AN ACT Relating to the
work force training and education coordinating board; amending RCW 28C.18.050;
adding new sections to chapter 28C.18 RCW; and creating a new section.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE
LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
NEW SECTION. Sec.
1. (1) The legislature
continues to recognize the vital role that work force development efforts play
in equipping the state's workers with the skills they need to succeed in an
economy that requires higher levels of skill and knowledge. The legislature
also recognizes that businesses are increasingly relying on the state's work
force development programs and expect them to be responsive to their changing
skill requirements. The state benefits from a work force development system
that allows firms and workers to be highly competitive in global markets.
(2) The establishment
of the work force training and education coordinating board was an integral
step in developing a strategic approach to work force development. For the
coordinating board to carry out its intended role, the board must be able to
give unambiguous guidance to operating agencies, the governor, and the
legislature. It is the intent of this act to clarify the preeminent role
intended for the work force training and education coordinating board in
coordination and policy development of the state's work force development
efforts.
(3) In the event that
federal work force development funds are block granted to the state, it is the
intent of the legislature to seek the broadest possible input, from local and
state-wide organizations concerned with work force development, on the
allocation of the federal funds.
(4) For purposes of
sections 2 and 4 through 6 of this act, the term "program" shall not
refer to the activities of individual institutions such as individual community
or technical colleges, common schools, service delivery areas, or job service
centers; nor shall it refer to individual fields of study or courses.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
2. (1) The state
comprehensive plan for work force training and education shall be updated every
two years and presented to the governor and the appropriate legislative policy
committees. Following public hearings, the legislature shall, by concurrent resolution,
approve or recommend changes to the initial plan and the updates. The plan
shall then become the state's work force training policy unless legislation is
enacted to alter the policies set forth in the plan.
(2) The comprehensive
plan shall include work force training role and mission statements for the work
force development programs of operating agencies represented on the board and
sufficient specificity regarding expected actions by the operating agencies to
allow them to carry out actions consistent with the comprehensive plan.
(3) Operating agencies
represented on the board shall have operating plans for their work force
development efforts that are consistent with the comprehensive plan and that
provide detail on implementation steps they will take to carry out their
responsibilities under the plan. Each operating agency represented on the
board shall provide an annual progress report to the board.
(4) The comprehensive
plan shall include recommendations to the legislature and the governor on the
modification, consolidation, initiation, or elimination of work force training
and education programs in the state.
(5) The board shall
report to the appropriate legislative policy committees by December 1 of each
year on its progress in implementing the comprehensive plan and on the progress
of the operating agencies in meeting their obligations under the plan.
Sec. 3. RCW 28C.18.050 and 1991
c 238 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
(1) The board shall be
designated as the state board of vocational education as provided for in P.L.
98‑524, as amended, and shall perform such functions as is necessary to
comply with federal directives pertaining to the provisions of such law.
(2) The board shall
perform the functions of the human resource investment council as provided for
in the federal job training partnership act, P.L. 97-300, as amended.
(3) The board shall
provide policy advice for any federal act pertaining to work force development
that is not required by state or federal law to be provided by another state
body.
(4) Upon enactment
of new federal initiatives relating to work force development, the board shall
advise the governor and the legislature on mechanisms for integrating the
federal initiatives into the state's work force development system and make
recommendations on the legislative or administrative measures necessary to
streamline and coordinate state efforts to meet federal guidelines.
(5) The board
shall monitor for consistency with the state comprehensive plan for work force
training and education the policies and plans established by the state job
training coordinating council, the advisory council on adult education, and the
Washington state plan for adult basic education, and provide guidance for
making such policies and plans consistent with the state comprehensive plan for
work force training and education.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
4. (1) The board shall
specify, by December 31, 1995, the common core data to be collected by the
operating agencies of the state training system and the standards for data
collection and maintenance required in RCW 28C.18.060(8).
(2) The minimum
standards for program evaluation by operating agencies required in RCW
28C.18.060(9) shall include biennial program evaluations; the first of such
evaluations shall be completed by the operating agencies July 1, 1996. The
program evaluation of adult basic skills education shall be provided by the
advisory council on adult education.
(3) The board shall
complete, by January 1, 1996, its first outcome-based evaluation and, by
September 1, 1996, its nonexperimental net-impact and cost-benefit evaluations
of the training system. The outcome, net-impact, and cost-benefit evaluations
shall for the first evaluations, include evaluations of each of the following programs:
Secondary vocational-technical education, work-related adult basic skills
education, postsecondary work force training, job training partnership act
titles II and III, as well as of the system as a whole.
(4) The board shall use
the results of its outcome, net-impact, and cost-benefit evaluations to develop
and make recommendations to the legislature and the governor for the
modification, consolidation, initiation, or elimination of work force training
and education programs in the state.
The board shall perform
the requirements of this section in cooperation with the operating agencies.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
5. The board shall, by
January 1, 1996, and biennially thereafter: (1) Assess the total demand for
training from the perspective of workers, and from the perspective of
employers; (2) assess the available supply of publicly and privately provided
training which workers and employers are demanding; (3) assess the costs to the
state of meeting the demand; and (4) present the legislature and the governor
with a strategy for bridging the gap between the supply and the demand for
training services.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
6. The board shall, in
cooperation with the operating agencies, by January 1, 1996:
(1) Identify policies
to reduce administrative and other barriers to efficient operation of the
state's work force development system and barriers to improved coordination of
work force development in the state. These policies shall include waivers of
statutory requirements and administrative rules, as well as implementation of
one-stop access to work force development services and school-to-work
transition;
(2) Identify ways for
operating agencies to share resources, instructors, and curricula through
collaboration with other public and private entities to increase training
opportunities and reduce costs; and
(3) Report to the
governor and the appropriate legislative committees its recommendations for any
statutory changes necessary to enhance operational efficiencies or improve
coordination. The board shall work with the operating agencies of the state's
work force development system to reduce administrative barriers that do not
require statutory changes.
NEW SECTION. Sec.
7. Sections 2 and 4 through
6 of this act are each added to chapter 28C.18 RCW.
