BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
35 (Furutani)
Hearing Date: 08/02/2010 Amended: 08/02/2010
Consultant: Dan Troy Policy Vote: ED 5-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 35 would require the California Workforce
Investment Board (CWIB) to assist the Office of the Chancellor
of the California Community Colleges (CCCCO) and the Board of
Governors (BOG) to develop a strategic plan for connecting
education and workforce development in the state.
This bill would additionally add career technical education
(CTE) as an option for fulfilling one course requirement
necessary for high school graduation, and require the Department
of Education to report on the number of pupils who took CTE to
fulfill this graduation requirement, as specified.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 Fund
CCCs $330 General
SDE report $150 to $200, prior to 2015 General
on CTE graduation
course requirements
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STAFF COMMENTS: This bill meets the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Current law establishes the California Workforce Investment
Board (CWIB) and requires the CWIB to assist the Governor with
promoting the development, oversight, and continuous development
of a well-educated and highly skilled workforce, and also to
assist in the development of the State Workforce Investment
Plan.
Current law also establishes the California Community Colleges
Economic and Workforce Development (EWD) Program as a primary
mission of the California Community Colleges. This program is
administered through the Community College Chancellor's Office.
Current law states that the purpose of the EWD program is to
advance California's economic growth and global competitiveness
through education, training, and services that contribute to
continuous work force improvement, technology, deployment, and
business development. The Community Colleges work with
employers, advisory committees, and agency partners to identify,
on a region-by-region basis, workforce education and training
needs, including the needs of small business.
This bill would requires the California Workforce Investment
Board and the CCCCO and the BOG to develop a strategic plan, in
conjunction with specified stakeholders, for connecting
education and workforce development in the state as part of the
CWIB's next biennial review of California's Strategic Plan for
Title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and the
Wagner-Peyser Act. The CWIB and the CCCC, in cooperation with
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AB 35 (Furutani)
Department of Education, would include recommendations in the
strategic plan that address the contribution of career technical
education to workforce development.
According to the author, this bill is intended to ensure that
there is effective coordination and efficient use of the various
resources that fund workforce development programs during a time
of limited state revenues. While the CCCCO and the CWIB have
produced strategic plans to guide the operation of their
respective workforce development programs, and in spite of the
fact that individual agency plans call for coordination, the
author believes that there has been a lack of coordination among
the workforce development partners. Codifying the requirement
that these two entities work together to develop a state
strategic plan would provide clarifying guidance to all agencies
when implementing workforce development programs.
The CCCCO would be required to staff the project and costs are
estimated to be approximately $330,000 including staff and costs
for stakeholder meetings, printing, and other miscellaneous
activities.
Recent amendments to this bill would incorporate contents from
AB 2446 (Furutani), scheduled to be heard by this committee on
August 2nd. These provisions would add career technical
education as an option for fulfilling one course requirement
necessary for high school graduation, and require a report from
the Department of Education concerning the impact of that change
to law. Staff understands that only the report was intended to
be amended into this bill, though the link between the report
and this bill is not clear. Costs for the report are estimated
by the Department to be approximately $150,000 to $200,000.
SB 365 (Portantino, 2007) would have required the California
Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC), in cooperation with
the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, to convene a Task
Force on State Workforce Needs. SB 365 was vetoed by the
Governor.