HB4453eng 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HB4453 Engrossed LRB094 17502 RSP 52798 b

AN ACT concerning State government.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Illinois Workforce Investment Board Act is amended by changing Section 4.5 as follows:

(20 ILCS 3975/4.5)

Sec. 4.5. Duties.

(a) The Board must perform all the functions of a state workforce investment board under the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998, any amendments to that Act, and any other applicable federal statutes. The Board must also perform all other functions that are not inconsistent with the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998 or this Act and that are assumed by the Board under its bylaws or assigned to it by the Governor.

(b) The Board must cooperate with the General Assembly and make recommendations to the Governor and the General Assembly concerning legislation necessary to improve upon statewide and local workforce investment systems in order to increase occupational skill attainment, employment, retention, or earnings of participants and thereby improve the quality of the workforce, reduce welfare dependency, and enhance the productivity and competitiveness of the State. The Board must annually submit a report to the General Assembly on the progress of the State in achieving state performance measures under the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998, including information on the levels of performance achieved by the State with respect to the core indicators of performance and the customer satisfaction indicator under that Act. The report must include any other items that the Governor may be required to report to the Secretary of the United States Department of Labor under Section 136(d) of the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998.

(b-5) The Board shall develop a method for measuring Illinois' progress in transitioning to a high-skill, high-wage, and high-productivity economy at the State, regional, and local levels. The Board shall develop a set of benchmarks that measure whether Illinois is developing a globally competitive workforce that is aligned with the needs of the current and emerging economy. The Board shall report annually to the General Assembly on Illinois' progress on each of the benchmarks. The Board shall make changes to these benchmarks as necessary to improve measurement and reporting while, at the same time, maintaining consistency across annual reports. The Board shall implement a method for measuring the progress of the State's workforce development system by using specified benchmarks. Those benchmarks are: (i) the educational level of working adults; (ii) the percentage of the adult workforce in education and training; (iii) adult literacy; (iv) the percentage of high school graduates transitioning to education or training; (v) the high school dropout rate; (vi) the number of youth transitioning from 8th grade to 9th grade; (vii) the percentage of individuals and families at economic self-sufficiency; (viii) the average growth in pay; (ix) net job growth; and (x) productivity per employee.

The Board shall identify the most significant early indicators for each benchmark, establish a mechanism to collect data and track the benchmarks on an annual basis, and then use the results to set goals for each benchmark, to inform planning, and to ensure the effective use of State resources.

(c) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to require or allow the Board to assume or supersede the statutory authority granted to, or impose any duties or requirements on, the State Board of Education, the Board of Higher Education, the Illinois Community College Board, any State agencies created under the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, or any local education agencies.

(d) No actions taken by the Illinois Human Resource Investment Council before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly and no rights, powers, duties, or obligations from those actions are impaired solely by this amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly. All actions taken by the Illinois Human Resource Investment Council before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly are ratified and validated.

(Source: P.A. 92-588, eff. 7-1-02; 93-331, eff. 1-1-04.)