Floridas regional workforce boards want to put young peopleto work this summer in temporary employment programs.
But they might need to go without a critical injection of extra federal funds, and at least three agencies are considering scaling back or abandoning the programs that put cash in the bank accounts and job experience on the resumes of low-income and at-risk youths.
Floridas 24 state-regulated regional workforce boards depend greatly on federal funding, and they received an added boost of $36.4 million, spread among boards statewide, from last years $787 billion federal stimulus package to run youth employment programs last year, this year and in the future.
Combined with regular federal funding, they received $65.2 million last year.
This year, the boards, which assist with job training and placement, arent guaranteed a delivery of extra federal money.
A $5.72 billion U.S. House of Representatives bill that would allocate $600 million for summer youth employment programs nationally is now in legislative limbo.
And some programs are being at least slimmed down to compensate for lack of extra federal money .
Such may be the case for Workforce Solutions, which serves Indian River, Okeechobee, Martin and St. Lucie counties.
There are bigger areas of the state that are moving ahead" without extra federal funds, said spokeswoman Odaly Victorio. We cant afford to do that.
The agency is waiting to see if it will receive extra federal funds.
Last year, Workforce Solutions injected nearly $1.35 million in federal stimulus funds into an on-the-job summer work experience program that matched 226 youths, ages 16-24, with 125 employers. The participants spent eight weeks filing medical records, sorting clothes, washing dogs and completing other jobs for public and private employers large and small.
Workforce Solutions paid stipends to the youths for their 32-hour weeks of work, instead of requiring employers to pay the participants a wage. The youths made $8 an hour. And a fortunate group of youths were offered jobs by employers after the program ended.
By this time last year, Workforce Solutions knew that it would receive nearly $3.5 million total for its youth programs, which also included paying for a simple job shadowing and readiness program for younger participants at local community colleges.
This year, Workforce Solutions is still waiting to find out whether it will receive any extra federal money.
We thought we would have known in February, and we still dont know, Victorio said. So, were a little frustrated.
Workforce Solutions is reducing the on-the-job program to fewer than 100 participants if it doesn't get the extra cash. Even if it does get the extra money, it's scaling back its planned use of federal funds for the program to $800,000.
In that case, it would expandthe on-the-job program to 300 youths, but it would not fund the job-readiness program for younger participants.
Ask a representative of one of the workforce-development boards what federal bill would give them their needed money and few could tell you.
The $5.72 billion U.S. House bill, proposed by U.S. Rep. David Obey, D-WI, allocates $600 million for summer employment programs nationally, via the Workforce Investment Act that gives the boards federal funds regularly. The majority of the rest of the funds goes toward disaster relief.
H.R. 4899 passed the U.S. House March 24, but nobody knows if and when it will be taken up by the U.S. Senate and signed into law by President Barack Obama.
The bill was opposed in the House by most Republicans, including U.S. Reps. Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, and Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta.
In an e-mailed statement, Rooneys spokesman said:
Congressman Rooney voted against the bill, HR 4899, because it had a $5.72 billion price tag and pay-for. He is focused on creating permanent, private-sector jobs."
George Cecala, spokesman for Posey, explained further. The bills price put another burden on already strained federal funds. Job creation should be left to the private market and supplemented with tax incentives for small businesses, he said.
The staff of U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said they didnt know when the bill might come to the U.S. Senate, but it might come attached to a larger jobs package, which might make it more palatable. The popular summer jobs programs are valuable to the state for Nelson and worth funding, said Nelsons spokesman.
Hes a strong supporter of the summer jobs program, said Bryan Gulley. Hes likely to vote for it.
Workforce Solutions isnt the only program depending on federal funding.
Workforce Connections on-the-job summer employment program was funded last year with nearly $919 million in federal stimulus money, said Margaret Spontak, vice president of business development for the agency that serves Citrus, Levy and Marion counties.
The program, which paid participants salaries, was critical, and it helped youths support themselves and their loved ones, she said.
There were some who were actually putting food on the table for their family, Spontak said.
The Workforce Connection program matched 300 youths, ages 14-24, with 132 employers, ranging from nonprofit and government agencies to private industries like Progress Energy.
This year, the agency wont offer the program without extra federal funds. It has a few limited job-readiness programs that it can fund itself, but they pale in comparison to the program offered last year.
We would certainly offer a youth program if the federal funding comes through, Spontak said.
Without an injection of extra federal funds, Workforce Central Florida, which serves Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake or Sumter Counties, is funding its on-the-job youth summer employment program with its existing store of funds and cutting it by $1.1 million. Much like other programs, Workforce pays participants instead of requiring employers to do so.
It will reduce the number of slots, said spokeswoman Kimberly Cornett.
Last year, the program received $4.1 million in federal funds and accepted 1,200 of roughly 7,000 applicants. This year, it is giving itself a $3 million budget and accepting 750 participants out of thousands of applicants.
Reach Alex Tiegen at Alex.Tiegen@gmail.com or (561) 329-5389.
