(1) (a) The
general assembly hereby finds, determines, and declares that:
(I) Colorado's economy is diverse and constantly changing and its key
industries are dependent on an accurately skilled workforce to continue to thrive;
(II) Colorado's key industry employers continue to lack the skilled workers
they need to stay and grow in the state;
(III) Coloradans miss opportunities for good jobs in growing industries
because they do not have access to the right education, training, or adequate
hands-on experience at the right time to secure employment;
(IV) Providing clear access to industry-driven career pathways for education
and employment advancement can result in long-term improvements in the
economic well-being of Coloradans and will provide industries with the talent
pipeline needed to thrive now and in the future;
(V) Creating a coordinated system to advance the skills and educational
attainment of Coloradans across workforce development and education, in
alignment with economic development goals, and in partnership with industry is the
most promising way to advance Coloradans and supply industry with the talent it
demands;
(VI) Deep, authentic, and ongoing employer engagement and input is critical
to ensure that education and training programs are aligned with the real and
current needs of industry; and
(VII) Sector partnerships are a proven, established model of engaging
employers and coordinating workforce development, economic development, and
education in response to the needs of industry and on behalf of workers seeking
good jobs.
(b) The general assembly further finds, determines, and declares that it will
be beneficial to create a working group with the state council comprised of
representatives from the relevant state departments and offices to discuss and
determine the most effective way to use sector partnerships at the regional level to
align workforce development, economic development, and education in the state to
the needs of key industries.
(2) The state council, the department of higher education, the department of
education, the department of labor and employment, and the Colorado office of
economic development shall work collaboratively to:
(a) Discuss and determine needs across key industries and occupations
including challenges and opportunities in developing and growing relevant talent
pipelines;
(b) Ensure that the talent pipeline development infrastructure includes:
(I) A listening process to collect workforce needs for key industries'
employers;
(II) Curriculum alignment for high-demand occupation skill needs;
(III) Occupation-aligned education and training options with a clearly
articulated progression;
(IV) Skills assessments; and
(V) Academic career counseling;
(c) Utilize sector partnerships to:
(I) Advise the development of career pathway programs for critical
occupations in key industries; and
(II) Ensure the coordination of education and workforce initiatives to develop
a strong talent pipeline; and
(d) Utilize existing measures and data systems to improve systems
alignment and inter-agency communication.
(3) (a) In doing the work specified in subsection (2) of this section, the state
council, in partnership with the department of higher education, the department of
education, the department of labor and employment, and the Colorado office of
economic development, shall coordinate the production of an annual Colorado
talent report. In preparing the annual Colorado talent report, the state council, the
departments, and the office may use previously collected data and are not required
to collect new data for the purposes of the report. The talent report shall:
(I) Take into consideration the data contained in the annual job skills report
produced by the department of higher education and use such data to inform
workforce development issues across key industries;
(II) Utilize state-level data generated from state-level sources whenever
possible;
(III) Utilize and, as appropriate, expand existing data-sharing agreements
between agencies and partners;
(IV) Provide a progress report on the status of career pathway programs
targeted at key industries;
(V) Provide an analysis of data regarding the skills required for key industry
jobs;
(VI) Include recommendations related to advancing talent pipeline and
career pathways development;
(VII) Include recommendations regarding the alignment and consistency of
data nomenclature, collection practices, and data-sharing. The recommendations
shall not allow the disclosure of the personally identifiable information of a student
enrolled in kindergarten or one of grades one through twelve without informed
written permission from the student's parent or legal guardian. The
recommendations may disclose de-identified, anonymous, or aggregate
kindergarten-through-twelfth-grade student data without permission from a parent
or legal guardian.
(VIII) Repealed.
(IX) Include the report regarding the industry infrastructure grant program,
prepared as required by section 24-46.3-405.
(b) The heads of the department of higher education, the department of
education, the department of labor and employment, and the Colorado office of
economic development shall include the recommendations from the state council,
and any comments they may wish to add concerning the recommendations, to the
house of representatives and senate committees of reference with jurisdiction over
business issues by January 1, 2015. The heads of the departments shall annually
present such recommendations and comments during the legislative hearings
required pursuant to the State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and
Transparent (SMART) Government Act, part 2 of article 7 of title 2, C.R.S.