On Friday, April 12, the U.S. Department of Labor — with agreement from congressional leaders — announced the release of $625 million to fund the nation’s summer jobs program for economically disadvantaged youth. The Summer Youth Program — Title II of the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) — was one of numerous programs that Congress targeted for substantial cuts.
The April 12th agreement was reached after months of political wrangling between Democrats and Republicans and the Congress and the Administration.
The debate encompassed the merits of the nation’s job training system, its ability to assist economically disadvantaged persons make the transition from economic dependence to independence, and the value of the nation’s summer jobs program.
Earlier this year, congressional leaders had decided to provide no funding for the nation’s public summer job training program and to substantially reduce funding for the year-round youth, economically disadvantaged adult and dislocated worker programs. They had determined that the summer jobs and other training programs were ineffective and that funding for these programs was no longer necessary. They did so as part of an effort to reduce the federal deficit.
What Congress did not anticipate was the amount of support that job training programs, in general, and the summer jobs program, in particular, would receive from elected officials throughout the nation.
For 30 consecutive years, the summer jobs program had provided millions of economically disadvantaged young people with invaluable employment experience and the opportunity to contribute to the financial well-being of their families. Evaluations of the program documented its effectiveness.
Had the program not been funded, this would have been the first time in 30 years that nearly one-half million poor children would have faced a summer without work. Throughout America’s cities and counties, the summer jobs program was viewed as an important component of a system designed to help economically disadvantaged young people obtain the experience and guidance they needed to enter the world of work.
The outcry from city and county elected officials and public interest groups against elimination of funding for the summer jobs program was overwhelming.
Articles appeared in many major newspapers on the impact that the failure to fund job training programs would have on economically disadvantaged youth. Major television markets highlighted public protests against the failure to fund the summer jobs program. Tens of thousands of letters, faxes and phone calls poured into Capitol Hill urging members of Congress to fund the nation’s summer jobs program.
After the Office of Management and Budget determined that the short-term continuing resolutions that Congress had passed and the president signed included $635 million for the summer jobs program, a bipartisan coalition of senators determined that it was no longer feasible to defund the nation’s summer jobs program for economically disadvantaged youth.
Led by Senator Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), the chair of the Senate Subcommittee responsible for the Labor Department’s appropriation, with support from Senator Mark Hatfield (R-Ore.), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), the ranking minority member of the subcommittee, the Senate was able to craft a bill that would fund the Labor Department’s job training programs at levels that were acceptable to the Administration. This included $625 million for summer jobs.
As of April 19, every city and county around the nation should be able to offer summer jobs to a portion of the economically disadvantaged youth who reside within their communities.
By now the funds should be allocated to every service delivery area and every service delivery area, should be recruiting youth, identifying public sector and nonprofit job sites, and developing an academic enrichment program for youth in need of educational assistance.
(For more information, contact Neil Bomberg at 202/942-4205.)