[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 169 (Thursday, August 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44260-44262]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-18893]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Economics and Statistics Administration

[Docket No. xxxxxxxxx-xxxx-01]
XRIN xxxx-XCxxx


Notice of Establishment of American Workforce Policy Advisory 
Board; Solicitation of Nominations for Membership on Advisory Board

AGENCY: Economics and Statistics Administration, Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice; solicitation of nominations.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce announces the establishment of the 
American Workforce Policy Advisory Board, pursuant to Executive Order 
13845, Establishing the President's National Council for the American 
Worker, (E.O. 13845 or executive order), and in accordance with the 
Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA). The Board will provide advice 
and recommendations to the National Council for the American Worker 
(Council) on ways to encourage the private sector and educational 
institutions to combat the skills crisis by investing in and increasing 
demand-driven education, training, and re-training, including training 
through apprenticeships and work-based learning opportunities. The 
Secretary of Commerce is also requesting nominations for membership to 
the Board. The President, with input from the Secretary of Commerce and 
Advisor to the President overseeing the Office of Economic Initiatives 
(as co-chairs of the Board), will consider nominations received in 
response to this notice.

DATES: The Department of Commerce must receive nominations for members 
by midnight on October 1, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Submit nominations to 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Grant Gardner, Office of Business 
Liaison, Department of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, 
Washington,

[[Page 44261]]

DC 20230, (202) 482-2177, and email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. The American Workforce Policy Advisory Board

    Our nation is facing a skills crisis. There are currently 6.7 
million unfilled jobs in the United States, and American workers need 
the skills training to fill them. At the same time, the economy is 
changing at a rapid pace because of the technology, automation, and 
artificial intelligence that is shaping many industries, from 
manufacturing to healthcare to retail. For too long, our country's 
education and job training programs have prepared Americans for the 
economy of the past.
    The rapidly changing digital economy requires the United States to 
view education and training as encompassing more than a single period 
of time in a traditional classroom. We need to prepare Americans for 
the 21st century economy and the emerging industries of the future. We 
must foster an environment of lifelong learning and skills-based 
training and cultivate a demand-driven approach to workforce 
development.
    To address the skills crisis, the President issued E.O. 13845 to 
establish the National Council for the American Worker (Council). The 
executive order directs the Council to champion effective, results-
driven education and training so that American students and workers can 
obtain the skills they need to succeed in the jobs of today and of the 
future. This notice announces the establishment of the American 
Workforce Policy Advisory Board (Board), pursuant to E.O. 13845 and in 
accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), as amended 
(5 U.S.C. App.), to support the Council.
    The Board will provide advice and recommendations to the Council on 
the workforce policy of the United States. One of the Board's 
activities will be to recommend steps to encourage the private sector 
and educational institutions to combat the skills crisis by investing 
in and increasing demand-driven workforce development, education, 
training, and re-training, for example through apprenticeships and 
work-based learning opportunities.
    Unless otherwise extended, the Board will terminate July 19, 2020, 
two years after the date of the Executive Order. Insofar as the FACA 
may apply to the Board, the Secretary of Commerce will perform any 
functions of the President under that act, except for those in section 
6 and section 14 of FACA, and will do so in accordance with the 
guidelines issued by the Administrator of General Services. The 
Department of Commerce shall provide the Board with funding and 
administrative support as may be necessary for the performance of the 
Board's functions.
    The Board will be made up of two co-chairs--the Secretary of 
Commerce and the Advisor to the President overseeing the Office of 
Economic Initiatives--and up to 25 members appointed by the President 
from among citizens outside the Federal government. Members chosen will 
be representatives of the various sectors of the economy, including the 
private sector, employers, educational institutions, and State 
governments, to offer diverse perspectives on how the Federal 
Government can improve workforce development through education, 
training, and re-training for American workers. The Board members 
appointed by the President could include business leaders; 
administrators and educators of K-12 schools, community colleges, and 
universities; State, tribal, and local government officials; heads of 
organized labor; and leaders from the nonprofit sector. The President 
will make reasonable efforts to ensure members represent a diverse 
spectrum of these sectors.
    All members appointed by the President will be representative 
members and serve at the pleasure of the President. The membership 
balance may adjust depending on the needs of the President, Secretary, 
and the work of the Council.

II. Description of Board Member Duties

    The Board will advise the Council in the Council's efforts to work 
with private employers, educational institutions, labor unions, other 
non-profit organizations, and State, territorial, tribal, and local 
governments to update and reshape our education and job training 
landscape so that it better meets the needs of American students, 
workers, and businesses.
    Members must be able to actively participate in the tasks of the 
Board including, but not limited to regularly attending and 
participating in meetings, reviewing materials, and participating in 
conference calls, working groups, and formal subcommittees. The Board 
may advise the Council in any of its efforts, so the President will 
consider nominees who can best support, in an advisory capacity, any of 
the following Council functions:
     Devising a national strategy for empowering American 
workers on how the Federal government can work with non-Federal 
stakeholders to create and promote workforce development strategies 
that provide evidence-based, affordable education and skills-based 
training for youth and adults to prepare them for the jobs of today and 
of the future;
     fostering close coordination, cooperation, and information 
exchange within the Federal government and between the government and 
non-Federal stakeholders as related to issues concerning the education 
and training of Americans, including through the use of online learning 
resources;
     increasing transparency related to education and job-
training program options, including those options offered at 4-year 
institutions and community colleges;
     proposing ways to increase access to available job data, 
including data on industries and geographic locations with the greatest 
numbers of open jobs and projected future opportunities, as well as 
data on the underlying skills required to fill open jobs;
     developing a national campaign to raise awareness of 
relevant matters, such as the urgency of the skills crisis; the 
importance of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics 
education; the creation of new industries and job opportunities spurred 
by emerging technologies; the changing nature of many careers in the 
trades and manufacturing; and the need for companies to invest in the 
training and re-training of their workers;
     developing a plan for recognizing companies that 
demonstrate excellence in workplace education, training, and re-
training policies and investments, in order to galvanize industries to 
identify and adopt best practices, innovate their workplace policies, 
and invest in their workforces; and
     examining how the Federal government can work with non-
Federal stakeholders to support the implementation of recommendations 
from the Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion established in 
Executive Order 13801 of June 15, 2017 (Expanding Apprenticeships in 
America).

III. Structure of Advisory Board

    As stated above, the Secretary and the Advisor to the President 
overseeing the Office of Economic Initiatives will serve as co-chairs. 
In addition to the co-chairs, the Board shall consist of up to 25 
members. The President will appoint members and they will serve at the 
pleasure of the President. The Secretary will provide the President 
with a list of potential nominees for final consideration of Board 
membership. Potential nominees will represent a cross-section of the 
private sector, non-profit, employers, educational

[[Page 44262]]

institutions, and States. The Secretary's list will ensure balance and 
a diversity of perspectives. The Secretary's nominees will be prominent 
in their fields, recognized for their professional and other relevant 
achievements.
    As necessary, the Board may establish, with the consent or at the 
direction of the Office of the Under Secretary of Economic Affairs and 
the Office of the Secretary, such subcommittees as it considers 
necessary for the performance of its functions. All subcommittees must 
report back to the full Board, members and subcommittees must not 
provide advice or work products directly to any Federal agency or 
official.
    Appointed Board members will serve for a term of up to two years 
(the balance of the initial term of the Board). If the term of the 
Board is extended, members shall be eligible for reappointment, and may 
continue to serve after the expiration of their terms until the 
appointment of a successor. When vacancies occur, the Secretary will 
identify for appointment nominees who can best either replicate the 
perspective of the departing member or provide the Board with a new, 
identified needed perspective.

IV. Compensation for Members of the Advisory Board

    Members of the Board shall serve without any compensation for their 
work on the Board. Members of the Board, while engaged in the work of 
the Board, will, upon request, be reimbursed for travel expenses, 
including per diem in lieu of subsistence, to the extent permitted by 
law for persons serving intermittently in government service (5 U.S.C. 
5701-5707), consistent with the availability of funds.

V. Solicitation of Nominations

    The Secretary will consider nominations of all qualified 
individuals to ensure that the Board includes the areas of experience 
noted above. Individuals may nominate themselves or other individuals, 
and professional associations and organizations may nominate one or 
more qualified persons for membership on the Board. Nominations shall 
state that the nominee is willing to serve as a member and carry out 
the duties of the Board.
    A nomination package should include the following information for 
each nominee: (1) A letter of nomination stating the name, affiliation, 
and contact information for the nominee, the basis for the nomination 
(i.e., what specific attributes recommend him/her for service in this 
capacity), and the nominee's field(s) of experience; (2) a biographical 
sketch of the nominee and a copy of his/her curriculum vitae; and (3) 
the name, return address, email address, and daytime telephone number 
at which the nominator can be contacted.
    The President and the Secretary encourage nominations for 
appropriately qualified female, minority, or disabled candidates. The 
President and the Secretary also encourage geographic diversity in the 
composition of the Board. All nomination information should be provided 
in a single, complete package by midnight on October 1, 2018. 
Interested applicants should send their nomination package to 
[email protected].

    Dated: August 23, 2018.
Jeremy Pelter,
Chief Financial Officer and Director of Administration for the 
Economics and Statistics Administration.
[FR Doc. 2018-18893 Filed 8-29-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3510-06-P