State of Illinois
90th General Assembly
Legislation

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90_SB1751

      New Act
          Creates  the  Collaborative   Occupational   Skills   and
      Placement  Program  Act.    Requires  the  Illinois Community
      College Board, in cooperation with the Department of Commerce
      and Community Affairs and the State Board  of  Education,  to
      establish   a   Collaborative  Occupational  Skills  Training
      Program  to  provide  financial  assistance  to  occupational
      skills and job placement program collaboration  partnerships.
      Sets  out  requirements  for the occupational skills training
      program  and  job   placement   collaboration   partnerships.
      Provides  that certain eligible students shall participate in
      the skills training and job  placement  programs.   Effective
      immediately.
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                                               LRB9010385MWpc
 1        AN  ACT  to  create the Collaborative Occupational Skills
 2    and Placement Program Act.
 3        Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:
 5        Section  1.  Short  title.   This Act may be cited as the
 6    Collaborative Occupational Skills and Placement Program Act.
 7        Section 5.  Legislative findings.
 8        (a)  As the Illinois Human Resources  Investment  Council
 9    has  found, highly skilled and motivated people are the heart
10    of Illinois  economic  growth  and  competitiveness  and  the
11    answer  to  ending  the  cycle  of  welfare  dependency.  The
12    private sector has stated that achieving  and  maintaining  a
13    highly  skilled  workforce is the most important and the most
14    challenging task they face;
15        (b)  There is also an urgent need to support  people  and
16    families  to  reach  economic  self-sufficiency  and  sustain
17    employment by increasing their skills; and
18        (c)  Developing  a strong workforce requires the combined
19    effort, resources, and commitment of the public  and  private
20    sectors.   Illinois'  workforce development system must build
21    the skills of people and the strengths  of  businesses.   The
22    diversity  of resources can result in narrow lines of service
23    or it can be linked together into a system rich in  scope  in
24    benefits  beyond the capacity of single programs or agencies.
25    Collaboration among the links in this system is  the  way  to
26    achieve this richness.
27        Section   10.  Administration.   The  Illinois  Community
28    College  Board,  in  cooperation  with  the   Department   of
29    Commerce  and  Community  Affairs  and  the  State  Board  of
30    Education,   shall  establish  a  Collaborative  Occupational
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 1    Skills Training Program.  The program shall provide financial
 2    assistance through proposals submitted under  Section  35  of
 3    this   Act   to   occupational   skills   and  job  placement
 4    collaboration partnerships from funds appropriated  from  the
 5    State's  general  revenue funds for post-secondary vocational
 6    education.
 7        Section 15.  Collaboration  partners.   Each  partnership
 8    shall   include   as  collaboration  partners  at  least  one
 9    post-secondary education  institution  that  is  funded  with
10    State  funds  to  provide  vocational education, at least one
11    private  business,  and  at   least   one   community   based
12    organization.
13        (a)  Education   partner.  The  education  partner  shall
14    cooperate  in  providing  classrooms,  instructional   staff,
15    equipment,  and materials that the partnership determines are
16    appropriate and necessary and shall,  if  the  goals  of  the
17    partnership are met, allow its instructional staff to conduct
18    all  or  part  of  the  occupational training at the business
19    partner's facility with  the  business  partner's  staff  and
20    equipment  or  at  any  other  location  that the partnership
21    determines best meets the training needs of the students.
22        (b)  Business partner. The business partner shall  assist
23    in  curriculum development and shall work in cooperation with
24    other businesses needing the graduates.  The business partner
25    may hire graduates of the partnership's training program.
26        (c)  Community based organization.  The  community  based
27    organization  partner  shall  have  direct  experience in the
28    education, training, placement, and retention of the targeted
29    students.
30        Section 20.  Education and services.    The  partnerships
31    shall  provide adult education, occupational skills training,
32    and any other training that is necessary  for  job  placement
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 1    and retention services.  The occupational curriculum shall be
 2    suitable for the jobs that the partnership's business partner
 3    has open or will be creating.
 4        Section  25.  Eligible  students.  The  partnership shall
 5    provide  education,  training,   placement,   and   retention
 6    services  to  individuals  who  are  financially eligible for
 7    public aid assistance, as  defined  in  Section  2-2  of  the
 8    Public  Aid Code, or food stamps, whether or not they receive
 9    that assistance, and  individuals  who  are  liable  for  the
10    support  of children receiving that assistance.  Partnerships
11    shall  accept  referrals  of  students  from   all   sources,
12    including   the   Department   of  Human  Services,  Illinois
13    Employment   and   Training    Centers,    local    community
14    organizations  or  government  agencies,  and the individuals
15    themselves.
16        Section 30.  Partnership agreement.  The  partners  shall
17    establish a partnership agreement setting forth the nature of
18    the  adult  education  and  occupational skills training that
19    will be provided, the role of each of the partners, the  type
20    of  job  for  which  the  training is designed to prepare the
21    students, the nature of the referral or placement  assistance
22    that will provided to the students, and the nature of the job
23    retention  services  that  will  be provided to the students.
24    The partners shall submit  that  agreement  to  the  Illinois
25    Community College Board with its proposal for funds.
26        Section 35.  Proposals.
27        (a)  Selection   of   Proposal.   Partnerships  shall  be
28    selected on a competitive basis  through  the  evaluation  of
29    proposals  submitted  by  proposed  partnerships.  Preference
30    points shall be give to partnerships  that  demonstrate  that
31    they  will  serve eligible students with multiple barriers to
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 1    employment, as defined by  rules  developed  jointly  by  the
 2    Illinois  Community College Board, the Department of Commerce
 3    and Community Affairs, and the State Board of Education; that
 4    one or more partners  has  proven  success  in  training  and
 5    placing  students  with those barriers; and that the training
 6    will  be  for  jobs  created  by  the  business  partner  and
 7    elsewhere in the local economy that pay an amount  in  excess
 8    of the poverty level for a household of 3.
 9        (b)  Payment.    Partnerships  shall  be  paid  based  on
10    performance and paid in part with a base grant.  Full payment
11    shall  not  be  earned  unless  the  student  is  placed   in
12    unsubsidized employment (exclusive of tax credits) of a least
13    20  hours  per  week for part-time employment and at least 35
14    hours per week for full-time employment in the occupation for
15    which the training was provided, or  an  occupation  with  an
16    equivalent  starting wage, and with job retention of at least
17    90 consecutive  regular  work  days  or  150  non-consecutive
18    regular work days.
19        Section  99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect upon
20    becoming law.

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