By Carona S.B. No. 1139
77R8949 T
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to a construction industry craft training program;
1-3 imposing a fee.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Add Chapter 312 to Title 4 of the Labor Code to
1-6 read as follows:
1-7 CHAPTER 312. CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY CRAFT TRAINING
1-8 Sec. 1. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
1-9 (1) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce Commission.
1-10 (2) "Comptroller" means the comptroller of public
1-11 accounts for the State of Texas.
1-12 (3) "Program" means the Construction Industry Craft
1-13 Training Program created under this chapter.
1-14 Sec. 2. PROGRAM. (a) The Construction Industry Craft
1-15 Training Program is established to provide training for artisans
1-16 and crafts persons to support the building industry in this state.
1-17 (b) The commission shall develop a plan for the program that
1-18 shall include a training strategy that:
1-19 (1) combines supervised, structured
1-20 on-the-job-training with related theoretical instruction and is
1-21 sponsored by employers or labor/management groups that have the
1-22 ability to hire and train in a work environment;
1-23 (2) prepares an individual for skilled employment by
1-24 conducting training in bona fide employment settings;
2-1 (3) allows training a current employee in a craft
2-2 requiring additional training and skill in addition to or in lieu
2-3 of providing on-the-job training for new employees;
2-4 (4) includes requirements of programs administered by
2-5 the Bureau of Apprenticeship Training at the United States
2-6 Department of Labor;
2-7 (5) through a written agreement between the program
2-8 sponsor and the trainee leads to a certificate of completion and
2-9 certified employment status;
2-10 (6) involves a tangible and generally sizable
2-11 investment on the part of the employer or labor/management program
2-12 sponsor;
2-13 (7) pays wages to its participants during the
2-14 on-the-job training phase of their training and that increases
2-15 these wages throughout the training program in accordance with a
2-16 predefined wage progression scale; and
2-17 (8) allows participants to learn by working directly
2-18 under the supervision of a specialty craft worker trained in the
2-19 craft, trade, or relevant occupational area.
2-20 Sec. 3. ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAM. The commission shall
2-21 administer the program, including the disbursement of funds, and
2-22 shall promulgate rules necessary to implement the program
2-23 including:
2-24 (1) formulas and administrative procedures to request
2-25 appropriations of state funds for the program and distribution of
2-26 those funds to employers or labor/management groups;
2-27 (2) defining appropriate uses of the funds, including
3-1 expenditures for training materials, curricula, instruments, or
3-2 facilities; and
3-3 (3) other procedures or rules as necessary to
3-4 implement the program.
3-5 Sec. 4. FUNDING. (a) The contractor on a permitted
3-6 non-residential construction project shall pay a fee of fifty cents
3-7 per one thousand dollars of construction value to the permitting
3-8 agency to fund the program.
3-9 (b) The fee required in subsection (a) shall be paid
3-10 quarterly to the comptroller and deposited in a fund dedicated to
3-11 the administration of the program.
3-12 (c) The comptroller shall inform the permitting agency who
3-13 shall cease collecting the fee required in subsection (a) when the
3-14 fund reaches $40 million and will reinstate collection of the fee
3-15 when the fund drops to $10 million.
3-16 (d) The comptroller shall prescribe the form and manner for
3-17 remittance of the fee provided in this section.
3-18 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.