[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 124 (Wednesday, September 17, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9517-S9519]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DeWINE (for himself, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Kennedy, and Mr. 
        Wellstone):
  S. 1186. A bill to provide for education and training, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources.


                the workforce investment partnership act

  Mr. DeWINE. Madam President, as a member of the Senate Labor and 
Human Resources Committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on 
Employment and Training, I have spent the last few years examining our 
Federal job training programs. During this examination, it has become 
clear to me as well as many others, that these programs are in dire 
need of reform. The status quo is just plain unacceptable.
  What we are faced with today is a fragmented and duplicative maze of 
narrowly focused programs administered by numerous Federal agencies 
that lack coordination, a coherent strategy to provide training 
assistance, and the confidence of the two key consumers who utilize 
these services--those seeking the training, and those businesses 
seeking to hire them. Despite spending billions of tax dollars each 
year on job training programs, most Federal agencies do not know how 
their programs work and if their programs are really helping people 
find jobs.
  Here is what we do know. Today's job training system is no system at 
all--it is a complex patchwork of numerous rules, regulations, 
requirements, and overlapping bureaucratic responsibilities. As a 
result, programs are largely ineffective. Frustration and confusion is 
widespread throughout the system--by program administrators and 
employers, and most important, by those seeking assistance. People have 
difficulty knowing where to begin to look for training assistance 
because there are no clear points of entry and no clear paths from one 
program to another.
  This is frustration at the breaking point.
  Frustration to the point that business community participation, which 
is absolutely necessary for success, is waning.
  Frustration to the point that community activists, again whose 
participation is absolutely necessary for success, are becoming 
disenchanted.
  Frustration to the point that we have begun to question our 
commitment to job training.
  Fragmentation, duplication, ineffectiveness, and frustration--these 
are the words that describe the current Federal job training apparatus. 
That is the status quo. That is unacceptable. That is largely why 
reform is needed now.
  There are other important reasons why reform is necessary. The 
economic future of our country depends on a well-trained work force. I 
have heard from employers at every level who find it increasingly 
difficult to attract and find qualified employees for high-skilled, 
high-paying jobs as well as qualified entry level employees. If we are 
going to remain economically competitive, we must address this growing 
shortage of workers.
  Reform also is needed if the welfare reform bill Congress passed last 
year is going to have any chance of succeeding. We need to provide 
States with the tools necessary to develop a comprehensive system to 
assist people make work, not welfare, their way of life.
  To achieve all of these goals, job training is the key.
  The bill that I introduce today with Senators Jeffords, Kennedy, and 
Wellstone represents a bipartisan belief that we can do better and we 
can achieve these goals. We can replace the current system of 
frustration and provide a framework for success.
  By removing or reforming outdated rules and regulations, we can 
remove the barriers that have stymied reform in the past. We can 
empower States to boldly move forward, transforming the current 
patchwork of programs into a comprehensive system to make it easier for 
all consumers seeking assistance to receive assistance.
  Just like we did with welfare reform, job training reform is about 
recognizing the leadership of States that have shown innovation and 
initiative over the last few years, even in the midst of numerous 
Federal barriers and obstacles. It is about allowing them and 
encouraging them to continue with the innovations they have implemented 
without Federal reform legislation.
  We can establish a framework for a system that provides consumer 
choice. Individuals seeking assistance should have a say in where, how, 
and what training they will receive. At the same time, the Federal 
bureaucracy should not engage in micro-management by mandating vouchers 
or any other specific local delivery system. This is a decision that 
belongs to the States and localities. This bill takes the opposite 
approach--it provides States and localities the flexibility to develop 
training programs that meet the real needs of those seeking training. 
It is to the consumer that these programs should be tailored to, not 
Washington.
  We can establish an accountable system. Training programs must 
demonstrate their effectiveness to be certified as eligible programs. 
This means proving that training leads to meaningful, unsubsidized 
employment--showing how many people were placed, at what cost, and how 
many people remained employed 6 months to a year later. We owe this to 
the individuals seeking assistance and to the American taxpayers who 
pays for these programs.
  We can establish a framework that not only allows for business 
community involvement, but business community leadership. The private 
sector must outline their employment needs and assist in the design of 
training programs.
  The Workforce Investment Partnership Act incorporates all of these 
principles. The programs incorporated in the legislation include job 
training, vocational education, and adult education. Additionally, it 
provides strong, mandatory linkages to welfare to work, Wagner-Peyser, 
Job Corps, Older Americans, Vocational Rehabilitation, the Bureau of 
Apprenticeship and Training, veterans, Trade Adjustment Assistance, as 
well as other training related programs.
  While separate funding streams will be maintained for each of the 
activities, in recognition of their function, States and localities 
will be empowered with the tools and the flexibility to implement real 
reform in order to provide comprehensive services to those seeking 
assistance.
  Under this bill, States will have the ability to submit a unified 
plan for all of the programs incorporated in and linked to this 
legislation to the appropriate Secretary describing how they will 
coordinate services in order to avoid duplication.
  Statewide and local partnerships, led by the business community, will 
be established to assist in the development of such a plan, set policy 
for training, and generally advise the appropriate elected official 
overseeing the system.
  At the local level, all services provided must be accessible through 
a one stop customer service system. Consumers, both employers and job 
seekers seeking assistance, will be able to receive comprehensive 
information regarding the availability, eligibility,

[[Page S9518]]

and quality of the programs. With this kind of system, we can remove 
the confusion and frustration inherent in the current programs.
  Finally, training will be delivered under a framework of an 
individual training account which will be used to ensure the principle 
of consumer choice. The specific nature of the individuals training 
account will be determined by States and localities.
  In conclusion, I would like to thank my colleagues, Senators 
Jeffords, Kennedy, and Wellstone, as well as the other members of the 
Subcommittee of Employment and Training for their cooperation and 
dedication in developing a piece of legislation that moves us forward. 
This has been a bipartisan effort from Day One. I believe that level of 
cooperation and leadership is essential if we are to have a chance to 
pass real reform.
  There have been a number of orgnizations--both public and private--
who have participated in an open and constructive process used to 
develop this legislation. Their input has been vital.
  Again, the Workforce Investment Partnership Act is designed to 
address and reform the Federal Government's role in providing job 
training assistance to Americans. For too long, that role has been to 
foster confusion, frustration and complication. With this bill, we 
offer a new foundation, and a positive framework for success. Instead 
of rules that tie the hands of States and localities, this bill 
provides the tools to empower them to develop comprehensive work force 
investment systems that address the needs of job seekers and employers. 
This bill is a road map to a better system, and if we are to achieve 
the goals we have set--a stronger economy, a better-trained work force, 
and welfare reform--we need to begin that journey today.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Madam President, an educated work force has become the 
most valuable resource in the modern economy. Our Nation's long term 
economic vitality depends on the creation of an effective, accessible, 
and accountable system of job training and career development which is 
open to all our citizens. Schools must assume more responsibility for 
preparing their students to meet the challenges of the 21st century 
workplace. Disadvantaged adults and out of school youth need the 
opportunity to develop job skills which will make them productive 
members of the community. Dislocated workers who have been displaced by 
the rapid pace of technological change deserve the chance to pursue new 
careers. The way in which we respond to these challenges today will 
determine how prosperous a nation we are in the next century.
  The importance of highly developed employment skills has never been 
greater. The gap in earnings between skilled and unskilled workers is 
steadily widening. For those who enter the work force with good 
academic training and well developed career skills, this new economy 
offers almost unlimited potential. However, for those who lack basic 
proficiency in language, math and science and who have no career 
skills, the new economy presents an increasingly hostile environment.
  The Workforce Investment Partnership Act which I am introducing with 
Senators Jeffords, DeWine, and Wellstone will provide employment 
training opportunities for millions of Americans. It responds to the 
challenge of the changing workplace by enabling men and women to both 
acquire the skills necessary to enter the work force and upgrade their 
skills throughout their careers. It will provide access to the 
educational tools that will enable them not only to keep up, but to get 
ahead.
  The legislation which we will be introducing represents a true 
collaboration of our four offices. I want to publicly commend Senators 
Jeffords and DeWine for the genuine spirit of bipartisanship which has 
made this collaborative effort possible. Senator Wellstone and I 
appreciate it. Over the last 6 months, each of us has devoted an 
enormous amount of time and effort to fashioning a legislative 
consensus which will truly expand career options, encourage greater 
program innovation, and facilitate cooperative efforts amongst 
business, labor, education, and State and local government. While each 
of us can cite provisions in this bill which we would like to change, 
we all believe that the Workforce Investment Partnership Act will 
accomplish our principal goals.
  I also want to recognize the important role President Clinton has 
played in bringing about this dramatic reform of our current job 
training system. He has consistently emphasized the need for greater 
individual choice in the selection of career paths and training 
providers. The philosophy behind the skill grant proposal is reflected 
in our legislation.
  The Workforce Investment Partnership Act is designed to provide easy 
access to state of the art employment training programs which are 
geared to real job opportunities in the community. The cornerstones of 
this new system are individual choice and quality labor market 
information. In the past, men and women seeking new careers often did 
not know what job skills were most in demand and which training 
programs had the best performance record. All to often, they were 
forced to make one of the most important decisions in their lives based 
on anecdotes and late-night advertisements.
  No training system can function effectively without accurate and 
timely information. The frequent unavailability of quality labor market 
information is one of the most serious flaws in the current system. In 
order to make sound career choices, prospective trainees need both 
detailed information on local career opportunities and performance 
based information on training providers. That information will now be 
available at easily accessible one stop employment centers, along with 
career counseling and other employment services. The legislation places 
a strong emphasis on providing information about what area industries 
are growing, what skills those jobs require, and what earning potential 
they have. Extensive business community participation is encouraged in 
developing this information. Once a career choice is made, the 
individual must still select a training provider. At present, many 
applicants make that choice with a little or no reliable information. 
Under our bill, each training provider will have to publicly report 
graduation rates, job placement and retention rates, and average 
earnings of graduates.
  Because of the extensive information which will be available to each 
applicant, real consumer choice in the selection of a career and of a 
training provider will be possible. The legislation establishes 
individual training accounts for eligible participants, which they can 
use to access career education and skill training programs. Men and 
women seeking training assistance will no longer be limited to a few 
predetermined options. As long as there are real job opportunities in 
the field selected and the training provider meets established 
performance standards, the individual will be free to choose which 
option best suits his or her needs.
  This legislation will organize the delivery of services more 
effectively and utilize resources more creatively. There will be a 
significant consolidation of the dozens of narrowly focused programs 
which currently exist into several broad funding streams for the 
distinct populations needing assistance. Consolidation makes sense in 
those areas in which multiple programs are currently serving the same 
population. However, it is equally important to preserve separate 
streams of funding for distinct populations. The programmatic needs of 
middle age dislocated workers with extensive employment histories are 
quite different from the services required by young adults with limited 
skills and no work histories. Similarly the problems faced by out of 
school youth require very different solutions than those confronting 
the adult population. Ensuring that services which are designed to meet 
the needs of each of these populations are available is a Federal 
responsibility. For that reason, this legislation maintains distinct 
programs with separate appropriations for dislocated workers, 
disadvantaged adults, and at risk youth.
  The WIPA gives State and local government significantly enhanced 
discretion in designing their training systems. If this reform is to be 
truly responsive to those at the community level who are in need of 
services, it is essential that the authority which the Federal 
Government delegates to the States be exercised through a broad

[[Page S9519]]

based decisionmaking process. Governors, State legislatures, mayors, 
and other county and local officials should all have a meaningful voice 
in the design of a State's new job training system and they will under 
this legislation. Local boards of business, labor, education and 
community leaders are--in my opinion--essential to insuring that 
programs meet the real world needs of participants, and that the 
training programs correspond to labor market demands. The success we 
have had a Massachusetts has been due to large measure to active 
participation by local business leaders on the regional employment 
boards. WIPA strengthens the role of such boards, giving them major new 
policy making responsibilities. These boards will play the primary role 
in assuring that training programs address the actual employment needs 
of area businesses.
  An essential element of the new system we have designed in 
accountability. As I noted earlier, each training provider will have to 
monitor and report the job placement and retention achieved by its 
graduates and their average earnings. Only those training programs that 
meet an acceptable performance standard will remain eligible for 
receipt of public funds. The same principle of accountability is 
applied to those agencies administering State and local programs. They 
are being given wide latitude to innovate under this legislation. But 
they too will be held accountable if they programs fail to meet 
challenging performance targets.
  There is no challenge facing America today which is tougher or more 
important than providing at risk, often out of school, youth with 
meaningful education and employment opportunities. Far too many of our 
teenagers are being left behind without the skills needed to survive in 
the 21st century economy. I am particularly proud of the commitment 
which the Workforce Investment Partnership Act makes to these young men 
and women. This legislation authorizes a new initiative focused on 
teenagers living in the most impoverished communities in America. These 
areas range from the poorest neighborhoods of our largest cities to 
impoverished rural counties. Each year, the Secretary of Labor will 
award grants from a $250 million fund to innovative programs designed 
to provide opportunities to youth living in these areas. The programs 
will emphasize mentoring, strong links between academic and worksite 
learning, and job placement and retention. It will encourage broad 
based community participation from local service agencies and area 
employers. These model programs will, we believe, identify the 
techniques which are most effective in reaching those youth at greatest 
risk.
  The Workforce Investment Partnership Act includes titles 
reauthorizing major vocational education and adult literacy programs. 
Both programs will continue to be separately funded and independently 
administered. We have incorporated them in the Workplace Act because 
they must be integral components of any comprehensive strategy to 
prepare to meet the demands of the 21st century workplace. Students who 
participate in vocational education must be provided with broad based 
career preparation courses which meet both high academic standards and 
teach state of the art technological skills. Adult literacy programs 
are essential for the 27 percent of the adult population who have not 
earned a high school diploma or its equivalent. Learning to read and 
communicate effectively are the first steps to career advancement. In 
vocational education and adult literacy, we are placing the same 
emphasis on program accountability which we did in job training.

  The Workforce Investment Partnership Act we are introducing today 
will make it possible for millions of Americans to gain the skills 
needed to compete in a global economy. In doing so, we are also 
enabling them to realize their personal American dreams.
  In closing, I want to recognize the important contribution which 
Stephen Springer, a key member of my staff during the 104th Congress, 
played in the evolution of job training reform. Tragically, he died at 
a young age after a courageous battle with cancer. He believed that the 
type of innovative work force development system which this legislation 
would create had the potential to open doors of opportunity for 
millions of Americans. His commitment was extraordinary. He continued 
to work on this issue even as his health was failing. He is no longer 
with us, but he continues to inspire us. Stephen Springer's creative 
vision of a work force development system equal to the challenges of 
the 21st century economy is reflected in the Workforce Investment 
Partnership Act. When enacted, it will be a wonderful legacy for this 
extraordinary individual.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my colleagues, 
Senators DeWine, Jeffords, and Kennedy, in introducing the Workforce 
Investment Partnership Act of 1997. This bipartisan bill is a major 
accomplishment for Americans who need Federal assistance to acquire 
skills to qualify for good jobs.
  The bill also is a major accomplishment for my colleague from Ohio, 
Senator DeWine, Chairman of the Labor Committee's Employment and 
Training Subcommitee, whom I commend for bringing us to this point 
through numerous valuable hearings and a rigorous, cooperative drafting 
process. A number of Minnesotans testified at our hearings. Groups from 
Minnesota and from around the country have been consulted and listened 
to. I thank both Senator DeWine and Senator Jeffords for the openness 
of the process. As always, I would also like to acknowledge the 
leadership of Senator Kennedy. His deep experience and commitment have 
helped make this an excellent bill.
  As leaders for our respective parties on the Subcommittee and on the 
full Labor Committee, the four of us may not always agree on issues 
facing America's working families. But we agree on this bill. It will 
fundamentally improve our Federal system of job training, adult and 
vocational education, and vocational rehabilitation programs.
  The bill will help coordinate, streamline and decentralize our 
Federal job training system. It will make that system more accountable 
to real performance measures. It gives private sector employers--the 
people who have jobs to offer and who need workers with the right 
skills--a greater role in directing policy at the State and local 
level, which is where most decision-making power resides in this bill. 
And it moves the whole country to where Minnesota has already moved 
decisively: to a system of one-stop service centers where people can 
get all the information they need in one location. At these one stops, 
people then will have the ability to make their own choices, based on 
the best information, about which profession they want and ought to 
pursue, about the skills and training they'll need, and about the best 
place to get those skills and that training. I have visited one-stop 
centers in Minnesota. They work.
  In addition, and this is very important, our bill achieves the things 
I have mentioned above without neglecting the need to target resources 
from the Federal level to those who need them most: to disadvantaged 
adults and youth, and to dislocated workers.
  That is crucial. This bill does not overreach. It does not block-
grant all Federal job training, adult education and vocational 
education progams to governors. It retains crucial federal priorities, 
then allows State and local authorities to decide how best to address 
their needs. That is why I believe this Congress will succeed where we 
did not during the last Congress. We'll pass this bill, reach an 
acceptable conference agreement with the House, and send major, 
important legislation to the President for his signature.
                                 ______