HCS CSSB 334(FIN) AM H: "An Act relating to guidelines and standards for state training programs; relating to the Alaska Human Resource Investment Council; extending the termination date of the state training and employment program; and providing for an effective date."
00HOUSE CS FOR CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 334(FIN) am H 01 "An Act relating to guidelines and standards for state training programs; 02 relating to the Alaska Human Resource Investment Council; extending the 03 termination date of the state training and employment program; and providing for 04 an effective date." 05 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 06 * Section 1. AS 44.19.620 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 07 (c) A member of the council under (a) of this section may appoint a designee 08 to serve in place of the member named in (a) of this section. The member shall 09 appoint the designee in writing. 10 * Sec. 2. AS 44.19.621(a) is amended to read: 11 (a) Members of the Alaska Human Resource Investment Council other than 12 those listed in AS 44.19.620(a)(1) and (2) are appointed by the governor and serve at 13 the pleasure of the governor. The governor may appoint one person to fill two or 14 more of the places listed in AS 44.19.620(a) if the person is qualified in all of the
01 areas the person represents. A member appointed to fill more than one place 02 under this subsection is entitled to only one vote and may appoint only one 03 designee to replace the member in the event the member is unable to attend a 04 meeting. 05 * Sec. 3. AS 44.19.622 is amended to read: 06 Sec. 44.19.622. Compensation. Members of the Alaska Human Resource 07 Investment Council listed in or appointed under AS 44.19.620(a) , including a designee 08 of a member attending in place of the member, serve without compensation but are 09 entitled to per diem and travel expenses authorized by law for boards and commissions 10 under AS 39.20.180. Nonvoting members of the council appointed under 11 AS 44.19.620(b) serve without compensation and are not entitled to per diem and 12 travel expenses. A commissioner appointed under AS 44.19.620(a)(2) or the 13 commissioner's designee is entitled to per diem and travel expenses as a state 14 employee. 15 * Sec. 4. AS 44.19.623 is amended to read: 16 Sec. 44.19.623. Officers. The Alaska Human Resource Investment Council 17 shall elect a chair and a vice-chair from among the members listed in or appointed 18 under AS 44.19.620(a)(5) [AS 44.19.620(a) WHO ARE FROM THE PRIVATE 19 SECTOR. THEY SHALL ALSO ELECT A VICE-CHAIR]. The chair and vice-chair 20 serve in their positions at the pleasure of the council. 21 * Sec. 5. AS 44.19.624 is amended to read: 22 Sec. 44.19.624. Meetings, quorum, and committees. (a) The Alaska Human 23 Resource Investment Council shall meet not more than three times in a calendar 24 year at the call of the chair to conduct its business. A majority of the members listed 25 in or appointed to the council under AS 44.19.620(a) constitutes a quorum. 26 (b) The council shall establish an executive committee and four permanent 27 standing committees as described in (c) - (g) of this section. The chair of a 28 permanent standing committee must be from the private sector. The council may 29 establish additional standing committees and special committees or subcommittees, 30 not necessarily consisting of council members, to advise and assist the council in 31 carrying out its functions assigned by federal or state statute. The permanent
01 standing committees are 02 (1) the assessment and evaluation committee; 03 (2) the policy and planning committee; 04 (3) the employment and placement committee; and 05 (4) the workforce readiness committee. 06 * Sec. 6. AS 44.19.624 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 07 (c) The executive committee consists of the chair and vice-chair of the council, 08 the immediate past chair of the council, and the chairs of the four standing committees 09 described in (d) - (g) of this section. The executive committee has the duties and may 10 exercise the powers of the council between meetings of the council. The executive 11 committee shall 12 (1) report to the council in a timely fashion on actions taken on behalf 13 of the council; and 14 (2) supervise the affairs of the council between regular meetings of the 15 council. 16 (d) The assessment and evaluation committee shall 17 (1) assess and evaluate programs, initiatives, and the delivery of 18 services to help to ensure equitable distribution of quality education, training, and 19 employment services statewide, especially to rural areas and to programs serving 20 economically disadvantaged citizens; 21 (2) call for and monitor the workforce development system for 22 increased accountability in performance and continuous quality improvement along the 23 goals and strategies of the council's overall statewide strategic plan for workforce 24 development; 25 (3) use evaluation and performance measures to gauge customer 26 satisfaction within the workforce development system; and 27 (4) perform other duties assigned by the council. 28 (e) The policy and planning committee shall 29 (1) build policies regarding day-to-day operations and long-term 30 responsibilities of the council; 31 (2) work to increase awareness of the council and its mission
01 throughout the state; 02 (3) work with all other committees on a statewide strategic plan for 03 workforce development; and 04 (4) perform other duties assigned by the council. 05 (f) The employment and placement committee shall 06 (1) ensure the statewide strategic plan for workforce development 07 addresses 08 (A) customer needs at the local level; 09 (B) moving welfare recipients into the workforce; 10 (C) promoting the hiring of state residents in jobs that have 11 traditionally been filled by out-of-state workers; 12 (D) tailoring employment and training programs to suit state 13 business, industry, and economic development needs; 14 (2) monitor the coordination of service delivery to promote efficiency 15 and to prevent overlap of services among programs; and 16 (3) perform other duties assigned by the council. 17 (g) The workforce readiness committee shall 18 (1) provide oversight for training, education, and employment programs 19 to ensure the programs are delivering education and training that is relevant to local 20 market needs and the career goals of state residents; 21 (2) build partnerships between employers and quality workforce training 22 programs; 23 (3) work to connect the state public and private education systems with 24 business, government, and labor to ensure that state residents are receiving workforce 25 readiness skills throughout the education process; and 26 (4) perform other duties assigned by the council. 27 * Sec. 7. AS 44.19.626(b) is amended to read: 28 (b) The council shall 29 (1) facilitate the development of statewide policy for a coordinated and 30 effective employment training and education system in this state; 31 (2) identify the human resource investment needs in the state and
01 develop a plan to meet those needs; 02 (3) review the provision of services and the use of money and resources 03 by the human resource programs listed in AS 44.19.625; 04 (4) assume the duties and functions of the state councils described 05 under the laws relating to the federal human resource programs listed in AS 44.19.625; 06 (5) advise the governor , [AND] state and local agencies , and the 07 University of Alaska on the development of state and local standards and measures 08 relating to applicable human resource programs; 09 (6) submit, to the governor and the legislature, a biennial strategic plan 10 to accomplish the goals developed to meet human resource investment needs; 11 (7) monitor for the implementation and evaluate the effectiveness of the 12 strategic plan developed by the council; 13 (8) adopt regulations that set standards for the percentage of a 14 grant that may be used for administrative costs; the regulations must clearly 15 identify and distinguish between expenses that may be included in administrative 16 costs and those that may not be included in administrative costs; the percentage 17 allowed for administrative costs may not exceed the lesser of 15 percent or the 18 amount permitted under the requirements of a federal program, if applicable; 19 (9) report annually to the legislature, by the 30th day of the regular 20 legislative session, on the performance and evaluation of training programs in the 21 state subject to review under (f) of this section; and 22 (10) identify ways for agencies operating programs subject to 23 oversight by the council to share resources, instructors, and curricula through 24 collaboration with other public and private entities to increase training 25 opportunities and reduce costs; 26 (11) [(8)] adopt regulations under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure 27 Act) to carry out the purposes of AS 44.19.620 - 44.19.627. 28 * Sec. 8. AS 44.19.626 is amended by adding new subsections to read: 29 (d) The council shall provide oversight for the planning and coordination of 30 employment-related education training programs operated by the state or operated 31 under contract with the state that are described in (f) of this section. The council shall
01 require a training program listed in (f) of this section to meet the requirements of this 02 subsection. The council shall, by regulation, establish appropriate penalties for 03 programs that fail to meet the requirements of this subsection. The council may 04 recommend to the legislature changes to enhance the effectiveness of the training 05 programs it oversees under this section. A training program described in (f) of this 06 section funded with money appropriated by the legislature must 07 (1) meet the standards adopted by the council concerning the 08 percentage of a grant that may be spent on administrative costs; 09 (2) be operated by an institution that holds a valid authorization to 10 operate issued under AS 14.48 by the Alaska Commission on Postsecondary Education 11 if the program is a postsecondary educational program operated by a postsecondary 12 educational institution subject to regulation under AS 14.48; 13 (3) provide to the Department of Labor the information required by the 14 department for the preparation of the statistical information necessary for the council 15 to evaluate programs by the standards set out in (e) of this section. 16 (e) The council shall develop standards that encourage agencies to contract for 17 training programs that maximize the program's class size. The council shall adopt 18 standards for the evaluation of training programs listed in (f) of this section with 19 regard to the following: 20 (1) the percent of former participants who have a job one year after 21 leaving the training program; 22 (2) the median wage of former participants seven to 12 months after 23 leaving the program; 24 (3) the percent of former participants who were employed after leaving 25 the training program who received training under the program that was related to their 26 jobs or somewhat related to their jobs seven to 12 months after leaving the training 27 program; 28 (4) the percent of former participants of a training program who 29 indicate that they were satisfied with or somewhat satisfied with the overall quality of 30 the training program; 31 (5) the percent of employers who indicate that they were satisfied with
01 the quality of the work of new employees who had recently completed the training 02 program. 03 (f) The following training programs are subject to the provisions of (d) and (e) 04 of this section: 05 (1) in the Department of Community and Regional Affairs or operated 06 by the department: 07 (A) One Stop Career Center; 08 (B) Job Training Partnership Act programs, assisting 09 communities in moving toward a self-sustainable economy and providing 10 training; 11 (C) state training and employment program (AS 23.15.620), 12 providing training and employment services for people who are unemployed or 13 likely to become unemployed, fostering new jobs, and increasing training 14 opportunities for workers severely affected by fluctuations in the state economy 15 or adversely affected by technology advances in the workplace; 16 (2) in the Department of Education or operated by the department, the 17 non-public-school portions of the following programs: 18 (A) employment-related adult basic education; 19 (B) School-to-Work; 20 (C) vocational education and Tech Prep; 21 (D) Alaska Career Information System; 22 (E) high school completion project; 23 (F) Kotzebue Technical Center; 24 (G) Alaska Vocational Technical Center; 25 (3) in the Department of Health and Social Services: employment 26 training services operated as part of the Alaska Temporary Assistance Program 27 (ATAP); 28 (4) in the Department of Labor: 29 (A) unemployment insurance grants provided under the federal 30 training relocation assistance program; 31 (B) Alaska works programs, assisting with the welfare-to-work
01 program; 02 (C) state training employment program, coordinated with the 03 Department of Community and Regional Affairs. 04 (g) The council shall assess the programs listed in this subsection and make 05 recommendations to the legislature in its report required under (b)(9) of this section 06 about whether to include one or more of these programs under the requirements of (f) 07 of this section: 08 (1) in the Department of Community and Regional Affairs or operated 09 by the department: 10 (A) local government assistance training and development, 11 including the rural utility business advisory program; 12 (B) energy operations, providing training in management and 13 administration of electric utilities and bulk fuel storage systems; 14 (2) in the Department of Corrections: 15 (A) Correctional Academy, training individuals applying for a 16 correctional officer position; 17 (B) inmate programs, providing vocational technical training and 18 education courses for inmates preparing to be released from a correctional 19 facility; 20 (C) correctional industries program, providing inmates with jobs 21 while they are incarcerated; 22 (3) in the Department of Environmental Conservation: 23 (A) remote maintenance worker program, providing training and 24 technical assistance to communities to keep drinking water and sewage disposal 25 systems running, and providing on-the-job training to local operators; 26 (B) water and wastewater operator training and assistance; 27 (C) federal drinking water operator training and certification; 28 (4) in the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs: educational 29 benefits for members of the Alaska National Guard and the Alaska Naval Militia; 30 (5) in the Department of Public Safety: 31 (A) fire service training to maintain emergency training skills
01 for existing fire fighter staff and volunteers and individuals interested in 02 becoming fire fighters; 03 (B) Public Safety Training Academy, training trooper recruits; 04 (6) in the Department of Transportation and Public Facilities: 05 (A) engineer-in-training program, providing on-the-job training 06 for apprentice engineers to enable them to gain the experience necessary to be 07 certified; 08 (B) statewide transportation improvement program, offered by 09 the United States National Highway Institute; 10 (C) local technical assistance program, transferring technical 11 expertise to local governments; 12 (D) Native technical assistance program, transferring technical 13 expertise to Native governments; 14 (E) border technology exchange program, to coordinate highway 15 issues with the Yukon Territory; 16 (7) in the Department of Education: vocational rehabilitation client 17 services and special work projects; 18 (8) in the Department of Labor: employment services, including job 19 development, assisting individuals in finding employment, and assisting employed 20 individuals in finding other employment; 21 (9) in the Department of Administration: Alaska Professional 22 Development Institute, providing continuing education and training for employed 23 workers. 24 (h) The University of Alaska shall evaluate the performance of its training 25 programs using the standards set out in (e) of this section and shall provide a report 26 on the results to the council for inclusion in the council's annual report to the 27 legislature. 28 (i) The council shall review each program listed in (f) of this section to 29 determine whether it is in compliance with the standards set out in (d) and (e) of this 30 section. If the council finds that a program has failed to comply with the standards 31 set out in (d) and (e) of this section, it shall notify the program director of the failure.
01 If the program director fails to improve the performance of the program within a 02 reasonable time, the council shall notify the governor and the legislative budget and 03 audit committee that the program is out of compliance. A contract entered into by a 04 state agency relating to a training program set out in (f) of this section must contain 05 terms consistent with this section. 06 (j) A department that operates or contracts for a training program listed in (f) 07 of this section shall pay to the council a management assessment fee not to exceed .75 08 percent of the program's annual operating budget. The total amount received as 09 management assessment fees may not exceed the council's authorized budget for the 10 fiscal year. The council shall, by regulation, establish a method to determine annually 11 the amount of the management assessment fee. If the amount the council expects to 12 collect under this subsection exceeds the authorized budget of the council, the council 13 shall reduce the percentages set out in this subsection so that the total amount of the 14 fees collected approximately equals the authorized budget of the council for the fiscal 15 year. The council shall adopt regulations under AS 44.62 (Administrative Procedure 16 Act) necessary to administer this subsection. 17 (k) Upon the enactment of a new federal or state program relating to work 18 force development, the council shall 19 (1) advise the governor and the legislature on whether the council 20 should provide oversight for the new program under this section; and 21 (2) make recommendations necessary to streamline and coordinate state 22 efforts to meet the guidelines of the new program. 23 (l) For purposes of this section, "program" 24 (1) does not refer to the overall activities of an individual institution 25 or individual fields of study or courses that are not associated with programs for which 26 the council has oversight responsibility; 27 (2) may include a certificate or associate degree course or a course that 28 is not for credit, whether it is offered by a public or private institute or contracted for 29 by the private sector, so long as it is related to employment. 30 * Sec. 9. Section 6, ch. 116, SLA 1996, is amended to read: 31 Sec. 6. AS 23.15.620, 23.15.625, 23.15.630, 23.15.635, 23.15.640, 23.15.645,
01 23.15.651, and 23.15.660 are repealed June 30, 2002 [1998]. 02 * Sec. 10. TRANSITION. Notwithstanding the requirement in AS 44.19.623, as amended 03 by sec. 4 of this Act, that the chair and the vice chair of the council be members of the 04 council appointed under AS 44.19.620(a)(5), a member who is serving as chair or vice chair 05 of the council on the day before the effective date of this Act may continue to serve in that 06 capacity until the expiration of the member's term of office. However, if the vice-chair is a 07 commissioner of a department of state government, the office becomes vacant on the effective 08 date of this Act and the council shall elect a vice chair who meets the requirements of 09 AS 44.19.623, as amended by sec. 4 of this Act. 10 * Sec. 11. This Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).