House Bill 617

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 71-5-353, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO AUTHORIZE THE MISSISSIPPI COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD TO USE MONIES IN THE MISSISSIPPI WORKFORCE ENHANCEMENT TRAINING FUND TREASURY ACCOUNT TO ESTABLISH AN INDUSTRIAL CERTIFICATION GRANT PROGRAM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 71-5-353, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

71-5-353. (1) (a) Each employer shall pay unemployment insurance contributions equal to five and four-tenths percent (5.4%) of taxable wages paid by him each calendar year, except as may be otherwise provided in Section 71-5-361 and except that each newly subject employer shall pay unemployment insurance contributions at the rate of one percent (1%) of taxable wages, for his first year of liability, one and one-tenth percent (1.1%) of taxable wages for his second year of liability, and one and two-tenths percent (1.2%) of taxable wages for his third and subsequent years of liability unless the employer's experience-rating record has been chargeable throughout at least the twelve (12) consecutive calendar months ending on the most recent computation date at the time the rate for a year is determined; thereafter the employer's contribution rate shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of Section 71-5-355.

(b) Notwithstanding the newly subject employer contribution rate provided for in paragraph (a) of this subsection, the contribution rate of all newly subject employers shall be reduced by seven one-hundredths of one percent (.07%) for calendar year 2013 only. The contribution rate of all newly subject employers shall be reduced by three one-hundredths of one percent (.03%) for calendar year 2014 only. For purposes of this chapter, "newly subject employers" means employers whose unemployment insurance experience-rating record has not been chargeable throughout at least the twelve (12) consecutive calendar months ending on the most recent computation date at the time the contribution rate for a year is determined.

(2) (a) (i) There is hereby created in the Treasury of the State of Mississippi special funds to be known as the "Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund" and the "Mississippi Works Fund" which consist of funds collected pursuant to subsection (3) of this section.

(ii) Funds collected shall initially be deposited into the Mississippi Department of Employment Security bank account for clearing contribution collections and subsequently appropriate amounts shall be transferred to the Mississippi Workforce Investment and Training Fund Holding Account described in Section 71-5-453. In the event any employer pays an amount insufficient to cover the total contributions due, the amounts due shall be satisfied in the following order:

1. Unemployment contributions;

2. Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions, State Workforce Investment contributions and the Mississippi Works contributions, known collectively as the Mississippi Workforce Investment and Training contributions, on a pro rata basis;

3. Interest and damages; then

4. Legal and processing costs.

The amount of unemployment insurance contributions due for any period will be the amount due according to the actual computations unless the employer is participating in the MLPP. In that event, the amount due is the MLPP amount computed by the department.

Cost of collection and administration of the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contribution, the State Workforce Investment contribution and the Mississippi Works contribution shall be allocated based on a plan approved by the United States Department of Labor (USDOL). The Mississippi Community College Board shall pay the cost of collecting the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions, the State Workforce Investment Board shall pay the cost of collecting the State Workforce Investment contributions and the Mississippi Department of Employment Security shall pay the cost of collecting the Mississippi Works contributions. Payments shall be made semiannually with the cost allocated to each based on a USDOL approved plan on a pro rata basis, for periods ending in June and December of each year. Payment shall be made by each organization to the department no later than sixty (60) days after the billing date. Cost shall be allocated under the USDOL's approved plan and in the same ratio as each contribution type represents to the total authorized by subparagraph (ii) * * *~~(2)~~2 of this paragraph to be collected for the period.

(b) Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions and State Workforce Investment contributions shall be distributed as follows:

(i) For calendar year 2014, ninety-four and seventy-five one-hundredths percent (94.75%) shall be distributed to the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund and the remainder shall be distributed to the State Workforce Investment Board bank account;

(ii) For calendar years subsequent to calendar year 2014, ninety-three and seventy-five one-hundredths percent (93.75%) shall be distributed to the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund and the remainder shall be distributed to the State Workforce Investment Board bank account;

(iii) Workforce Enhancement Training contributions and State Workforce Investment contributions for calendar years 2014 and 2015 shall be distributed as provided in subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of this paragraph regardless of when the contributions were collected.

(c) All contributions collected for the State Workforce Enhancement Training Fund, the State Workforce Investment Fund and the Mississippi Works Fund will be initially deposited into the Mississippi Department of Employment Security bank account for clearing contribution collections and subsequently transferred to the Workforce Investment and Training Holding Account and will be held by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security in such account for a period of not less than thirty (30) days. After such period, the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions shall be transferred to the Mississippi Community College Board Treasury Account, the State Workforce Investment contributions and the Mississippi Works contributions shall be transferred to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security Mississippi Works Treasury Account in the same ratio as each contribution type represents to the total authorized by paragraph (a)(ii) * * *~~(2)~~2 of this subsection to be collected for the period and within the time frame determined by the department; however, except in cases of extraordinary circumstances, these funds shall be transferred within fifteen (15) days. Interest earnings or interest credits on deposit amounts in the Workforce Investment and Training Holding Account shall be retained in the account to pay the banking costs of the account. If after the period of twelve (12) months interest earnings less banking costs exceeds Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), such excess amounts shall be transferred to the respective accounts within thirty (30) days following the end of each calendar year on the basis described in paragraph (b) of this subsection. Interest earnings and/or interest credits for the State Workforce Investments funds shall be used for the payment of banking costs and excess amounts shall be used in accordance with the rules and regulations of the State Workforce Investment Board expenditure policies.

(d) All enforcement procedures for the collection of delinquent unemployment contributions contained in Sections 71-5-363 through 71-5-383 shall be applicable in all respects for collections of delinquent unemployment insurance contributions designated for the Unemployment Compensation Fund, the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund, the State Workforce Investment Board Fund and the Mississippi Works Fund.

(e) (i) Except as otherwise provided for in this subparagraph (i), all monies deposited into the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund Treasury Account shall be utilized exclusively by the Mississippi Community College Board in accordance with the Workforce Training Act of 1994 (Section 37-153-1 et seq.), policies approved by the Mississippi Community College Board and the annual plan developed by the State Workforce Investment Board for the following purposes: to provide training at no charge to employers and employees in order to enhance employee productivity and to establish an industrial certification grant program. Such training may be subject to a minimal administrative fee to be paid from the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund as established by the State Workforce Investment Board subject to the advice of the Mississippi Community College Board. The initial priority of these funds shall be for the benefit of existing businesses located within the state. Employers may request training for existing employees and/or newly hired employees from the Mississippi Community College Board. The Mississippi Community College Board will be responsible for approving the training. The industrial certification grant program shall be based on a person's financial need and a person wanting to apply shall do so through his or her community college based on a set of criteria established by the Mississippi Community College Board. A portion of the funds collected for the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund shall be used for the development of performance measures to measure the effectiveness of the use of the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund dollars. These performance measures shall be uniform for all community colleges and shall be reported to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and members of the Legislature. Nothing in this section or elsewhere in law shall be interpreted as giving the State Workforce Investment Board authority to direct the Mississippi Community College Board or individual community or junior colleges on how to expend money for workforce training, whether such money comes from the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund, is appropriated by the Legislature to the Mississippi Community College Board for workforce training or comes from other sources. The Mississippi Community College Board, individual community or junior colleges and the State Workforce Investment Board shall cooperate with each other and with other state agencies to promote effective workforce training in Mississippi. Any subsequent changes to these performance measures shall also be reported to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and members of the Legislature. A performance report for each community college, based upon these measures, shall be submitted annually to the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and members of the Legislature.

(ii) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph (e), all funds deposited into the State Workforce Investment Board bank account shall be used for administration of State Workforce Investment Board business, grants related to training, and other projects as determined appropriate by the State Workforce Investment Board and shall be nonexpiring. Policies for grants and other projects shall be approved through a majority vote of the State Workforce Investment Board.

(iii) All funds deposited into the Mississippi Department of Employment Security Mississippi Works Fund shall be disbursed exclusively by the Executive Director of the Mississippi Department of Employment Security, in accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated by the State Workforce Investment Board Rules Committee in support of workforce training activities approved by the Mississippi Development Authority in support of economic development activities. Funds allocated by the executive director under this subparagraph (iii) shall only be utilized for the training of unemployed persons, for immediate training needs for the net new jobs created by an employer, for the retention of jobs or to create a work-ready applicant pool of Mississippians with credentials and/or postsecondary education in accordance with the state's Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act plan. The executive director shall give priority to the training of unemployed persons. Not more than twenty-five percent (25%) of the funds may be allocated for the retention of jobs and/or creation of a work-ready applicant pool. Not more than Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) may be allocated annually for the training needs of any one (1) employer. The Mississippi Public Community College System and its partners shall be the primary entities to facilitate training. In no case shall these funds be used to supplant workforce funds available from any other sources, including, but not limited to, local, state or federal sources that are available for workforce training and development. Training conducted utilizing these Mississippi Works funds may be subject to a minimal administrative fee to be paid from the Mississippi Works Fund as authorized by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security. All costs associated with the administration of these funds shall be reimbursed to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security from the Mississippi Works Fund.

(iv) 1. The Department of Employment Security shall be the fiscal agent for the receipt and disbursement of all funds in the State Workforce Investment Board bank account.

2. In managing the State Workforce Investment Board bank account, the department shall ensure that any funds expended for contractual services rendered to the State Workforce Investment Board shall be paid only to service providers who have been selected on a competitive basis. Any contract for services entered into using funds from the Workforce Investment Fund bank account shall contain the deliverables stated in terms that allow for the assessment of work performance against measurable performance standards and shall include milestones for completion of each deliverable under the contract. For each contract for services entered into by the State Workforce Investment Board, the board shall develop a quality assurance surveillance plan that specifies quality control obligations of the contractor as well as measurable inspection and acceptance criteria corresponding to the performance standards contained in the contract's statement of work.

3. Any commodities procured for the board shall be procured in accordance with the provisions of Section 31-7-13.

(v) In addition to other expenditures, the department shall expend from the State Workforce Investment Board bank account for the use and benefit of the State Workforce Investment Board, such funds as are necessary to prepare and develop a study of workforce development needs that will consist of the following:

1. An identification of the state's workforce development needs through a well-documented quantitative and qualitative analysis of:

a. The current and projected workforce training needs of existing and identified potential Mississippi industries, with priority given to assessing the needs of existing in-state industry and business. Where possible, the analysis should include a verification and expansion of existing information previously developed by workforce training and service providers, as well as analysis of existing workforce data, such as the data collected through the Statewide Longitudinal Data System.

b. The needs of the state's workers and residents requiring additional workforce training to improve their work skills in order to compete for better employment opportunities, including a priority-based analysis of the critical factors currently limiting the state's ability to provide a trained and ready workforce.

c. The needs of workforce service and training providers in improving their ability to offer industry-relevant training, including an assessment of the practical limits of keeping training programs on the leading edge and eliminating those programs with marginal workforce relevance.

2. An assessment of Mississippi's current workforce development service delivery structure relative to the needs quantified in this subparagraph, including:

a. Development of a list of strengths/weaknesses/opportunities/threats (SWOT) of the current workforce development delivery system relative to the identified needs;

b. Identification of strategic options for workforce development services based on the results of the SWOT analysis; and

c. Development of results-oriented measures for each option that can be baselined and, if implemented, tracked over time, with quantifiable milestones and goals.

3. Preparation of a report presenting all subjects set out in this subparagraph to be delivered to the Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee no later than February 1, 2015.

4. Following the preparation of the report, the State Workforce Investment Board shall make a recommendation to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees on future uses of funds deposited to the State Workforce Investment Fund account. Such future uses may include:

a. The development of promotion strategies for workforce development programs;

b. Initiatives designed to reduce the state's dropout rate including the development of a statewide career awareness program;

c. The long-term monitoring of the state's workforce development programs to determine whether they are addressing the needs of business, industry, and the workers of the state; and

d. The study of the potential restructuring of the state's workforce programs and delivery systems.

(3) (a) (i) Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions and State Workforce Investment contributions shall be collected at the following rates:

1. For calendar year 2014 only, the rate of nineteen one-hundredths of one percent (.19%) based upon taxable wages of which eighteen one-hundredths of one percent (.18%) shall be the Workforce Enhancement Training contribution and one-hundredths of one percent (.01%) shall be the State Workforce Investment contribution; and

2. For calendar year 2015 only, the rate of sixteen one-hundredths of one percent (.16%), based upon taxable wages of which fifteen one-hundredths of one percent (.15%) shall be the Workforce Enhancement Training contribution and one-hundredths of one percent (.01%) shall be the State Workforce Investment contribution.

(ii) Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions, State Workforce Investment contributions and Mississippi Works contributions shall be collected at the following rates:

1. For calendar year 2016 only, at a rate of twenty-four one-hundredths percent (.24%), based upon taxable wages, of which fifteen one-hundredths percent (.15%) shall be the Workforce Enhancement Training contribution, one-hundredths of one percent (.01%) shall be the State Workforce Investment contribution and eight one-hundredths percent (.08%) shall be the Mississippi Works contribution.

2. For calendar years subsequent to calendar year 2016, at a rate of twenty one-hundredths percent (.20%), based upon taxable wages, of which fifteen one-hundredths percent (.15%) shall be the Workforce Enhancement Training contribution, one-hundredths of one percent (.01%) shall be the State Workforce Investment contribution and four one-hundredths percent (.04%) shall be the Mississippi Works contribution. The Mississippi Works contribution shall be collected for calendar years in which the general experience ratio, adjusted on the basis of the trust fund adjustment factor and reduced by fifty percent (50%), results in a general experience rate of less than two-tenths percent (.2%). In all other years the Mississippi Works contribution shall not be in effect.

(iii) The Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund contribution, the State Workforce Investment contribution and the Mississippi Works contribution shall be in addition to the general experience rate plus the individual experience rate of all employers but shall not be charged to reimbursing or rate-paying political subdivisions or institutions of higher learning, or reimbursing nonprofit organizations, as described in Sections 71-5-357 and 71-5-359.

(b) All Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training contributions, State Workforce Investment contributions and Mississippi Works contributions collected shall be deposited initially into the Mississippi Department of Employment Security bank account for clearing contribution collections and shall within two (2) business days be transferred to the Workforce Investment and Training Holding Account. Any Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund and/or State Workforce Investment Board bank account and/or Mississippi Works Fund transactions from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security bank account for clearing contribution collections that are deposited into the Workforce Investment and Training Fund Holding Account and are not honored by a financial institution will be transferred back to the Mississippi Department of Employment Security bank account for clearing contribution collections out of funds in the Mississippi Workforce Investment and Training Fund Holding Account.

(c) Suspension of the Workforce Enhancement Training Fund contributions required pursuant to this chapter shall occur if the insured unemployment rate exceeds an average of five and five-tenths percent (5.5%) for the three (3) consecutive months immediately preceding the effective date of the new rate year following such occurrence and shall remain suspended throughout the duration of that rate year. Such suspension shall continue until such time as the three (3) consecutive months immediately preceding the effective date of the next rate year that has an insured unemployment rate of less than an average of four and five-tenths percent (4.5%). Upon such occurrence, reactivation shall be effective upon the first day of the rate year following the event that lifts suspension and shall be in effect for that year and shall continue until such time as a subsequent suspension event as described in this chapter occurs.

(4) All collections due or accrued prior to any suspension of the Mississippi Workforce Enhancement Training Fund will be collected based upon the law at the time the contributions accrued, regardless of when they are actually collected.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2019.