion by the
executive director in the report to the governor and the
legislature required by Section 303.006(c).
(c) If a school district or open-enrollment charter school
described by Section 303.003(b-3), the Texas A&M Engineering
Extension Service, or a public community or technical college fails
to submit a report required by Subsection (b)(2):
(1) the district, school, service, or college must
refund to the comptroller any unexpended state funds received by
the district, school, service, or college under this chapter for
the state fiscal biennium in which the report was due; and
(2) the commission may not award any additional grant
to the district, school, service, or college under this chapter
until the district, school, service, or college has complied with
that reporting requirement.
SECTION 6. Section 303.006(d), Labor Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(d) The annual report must include for that fiscal year:
(1) the total number of applications submitted, the
total number of applications approved, and the total number of
applications rejected by region of the state;
(2) the average and median weekly wage levels of
trainees under this chapter entering or returning to the workforce,
broken down by:
(A) current employees undergoing retraining;
(B) new hires; and
(C) region of the state;
(3) the average and median weekly wage levels of
trainees under this chapter entering or returning to the workforce,
broken down by region of the state;
(4) the number and percentage of trainees covered by
health care insurance coverage, workers' compensation insurance
coverage, and other analogous benefit programs;
(5) the total amount of money awarded in each region of
the state and the percentage that amount represents of the total
amount of money awarded on a statewide basis;
(6) a comparison of the percentage of total dollars
awarded to each region versus each region's percentage of:
(A) the state's population;
(B) the civilian labor force;
(C) the number of unemployed persons; and
(D) the number of qualified grant applications
submitted to the commission by school districts and open-enrollment
charter schools described by Section 303.003(b-3) and public
community and technical colleges;
(7) the total amount of money awarded to
micro-employers, small employers, medium employers, and large
employers, reported by region of the state; and
(8) the total number of jobs created or persons
retrained under the program:
(A) by region of the state;
(B) by occupation classified by the two-digit
standard industrial classification;
(C) by wage level; and
(D) whether attributable to:
(i) relocation of businesses to this state;
or
(ii) training or retraining of employees of
existing employers.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.