To provide grants to States for improved workplace and community transition training for incarcerated youth offenders.

June 30, 2005

Mr. SPECTER (for himself, Mr. KENNEDY, and Mr. JEFFORDS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

To provide grants to States for improved workplace and community transition training for incarcerated youth offenders.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Improved Workplace and Community Transition Training for Incarcerated Youth Offenders Act of 2005'.

SEC. 2. GRANTS TO STATES FOR IMPROVED WORKPLACE AND COMMUNITY TRANSITION TRAINING FOR INCARCERATED YOUTH OFFENDERS.

Section 821 of the Higher Education Amendments of 1998 (20 U.S.C. 1151) is amended to read as follows:

`SEC. 821. GRANTS TO STATES FOR IMPROVED WORKPLACE AND COMMUNITY TRANSITION TRAINING FOR INCARCERATED YOUTH OFFENDERS.

`(a) Findings- Congress makes the following findings:

`(1) Almost 60 percent of the prison population in 2002 was less than 35 years old.

`(2) Less than 32 percent of State prison inmates have a high school diploma or a higher level of education, compared to 82 percent of the general population.

`(3) Approximately 38 percent of inmates who completed 11 years or less of school were not working before entry into prison.

`(4) The percentage of State prisoners participating in educational programs has decreased by more than 8 percent over the period 1991-1997, despite growing evidence of how educational programming while incarcerated reduces recidivism.

`(5) Among inmates released from prison in 1999, the average time served in prison for the current offense was 29 months, compared with 22 months served by those released from prison in 1990. Time spent in prison provides a unique opportunity for education and training.

`(6) At least 95 percent of all State prisoners will be released from prison at some point.

`(7) In 2001, 592,000 offenders were released from State prison, a 46 percent increase over the 405,400 offenders that were released in 1990.

`(8) The average age of prisoners released to parole increased from 31 years in 1990 to 34 years in 1999.

`(9) Approximately 62 percent of State prisoners will be rearrested within 3 years, with 41 percent returning to prison or jail.

`(10) The recidivism rate for those inmates that participate in education programs while incarcerated is approximately 10 percent lower than non-participants.

`(11) Even with quality education and training provided during incarceration, a period of intense supervision, support, and counseling is needed upon release to ensure effective reintegration of youth offenders into society.

`(b) Definition- For purposes of this section, the term `youth offender' means a male or female offender under the age of 35, who is incarcerated in a State prison, including a prerelease facility.

`(c) Grant Program- The Secretary of Education (in this section referred to as the `Secretary')--

`(1) shall establish a program in accordance with this section to provide grants to the State correctional education agencies in the States, from allocations for the States under subsection (i), to assist and encourage youth offenders to acquire functional literacy, life, and job skills, through--

`(A) the pursuit of a postsecondary education certificate, or an associate or bachelor's degree while in prison; and

`(B) employment counseling and other related services which start during incarceration and end not later than 1 year after release from confinement; and

`(2) may establish such performance objectives and reporting requirements for State correctional education agencies receiving grants under this section as the Secretary determines are necessary to assess the effectiveness of the program under this section.

`(d) Application- To be eligible for a grant under this section, a State correctional education agency shall submit to the Secretary a proposal for a youth offender program that--

`(1) identifies the scope of the problem, including the number of youth offenders in need of postsecondary education and vocational training;

`(2) lists the accredited public or private educational institution or institutions that will provide postsecondary educational services;

`(3) lists the cooperating agencies, public and private, or businesses that will provide related services, such as counseling in the areas of career development, substance abuse, health, and parenting skills;

`(4) describes specific performance objectives and evaluation methods (in addition to, and consistent with, any objectives established by the Secretary under subsection (c)(2)) that the State correctional education agency will use in carrying out its proposal, including--

`(A) specific and quantified student outcome measures that are referenced to outcomes for non-program participants with similar demographic characteristics; and

`(B) measures, consistent with the data elements and definitions described in subsection (e)(1)(A), of--

`(i) program completion, including an explicit definition of what constitutes a program completion within the proposal;

`(ii) knowledge and skill attainment, including specification of instruments that will measure knowledge and skill attainment;

`(iii) attainment of employment both prior to and subsequent to release;

`(iv) success in employment indicated by job retention and advancement; and

`(v) recidivism, including such subindicators as time before subsequent offense and severity of offense;

`(5) describes how the proposed programs are to be integrated with existing State correctional education programs (such as adult education, graduate education degree programs, and vocational training) and State industry programs;

`(6) describes how the proposed programs will have considered or will utilize technology to deliver the services under this section; and

`(7) describes how students will be selected so that only youth offenders eligible under subsection (f) will be enrolled in postsecondary programs.

`(e) Program Requirements- Each State correctional education agency receiving a grant under this section shall--

`(1) annually report to the Secretary regarding--

`(A) the results of the evaluations conducted using data elements and definitions provided by the Secretary for the use of State correctional education programs;

`(B) any objectives or requirements established by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (c)(2); and

`(C) the additional performance objectives and evaluation methods contained in the proposal described in subsection (d)(4) as necessary to document the attainment of project performance objectives; and

`(2) expend on each participating eligible student for an academic year, not more than the maximum Federal Pell Grant funded under section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 for such academic year, which shall be used for--

`(A) tuition, books, and essential materials; and

`(B) related services such as career development, substance abuse counseling, parenting skills training, and health education.

`(f) Student Eligibility- A youth offender shall be eligible for participation in a program receiving a grant under this section if the youth offender--

`(1) is eligible to be released within 5 years (including a youth offender who is eligible for parole within such time); and

`(2) is 35 years of age or younger.

`(g) Length of Participation- A State correctional education agency receiving a grant under this section shall provide educational and related services to each participating youth offender for a period not to exceed 5 years, 1 year of which may be devoted to study in a graduate education degree program or to remedial education services for students who have obtained a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent. Educational and related services shall start during the period of incarceration in prison or prerelease, and the related services may continue for not more than 1 year after release from confinement.

`(h) Education Delivery Systems- State correctional education agencies and cooperating institutions shall, to the extent practicable, use high-tech applications in developing programs to meet the requirements and goals of this section.

`(i) Allocation of Funds- From the funds appropriated pursuant to subsection (j) for each fiscal year, the Secretary shall allot to each State an amount that bears the same relationship to such funds as the total number of students eligible under subsection (f) in such State bears to the total number of such students in all States.

`(j) Authorization of Appropriations- There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2006 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.'.

END