ENROLLED
H. B. 3009
(By Delegates Mezzatesta, Martin, Williams,
Stemple, Manuel, Houston and Fletcher)
[Passed March 12, 1999; in effect from passage.]
AN ACT to amend chapter eighteen-b of the code of West Virginia,
one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, by adding
thereto a new article, designated article three-d, relating
to creating the workforce development initiative program
under the council for community and economic development;
providing that the council is responsible for administering
the state fund for community and technical college and
workforce development; providing the programs mission is to
link postsecondary education capacity to the needs of
employers; requirements for participating in the program;
establishing grant application procedures; and requiring
legislative rules.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That chapter eighteen-b of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended by
adding thereto a new article, designated article three-d, to read as follows:
CHAPTER 18B. HIGHER EDUCATION
ARTICLE 3D. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE.
§18B-3D-1. Legislative findings and intent.
(a) The Legislature finds that a recent statewide study of
the workforce training needs of employers throughout the state
provided a clear message from the business community:
(1) The needs of employers are rapidly changing and training
providers must be more responsive or the state economy will
suffer;
(2) Information specific to West Virginia, once again
emphasizes the critical link between education and economic
development that empowering youth and adults with the knowledge
and skills they need to succeed in the competitive work world
also results in a workforce which enables businesses and
communities to prosper;
(3) Although employers are generally satisfied with the
quality of the West Virginia workforce and the study provides
additional support that the measures adopted in the Jobs Through
Education Act will bring continued improvement, workforce needs
are not static, critical skill shortages currently exist, and the
establishment of a workforce development system that responds
more quickly to the evolving skill requirements of employers is
needed.
(b) The Legislature further finds that a study of community and technical education in West Virginia performed by the
national center for higher education management systems called
attention to problems in providing needed workforce education and
found that there is a need to:
(1) Jump-start development of community college and
postsecondary workforce development initiatives;
(2) Provide incentives for existing public postsecondary
providers to respond jointly to both short and long-term needs of
employers and other clients;
(3) Provide funding for explicit incentives for partnerships
between employers and public postsecondary institutions to
develop comprehensive community college and workforce development
services; and
(4) Allocate funds competitively on the basis of proposals
submitted by providers.
(c) It is further the intent of the Legislature that the
granting of funds under this article will promote the mission of
community and technical colleges as set forth in section three-a,
article three of this chapter.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature through the grant of
funds under this article to provide limited seed money to address
some of the specific areas where improvement is needed,
including:
(1) Improving employer awareness and access to services
available through the state's education institutions;
(2) Providing designated professionals and resources to
support workforce education through the state's education
institutions;
(3) Increasing the capacity of the state's education
institutions to respond rapidly to employer needs for workforce
education, and training on an on-going basis through the
development of a client-focused, visible point of contact for
program development and delivery, service referral and needs
assessment, such as a workforce development center; and
(4) Maximizing the use of available resources for workforce
education and training through partnerships with public
vocational, technical and adult education centers and private
training providers.
(e) It is further the intent of the Legislature that
consideration and partnering opportunities be given to small
businesses on an equal basis with larger businesses for the
purposes of this article and that the seed money will assist
providers in becoming self-sustaining through partnerships with
business and industry which will include cost-sharing initiatives
and fees charged for the use of services.
(f) The Legislature intends that grants of funds made under
the provisions of this article will be competitive among
applicants who meet all of the criteria established in this
article and such other criteria as may be specified by the
council. Subject to the availability of funds, more than one competition may be held during the same fiscal year and the
dollar range of awards granted in successive competitions shall
be prorated based on the number of months remaining in the fiscal
year. Subject to annual review and justification, it is the
intent of the Legislature to renew grant awards made under this
article each year for five years following the initial grant
award.
§18B-3D-2. Workforce development initiative program created;
program administration.
(a) For the purposes of this article "Council" means the
council for community and economic development as defined in
section two, article two, chapter five-b of this code.
(b) There is hereby created under the council, a workforce
development initiative program to administer and oversee grants
to community and technical colleges to achieve the purposes of
this article in accordance with legislative intent. The primary
responsibility of the council as it relates to the workforce
development initiative program is to administer the state fund
for community and technical college and workforce development
including setting criteria for grant applications, receiving
applications for grants, making determinations on distribution of
funds, and evaluating the performance of workforce development
initiatives.
(cb) The council shall review and approve the expenditure of
all grant funds, including development of application criteria,
the review and selection of applicants for funding, and the
annual review and justification of applicants for grant renewal. (1) To aid in decisionmaking, the council shall appoint an
advisory committee consisting of the vice chancellor for
community and technical colleges, the secretary of education and
the arts or a designee, the assistant state superintendent for
technical and adult education, the chair of the joint commission
for vocational-technical-occupational education
, and the chair of
the human resource investment council. The advisory committee shall review all applications for workforce development
initiative grants and make a report including recommendations for
distributing grant funds to the council. The advisory committee
also shall make recommendations on methods to share among the
community and technical colleges any curricula developed as a
result of a workforce development initiative grant.
(2) When determining which grant proposals will be funded,
the council shall give special consideration to proposals by
community and technical colleges that involve businesses with
fewer than fifty employees.
(3) The council also shall weigh each proposal to avoid
awarding grants which will have the ultimate effect of providing
unfair advantage to employers new to the state who will be in
direct competition with established local businesses.
(dc) The council may allocate a reasonable amount, not to
exceed five percent up to a maximum of $50,000 of the funds
available for grants on an annual basis, for general program
administration.
(ed) The head of the council shall report to the legislative
oversight commission on education accountability on the status of
the workforce development initiative program by the first day of
December, one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine, and annually thereafter by the first day of December.
(fe) Moneys appropriated or otherwise available for the
workforce development initiative program shall be allocated by
line item to an appropriate account. Any moneys remaining in the
fund at the close of a fiscal year shall be carried forward for
use in the next fiscal year.
(gf) Nothing in this article requires a specific level of
appropriation by the Legislature.
§18B-3D-3. Mission of the workforce development initiative
program.
(a) The state-wide mission of the workforce development
initiative program is to develop a strategy to strengthen the
quality of the state's workforce by linking the existing
postsecondary education capacity to the needs of business,
industry and other employers. Available funding will be used to
provide explicit incentives for partnerships between employers
and community and technical colleges to develop comprehensive
workforce development services. Funds will be granted on the
basis of proposals developed according to criteria established by
the council.
(b) The mission of any community and technical college
accepting a workforce development initiative grant is to:
(1) Become client-focused and develop programs that meet
documented employer needs;
(2) Involve and collaborate with employers in the
development of programs;
(3) Develop customized training programs that provide for
the changing needs of employers and that are offered at flexible
times and locations to accommodate employer scheduling;
(4) Develop partnerships with other public and private
providers, including small business development centers and,
vocational, technical and adult education centers, and with
business and labor, to fulfill the workforce development needs of
the service area;
(5) Assist in the on-going assessment of the workforce
development needs of the service area; and
(6) Serve as a visible point of contact and referral for
services to meet the workforce development needs of the service
area.
§18B-3D-4. Grant aApplication pProcedures.
(a) In order to participate in the workforce development
initiative grant program, a community and technical college must
meet the following conditions:
(1) Establish a consortia committee as required by section three, article three-a of this chapter. The consortia committee
or a subcommittee thereof shall participate in the development of
and approve applications for funding grants under the provisions
of this article, and shall approve the workforce development
initiative budget;
(2) Develop a plan to achieve measurable improvements in the
quality of the workforce within its service area over a five-year
period. The plan must be developed in partnership with employers,
local vocational schools, and other workforce education
providers.;
(3) Establish a special revolving fund under the
jurisdiction of the consortia committee dedicated solely to
workforce development initiatives for the purposes provided in
this article. Any fees or revenues generated from workforce
development initiatives funded by a competitive grant shall be
deposited into this fund;.
(b) To be eligible to receive a workforce development
initiative grant, a community and technical college must provide
at least the following information in its application:
(1) Identification of the specific business or business
sector training needs that will be met if a workforce development
initiative grant is received;
(2) A commitment from the private sector to provide a match
of one dollar for each dollar of state grant money received
except in cases where the community and technical college can
demonstrate in the grant application that it would be a hardship
for the business being served to provide such a match. In those
cases only, the match required may be reduced to one private
dollar for every three dollars of state grant money provided.;
(3) An agreement to share with other community and technical
colleges any curricula developed using funds from a workforce
development initiative grant;
(4) A specific plan showing how the community and technical
college will collaborate with local postsecondary vocational
institutions to maximize the use of existing facilities;
(5) An acknowledgment that acceptance of a grant under the
provisions of this article commits the community and technical
college and its consortia committee to such terms, conditions and
deliverables as is specified by the council in the request for
applications, including, but not limited to, the measures by
which the performance of the workforce development initiative
will be evaluated.
§18B-3D-5. Legislative rules.
The council shall propose a legislative rule pursuant to article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to implement
the provisions of this article and shall file the rule with the
legislative oversight commission on education accountability no
later than the first day of September, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-nine.
Adopted
Rejected
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