Amend CSSB 1811 (senate committee printing) by adding the following appropriately numbered ARTICLE to the bill and renumbering subsequent ARTICLES and SECTIONS of the bill accordingly:

ARTICLE ____. ECONOMIC AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

SECTION ____. 01. Section 481.078, Government Code, is amended by adding Subsection (m) to read as follows:

(m) Notwithstanding Subsections (e) and (e-1), during the state fiscal biennium that begins on September 1, 2011, the governor shall transfer $30 million from the fund to the Texas Workforce Commission to fund the Texas Back to Work Program established under Chapter 313, Labor Code, and $15 million from the fund to the skills development fund established under Section 303.003, Labor Code. The governor shall begin transferring money as required by this subsection as soon as possible after September 1, 2011, and may make more than one transfer if necessary to satisfy the requirements of this subsection.

SECTION ____.02. Section 303.003, Labor Code, is amended by adding Subsection (b-2) to read as follows:

(b-2) From money available to the skills development fund program, the commission shall allocate not less than $5 million each state fiscal biennium for businesses with fewer than 100 employees that partner with one of the entities under Subsection (b) to provide job-training skills to the business's employees. A business that receives money for job-training purposes under this subsection may not receive more than:

(1) $1,450 per new employee for training costs associated with that employee; and

(2) $725 per retained employee for training costs associated with retaining that employee.

SECTION ____.03. Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by adding Chapter 313 to read as follows:

CHAPTER 313. TEXAS BACK TO WORK PROGRAM

Sec. 313.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "qualified applicant" means a person who made less than $40 per hour at the person's last employment before becoming unemployed.

Sec. 313.002. INITIATIVE ESTABLISHED. (a) The Texas Back to Work Program is established within the commission.

(b) The purpose of the program is to establish public-private partnerships with employers to transition residents of this state from receiving unemployment compensation to becoming employed as members of the workforce.

(c) An employer that participates in the initiative may receive a wage subsidy for hiring one or more qualified applicants who are unemployed at the time of hire.