FINAL BILL REPORT

ESHB 1247

C 103 L 13

Synopsis as Enacted

Brief Description: Modifying job skills program provisions.

Sponsors: House Committee on Labor & Workforce Development (originally sponsored by Representatives Hansen, Warnick, Smith, Zeiger, Fey, Springer, Tharinger and Santos).

House Committee on Labor & Workforce Development

House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Education

Senate Committee on Higher Education

Background:

The Job Skills Program (JSP), created in 1983, provides short-term training customized to meet businesses' specific needs. The JSP awards grants to licensed educational institutions that work in partnership with business and industry to deliver training to new or current employees at the work site or in a classroom.

Financial support from business and industry must be equal to or greater than the amount of the grant, and may be in the form of cash or in-kind resources.

The JSP is administered by the State Board of Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC). The SBCTC must work collaboratively with the Workforce Training Customer Advisory Committee to assure that the grant program meets certain statutorily established criteria. In addition, the JSP must give priority to applications that: (1) propose training of transferable skills; (2) coordinate with other cluster-based programs; (3) propose industry-based credentialing; (4) propose increased capacity for educational institutions that can be available to industry and students beyond the grant recipients; and (5) are from firms in strategic industry clusters as identified by the state or local areas.

Summary:

The requirement that businesses financially match the amount of the JSP grant is changed. The contributing financial support from businesses having an annual gross business income of less than $500,000 may be at least equal to the trainees' salaries and benefits while in training rather than equal to or greater than the JSP grant. Annual gross income is based on the income reported to the Department of Revenue for the previous fiscal year.

Two criteria in the priority list are replaced. Priority will be given to proposals for training that provides college credit or leads to a recognized industry credential (rather than training that leads to transferable skills) and to applications from consortia of colleges or consortia of employers (rather than applications proposing industry-based credentialing). The SBCTC must make an annual report to the Legislature regarding the implementation of the JSP.

Votes on Final Passage: