Bill Text: PA HB2450 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Providing for payment to certain students at State system universities; establishing the Responsible Students First Grant Fund; providing for the powers and duties of the Department of Education and the Secretary of Education; establishing the Job-ready Major Evaluation Advisory Committee; and providing for the powers and duties of the committee.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-06-06 - Referred to EDUCATION [HB2450 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2011-HB2450-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 3685
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 2450 Session of2012
INTRODUCED BY ROAE AND MOUL, JUNE 6, 2012
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, JUNE 6, 2012
AN ACT
Providing for payment to certain students at State system
universities; establishing the Responsible Students First
Grant Fund; providing for the powers and duties of the
Department of Education and the Secretary of Education;
establishing the Job-ready Major Evaluation Advisory
Committee; and providing for the powers and duties of the
committee.
The General Assembly finds and declares that:
(1) Responsible students at institutions of higher
education pursue a course of study and select an academic
major that is likely to lead to gainful employment
opportunities.
(2) While many students at the institutions of the State
System of Higher Education select academic majors that are
likely to lead to gainful employment, other students do not
choose academic majors that are likely to do so.
(3) Many job vacancies in this Commonwealth are a result
of employers not being able to find job applicants with the
required educational background for the available jobs.
(4) Students would be better served by completing higher
education degrees in academic majors that provide a
reasonable chance of getting a job that utilizes their major.
(5) Students at institutions of the State System of
Higher Education would more carefully select their academic
majors if additional funding was provided for students who
select job-ready majors at the institutions they attend.
(6) Institutions of the State System of Higher Education
would better serve the residents of this Commonwealth if all
of their students, rather than just some of them, completed
courses of study that are likely to lead to gainful
employment.
(7) Scarce tax money appropriated to the State System of
Higher Education would be better utilized if it was
redirected to public school districts for early education
programs rather than to postsecondary education courses of
study that are likely to result in a graduate's being unable
to get a job after earning a degree that does not make the
person job-ready.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Responsible
Students First Act.
Section 2. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Committee." The Job-ready Major Evaluation Advisory
Committee established by this act.
"Department." The Department of Education of the
Commonwealth.
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"Fund." The Responsible Students First Grant Fund
established by this act.
"Job-ready major." A major course of study at a State system
university that the Job-ready Major Evaluation Advisory
Committee finds likely to lead to gainful employment in this
Commonwealth.
"Other matriculating student." A resident of this
Commonwealth who has matriculated at a State system university
and who has not declared a job-ready major.
"Responsible student." A resident of this Commonwealth who
has matriculated at a State system university and has declared a
job-ready major.
"Secretary." The Secretary of Education of the Commonwealth.
"State system university." A university of the State System
of Higher Education.
Section 3. Responsible Students First Grant Fund.
(a) Establishment.--The Responsible Students First Grant
Fund is established as a restricted account in the State
Treasury. The moneys of the fund are appropriated to the
department on a continuing basis for the purpose of awarding
grants to responsible students and making payments to school
districts as provided in this act.
(b) Accounts.--An account for each State system university
is established in the fund.
Section 4. Distribution of funding.
(a) Annual transfer.--For each fiscal year, the
appropriation made to the State System of Higher Education shall
be transferred from the General Fund to the Responsible Students
First Grant Fund.
(b) Allocations.--After the transfer occurs under subsection
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(a), the secretary shall allocate the funding to each State
system university according to the same formula used in the
fiscal year beginning July 1, 2011, and shall transfer the
amount of the allocation to the corresponding accounts for each
State system university.
(c) Payment to students.--
(1) After making the allocation to an account for a
State system university under subsection (b), the secretary
shall distribute the money in the account to the State system
university, on behalf of its students, as follows:
(i) Thirty-three percent of the money shall be
distributed on a pro rata basis for responsible students.
(ii) Sixty-seven percent of the money shall be
distributed on a pro rata basis for responsible students
and other matriculating students.
(2) A State system university that receives the
distribution for a student under paragraph (1) shall apply
the total amount of the payment to the academic department in
which the student has declared a major.
Section 5. Determination of number of responsible students.
The department shall determine the number of responsible
students at each State system university not more than 30 days
prior to the beginning of the fall semester.
Section 6. Job-ready Major Evaluation Advisory Committee.
(a) Establishment.--The Job-ready Major Evaluation Advisory
Committee is established in the department. The committee shall
consist of the following members:
(1) The secretary.
(2) The Secretary of Labor and Industry.
(3) The Secretary of Community and Economic Development.
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(4) A representative of a Statewide small business group
who is appointed by the Governor.
(5) A representative of a Statewide business group that
has a membership of small, medium and large businesses and
who is appointed by the Governor.
(6) A representative of a Statewide manufacturers group
who is appointed by the Governor.
(7) A representative of a Statewide agriculture group
who is appointed by the Governor.
(8) A representative of a Statewide union who is
appointed by the Governor.
(9) A representative of a government watchdog group,
which advocates for fiscal responsibility, who is appointed
by the Governor.
(b) Powers and duties.--The committee shall:
(1) Annually review the list of academic majors offered
by the State system universities, evaluate those academic
majors that are likely to lead to gainful employment in this
Commonwealth and place those academic majors on a job-ready
major list. In performing its duties under this paragraph,
the committee shall consider actual job openings, projected
job openings, the needs of employers, transferability of
skills and any other information deemed relevant by the
committee.
(2) Prepare a report of its job-ready major list and
submit it to the secretary.
(c) Secretary review.--The secretary shall review the report
received from the committee under subsection (b)(2) and utilize
the report as the basis of the regulations required by section
7.
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Section 7. Duty of secretary.
The secretary shall promulgate regulations necessary to
determine which academic majors offered at State system
universities are job-ready majors.
Section 8. Cooperation.
The State system universities shall cooperate with the
department in the administration of this act.
Section 9. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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