HOUSE BILL REPORT

HB 707

BYRepresentatives Sayan, Vekich, Ballard, Grimm, Locke, Meyers, Basich, Hargrove, Heavey, Jacobsen, Fisch, O'Brien, P. King, Baugher, Rasmussen, Unsoeld and Todd; by request of Employment Security Department

Increasing the goals and duties of the Washington conservation corps.

House Committe on Trade & Economic Development

Majority Report:     Do pass.  (17)

     Signed by Representatives Vekich, Chair; Wineberry, Vice Chair; Amondson, Beck, Belcher, Braddock, Cantwell, Doty, Hargrove, Holm, Kremen, McLean, Moyer, Rasmussen, Schoon, B. Williams and J. Williams.

House Staff:Stephen Hodes (786-7092)

AS PASSED HOUSE MARCH 9, 1987

BACKGROUND:

The Washington Conservation Corps program was created by the Legislature in 1983.  The program was designed to: provide work experience and training for young people, eighteen to twenty-five years old; to work on the conservation, rehabilitation, and enhancement of the state's natural, historic, and recreational resources; to teach both basic employment skills and the workings of natural systems to program participants; and to provide needed public services.

The Conservation Corps was established as sub-programs in six delivery agencies.  They include:  the Employment Security Department, the Department of Ecology, the Department of Game, the Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Agriculture, and the State Parks and Recreation Commission.  Coordination and administrative support was provided by the Youth Employment Exchange in the Employment Security Department.  It developed guidelines for work performance standards for the entire program, and was designated the sole recipient of federal funds for youth employment and conservation corps programs.

In 1985, the Legislature passed legislation to provide further direction to the program.  The Employment Security Department was designated to select and approve Conservation Corps projects, with the assistance of the Conservation Corps Coordinating Council, composed of representatives of all the participating agencies.  Total administrative costs for the program were limited to fifteen percent of total program costs, with the proviso that up to thirty percent of total costs were permitted for combined administrative and program support activities. Costs per enrollee were limited to an average cost of $7,000. Sixty percent of the funds were to be used in distressed areas or to serve youth from distressed areas.  The Department of Employment Security was directed to evaluate projects on the basis of cost per enrollee, public benefit of the proposed project, opportunity for placement, degree of public and private support, and coordination of projects with other agencies. Training plans were to be developed for each enrollee.  Program preference was to be given to 18-23 year olds.

SUMMARY:

The Washington Conservation Corps program is reauthorized.  It is extended through July 1, 1995.  Priorities for program activities relative to conservation, rehabilitation and resource enhancement are established.  Emphasis is given to projects which address:  timber, fish, and wildlife management plans, watershed management plans, the 1989 centennial celebration, Puget Sound water quality, the US-Canada fisheries treaty, recreational facilities which provide public access to and environmental education about natural resources.

The Conservation Corps Coordinating Council, consisting of representatives of the six agencies participating in the Conservation Corps program, is designated to select, review, approve, and evaluate the success of projects under the program, rather than recommending work projects to the Department of Employment Security.  It supplants the Department of Employment Security in this role.

EFFECT OF SENATE AMENDMENT(S):  Recreational trails are added to the list of prioritized program activities identified in the bill.  Recruitment, job training, and placement services are directed to be contracted whenever possible through local education institutions or non-profit corporations.  Contracts may include general education development, testing, preparation of resumes, and job search skills.

Fiscal Note:    Requested February 11, 1987.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:     Mike Reed, State Parks & Recreation; Scott Lane, Program enrollee in Dept. of Game; Glen Crandall, Dept. of Ecology; Hon. Harold Hardy, Mayor, City of Westport; and Randall Jones, Westport.

House Committee - Testified Against: None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:     This is a widely respected program with a good success rate of enrollees.  Projects performed have been helpful to local areas.  The program is successful and should not be changed in any major areas.

House Committee - Testimony Against: None Presented.