HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STAFF ANALYSIS
BILL #: CS/CS/HB 7051 PCB PEW 23-01 Education
SPONSOR(S): Education & Employment Committee, Appropriations Committee and Postsecondary
Education & Workforce Subcommittee, Melo and others
TIED BILLS: IDEN./SIM. BILLS:
REFERENCE ACTION ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR or
BUDGET/POLICY CHIEF
Orig. Comm.: Postsecondary Education & 16 Y, 0 N Dixon Kiner
Workforce Subcommittee
1) Appropriations Committee 26 Y, 0 N, As CS Smith Pridgeon
2) Education & Employment Committee 19 Y, 0 N, As CS Dixon Hassell
SUMMARY ANALYSIS
The bill enhances and streamlines provisions to improve the implementation and expansion of workforce education
programs. The bill also increases access to career and technical education in middle and high school, including
opportunities for work-based learning, such as apprenticeships. Among other things , the bill:
 Expands the Reimagining Education and Career Help (REACH) Office’s authority to include facilitation of
cooperation between the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO), the Department of Education, and
CareerSource Florida, Inc., (CareerSource) to develop and expand apprenticeship, preapprenticeship, and other
work-based learning models.
 Expands and renames the internship tax credit program to include businesses that employ student apprentices
and preapprentices.
 Expands the Pathways to Career Opportunities Grant Program (PCOG) to facilitate more employers creating,
expanding, and operating apprenticeship programs.
 Revises the Workforce Development Capitalization Incentive Grant and the PCOG by removing the requirement
that the grants be administered on a competitive basis.
 Requires each district school board to ensure that each student enrolled in grades 9 through 12 has access to at
least one work-based learning opportunity.
 Requires each district school board to adopt policies and procedures that require each high school to host an
annual career fair during the school year for students in grades 11 and 12. The career fair must be held on the
campus of the high school, except that a group of high schools in the district or a group of districts may hold a
joint career fair at another location.
 Requires a middle school student who completes a career and technical education course or an industry
certification included in the CAPE Industry Certification Funding List be given the opportunity to continue a
sequential program in the same concentration via controlled open enrollment if a high school in the district offers
the program.
 Revises the Money-Back Guarantee Program to provide flexibility for institutions to determine the three programs
for which the institution offers a money-back guarantee.
 Authorizes state universities to create workforce education partnership programs that facilitate work and learn
opportunities for students and allow them to graduate without student loan debt.
 Revises requirements for training providers to be included on a state or local eligible training provider list.
 Shifts the administration of reimbursements for workers’ compensation insurance costs of work -based learners
from the Department of Education to the Department of Financial Servic es.
 Requires the ABLE Trust to research, identify, and report on the systems in the state that provide services to
persons with disabilities. The bill also delays the scheduled repeal of the ABLE Trust from October 1, 2023, to
October 1, 2027.
 Converts the Open Door Grant Program to a student financial assistance program and provides requirements.
The bill has a fiscal impact on state government. See Fiscal Comments, infra.
The bill has an effective date of July 1, 2023.
This docum ent does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill sponsor or House of Representatives .
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 FULL ANALYSIS
I. SUBSTANTIVE ANALYSIS
A. EFFECT OF PROPOSED CHANGES:
Florida’s Workforce Development System
Present Situation
The federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) was passed by Congress in an effort to improve
the quality of the nation’s workforce through implementation of a comprehensive workforce investment
system.1 WIA required each state to establish an investment board at the state level and to also
establish workforce investment boards to represent local service areas. 2 WIA also called for the
delivery of workforce development services through a system of “one-stop” centers in local
communities.3 Some key principles of WIA were to better integrate workforce services, empower
individuals, provide universal access to participants, increase accountability, and improve youth
programs.4
In response to WIA, Florida established a workforce development system (WDS) under the Workforce
Investment Act of 2000.5 The act aimed to better connect the state’s economic development strategies
with its WDS and to implement the principles of the federal WIA. 6
Federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014
In 2014, Congress passed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), which superseded
the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.7 WIOA requires each state to develop a single, unified plan for
aligning workforce services through the identification and evaluation of core workforce programs. 8 In
general, WIOA maintains the one-stop framework of WIA, and encompasses provisions aimed at
streamlining services, easing reporting requirements, and reducing administrative barriers. 9 WIOA
officially became effective on July 1, 2015, the first full program year after enactment.
Workforce Training
Present Situation
The one-stop delivery system is the state’s primary customer-service strategy for offering every
Floridian access, through service sites or telephone or computer networks, to the following services: 10
 Job search, referral, and placement assistance.
 Career counseling and educational planning.
 Consumer reports on service providers.
 Recruitment and eligibility determination.
 Support services, including child care and transportation assistance to gain employment.
 Employability skills training.
 Adult education and basic skills training.
 Technical training leading to a certification and degree.
1 Workforce Investment Act of 1998, 29 U.S.C. § 2801 (1998), repealed by Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, Pub. L. No.
113-128, H.R. 803, 113th Cong. (July 22, 2014)(codified at 29 U.S.C. § 3101, et seq.).
2 See 29 U.S.C. s. 2821 and 29 U.S.C. s. 2832 (1998).
3 See 29 U.S.C. s. 2841 (1998).
4 See 29 U.S.C. s. 2811 (1998).
5 Ch. 2000-165, Laws of Fla.
6 See s. 445.003, F.S.
7 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, 29 U.S.C. § 3101 et seq. (2014).
8 See 29 U.S.C. s. 3112(a).
9 See 29 U.S.C. s. 3111.
10 Section 445.009(1), F.S.
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  Claim filing for reemployment assistance services.
 Temporary income, health, nutritional, and housing assistance.
 Other appropriate and available workforce development services.
Intensive services and training provided pursuant to WIOA are required to be provided to individuals
through Intensive Service Accounts and Individual Training Accounts. The state workforce development
board is required to develop criteria for use of these accounts.11
Individual Training Accounts must be expended on programs that prepare people to enter occupations
identified by the Labor Market Estimating Conference and on other programs recommended and
approved by the state board12 following a review by the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) to
determine the program’s compliance with federal law. 13 For each approved training program, local
workforce development boards, in consultation with training providers, must establish a fair-market
purchase price to be paid through an Individual Training Account. Training services provided through
Individual Training Accounts must be performance-based, with successful job placement triggering final
payment of at least 10 percent.14
Typical training services for adults and dislocated workers include, but are not limited to occupational
skills training, on-the-job training and related instruction, incumbent worker training, job readiness
training, entrepreneurship, adult literacy, and employer-specific training.15
An eligible training provider is the only type of entity that may receive funding for providing these
services.16 An eligible training provider must be included on the state list of eligible training providers
and must:17
 Provide a program of higher education which leads to a recognized postsecondary credential;
 Be a registered apprenticeship or pre-apprenticeship program; or
 Provide other training services, including adult education and literacy activities provided in
combination with other eligible training services.
Training provided by an eligible training provider must lead to: 18
 A certificate, an associate degree, baccalaureate degree, or
 The skills or competencies needed for a specific job or jobs, an occupation, occupational group, or
generally, for many types of jobs or occupations, as recognized by employers and determined prior
to training.
The DEO is responsible for establishing standards for eligible training providers of workforce
development programs funded through WIOA. The DEO is required to establish initial and subsequent
eligibility criteria, based on input from the state board, local workforce development boards, the DEO,
and other stakeholders, for the WIOA eligible training provider list. The list directs training resources to
programs leading to employment in high-demand and high-priority occupations that provide economic
security, particularly those occupations facing a shortage of skilled workers. A training provider who
offers training to obtain a credential on the Master Credentials List may not be included on a state or
local eligible training provider list if the provider fails to submit the required information or fails to meet
initial or subsequent eligibility criteria. Subsequent eligibility criteria must use the performance and
outcome measures defined and reported under the Workforce Development Information System
maintained by the DOE, to determine whether each program offered by a training provider is qualified
to remain on the list. Nationally, 54 percent of WIOA participants who complete a training program of an
11 Section 445.009(7), F.S.
12 Section 445.002(4), F.S. State board means the state workforce development board established pursuant to the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act.
13 Section 445.009(8)(a), F.S.
14 Section 445.009(8)(e), F.S.
15 20 C.F.R. s. 680.200.
16 20 C.F.R. s. 680.410.
17 20 C.F.R. s. 680.410.
18 20 C.F.R. s. 663.508.
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 eligible training provider find employment.19 Every program offered by a training provider in Florida is
required to demonstrate:20
 That income earnings for all individuals who complete the program are equivalent to or above the
state’s minimum wage in a calendar quarter.
 An employment rate of at least 75 percent for all individuals. For programs linked to an occupation,
the employment rate is calculated based on obtaining employment in the field in which the
participant was trained.
 A completion rate of at least 75 percent for all individuals, beginning with the 2023-2024 program
year.
Regional Planning and Local Workforce Development Boards
WIOA requires states to identify regional planning areas for workforce development strategies.21 Within
each area, a local workforce development board (LWBD) must be established. 22 Each LWDB is
required to coordinate planning and service delivery strategies within their area. 23 Formulated
strategies are then used by the LWDB to develop and submit a local plan for the delivery of workforce
services.24
Strengthening Alignment between Industry and Learning to 60 Initiative
In 2019, the Legislature created the Strengthening Alignment between Industry and Learning (SAIL) to
60 Initiative to increase the percentage of working-age adults in Florida with a high-value
postsecondary certificate, degree, or training experience to 60 percent by 2030. 25
Florida Talent Development Council
The Legislature, in 2019, reconstituted the Higher Education Coordinating Council to create the Florida
Talent Development Council for the purpose of developing a data-driven, statewide approach to
meeting Florida’s need for a 21st century workforce, which utilizes the in-state talent supply system.26
The council, with support from the DEO, is tasked with developing a strategic plan to accomplish the
SAIL to 60 goal.27 The strategic plan must:28
 Identify Florida’s fastest-growing industry sectors and the postsecondary credentials required for
employment in those industries.
 Assess whether postsecondary degrees, certificates, and other credentials awarded by Florida’s
postsecondary institutions align with high-demand employment needs and job placement rates.
 Identify strategies to deepen and expand cross-sector collaborations to align higher education
programs with targeted industry needs.
 Establish targeted strategies to increase certification and degrees for all populations with attention
to closing equity gaps for underserved populations and incumbent workers requiring an upgrade of
skills.
 Assess the role of apprenticeship programs in meeting targeted workforce needs and identify any
barriers to program expansion.
 Identify common metrics and benchmarks to demonstrate progress toward the 60 percent goal and
how the SAIL to 60 Initiative can provide coordinated cross-sector support for the strategic plan.
19 USDOL, Employment and Training Administration, Finding the Right Training, https://www.trainingproviderresults.gov/#!/about,
(last visited Apr. 13, 2023).
20 Section 445.003(7)(b), F.S.
21 See 29 U.S.C. s. 3121.
22 Id.
23 See 29 U.S.C. s. 3122.
24 See 29 U.S.C. s. 3123.
25 Section 1004.013, F.S.
26 Section 1004.015(1), F.S.
27 Section 1004.015(4), F.S. See also, Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, Florida Talent Development Council,
https://floridajobs.org/TalentDevelopmentCouncil (last visited Apr. 13, 2023).
28 Section 1004.015(4)(a)-(h), F.S.
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  Recommend improvements to the consistency of data collected and reported by FCS institutions
and school districts, including the establishment of common elements and definitions for any data
that is used for state and federal funding and program accountability.
 Establish a timeline for regularly updating the strategic plan and the established goals.
Reimaging Education and Career Help Act (REACH Act)
In 2021, the Legislature passed several initiatives to enhance the SAIL to 60 Initiative and to ensure
that workforce education programs were tailored to Florida’s workforce needs. One initiative was the
Reimagining Education and Career Help Act (REACH Act). The REACH Act serves to address the
evolving needs of Florida’s economy by increasing the level of collaboration and cooperation among
state businesses and education communities while improving training and providing for equity and
access to a more integrated workforce and education system for Florida.29
To facilitate alignment and coordination of entities responsible for Florida’s WDS, the Office of
Reimagining Education and Career Help (REACH Office) was created in the Executive Office of the
Governor. The Director of the REACH Office is appointed by, and serves at the pleasure of, the
Governor.30
REACH Office Duties
The duties of the REACH Office are to:31
 Serve as an advisor to the Governor on matters related to the state's WDS.
 Establish criteria and goals for workforce development and diversification in Florida’s WDS.
 Provide strategies to align and improve efficiency in Florida’s WDS and the delivery of workforce
related programs.
 Coordinate state and federal workforce related programs, plans, resources, and activities provided
by CareerSource, the DEO, and the Department of Education (DOE).
 Oversee the workforce development information system designed by the DOE to verify the validity
of data collected and monitor compliance of workforce related programs and education and training
programs with applicable federal and state requirements as authorized