HBA-AMW S.B. 429 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 429
By: Lucio
Economic Development
4/30/2001
Engrossed


BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, only three of the five Council on Workforce and Economic
Competitiveness (council) agencies are funding council activities, although
Texas law requires all five agencies to proportionally fund activities.
Senate Bill 429 authorizes the establishment of a proportional funding
formula to enable equitable funding by the five council agencies,
establishes performance measures as part of the state's performance-based
budgeting and accountability system for agencies with workforce programs,
and provides for the dissemination of workforce development system
information over the Internet. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

Senate Bill 429 amends the Government Code to require the Council on
Workforce and Economic Competitiveness (council), with the governor's
approval, to establish a funding formula to determine the level of support
that each state agency represented on the council must provide.  The bill
also requires the council, with the governor's approval, to establish a
funding formula to determine the level of support each state agency
administering a workforce program must provide to operate the council's
automated follow-up and evaluation system. 

The bill requires the council to engage in strategic planning by selecting
or developing two types of performance measures and provides that all
measures must be selected, to the fullest extent possible, from the
measures already developed and approved before September 1, 2001, by one or
more state agencies that administer workforce programs.  The bill
authorizes the council to develop a new measure only if the council
identifies a gap in accountability or determines that at least one state
agency administering a workforce program cannot report under the measures
developed and approved before September 1, 2001.  The bill sets forth
provisions regarding the composition, development, review, and approval of
the performance measures.  The bill requires the Legislative Budget Board
(LBB) to provide technical assistance to the council to ensure that the
measures and associated reporting criteria are consistent with the state's
performance budget and accounting system and requires the council and LBB
to complete the development, review, and approval of the performance
measures on or before September 1, 2002.  The bill authorizes the council
to exempt a state agency that administers a workforce program from any
requirement to use a less formal measure. 

The bill requires the council to provide to the Texas Workforce Commission
(TWC) information required to be reported to the governor and the
legislature in periodic and annual reports, information required to be
reported to the governor and legislature regarding analysis of work
development programs focusing on welfare to work initiatives, and
information on implementation of the strategic plan establishing the
framework for the budgeting and operation of the workforce development
system.  TWC is required to include the information it receives under these
provisions that relates to the administration and operation of the state's
workforce development system with other information TWC provides to the
public on the Internet.   
 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.