By Keffer H.B. No. 2401 76R6522 JMM-F A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the establishment of a voluntary workforce training 1-3 program for certain students. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by 1-6 adding Chapter 311 to read as follows: 1-7 CHAPTER 311. VOLUNTARY WORKFORCE TRAINING FOR CERTAIN STUDENTS 1-8 Sec. 311.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: 1-9 (1) "Agency" means the Texas Education Agency. 1-10 (2) "Certified program" means a career and technology 1-11 secondary and postsecondary education program conducted under an 1-12 agreement as described by Section 311.003 or a voluntary program 1-13 certified by the agency in conjunction with the commission as 1-14 meeting the standards prescribed by Section 311.002, and that: 1-15 (A) integrates a secondary school academic 1-16 curriculum with private sector workplace training and a 1-17 postsecondary curriculum; 1-18 (B) places students in job internships; 1-19 (C) is designed to continue into postsecondary 1-20 education and lead to the participant earning an associate's 1-21 degree; 1-22 (D) will result in teaching new skills and 1-23 adding value to the wage-earning potential of participants and 1-24 increasing a participant's long-term employability in this state; 2-1 and 2-2 (E) meets recognized or accepted industry 2-3 standards. 2-4 (3) "Participant" means a person at least 16 years of 2-5 age who is enrolled in a public or private secondary or 2-6 postsecondary school, or an equivalent program, and who began to 2-7 voluntarily participate in a certified voluntary workforce training 2-8 program as part of secondary school education. 2-9 (4) "Sponsor" means any person operating a certified 2-10 program and in whose name the program is registered. 2-11 Sec. 311.002. CERTIFICATION STANDARDS. To be eligible for 2-12 certification by the agency under this chapter, a program must: 2-13 (1) be conducted under an organized, written plan 2-14 embodying the terms and conditions of employment, job training, 2-15 classroom instruction, and supervision of participants and be 2-16 subscribed to by a sponsor who has undertaken to carry out the 2-17 program; 2-18 (2) comply with all state and federal laws, including 2-19 laws pertaining to fair labor standards and workplace health and 2-20 safety; 2-21 (3) comply with recognized industry standards 2-22 applicable to the program in which the participant is engaged; and 2-23 (4) include an agreement by the employer to assign an 2-24 employee to serve as a mentor for the participant. 2-25 Sec. 311.003. CERTIFIED PROGRAM AGREEMENT. (a) A certified 2-26 program shall be conducted under a signed written agreement between 2-27 each participant and the employer. The agreement must contain at 3-1 least the following: 3-2 (1) the name and signature of the participant, the 3-3 sponsor, and the employer, and a parent or guardian of the 3-4 participant if the participant is under 18 years of age; 3-5 (2) a description of the career field in which the 3-6 participant is to be trained and the beginning date and duration of 3-7 the broad-based training; 3-8 (3) the employer's agreement to provide paid 3-9 employment, at a base wage not less than the minimum wage, for the 3-10 participant during the participant's junior and senior years in 3-11 high school and after the participant's first year of postsecondary 3-12 education; 3-13 (4) the participant's agreement to pay half of the 3-14 participant's wages to be held in trust to be applied toward the 3-15 participant's postsecondary education and the employer's agreement 3-16 to pay into the trust an additional amount equal to the amount paid 3-17 by the participant; 3-18 (5) the participant's agreement to work for the 3-19 employer for at least two years following the date of completion of 3-20 the participant's postsecondary education; and 3-21 (6) the employer's agreement to pay the participant 3-22 during the period described by Subdivision (5) at least the 3-23 prevailing wage for employees performing similar work and to 3-24 provide other employee benefits to which employees performing 3-25 similar work are entitled. 3-26 (b) The money held in trust under Subsection (a)(4) must be 3-27 held in trust for the benefit of the participant under rules 4-1 adopted by the agency. Payment into a trust approved under 29 4-2 U.S.C. Section 1103 for the benefit of the participant satisfies 4-3 the requirement of this subsection. The fund must be specified in 4-4 the agreement. 4-5 (c) An employer who enters into an agreement under this 4-6 section may not retain participants solely to replace the 4-7 employer's current employees. 4-8 Sec. 311.004. RULEMAKING. (a) The agency and commission 4-9 shall adopt rules as necessary to administer each entity's duties 4-10 under this chapter. To the extent possible, the agency and 4-11 commission shall cooperate with each other in adopting rules so 4-12 that all rules adopted under this chapter are consistent and 4-13 easily administered. 4-14 (b) Rules adopted under this section must include a 4-15 requirement that participation in a certified program under this 4-16 chapter is voluntary. 4-17 Sec. 311.005. COMMISSION DUTIES; LOCAL WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT 4-18 BOARDS. (a) The commission shall: 4-19 (1) administer its responsibilities under this chapter 4-20 as part of the commission's workforce development system; 4-21 (2) cooperate with other state agencies as 4-22 appropriate; and 4-23 (3) provide information and technical assistance to 4-24 the agency, secondary and postsecondary schools, employers, and 4-25 local workforce development boards. 4-26 (b) A local workforce development board shall provide to 4-27 secondary and postsecondary schools and employers in the area in 5-1 which the board is established information and technical assistance 5-2 as necessary to implement this chapter. 5-3 SECTION 2. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 1999. 5-4 (b) The change in law made by this Act does not affect the 5-5 validity of a workforce training program for students in secondary 5-6 and postsecondary education that is in existence on the effective 5-7 date of this Act. 5-8 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 5-9 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 5-10 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 5-11 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 5-12 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.