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2019 SESSION

19106294D
SENATE BILL NO. 1589
AMENDMENT IN THE NATURE OF A SUBSTITUTE
(Proposed by the Senate Committee on Finance
on January 31, 2019)
(Patron Prior to Substitute--Senator Dunnavant)
A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding in Chapter 4.2 of Title 2.2 a section numbered 2.2-435.10:1, relating to education and workforce development; Virginia Works Portal created; report.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding in Chapter 4.2 of Title 2.2 a section numbered 2.2-435.10:1 as follows:

§ 2.2-435.10:1. Virginia Works Board; purpose; membership; Virginia Works Portal.

A. As used in this section, unless the context requires a different meaning:

"Advisory Committee" means the Virginia Works Advisory Committee.

"Authority" means the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority.

"Board" means the Virginia Works Board.

"One-stop" means a conceptual approach to service delivery intended to provide a single point of electronic access for receiving a wide range of education, workforce, and employment information and data.

"Portal" means the Virginia Works Portal.

B. 1. The Virginia Works Board is established as a policy board in the executive branch of state government. The purpose of the Board is to connect, streamline, cultivate, and coordinate efforts in the Commonwealth related to the development of educational and career pathways, and workforce development needs and opportunities, with an ultimate goal of creating an adaptive, agile, and highly trained workforce in the Commonwealth responsive to the needs of employers, employees, job seekers, and students.

2. The Board shall consist of the following members: the Chief Workforce Development Advisor to the Governor, the Director of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, the President of the Virginia Economic Development Partnership Authority, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System, or their designees. Additional state agency leaders may be added and removed from the Board at the discretion of the Governor's Chief Workforce Development Advisor. The Chief Workforce Development Advisor to the Governor shall serve as chair of the Board.

3. Staff support and technical assistance to the Board in carrying out the provisions of this section shall be provided as designated by the Chief Workforce Development Advisor to the Governor. Other agencies of the Commonwealth shall provide support, upon request.

C. The Board shall develop the Virginia Works Portal, a one-stop portal to provide access to students, schools, educational institutions, job seekers, and potential employers to information regarding education pathways, career opportunities, and workforce development information available from agencies, institutions, and entities around the Commonwealth. The Portal shall provide an interactive, user-friendly environment and shall be available to the public on and after July 1, 2020. The Portal shall include access to:

1. The strategic workforce dashboard and tools overseen by the Virginia Board of Workforce Development pursuant to § 2.2-2472;

2. The online portal maintained by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia pursuant to § 23.1-908, including access to education pathways;

3. Information, services, and online resources related to the Training, Education, Employment, and Opportunity Program administered by the Department of Medical Assistance Services;

4. Information about and links to applications for the New Economy Workforce Credential Grant Program established pursuant to Article 4.1 (§ 23.1-627.1 et seq.) of Chapter 6 of Title 23.1;

5. Information, services, and online resources related to the Registered Apprenticeship Program administered by the Department of Labor and Industry; and

6. Information and links to any other state resources identified by the Board as being relevant to education, employment, or workforce development.

D. In developing and maintaining the Portal, the Board shall:

1. Assess all efforts in the Commonwealth related to the development of educational and career pathways, as well as efforts to address workforce development needs and create high-quality job opportunities for Virginians, with the ultimate goal of proposing specific ways to connect, streamline, cultivate, and coordinate these efforts to create an adaptive, agile, and highly-trained workforce in the Commonwealth that is responsive to the needs of employers;

2. Identify key datasets needed to support evidence-based decision making across participating agencies, cataloguing the current stewards of such data and any missing data elements;

3. Recommend changes to Virginia's data collection efforts and data standards to support improved information sharing and analysis;

4. Identify and propose new policy and programmatic solutions to overcome challenges limiting the success of the Portal;

5. Develop and recommend a comprehensive strategy to align educational pathways, economic development, and workforce development efforts around a common understanding of current conditions and a shared vision of the Commonwealth's future; and

6. Develop and make recommendations regarding a methodology to provide for funding, maintenance, and administration of the Portal to be shared equitably among participating agencies and entities. Agency funding may be provided from existing funds appropriated in a general appropriation act for career or education pathway development, career development services, or economic development activities.

E. The Board shall be advised by the Virginia Works Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee shall consist of representatives of the following: the Virginia Growth and Opportunity Board, the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, the Virginia Business Higher Education Council, the Virginia Board of Workforce Development, the Virginia Employment Commission, the Department of Labor and Industry, the Department of Social Services, the Department of Medical Assistance Services, and any other agency or entity identified by the Board as being necessary to the ongoing development and success of the Portal. The Advisory Committee shall advise the Board regarding the creation, development, and maintenance of the Portal.

2. That the Virginia Works Board, established pursuant to § 2.2-435.10:1 of the Code of Virginia, as created by this act, shall provide an annual update by July 1 to the Joint Subcommittee on the Future Competitiveness of Virginia Higher Education and shall submit an annual update by December 1 to the Governor and the Chairmen of the House Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Finance regarding the development and implementation of the Virginia Works Portal.

2. That the provisions of this act shall not become effective unless an appropriation effectuating the purposes of this act is included in a general appropriation act passed in 2019 by the General Assembly that becomes law.