HOUSE 3rd Reading Unamended April 7, 2014 HOUSE Amended 2nd Reading April 4, 2014Second Regular Session Sixty-ninth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO REENGROSSED This Version Includes All Amendments Adopted in the House of Introduction LLS NO. 14-0593.02 Ed DeCecco x4216 HOUSE BILL 14-1013 HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Lee and Foote, SENATE SPONSORSHIP Todd, House Committees Senate Committees Business, Labor, Economic, & Workforce Development Appropriations A BILL FOR AN ACT Concerning the creation of the advanced industries workforce development program, and, in connection therewith, making and reducing appropriations. Bill Summary (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://www.leg.state.co.us/billsummaries.) The bill creates the advanced industries workforce development program in the Colorado office of economic development (office). The purpose of the program is to allow the office to reimburse a business for one-half of its expenses related to a qualifying internship or apprenticeship. A qualifying internship or apprenticeship is one that: Is in an advanced industry; Is for at least 160 hours and that lasts less than one year; Allows students to gain valuable work experience in at least 3 specified occupational areas; Pays the intern or apprentice a stipend; Provides a mentor or supervisor that will work closely with the intern or apprentice; Is not for the purpose of meeting required residency or clinical hours for the intern; Is with an advanced industry business that has a physical operation facility in the state; Is for a high-school or college student, a resident who is a student at an out-of-state college, or a recent grad of either; and Along with all other internships and apprenticeships, constitutes less than 50% of the business's workforce located in the state. A business may be reimbursed for up to 5 interns and apprentices per location and up to 10 at all locations, but the maximum amount that a business may be reimbursed for each internship or apprenticeship is $5,000, of which no more than $2,500 may be for a stipend paid to the intern or apprentice. The office is required to contract with multiple intermediaries, which are advanced industry associations, to facilitate the program administration. The office may permit an intermediary to: Match an intern or apprentice with a business; Identify qualifying internships and apprenticeships; Submit reimbursement applications to the office; Provide assessments of the program to the office; and Identify job placement for the interns and apprentices. For the next 3 fiscal years, the general assembly is required to annually appropriate $450,000 from the general fund to the office for program reimbursements. The general assembly is also required to make a general fund appropriation to the office for program administration expenses. The office is required to solicit information about apprenticeships and internships that were reimbursed through the program and to submit a report to legislative committees about the program. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, add 24-46.3-103 as follows: 24-46.3-103. Advanced industries workforce development program - legislative declaration - definitions - repeal. (1) (a) The general assembly finds and declares that: (I) The advanced industries are a critical component of the state's economy; (II) Finding qualified employees can be a challenge for advanced industry businesses; (III) Internships are a way to build a partnership between schools and advanced industry businesses to create the dynamic workforce that these businesses need; and (IV) By providing an incentive for businesses to offer more internships, the state will create more opportunities for students to participate in the advanced industries. (b) It is the intent of the general assembly to create a new program to partially reimburse companies that offer high-level internships in the advanced industries. (2) As used in this section: (a) "Advanced industry" has the same meaning as set forth in section 24-48.5-117 (2) (a). (b) "Department" means the department of labor and employment. (c) "Division" means the division of employment and training in the department created in section 8-83-102, C.R.S. (d) "Intermediary" means an association that represents an advanced industry sector that has entered into an agreement with the state council under subparagraph (II) of paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of this section. (e) "Program" means the advanced industries workforce development program created in subsection (3) of this section. (f) "Qualifying internship" means an internship that meets the requirements under subsection (4) of this section. (g) "State council" means the state work force development council established in section 24-46.3-101. (3) (a) The advanced industries workforce development program is created in the department for the purpose of providing reimbursement for qualifying internships. The program is jointly administered by the state council and the division, with the state council providing oversight and strategic administration and the division providing operational administration. (b) (I) Beginning October 1, 2014, the division may reimburse a business for up to one-half of its expenses related to a qualifying internship, subject to available appropriations. A business may be reimbursed for up to five interns per location and up to ten interns total at all locations, but the maximum amount that a business may be reimbursed for each internship is five thousand dollars, of which no more than two thousand five hundred dollars may be for a stipend paid to the intern. To be reimbursed, a business must receive preapproval for the reimbursement from the division prior to or during the qualifying internship. The division shall pay the business at least the preapproved amount for a qualifying internship, but may not make the payment until after the internship has been completed. The state council shall: (A) Provide technical assistance to the division and integrate the program with existing workforce development, post-secondary education, and economic development infrastructure and resources; (B) Develop a program schedule for the preapproval and final application processes and reimbursement; and (C) Establish a partnership with secondary and post-secondary educational institutions to market the program to interested students and assist with identification of students and verification of appropriate course work. (II) The division shall create a preapproval application form for reimbursement that includes the following information about the internship: (A) Names of the business and intern; (B) Location; (C) Focus area; (D) Duration; (E) Information identifying that it is a qualifying internship; (F) The amount the intern will be paid; and (G) Total of all other expenses related to the internship for which the business seeks reimbursement. (III) The division shall create a final application form in which a business may identify any new or changed information from the preapproval form. Based on the combination of the forms received, the division shall determine whether the internship is a qualifying internship. (IV) The division shall: (A) Match interns with businesses; (B) Identify qualifying internships; (C) Provide assessments of the program to the state council; and (D) To the extent possible, identify job placements for the interns. (c) The state council may enter into an agreement with one or more intermediaries to facilitate outreach to employers, market the program, and identify work experience opportunities in their respective industries. The state council may provide for an intermediary to be paid for its services. The state council may not use more than one intermediary for each advanced industry sector. The division shall pay an intermediary for its services, as directed by the state council. (4) (a) To qualify for reimbursement, an internship must: (I) Be in an advanced industry; (II) Be for at least one hundred sixty hours and last less than one year; (III) Allow students to gain valuable work experience in at least two of the following occupational areas: (A) Computer systems, including software development and information technology support; (B) Production, including fabrication and assembly; (C) Engineering, including product design, testing, and development; (D) Business and financial operations, including supply chain management; (E) Customer service, sales, and marketing, including proposal development; (F) Research, preclinical, clinical, and commercial development; (G) Installation, maintenance, and repair of machinery and equipment; and (H) Executive management and business strategy; (IV) Pay the intern a stipend; (V) Provide a mentor or supervisor that will work closely with the intern; (VI) Not be for the purpose of meeting required residency or clinical hours for the intern; (VII) Be with a business that is eligible under paragraph (b) of this subsection (4); (VIII) Be for a student who is eligible under paragraph (c) of this subsection (4); and (IX) Along with all other internships, constitute less than fifty percent of the business's workforce located in the state. (b) To be eligible for reimbursement, a business must be in an advanced industry and have a physical operation facility in the state. The business may be a for-profit or nonprofit organization, but may not be a governmental entity or an institution of higher education. An eligible business is responsible for workers' compensation coverage associated with an internship, and such coverage may be reimbursed under the program. (c) To be eligible to participate in an internship in the program, a person must be: (I) Enrolled full-time in a secondary school or as an undergraduate at an institution of higher education in the state; (II) A resident of the state who is enrolled as a full-time undergraduate at an institution of higher education outside of the state; or (III) A graduate from a school or institution listed in sub-subparagraphs (I) and (II) of this paragraph (c), if the internship begins within six months of graduation. (d) (I) If there are more businesses seeking preapproval than can be reimbursed, the state council, in collaboration with the intermediaries, shall determine who the division shall preapprove. In making this determination, the state council shall give preference to a business that had an intern who is: (A) In a career and technical education program; (B) Pursuing industry-endorsed certificates; (C) Enrolled in technology-related, manufacturing-related, or engineering-related associates of applied science degree programs; (D) Pursuing a degree in the categories of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; (E) Gained valuable work experience in more than two occupational areas; or (F) Earned college credit for the internship. (II) The state council shall develop a priority for applying the reimbursement preferences. (5) (a) After the completion of a program internship, the division shall survey the business and participant about their experience. To the extent reasonable, the division shall take steps to identify job placement for the interns. (b) On or before November 1, 2015, and November 1 of the next two years thereafter, the state council shall submit a report to the finance and the business, labor, economic, and workforce development committees of the house of representatives and to the business, labor, and technology and the finance committees of the senate, or any successor committees, summarizing program activities during the preceding fiscal year, including any information identified by the division from paragraph (a) of this subsection (5). The division shall assist the state council in completing the annual report. (6) For the fiscal year beginning on July 1, 2014, the general assembly shall appropriate four hundred fifty thousand dollars from the general fund to the division to be used for program reimbursements. For the next two years thereafter, the general assembly may appropriate moneys from the general fund to the division to be used for program reimbursements. In addition, the general assembly shall annually appropriate moneys from the general fund to the department for its expenses administering the program, including any payments to intermediaries. Any unexpended and unencumbered moneys from an appropriation made pursuant to this subsection (6) remain available for expenditure by the department in the next fiscal year without further appropriation. (7) This section is repealed, effective July 1, 2020. SECTION 2. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 8-83-103, add (3) as follows: 8-83-103. Powers, duties, and functions - acceptance of moneys - repeal. (3) (a) The division shall administer the advanced industries workforce development program as required by section 24-46.3-103, C.R.S. (b) This subsection (3) is repealed, effective July 1, 2020. SECTION 3. Appropriation - adjustments to 2014 long bill. (1) For the implementation of this act, the general fund appropriation made in the annual general appropriation act to the governor - lieutenant governor - state planning and budgeting, for economic development programs, advanced industries, for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2014, is decreased by $546,359. (2) In addition to any other appropriation, for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2014, there is hereby appropriated, out of any moneys in the general fund, not otherwise appropriated, to the department of labor and employment, the sum of $546,359 and 1.2 FTE, for allocation to the division of employment and training to create and administer the advanced industries workforce development program related to the implementation of this act. SECTION 4. Safety clause. The general assembly hereby finds, determines, and declares that this act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety.