Larry Bucshon: “We are here today to discuss the positive reforms within the SKILLS Act. Our Nation's current job training system is…”

“We are here today to discuss the positive reforms within the SKILLS Act. Our Nation's current job training system is broken. The SKILLS Act will give state and local governments more flexibility by consolidating 35 existing federal employment and training programs into a single Workforce Investment Fund. This will end the long line of bureaucratic red tape, lower costs, and increase the representation of employers on local workforce boards. I have received numerous letters from Hoosier small business owners asking me to support the SKILLS Act. The reason? This bill unites the local small business community by enhancing their involvement in career development programs, closing the skills gap, and providing more job opportunities in this struggling economy, which saw the GDP decline in the fourth quarter of 2012. Our founding fathers believed that reducing the size and scope of the federal government and restoring power back to the states and this bill matches that theme. The Indiana Department of Workforce Development echoes our message that states need the flexibility to rein in bureaucracy and provide our workers with a more dynamic, flexible, and efficient network of job training services. Currently, Indiana uses their funds on programs like: A youth summer program that combines in-the-class training and internships, or the state funded Western Governors University . . . Indiana's nursing program.…”