BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                  AB 1903
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          Date of Hearing:   April 21, 2010

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                 AB 1903 (Fong) - As Introduced:  February 16, 2010 

          Policy Committee:                              Labor and  
          Employment   Vote:                            7-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program:  
          No     Reimbursable:              

           SUMMARY  

          This bill requires that the labor market information system  
          (LMID) within the Employment Development Department (EDD)  
          provide a comprehensive search engine and online database for  
          job seekers. Specifically, the bill:


          1)Requires that the database include listings of public higher  
            education career technical education programs, career  
            assessment tools, and job offerings.


          2)Requires that this search engine and database be made  
            available to job seekers who apply online for unemployment  
            compensation benefits. 

           
          FISCAL EFFECT  

          1)EDD indicates that this bill would result in one-time costs of  
            $9.6 million and ongoing costs of $1.3 million to develop,  
            program, and maintain a comprehensive search engine and  
            database.  

           2)The department also indicates that federal funds available for  
            IT projects are fully earmarked for updating its unemployment  
            benefit claims system.  

          COMMENTS  
          
           1)Rationale  . This bill, co-sponsored by the California Community  








                                                                  AB 1903
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            College Association for Occupational Education and the Faculty  
            Association of California Community Colleges, is intended to  
            provide a comprehensive web-site that connects unemployed  
            workers with job openings and educational resources. According  
            to the author, the EDD's current website lists various tabs  
            such as "Job Training" and "Labor Market Info," which contain  
            helpful information.  However, the website lacks a  
            comprehensive, intuitive and engaging web-based portal that  
            would allow job seekers to not only search for current job  
            listings, but to assess their skills and connect them with  
            higher education courses to prepare them for new fields. 

           2)Background  .  The federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998  
            (WIA) provides for various workforce investment activities,  
            including job training and education. The EDD is the primary  
            state department responsible for the day-to-day administration  
            of WIA. The LMID within EDD is responsible for providing data  
            and information that can be used by EDD, and related state  
            agencies in carrying out workforce development and training  
            missions.
           Analysis Prepared by  :    Brad Williams / APPR. / (916) 319-2081