PRINTER'S NO. 3196

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA


HOUSE BILL

No. 2290 Session of 1984


        INTRODUCED BY MANDERINO, RYAN, DeLUCA, E. Z. TAYLOR, IRVIS,
           HERMAN, PIEVSKY, BURNS, HOEFFEL, SEMMEL, LLOYD, TELEK,
           AFFLERBACH, MACKOWSKI, FREEMAN, COSLETT, ITKIN, DeVERTER,
           COWELL, DOMBROWSKI, HAYES, D. R. WRIGHT, RUDY, SALOOM,
           PETRARCA, WARGO, BELFANTI, STUBAN, COHEN, GRUPPO, STEIGHNER,
           CESSAR, KASUNIC, DALEY, D. W. SNYDER, HASAY, WESTON,
           SALVATORE, BOYES, ROBBINS, MERRY, FARGO, SCHULER, GRIECO,
           McHALE, DAVIES, MICHLOVIC, GANNON, SIRIANNI, RYBAK, GEORGE,
           WACHOB, FEE, CALTAGIRONE, PRESTON, HALUSKA, COLE, BUNT,
           ANGSTADT, PETERSON, PISTELLA, KUKOVICH, BALDWIN, CAPPABIANCA,
           McCALL, SHOWERS, PRATT, STEWART, WOZNIAK, CORDISCO, KOSINSKI,
           BATTISTO, GODSHALL, SWIFT, RAPPAPORT, OLIVER, SEVENTY, CLARK,
           DUFFY, MRKONIC, SWEET, GAMBLE, RICHARDSON AND MAYERNIK,
           JUNE 13, 1984

        REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS, JUNE 13, 1984

                                     AN ACT

     1  Establishing a program within the Department of Education for
     2     the acquisition of new vocational-technical equipment and the
     3     upgrading of existing vocational-technical equipment that is
     4     necessary to provide secondary, postsecondary and adult
     5     students with relevant occupational training; providing for
     6     allocations and grants of money; and making a nonlapsing
     7     appropriation.

     8     The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     9  hereby enacts as follows:
    10  Section 1.  Short title.
    11     This act shall be known and may be cited as the Updating of
    12  Vocational-Technical Equipment Act.
    13  Section 2.  Definitions.
    14     The following words and phrases when used in this act shall


     1  have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
     2  context clearly indicates otherwise:
     3     "Department."  The Department of Education.
     4     "Enrollment."  Secondary and adult enrollments collected
     5  through the Vocational Education Management Information System.
     6     "Equivalent full-time students."  Equivalent full-time
     7  students enrolled in two-year or less than two-year terminal
     8  non-liberal arts programs as set forth in the act of August 24,
     9  1963 (P.L.1132, No.484), known as the Community College Act of
    10  1963.
    11     "Private industry council."  The private industry councils
    12  established under the Federal Job Training Partnership Act
    13  (Public Law 97-300, 29 U.S.C. § 1501, et seq.).
    14     "Secretary."  The Secretary of Education.
    15  Section 3.  Acquisition and upgrading of vocational-technical
    16                 equipment.
    17     (a)  Program.--There is established within the department a
    18  program to provide funds directly to school districts, area
    19  vocational-technical schools and community colleges for the
    20  acquisition and upgrading of vocational-technical equipment. The
    21  program shall provide funds to be used exclusively for the
    22  purchase or lease of new vocational-technical equipment and the
    23  upgrading of existing vocational-technical equipment that is
    24  necessary to offer vocational-technical courses or programs to
    25  secondary, postsecondary and adult students that provide skills
    26  needed in the labor market.
    27     (b)  Funds available to school districts and regional
    28  vocational-technical schools.--Of the total funds available,
    29  school districts and area vocational-technical schools shall be
    30  granted 55% to acquire or lease new equipment or to upgrade
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     1  existing equipment necessary to provide occupationally related
     2  vocational-technical courses to secondary and adult students.
     3  The department shall compute the grants for each school district
     4  or area vocational-technical school using the grant formula
     5  provided in section 5(a).
     6     (c)  Funds available to community colleges.--Of the total
     7  funds available, community colleges shall be granted 45% to
     8  acquire new equipment or to upgrade existing equipment necessary
     9  to provide courses to students enrolled in two-year or less than
    10  two-year terminal non-liberal arts programs. The department
    11  shall compute the grants for each community college using the
    12  grant formula provided in section 5(b).
    13  Section 4.  Receipt of funds.
    14     (a)  Allocation approval requirements.--Before the department
    15  allocates any of the funds, it shall require the appropriate
    16  school district, area vocational-technical school or community
    17  college to document that:
    18         (1)  The courses to be provided with the equipment will
    19     provide students with occupational skills in demand in the
    20     labor market.
    21         (2)  The funds will be expended only for equipment.
    22         (3)  The funds shall not be used to supplant existing
    23     Federal, State and local funds used for equipment acquisition
    24     and upgrading by reporting the average annual expenditures
    25     for vocational-technical equipment for the fiscal years 1981-
    26     1982, 1982-1983 and 1983-1984, and by certifying that the
    27     average annual expenditures from funds other than those
    28     appropriated by this act for the fiscal years 1984-1985,
    29     1985-1986 and 1986-1987 equal or exceed the average annual
    30     expenditures for the fiscal years 1981-1982, 1982-1983 and
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     1     1983-1984.
     2         (4)  The funds will not be used as matching funds for any
     3     other State program.
     4         (5)  The equipment relates to the needs of the labor
     5     market.
     6  Further, the department shall not allocate any of the entitled
     7  funds until it receives comments from the appropriate private
     8  industry council.
     9     (b)  Private industry council review.--Documentation provided
    10  to the department pursuant to subsection (a) shall be provided
    11  by the school district, area vocational-technical school or
    12  community college to the private industry council in the
    13  geographical area in which the school district, area vocational-
    14  technical school or community college is located or serves. It
    15  shall be the responsibility of the private industry council to
    16  review the proposed acquisition or lease of new equipment or
    17  upgrading of existing equipment and submit to the department
    18  within 90 days from the date it receives the documentation its
    19  comments on the appropriateness of the proposed equipment plans
    20  in light of labor market needs and other existing or planned
    21  training programs.
    22  Section 5.  Grant formula.
    23     (a)  Formula for school districts and regional vocational-
    24  technical schools.--Each school district and area vocational-
    25  technical school shall receive a portion of the funds provided
    26  pursuant to section 3(b), which shall be determined by dividing
    27  the number of enrollments for the school district or area
    28  vocational-technical school by the Statewide enrollment and
    29  multiplying the result by the total amount provided in this act
    30  pursuant to section 3(b). Enrollments shall be determined using
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     1  the latest available data.
     2     (b)  Formula for community colleges.--Each community college
     3  shall receive a portion of the funds provided pursuant to
     4  section 3(c), which shall be determined by dividing the number
     5  of equivalent full-time students enrolled in the community
     6  colleges by the number of equivalent full-time students for all
     7  community colleges and multiplying the results by the total
     8  amount provided in this act pursuant to section 3(c). Equivalent
     9  full-time students shall be determined using latest available
    10  data.
    11  Section 6.  Equipment sharing agreements.
    12     In order to maximize the use of the equipment provided by
    13  funds appropriated in this act, the recipient may enter into
    14  agreements with other government-sponsored vocational training
    15  providers for the use of the equipment.
    16  Section 7.  Indicators of program need and impact.
    17     (a)  Timely documentation.--The department shall require the
    18  school districts, area vocational-technical schools and
    19  community colleges to specify the extent to which the
    20  documentation provided pursuant to section 4 reflects the demand
    21  for labor market skills based upon analyses conducted within the
    22  last five years.
    23     (b)  Annual legislative report required.--By March 1 of each
    24  year, the department shall submit to the Chief Clerk of the
    25  House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate a
    26  report which shall include, but need not be limited to, a
    27  measure of the extent to which the comments of the private
    28  industry councils were taken into consideration, the amount and
    29  types of equipment funded by the labor market area, the number
    30  of persons trained by the major vocational program area and the
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     1  labor market area, the job placement rate of persons trained by
     2  the major vocational program area and the labor market area and
     3  the number of agreements entered into by recipients with other
     4  vocational training providers.
     5     (c)  Impact survey required.--Upon the termination of this
     6  act or July 1, 1987, whichever shall occur sooner, the
     7  department shall undertake a survey to update the report
     8  "Vocational Education Tool and Equipment Inventory" in order to
     9  inform the General Assembly of the impact which this act had on
    10  bringing the equipment used in vocational training programs
    11  closer to the technology used in industry.
    12  Section 8.  Duty to inform department.
    13     All recipients of funds under this act shall be required to
    14  provide any and all information requested by the department for
    15  the purposes of this act.
    16  Section 9.  Appropriation.
    17     The sum of $27,000,000 is hereby appropriated to the
    18  Department of Education from the Pennsylvania Economic
    19  Revitalization Fund for the purposes of this program. Any funds
    20  from this appropriation remaining unexpended or unencumbered
    21  upon the termination of this act shall automatically lapse into
    22  the Pennsylvania Economic Revitalization Fund.
    23  Section 10.  Expiration.
    24     This act shall expire on June 30, 1987.
    25  Section 11.  Effective date.
    26     This act shall take effect immediately.



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