Amendment ASA1-AB688

LRBs0244/1

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2017 - 2018 LEGISLATURE

ASSEMBLY SUBSTITUTE AMENDMENT 1, TO ASSEMBLY BILL 688

January 16, 2018 - Offered by Representative Mursau.

AB688-ASA1,1,3 An Act to create 16.24 and 20.505 (4) (kc) of the statutes; relating to: establishing a Wisconsin conservation corps program and making an appropriation.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This substitute amendment creates a Wisconsin conservation corps (WCC) program to protect, enhance, and provide access to Wisconsin's natural heritage and encourage and enable young people to learn the value of work in a natural setting by providing employment training and career pathways. The substitute amendment directs the Department of Administration to contract with a nonprofit corporation that has demonstrated experience in grant program administration (manager) to manage and administer the program. The manager then provides grants to organizations that have experience in natural resources conservation to engage, train, and supervise work crews to carry out each project. The substitute amendment requires the manager, to the greatest extent practicable, to ensure that projects are equally distributed across technical college districts and to ensure that at least one project is located in each technical college district in each year.

The substitute amendment provides that a WCC project must be designed to carry out a specific goal within a defined period of time, must be focused on the conservation or enjoyment of natural resources for environmental conservation, and must have a specific, beneficial, and physical effect. The project must also be eligible for AmeriCorps education funding. Environmental conservation projects may include new trail construction, trail rehabilitation, invasive species management, bridge and boardwalk construction, reforestation, timber stand improvement, stream bank stabilization, erosion control, rain garden installation, prairie restoration, historical site preservation, recreation site maintenance, wild land fire hazard reduction and fuels management, lake and stream restoration, boundary marking, fencing, landscaping, disaster preparation or relief, or construction of real property improvements such as gazebos or amphitheaters.

A project may be sited only on public or tribal land in this state. The substitute amendment permits local governments, tribal governments, institutions of higher education, nonprofit corporations, or state agencies to sponsor projects. A project application is then submitted to the manager. The application must identify the proposed project and the sponsor of the project and provide a detailed plan for the work on the project.

The substitute amendment provides that each work crew member on a WCC project must be between the ages of 16 and 25, and at least 50 percent of the work crew members on each project must have no postsecondary education or have a family income of not more than 200 percent of the federal poverty line on the date of their initial engagement.

The substitute amendment provides that, if the manager determines that an application is an appropriate WCC project and that work crew members would be eligible under the program, the manager must submit the application to NCSB for funding. The manager may also submit the application to other organizations to secure funding for the project. The manager may award a grant for the project if the sponsor provides funding for the project in an amount that is at least 50 percent of the amount of the grant. The substitute amendment also limits the adminstrative costs associated with the grant to 10 percent of the grant amount.

The substitute amendment requires each sponsor, upon completion of the project, to erect a permanent plaque at each work site identifying the site as a WCC project. The substitute amendment also requires the manager to submit an annual report to DOA identifying the number of work crew members who enrolled at a postsecondary institution upon completion of the project and their status on the first anniversary of completion of the project.

Finally, the substitute amendment requires DOA to submit an annual report to the legislature identifying the projects that were completed in each year or that are in the process of completion as of the end of that year. The report must also include the locations of all such projects and the aggregate education and jobs data received from the manager's report.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB688-ASA1,1 Section 1 . 16.24 of the statutes is created to read:

AB688-ASA1,3,5 16.24 Wisconsin conservation corps. (1) Establishment of program. There is established the Wisconsin conservation corps program. The purpose of the program is to protect, enhance, and provide access to Wisconsin's natural heritage and encourage and enable young people to learn the value of work in a natural setting by providing employment training and career pathways.

AB688-ASA1,3,6 (2) Definitions. In this section:

AB688-ASA1,3,8 (a) “College campus" means any university, college, and technical college campus.

AB688-ASA1,3,10 (b) “Local government" has the meaning given for “local governmental unit" in s. 16.97 (7).

AB688-ASA1,3,13 (c) “Manager” means the nonprofit corporation with which the department executes a contract to manage the Wisconsin conservation corps program under sub. (3).

AB688-ASA1,3,15 (d) “National and community service board” means the board created under s. 15.105 (24).

AB688-ASA1,3,19 (e) “Nonprofit corporation" means a nonstock, nonprofit corporation described under section 501 (c) (3) or (4) of the Internal Revenue Code that is exempt from the federal income tax under section 501 (a) of that code and organized under the laws of this state.

AB688-ASA1,3,25 (f) “Project" means a planned undertaking of the Wisconsin conservation corps for a sponsor to carry out a specific goal within a defined period of time that is focused on the conservation or enjoyment of natural resources for environmental conservation, that will have a specific, beneficial, and physical effect, and that is eligible for AmeriCorps education funding, regardless of whether it receives such funding.

AB688-ASA1,4,3 (g) “Sponsor" means a local government, tribal government, university, college, technical college, or nonprofit corporation or an executive branch agency, as defined in s. 16.70 (4), that proposes to undertake a project.

AB688-ASA1,4,4 (h) “Youth corps program" has the meaning given in s. 16.22 (1) (dm).

AB688-ASA1,4,10 (3) Management. The department shall contract with a nonprofit corporation to administer and manage the Wisconsin conservation corps program. The nonprofit corporation shall be operating on a statewide basis on the effective date of this subsection .... [LRB inserts date], and have demonstrated experience in grant program writing and administration, natural resources conservation, and youth training, education, and employment.

AB688-ASA1,4,12 (4) Contract terms. The contract under sub. (3) shall require the manager to do all of the following:

AB688-ASA1,4,13 (a) Develop a project application form.

AB688-ASA1,4,15 (b) Review project applications submitted by sponsors and negotiate agreements with sponsors to provide work crews to complete eligible projects.

AB688-ASA1,4,17 (c) To the greatest extent practicable, approve applications for projects that are located in at least one of each of the technical college districts in each year.

AB688-ASA1,4,19 (d) Require projects to be sited on land that is located in this state and owned by the federal or state government or a local government or on tribal land.

AB688-ASA1,4,21 (e) Require projects to be for one or more of the purposes specified under sub. (5) or for any other similar project, as determined by the manager.

AB688-ASA1,5,2 (f) Require that each work crew member on a project be between the ages of 16 and 25 and at least 50 percent of the work crew members on each project either have no postsecondary education or have a family income of not more than 200 percent of the poverty line, as defined in s. 49.001. (5), on the date of initial employment or enrollment.

AB688-ASA1,5,5 (g) Require each sponsor, upon completion of a project, to erect a permanent plaque at each project work site identifying the site as a Wisconsin conservation corps project.

AB688-ASA1,5,10 (h) If it determines that work crew members on a project would be eligible to participate in a youth corps program, submit an application to the national and community service board for a grant under s. 16.22 (2) (h), and accept any such grant awarded. The manager may also submit the application to any other appropriate organization, as determined by the manager, to secure funding for the project.

AB688-ASA1,5,13 (i) After submitting the application for funding under par. (h), submit an application to the department for a grant from the appropriation account under s. 20.505 (4) (kc).

AB688-ASA1,6,2 (j) Submit an annual report to the department, no later than January 31, identifying, to the greatest extent practicable, the number of work crew members in the previous year who enrolled at a technical college, a college campus of the University of Wisconsin System, or any other postsecondary educational institution upon completion of a project in which they were engaged and the status of each such work crew member as of the first anniversary after completion of each project, including whether the crew member has graduated from high school, has received a declaration of equivalency of high school graduation, or is employed and, if employed, in what capacity. In addition, the report shall include information regarding the location of each project, by technical college district, and a brief description of each project. The manager shall also provide to the department any information the department considers necessary to complete the report under sub. (7) and may recommend improvements to the program.

AB688-ASA1,6,10 (5) Scope of projects. Environmental conservation projects may include new trail construction, trail rehabilitation, invasive species management, bridge and boardwalk construction, reforestation, timber stand improvement, stream bank stabilization, erosion control, rain garden installation, prairie restoration, historical site preservation, recreation site maintenance, wild land fire hazard reduction and fuels management, lake and stream restoration, boundary marking, fencing, landscaping, disaster preparation or relief, or construction or repair of real property improvements such as gazebos or amphitheaters.

AB688-ASA1,6,16 (6) Grants. The department may award a grant for a proposed project in an amount that is no more than $75,000, if the sponsor has provided funding for the project in an amount that is at least 50 percent of the amount of the grant. The cumulative amount of adminstrative costs charged by the department, the manager, and the sponsor in connection with a grant awarded under this subsection may not exceed 10 percent of the amount of the grant.

AB688-ASA1,6,23 (7) Annual report. Annually, no later than March 31, the department shall submit a report to the chief clerk of each house of the legislature for distribution to the legislature under s. 13.172 (2), identifying Wisconsin conservation corps projects that were completed in the preceding year or that are in the process of completion at the end of that year. The report shall also include the locations of all such projects and the aggregate education and jobs data compiled from the information received from the manager under sub. (4) (j).

AB688-ASA1,2 Section 2 . 20.505 (4) (kc) of the statutes is created to read:

AB688-ASA1,7,4 20.505 (4) (kc) Wisconsin conservation corps; interagency transfers. All moneys transferred to the department of administration from other state agencies and all moneys transferred under 2017 Wisconsin Act .... (this act), section 3 (1 ), to be used for Wisconsin conservation corps program grants under s. 16.24.

AB688-ASA1,3 Section 3 . Nonstatutory provisions.

AB688-ASA1,7,6 (1) Transfer of moneys to Wisconsin conservation corps program.

AB688-ASA1,7,8 (a) In this subsection, “executive branch agency" has the meaning given under section 16.70 (4) of the statutes.

AB688-ASA1,7,13 (b) Notwithstanding sections 20.115 to 20.875 and 25.40 (3) of the statutes, but subject to paragraphs (c) to (e), the secretary of administration may transfer a total of not more than $400,000 appropriated from sum certain appropriations to executive branch agencies under those sections of the statutes to the appropriation account under section 20.505 (4) (kc) of the statutes, as created by this act.

AB688-ASA1,7,18 (c) No moneys may be transferred under paragraph (b ) from an appropriation derived from federal revenues. No moneys may be transferred under paragraph (b) if the transfer would violate the state or federal constitution, any state or federal law not specified in paragraph (b), or a requirement imposed by the federal government as a condition to receipt of aids by this state.

AB688-ASA1,7,22 (d) The secretary of administration shall not transfer moneys under paragraph (b) from an appropriation account to the department of transportation under section 20.395 (3) (bq), (cq), or (cr) of the statutes, other than moneys for department operations and services engaged under section 84.01 (13) of the statutes.