Asdf;ahfad;lk

1
Federal Budget and Policy Update An Example
of State Organizing and Advocacy from
California Bay Area Workforce Development Board
Meeting Green Bay, WI October 19, 2006
2
Mission
The Workforce Alliance (TWA) is a diverse
national coalition of local leaders advocating
for federal policies that invest in the skills of
Americas workers including those who are
low-income, unemployed, or seeking advancement
so they can better support their families, and
help American businesses better compete in
todays economy.
3
TWA Stakeholders

• Community Colleges
• Community-Based Organizations
• Labor Unions / Labor-Management Partnerships
• Employers and Business Associations
• State / Local Officials and Public Agencies
• Research / Technical Assistance Organizations

4
Fiscal Year 2007Federal Workforce
FundingBudget Appropriations
5
Why is This Critical to WI?

• Federal Dollars to WI
• for Employment Training
• TANF 314 Million
• WIA (PY 2005)
• Adult, DW Youth (combined) 44.8 Million
• Employment Service (Wagner-Peyser) 13.8
  Million
• Pell Grant 164.6
  Million
• Perkins State Basic Grants 22.9 Million
• Adult Education 7.6
  Million

6
The Presidents 2007 Budget Request
7
Block-Granting Through the Budget

• WIA Adult, Dislocated Worker, Youth, Employment
  Service state grants, One-Stop Career
  Centers/LMI, and WOTC administration 3.4
  billion Career Advancement Account (CAA) block
  grant.
• 13 overall cut for included WIA / ES programs
• 15 cut to state funding (vs. held by DOL)

8
Career Advancement Accounts (CAA)
9
Career Advancement Accounts (CAA)

• Eligible Training Providers determined by state
• Implied to be broader
• Community Career Centers as new eligibility
  assessment / distribution network
• States determine if does / does not include
  One-Stops
• no wrong door?
• WIBS Unclear future role

10
Senate Budget Resolution

• Senate passed their Budget Resolution in March
  with a vote of 51-49, adding 16 billion to the
  budgets proposed 873 billion discretionary
  spending cap
• Specter-Harkin Amendment added 7B in budget
  authority for programming under the Labor, HHS
  and Ed Appropriations Subcommittee. This
  amendment passed overwhelmingly, with support
  from all Ds and 27 Rs.

11
House Budget Resolution

• House passed a Budget Resolution in May with a
  vote of 218-210 (12 Rs joined all Ds in
  opposition)
• Included language recognizing need for 7.16B
  above presidents funding request for Labor, HHS
  and Ed, but only provided 4.14B in additional
  funding.

12
Budget Resolution Compromise Between Chambers

• The budgetary breakdown of the House and Senate
  resolutions were so different that rather than
  agreeing to a single version, the two Chambers
  decided instead to agree to an identical
  discretionary spending cap of 872.78 Billion.
• In agreeing to this spending cap, the Senate
  basically reversed itself on the Specter-Harkin
  amendment.

13
FY07 Labor-HHS-Ed Appropriations Subcommittee
Bills
14
The Continuation of a TrendJTPA / WIA - 33
Cut Since Mid 80s
The Workforce Alliance, Skilling the American
Workforce On the Cheap, September 2003
15
Next Steps
16
WIA Reauthorization
17
WIA Reauthorization Where are we?
18
House WIA Bill

• H.R. 27 Job Training Improvement Act. Passed
  March 2005.
• Similar to USDOL proposal (with some exceptions)

19
House WIA Bill

• Funding Streams  Block-grant combining Adult,
  Dislocated Worker, and Employment Service
• vs. DOL Did not add in Youth consolidation,
  et.al.
• vs. DOL Did not adopt DOL WIA Plus option
• Training Adopts DOLs re-wording of sequence
  of services
• Unable to attain / retain suitable employment
  as condition to qualify for intensive, training
  services

20
House WIA Bill

• Infrastructure DOL proposal allowing states to
  mandate partner agency contributions
• Option to negotiate MOU contributions at local
  level
• Faith-Based Providers
• Eliminates WIAs prohibition against
  religious-based hiring by providers receiving WIA
  funding

21
Senate WIA Bill

• S. 1021, Workforce Investment Act Amendments,
  Marked-up May 2005. Passed unexpectedly by
  unanimous consent in June 2006.
• Bi-Partisan bill, drafted in consultation with
  range of stakeholders

22
Senate WIA Bill

• Funding Streams  Does not block-grant WIA and
  Employment Service programs
• Raises Adult / Dislocated Worker transfer ceiling
  to 45
• Training More significant re-wording of
  sequence of services, but does not eliminate it
• Unable to attain comparable or higher wages or
  self-sufficiency as trigger for next level of
  service
• Encourages more training in state / local plans,
  incentive grants

23
Senate WIA Bill

• Infrastructure Partner agency contributions,
  but within specific limits
• Up to 3 of WIA programs up to 1.5 of others
• Faith-Based Providers
• Does not eliminate WIAs prohibition against
  religious-based hiring by providers receiving WIA
  funding

24
Doing More Than Circling the Wagons Building a
Coalition and Crafting a State Workforce
Education Agenda for 2006 and Beyond
25
CAs EDGE Campaign Origins

• In March, the CA Workforce Association, the CA
  Labor Fed WED, the CA Budget Project, and TWA
  convened a group of diverse stakeholders to plan
  a campaign to create a public debate within the
  2006 election cycle about the need for new
  investments in, a policy attention to, workforce
  development.
• The election cycle offers a ready-made statewide
  forum in which policy issues of central
  importance to a states future are lifted up, and
  sometimes championed, by candidates

26
CAs EDGE Campaign Tactics and Goals

• The Campaign will use a number of tactics
• Develop a consensus policy agenda
• Stakeholder organizing
• Non-partisan candidate/policymaker education
• Media outreach
• The ultimate goal The governor and state
  legislature prioritize workforce development
  issues a broad-based coalition pushes a unified
  policy agenda to hold them accountable.

27
CAs EDGE Campaign Making the Case

• The Challenge Facing Business Many of the
  businesses that drive the states economy and
  provide good jobs are threatened by a skilled
  worker shortage.
• In a 2006 survey of members of the California
  Manufacturing and Technology Association,
  respondents reported that the single most
  important business challenge they were facing in
  California was sustaining and/or acquiring a
  skilled workforce, more so than workers
  compensation costs, energy costs, or taxes.

28
CAs EDGE Campaign Making the Case

• The Challenge Facing Workers Much of the
  incumbent and emerging workforce is unprepared
  for skilled jobs, undercutting their ability to
  attain / retain family-supporting employment.
• Too many young people arent graduating from high
  school
• Too few high school graduates are going on to
  college
• Working adults have limited opportunities for
  lifelong education and career advancement

29
CAs EDGE Campaign Making the Case

• The Challenge Posed by Major Demographic Shifts
  The highly skilled baby boom generation will be
  retiring, and many projections indicate that
  Californias replacement workforce will have
  insufficient levels of educational attainment if
  current trends continue.
• California will need to replace 1.4 million
  workers with higher education who will be
  retiring or otherwise leaving their occupations.
  The need to replace these workers is almost equal
  to the need created by the growth of expanding
  industries.

30
CAs EDGE Campaign Making the Case

• CAs Strengths Pioneering technologies a good
  education and training infrastructure major
  academic research centers a young and diverse
  workforce.
• Whats missing?
• California Economic Strategies Panel California
  lacks an economic and workforce investment
  strategy that focuses on regional strengths and
  opportunities, and connects state and local
  efforts for maximum impact.

31
CAs EDGE Campaign The Policy Agenda

• Invest in regional workforce and economic
  development strategies to build prosperous
  communities and competitive industries.
• Provide all Californians access to high quality
  postsecondary education and skills training.
• Provide working adults with opportunities to move
  up the skill ladder.

32
CAs EDGE Campaign The Policy Agenda

• Link workforce programs and institutions to
  create pathways to high wage jobs.
• Align program goals and measures to achieve a
  shared vision of Californias future and to
  ensure accountability.

33
CAs EDGE Campaign Endorsers

• Some lead sponsors of the Campaign
• California Budget Project
• California Manufacturers and Technology
  Association
• California Workforce Association
• Community College League of California
• California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO
• State Building and Construction Trades Council of
  California
• Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
• San Francisco Chamber of Commerce
• The Boeing Company
• The Workforce Alliance
• For a full list of endorsers, go to
• http//www.californiaedgecampaign.org

34
Jason Walsh State Policy Director (608)
310-9508 jasonw_at_workforcealliance.org The
Workforce Alliance 1701 K Street, N.W., Suite
750 Washington, DC 20006 (202)
223-8991 www.workforcealliance.org