Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
       2024 REGULAR SESSION
          Committee Substitute for House Bill 5127
                 By Delegate Howell [Originating in the Committee on Economic Development and Tourism; Reported on January 31, 2024]
     CS for HB 5127
1    A BILL to amend and reenact §18B-3D-6 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating
2           to including Potomac State College of West Virginia University as an eligible institution for
3           permanent participation in the "Learn and Earn Program"; and removing reference to the
4           program being a "pilot" program.
     Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
     ARTICLE 3D. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE.
     §18B-3D-6.      Learn and Earn Cooperative Education Program established.
1           (a) Legislative findings.
2           (1) The Legislature finds that many West Virginians cannot enroll full-time in a community
3    and technical college technical program because circumstances require them to maintain full-time
4    employment. It is critically important that technical programs leading to high-wage occupations be
5    more accessible and affordable for all West Virginians.
6           (2) The Legislature further finds that cooperative education programs are successful in
7    providing access to these technical programs while providing students enrolled full-time in a
8    community and technical college with the financial benefits they need to continue their education.
9    These cooperative education programs provide opportunities for students to work with West
10   Virginia companies while in college, thus increasing the likelihood that they will complete the
11   program, find gainful employment and choose to remain in West Virginia upon graduation. They
12   provide students with hands-on, real world work experience with a salary while they complete a
13   technical program of study and, at the same time, provide employers with a cost-effective tool for
14   recruiting and training.
15          (b) The purpose of this section is to establish a cooperative education program, under the
16   jurisdiction of the council, as a component of the Workforce Development Initiative Program
17   established pursuant to this article. The program shall be known and may be cited as the "Learn
18   and Earn Program".
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     CS for HB 5127
19           (c) The program requires a dollar-for-dollar cash match from participating employers or
20   groups of employers from which the student receives a salary from the employer or employers
21   while participating in the program. Participants may not substitute a match in-kind for the cash
22   match required by this section.
23           (d) An institution is eligible to apply for a program grant in cooperation with one or more
24   employer partners if it meets the definition of a community and technical college provided in §18B-
25   1-2 of this code: Provided, That, as a pilot program beginning at the start of the 2023-2024
26   academic year and concluding at the end of the 2025-2026 beginning upon the effective date of
27   amendments passed during the 2024 Regular Session and continuing for all academic years
28   thereafter, Potomac State College of West Virginia University is eligible to participate in the "Learn
29   and Earn Program" established by this section in accordance with the rules promulgated pursuant
30   to §18B-3D-5 of this code. At the conclusion of the pilot program, the council shall determine
31   whether Potomac State College of West Virginia University has achieved sufficient results to
32   continue to participate in the Learn and Earn program. The council shall define the application
33   process in the rules required in section five of this article.
34           (e) The council may expend funds available through the Workforce Development Initiative
35   program to implement the provisions of this section.
             NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create a program to include Potomac State College of
             West Virginia as an eligible institution for permanent participation in the "Learn and Earn Program". The bill removes reference to the program being a "pilot" program.
             Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.
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Statutes affected: 
Introduced Version: 18B-3D-6
Committee Substitute: 18B-3D-6