§ 202 — Skills development assistance

§ 202. Skills development assistance. 1. The department shall provide\nassistance to approved applicants for the purpose of offering skills\ntraining services that will foster economic development by creating or\npreserving jobs. For the purposes of this section, "applicant" shall\nmean an educational agency, business, or industry group or association,\nan employee union or organizations, a community based organization,\ngrant recipient or administrative entity of the service delivery area\nand private industry council as defined by the federal job training\npartnership act (P.L. 97-300), provided that such groups have\ndemonstrated effectiveness in the delivery of training services. Any\nassistance provided shall be matched at least equally by financing or\ncontribution from other sources. Such skills training services shall\ninclude:\n (a) training for entry-level employment and worker skills upgrading;\nor\n (b) payment of on-the-job training costs for a period not to exceed\ntwelve weeks or classroom instruction, or a combination thereof.\n 2. In approving requests for assistance, the commissioner shall\nconsider, among other criteria, the following:\n (a) the demonstrated need for state assistance;\n (b) the number and types of employees to be affected, including the\npotential for increased productivity and wages;\n (c) the employer's contribution to the actual cost of the training;\n (d) the potential for entry-level opportunities resulting from\npromotions created by skills upgrading;\n (e) the willingness of assisted businesses to fill such positions with\njob-ready clients referred from programs conducted under the job\ntraining partnership act or the state job service;\n (f) whether the assisted business is located in a distressed area; and\n (g) the degree to which assistance requested is matched by financing\nor contributions from other sources.\n 3. Assistance provided under this section shall not be used in any way\nthat impairs the provisions of any existing collective bargaining\nagreement and, where possible, consultation with the appropriate labor\norganization or organizations shall be undertaken.\n 4. Applications for assistance under this section shall provide:\n (a) a description of the project including the type of skills training\nor education to be provided;\n (b) an estimate of the total cost of the program and an itemization of\nestimated costs associated with equipment, personnel, facilities and\nmaterials;\n (c) a description of the economic development benefits expected to be\nachieved by the program;\n (d) a description of the employment needs expected to be filled,\nincluding the number and types of jobs to be created;\n (e) the technical assistance and financial support to be provided by\nthe applicant and the business or businesses for which a program is\ndesigned and from other sources;\n (f) a demonstration of the extent to which assistance will be used to\ncomplement and leverage services available to businesses under other\nstate, or local or federally funded training programs; and\n (g) such other information as the department may request.\n 5. For any positions opened as a result of assistance provided under\nthis section businesses so assisted shall first consider persons\neligible to participate in federal job training partnership act (P.L.\n97-300) programs who shall be referred to the business by administrative\nentities of service delivery areas created pursuant to such act or by\nthe job service division of the department of labor.\n 6. The department shall require the applicant to specify anticipated\noutcomes including, as appropriate, job placement rates, number of jobs\nopened to targeted populations as a result of skills upgrading\nactivities, promotions or wage increases for individuals participating\nin skills upgrading programs and provide a commitment from individual\nbusinesses to hire individuals who have successfully completed training.\nThe full amount of assistance shall be paid to the applicant only if\nsuch anticipated outcomes have been achieved.\n 7. (a) On or before October first, nineteen hundred eighty-eight and\non or before October first of each year thereafter, the department, in\ncooperation with other appropriate state departments and agencies, shall\nsubmit to the governor and the legislature a report regarding the\ncurrent status of the skills development assistance program.\n Such report shall include, but not be limited to:\n (i) the number of individuals enrolled in the program by sex, age,\nrace, income and employment status;\n (ii) the number and type of businesses participating in the program;\n (iii) the nature of the match required pursuant to this article;\n (iv) the number and type of educational agencies participating in the\nprogram;\n (v) the number and type of skills training programs supported by the\nprogram; and\n (vi) the programs overall job placement rate and the placement rate of\neach project.\n (b) The department shall submit to the director of the division of the\nbudget, the chairperson of the senate finance committee and the\nchairperson of the assembly ways and means committee an evaluation of\nthis program prepared by an entity independent of the department. Such\nevaluation shall be submitted by September first, two thousand five and\nby September first every four years thereafter.\n (c) Between evaluation due dates, the commissioner shall maintain the\nnecessary records and data required to satisfy such evaluation\nrequirements and to satisfy information requests received from the\ndirector of the budget, the chairperson of the senate finance committee\nand the chairperson of the assembly ways and means committee between\nsuch evaluation due dates.\n