    [House Hearing, 115 Congress]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

                      HELPING AMERICANS GET BACK TO WORK:
                        IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WORKFORCE
                         INNOVATION AND OPPORTUNITY ACT

    =======================================================================

                                    HEARING

                                   before the

           SUBCOMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

                             COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                               AND THE WORKFORCE

                         U.S. House of Representatives

                         ONE HUNDRED FIFTEENTH CONGRESS

                                 FIRST SESSION

                                   __________

                 HEARING HELD IN WASHINGTON, DC, JUNE 15, 2017

                                   __________

                               Serial No. 115-19

                                   __________

      Printed for the use of the Committee on Education and the Workforce

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                    COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND THE WORKFORCE

                   VIRGINIA FOXX, North Carolina, Chairwoman

    Joe Wilson, South Carolina           Robert C. ``Bobby'' Scott,
    Duncan Hunter, California                Virginia
    David P. Roe, Tennessee              Ranking Member
    Glenn ``GT'' Thompson, Pennsylvania  Susan A. Davis, California
    Tim Walberg, Michigan                Raul M. Grijalva, Arizona
    Brett Guthrie, Kentucky              Joe Courtney, Connecticut
    Todd Rokita, Indiana                 Marcia L. Fudge, Ohio
    Lou Barletta, Pennsylvania           Jared Polis, Colorado
    Luke Messer, Indiana                 Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan,
    Bradley Byrne, Alabama                 Northern Mariana Islands
    David Brat, Virginia                 Frederica S. Wilson, Florida
    Glenn Grothman, Wisconsin            Suzanne Bonamici, Oregon
    Elise Stefanik, New York             Mark Takano, California
    Rick W. Allen, Georgia               Alma S. Adams, North Carolina
    Jason Lewis, Minnesota               Mark DeSaulnier, California
    Francis Rooney, Florida              Donald Norcross, New Jersey
    Paul Mitchell, Michigan              Lisa Blunt Rochester, Delaware
    Tom Garrett, Jr., Virginia           Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois
    Lloyd K. Smucker, Pennsylvania       Carol Shea-Porter, New Hampshire
    A. Drew Ferguson, IV, Georgia        Adriano Espaillat, New York
    Ron Estes, Kansas

                          Brandon Renz, Staff Director
                     Denise Forte, Minority Staff Director
                                     ------

           SUBCOMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

                       BRETT GUTHRIE, Kentucky, Chairman

    Glenn ``GT'' Thompson, Pennsylvania  Susan A. Davis, California
    Lou Barletta, Pennsylvania             Ranking Member
    Luke Messer, Indiana                 Joe Courtney, Connecticut
    Bradley Byrne, Alabama               Alma S. Adams, North Carolina
    Glenn Grothman, Wisconsin            Mark DeSaulnier, California
    Elise Stefanik, New York             Raja Krishnamoorthi, Illinois
    Rick W. Allen, Georgia               Jared Polis, Colorado
    Jason Lewis, Minnesota               Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan,
    Paul Mitchell, Michigan                Northern Mariana Islands
    Tom Garrett, Jr., Virginia           Mark Takano, California
    Lloyd K. Smucker, Pennsylvania       Lisa Blunt Rochester, Delaware
    Ron Estes, Kansas                    Adriano Espaillat, New York

                                C O N T E N T S

                                  ----------
                                                                       Page

    Hearing held on June 15, 2017....................................     1

    Statement of Members:
        Davis, Hon. Susan A., Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Higher
          Education and Workforce Development........................     4
            Prepared statement of....................................     6
        Guthrie, Hon. Brett, Chairman, Subcommittee on Higher
          Education and Workforce Development........................     1
            Prepared statement of....................................     4
        Wilson, Hon. Joe, a Representative in Congress from the State
          of South Carolina..........................................     8
            Prepared statement of....................................     9

    Statement of Witnesses:
        Berlin, Mr. Heath, Information Insurance Manager, Naval
          Healthcare Clinic..........................................    17
            Prepared statement of....................................    19
        Dubin, Mr. Louis, Chairman, Governor's Workforce Development
          Board, State of Maryland...................................    29
            Prepared statement of....................................    31
        Paczynski, Ms. Michelle, Deputy Assistant Director for
          Workforce and Economic Development, South Carolina
          Department of Employment and Workforce.....................    10
            Prepared statement of....................................    11
        Painter, Mr. Ron, President and CEO of the National
          Association of Workforce Boards............................    22
            Prepared statement of....................................    24

    Additional Submissions:
        Blunt Rochester, Hon. Lisa, a Representative in Congress from
          the State of Delaware:
            Letter dated June 12, 2017 from the Council of State
              Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation............    62
        Bonamici, Hon. Suzanne, a Representative in Congress from the
          State of Oregon:
            Letter to House and Senate Appropriations Committees on
              FY 2018................................................    65
        Courtney, Hon. Joe, a Representative in Congress from the
          State of Connecticut:
            Slide: WIOA in Eastern Connecticut.......................     7
        Espaillat, Hon. Adriano, a Representative in Congress from
          the State of New York:
            Letter from Campaign for Youth...........................    74
        Ms. Paczynski:
            Article: With Dropping Unemployment, SC Workforce Agency
              Elevates Focus on People with Barriers to Work.........    77
        Smucker, Hon. Lloyd K., a Representative in Congress from the
          State of Pennsylvania:
            Letter dated June 29, 2017 from Opportunity Village......   108

      HELPING AMERICANS GET BACK TO WORK: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE WORKFORCE
                         INNOVATION AND OPPORTUNITY ACT

                                  ----------

                            Thursday, June 15, 2017

                            House of Representatives

                   Committee on Education and the Workforce,

           Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development

                                Washington, D.C.

                                  ----------

        The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:07 a.m., in
    Room 2175, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Brett Guthrie
    [chairman of the subcommittee] presiding.
        Present: Representatives Guthrie, Thompson, Barletta,
    Messer, Byrne, Grothman, Stefanik, Allen, Mitchell, Smucker,
    Davis, Courtney, DeSaulnier, Krishnamoorthi, Polis, Sablan,
    Takano, Blunt Rochester, and Espaillat.
        Also Present: Representatives Foxx, Scott, Wilson of South
    Carolina, and Bonamici.
        Staff Present: Caitlin Burke, Legislative Assistant;
    Courtney Butcher, Director of Member Services and Coalitions;
    Amy Raaf Jones, Director of Education and Human Resources
    Policy; Nancy Locke, Chief Clerk; Kelley McNabb, Communications
    Director; James Mullen, Director of Information Technology;
    Krisann Pearce, General Counsel; Lauren Reddington, Deputy
    Press Secretary; James Redstone, Professional Staff Member;
    Mandy Schaumburg, Education Deputy Director and Senior Counsel;
    Emily Slack, Professional Staff Member; Michael Woeste, Press
    Secretary; Tylease Alli, Minority Clerk/Intern and Fellow
    Coordinator; Austin Barbera, Minority Press Assistant; Denise
    Forte, Minority Staff Director; Mishawn Freeman, Minority Staff
    Assistant; Eunice Ikene, Minority Labor Policy Advisor;
    Kimberly Knackstedt, Minority Disability Policy Advisor; Kevin
    McDermott, Minority Senior Labor Policy Advisor; Udochi
    Onwubiko, Minority Labor Policy Counsel; and Veronique
    Pluviose, Minority General Counsel.
        Chairman Guthrie. A quorum being present, he Subcommittee
    on Higher Education and Workforce Development will come to
    order. I will first yield to Chairman Foxx for 1 minute for an
    opening statement.
        Ms. Foxx. Thank you very much, Mr. Guthrie. I thank all of
    you for being here. This hearing is incredibly important for
    all of us as we look to see if the improvements to our
    workforce development system that we intended with WIOA are
    actually coming to pass. We are all here because we want to
    help Americans access all the resources they need to get back
    to work.
        This morning President Trump will sign an executive order
    aimed at promoting apprenticeships and skill-focused education.
    I love that term and I think it is a great way to refer to what
    we are doing. And it is a kind of focus that students and
    workers have needed from the White House for a long time.
        In just a few minutes I am going to excuse myself so I can
    go tell President Trump on behalf of this entire committee that
    we welcome his interest and his efforts to build a better
    workforce.
        Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for yielding. I very much look
    forward to reviewing the findings of the hearings.
        And I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you, Chairman Foxx. I appreciate
    that. Now I yield to Ranking Member Scott for 1 minute.
        Mr. Scott. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I want
    to thank you and Ranking Member Davis for convening today's
    hearing. I think the conversation around changes that WIOA have
    made in our Nation's workforce development system in preparing
    Americans for high-skill jobs is a critical one. Today
    Chairwoman Foxx and I will be witnessing the President; We
    expect him to sign the executive order on apprenticeships. We
    know that registered apprenticeship programs are proven on-the-
    job training models. They allow workers to earn while they
    learn, but when we send Federal dollars to promote and expand
    new apprenticeships we need to have accountability. And that is
    why I am hoping that we will not change the registration
    process. Federal dollars for apprenticeship programs now go to
    registered apprenticeship programs. You know what you get when
    you graduate, they are transferrable; other employers know what
    you can do and what you cannot do. If it is unregistered it is
    going to be difficult to get some kind of accountability.
        The Department of Labor and 25 State apprenticeship
    agencies establish a baseline for labor standards in the
    registered programs. So I hope today's announcement will not
    undercut the proven model. And while I cannot stay to hear the
    witnesses' testimony, I hope that part of this conversation
    they can tell about registered apprenticeship programs and how
    important they are and how they are aligned with WIOA. And I
    hope we can also discuss the dangers of allowing Federal
    funding to go to unregistered programs. But I think hopefully
    we can work this out because there is a strong consensus that
    apprenticeship programs are extremely invaluable to young
    people trying to get good high-skill jobs.
        So, Mr. Chair, thank you very much and I look forward to
    working with you.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. Thank you for your comments. I
    now recognize myself for opening comments and welcome everyone
    to today's subcommittee hearing. I would like to thank our
    panel of witnesses and my colleagues for joining today's
    important discussion on the implementation of Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act, WIOA.
        It has been almost 3 years since the bipartisan Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act was signed into law and now it
    is time for Congress to explore whether or not the included
    reforms are being turned into action. Prior to the passage of
    WIOA, the Federal Government had over 47 separate but
    overlapping employment education programs across 9 different
    Federal agencies. To make matters worse, most of the programs
    targeted similar populations and provided similar services.
    Additionally, the report also found that only five of the
    programs had been evaluated for effectiveness and their success
    rate in helping unemployed and underemployed workers find
    employment. These programs were textbook cases of how the
    Federal Government can create a web of well-intentioned
    programs that are not serving the needs of the very Americans
    for whom the services are designed. As a result, congressional
    action was needed to fix these programs so American workers
    could succeed in a recovering economy.
        The bipartisan passage of WIOA streamlined the confusing
    maze of workforce development programs, decreased
    administrative overhead, required better coordination for adult
    unemployed and youth programs, and increased accountability for
    the use of taxpayer funds.
        I am proud to say that so many members of this committee,
    including Chairwoman Foxx, played an instrumental role in
    creating the final version of WIOA that was signed into law.
    Congress answered the call for workforce education and
    development reforms, but has faced an uphill climb in getting
    those reforms implemented on the State and local level. Despite
    the overwhelming support for the passage of WIOA it faced
    significant implementation delays during the previous
    administration. For example, the Department of Labor missed key
    deadlines when issuing guidance to State and local leaders.
    According to the Government Accountability Office these delays
    made it difficult to carry out many of WIOA's strategic
    priorities. While we have a new administration the need for
    congressional oversight is still essential to ensure a timely
    and proper implementation of WIOA.
        Our conversation today could not be timelier as President
    Trump announces new measures to strengthen our Nation's
    workforce, education, and development programs. While the
    President's executive actions are encouraging, the
    implementation of WIOA and congressional action to reauthorize
    Federal support for career and technical education can provide
    a lasting improvement to how our citizens found success through
    workforce development education.
        Our witnesses before us are some of the best stores of
    WIOA's success and I look forward to hearing their stories
    throughout today's hearing. Their testimony will only further
    emphasize the need for Federal entities to implement the
    reforms put forth in WIOA as Congress intended. Congress has
    provided the necessary statutory reforms to our workforce
    education and development programs and now, more than ever, it
    is important we deliver on implementation ensuring that
    American workers are being given the skills they need to thrive
    in the 21st century economy.
        I will now yield to my distinguished colleague and this
    subcommittee's ranking member, Susan Davis, for her opening
    remarks.
        [The statement of Chairman Guthrie follows:]

      Prepared Statement of Hon. Brett Guthrie, Chairman, Subcommittee on
                   Higher Education and Workforce Development

        Good morning, and welcome to today's subcommittee hearing. I'd like
    to thank our panel of witnesses and my colleagues for joining today's
    important discussion on the implementation of the Workforce Innovation
    and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
        It has been almost three years since the bipartisan Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act was signed into law, and now it is time
    for Congress to explore whether or not the included reforms are being
    turned into action.
        Prior to the passage of WIOA, the federal government had over 47
    separate but overlapping employment education programs across nine
    different federal agencies. To make matters worse, most of the programs
    targeted similar populations and provided similar services.
    Additionally, the report also found that only five of the programs had
    been evaluated for effectiveness and their success rate in helping
    unemployed and underemployed workers find employment.
        These programs were textbook cases of how the federal government
    can create a web of well-intentioned programs that are not serving the
    needs of the very Americans for whom the services are designed. As a
    result, Congressional action was needed to fix these programs so
    American workers could succeed in a recovery economy.
        The bipartisan passage of WIOA streamlined the confusing maze of
    workforce development programs; decreased administrative overhead;
    required better coordination for adult, unemployed, and youth programs;
    and increased accountability for the use of taxpayer funds.
        I am proud to say that so many members of this committee, including
    Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, played an instrumental role in creating the
    final version of WIOA that was signed into law.
        Congress answered the call for workforce education and development
    reforms, but has faced an uphill climb in getting these reforms
    implemented on the state and local level.
        Despite the overwhelming support for the passage of WIOA, it faced
    significant implementation delays during the Obama Administration.
        For example, the Department of Labor missed key deadlines when
    issuing guidance to state and local leaders. According to the
    Government Accountability Office, these delays made it difficult to
    carry out many of WIOA's strategic priorities.
        While we have a new administration, the need for congressional
    oversight is still essential to ensure a timely and proper
    implementation of WIOA.
        Our conversation today could not be timelier as President Trump
    announces new measures to strengthen our nation's workforce education
    and development programs.
        While the president's executive actions are encouraging, the
    implementation of WIOA and congressional action to reauthorize federal
    support for career and technical education can provide a lasting
    improvement to how our citizens find success through workforce
    development and education programs.
        Our witnesses before us are some of the best stories of WIOA's
    success, and I look forward to hearing their stories throughout today's
    hearing.
        Their testimony will only further emphasize the need for federal
    entities to implement the reforms put forth in WIOA as Congress
    intended.
        Congress has provided the necessary statutory reforms to our
    workforce education and development programs, and now more than ever,
    it is important we deliver on implementation, ensuring that American
    workers are being given the skills they need to thrive in the Twenty-
    First Century economy.
                                     ______

        Ms. Davis. Thank you. Thank you, Chairman Guthrie. I
    appreciate your convening this important hearing and want to
    thank all of our witnesses for being here. I also just want at
    the outset to express my prayers and my concerns for the
    victims and their families and we wish them a full recovery in
    the events of yesterday.
        Today's hearing is focused on the implementation of the
    Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, what we know as WIOA.
    This landmark bipartisan bill that chairman just spoke of,
    whose primary author is the distinguished chairwoman of our
    committee, Dr. Foxx, was signed by President Obama nearly 3
    years ago. I was certainly proud to be among the 400 House
    members who supported WIOA, and I know for those members of
    this committee who were here, I know that they are proud of
    that as well, and proud because it sought to help workers, to
    benefit businesses, revitalize our economy, and strengthen the
    middle class.
        Specifically, WIOA sought to ensure working people of all
    ages and all abilities could get the training and the skills
    they need to obtain well-paying jobs. It also sought to ensure
    employers, that they could hire a skilled workforce so our
    country can compete in the global economy.
        In my district the workforce system has become an incubator
    for developing innovative training programs for young people.
    Tech sector industry leaders, the workforce system, and
    educators are coming together to develop programs where young
    people emerge with life-enhancing productive skills sought in
    the marketplace. WIOA encourages and even demands that these
    groups come together to meet the needs of an ever-changing
    economy.
        The reality is that as budgets are cut, the first programs
    to go are the newest and the most forward-thinking. The
    innovation that WIOA is fostering could be halted, preventing
    the expansion of these partnerships.
        So, Mr. Chairman, fulfilling an innovative vision of our
    workforce becomes even more challenging, challenging when you
    consider the cuts put forth in the President's proposed budget.
    These cuts would undermine the progress and advancements our
    workforce system has made in the past few years. As you will
    see on the screen, and we are going to put up some numbers
    [laughter]--well, we always worry about the tech at the time
    that you need it, right?
        Well, hopefully that will get up there. The President
    proposed funding cuts for the youth, for the adult training,
    dislocated workers and adult education formula funds for each
    of our home States by about 40 percent, cuts by about 40
    percent from current funding levels for all of those programs.
    In all, the President's budget proposed a staggering $1 billion
    in cuts to these programs. And now that is on the screen, what
    it indicates for many of the members their home State, not
    their home district, but for their home State, the cuts in the
    four different programs.
        More importantly, we have not yet had a full year of WIOA
    implementation data to analyze. It is unthinkable to consider
    cutting critical programs without giving them a chance to
    become established and successful in our communities.
    Modernizing our Nation's workforce system is critical.
    Researchers estimate that at our Nation's current rates of
    training and educating, the United States will face a shortage
    of 5 million skilled, educated workers by 2020. And by 2020, 65
    percent of all jobs will require some form of postsecondary
    degree or credential.
        So in this hearing I hope we can take a close look at how
    our workforce systems have improved since WIOA. But also, I
    hope to hear how we can build upon these successes and surmount
    any challenges, because together we must ensure that WIOA
    fulfills its goals of improving the quality of job training
    programs and aligning training to real-world labor market
    needs. In particular, we must be sure to empower people with
    disabilities, disconnected youth, and dislocated workers who
    have faced barriers to entering our workforce systems for far
    too long.
        In the weeks and months ahead, I am hopeful that Congress
    will reject the President's proposed cuts to job training
    programs and make the right investments in our Nation's
    workforce development system. But we should not stop there. We
    should be working together on a bipartisan basis, just like we
    did with WIOA, to help workers get ahead, to make college more
    affordable and accessible, and restore balance to the economy
    so all Americans can provide a better future for their
    families.
        Thank you very much, Chairman Guthrie, for convening
    today's hearing and all the witnesses, again, for taking time
    out to be with us today. Thank you.
        [The statement of Mrs. Davis follows:]

    Prepared Statement of Hon. Susan A. Davis, Ranking Member, Subcommittee
                 on Higher Education and Workforce Development

        Thank you, Chairman Guthrie. I appreciate you convening this
    important hearing, and I want to thank all of our witnesses for being
    here today.
        Today's hearing is focused on the implementation of the Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act - or WIOA. This landmark bipartisan law,
    whose primary author is the distinguished Chairwoman of our Committee,
    Dr. Foxx, was signed by President Obama nearly three years ago.
        I was proud to be among the 400 House Members who supported WIOA
    when it passed because it sought to help workers, benefit businesses,
    revitalize our economy, and strengthen the middle class. Specifically,
    WIOA sought to ensure working people of all ages and all abilities
    could get the training and skills they need to obtain well-paying jobs.
    It also sought to ensure employers could hire a skilled workforce so
    our country can compete in the global economy.
        In my district the workforce system has become an incubator for
    developing innovative training programs for young people. Tech sector
    industry leaders, the workforce system and educators are coming
    together to develop programs where young people emerge with amazing
    skills.
        WIOA encourages and even demands that these groups come together to
    meet the needs of an ever changing economy. The reality is that as
    budgets are cut, the first programs to go are the newest and most
    forward-thinking. The innovation that WIOA is fostering will be halted,
    preventing the expansion of these partnerships.
        Mr. Chairman, fulfilling an innovative vision of our workforce
    becomes even more challenging when you consider the cuts put forth in
    the President's proposed budget. These cuts would undermine the
    progress and advancements our workforce system has made in the past few
    years.
        [INTERNAL NOTE: Please pause to allow for power point slide to be
    projected on to the Committee hearing room's screen.]
        [Additional submission by Mr. Courtney follows:]

       [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        As you'll see on the screen, the President proposed funding cuts
    for the youth, adult training, dislocated workers, and adult education
    formula funds for each of our home states by about 40 percent from
    current funding levels. In all, the President's budget proposed a
    staggering $1 billion in cuts to these programs.
        More importantly, we have not yet had a full year of WIOA
    implementation data to analyze. It is unthinkable to consider cutting
    critical programs without giving them a chance to become established
    and successful in our communities.
        Modernizing our nation's workforce system is critical. Researchers
    estimate that at our nation's current rates of training and educating,
    the United States will face a shortage of 5 million skilled, educated
    workers by 2020. And by 2020, 65 percent of all jobs will require some
    form of post-secondary degree or credential.
        In this hearing, I hope we can take a close look at how our
    workforce systems have improved since WIOA. But also, I hope to hear
        how we can build upon these successes and surmount any challenges.
    Together, we must ensure that WIOA fulfills its goals of improving the
    quality of job training programs and aligning training to real-world
    labor market needs. In particular, we must be sure to empower people
    with disabilities, disconnected youth, and dislocated workers who have
    faced barriers to entering our workforce systems for far too long.
        In the weeks and months ahead, I'm hopeful that Congress will
    reject the President's proposed cuts to job training programs and make
    the right investments in our nation's workforce development system. But
    we shouldn't stop there. We should be working together on a bipartisan
    basis - just like we did with WIOA -to help workers get ahead, make
    college more affordable and accessible, and restore balance to the
    economy so all Americans can provide a better future for their
    families.
        Thank you, Chairman Guthrie, for convening today's hearing and all
    the witnesses for taking time out of their schedules to be with us. I
    yield back my time.
                                     ______

        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. I thank the ranking member for
    yielding back and her comments. Pursuant to committee rule 7C,
    all members will be permitted to submit written statements to
    be included in the permanent record, and without objection, the
    hearing record will remain open for 14 days to allow such
    statements and other extraneous material referenced during the
    hearing to be submitted for the official hearing record.
        Today I welcome Mr. Wilson to the subcommittee and
    recognize him to introduce our first witness.
        Mr. Wilson of South Carolina. Thank you, Chairman Guthrie,
    for inviting me to be here today. Chairman Brett Guthrie,
    Ranking Member Susan Davis, members of the subcommittee, I am
    grateful for the opportunity to introduce fellow South
    Carolinian Michelle Paczynski. I appreciate also being here
    with Chairman Virginia Foxx, who is working so closely with
    President Donald Trump to help American families with
    fulfilling lives. Ms. Paczynski serves as a deputy assistant
    director for workforce and economic development at the South
    Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. In her role
    she advances a business inspired workforce system, one that
    develops strategic partnerships that enhances the workforce
    system's ability to produce a workforce pipeline for jobs.
        I am grateful that she is before the subcommittee to
    testify today. Through the efforts of Ms. Paczynski and other
    members of the South Carolina Department of Employment and
    Workforce, South Carolina has seen a remarkable success in
    implementing the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. Of
    special note is their use of innovative strategies, like career
    and technical education program partnerships, apprenticeships,
    technical colleges to develop talent pipelines, and addressing
    infrastructure challenges to ensure that people find meaningful
    jobs as we have achieved, and she has at Boeing, at MTU, at
    BMW. We were just discussing all these; Michelin Tire
    Corporation, Bridgestone Tire Corporation, and now soon Volvo,
    to be located in South Carolina. Their success is clear and
    tangible. South Carolina's unemployment rate is at a 16-year
    low, and more and more businesses from around the country are
    realizing that our talented workforce and pro business climate
    make our State a great place to create or locate a business
    with meaningful jobs.
        I look forward to hearing Ms. Paczynski outline how South
    Carolina's Department of Employment and Workforce has
    implemented the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and
    hope her perspective can provide examples and best practices
    other States can use when looking to maximize their
    implementation of the act and to help more of their citizens
    find jobs.
        Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to introduce
    Ms. Paczynski. I yield back.
        [The statement of Mr. Wilson follows:]

      Prepared Statement of Hon. Joe Wilson, a Representative in Congress
                        from the State of South Carolina

        Chairman Brett Guthrie, Ranking Member Susan Davis, members of the
    Subcommittee, I am grateful for the opportunity to introduce a fellow
    South Carolinian, Michelle Paczynski. I appreciate being present with
    Chairwoman Virginia Foxx who is working so closely with President
    Donald Trump to help American families with jobs, fulfilling lives.
        Ms. Paczynski serves as the Deputy Assistant Director for Workforce
    and Economic Development at the South Carolina Department of Employment
    and Workforce. In her role, she advances a business-inspired workforce
    system--one that develops strategic partnerships that enhances the
    workforce system's ability to produce a workforce pipeline for jobs. I
    am grateful that she is participating to testify to testify before this
    subcommittee.
        Through the efforts of Ms. Paczynski, and other members South
    Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce, South Carolina has
    seen remarkable success in implementing the Workforce Innovation and
    Opportunity Act. Of special note, is their use of innovative
    strategies, like career and technical education program partnerships,
    apprenticeships, technical colleges, developing talent pipelines, and
    addressing infrastructure challenges, to ensure that people can find
    meaningful jobs, as we have achieved with Boeing, MTU, BMW, Michelin,
    Bridgestone, and now Volvo. With the vision of former Governors Jim
    Edwards and Carroll Campbell, South Carolina has grown to be the
    nation's largest manufacturer and exporter of tires as well as
    America's largest exporter of cars.
        Their success is clear, and tangible--South Carolina's unemployment
    rate is at a 16 year low, and more and more businesses from around the
    country are realizing that our talented workforce and pro-business
    climate make our state a great place to create or locate a business
    with meaningful jobs.
        I look forward to hearing Ms. Paczynski outline how South
    Carolina's Department of Employment and Workforce has implemented the
    Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, and hope her perspective can
    provide examples and ``best practices'' other states can use when
    looking to maximize their implementation of the Act and to help more of
    their citizens find jobs.
        Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to introduce Ms.
    Paczynski.
        I yield back.
                                     ______

        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you, Mr. Wilson. And I will
    continue this morning's introductions. Mr. Heath Berlin is an
    information insurance manager at the Naval Healthcare Clinic,
    Annapolis. Beat Navy. I have to say that. When I say Annapolis
    it is just in me. Mr. Ron Painter is the president and CEO of
    the National Association of Workforce Boards. And Mr. Louis
    Dubin is the chairman of the Governor's Workforce Development
    Board for the State of Maryland.
        I will now ask the witnesses to raise their right hand.
        [Witnesses sworn]
        Chairman Guthrie. Let the record reflect the witnesses
    answered in the affirmative.
        Before I recognize you to provide your testimony, let me
    briefly explain our lighting system. You will each have 5
    minutes to present your testimony. When you begin, the light in
    front of you will turn green. When 1 minute is left, the light
    will turn yellow. When your time is expired, the light will
    turn red. When the light turns red I will ask you that you wrap
    up your remarks as best as you are able. Members will have 5
    minutes each after your testimony to ask questions.
        First, I will recognize for 5 minutes for opening testimony
    Ms. Paczynski.

    TESTIMONY OF MICHELLE PACZYNSKI, DEPUTY ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR
     WORKFORCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT
                      OF EMPLOYMENT AND WORKFORCE

        Ms. Paczynski. Thank you, Representative Foxx,
    Representative Scott, Representative Wilson, Chairman Guthrie,
    Ranking Member Representative Davis, and the members of the
    subcommittee. It's an honor and privilege to be here today to
    talk about the progress we have made because of the Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act. We are putting South
    Carolinians to work.
        South Carolina's economy is strong and growing as
    businesses continue to relocate and expand in our State. We
    have a record number of people working and an unemployment rate
    at a 16 year low. Congress' efforts to pass the Workforce
    Innovation and Opportunity Act has provided South Carolina the
    ability to tackle workforce development through innovative
    ways, to better engage businesses, and educate and empower our
    workforce.
        Our transformational journey began with collaboration.
    Under WIOA, the State Workforce Development Board is considered
    to be the State's architect and ambassador for workforce
    development. With majority representation by business leaders
    from the State's high-growth industries South Carolina's Board
    convened the Workforce Partners and executed a memorandum of
    understanding. This contract was the platform for stakeholders
    to move forward in unison towards retooling the workforce
    system and educating our existing and emerging workforce. WIOA
    fueled South Carolina's ability to deploy initiatives that
    address business and industry's concerns of a fractured
    workforce system.
        The South Carolina Talent Pipeline Initiative, also known
    as Sector Strategies, was the incubator for regional industry-
    focused methods to build a skilled workforce that identify and
    address skill needs across key industries rather than focusing
    on transactional workforce needs of individual businesses.
        A critical component that was identified in analysis of our
    workforce system was a lack of public transit for employment
    and education. In an effort to empower regions' strategies to
    build their workforce, the State Workforce Development Board is
    investing State-level WIOA funds into communities that have
    designed innovative public transit models. WIOA champions the
    prioritization of services for those who face significant
    barriers to employment. South Carolina has experienced great
    success educating and employing ex-offenders into high-growth
    industries. Historically, ex-offenders were released into the
    same environment from which they came, lacking the education
    and skills needed to succeed outside a prison. Using Title III
    money South Carolina piloted a job center behind the wire,
    deploying a case manager and laptops onsite to provide the same
    services and information provided to job seekers in a one-stop
    center. Of the 516 people who have completed the program and
    have since been released, 75 percent are earning wages. Seeing
    the outcomes from this pilot, the State Workforce Development
    Board invested State-level WIOA funds to expand employment
    services into additional correctional facilities.
        WIOA has also reinforced our emphasis on apprenticeships as
    the premier tool for businesses to recruit and retain workers.
    South Carolina provides businesses with a $1,000 tax credit per
    apprentice for up to 4 years. With 893 active apprentice
    programs in South Carolina, the State boards sought to braid
    apprenticeships with services provided to priority populations
    and awarded State-level WIOA funds into competitive grants.
        WIOA emphasizes that relationships between the public and
    private sectors is crucial in the workforce system's ability to
    provide businesses with workforce solutions. Several members of
    our State Workforce Development Board also serve as
    representatives on the State Chamber of Commerce Board of
    Directors and as a result many of our workforce initiatives
    align with the State Chamber's 2025 education goals.
        In conclusion, WIOA has significantly expanded South
    Carolina's ability to strategically align resources, programs,
    and policies to build a skilled workforce and more effectively
    serve businesses.
        Thank you.
        [The statement of Ms. Paczynski follows:]

        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you for your testimony. I will now
    recognize Mr. Berlin for 5 minutes for his testimony.

    TESTIMONY OF HEATH BERLIN, INFORMATION INSURANCE MANAGER, NAVAL
                           HEALTHCARE CLINIC

        Mr. Berlin. Good morning. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and
    members of the subcommittee.
        So I'm here as a successful candidate of the WIOA. And the
    program in Maryland is called the Maryland Tech Connection. So
    I'll just give you a little bit of how I came to be in contact
    with workforce development and ----
        Chairman Guthrie. Would you pull your mic up a little
    closer to you? It would be easier to hear everything.
        Mr. Berlin. Sorry. On December 31, 2015, New Year's Eve,
    the company I worked for, Resilience Technology Corporation,
    was acquired by another company, Integrata Security. After
    about a month, Integrata laid all the employees off. Some of us
    were called back a few weeks later, but by May of 2016,
    everybody was laid off. So I started looking for jobs, lots of
    interviews, lots of job fairs, things like that, without
    getting any traction. In July, I went to the Anne Arundel
    Workforce Development Center in Arnold, Maryland, and
    registered for one of the WIOA workshops. The next available
    one was in August as they were filling up. So after the
    workshop I met with a woman named Carla Win, who accepted me
    into the program. I qualified because of receiving unemployment
    benefits. And together with her, we sort of mapped out a
    strategy of what I needed to get reemployed and what the
    obstacles I was finding to employment. And some of those were
    certifications, the Network Plus, Security Plus, and Certified
    Ethical Hacker certification, which I had trained for
    previously, but never had taken the exams because, you know,
    previous employers had said they would pay for it and, you
    know, by the time I really needed them, there was nobody there
    to pay for it, particularly me. So they were able to provide
    funding for the Certified Ethical Hacker education course and
    exam and also vouchers for the CompTIA Security Plus and
    Network Plus exams.
        So I completed those and continued searching for a job;
    however, I wasn't successful. I had lots of support from the
    program. There was career coach Carl Cushinksi, who was very
    helpful in helping me focus my resume, practicing interviews
    before going to the actual interviews. And even though, you
    know, every day I would spend all day on the computer applying
    for jobs, phone interviews, video conference interviews, face-
    to-face interviews, I just wasn't getting anywhere.
        So by November, I hit the 6-month mark, unemployment ran
    out, and I was still unemployed, at which time Carl introduced
    me to Alfredo Quieroga, we call him Q, who delivered--I guess
    he was the instructor and the guy that enrolls people in
    Maryland Tech Connection, which the program itself focuses on
    people who have been long-term unemployed, which they defined
    as greater than 6 months. So I met with Q in an informational
    seminar that he held at the Glen Burnie Workforce Development
    Center and made an appointment for testing. You report to the
    Laurel Anne Arundel Workforce Development Center for aptitude
    testing, sort of to see what maybe your passion is. You know,
    the program itself sort of has two tracks it seems to focus on
    with industry partners, one being IT and IT security, the other
    being biomedical science and technology. So the aptitude tests
    sort of help you define what you know and what you're good at
    and what your passion is, as well as maybe what soft skills you
    have or need. And after taking these tests you're assigned to
    the program. Luck of the draw.
        Anyhow, long story short, while in the program I discovered
    the Earn and Learn Program. While I had been looking for a job,
    I interviewed with this company called Phalanx, who wanted to
    hire me, but they were a startup so they didn't have money. So
    when I reached back out to them after being in the program for
    2 days and explained the Earn and Learn Program, they
    immediately got on board and asked for more information and
    said if we could work it out, if there would be the funding to
    bring me on board with some sort of subsidy while I was getting
    up to speed, they would be glad to hire me right away.
        So within a month of entering into the program I was
    employed full-time with Phalanx Security.
        [The statement of Mr. Berlin follows:]

        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you for your testimony. I
    appreciate it. I enjoyed hearing your testimony.
        Mr. Painter, you are recognized for 5 minutes for your
    testimony.

      TESTIMONY OF RON PAINTER, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE NATIONAL
                    ASSOCIATION OF WORKFORCE BOARDS

        Mr. Painter. Chairman Guthrie, Ranking Member Davis, and
    subcommittee members, I thank you for the opportunity to
    testify before the subcommittee today regarding WIOA, which
    this committee crafted and Congress overwhelmingly approved in
    2014.
        My name is Ron Painter and I'm the president and CEO of the
    National Association of Workforce Boards, which represents the
    Nation's 550 workforce boards and the over 15,000 volunteers
    who serve on those boards, a majority of whom are from the
    private sector. Boards coordinate, help launch, and oversee
    workforce development strategies for their cities, regions, and
    States, partnering with local elected officials, education,
    economic development, our entities in WIOA, adult literacy,
    Wagner-Peyser, voc rehab, and a large network of stakeholders
    in their region. There is an astonishing amount of churn in
    America's labor market. The most recent year saw over 60
    million separation from jobs and over 62 million hires. State
    and local workforce boards strive to understand the changes in
    labor markets that are evidence in this churn and to align the
    workforce development system accordingly so that people get to
    work quickly with the skills that are in demand.
        Workforce development boards leverage State and local
    general revenue funds, private philanthropic funding, and fee
    for service revenue. But the Federal funds are key to making
    all of this happen. We urge the 115th Congress to renew its
    commitment to a world-class skilled workforce through adequate
    funding of education at all levels in the workforce development
    system by maintaining the funding levels for WIOA in fiscal
    year 2018.
        WIOA brought numerous changes to the workforce development
    system, including requiring the Departments of Labor and
    Education to implement a common performance accountability
    system across the six core programs, which will provide a more
    consistent outcome data on which to base evaluations. While the
    most extensive full evaluation of workforce is still underway
    there are initial results from this gold standard evaluation.
    In the preliminary findings we conceded the availability of
    intensive services, people-to-people work that Heath
    experienced, increased earnings and employment for program
    participants. Evidence is also demonstrating that the most
    effective type of skill development is one linked directly to
    specific work and skills and demands within a region. Work-
    based training models, which are the core of WIOA, including
    registered apprenticeships and industry-specific training, are
    very impactful and alone call for increased funding to WIOA.
        Let me mention quickly three examples. IT coding program in
    Eastern Kentucky, an initiative of the Eastern Kentucky
    Concentrated Employment Program, called Teleworks USA,
    identifies and developed legitimate remote work opportunities
    and helps people prepare for and land these jobs in numerous
    counties across the State. This effort, though, has thus far
    been estimated to have an economic impact of more than $13.1
    million in new wages to Eastern Kentuckians by network
    employees inside and outside the State.
        In Connecticut, Electric Boat, which builds nuclear
    submarines for the U.S. Navy and its supply network in the
    region, have benefited from an initiative led by the Eastern
    Connecticut Workforce Board called the Eastern Connecticut
    Manufacturing Pipeline Initiative. Electric Boat's work is
    expected to yield over 500 additional skilled workers and
    employers find that the initiative's trainees are better
    prepared for success. Likewise the boards in Newport News,
    Virginia, working with Huntington Ingalls on the shipyard. In
    Pittsburgh, a large urban healthcare provider struggled to hire
    and retain environmental service workers. These workers have a
    direct correlation to infection control, readmission, and
    customer satisfaction. Partners for Work, the workforce board
    in Pittsburgh, partnered with the Energy Innovation Center,
    itself a consortium of education and business, to build a mock
    hospital unit and design curriculum with a clear pathway to
    work. Thus far 100 percent of the participants have been placed
    with starting wages of $12.50.
        These examples demonstrate that workforce boards are core
    to their communities by convening industry sectors to ascertain
    skill needs, designing solutions with community college and
    others, funding some of those solutions, and successfully
    recruiting and placing participants. We assure you that
    advances in better data gathering and analytics, guided by the
    private sector's twin focus of effectiveness and continuous
    improvement further offer promise for an even more effective
    delivery system.
        And, again, we urge Congress to reject the proposed cuts.
        I thank you for the opportunity to testify and I look
    forward to answering questions.
        [The statement of Mr. Painter follows:]

        [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you for your testimony. Mr. Dubin,
    you are now recognized for 5 minutes for your testimony.

       TESTIMONY OF LOUIS DUBIN, CHAIRMAN, GOVERNOR'S WORKFORCE
                  DEVELOPMENT BOARD, STATE OF MARYLAND

        Mr. Dubin. Thank you very much. Good morning. Thank you,
    Chairman Guthrie, and members of the committee, for inviting me
    to testify today. It's actually quite thrilling to be here
    today.
        I'm Louis Dubin, chairman of the Maryland Governor's
    Workforce Development Board, our State board, and managing
    partner of Redbrick LMD, a diversified real estate investment
    and management and development firm.
        The State board is made up of 53 members representing
    business, workforce, education, union, and partner State
    agencies. As required by Workforce Innovation and Opportunity
    Act, WIOA, our State board has a business majority and all
    members of the board are appointed by the governor. The goal of
    the State board is to build partnerships and relationships that
    align the needs of business and job seekers through a
    purposeful approach with key stakeholders to support workforce
    and economic growth in the State of Maryland. Maryland is open
    for business, and this is part of that theme. Inclusion,
    diversity, and determination are really the cornerstones of our
    success.
        We've created five business-led task force groups based on
    industry sectors. This is one of our real keys to I think our
    secret sauce. Those sectors include cybersecurity, IT,
    healthcare, life sciences, manufacturing, skilled trades,
    changing demographics, and marketing branding. We created an
    ambassador program where each of the board members had a
    responsibility to reach out to colleagues in their respective
    areas of expertise and invite them to join the conversation as
    part of the task force. We currently have over 100 workforce
    stakeholders--these are all volunteers--that meet to advise the
    governor and make recommendations on workforce development
    programs and strategies targeted to these specific in-demand
    industries and populations in the State. It's narrow, it's
    focused.
        State board built a framework to allow for collaboration
    and conversation among all workforce stakeholders centered
    around an anchor organization that has displayed best practices
    in a specific industry sector. For example, we had our
    cybersecurity task force hosted by the National Security
    Agency, which was attended by over 20 stakeholders on our
    cybersecurity task force. NSA described their recruitment
    process and communication with educational institutions,
    assessment procedures, and career training programs. This type
    of purposeful engagement allows both government and private
    sector to collaborate with the State and local workforce
    system, community college, and university leaders to develop
    relevant curriculums and transfer best practices so they can
    become part of the workforce ecosystem. Inclusion, diversity,
    determination, these task force connections have led to
    employers building relationships with individual school
    district leaders. Together they provide K-12 school
    professionals professional development to teachers, counselors,
    principals, and parents. Now they can guide students and make
    them aware of potential opportunities to participate in
    robotics competitions, cyber competitions, and exercises that
    can lead to a career in cybersecurity and IT.
        One of our State's leading nonprofits, Living Classrooms,
    runs two charter school and afterschool programs, recently won
    the divisional robotics championship with a team of inner-city,
    at-risk youth and competed and placed in an international
    robotics competition recently. Out of 1,300 teams
    internationally we got 51, 51st. Big successes. Living
    Classrooms is an example of how we can look at all of our
    State's resources, public and private, community and faith-
    based, to provide our students with the skills they need to
    succeed in the workforce. Living Classrooms is doing wonders in
    Baltimore and D.C., but there are also terrific examples in
    rural communities. Congressman Barletta, the SHINE afterschool
    program in your district is an example of a rural afterschool
    partnership that is preparing our students for the future.
    Partnering with Carbon Career & Technical Institute, Lehigh
    Carbon Community College, SHINE provides an innovative
    educational model by teaming technical experts with academic
    teachers, and through hands-on career projects connects
    students to math, science, with a real-world application.
    Inclusion, diversity, determination.
        In April, Governor Hogan announced an apprenticeship awards
    to local community partners through the Apprenticeship
    Innovation Fund, which was developed with the U.S. Department
    of Labor with a $2 million grant to advance apprenticeships in
    Maryland.
        There are many possibilities for creating opportunities to
    assist the development of apprenticeship programs, not only in
    traditional industries such as construction and other skilled
    trades, but also by expanding into the nontraditional
    industries, such as information technology, healthcare, and
    cybersecurity. We have Apprenticeship Services, TranZed.
    They've received over 2 awards to provide pre-apprenticeship
    services to over 200 apprentices in the cyber and IT space.
    They'll provide outreach services to new employers, recruit and
    attract new apprentices through engagement with local schools,
    and assist job seekers with interview and technical skills.
    Inclusion, diversity, determination.
        We also have a benchmarking program, which is a little too
    long for my 5 minutes today that we've outlined in our written
    testimony that I appreciate you all reading as well.
        But thank you very much for giving me the opportunity to
    give our comments.
        [The statement of Mr. Dubin follows:]

    [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. I thank all the witnesses for
    their testimony. We will now move to member questions and I
    will recognize myself for 5 minutes for the purpose of asking
    questions.
        So, Mr. Dubin, in your experience, you just finished your
    testimony, what is the most important element to making the
    success of your State Workforce Board? What is the secret to
    your secret sauce I guess is there?
        Mr. Dubin. I mean, I think a lot of it is inclusion and
    people that are being included in the conversation in process
    having a stake, whether it's an educator, whether it's a job
    seeker. We have representation of really all different kinds of
    people that are in that workforce ecosystem on the task forces
    and there's a lot of energy behind it. And we require you in
    person, you know, attending a certain number of meetings if
    you're going to be on the board it somewhat disciplines. I
    think that's part of it, is just the citizens of our State that
    have a stake in the workforce system, which most people do,
    getting involved and really making this ambassadorship program
    an important cornerstone to build upon. And telling our board
    members, we have over 50 board members that this is one of the
    expectations we have of you of recruiting people. You know,
    it's that web, it's those connections that end up ultimately
    getting people trained and ultimately purposeful and meaningful
    employment.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. I appreciate the answer to
    that.
        Mr. Berlin, I was interested to learn that your employment
    program focused on job seekers of similar age. After receiving
    the services did this focus seem to make sense? And of the
    services you were providing, that uniquely benefit job seekers
    your age, are there any you would recommend that other
    workforce development agencies should consider?
        Mr. Berlin. Other age groups or?
        Chairman Guthrie. So you were an age-particular workforce
    program, similar age workforce program? You thought that was
    beneficial to be of your age?
        Mr. Berlin. Well, of the participants in the class that I
    was in were of a similar age.
        Chairman Guthrie. Right. You thought that was helpful or
    you thought it should have been just diverse or all ages or you
    are sharing similar experiences I would guess?
        Mr. Berlin. Well, I think it was helpful because we all had
    sort of common life experiences, common purposes, common
    experience in looking for jobs. I mean, it was a diverse group,
    you know, ethnically. You know, I think probably the youngest
    people were in the mid, maybe early 30s. But in general
    everyone was pretty close in age to me.
        Chairman Guthrie. I guess my question, and you are
    answering it, is that having people in the similar situation--I
    mean, diverse in other--I am talking just age, it is helpful
    because you are having the same experience instead of having
    somebody looking for their first job or somebody looking for a
    change in career. So I appreciate your answer in that. Thank
    you.
        So, Ms. Paczynski, in enacting the Workforce Innovation
    Opportunity Act, Congress envisioned a business-led workforce
    development system that encourages increased efficiency,
    program innovation, and competition. What steps has South
    Carolina taken to increase competition and provide expanded
    program options to State businesses?
        Ms. Paczynski. We've worked very closely with our State
    Chamber of Commerce, who is the voice of business and industry,
    as well as other trade associations. And they've informed us
    that it's the accelerated training, the credentials, and the
    certificates that are essential to fill the jobs today, to
    address that skill mismatch, and soft skills. And the soft
    skill area in our State, developing a curriculum designed by
    the soft skill needs of our business and industry, and
    deploying that Statewide. Those are areas in which we've
    highlighted on, coupled with apprenticeships, making sure that
    not only that we can put in place apprenticeships for adults
    and youth, but incentivizing it for businesses. That $1,000 tax
    credit is essential.
        Chairman Guthrie. Well, thank you. And it is all important
    what you are doing. Every business person that I know is saying
    we need access to a better skilled workforce. So we appreciate
    what efforts you are doing.
        That concludes my questions and I will yield back and
    recognize Ranking Member Davis; 5 minutes for questions.
        Ms. Davis. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. And I wanted
    to say that I was really impressed by everything that you had
    to say. And I think in many ways, with your very eloquent way
    of providing that experience that you have had, that you make
    the case that WIOA is progressing, is making a difference. And
    at the same time, we know that there is not a lot of reporting
    that we have been able to benefit from yet because the full
    program has really only been there for a year. But I wonder if,
    you know, given that do any of you believe that a 40 percent
    cut in WIOA programs, kind of across the board for all the
    different--particularly the four different programs, would
    further our country's need for high standard training and good
    jobs?
        Anybody feel that would make a difference? Would it make us
    focus differently, consolidate any of those programs? No? Okay,
    just for the record I wanted to be sure I was hearing you
    correctly because I do think you were very enthusiastic.
        I also wanted to perhaps very quickly, and if you could
    just give one example, what do you believe would be the impact
    of changes if we did try to, whether it is consolidation,
    whether it is cutting of programs, what effect would that have?
    Is there one particular program that you think would really be
    effective?
        Mr. Painter, do you want to start, as you are a
    representative of the workforce boards?
        Mr. Painter. Thank you, Congressman Davis. We've been
    asking our members, like what impact do the cuts have? And
    certainly you can begin to see it quickly and rapidly when you
    start looking at a reduction in the number of adults like Heath
    that are supported in training. You're going to look at an
    retrenchment in the amount of training resources that are given
    to any one individual to try. And it's always a dilemma, do you
    serve more with a little bit or do you serve people deeply with
    the resources that they may need. But I think clearly as we
    look at the boards we see cuts across the board in the number
    of individuals who would be trained. I think it also starts to
    put deep pressure on the system because the kinds of things
    that we see in the early evaluation that are important are
    these intensive services. And that's where one individual talks
    to another individual, works with them on what kind of
    assessment, what kind of aptitudes they have, what kind of
    options and opportunities are available. So when you start
    impacting the training and then you start impacting the
    infrastructure of how people who are currently get there.
        Ms. Davis. Thank you. I wanted to just go down and see if
    others have just a different thought about where you think
    those cuts would go. Again, because we are talking about newer
    programs, innovative programs that could be actually first on
    the chopping list.
        Ms. Paczynski, do you want to respond? I think your
    microphone is not on.
        Ms. Paczynski. Thank you, Representative Davis. In South
    Carolina, we would likely serve fewer individuals and fewer
    businesses. However, the state of our economy will ultimately
    determine how we will move forward with workforce development.
        Ms. Davis. Thank you. Mr. Berlin, where would you have been
    if perhaps those relationships were not available to you to
    build on for your?
        Mr. Berlin. Right. Yeah, commenting on the funding cuts and
    stuff like that is a bit beyond me, but I can tell you that I
    do not know that I would be here today talking about having
    been successfully employed again if those programs were not
    available to me. And I think it would be a shame if other
    people that were in my similar circumstances did not have that
    available.
        Ms. Davis. Thank you. Mr. Dubin? In fact, you spoke very
    enthusiastically about apprenticeships, and one of the things
    if I could ask you this question, is that we know that the
    President is announcing a new direction supposedly today and I
    am wondering whether you think that there is a risk in not
    having programs that are going to have a high level of
    accountability as we look at apprenticeship programs or other
    certified programs. What risks do you see?
        Mr. Dubin. Well, I hoped there would be some corresponding
    additional programs that I think are going to be announced, or
    some of that, today. So I'm not privy to what those are, but I
    would hope there would some corresponding programs. I am very
    enthusiastic on apprenticeships and CTE. I know it's a whole
    other discussion, but I would hope that the dialogue includes
    not only apprenticeships, but CTE in our schools, that are
    pathways into very meaningful employment. In many cases these
    young people--we have a lot of CTE success stories come to our
    State board. They're making a lot more than their colleagues a
    few years before graduating from high school and they just
    started to save and some of them have bought their first house.
        Ms. Davis. Thank you. I know my time is up and we have to
    be reminded that these are Federal dollars that are going into
    those programs so that there is an important element. Thank
    you.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. Ranking member yields back. I
    now recognize Mr. Mitchell for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Mitchell. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I have an interesting
    experience in that I began in workforce development in 1978. I
    am dating myself. Those have been around for a while; remember
    SDA. And I experienced SDA, JTPA, WIA, and WIOA. Different
    place on WIOA. We operated those programs. When I started out I
    worked for the State of Michigan in the Bureau of Employment
    Training. What is amazing to me is it has taken this long to
    get an evolution that we, in fact, recognize that you have two
    customers: you have the employer community and you have
    individuals needing assistance to go to work, because it has
    taken that long to make this evolution. If you think about it,
    quite an interesting world where it is largely government-
    driven back at SDA and JTPA days to finally recognizing that we
    really have to serve the business community and the individuals
    seeking employment
        The ROI is currently improving for both taxpayers and
    individuals seeking assistance, and that is a wonderful thing
    to see finally we can get a better handle on measuring that. I
    am concerned, however. A couple of things I want to address
    with questions. One is about the idea that two things have been
    said. Well, we have gotten improvements and with more money we
    can get more improvements. I spent 30 years in private business
    and we did not just throw money at it to get improvements, it
    was improving how we deliver the system. Help me out. Maybe
    Miss Paczynski can help me. What was the unemployment rate in
    South Carolina in 2010 to 2012? What was the unemployment rate
    then, roughly? Pick a number.
        Ms. Paczynski. I would say I don't have that number in
    front of me, but significantly higher than the current 4.3.
    Perhaps right around 8 percent, but I don't know for certain.
        Mr. Mitchell. Yeah. And in my State it was double digits.
    It was truly brutal in Michigan. And yet at this point in time,
    some members of the committee and others argue that we need to
    fund to WIOA at the exact same level that we funded it
    historically, with, of course, various cost of living increases
    or, you know, adjustments. But the unemployment rate is down
    dramatically. Your service population is reduced, especially
    among the dislocated workers. And I think we need to be honest
    about that as you talk about it in the appropriations process
    in Congress that what do we need to meet the needs of
    individuals and businesses and not just, well, we spent that
    last year, so we need to spend it this year. That is a
    government mentality, that is not realistic private sector
    mentality. And so as we talk forward we need to do that here in
    Congress and I would encourage all of you to do that. Yeah, we
    require adjustments.
        The other fallacy, and all of you here know that, is that
    if this reduction--and I am not here rallying for a 40 percent
    reduction in workforce development funds, trust me on that--
    that all of it is reduced from training grants, from what
    trains people.
        Mr. Painter, how much is allocated for the workforce board,
    State administration?
        Mr. Painter. Administrative expenses under WIOA are limited
    to 10 percent.
        Mr. Mitchell. At the Agency?
        Mr. Painter. At the workforce board level, yes.
        Mr. Mitchell. And then at the State it is how much? Do you
    know?
        Mr. Painter. It would be the same 10 percent.
        Mr. Mitchell. That is 20. And then when I worked at the
    State, and it is still the case now, there is also something
    called the indirect cost rate, which is another 5 or 7 percent.
    So pretty quickly, my point is, is that we peel off money out
    of the system with a whole series of levels of administrative
    costs, and we are assuming any reduction in grants is going to
    simply result in this chart. It is not true, it is not
    accurate. And one of the things we need to do as a system, both
    here in Congress and I encourage you to do, is look at how much
    we are putting in admin and what do we need to do to in fact
    focus the money as much as we can and reduce those
    administrative costs. That is what we did as a business.
        One quick question, also, if I could, and maybe, Mr. Dubin,
    you could help me. One of the things we have experienced in
    Michigan is challenges with linking the workforce development
    programs, private sector programs with the K-12 education
    system. We still have not gotten that where it is working well
    so we can begin the current technical ed for children, young
    people, when they are still in school so they transition out to
    an apprenticeship or something like that. What recommendations
    do you have that would help with that?
        Mr. Dubin. Well, our superintendent of schools sits on the
    board. Actually, most of our cabinet in the State sits on the
    Workforce Development Board, and many of them come to the
    meetings. And the time before last we had our superintendent of
    schools and most of the meeting was around CTE and education
    and the awareness of that. And we had many employers there, we
    have the union and other representatives there and on the
    board, and the board is somewhat of an educational opportunity
    and we use it as that. We usually have two or three
    presentations each board meeting about subject matter or some
    of these programs people may not really know about. And just
    having the superintendent of schools, that's a good first step
    I think.
        Mr. Mitchell. I think you are right. And one final comment,
    Mr. Chair, is that my robotics same says they can take your
    robotics team. [Laughter] Thank you. Thank you. I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. I thank you, gentleman, for yielding
    back. I now recognize Mr. Courtney for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Courtney. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I really appreciate
    you and the ranking member putting the spotlight on WIOA. I was
    at the Executive Office Building the day the law was signed
    into law on July 22, 2014. It was a beautiful sight. President
    Obama, Vice President Biden, Chairwoman Foxx, bipartisan group
    responding to an issue that I think every single member has
    heard loud and clear from their district. And the other thing I
    remember from it, there was not a single TV camera in the room
    and when you tried to sort of find the press coverage it was
    just buried. And, you know, I guess you can sort of draw a lot
    of conclusions from that.
        But again, I appreciate Mr. Painter bringing up the EWIB
    Board in Eastern Connecticut, which is my district. Again, the
    ramping up of ship production, submarine production, has been a
    phenomenon that has been going on over the last 3 or 4 years.
    The demand for welders, electricians, machinists, is off the
    charts, along with engineers and designers.
        And the statistics that you shared in terms of what the
    Eastern Connecticut Manufacturing Pipeline Program has
    produced, frankly, is only just a part of the story. I mean,
    about the 4-, 500 that have come through these programs and
    have been snapped up immediately. The employment rate is 100
    percent for people that are going through there with great
    jobs, with good benefits. The fact of the matter is, is that
    the registrants into the program is about 10 times as large,
    over 3,000 people have gone into the portal to sign up. And
    again, we are moving forward in terms of getting people
    enrolled in future classes.
        But two things: number one, it shows that this sort of
    narrative that Americans don't want to get involved with dirty
    manufacturing is a false narrative. I mean, the fact of the
    matter is that there really are takers out there who if they
    are given the opportunity to close the skills gap, they will do
    it.
        And the second, obviously, is that the capacity in the
    system is still not enough in terms of, you know, satisfying
    both the demands signal, because EB will probably hire well
    over 1,000 people this year, and that is going to continue into
    the next probably 10 years at a steady clip. And so it is
    demand on both sides in terms of workers and employer to meet
    the needs.
        The American Ship Building Association actually talked
    about, you know, the 350-ship Navy, which came out of the Obama
    Secretary of Navy, Secretary Mavis, but embraced by President
    Trump as well. We are looking at about 18-, 25,000 new workers,
    and these are really skilled positions, if we are going to meet
    the Nation's demand for this. And there really is no other sort
    of strategy other than WIOA in terms of really trying to take
    on something that large.
        The other point I would just simply make in terms of the
    follow-up of the prior--and I am going to ask a question, but
    if you look at the funding levels for 2017's Omnibus that we
    just passed in April, it is still below what was in the
    authorized levels in WIOA. Again, the bipartisan WIOA, which
    authorized, you know, higher levels of funding than what was in
    the 2017 budget, and then that is the budget that Ms. Davis,
    you know, used as her baseline in terms of the cuts that were
    proposed in President Trump's budget, 40 percent. So we are
    talking about a level that is lower than what was authorized by
    a bipartisan bill and we are cutting from that another $40,000.
        So the capacity in the system in my district in terms of
    dealing with those 3,000-plus people who have entered the
    portal and registered is going to be reduced under this budget.
    And, you know, if there are efficiencies that we need to look
    at, you know, in terms of overhead, let us do it. But the fact
    is that we are going to lose all the momentum that is happening
    all over the country with these types of drastic cuts.
        And, again, what you are seeing is, again, not just in
    Eastern Connecticut, Mr. Painter, right? I mean, this is
    something that is aerospace, you know, other sectors that
    skills gap exists, is that correct?
        Mr. Painter. Yes. You know, I don't visit a board, I don't
    hear from a board that says we have no issue around a skilled
    workforce. It's all over the place. A lot of conversation now
    around where the unemployment level is and what about the folks
    who are still out there, outside of the labor market, what is
    the situation with the workforce. But you're right,
    Congressman. And I think it's where we fought hard for
    business-led boards at the State and local level because we
    firmly believe, as Mr. Dubin pointed out, that when business
    gets involved we do look at things like effectiveness and we do
    look at efficiencies.
        When I first got into this business, 1988, job training
    began to have performance standards or an accountability
    system. We have to perform in order to maintain local
    designation, we have to perform as States. So I think what I
    hear universally from directors is that if WIOA did nothing
    else, it focused the workforce system on, to borrow a phrase,
    job 1, and that is getting talent to business. And that's what
    we're about.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. Thank you to the gentleman for
    yielding. I now recognize Mr. Smucker for 5 minutes for
    questions.
        Mr. Smucker. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. First, Mr. Berlin,
    thank you for being here. We appreciate you sharing your story.
        Question for Ms. Paczynski and Mr. Dubin. My district is
    home to numerous groups that serve individuals with
    disabilities, including groups like VisionCorps, UniqueSource,
    and SourceAmerica. And through recent conversations that I have
    had with some of these groups regarding the interpretation of
    WIOA, I am concerned that jobs for people with disabilities are
    being threatened by inconsistent implementation of portions of
    WIOA. I understand that in recent weeks 19 State vocational
    rehabilitation agencies have stopped making placements to
    nonprofit agencies for AbilityOne program jobs. And the
    guidance that they are referencing is a Department of Education
    FAC entitled ``Integrated Location Criteria, the Definition of
    Competitive Integrated Employment.''
        Now, in my district these jobs are located in integrated
    settings, pay well above minimum wage. In many communities
    AbilityOne jobs are among the best jobs available, especially
    important given the fact that 80 percent of people with
    disabilities don't have jobs at all. These jobs take place on
    military installations, at GSA buildings, and at many Federal
    agencies where daily interaction with the general public and
    other government employees is a daily occurrence. And in fact,
    in addition, these jobs pay an average hourly rate of $13.27.
        State VR agencies have been making placements to AbilityOne
    jobs through nonprofits for many years. So not only have
    thousands of individuals with disabilities found meaningful
    employment, but they have also reduced their reliance on public
    assistance programs while becoming proud taxpayers.
        So my question is, are your States still making VR
    referrals? If not, why? What are you doing in South Carolina
    and Maryland to protect access to jobs for your constituents
    with disabilities?
        Ms. Paczynski?
        Ms. Paczynski. Yes, thank you, Representative Smucker. In
    South Carolina, we are partnering very closely with our
    vocational rehabilitation partner. They are involved with us
    from creating strategies to allying priority populations with
    the job openings. They are with us hand and foot, elbow to
    elbow, as we talk about better business engagement. They are
    with as we move forward and we're putting forth apprenticeships
    for priority populations. They are there with us, helping with
    some of those referrals so that the individuals are getting the
    same access to those apprenticeship opportunities that we know
    are so successful for work-based learning opportunities.
        Mr. Smucker. Thank you. Mr. Dubin, what is your experience
    in this area?
        Mr. Dubin. Good example, last month we actually had a neuro
    diversity, I guess, seminar at Towson State University on the
    autism spectrum and the unique challenges. I was graced with
    being able to attend that and I learned an awful lot. And I
    also learned that some of these barriers really are not
    disabilities, they are unique abilities in other things. And
    the autism spectrum is one of those where there's a lot of
    Maryland companies, especially on the IT side and cyber side
    that with that spectrum there are some unique skill sets. So it
    was really interesting, and I would encourage other states to
    have some of these types of meetings to educate people on the
    unique needs and abilities of what you're describing.
        Mr. Smucker. Thank you. And I am going to change the
    subject. I don't have much time, but really interested in
    hearing what your States are doing on apprenticeship programs.
    I come from a construction contracting background, so we made
    use of apprenticeships, but also, I mean, look at what other
    countries are doing and other States. I think bringing business
    to the table is such a fundamental part of making that
    successful. So I would be just interested hearing ways that you
    have worked to--you both have talked about effective
    apprenticeship programs in your States, how have you gotten the
    businesses engaged?
        Ms. Paczynski. For us the construction industry is one of
    our top sectors and it was the construction industry that came
    to us and said we would be willing and would like to have
    apprentices. And from the returning citizen population we can
    really make this work. If it were not for construction leading
    that way, business representatives informing us of that
    opportunity, I don't know that we would have made the progress
    that we have seen today.
        Mr. Smucker. Thank you. Mr. Dubin, 10 seconds.
        Mr. Dubin. ABC in Maryland, Associated Builders and
    Contractors, and the NSA, those are two big partners of our on
    apprenticeships. And, yes, the NSA does have apprenticeships
    for high school students.
        Mr. Smucker. Thank you.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. Good timing, Mr. Smucker. I
    now recognize Mr. Takano for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Takano. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Painter, we have
    touched on these 40 percent cuts by the administration,
    proposed cuts. The administration has also discussed how having
    States take a larger role in Federal programming, including
    WIOA, could maybe compensate for this. And we all know that
    State budgets are incredibly strained. Would the States even be
    able to make this sort of financial adjustment in your opinion?
        Mr. Painter. Thank you, Representative Takano. I'm not a
    scholar of the State budgets, but there are not that many
    States--in fact, it would be a minority of States--that are
    putting funding into workforce development. A number of States
    have customized job training programs which blend with WIOA
    funding on economic development projects.
        Mr. Takano. Great. Thanks. I want to follow up on the
    apprenticeship theme. The media has reported that the
    administration will unveil a new apprenticeship program that
    will allow Federal dollars to flow essentially to unregistered
    apprenticeship programs. This concerns me. The registration
    process provides a national standard for apprenticeship
    programs and it has, for instance, established labor standards,
    like wage scale and antidiscrimination provisions. And I am
    concerned that this administration will undercut a tried and
    proven model.
        Now, Ms. Paczynski, South Carolina has become a model for
    expanding apprenticeships, going from 90 programs in 2007 to
    nearly 900 programs--congratulations on that--in industries
    that range from advanced manufacturing to healthcare to
    information technology. And what is impressive is that these
    are all registered programs.
        Can you comment on why South Carolina has used the
    registration process to support program quality and why
    participating employers are willing to register their programs
    in your State?
        Ms. Paczynski. For our business community registered
    apprenticeships offers a solution to the skill gap. And
    certainly in our State we've incentivized apprenticeships to
    further foster the use of that as a tool. We believe firmly
    that the willingness of business and industry to bring in the
    emerging workforce when coupled with an apprenticeship makes it
    an ideal learning situation for both the business and the
    youth. So we've seen great success because of our willingness
    to engage businesses and it is a matter, though, of removing
    some of the red tape that does come with the process.
        Mr. Takano. I want to know more about that at some, maybe
    offline, but businesses have not found registering their
    apprenticeships to be overly burdensome it doesn't seem like.
    From what I have here, all of the apprenticeships are
    registered in South Carolina. So it doesn't seem like it is
    necessarily for the administration to say that this money that
    he is proposing should flow to unregistered programs.
        Ms. Paczynski. Well, in South Carolina, registered
    apprenticeships is actually coupled with our State technical
    college system. So it becomes an educational tool that's used
    for businesses predominantly, especially with our new business
    and our growing business.
        Mr. Takano. This is very interesting to me. So South
    Carolina runs their Apprenticeship Carolina model through State
    community colleges and all of your 16 community colleges are
    engaged in the development and implementation of these
    programs. Now, can you tell us why that partnership with
    community colleges and other stakeholders is so important to
    the success of your approach?
        Ms. Paczynski. Certainly, it has to do with the educational
    piece and the skills that come from understanding what the
    business needs are and creating that apprenticeship to meet
    those needs.
        Mr. Takano. Could you have achieved the results you are
    getting without the support and services from these public
    sector partners, such as the community colleges?
        Ms. Paczynski. I think they have been absolutely
    instrumental in the success, yes.
        Mr. Takano. Well, thank you for that. Mr. Painter, do you
    have anything to add to this?
        Mr. Painter. With regard to the registration, what we're
    finding is I point to the West Michigan Workforce Board, which
    working in medical technicians actually, working with
    employers, help develop and file, and they are the sponsor of
    the registered apprenticeship. So it is a process that, you
    know, requires some skill. The registered apprenticeship also
    helps us in terms of the individual, having the credentials
    that are recognized more broadly across the industry.
        Mr. Takano. So it is about recognizable credentials. So
    what may seem like red tape to some folks--I mean, it looks
    like South Carolina has been able to overcome some of that
    burden and all of their 900 apprenticeships are registered
    apprenticeships. I am impressed with that. I just question what
    the administration is doing in terms of allowing--I applaud
    that he wants to have money going to apprenticeships, but I
    question about whether he should allow that to flow to
    unregistered apprenticeships.
        Thank you.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. I thank the gentleman for
    yielding and I recognize Mr. Allen for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Allen. Thank you, Chairman, and thank you all for
    participating today in this important hearing. A couple of
    things that I have observed talking to the business community
    in my district in Georgia. Well, first is workforce
    participation. You know, I understand the employment numbers
    in, of course, Georgia competes with South Carolina regularly
    for these businesses, but both States are enjoying a low
    employment number, but I was interested in South Carolina, as
    far as workforce participation numbers. These are people that
    maybe have dropped out of high school, that are either folks
    who have dropped out of the workforce who are not seeking
    employment and are able-bodied. Do you have any idea what that
    number is in South Carolina as far as the workforce
    participation rate?
        Ms. Paczynski. I do not have that figure with me, but we
    can get that to you afterwards.
        Mr. Allen. Okay. I would be interested to know is there a
    way to target those folks to get them interested in not only
    completing their high school diploma, but also getting into
    career education and some type of CTE program?
        Ms. Paczynski. In South Carolina, certainly, you know, we
    recognize very much our partnership with adult education. And,
    of course, they are in the communities and that essentially is
    our outreach to those that may have disappeared for a bit, is
    going into the communities and engaging them there, and then
    bringing them further into the services that are available.
        Mr. Allen. Well, we know that over in Ag, the other
    committee I serve on, that we have about 45 million people,
    say, participating in SNAP program. And certainly a percentage
    of these folks, you know, if given the opportunity for proper
    training, and we have had folks like that testify there, that
    if given the opportunity for proper skill training and then the
    opportunity for a job, they move off of most of these programs.
    And we got about 25 million people we need to get that done, so
    that is why I am interested in that.
        As far as the graduation rates, I called all of our county
    superintendents right at the end of the school year--I have 18
    counties in the district--and just checked in, talking about
    graduation rates. I have one rural county that has a 94 percent
    graduation rate. And I said how do you do this? And he said
    career track at a very young age. We take young people into the
    businesses, they see that, hey, I can do this, and they get on
    a track. And it has been very successful.
        Mr. Dubin, from your standpoint in Maryland, are you
    looking at your high school dropout rate and where it is and
    how you can take these young people that we lose and get them
    involved in the workforce and get them involved in a career
    that they would be very happy to participate in?
        Mr. Dubin. I can't give you the exact numbers and
    statistics, but I can give you something empirical quickly. A
    young lady from Frederick, Maryland, recently came in and told
    her story to our board. She was going to drop out of high
    school. She really wasn't going to go on the college track, but
    she loved working in the lab. And long story short, we had a
    CTE program that really took advantage of her skill sets in the
    lab. She ended up going through CTE, which was part of a
    community college, I think it was Frederick Community College
    program as well. When she graduated she was making around $15
    an hour. When she got her certifications and the rest of her
    credentialing, she was making over $20 an hour at 20 or 21
    years old and on her way to buying a house. So those are good
    stories. This was a young lady that came in, very tearfully,
    sort of not testifying, but we do these presentations at each
    of our board meetings, and told that story. So I don't have the
    exact statistics, but those are the kinds of impacts we're
    having.
        Mr. Allen. How did she know about this program?
        Mr. Dubin. It was a very in-demand program. We have limited
    resources in CTE in Maryland. That's a whole other issue. But
    it was very in-demand and she was thinking of dropping out and
    I think her guidance counselor told her about it.
        Mr. Allen. Okay. Okay. So your high school counselors know
    about the programs you offer there?
        Mr. Dubin. Oh, yes, sir.
        Mr. Allen. Okay. All right. So that is a good source. That
    is great. As far as, Mr. Berlin, the new law is emphasizing the
    importance of providing a wraparound service ----
        Chairman Guthrie. I believe the gentleman's time has
    expired.
        Mr. Allen. Oh, excuse me. I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. No problem. I now recognize Miss Blunt
    Rochester for 5 minutes for questions.
        Ms. Blunt Rochester. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to
    thank the panel and also congratulate Mr. Berlin on your
    success. I, like my colleague, Mr. Mitchell, have been around
    for a while through JTPA, SDA, WIN, Manpower. I was Secretary
    of Labor when the Workforce Investment Act was initially signed
    and then worked for University of Massachusetts, Boston, at the
    Institute for Community Inclusion when WIOA was signed. And I
    can say, like many of you, there has been I would say a
    tremendous progression. When I think of the concepts of dual
    customer and the fact that we have to focus on both the
    employer and the job seeker; when I think about demand driven,
    that we are really focused on what does the business community
    need, using labor market information, and also looking at
    evidence based practices; there is a lot going on across the
    country.
        And I would say instead of less money, I am not going to
    say we need more in this environment, but I would say when the
    unemployment rate is low it is when you get to people who are
    maybe harder to employ, whether it is prison to work or whether
    it is welfare to work, it requires intensity. And so I would
    really like to focus on people with disabilities and get some
    feedback from you.
        Currently there are 56 million people with disabilities
    across our country and yet only about 29.2 percent are
    employed. And historically, our systems have not done a good
    job of employing people with disabilities. And what WIOA was so
    successful at was saying that there was a presumption of
    ability that people could work and should work and have the
    right to work. And so I was hoping you could share a little bit
    more about your stories and their experiences of employing
    people with disabilities and improving employment outcomes for
    people with disabilities.
        And I will start with Mr. Painter.
        Mr. Painter. Thank you, Congresswoman. I have to admit that
    it's not an area I'm steeped in, so I reached out to the
    Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities. We work a lot with
    respectability and ask Philip and his crew like what was going
    on. And I was really pleasantly surprised to hear his statement
    that they wanted to draw my attention and yours to the success
    of youth with disabilities under WIOA.
        Fully 15.6 percent of WIOA youth program participants were
    youth with disabilities. That means that over 13,000 youth with
    disabilities had unprecedented access to skill training and job
    placement. Fully 65 percent of them with disabilities entered
    into employment, ultimately a savings of over $300,000 per
    beneficiary. So we are making, I think, substantial progress.
        Ms. Blunt Rochester. Any of the other panelists have
    experiences and outcomes with people with disabilities?
        Ms. Paczynski. Representative Rochester, in South Carolina,
    I don't have outcomes, but we certainly have a lot of effort.
    And we have a coalition in our State that brings all the
    partners together that work with individuals with disabilities.
    And they engage the business community to find out what was the
    gap between individuals who had the skills and the hiring
    process, and from that really started to come to the table with
    some strategies on how we could move forward.
        We have a marketing campaign that has moved forward and we
    are expecting to see results from this. Certainly our State
    Workforce Development Board has identified that individuals
    with disabilities is a focus. And we've brought it to the
    attention of the business community and it's been well
    received.
        Ms. Blunt Rochester. Thank you. Thank you. Anyone else?
    Okay.
        And, Mr. Chairman, if I could enter a letter into the
    record from the Council of State Administrators of Vocational
    Rehabilitation.
        Chairman Guthrie. Without objection, so ordered.
        Ms. Blunt Rochester. Thank you. The other question that I
    had was, also, we talked a little bit about some minimum wage
    jobs, and so, Mr. Painter, can you provide examples of steps
    that States have taken to reduce some minimum wage jobs?
        Mr. Painter. I can get that information to you. We'll
    certainly look at it and talk to our members.
        Ms. Blunt Rochester. I would just close by sharing that I
    will be getting information from the Institute for Community
    Inclusion on projects that have been happening across the
    country in different places, very creative and innovative ways
    to help people who are on Social Security Disability move into
    jobs. And I think as we talk about the future we need to be
    looking at how we can continue the positive progression that
    WIOA has begun.
        Thank you. I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you for yielding. I will now
    recognize Mr. Byrne for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Byrne. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good morning,
    everybody. I am the former chancellor of postsecondary
    education for the State of Alabama Community College System,
    former chair of a State Workforce Planning Council, member of
    the State Workforce Board, and we staff the State Workforce
    Board. So I am really pleased to hear all the progress we are
    hearing around the country.
        We passed WIOA my first year in Congress. So most of the
    hard work was already done before I got here, but I was really
    pleased to support it because it was in line with a lot of the
    things that I had learned, the lessons I had learned from my
    positions. And what we were really focused on to try to get
    more private sector leadership and try to respond to the needs
    of employers. So that was our intent. Sometimes we don't always
    hit the mark.
        And so what I would like to know, particularly from you,
    Mr. Painter, and you, Mr. Dubin, how we do or can we do better
    with the law than we did with WIOA?
        Mr. Painter. Congressman, thanks for the question. I think
    if there is anything that makes me more happier, I don't know
    what it is, as I travel the country, but to see the kind of
    business engagement that we have. For example, in Benton
    Harbor, Michigan, Whirlpool has trained three of the staff for
    our workforce board there, Kinexus in Six Sigma. They were the
    highest in their class. They are now working to look at how we
    do these things of increasing the effectiveness and the
    efficiency inside the system.
        When you look at the training programs, when you look at--
    we just recently honored Lockheed Martin in the aviation
    consortium around the Tarrant County in the Dallas area because
    of the involvement. Businesses work hand-in-glove with the
    workforce boards not only to help identify what impact the
    aviation industry has in the Dallas region, but to develop a
    very unique video or a game that you can play on your
    smartphone called ``FLYBY DFW,'' which was designed by young
    people, built by young people with the workforce board and with
    business, and now engages lots of young people in learning more
    about the aviation industry. I think there are examples across
    the country like that. Congressman Thompson is very involved
    with career in technical education. We honored Wyoming
    Machines, which is in Minnesota. Two sisters started a company.
    They are very involved with not only the community college
    system, but the workforce boards in events like women in
    technology and reaching back. So it is happening.
        Mr. Byrne. The question is can we do better?
        Mr. Painter. Without question I think that's--you designed
    and I take very seriously continuous improvement as part of one
    of the core tenants of WIOA. And as the National Association of
    Workforce Boards we constantly talk to the workforce boards
    about we can do better. And I think that's where business
    engagement likewise helps us understand how.
        Mr. Byrne. Thank you. Mr. Dubin?
        Mr. Dubin. You know, my observations are really I guess
    twofold. One, we've made it on our State board, you know, it's
    important to do service. So in the business community or in the
    ecosystem of workforce we've made it to be, you know, something
    that's very, very important in terms of public service. A lot
    of us serve on the boards of our churches and community groups
    and nonprofits. This is very, very, very important. So we've
    made that a focus and we put the arm on businesses in our
    communities. So we've been selecting well, we've been trying to
    get that big web, you know, out there.
        I think it comes down to people being willing to give of
    their time and energy as a volunteer. I'm a volunteer. You
    know, I have a day job and this is something that's become a
    passion because it's a great way to serve. And that's part of
    the message I think we need to get out. This is a great way to
    serve and it's productive, because if you're smart about it
    you're also finding populations and groups of people that you
    can employ. And I think it's a really good thing. So I think
    service is getting that message across.
        Mr. Byrne. Well, I just wanted to close my time by saying
    this, I hear a lot of talk about money, and money is important.
    Golly, I know that having run these programs. But sometimes the
    most impact we have comes from when we bring in people from the
    private sector and the people from the private sector do things
    that government simply can't do. I wasn't very good at
    persuading a 15-year-old to be interested in career technical
    education, but if I brought in the local employer that would
    actually employ that 15-year-old when he or she finished that
    program, we got their attention and we got their mother and
    dad's attention as well.
        So I really want to commend your work and the work that we
    hope that we have begun under WIOA to get more private sector
    people involved because that's where the rubber is really going
    to hit the road.
        And I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. The gentleman yields back. Mr. Polis is
    recognized for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Polis. Thank you so much, Chairman Guthrie and Ranking
    Member Davis. This is a very important topic. When WIOA passed
    in 2014, it really made important changes to better align our
    workforce development system with the skills that people need
    to succeed in the 21st century. I am proud that our Colorado
    State plan really seeks to do just that. The plan focuses on
    engaging the business community and industry to align the
    workforce training programs, as well as leveraging data to
    support strong accountability and innovation.
        We recently launched CareerWise, a program that aligns our
    educational workforce systems through a new public-private
    partnership I am very excited about with the State and industry
    leaders. CareerWise has a goal of placing 20,000 high school
    students in apprenticeship by 2027, which would give students
    real-world, on-the-job experience, put them on a path towards a
    good-paying career.
        Mr. Painter, in your testimony you mentioned support from
    WIOA grants for coding programs in Eastern Kentucky. In our
    State there are several coding boot camps, like Galvanize and
    the Turing School, which graduate students and help place them
    into good-paying jobs just waiting to be filled. But because
    these programs don't have higher education accreditation, they
    are not eligible for Federal education aid, they are largely
    self-paid. But some are exploring potentials for receiving
    State workforce grants, another potential avenue to help lower
    income families be able to avail themselves of those
    opportunities.
        Can you speak more about short-term accelerated programs
    like coding boot camps and what States can do to ensure
    quality, accountability, but also accessibility for the
    programs to receive funding?
        Mr. Painter. Thank you, Congressman. And Colorado is one of
    my favorite workforce systems to visit. You have a
    collaborative DNA, I think, or a gene in your DNA in Colorado.
    What we are seeing are these kind of short-term boot camps, and
    they're across industries. You can look at examples in
    Minnesota where the workforce board put together with the
    healthcare sector a boot camp that has been able to reduce
    turnover. So that's real money to business. When individuals
    know that they're ----
        Mr. Polis. Did the workforce center originate that or were
    they just kind of a partner in the conversations?
        Mr. Painter. They were a partner with business. Business
    came to them and said how do we reduce turnover in some of our
    entry level positions? So they designed a boot camp so the
    individual really does understand what the work is. There are
    examples in manufacturing, where workforce boards have designed
    boot camps around manufacturing. The robotics competition was
    mentioned earlier. It's an incredible program ----
        Mr. Polis. Are there any barriers to WIOA participation
    that we should be aware of or act to remove?
        Mr. Painter. I think when the funding is solely based on
    WIOA, you know, we talked earlier about cuts, when we're
    picking up the bill for these boot camps and we can't find the
    funds to braid, then they are certainly at risk.
        Mr. Polis. Another question, Mr. Painter, and we will go to
    anybody else who wants to address it. As you know,
    entrepreneurship is absolutely critical for our future success.
    Today's garage company could be tomorrow's employer of
    thousands of people. And recent research from the Coffin
    Foundation found that about 20 percent of gross job creation
    comes from brand new businesses.
        Can you talk about how WIOA supports entrepreneurship and
    is there more that Congress can do to support opportunities and
    entrepreneurship from self-employment to creating tomorrow's
    great company?
        Mr. Painter. We've come a long way in workforce boards
    supporting entrepreneurial training. One of the most gratifying
    projects is if you look at Gainesville, Florida, the Innovation
    Center at the University of Florida, the workforce board works
    hand-in-glove with them so that companies that need the next
    employee can find on-the-job training contracts through the
    board. Incumbent worker training is provided to entrepreneurs
    and startups to move those companies. So when you look at the
    wall of companies that have graduated, if you will, from the
    Innovation Center, it is replete with companies that have
    received WIOA support.
        Mr. Polis. Would somebody else like to address the
    entrepreneurship within WIOA and how we can further encourage
    that? No?
        Finally, Mr. Painter, a critical component of supporting
    Colorado's WIOA implementation is funding, of course. And as
    you mentioned, President Trump's proposed budget makes drastic
    cuts. Can you share more about what the effect of those budget
    cuts would be if they were to occur? And what would be the
    trickle-down effect to local workforce boards where the rubber
    meets the road?
        Mr. Painter. Local workforce boards are going to
    experience--you know, there is a certain amount of
    infrastructure, there is a certain amount of fixed cost that's
    in the system because we must maintain one-stops in every local
    area across the country. It's going to have an impact on--we
    look at 5,000 youth, you know, an average cost of $5,000 per
    youth served. I talked to a board recently that has 34,000
    young people 16 to 24 not in the labor force. They have money
    to serve 1,000. Budget cuts are going to impact even that. We
    can't even serve the number of individuals now who are
    eligible.
        Mr. Polis. Thank you. And I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. The gentleman yields back. Recognized is
    Mr. Grothman for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Grothman. Thank you very much. I think I will aim these
    at Ms. Paczynski, but if anybody else wants to talk you can
    feel free to chime in.
        I have always been very interested in people with different
    abilities. Yesterday stopping by my office, a gal who I have
    known before, she is 35 years old working at Walmart, you know,
    taking care of herself, and just a tremendous story and a story
    I wish I could repeat it again and again and again. It seems to
    me that this program doesn't necessarily always offer the
    flexibility we would want for people in her position. It is my
    understanding that rehabilitation services administration has
    advised State vocational rehab offices not to refer people with
    disabilities to jobs falling under AbilityOne contracts or
    State set-aside programs. Is that possibly true?
        Ms. Paczynski. In South Carolina, vocational rehabilitation
    is braided within the workforce system. We are true partners in
    finding people employment.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. If a person learns of any available
    job, are the States being prohibited from providing any
    necessary supports? And I would like any of the rest of you to
    answer, too, if that applies to your State.
        Ms. Paczynski. We are, again, we are moving forward in a
    partnership for individuals going through the vocational
    rehabilitation system.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. I will ask this one more specific.
    Under section 511 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which is
    amended through this law, it bars anyone with a disability
    under the age of 25 to work under a section 14(c) certificate
    for less than minimum wage unless they have failed one or more
    jobs. Do you believe that is true?
        Ms. Paczynski. I do not have information on that.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. Okay. I will emphasize to you, and I
    want you to get back to the committee, I sometimes feel we are
    not doing enough to provide flexibility for people with
    different types of disabilities as they transition into being
    self-supporting in life and would like your input to the
    committee in that regard.
        Now, I will give you a general broader question. It is true
    that under President Trump's proposed budget there are some
    cutbacks in these programs. I would like each of you in your
    States to tell me percentage-wise how much of these programs
    right now are State funded as opposed to funded by your local
    businesses or State and local governments.
        Ms. Paczynski. I would have to get back to the committee
    with that information.
        Mr. Grothman. Do you have an approximation?
        Ms. Paczynski. I do not have an approximation.
        Mr. Grothman. Sixty percent, 15 percent?
        Ms. Paczynski. I would like to get back to the committee
    with that information.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. Any of the rest of you? Yes, Mr. Dubin?
        Mr. Dubin. About 90 percent federally funded.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. Mr. Painter? Mr. Berlin? In your areas?
        Mr. Painter. It has to be the vast majority of the money is
    Federal money. I mean, I know when we were looking at who's
    paying the cost for the American job centers, that was Wagner-
    Peyser and then WIA, the adult dislocated worker and youth
    projects, that were paying well over 90 percent.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. Mr. Berlin?
        Mr. Berlin. So I was a candidate ----
        Mr. Grothman. You really wouldn't be able to ----
        Mr. Berlin. So I wouldn't have that information.
        Mr. Grothman. Let us know. Okay. Do you feel that there are
    any Federal requirements here, and I will ask any of you that
    we could lift that would give you more flexibility, that would
    make things better? In other words, are there ever, as you
    administer these programs or deal with these programs,
    situations you say, oh geez, why do we have to fill out this
    form, or why can't we do that?
        Mr. Dubin. I believe that there is really a lot of
    prohibitions around marketing. I mean, one of the basic things
    I asked is why aren't we, you know, getting the message out a
    little bit more commercially, like we're used to? And I'd have
    to get back to you on the specifics, but I face some real
    barriers in tapping dollars to do something any of us in
    business would, that's market ourselves in a commercial way.
        So I'll get back to you with recommendations there that are
    more specific.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. Ms. Paczynski, do you have any--as you
    deal with these programs you kind of feel like either why do I
    have to fill out this form or why can't I do this?
        Ms. Paczynski. I would say that when it comes to reporting
    effectiveness in serving businesses each State would have its
    own performance measure indicators based upon what their
    businesses are indicating what success looks like.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. So you don't feel in any way your hands
    are tied by Federal rules or regulations?
        Ms. Paczynski. We continue to move forward with the
    implementation. And so at this time I do not have anything to
    offer.
        Mr. Grothman. Okay. I will yield the remainder of my time.
        Chairman Guthrie. The gentleman's time has expired. I now
    recognize Mr. DeSaulnier for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. DeSaulnier. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I really
    appreciate the work that all of you do and, Mr. Berlin, the
    experience you have had.
        So my question is going to come from a viewpoint that
    having been involved in a workforce investment board as a small
    business owner and then been involved at the State of
    California as an elected official, I carried a bill that both
    had the Chamber of Commerce and the Labor Federation as their
    sponsors. And I thought I had found nirvana. And the bill just
    required that--and this was during the recession, so there was
    a real sense of urgency around the country, and it was true for
    California as well--about getting people to work in an
    environment that no one had seen before in terms of how do we
    get people to work? So the bill just said that 25 percent of
    all your funds has to go to training. Some of our boards
    thought I was the anti-Christ for presenting this. And I don't
    want to sound like--well, Ms. Foxx has accused me when I bring
    this up of sounding like a Republican, so Mr. Chairman and
    Ranking Member, accept this--I have seen really high-performing
    workforce investment boards and I have seen some that aren't so
    high-performing. So we are loathe to prescribe too much, but
    Mr. Dubin and then Mr. Painter, how do we get the level of I
    think urgency that our clients need, both the employers and the
    employees that you seem to have struck, Mr. Dubin, in Maryland,
    to get those high-performing boards to bring the lower-
    performing boards up to the same level? And I see too many
    boards in California that are checking boxes, that don't have
    that level of urgency, and want to do what you seem to have
    done in Maryland. So maybe you could address that?
        Mr. Dubin. Well, first, in Maryland, I feel like I have a
    real mandate from our governor. So if it starts there, if it
    starts at the top, you feel, you know, pretty broad-shouldered
    in going and putting arms on people and asking them to come and
    participate. So it comes with leadership.
        We're also self-imposing our own benchmarking right now.
    We're going to be benchmarking and setting the bar higher than
    the Federal standards. So on some of the concerns about the
    Federal standards, I'm not an expert on all the paperwork and
    all the rest, but I will tell you that the standards and the
    ways that we will be judging ourselves, the efficacy of service
    and delivery, is around human beings being employed and the
    stickiness of that employment. And we literally have a task
    force now that I'm participating on as well, with our
    Department of Labor in the State of Maryland, on that
    benchmarking and I think we have an opportunity to sort of be
    one of the national leaders in that benchmarking. And perhaps
    that's a way in teaching those benchmarks that are being
    thought through in 2017 to bring the standard and raise the bar
    for some of the less-performing boards.
        Mr. DeSaulnier. So you have found that to be effective,
    just by having those performance standards? You know, I am sure
    there are boards that perform better than others in your State
    and you are seeing all of the levels come up by doing this.
        Mr. Dubin. We anticipate that will happen. That's why we're
    doing sort of our State higher bar than WIOA benchmarking and
    standards.
        Mr. DeSaulnier. Mr. Painter?
        Mr. Painter. Thanks for the question, Congressman. It
    certainly concerns us as well that we want high-performing
    workforce boards across the U.S. I think one of the victims
    when budgets get tight is that you start letting go of internal
    training. And I think when we look at a labor market that has
    as many transactions in the course of year as the U.S. labor
    market, I think to a degree, collectively, we have been remiss
    in not investing more money in the thousands of people who
    offer assistance to people like Heath across the country. I
    would really like to see us spend more money on internal
    capacity-building for workforce development professionals.
        Mr. DeSaulnier. On a separate issue, but one of my
    colleagues from Michigan brought this up, and I have a lot of
    respect for him, having unemployment rates be sort of the
    performance mark in whether we should lower budgets. But that,
    I think, is just one thing we should consider.
        Mr. Painter, maybe you can sort of respond to that, that we
    have people who are out of the workforce right now, we have
    people on disability, we have got people who need to be
    retrained. So unemployment is not the only measurement we
    should be looking at in terms of reinvesting in these issues.
        Mr. Painter. No, I would agree. I think the situation we're
    in--I had the opportunity the other day to talk to an economist
    who was talking about the situation we're in, that this is
    really a skill development pathway that we have to pursue in
    order to get ourselves out of what we are hearing from
    employers in terms of not being able to find qualified workers.
    To find those individuals who are on the periphery of the labor
    market today takes marketing, takes more effort, takes the
    innovation that we're seeing out of some of the workforce
    boards with better websites, reliance on smartphone messaging
    to individuals. But, you know, again, I hate to sound like a
    broken record, but again, that takes resources to do that kind
    of change.
        Mr. DeSaulnier. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. The gentleman yields back. Mr.
    Barletta is recognized for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Barletta. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Dubin, thank you
    for being here and I appreciate you recognizing the SHINE
    program. I have long been a champion of SHINE from the very
    first day that I toured the program.
        And for those who don't know, it is an afterschool program
    operating in my district that is geared toward students from
    kindergarten through 8th grade. The SHINE program has been
    proven to help kids improve attendance, behavior, test scores.
    Teachers have come forward and saw a remarkable difference in
    these students that were not showing up to school as much,
    their attendance may not have been as good and they were not
    participating, and all of that has changed because of that
    program. And SHINE has showed me that when you awaken the minds
    of young children with hope and possibility of what their
    futures can be that there is no stopping them.
        That is why I am happy that you chose to highlight one of
    SHINE's many strengths, connecting students with career and
    technical experts so that they are exposed to job opportunities
    that they otherwise might not even know exist. We all know that
    we must bridge the skills gap to help more of our constituents
    realize good-paying jobs and to help our local businesses
    thrive. This is good for our communities and it is good for
    America.
        But I believe we must also work to remove the stigma that
    is associated with nontraditional technical careers. Studies
    show that educating students about their options at a younger
    age is central to achieving this goal. After all, even if we
    have job training programs in place they are nothing without
    dedicated and enthusiastic students to take advantage of them.
        So, Mr. Dubin, through your experiences on the Maryland
    Workforce Board, do you have any suggestions on how we can
    better incentivize workforce development organizations to
    engage with afterschool programs like SHINE and how can
    communities work within the existing framework of WIOA to
    establish and identify these partnerships?
        Mr. Dubin. I think the first is with the educators. You
    know, sometimes you get some of the resistance from the
    educators because they are teaching, you know, different sorts
    of skills. You know, educators have their own idea about
    pedagogy, their own idea about the experiences in school. And I
    think that's where some of the block may be, to be candid, is
    having that dialogue and having the, you know, will at the
    State level to have those discussions with your State school
    superintendants or what have you. So I think it's a big one.
        In Maryland, we have very successful CTE programs, we just
    need to find avenues for more funding. I'll be very clear about
    it. I'm a big proponent of, you know, funding. And where you
    get those dollars there's usually big waiting lists. And so,
    you know, funding to CTE, the educators. A lot of employers
    that are looking for skilled people, people that need to be
    trained, in our State they are very much our partners with CTE.
    I think that we're under capacity in what we're producing on
    the CTE side actually.
        Mr. Barletta. I had a local employer approach me just a
    couple of weeks ago and said he had 100 good-paying jobs, but
    literally cannot find people to fill them. In fact, his biggest
    hurdle he said was getting people to pass the drug test. And I
    hear this more and more often and it is discouraging when there
    are so many people unemployed, there are so many jobs that are
    available, and we know what we have got to do, teach the
    skills, but I think somewhere we have got to get back to teach
    basic skills, like showing up to work on time and, you know,
    don't call in sick 5 minutes before you are supposed to show
    up.
        Mr. Dubin. And if I may, that's one of the reasons the
    State of Maryland also spends some considerable resources on
    soft skills. Soft skills are important. Soft skills are very
    important. Not everyone, you know, had the advantage of growing
    up with people around them that taught them the things you need
    to be successful. And so I'm also a big proponent of soft
    skills training. And we see it at the board all the time, those
    big success stories because that little extra element of soft
    skills gave someone the ability to go and do an interview and
    get a job.
        Mr. Barletta. And I am going to close with another
    commercial. If anyone has not heard about the SHINE program, go
    online because it can be a model around the country. We have
    taken kids who may have lost interest and totally redirected
    their lives. When I went in these kids were building robots and
    remote-controlled cars and it was just amazing, and I think we
    have really got to refocus who we are helping.
        Thank you.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. The gentleman yields back. I
    recognize Mr. Espaillat, 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Espaillat. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I ask unanimous
    consent to enter into the record a letter from the Campaign for
    Youth, which underscores the importance of WIOA's Federal
    investment in youth.
        Chairman Guthrie. Without objection, so ordered.
        Mr. Espaillat. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Painter, as
    others have mentioned here today, WIOA prioritizes a service
    for those with the greatest barriers to employment, including
    low-income and out-of-school youth. I know this firsthand
    because I benefitted from a summer youth job program in New
    York--in fact, it was my first job opportunity as a young
    teenager--and can attest to how critical funding for these
    programs are. While WIOA focuses funding on out-of-school
    youth, the law still encourages services to low-income and in-
    school youth. This means that local workforce systems must
    engage and partner with school districts to serve these young
    people.
        What does that mean for big urban areas like New York City
    that have a large school system and, unfortunately, a very high
    dropout rate?
        Mr. Painter. I think as Congressman Barletta mentioned,
    workforce boards across the country, I'm very happy to say, are
    funded by--NAWB is funded by the Kellogg Foundation to pursue a
    two-generation strategy. When we got the award we put out a
    notice to local boards. We gave them 10 days to respond back to
    us. Thirteen of them came back and asked us to help fund local
    efforts who are working in Montgomery County, Maryland;
    Maricopa, Arizona; and El Paso, Texas. What we discovered is
    that workforce boards, through their business partnerships, are
    involved with the pre-K through 12 system in all aspects,
    working at career days, working with career and tech centers on
    what kind of occupations are in demand, what are the
    certifications that industries in the region are looking at.
        I think, again, with regard to out-of-school youth there
    are places like Cincinnati, Ohio, Hamilton County, where
    virtually 100 percent of the youth money is spent on out-of-
    school youth. It is one of the major changes in WIOA and I am
    happy to say that we are making substantial progress in trying
    to figure out how to reach out-of-school youth and reengage
    them, many times through projects like robotics and hands-on
    kind of work-based learning.
        Mr. Espaillat. In fiscal year 2016, New York City alone
    received more than $65 million in total from WIOA funding for
    employment programs serving two groups of New Yorkers: the
    youth and adults. New York City has utilized its funding to
    reconnect our disconnected youth to educational and workforce
    opportunities and has played an integral role in providing
    adults with the necessary skill sets to enter the workforce.
    For example, the Workforce1 Centers, one of which is located in
    Harlem, in my district, received WIOA funding and connected
    25,000 New Yorkers to jobs. Earlier this year, the Workforce1
    Healthcare Career Centers, a specialized center with industry
    expertise in healthcare, worked closely with the center Plans
    for Healthy Living and the second-largest managed long-term
    care provider in New York State. This employer was facing
    severe challenges to find the appropriately qualified
    registered nurses, which seems to be a great need, not just in
    New York State, but across the country. But the healthcare
    center successfully sourced, screened, and referred a number of
    qualified registered nurses to the employer. The result was a
    phenomenal increase: 21 individuals got hired over the course
    of the 1 month as registered nurses, earning between 74- to
    $86,000 per year, and the employer was thrilled to fill so many
    positions so quickly.
        Can you explain what are the real and lasting impacts of
    essentially cutting in half our investment in these critical
    programs, specifically in New York?
        Mr. Painter. Well, I think as you mentioned, Congressman, I
    mean, in many places WIOA is the foundation of these
    connections between out-of-school youth, and in some cases in-
    school youth, through the work of the boards. There is nothing
    else. WIOA is the foundation of making these connections.
        In New York, as you mentioned, again, it is one of the key
    partners in the projects that are going on in New York City, as
    it is elsewhere. When you think about summer youth employment
    it is a braiding of funding at the local level between, as Mr.
    Dubin pointed out, business kicking in, local philanthropic,
    CDBG, CSBG, and WIOA funds, all braided to try and provide the
    work experience that we know is essential for young people to
    get to experience. And I'm happy to say, like you, I am a
    former summer youth employment participant.
        Chairman Guthrie. Gentlemen, time has expired.
        Mr. Espaillat. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you. And I now recognize Mr.
    Thompson for 5 minutes for questions.
        Mr. Thompson. Thank you, Chairman. Thanks to the members of
    the panel for being here today. I am very proud of the work
    that we have done over the past number of years here on this
    Education and Workforce Committee, starting with a strong
    bipartisan piece of legislation that we are doing oversight on
    today, WIOA. And, Chairman, thank you for doing the oversight.
        I have found it is not good enough to pass effective and
    righteous pieces of legislation, but, unfortunately, we are at
    the mercies of unelected bureaucrats on how it gets
    implemented. And in providing that oversight, make sure that
    things stay true to the intent of Congress.
        This WIOA was written with, you know, I am sure there are a
    number of principles you could reflect on, but the whole Learn
    to Earn and skills-based education principles, and those are
    principles we brought forward with the Every Student Succeeds
    Act, which is being implemented now. And next week I am hopeful
    on the floor we will have the Career and Technical Education
    Bill, which obviously was authored following those same two
    principles. And sometime in the future we will do the Higher
    Education Act, which, quite frankly, those two principles work
    for the Higher Education Act as well, Learn to Earn and skills-
    based education.
        My first question is, knowing the basic elements of WIOA
    that we really felt were so important, how well have we
    achieved at bringing business and industry a/k/a job creators
    into a majority level on our web boards?
        Mr. Painter. Congressman, I'll take that first. I think I'm
    happy to observe you, sir, have done a very active board that
    ----
        Mr. Thompson. I am a recovering web board member.
        Mr. Painter. You are. The first time I ever heard of the
    term ``mechatronics'' as an industry I heard from your
    workforce board as you worked closely with business. That's
    what we're seeing across the country, that there are
    initiatives at community colleges, there are initiatives
    elsewhere that have been brought about because of the workforce
    board's role in convening businesses, in working with sector
    partnerships in their local area that have brought to the
    attention of the whole workforce development system the need to
    sometimes change curriculum, focus more on a particular
    certification than they have in the past. I think we are making
    progress.
        Mr. Thompson. Good. But the essential question, the basic
    point, the starting point, is are we at 100 percent compliance
    with all of our web boards having a majority stakeholder
    interest being job creators today? That was an essential
    element of WIOA.
        Mr. Painter. Let me say, many times people don't call me to
    tell me wonderful success stories. They call me to tell me--
    whether it's a State director or a local--it's a problem. I'm
    not aware ----
        Mr. Thompson. Welcome to our world.
        Mr. Painter.--that we have compliance problems. Yes. I'm
    not aware we have those compliance--I'm not aware of boards
    that are not in compliance.
        Mr. Thompson. Okay. No, I just was interested because my
    assumption is we are in compliance, we are moving ahead with
    implementation. So, you know, at one time when I was on a
    workforce board there was a bit of a conflict of interest. It
    was the training and education facilities that had the stronger
    representation. Not that they are not great people, they are
    great partners, but our vision with WIOA was the people who
    knew where the jobs were going to be today and tomorrow were
    the ones we want governing our workforce investment boards.
        So assuming that we are in compliance, have we seen better
    employment success as a result of implementation of in-demand
    skills-based education?
        Mr. Painter. I am going to say I can provide you examples,
    but I'm going to say yes, yes, we have. We have seen the
    example that I cited in Pittsburgh, 100 percent placement.
        Mr. Thompson. Great.
        Mr. Painter. It was not too long ago a guy was in West
    Virginia where the workforce board and the community college
    put together some basic training for advanced manufacturing.
    The placement rate was 100 percent. So I think we are seeing
    the industry move to a very targeted approach.
        Mr. Thompson. That is great. That is better than my
    experience under the old rules where we were training some
    arbitrary list at the State capital that had nothing to do with
    the economic job opportunities in our region.
        Mr. Painter. That's why we appreciated, Congressman, local
    control and local direction for the program.
        Mr. Thompson. There you go. Absolutely. Very quickly, I was
    interested to follow up on the young lady from Delaware. WIOA,
    which obviously I am a big fan of, but, you know, you don't get
    everything quite right and I do have some concerns. Have you
    seen any impacts on individuals with significant physical and
    intellectual needs?
        I love being--I at one time, and, unfortunately, a lot of
    that has gone away--being in shelter workshops on payday. Now,
    I worked with people facing life-changing disease and
    disability for 28 years, so I am committed to lifting people,
    empowering people, moving people to, you know, good gainful
    employment. But some folks have such complex disabilities that
    they just don't reach that level and there was nothing more--it
    was a celebration on payday when those checks were handed out,
    even though they were a couple of dollars maybe. And I am
    finding that one of the impacts of WIOA perhaps, I am not quite
    sure, is that the opportunities for people who just have such
    significant physical and intellectual disabilities they cannot
    get to that minimum wage plus employment.
        And so I have run out of time, but if you have any insight
    into the impacts in your areas, your States, on those
    individuals, I would love to get that in writing.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thanks. The gentleman yields. I recognize
    Ms. Bonamici for 5 minutes for questions.
        Ms. Bonamici. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and Ranking
    Member, and thank you for allowing me to join these two
    subcommittees. Even though I do not serve on the subcommittees
    this is such an important issue and I look at it also from my
    K-12 Committee experience and background. There are so many
    overlapping issues I think as we have seen from the discussion
    today. We all hear about the skills gap when we are back at
    home and this has been true regardless of how unemployment is.
    Of course, there are different challenges, as my colleague from
    Delaware pointed out, when there is low unemployment. The need
    is different, maybe more intense because there are people with
    disabilities or the long-term unemployed and still have
    significant challenges.
        One of the things I wanted to note is that the level of
    expertise, and I appreciate all of your expertise as people who
    work in the field and, Mr. Berlin, your success story. Thank
    you for sharing that. The level of expertise on this committee
    I think is really impressive of people who have real world
    experience. I am someone who hears about the skills gap and is
    working hard to address it in a couple of ways. And we talked
    about the CTE legislation, which I am very excited about. I
    hope this time we can get it through the Senate as well as
    through the House.
        Mr. Dubin, you spoke in your testimony about work study and
    working with Mr. Byrne on a bipartisan proposal to help with
    work study funding, but also to help align work study jobs with
    the students' career interests and career path; afterschool
    programs, which was noted in testimony how important
    afterschool programs are. I am extremely concerned about the
    proposed cuts to, for example, 21st century learning. We need
    to make sure that all of those programs are there so that we
    minimize the need to fix the skills gap, that we have more
    people ready for the workforce. Soft skills was addressed.
        The funding challenges are significant and I would like to
    introduce, Mr. Chairman, into the record a letter from the
    Campaign to Invest in America's Workforce. This is addressed to
    the House and Senate Appropriations Committees in support of
    funding workforce programs. These are such a good investment.
    So I would like to introduce that into the record.
        Chairman Guthrie. Without objection, so ordered.
        Ms. Bonamici. Thank you.
        Like Representative Courtney and Chairwoman Foxx, many of
    us, I was at the bill signing for WIOA. It was my first bill
    signing as a member of Congress. It was pretty exciting. It was
    so bipartisan. And I was very proud of that bill and now we are
    seeing it being implemented. One of the things that I
    appreciated and, you know, listening to a lot of the hearings
    when we were working on it, is the coordination and the
    emphasis on coordination between employers, Federal agencies,
    workforce training programs, educational systems, nonprofits,
    and I note, Mr. Dubin, you talked about collaboration that is
    happening in your State.
        One of the things I wanted to talk about, in my district in
    Northwest Oregon, Easter Seals facilitates the Washington
    County Senior Community Service Employment Program, which is an
    Older Americans Act program, but they work together. And I also
    oppose the budget cuts--well, actually the budget that seeks to
    completely eliminate this program--Easter Seals colocates the
    Senior Community Service Employment Program in Oregon's
    WorkSource Centers, which is part of America's Job Center
    network. So as a result of this colocation, the participants
    get to serve optimal access to the training, resources, and
    opportunities they need to develop new skills and reenter the
    workforce. And I tell you, there is age discrimination out
    there. Older Americans have a much more challenging time.
        So, Mr. Painter, can you discuss a little bit the benefits
    of coordinated colocation and how these types of programs
    benefitted from this integration?
        Mr. Painter. Thank you, Congresswoman. In a previous life,
    as a local director, I got to administer senior community
    service employment. So firsthand we got to see the impact that
    it has in providing older Americans with an opportunity to
    reenter the workforce, to acquire different sets of skills.
    You're right, the coordination is critical. It's critical that
    we have an approach to business, that it's a strategic approach
    to business, that it's not necessarily pitting one group at
    another, but it's looking at the business strategy and then
    coming back and as a collective team, which is happening more
    and more, how can we solve this problem and what talent
    resources do we collectively have. And then working, as Heath's
    example, using on-the-job training, using internships. Platform
    to Employment out of Connecticut is a remarkable example of how
    you can take work, on-the-job training, internships, work
    experience, and craft that. But it takes that coordination
    among the providers.
        Ms. Bonamici. Terrific. And as I yield back I just want to
    align myself with Mr. Takano's concerns about the possibility
    of eliminating the registration process for apprenticeships. I
    would be more than interested in hearing examples of how the
    registration process for apprenticeships, if it is not working
    well, if we need to streamline it or fix it. I would be very
    concerned about eliminating it.
        Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I yield back.
        Chairman Guthrie. I thank the gentlelady for yielding back.
    And that concludes members' questions. I would like to thank
    our witnesses for taking the time to testify before our
    subcommittee today.
        And before I recognize our ranking member for any closing
    comments I just want to say what she said in the beginning,
    when we send letters to each other here we call them ``Dear
    Colleagues,'' but we actually have a dear colleague that is
    recovering and we have four other people who served this House
    and, therefore, served this country that are recovering today.
    But we also, as the day went on yesterday, talked to so many
    other of our dear colleagues who were part of a traumatic
    experience, one that was--I guess the guy started outside of
    third base, shooting, going in, and he was in left field, right
    next to him, but the guy shot into the infield. And so we have
    a lot of people that are going through that. So be mindful as
    we go throughout the day that we have a lot of people hurting
    and we have had a lot of prayers answered as well.
        So I recognize Ranking Member Davis for any closing
    comments.
        Ms. Davis. Thank you, Chairman, Mr. Chairman. And I
    appreciate those comments as well. I wanted to thank you all so
    much. I think it has been a very thoughtful discussion. We
    really appreciate your experiences and your expertise as well.
        And I just wanted to mention so quickly, because I think we
    have a sense of the breadth and the depth of so many, you know,
    fabulous examples throughout our country where people are
    really centered on trying to find the very, very best way to
    help both employees and employers and make the marketplace one
    that works for everyone.
        And one of the issues that we have touched on a little bit,
    but not fully is that one of apprenticeships. And I think that
    what we now have a proposal out there is to be again very
    thoughtful as how we approach that. You know, it is always in
    the details, that it is very, very important, and we want to be
    sure that we don't cut off opportunities in some areas in order
    to do something different that in many cases may not have the
    same kind of accountability. We are talking about American
    taxpayer dollars and we want to be sure that those taxpayer
    dollars go to those programs that we have the ability to really
    be able to understand whether they are helpful or not, whether
    they are doing what we say they are going to do.
        So you have touched on some of that. We are certainly going
    to be having far more discussions in the future, Mr. Chairman.
        And I thank you all very much for being here.
        Chairman Guthrie. Thank you very much. And they've been
    very informative and really appreciate your testimony.
        And without being objection, there being no further
    business, the subcommittee stands adjourned.
        [Additional submission by Ms. Blunt Rochester follows:]

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        [Additional submission by Ms. Bonamici follows:]

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        [Additional submission by Mr. Espaillat follows:]

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        [Additional submission by Ms. Paczynski follows:]

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        [Whereupon, at 12:10 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.]

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