Rep. Marlow H. Colvin

Filed: 4/13/2005

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 2517

2     AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 2517 by replacing
3 everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4     "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Opportunity in State Public Construction Act.
 
6     Section 5. Legislative purpose. The purposes of this Act
7 are to:
8         (1) Prepare Illinois women and minorities to fully
9     participate in the construction industry where women and
10     minorities are underrepresented.
11         (2) Respond to the Illinois construction workforce
12     shortage which increasingly requires high skilled workers.
13         (3) Provide the Illinois construction industry with a
14     well prepared and diverse workforce to replace retiring
15     workers.
16         (4) Enhance the viability and competitiveness of local
17     communities through an economic development strategy that
18     will employ qualified residents for jobs that offer self-
19     sufficient wages.
20         (5) Increase economic opportunities in low-income
21     communities in Illinois resulting in jobs for members of
22     those communities.
23         (6) Provide support to stakeholders, including,
24     community job training programs, labor, employers,

 

 

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1     community colleges, public agencies, and others to
2     increase opportunities for women and minorities to be fully
3     represented in the skilled workforce in Illinois.
4         (7) Develop and sustain local community partnerships
5     among stakeholders resulting in increased capacity to
6     prepare women and minorities in low-income communities
7     across Illinois to enter and succeed in the construction
8     industry workforce.
9         (8) Develop and widely disseminate best practices to
10     stakeholders.
11         (9) Assess progress and trends in construction
12     industry training and employment of the target
13     populations.
 
14     Section 10. Definitions. In this Act:
15     "Community-based organizations and institutions" include
16 community-based training providers and faith-based
17 organizations.
18     "Support services" includes application fees, childcare,
19 union dues, and transportation.
 
20     Section 15. Programs to prepare women and minorities for
21 increased participation in the construction trades in
22 Illinois. Programs that meet the criteria provided under
23 Section 20 of this Act, designed to prepare, screen, and
24 evaluate individual women and minorities for entry into
25 apprenticeships in the skilled construction trades based on
26 labor market information and projections, shall be eligible for
27 funding under this Act. Funding shall be made available for the
28 following:
29         (1) Direct services to clients and participants, which
30     shall include, but not be limited to, outreach,
31     recruitment, and public education; career exploration and
32     assessment; skill development, which shall include, but

 

 

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1     not be limited to, math remediation, physical fitness,
2     hands-on skills, tool identification, spatial and
3     mechanical aptitude, apprenticeship interviewing and test
4     taking, blueprint reading, career exploration, job
5     readiness, and employment counseling; case management; job
6     referrals; provision of tools and other materials to
7     training programs and their clients; and support services
8     to assist clients during pre-vocational preparation, job
9     training, and through the first 12 months of employment,
10     including a revolving loan fund.
11         (2) Capacity building for funded programs to
12     organizations that are experienced with the industry and
13     have demonstrated success in increasing access,
14     participation, success, and retention of women and
15     minorities in high-wage, high-skill jobs in the
16     construction trades to increase the capacity of programs to
17     provide training services. Allowable activities shall
18     include materials and resource development, including
19     handbooks, directories, resource guides, and other
20     instructional aids, data collection, and organizational
21     development, including staff training, curriculum
22     development, and technology upgrades.
23         (3) Technical assistance for workforce development and
24     vocational education systems to organizations that are
25     experienced with the industry and have demonstrated
26     success in increasing access, participation, success, and
27     retention of women and minorities in high-wage, high-skill
28     jobs in the construction trades for technical assistance
29     services to increase the capacity of programs and
30     institutional stakeholders. Allowable activities shall
31     include training staff, including staff of one-stop career
32     centers, high school counselors, superintendents, and
33     gender equity coordinators; development of public
34     education and marketing materials; strategic planning and

 

 

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1     goal setting; development of institutional and
2     cross-agency protocols and policies, including memoranda
3     of understanding; participation in task force or advisory
4     meetings; and monitoring the utilization and impact of
5     policies and activities.
6         (4) Technical assistance to organizations that are
7     experienced with the industry and have demonstrated
8     success in increasing access, participation, success and
9     retention of women and minorities in high-wage, high-skill
10     jobs in the construction trades for technical assistance
11     services to train industry partners in supporting,
12     retaining, and advancing women and minorities in the
13     construction trades industry. Allowable activities shall
14     include, training staff, including union stewards,
15     business agents, training coordinators, development of
16     outreach and marketing materials for targeted populations,
17     strategic planning and goal setting, and monitoring the
18     utilization and impact of policies and activities.
 
19     Section 20. Eligible recipients of funds; eligible
20 participants.
21     (a) Eligible recipients of funds under this Act shall
22 include:
23         (1) Community-based organizations and institutions
24     with demonstrated expertise in serving the target
25     populations, knowledge of the construction industry, and
26     demonstrated success in placing clients in employment.
27         (2) Organizations offering employment services for
28     targeted populations with expertise in preparing skilled
29     workers for the construction field, not including entities
30     regulated by the Day and Temporary Labor Services Act.
31         (3) Labor organizations, including subunits devoted to
32     the concerns of the target populations.
33         (4) Contractor associations that participate in a

 

 

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1     Joint Apprenticeship Training Council as provided under
2     paragraph (5) of this subsection (a).
3         (5) Joint labor and management sponsored
4     apprenticeship programs that: (i) have a dedicated trust
5     fund for the administration of their apprenticeship
6     program; and (ii) have a Joint Apprenticeship Training
7     Counsel made up of representatives of contractor and labor
8     organizations.
9         (6) Public secondary and post-secondary educational
10     institutions with vocational education programs focused on
11     the construction industry.
12     (b) Eligible participants in programs funded under this Act
13 shall include women, minorities, and residents of low-income
14 communities that lack resources and have critical skills
15 shortages in the construction industry.
16     (c) The curriculum of any program or organization that
17 participates in this Act shall include, but not be limited to,
18 the following subjects:
19         (1) Skill development, which may include, but not be
20     limited to, math remediation, physical fitness, hands-on
21     skills, tool identification, blueprint reading, and
22     special and mechanical aptitude.
23         (2) An overview of apprenticeship programs and their
24     requirements.
25         (3) Apprenticeship interviewing and test taking.
26         (4) Language skills.
27         (5) Employee rights.
28         (6) Labor history.
29         (7) Mandatory drug testing.
30         (8) A valid driver's license.
 
31     Section 25. Data collection and reporting.
32     (a) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
33 shall collect annually from each program funded under this Act

 

 

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1 the following information: the number of individuals that
2 participate in training programs funded by this Act over a
3 12-month period, including participants that enrolled for
4 program services, participants that completed program
5 services, participants that are accepted into apprenticeship
6 programs, participants that entered apprenticeships or other
7 employment training programs, participants that entered
8 employment in a chosen field upon completion of apprenticeship
9 selection process and preliminary training, measuring
10 participant employment skills through pre-program and
11 post-program assessment, and participants that entered an
12 industry other than construction.
13     (b) The Department of Labor shall collect data on the labor
14 force in the construction sector to track the participation of
15 women and minorities in the sector, and shall examine the
16 status of women and minorities in relation to the remaining
17 workforce. Data collected shall include gender, race, age,
18 cross-tabulation of gender, race, and age, occupation by trade,
19 geography, advancement, income, pay equity, and assignment
20 disparity measured through income, hours worked, and skill
21 level. The Department of Labor shall collect this information
22 on an annual basis and submit it to the Governor, the
23 Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the
24 Department of Employment Security, the State Board of
25 Education, the Department of Transportation, the Inter-Agency
26 Opportunity in State Public Construction Working Group, the
27 Illinois General Assembly, the Illinois Statewide
28 Nontraditional Leadership Team, and the public through the
29 Department of Labor's annual publication entitled "Progress of
30 Women and Minorities in the Illinois Workforce".
 
31     Section 30. Inter-Agency Commission on Opportunity in
32 State Public Construction Working Group.
33     (a) There is created the Inter-Agency Commission on

 

 

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1 Opportunity in State Public Construction Working Group. The
2 Working Group shall consist of the Director or Secretary, or
3 his or her designee, of the Illinois Department of Commerce and
4 Economic Opportunity, the Illinois Department of
5 Transportation, the Capital Development Board, the Illinois
6 Department of Employment Security, and the Illinois Department
7 of Labor. The Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, or
8 his or her designee, shall serve as chair of the Working Group.
9 The Working Group shall appoint additional members to the
10 Working Group to include equal representation and geographical
11 representation across the State from labor union organizations
12 engaged in collective bargaining for the building trades and
13 construction contractor associations that participate in Joint
14 Apprenticeship Training Counsels as provided under paragraph
15 (5) of subsection (a) of Section 20 and engage in collective
16 bargaining. The Working Group may also consult with various
17 groups, including, but not limited to, representatives of labor
18 union organizations, the construction contractor community,
19 organizations that advocate for the civil rights of
20 African-Americans, Latinos, women, and other underrepresented
21 groups, community-based training providers, and federal
22 government agencies. The Inter-Agency Opportunity in State
23 Public Construction Working Group shall:
24         (1) Undertake a thorough review of training programs,
25     data collection abilities, and grant programs administered
26     by State, federal, or private entities that are designed to
27     prepare Illinois minorities and women to fully participate
28     in the construction industry and provide the Illinois
29     construction industry with a well prepared and diverse
30     workforce.
31         (2) Prepare a report containing the information
32     compiled under Section 25 of this Act, as well as
33     recommendations for policies or programs designed to
34     encourage the full participation of minorities and women in

 

 

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1     the trades and technical occupations. This report shall be
2     presented to the General Assembly no later than one year
3     after the effective date of this Act.
4         (3) Develop a 5-year plan to encourage the full
5     participation of women and minorities in the trades and
6     technical occupations. The plan shall include roles and
7     responsibilities of both the public and private sector.
8     (b) Administration of the Working Group and its functions
9 shall be shared among the members pursuant to an interagency
10 agreement from funds appropriated for this purpose or from
11 existing funds within the budgets of the Working Group members.
 
12     Section 35. Allocation of funds.
13      (a) The State may reserve up to 5% of the funds provided
14 under Section 45 of this Act for administration of activities
15 provided under Sections 15 and 25
16     (b) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
17 shall consult with the Working Group in the administration of
18 grants under this Act. The Department of Commerce and Economic
19 Opportunity shall award, through a competitive grant process,
20 3-year initial grants to eligible entities for services to be
21 provided under Section 15 of this Act. Each organization
22 receiving multi-year funding shall annually report on its
23 programs and outcomes. The Department of Commerce and Economic
24 Opportunity shall provide the Working Group an annual report of
25 the grant applications and awards. Subsequent grant cycles
26 shall be for 2 years.
27     (c) In each grant cycle, the Department of Commerce and
28 Economic Opportunity shall award at least one grant per
29 economic development region, provided that a qualifying
30 proposal is received from the region in question.
31     (d) In awarding grants, the Department of Commerce and
32 Economic Opportunity shall consider the size of the
33 construction projects in the geographic area covered by the

 

 

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1 proposal, relative to the size of the construction labor force
2 statewide. In addition, the Department shall consider the areas
3 that have the largest disparity of workforce representation in
4 the construction industry.
5     (e) In awarding grants, preference shall be given to
6 community-based training programs that represent the
7 communities where delivery of service is targeted, including
8 collaboratives in which a community-based organization is a
9 primary partner.
10     (f) A representative of a prospective grantee shall not be
11 involved in the review of his or her organization's proposal.
12     (g) Program training providers and industry collaborators
13 shall work with apprenticeship program coordinators among the
14 various trades to establish articulation agreements to
15 facilitate program graduates entry into the apprenticeship
16 programs where applicable based on the variant selection
17 processes among the trades.
 
18     Section 40. Accountability, evaluation, and oversight.
19     (a) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
20 shall establish performance measures related to the data
21 collection requirements provided under Section 25.
22     (b) Evaluation of program impact shall be based upon an
23 increase in the percentage of the targeted population in
24 industry jobs, the increase in the rate of acceptance,
25 completion, and retention among targeted populations, raising
26 the skill levels of individual participants contributing to
27 their overall employability, and the increase in rate of
28 employment, including hours, and annual income as measured
29 against pre-program participant income.
30     (c) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity may
31 contract with eligible providers to deliver the technical
32 assistance services under this Section.
 

 

 

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1     Section 45. Funding authorization.
2     (a) This Act shall be subject to appropriation.
3     (b) The funds are to be allocated to and administered by
4 the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, which
5 shall, through a competitive process, solicit proposals from
6 qualified service providers.
7     (c) Each recipient of funds under this Act shall be
8 required to provide a 25% match through any combination of
9 funds and in kind contributions.".