(1) (a) The general assembly finds and declares that: (I) Colorado's economic vitality depends on a highly educated, skilled, and diverse workforce ready to meet the job demands of a post-pandemic world. This requires a learner- centered approach to offering programs designed to integrate secondary, postsecondary, and work-based learning opportunities for students enrolled in high school and, ultimately, creating pathways and workforce options that allow students in Colorado to graduate high school with a career-connected learning opportunity. (II) Colorado is considered a national leader in postsecondary and workforce readiness policies and has enacted statutes that provide resources and funding mechanisms to districts that offer postsecondary and workforce opportunities in high school, including the ability to earn college credits, obtain industry credentials, or experience work-based learning; (III) The general assembly has enacted statutes directing community colleges and the state workforce development council to create and expand career pathways in a wide variety of careers ranging from manufacturing career pathways to integrated career pathways within growing industry sectors to career pathways for teachers; (IV) These statutes and programs have led to a significant expansion of work-based learning and partnerships with employers and a notable increase in the number of students completing courses in high school that qualify for both secondary and postsecondary credit, industry credential programs, and work-based learning experiences. The Colorado department of education reports that between 2016 and 2023, over sixty-five thousand students completed qualifying advanced placement courses through the career development success program, obtained industry credentials, and participated in work-based learning experiences. (V) The task force created in House Bill 21-1330 called for expanding innovative high school, postsecondary, and workforce options and pathways, which broadly include work-based learning, credential completion, apprenticeships, and other experiences, with a focus on high- need, in-demand, high-value business- and industry-focused career pathways; (VI) In response, the general assembly passed House Bill 22-1215, which created a task force to review the complicated and interwoven set of issues related to program approval, availability, and funding that results in unequal student access to postsecondary and workforce readiness programs across the state and to make recommendations to address these issues; (VII) The important work conducted by the members of the task force provided critical recommendations for how the state can ensure that every student in Colorado can graduate from high school with college credits; an in-demand, industry credential; or a quality, work-based learning experience; (VIII) The recommendations of the task force center on simplifying programs, aligning incentives, understanding effects, and developing and improving systems that better connect education and the workforce; (IX) Notably, the task force was unable to evaluate the effect of postsecondary and workforce readiness programs due to the limited access to outcome data and lack of consistent outcome data, and the absence of disaggregated data and a longitudinal data system to connect long-term wage outcomes with participation in these programs; (X) The task force made thirteen recommendations and recommended the state begin by focusing on streamlining administration, developing a longitudinal data system, and creating sustainable funding. The task force report concluded with encouragement to think beyond existing programs and to develop, "a streamlined system that serves learners in all their education and workforce readiness training and is easy to navigate for all those who support them." (XI) The task force also recommended prioritizing the third recommendation: "Establish and utilize a robust statewide longitudinal data system. The system should interface with data reported from the relevant entities that is shareable across agencies and comply with existing statutory parameters, including state and federal data privacy laws. There should also be an investment in a public-facing dashboard with education and employment outcomes to help inform decisions made by learners and families." (XII) The Colorado department of education, the Colorado workforce development council, the Colorado department of higher education, and the office of information technology have led efforts to expand data sharing to answer key questions regarding education and workforce issues, while protecting student privacy and security, at the behest of state agencies and the general assembly; (XIII) These state partnerships are in addition to one-on-one data-sharing efforts that exist for specific, existing, statutorily required reports; (XIV) Colorado does not have a single, longitudinal data system, which, as seen in other states, can provide a single stop in a neutral agency to examine the long-term effects of investments made by the state in workforce development programs that sit primarily, but not entirely, in education, workforce, and economic development agencies; and (XV) Addressing the recommendations provided by the task force will require partnership within and beyond the general assembly and government partners and requires intentionality to ensure that the state is taking action in the best interest of its students. (b) The general assembly finds, therefore, that: (I) To begin the work of ensuring students have equitable access in high school to college credit, quality industry credentials, and work-based learning experiences, the state must begin by understanding the costs for students to obtain these experiences, and as recommended by the task force, examine the long-term effect of these opportunities for students; (II) Studying the costs for postsecondary and workforce programs and implementing a statewide longitudinal data system will lay critical foundation for implementing the recommendations into state systems in 2025 to modernize, simplify, and better integrate opportunities for students to obtain college credit, industry credentials, and work-based learning opportunities; and (III) There is understanding of and commitment to the conclusion of the task force report: "The recommendations are intertwined and should be scaffolded as such, with the understanding that they will take time to implement. The task force believes that implementing all recommendations is necessary to meaningfully improve [postsecondary and workforce readiness]..." (2) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires: (a) "Colorado statewide longitudinal data system" means the statewide data system that connects data from contributing state agencies and partner entities and supports the purposes identified in section 24-37.5-125 (2)(a). (b) "Postsecondary and workforce readiness programs" means programs for Colorado high school students to develop the knowledge and competencies needed to succeed in postsecondary settings and to advance in career pathways as lifelong learners and contributing citizens. (3) (a) The department shall commission a financial study to analyze costs to the state, local education providers, and students, and potential cost savings when providing students the opportunity to obtain college credits, industry credentials, and work-based learning experiences. The financial study must include an analysis on the effects of consolidating certain postsecondary and workforce readiness programs. The department shall contract with an independent contractor, in accordance with the "Procurement Code", articles 101 to 112 of title 24, to conduct the financial study and prepare a final report summarizing the financial study's methodologies, findings, and recommendations. (b) The department, the department of labor and employment, the Colorado workforce development council, the department of higher education, the Colorado commission on higher education, and the career and technical education division within the Colorado community college system shall provide guidance and input, as necessary, to assist the independent contractor in preparing the final report. (c) Legislative council staff and joint budget committee staff shall provide input on the financial modeling to assess the costs and savings of postsecondary and workforce readiness programs. (4) (a) The financial study commissioned pursuant to subsection (3)(a) of this section must include a review of the following postsecondary and workforce readiness programs: (I) The ASCENT program created in section 22-35-108; (II) The career development success program created in section 22-54-138; (III) The concurrent enrollment programs described in section 22-35-104; (IV) Early college high schools; (V) Pathways in technology early college high schools created in part 1 of article 35.3 of this title 22; (VI) The teacher recruitment education and preparation program created in section 22- 35-108.5; and (VII) K-12 work-based learning opportunities described in section 8-83-602 (5). (b) The financial study may include a review of: (I) The John W. Buckner automatic enrollment in advanced courses grant program created in part 2 of article 95.5 of this title 22; (II) The accelerated college opportunity exam fee grant program created in section 22- 95.5-102; (III) The concurrent enrollment expansion and innovation grant program created in section 22-35-114; (IV) The school counselor corps grant program created in part 1 of article 91 of this title 22; and (V) Any other pilot program or grant program that supports postsecondary and workforce readiness. (c) The independent contractor shall interview school district leaders from a broad range of school districts, including, but not limited to, large, urban, and small rural school districts, in order to understand the actual costs to school districts to implement postsecondary and workforce readiness programs. (d) The independent contractor shall take into consideration: (I) The study for adequate public school funding described in section 22-54-104.7 (7), as applicable; and (II) The department's ongoing grant program evaluation work. (5) The purposes of the financial study commissioned pursuant to subsection (3) of this section are to: (a) Understand the actual costs to local education providers, especially in rural and small rural districts, to develop, offer, and maintain opportunities for students to obtain college credits, industry credentials, and work-based learning experiences; (b) Study the actual costs, which include, but are not limited to, infrastructure, staffing, exam fees, transportation, and start-up costs; (c) Examine the variation in costs by geographic region, especially rural and small rural districts, the types of industry credentials offered, the quality of nondegree credentials described in section 23-5-145.6 (2), and the types of work-based learning opportunities described in section 8-83-602; (d) Identify how to streamline the financial administration and reporting of postsecondary and workforce readiness programs in the secondary education system into one comprehensive program; (e) Analyze different funding mechanisms, which may include outcomes-based funding, guaranteed funding, innovation funding, a hybrid system of funding, or another type of funding mechanism to provide opportunities for students to obtain college credits, industry credentials, or work-based learning experiences; (f) Identify and model the costs, benefits, and potential cost savings of the different funding mechanisms described in subsection (5)(e) of this section and the financial effects the consolidation of postsecondary and workforce readiness programs may have on local education providers and state agencies; (g) Project the costs required to equitably expand opportunities for students to obtain college credits, industry credentials, or work-based learning experiences to additional local education providers and students; (h) Analyze state-level incentives and barriers that may encourage or discourage the adoption of postsecondary and workforce readiness programs within a consolidated system for local education providers; (i) Review and analyze, to the extent possible, the statutory purposes and outcomes of the postsecondary and workforce readiness programs, including students' attainment of college credits or industry credentials, when determining how to streamline postsecondary and workforce readiness programs; and (j) Develop and consider implementing recommendations in the 2025-26 state budget year. (6) On or before December 1, 2024, the department shall submit the financial study and final report, including the consideration to implement recommendations in the 2025-26 state budget year, described in this section to the education committees of the house of representatives and the senate, or their successor committees, the governor, the joint budget committee, the state board, and the Colorado statewide longitudinal data system governing board created in section 24-37.5-125 (3)(a). (7) For the 2024-25 state budget year, the general assembly shall appropriate eight hundred thousand dollars from the general fund to the department for purposes of this section.
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