Committee reviews H.34 to define duties for new executive director of workforce strategy

The Vermont House Committee on Commerce & Economic Development on Jan. 22 discussed H.34, legislation that amends 10 V.S.A. §540 to define duties for an Executive Director of the Office of Workforce Strategy and Development and to reconstitute the State Workforce Development Board.

Legislative counsel Rick Segal told the committee that "Act 146...created this new Office of Workforce Strategy and Development," and that H.34 edits 10 V.S.A. §540 to allocate responsibilities between the Commissioner of Labor and a new executive director. He said the changes respond to recommendations made by a multi‑member task force and a consultant retained after the 2020 conference committee discussions between the House and Senate.

The bill formalizes shared leadership of workforce education, employment and training. Under H.34 the Commissioner of Labor remains designated as the State Workforce Agency and State Workforce Administrator for purposes of the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), while the Executive Director of the Office of Workforce Strategy and Development will serve as a co‑leader and advisor to the governor and cabinet on an integrated statewide workforce system.

Committee members pressed the office’s practical responsibilities. The bill requires the executive director to create a publicly accessible inventory of known workforce education, employment and training programs, to "annually assess the investments and effectiveness of the workforce development system," and to identify duplication, best practices and gaps. H.34 also requires the executive director to issue a comprehensive biannual workforce report to the governor and specified House and Senate committees on or before Dec. 1 covering the previous two calendar years. The bill sets an effective date of July 1, 2025.

Members asked whether the inventory should include privately funded programs. The committee discussed adding explicit language to clarify whether the inventory and reporting should capture only state and federally funded programs or a broader set of privately funded, mission‑driven initiatives. One member noted privately funded programs can be finite and said documenting them helps the state decide whether to replicate or support effective models.

The bill also reduces the State Workforce Development Board from 63 to 27 members, a change described in the bill text as aligning the board size with the federal minimum and making the board "more relevant" to statewide workforce strategy beyond WIOA. H.34 instructs the executive director to coordinate with the Department of Labor, the board chair and the board’s executive committee as appropriate.

H.34 includes provisions to collect individual‑level performance data "to the fullest extent allowed under Federal law," including Social Security number or equivalent where required by federal funding rules. The committee also reviewed a companion tasking from Act 146 for the executive director and Agency of Digital Services to produce a report on a proposed data tool (a data trust/databank) with recommendations on partners, use cases, data sharing progress and funding needs; that report is due Dec. 15, 2025.

Committee members and counsel emphasized the bill currently describes roles and reporting requirements rather than creating new funding mechanisms. Several members said they expect additional testimony from the Department of Labor, the executive director and outside stakeholders during subsequent hearings.

The committee did not vote on H.34 during the floor of this meeting; the session was a working review and preview of the bill’s provisions and the statutory edits under consideration.