N.Y. Education Law § 3032: Teacher summer business training and employment program; and employer specific skill training grant program

§ 3032. Teacher summer business training and employment program; and

employer specific skill training grant program. 1. Definitions. (a)

"Regions" for the purposes of this section means regions as established

by the commissioner pursuant to the provisions of the vocational

education act.

(b) "Local education agencies" for the purposes of this section means

school districts, boards of cooperative educational services, community

colleges, agricultural and technical colleges, state university of New

York college of technology and centers for advanced technology

designated pursuant to section three thousand one hundred two-a of the

public authorities law, and other postsecondary providers of career

education as set forth annually by the commissioner as eligible

recipients under the federal vocational education act of nineteen

hundred eighty-four.

(c) "Total employment cost" means salary or wages paid directly to

each teacher participating and associated fringe benefits which accrue

to each teacher in the teacher summer business training and employment

program.

2. Allocations. The commissioner shall allocate the lesser of forty

thousand dollars or one percent of the total appropriation for the

purposes of this section to each region for administering and conducting

employer specific skill training and employment programs and the

remainder of such appropriation shall be allocated to each region for

the administration and support of teacher summer business training and

employment programs based on the proportion of the base year full time

teachers in the public schools of all school districts and boards of

cooperative educational services within the region to the total of such

teachers in the state, provided however, that each region shall receive

at least five percent of the allocation for such purposes and provided

further that the cost due to such five percent allowance shall be

proportionally borne by the regions not so affected. Use of funds for

administration of the summer business training and employment programs

shall not exceed six percent of the allocation to a region.

3. Teacher summer business training and employment program. (a) In any

case in which a business or industry within the state shall employ

during the months of July and August a teacher of mathematics,

chemistry, biology, earth science, physics, computer science, career

education or an elementary specialist in the area of mathematics or

science or commencing July first, nineteen hundred eighty-five, a

teacher of other subject areas as the commissioner may deem appropriate,

the state will assist employers with costs associated with approved work

experience for such teachers. Such business or industry shall request

that the chief administrative officer of the school district or board of

cooperative educational services employing such teacher during the same

school year as such business or industry employment occurs, certify to

the commissioner that the summer work experience involved will directly

benefit the individual's effectiveness as a teacher of mathematics,

chemistry, biology, earth science, physics, computer science, career

education, or other subject areas as the commissioner may deem

appropriate. If such chief administrative officer so certifies, then

such officer shall also file the request with the local education agency

designated by the commissioner for pre-approval for funding under this

program in the applicable region. The commissioner shall not approve any

requests for approval that would result in the maximum allocation for

the applicable region being exceeded. No approval shall be given except

for the lesser of thirty per centum of the total employment cost or one

thousand dollars per employed teacher. The remainder of such costs shall

be borne by the business employer involved. Participation in this

program shall be at the option of each school district or board of

cooperative educational services.

(b) Such requests for pre-approval and certifications shall be on a

form prescribed by the commissioner. Such form shall include but not be

limited to certification of the employer regarding work to be performed

by the teacher, wages, hours, and the certification of the chief

administrative officer of the school district or board of cooperative

educational services as the case may be, as prescribed in this

subdivision.

(c) The local education agency designated by the commissioner shall be

authorized to submit a claim to the commissioner for an amount of money

equal to eighty percent of the anticipated expenditure, based upon the

requests for pre-approval and certification received. If the

commissioner approves, he shall pay that amount to such local education

agency within thirty days of the receipt of such claim.

(d) Upon completion of such employment, the participating business or

industry shall certify to the local education agency designated by the

commissioner the identity of the employee, the wages actually paid, the

hours worked and the period in which such hours were worked and shall

assess such local education agency for thirty per centum of such salary

and wage not to exceed one thousand dollars per employed teacher. If the

commissioner approves, he shall reimburse such local education agency

upon receipt of a claim pursuant to this section as provided by law the

amount of money equal to the difference between the monies paid to the

local education agency pursuant to paragraph (c) of this subdivision and

the actual approved expenditure. If the monies paid to the local

education agency pursuant to paragraph (c) of this subdivision exceeds

the actual approved expenditure, the local education agency shall

reimburse that difference to the commissioner.

(e) The commissioner shall monitor implementation of programs,

evaluate progress, and require reports. Any funds allocated to a region

but not committed for the purposes of this subdivision by September

fifteenth of the current year shall be reallocated by the commissioner

for the purposes of subdivision four of this section.

4. Employer specific skill training grant programs. (a) Employer

specific skill training grant programs shall be designed to support,

supplement and contribute to the expansion and maintenance of the

economy of the state. Local education agencies shall apply to the

commissioner for grants for conducting employer specific skill training

programs. Application for funds by local education agencies for training

programs shall be in a manner consistent with the application process

for business and industry specific training programs under the

vocational education act of 1963 and the job training partnership act;

the sum of such grants per region shall not exceed the total funds

allocated or reallocated to the region for such purposes. Such programs

shall provide retraining and upgrading to existing or potential

personnel in order to improve technology, quality control, production

efficiency, or to adapt to other changes in the labor market, or to

provide unique training programs to meet the emerging needs and

occupations of the state's business and industry or providing training

to individuals to promote the successful management and/or operation of

a worker owned cooperative or an employee stock ownership plan or

employee-owned enterprises, as defined in subdivision five of section

eighteen hundred thirty-six-b of the public authorities law, by such

employees. No grant shall exceed fifty per centum of the total program

cost. Eligible program cost may include employer wages paid to the

employee for time spent in the training program. Applications for a

grant by local education agencies shall be in a form prescribed by the

commissioner.

(b) By October first, nineteen hundred eighty-six the department of

education, the department of commerce, and the urban development

corporation shall enter into cooperative agreements to promote more

effective coordination of employer specific training programs with

regional economic development strategies and other activities conducted

by the department of commerce, the urban development corporation and

other state, regional, and local agencies intended to promote economic

development. In preparing these agreements the parties to the

cooperative agreements shall solicit comments from the regional economic

development councils, regional education center for economic development

coordinating committees, technology development councils, private

industry councils and other appropriate entities within the regions as

identified by the commissioner, the commissioner of commerce, or the

chairman of the urban development corporation. Such cooperative

agreements shall be reviewed and revised annually.

(c) The commissioner shall monitor implementation of programs,

evaluate progress, and require reports as needed.

(d) If any funds allocated to a region are not committed for the

purposes of this subdivision by November fifteenth, the commissioner may

reallocate some or all of such funds to another region.

5. Additional employer specific skills training grants. The additional

appropriation for the purposes of this subdivision for administering and

conducting employer specific skills training programs shall be allocated

as follows: (a) thirty percent shall be allocated equally among the

regions; and (b) seventy percent shall be allocated among the regions

based upon the proportion of unemployed persons within the region to the

total number of unemployed persons in the state for the most recent

calendar year as determined by the state department of labor using the

civilian non-instructional population sixteen years of age or older

labor series. Not less than twenty percent of the additional allocation

to each region pursuant to this paragraph shall be available for

training programs which will provide placements for persons who are

economically disadvantaged or dislocated workers as defined pursuant to

the federal job training partnership act. If any money allocated to a

region pursuant to this paragraph is not committed by March first of

each year or is committed prior to March first and is subsequently found

to be unnecessary for expenditure to meet existing contractual

obligations, the commissioner shall reallocate such funds to approved

programs including but not limited to those programs which serve

economically disadvantaged or dislocated workers in regions eligible

pursuant to this paragraph.

6. Annual report. Annually, on or before January first of each year,

the commissioner shall report to the governor, the temporary president

of the senate and speaker of the assembly and chairpersons of the

appropriate committees on the impact of this program. Such report shall

include but not be limited to:

(a) The allocation of funding among the regions pursuant to this

section.

(b) The amount of funding that was made available by each region for

reallocation pursuant to this section. Such amount shall include

separately the amount made available due to the region's inability to

encumber available funds and the amount made available due to the

overestimation of projected program costs.

(c) The amount of funding that was expended by each region for

administrative activities.

(d) The allocation of funding among the regions providing for employer

specific skills training grant programs which are administered by the

department and funded through other sources including, but not limited

to, the federal vocational education act and the federal job training

partnership act and the extent to which such funds are combined with the

funds appropriated pursuant to this section to provide funding for

individual projects.

(e) The participation, completion, and placement rate of individuals

enrolled in employer specific skills training grant programs

administered by the department and funded pursuant to this section and

through other available sources of funding, with particular emphasis on

the rates for individuals who are economically disadvantaged or

dislocated workers.

(f) A description and evaluation of programs undertaken pursuant to

the cooperative agreements required under this section.

7. The commissioner shall adopt rules and regulations to implement the

provisions of this section. Rules and regulations governing the employer

specific skills training program established pursuant to this section

shall be promulgated by the commissioner, assisted by the commissioner

of economic development and in consultation with the department of

economic development. Such rules and regulations shall be consistent

with the program plan required by subdivision nineteen of section one

hundred of the economic development law.