AB 2061, as amended, Waldron. Supervised Population Workforce Training Grant Program.
Existing law, until January 1, 2021, establishes the Supervised Population Workforce Training Grant Program to be administered, as provided, by the California Workforce Investment Board. Existing law establishes grant program eligibility criteria for counties and provides that eligible uses for grant funds include, but are not limited to, vocational training, stipends for trainees, and apprenticeship opportunities for the supervised population, which include individuals on probation, mandatory supervision, and postrelease community supervision. Existing law requires the board to develop criteria for the selection of grant recipients, but requires the board to give preference to certain grant applications, including an application that proposes participation by one or more nonprofit community-based organizations that serve the supervised population. Existing law requires the board, by January 1, 2018, to submit a report to the Legislature containing specified information, including an evaluation of the effectiveness of the grant program.
This bill would also require the board to give preference to a grant application that proposes participation by one or more employers who have demonstrated interest in employing individuals in the supervisedbegin delete population, including earn and learn opportunities.end deletebegin insert population.end insert The bill would require the board to include in its report to the Legislature whether the program provided training opportunities in areas related to work skills learned while incarcerated. The bill would update references to the California Workforce Investment Board to reflect its new name, the California Workforce Development Board.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:
3(a) In recent decades, the number of Americans who have had
4contact with the criminal justice system has increased
5exponentially. It is estimated that about one in three adults in the
6U.S. has a criminal history record, which often consists of an arrest
7that did not lead to conviction, a conviction for which the person
8was not sentenced to a term of incarceration, or a conviction for
9a nonviolent crime.
10(b) On any given day, about 2.3 million people are incarcerated
11in the U.S. and, each year, 700,000 people are released from
prison
12and almost 13 million people are admitted to and released from
13local jails.
14(c) California’s long-term economic growth is dependent on
15identifying ways in which those who face barriers to employment,
16such as being formerly incarcerated, can become contributing
17members of society and achieve financial independence.
Section 1234 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
For purposes of this chapter, the following terms have
20the following meanings:
21(a) “California Workforce Development Board” means the
22California Workforce Development Board established pursuant to
23Article 1 (commencing with Section 14010) of Chapter 3 of
24Division 7 of the Unemployment Insurance Code.
25(b) “Earn and learn” has the same meaning as in Section 14005
26of the Unemployment Insurance Code.
P3 1(c) “Grant program” means the Supervised Population
2Workforce Training Grant Program.
3(d) “Supervised population”
means those persons who are on
4probation, mandatory supervision, or postrelease community
5supervision and are supervised by, or are under the jurisdiction of,
6a county.
Section 1234.1 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
(a) This chapter establishes the Supervised Population
9Workforce Training Grant Program to be administered by the
10California Workforce Development Board.
11(b) The grant program shall be developed and implemented in
12accordance with the criteria set forth in Section 1234.3. In
13developing the program, the California Workforce Development
14Board shall consult with public and private stakeholders, including
15local workforce development boards, local governments, and
16nonprofit community-based organizations that serve the supervised
17population.
18(c) The grant program shall be funded, upon appropriation by
19the Legislature.
Implementation of this program is contingent upon
20the director of the California Workforce Development Board
21notifying the Department of Finance that sufficient moneys have
22been appropriated for this specific grant program.
23(d) The outcomes from the grant program shall be reported
24pursuant to Section 1234.4.
Section 1234.2 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
The California Workforce Development Board shall
27administer the grant program as follows:
28(a) Develop criteria for the selection of grant recipients through
29a public application process, including, but not limited to, the rating
30and ranking of applications that meet the threshold criteria set forth
31in this section.
32(b) Design the grant program application process to ensure all
33of the following occurs:
34(1) Outreach and technical assistance is made available to
35eligible applicants, especially to small population and rural
36counties.
37(2) Grants are awarded on a competitive basis.
38(3) Small and rural counties are competitive in applying for
39funds.
P4 1(4) Applicants are encouraged to develop evidence-based, best
2practices for serving the workforce training and education needs
3of the supervised population.
4(5) The education and training needs of one or both of the
5following are addressed:
6(A) Individuals with some postsecondary education who can
7enter into programs and benefit from services that result in
8certifications, and placement on a middle skill career ladder.
9(B) Individuals who require basic education as well as
training
10in order to obtain entry level jobs where there are opportunities
11for career advancement.
Section 1234.3 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
(a) The grant program shall be competitively awarded
14through at least two rounds of funding, with the first phase of
15funding being awarded on or before May 1, 2015.
16(b) Each county is eligible to apply, and a single application
17may include multiple counties applying jointly. Each application
18shall include a partnership agreement between the county or
19counties and one or more local workforce development boards that
20outline the actions each party agrees to undertake as part of the
21project proposed in the application.
22(c) At a minimum, each project proposed in the application shall
23include a provision for an education and
training assessment for
24each individual of the supervised population who participates in
25the project. The assessment may be undertaken by the applicant
26or by another entity. A prior assessment of an individual may be
27used if, in the determination of the California Workforce
28Development Board, its results are accurate. The California
29Workforce Development Board may delegate the responsibility
30for determining the sufficiency of a prior assessment to one or
31more local workforce development boards.
32(d) Eligible uses of grant funds include, but are not limited to,
33vocational training, stipends for trainees, and earn and learn
34opportunities for the supervised population. Supportive services
35and job readiness activities shall serve as bridge activities that lead
36to enrollment in long-term training programs.
37(e) Preference shall be awarded to applications for the following:
38(1) An application that proposes matching funds, including, but
39not limited to, moneys committed by local workforce
development
40boards, local governments, and private foundation funds.
P5 1(2) An application submitted by a county that currently
2administers or participates in a workforce training program for the
3supervised population.
4(3) An application that proposes participation by one or more
5nonprofit community-based organizations that serve the supervised
6population.
7(4) An application that proposes participation by one or more
8employers who have demonstrated interest in employing
9individuals in the supervised population,begin delete includingend deletebegin insert including, but
10not limited to,end insert
earn and learnbegin delete opportunities.end deletebegin insert opportunities and intent
11to hire letters for successfully completing the program.end insert
12(f) An application shall meet the following requirements:
13(1) Set a specific purpose for the use of the grant funds, as well
14as provide the baseline criteria and metrics by which the overall
15success of the grant project can be evaluated.
16(2) Define the specific subset of the supervised population,
17among the eligible supervised population that the grant money
18will serve.
19(3) Define the industry sector or sectors in which the targeted
20supervised population will be trained, including the current and
21projected workforce within the region for those jobs, the range of
22wage rates, and the training and education requirements within
23those industry sectors.
24(4) Define the general methodology and training methods
25proposed to be used and explain the manner in which the progress
26of the targeted supervised population will be monitored during the
27grant period.
28(g) As a condition of receiving funds, a grant recipient shall
29agree to provide information to the California Workforce
30Development Board in sufficient detail to allow the California
31Workforce Development Board to meet the reporting requirements
32in Section
1234.4.
Section 1234.4 of the Penal Code is amended to read:
(a) On at least an annual basis, and upon completion
35of the grant period, grant recipients shall report to the California
36Workforce Development Board regarding their use of the funds
37and workforce training program outcomes.
38(b) By January 1, 2018, the California Workforce Development
39Board shall submit a report to the Legislature using the reports
P6 1from the grant recipients. The report shall contain all the following
2information:
3(1) The overall success of the grant program, based on the goals
4and metrics set in the awarded grants.
5(2) An evaluation of the
effectiveness of the grant program
6based on the goals and metrics set in the awarded grants.
7(3) A recommendation on the long-term viability of local
8workforce development boards and county collaborations on
9workforce training programs for the supervised population.
10(4) A recommendation on the long-term viability of county
11workforce training programs for the supervised population.
12(5) In considering the overall success and effectiveness of the
13grant program, the report shall include a discussion of all of the
14following:
15(A) The education and workforce readiness of the supervised
16population at the time individual participants entered the program
17and how
this impacted the types of services needed and offered.
18(B) Whether the programs aligned with the workforce needs of
19high-demand sectors of the state and regional economies.
20(C) Whether there was an active job market for the skills being
21developed where the member of the supervised population was
22likely to be released.
23(D) Whether the program increased the number of members of
24the supervised population that obtained a marketable and industry
25or apprenticeship board-recognized certification, credential, or
26degree.
27(E) Whether the program increased the numbers of the
28supervised population that successfully complete a job readiness
29basic skill bridge program and
enroll in a long-term training
30program.
31(F) Whether there were formal or informal networks in the field
32that support finding employment upon release from custody.
33(G) Whether the program led to employment in occupations
34with a livable wage.
35(H) Whether the program provided training opportunities in
36areas related to work skills learned while incarcerated, including,
37but not limited to, while working with the Prison Industry
38Authority.
39(I) Whether the metrics used to evaluate the individual grants
40were sufficiently aligned with the objectives of the program.
P7 1(c) (1) The
requirement for submitting a report imposed under
2subdivision (b) is inoperative on January 1, 2021, pursuant to
3Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.
4(2) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (b) shall
5be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
6Code.
O
98