Article 4 - California YouthBuild Program

California Unemployment Insurance Code — §§ 9800-9809.5

Sections (11)

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

The purposes of the California YouthBuild Program shall be all of the following:

(a)To enable economically disadvantaged youth, especially youth who have not finished high school, to obtain the education, job skills training, personal counseling, leadership development skills training, job placement assistance, and long-term followup services necessary for them to achieve permanent economic self-sufficiency, while at the same time providing valuable community service that addresses urgent community needs, including the demand for affordable housing and the need for young role models and mentors for younger teenagers and children.

(b)To provide communities with the opportunity to establish or rebuild neighborhood stability in economically depressed and low-income areas, as well as historic areas requiring restoration or preservation, while providing economically disadvantaged youth, and youth who have not finished high school, an opportunity for a meaningful participation in society.

(c)To allow communities to expand the supply of affordable housing for homeless and other low-income individuals by utilizing the energies and talents of economically disadvantaged youth and young people who have not graduated from school.

(d)To foster the development of leadership skills and a commitment to community development among youth.

§ 9801

Amended by Stats. 2009, Ch. 95, Sec. 1. (AB 271) Effective January 1, 2010.

(a)The director, from funds appropriated for this purpose to the YouthBuild Program, may make grants to applicants for the purpose of carrying out programs as authorized by this article. For the purpose of administering and managing the grant-making process, the director may contract with a qualified nonprofit corporation designated by the United States Department of Labor to provide technical assistance to YouthBuild programs. All programs shall have strong youth and community involvement.

(b)For purposes of this article, the following terms have the following meaning:

(1)“YouthBuild Program” means the overall California YouthBuild Program, as coordinated by the director.

(2)“Program” means an individual program funded by a grant made by the director to an applicant as part of the overall YouthBuild Program.

(c)“Applicant” means an entity that applies for a program grant pursuant to Section 9807.

(d)“Participant” means a person eligible to participate in a program pursuant to Section 9805.

§ 9802

Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 227, Sec. 24. (AB 1400) Effective January 1, 2012.

Programs shall provide, at a minimum, all of the following services:

(a)(1) Acquisition, rehabilitation, acquisition and rehabilitation, or construction of housing and related facilities to be used for the purpose of providing home ownership for disadvantaged persons, residential housing for homeless individuals and very low income families, or transitional housing for persons who are homeless, ill, deinstitutionalized, or who have disabilities or special needs.

(2)Rehabilitation or construction of community facilities owned by public agencies or nonprofit entities.

(b)(1) Integrated education and job training services and activities or an equally divided basis, with 50 percent of participants’ time spent in classroom-based instruction, counseling, and leadership development instruction, and 50 percent of participants’ time spent in experiential training on the construction site.

(2)The education component described in paragraph (1) shall include basic skills instruction, secondary education services, and other activities designed to lead to the attainment of a high school diploma or its equivalent. The curriculum for this component shall include math, language arts, vocational education, life skills training, social studies related to the cultural and community history of the participants, leadership skills, and other topics at the discretion of the program. Bilingual services shall be available for individuals with limited-English proficiency. A program shall have a

goal of a minimum teacher-to-participant ratio of one teacher for every 18 participants.

(3)The job training component described in paragraph (1) shall involve work experience and skills training apprenticeships related to construction and rehabilitation activities described in subdivision (a). The process of construction shall be coupled with skills training and with close onsite supervision by experienced trainers. The curriculum for this component shall contain a set of locally agreed upon skills and competencies that are systematically taught, with participants’ mastery assessed individually on a regular, ongoing basis. Safety skills shall be taught at the outset. A program shall have a goal of a minimum trainer-to-participant ratio of one trainer for every seven participants. This component shall be coordinated to the maximum extent feasible with preapprenticeship and apprenticeship opportunities.

(4)Assistance in attaining postsecondary education and in obtaining financial aid shall be made available to participants prior to graduation from the program.

(c)Counseling services designed to assist participants in positively participating in society, including all of the following, as necessary: outreach, assessment, and orientation; individual and peer counseling; life skills training, drug and alcohol abuse education and prevention; and referral to appropriate drug rehabilitation, medical, mental health, legal, housing, and other community services and resources. A program shall have a goal of a minimum counselor-to-participant ratio of one counselor for every 28 participants.

(d)(1) Leadership development training that provides participants with meaningful opportunities to develop

leadership skills, including decisionmaking, problem solving, and negotiating. A program shall encourage participants to develop strong peer group ties that support their mutual pursuit of skills and values.

(2)Each program shall establish a youth council in which participants are afforded opportunities to develop public speaking and negotiating skills, and management and policymaking participation in specific aspects of the program.

(e)Each participant shall be provided with a training subsidy, living allowance, or stipend of not less than eight dollars ($8) per hour for the time spent at the worksite in construction training. For those participants who receive public assistance, this training subsidy, living allowance, or stipend shall not affect housing benefits, medical benefits, child care benefits, or CalFresh benefits, to the extent consistent with federal law. The

training subsidy, living allowance, or stipend may be distributed in a manner that offers incentives for good performance.

(f)Full-time participation in a program shall be offered for a period of not less than 6 months and not more than 24 months.

(g)A concentrated effort shall be made to find construction, construction-related, or nonconstruction jobs for all graduates of the program who have performed well. The job training curriculum shall provide participants with basic preparation for seeking and maintaining a job. Followup counseling and assistance in job seeking shall also be provided to participants for a period of 12 months following graduation from the program.

(h)A program serving 20 or more participants is required to have a full-time director responsible for the coordination of the requirements of

this article.

§ 9802.5

Amended by Stats. 2009, Ch. 95, Sec. 2. (AB 271) Effective January 1, 2010.

The department may accept proposals for funding from applicants who establish their eligibility for funding under this article by submitting proof that they have been funded or designated as a federal YouthBuild program by the United States Department of Labor.

§ 9803

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

Program grants may be used for the activities in Section 9802 and for any of the following activities:

(a)Legal fees for housing acquisition.

(b)Administrative and technical assistance costs of the program applicant that may not exceed 15 percent of the program grant, or another amount as is determined by the director to be necessary to support capacity development of a private nonprofit community-based organization. The applicant may contract with a technical assistance provider approved by the director.

(c)Defraying costs for the ongoing training and technical assistance needs of the program applicant that are related to developing and carrying out the program.

§ 9805

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

(a)Except as provided in subdivision (b), eligible participants in a program shall be youth between the ages of 17 and 24, inclusive, who are economically disadvantaged, as defined in Section 1503 of Title 29 of the United States Code, and who are in one of the following groups:

(1)Persons who are not attending any school and who have not received a secondary school diploma or its equivalent.

(2)Persons currently enrolled in a traditional or alternative school setting or a GED program and who are in danger of dropping out of school.

(3)Very low income persons whose incomes are at or less than 50 percent of the area median income area, adjusted for family size, as estimated by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.

(b)Not more than 25 percent of program participants may be individuals who do not meet the requirements of subdivision (a). These participants shall be persons who have educational needs despite the attainment of a high school diploma.

§ 9806

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

(a)The director shall use the existing infrastructure of federally funded YouthBuild programs to the maximum extent possible. In the 1999–2000 fiscal year, the director shall give first priority in awarding grants under this article to applicants seeking to continue YouthBuild programs established with federal or other funding.

(b)Entities eligible for grants under this article shall be nonprofit private entities and public agencies with experience in operating youth construction skills training, education, job placement, personal development, leadership development, and housing rehabilitation or construction programs.

§ 9807

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

An application for a grant under this article shall, at a minimum, contain all of the following:

(a)The amount of the grant requested and the proposed use of the grant.

(b)A description of the applicant and a statement of the applicant’s qualifications, including a description of the applicant’s past experience in running a YouthBuild program, if applicable, a description of the applicant’s past experience with housing rehabilitation or construction, youth and youth education, youth leadership development, and youth employment training programs, and a description of the applicant’s relationship with apprenticeship programs and with community-based organizations.

(c)A description of the proposed construction site and evidence of site control, and a description of the proposed construction or rehabilitation activities to be undertaken and the anticipated schedule for carrying out those activities.

(d)A description of the educational and job training activities, work opportunities, and other services that will be provided to participants.

(e)A description of the manner in which eligible youths will be recruited and selected, including a description of the arrangements that will be made with community-based organizations, local education agencies and education agencies of Native American nations, public assistance agencies, courts of jurisdiction for status and youth offenders, shelters for homeless individuals and other agencies serving homeless youth, foster care agencies, and other appropriate public agencies and private entities.

(f)A description of the special efforts that will be undertaken to recruit eligible young women as participants, including women with dependent children, including a description of how those women can receive appropriate support, including child care.

(g)A description of how the proposed program will be coordinated with other federal, state, Native American nation, and local agency activities, including public school programs, the Americorps program, crime prevention programs, vocational, adult, and bilingual education programs, and other job training programs.

(h)Substantive assurances that there will be a sufficient number of adequately trained supervisory personnel in the program who have attained the journey level or its equivalent.

(i)A description of the applicant’s relationship with any local building trades union, including a description of the union’s involvement in training and the proposed relationship of the activities to be undertaken pursuant to the grant with established apprenticeship programs.

(j)A description of activities that will be undertaken to develop the leadership skills of participants, including their role in decisionmaking.

(k)A detailed budget and description of a system of fiscal controls and auditing and accountability procedures that will be used to ensure fiscal soundness.

(l)A description of any contracts and arrangements entered into between the applicant and other entities, including all in-kind donations and grants from both public and private sources that will augment grant funds made available pursuant to this article.

(m)Identification and description of the financing proposed for any acquisition of property, or the rehabilitation or construction of housing.

(n)Identification and description of the entity that will operate and manage the property.

(o)A certification that the applicant will comply with the requirements of applicable federal laws, including the Fair Housing Act, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and that the applicant will work to further fair housing policies.

(p)A description of the qualifications and past experience of the person who will be the full-time director for the applicant’s project to be funded pursuant to this article.

(q)A description of the applicant pool profile, including, but not limited to, the number of participants currently on parole or probation, the number of participants with children requiring paid supervision, and the number of participants with Department of Motor Vehicles or court-sanctioned holds on their drivers’ licenses.

§ 9808

Amended by Stats. 2009, Ch. 95, Sec. 3. (AB 271) Effective January 1, 2010.

The term “YouthBuild” shall only be used in connection with a program funded pursuant to this article or by the United States Department of Labor, or if the program is an affiliate of YouthBuild U.S.A.

§ 9809

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

Each grant recipient, at the beginning of the grant cycle, shall report to the director, at a minimum, regarding the number of participants who have done any of the following:

(a)Obtained a general education degree (GED).

(b)Obtained full-time, unsubsidized employment in the building trades industry.

(c)Obtained full-time, unsubsidized employment in other industries.

(d)Obtained part-time, unsubsidized employment in the building trades industry or in other industries.

(e)Gained acceptance into a trade apprenticeship program.

(f)Successfully enrolled in a vocational or two-year community college.

(g)Successfully enrolled in a state university, the University of California, or any other four-year college.

§ 9809.5

Added by Stats. 1999, Ch. 829, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2000.

Each grant recipient shall report to the director on other participant outcomes as required by the Governor under Section 122(h) of the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998.