(a) Funding for the initiative shall be subject to appropriation by the Legislature, but only for the purposes expressed in this article, and shall not draw from, supplant, or redirect existing state or federally funded education, workforce, or employment services programs, except that those funds may, but shall not be required to, be used as leverage with initiative funds.

(b) Implementation of the initiative shall be contingent upon the California Workforce Development Board notifying the Department of Finance that sufficient moneys have been appropriated by the Legislature for this purpose.

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(c) Outreach shall be provided to prospective applicants, especially for small community-based organizations, organizations without a preexisting relationship to the local workforce boards, and organizations serving rural and small population areas.

(d) Grants shall be awarded on a competitive basis.

(e) The California Workforce Development Board shall develop criteria for the selection of grant recipients that include, but are not limited to, all of the following:

(1) Grant recipients have demonstrated experience working to ensure populations who have been historically disenfranchised from the labor market have access to quality jobs in their regions.

(2) Applications shall explain the community-based organization’s capacity to provide services to relevant target populations and provide evidence of this capacity.

(3) Each grant proposal shall be consistent with the purposes of the initiative.

(f) Each application shall be submitted to the California Workforce Development Board and shall, at a minimum, include all of the following:

(1) Designation of a lead workforce development board or community-based organization with experience in providing services consistent with the objectives of this initiative and to the populations specified, which may include, but is not limited to, faith-based, business-based, labor-based, including labor-management partnerships and labor-community partnerships, cultural-based, and services-based organizations.

(2) The designation of one or more targeted populations that will be served by the grant.

(3) The designation of a service area, which may include one or more neighborhoods, local jurisdictions, regions, or statewide. A grant proposal that proposes to serve clients across one or more workforce development areas shall include a commitment to notify each workforce development board in the proposed service area.

(4) An explanation of the specific purpose and goals of the grant award, the roles and responsibilities of the lead applicant and partner entities, and a discussion of how funds will be used and success will be measured, the number of individuals who will be served, and the services provided to these individuals. Documentation shall be included to demonstrate that each partnering entity has agreed to the activities in the grant proposal.

(5) A description of how the grant proposal is designed to complement the work of, and integrate the individuals being served with, the broader workforce, education, and employment system within the proposed service area, and evidence that the proposal incorporates innovative strategies or proven practices for service delivery that will lead to improved outcomes, sustainability, and systems improvement.

(6) A grant application may be submitted by a workforce development board or community-based organization as a single fiscal agent and may include additional partners.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 323, Sec. 2. (AB 628) Effective January 1, 2022. See conditional termination clause in Section 14007.)