SENATE BILL REPORT
EHB 2608
This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in
their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a
statement of legislative intent.
As Reported By Senate Committee On:
Higher Education, February 27, 2008
Title: An act relating to clarifying terms for workforce and economic development.
Brief Description: Clarifying terms for workforce and economic development.
Sponsors: Representatives Hasegawa, Wallace, Sells and Chase; by request of Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board.
Brief History: Passed House: 2/13/08, 96-0.
Committee Activity: Higher Education: 2/21/08, 2/27/08 [DP].
SENATE COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Majority Report: Do pass.Signed by Senators Shin, Chair; Kilmer, Vice Chair; Delvin, Ranking Minority Member; Berkey, Schoesler and Sheldon.
Staff: Aldo Melchiori (786-7439)
Background: The terms "high employer demand program of study," industry "sector," and "work activity" are used inconsistently in a number of contexts. A Governor's workgroup that included members from the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board; the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC); the Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (DCTED); the Employment Security Department; the Department of Labor and Industries; the Higher Education Coordinating Board; and the Council of Presidents worked over the 2007 legislative interim to develop common meanings for these terms.
Summary of Bill: The SBCTC's definition of "high employer demand program of study" is "an apprenticeship, undergraduate, or graduate certificate or degree program in which the number of students prepared for employment per year from in-state institutions is substantially less than the number of projected job openings per year in that field, statewide or in a substate region." For purposes of the Opportunity Grant program, the SBCTC will use this new term instead of "job specific training program" that presently, but would no longer, include a factor looking at programs in which training capacity is underutilized. The DCTED uses the term "industry cluster" to identify geographic concentrations of interdependent competitive firms that do business with each other. This term is expanded to include governmental and educational institutions. The term is replaced with the term "sector" and "industry sector." "Sector" is defined as a group of industries with similar business processes, products, or services as categorized by the North American Industry Classification System.
Appropriation: None.
Fiscal Note: Not requested.
Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.
Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.
Staff Summary of Public Testimony on Engrossed Bill: PRO: The clarification of the technical definitions provide the parties with a common language. It is difficult to communicate internally unless there are commonly accepted definitions.
Persons Testifying: PRO: Representative Hasegawa, prime sponsor; Jim Crabbe, SBCTC; Wes Pruit, WTECB.