Providing for Consideration of H.R. 803, Supporting Knowledge and Investing in Lifelong Skills Act
by Representative Virginia FoxxPosted on 2013-03-14
FOXX. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call
up House Resolution 113 and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:
H. Res. 113
Resolved, That at any time after the adoption of this
resolution the Speaker may, pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule
XVIII, declare the House resolved into the Committee of the
Whole House on the state of the Union for consideration of
the bill (H.R. 803) to reform and strengthen the workforce
investment system of the Nation to put Americans back to work
and make the United States more competitive in the 21st
century. The first reading of the bill shall be dispensed
with. All points of order against consideration of the bill
are waived. General debate shall be confined to the bill and
shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by
the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on
Education and the Workforce. After general debate the bill
shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule.
In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute
recommended by the Committee on Education and the Workforce
now printed in the bill, it shall be in order to consider as
an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the five-
minute rule an amendment in the nature of a substitute
consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 113-4. That
amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered
as read. All points of order against that amendment in the
nature of a substitute are waived. No amendment to that
amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be in order
except those printed in the report of the Committee on Rules
accompanying this resolution. Each such amendment may be
offered only in the order printed in the report, may be
offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be
considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified
in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent
and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall
not be subject to a demand for division of the question in
the House or in the Committee of the Whole. All points of
order against such amendments are waived. At the conclusion
of consideration of the bill for amendment the Committee
shall rise and report the bill to the House with such
amendments as may have been adopted. Any Member may demand a
separate vote in the House on any amendment adopted in the
Committee of the Whole to the bill or to the amendment in the
nature of a substitute made in order as original text. The
previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill
and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening
motion except one motion to recommit with or without
instructions.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from North Carolina is
recognized for 1 hour.
{time} 1550
Ms. FOXX. For the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30
minutes to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Polis), pending which I
yield myself such time as I may consume. During the consideration of
this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
General Leave
Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have
5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentlewoman from North Carolina?
There was no objection.
Ms. FOXX. House Resolution 113 provides for a structured rule
providing for the consideration of H.R. 803, the Supporting Knowledge
and Investing in Lifelong Skills Act, also known simply as the SKILLS
Act.
Mr. Speaker, today, the House will consider the SKILLS Act, which
reauthorizes the Workforce Investment Act, WIA, of 1998. While these
programs have continued to receive funding through the appropriations
process, the WIA authorization expired in 2003.
WIA seeks to coordinate local employment services through a unified
workforce development service and a one-stop career center delivery
system. Reforming the Nation's workforce development system is
critical, and in these difficult economic times, when roughly 20
million Americans are struggling to find adequate work, we cannot
afford to delay action any longer. Delay is costly for those seeking to
find work. Today, many unemployed and underemployed Americans have
turned to Federal workforce education programs to develop the skills
they need to be competitive for jobs, but instead of an easy-to-
navigate, responsive system, many have found a complex bureaucracy
unresponsive to their needs and concerns.
In January 2011, the Government Accountability Office, the GAO,
identified 47 separate and distinct workforce development programs
across nine different Federal agencies that cost taxpayers
approximately $18 billion annually. The GAO report found that almost
all of these programs were duplicative and overlapping, that only five
of these programs had had any type of evaluation, and that those
evaluations had not been very effective ones.
Through the Education and the Workforce Committee's oversight of the
WIA system, even more programs have been identified, and the true
number of Federal workforce development programs is greater than 50. We
know this is a problem, and we all agree this needs to change.
President Obama recognized the challenge of the current bureaucratic
system in his 2012 State of the Union address. Let me quote the
President directly:
I want to cut through the maze of confusing training
programs so that, from now on, people have one program, one
place to go, for all the information and help that they need.
These are among the many reasons I introduced the SKILLS Act earlier
this year. This legislation streamlines 35 duplicative Federal
workforce development programs, and it creates a single workforce
investment fund to serve employers, workers, and job seekers.
The SKILLS Act establishes a dynamic, employer-driven workforce
development system by ensuring that two-thirds of the State and local
Workforce Investment Boards' members are employers, and it repeals 19
federally mandated board positions. This legislation expands
decisionmaking at State and local levels so that these individuals can
make the best decisions to meet the needs of their communities.
The bill also addresses the administrative bloat in Washington by
requiring the Office of Management and Budget to identify and reduce
the number of Federal staff working on employment workforce development
programs that will be consolidated under this bill. The SKILLS Act
holds these programs accountable for taxpayer dollars spent by
requiring annual performance evaluations and by establishing common
performance metrics.
The bill also allows States to determine eligible training providers,
simplifying the bureaucratic process that has forced many community
colleges and other providers out of the system, and it gives local
boards the flexibility to work directly with community colleges to
educate large groups of participants. Additionally, the SKILLS Act
encourages these programs to focus on in-demand jobs and industries so
that participants will be able to succeed in the workplace upon
completion, and it ensures that funds are spent directly on services
rather than on administration and bureaucrats. This bill improves
transparency by requiring States and local areas to report annually on
administrative costs.
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Each day we delay is another day employers are not hiring the workers
they need, another day unemployed workers are not receiving the best
technical education and another day taxpayer dollars are wasted on red
tape and well-intentioned but broken programs. We have a responsibility
to move this process forward. The time to act is now.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.