Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB592 Compare Versions

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1	1	88R2595 KSD-F
2	2	By: Alvarado S.B. No. 592
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the creation of the Lone Star Workforce of the Future
8	8	Fund.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subtitle G, Title 3, Education Code, is amended
11	11	by adding Chapter 134A to read as follows:
12	12	CHAPTER 134A. LONE STAR WORKFORCE OF THE FUTURE FUND
13	13	Sec. 134A.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
14	14	(1) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce
15	15	Commission.
16	16	(2) "Public junior college" and "public technical
17	17	institute" have the meanings assigned by Section 61.003.
18	18	Sec. 134A.002. PURPOSE. The purpose of this chapter is to:
19	19	(1) create and sustain a utilization-driven supply of
20	20	qualified workers for entry-level to mid-level jobs in high demand
21	21	occupations in this state;
22	22	(2) address and close the gap between the skills
23	23	needed by workers and the current skills of the available workforce
24	24	in this state;
25	25	(3) increase the interest of current and future Texans
26	26	to fill the available and emerging jobs in this state that require
27	27	less education than a bachelor's degree but more than a high school
28	28	diploma; and
29	29	(4) strengthen the state's economy by increasing the
30	30	competitiveness of businesses in this state and the recruitment of
31	31	businesses to this state.
32	32	Sec. 134A.003. LONE STAR WORKFORCE OF THE FUTURE FUND. (a)
33	33	The commission shall establish and administer the Lone Star
34	34	Workforce of the Future Fund as a dedicated account in the general
35	35	revenue fund.
36	36	(b) The following amounts shall be deposited in the fund:
37	37	(1) any money appropriated by the legislature for the
38	38	fund for purposes of this chapter;
39	39	(2) interest earned on the investment of money in the
40	40	fund; and
41	41	(3) gifts, grants, and donations received for the
42	42	fund.
43	43	Sec. 134A.004. ADVISORY BOARD. (a) An advisory board of
44	44	education and workforce stakeholders is created to assist the
45	45	commission in administering this chapter.
46	46	(b) The advisory board is composed of six members who serve
47	47	two-year terms and are appointed as follows:
48	48	(1) one member appointed by the governor;
49	49	(2) one member appointed by the lieutenant governor;
50	50	(3) one member appointed by the speaker of the house of
51	51	representatives;
52	52	(4) one member appointed by the Texas Higher Education
53	53	Coordinating Board;
54	54	(5) one member appointed by the commission; and
55	55	(6) the chair of the commission, who serves as the
56	56	presiding officer.
57	57	(c) The advisory board shall meet at least once each
58	58	calendar quarter, or as needed, to review grant applications and
59	59	make recommendations on awarding grants under this chapter.
60	60	Sec. 134A.005. FUND USE. Money in the Lone Star Workforce
61	61	of the Future Fund may be used by the commission only to:
62	62	(1) award grants as provided by this chapter; and
63	63	(2) conduct, with a consortium of corporate partners
64	64	identified by the commission as having available entry-level
65	65	workforce demand, due diligence assessment reviews of entities
66	66	receiving grants under this chapter.
67	67	Sec. 134A.006. LONE STAR WORKFORCE OF THE FUTURE FUND GRANT
68	68	PROGRAM. (a) The commission shall establish and administer the
69	69	Lone Star Workforce of the Future Fund grant program to provide
70	70	grants to eligible public junior colleges, public technical
71	71	institutes, and nonprofit organizations that apply to the advisory
72	72	board in the manner prescribed by the advisory board. The
73	73	commission shall award the grants on the advice and recommendations
74	74	of the advisory board.
75	75	(b) Grants may be awarded under this chapter from the Lone
76	76	Star Workforce of the Future Fund to eligible public junior
77	77	colleges, public technical institutes, and nonprofit organizations
78	78	with demonstrated success at delivering impactful workforce
79	79	training that enables underserved Texans to access careers in high
80	80	demand occupations in this state.
81	81	Sec. 134A.007. GRANT ELIGIBILITY. To be eligible to
82	82	receive a grant under this chapter, a public junior college, public
83	83	technical institute, or nonprofit organization must:
84	84	(1) coordinate and deliver a workforce training
85	85	program, through classroom-based or online instruction, work-based
86	86	experiences internships, or apprenticeships, or through a
87	87	combination of those methods, in at least one of the following high
88	88	growth fields, which may be revised by the commission periodically
89	89	by rule based on input from the Texas Workforce Investment Council:
90	90	(A) accounting and corporate finance;
91	91	(B) application development and support;
92	92	(C) business fundamentals;
93	93	(D) client services and sales support;
94	94	(E) consumer banking;
95	95	(F) customer service;
96	96	(G) cybersecurity;
97	97	(H) data analytics;
98	98	(I) help desk/desktop support;
99	99	(J) investment operations;
100	100	(K) life science and bioscience development;
101	101	(L) manufacturing;
102	102	(M) project management support; or
103	103	(N) quality assurance;
104	104	(2) demonstrate through third-party validated data
105	105	successful outcomes in:
106	106	(A) recruiting local unemployed and
107	107	underemployed individuals to participate in the training program;
108	108	(B) training individuals with the skills needed
109	109	to secure full-time, family-sustaining employment in the relevant
110	110	job field; and
111	111	(C) placing individuals in employment described
112	112	by Paragraph (B);
113	113	(3) demonstrate the ability to attract at least 40
114	114	percent of the necessary funding for training program operation
115	115	from revenue streams other than government funding, philanthropy,
116	116	and earned revenue; and
117	117	(4) agree to:
118	118	(A) collaborate with the commission, corporate
119	119	partners, and nonprofit educational partners to determine the
120	120	training programs to be provided using grant money;
121	121	(B) secure support from local businesses to
122	122	ensure alignment between training program offerings and in-demand
123	123	skills;
124	124	(C) collaborate with regional employers to make
125	125	available developmental work-based experiences to further enhance
126	126	training program participants' career readiness;
127	127	(D) engage local entities and organizations,
128	128	including local workforce development boards and community-based
129	129	organizations, to assist with identifying and recruiting eligible
130	130	training program participants; and
131	131	(E) comply with any additional grant conditions
132	132	prescribed by commission rule, including performance benchmarks
133	133	established under Section 134A.008 and reporting requirements
134	134	established under Section 134A.009.
135	135	Sec. 134A.008. PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS. The commission by
136	136	rule shall establish performance benchmarks for entities receiving
137	137	grants under this chapter. The benchmarks must include a
138	138	requirement that an entity facilitate the successful transition of
139	139	at least 50 percent of an entity's training program participants
140	140	from low wage work or unemployment to full-time jobs offering a
141	141	family-sustaining wage and the opportunity for career mobility, as
142	142	determined by the commission, within four months of training
143	143	program completion.
144	144	Sec. 134A.009. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. The commission by
145	145	rule shall require each entity receiving a grant under this chapter
146	146	to submit progress reports to the commission at least twice
147	147	annually. Each progress report must include the following
148	148	information relating to a training program funded by the grant:
149	149	(1) the number of participants;
150	150	(2) an update on progress toward performance
151	151	benchmarks;
152	152	(3) a description of any accomplishments achieved,
153	153	lessons learned, or setbacks or risks incurred by the entity in
154	154	administering the training program;
155	155	(4) an explanation of any changes to the training
156	156	program's work plan, team, or budget; and
157	157	(5) the amount of grant money spent by the entity
158	158	during the reporting period.
159	159	Sec. 134A.010. GRANT AMOUNT. The amount of a grant awarded
160	160	to an entity under this chapter for a training program may not
161	161	exceed $15,000 per training program participant.
162	162	Sec. 134A.011. GRANT USE. An entity may use grant money
163	163	received under this chapter only for curriculum development,
164	164	instructor fees and certifications, training materials, and
165	165	work-related expenses for training program participants as
166	166	determined by commission rule.
167	167	Sec. 134A.012. RULES. The commission shall adopt rules as
168	168	necessary to administer this chapter.
169	169	SECTION 2. The Texas Workforce Commission shall adopt rules
170	170	for the administration of Chapter 134A, Education Code, as added by
171	171	this Act, as soon as practicable following the effective date of
172	172	this Act but not later than December 1, 2023.
173	173	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.