By TOM HOWARD of the Gazette Staff
Yellowstone County officials admitted that, unlike virtually every other state, Montana has no statewide workforce development program.
Despite the absence of a statewide program, Yellowstone County put together a package that would have provided some money for worker training, said Joe McClure, director of the Big Sky Economic Development Authority.
Dell chose to build its technology center in Roseburg, Ore., rather than Billings, in part because the Oregon city has an unemployment rate of around 12 percent.
The lack of training money wasn't a deal breaker for bringing Dell Computer to Billings, McClure said. But it illustrated the need of a statewide training program to help employees get the specific job skills their employees need.
Sen. Royal Johnson, R-Billings, has submitted two separate bill draft requests for a proposed work force development program. Rep. Monica Lindeen, D-Huntley, also is working on proposed legislation for workforce training.
McClure said the proposed legislation would give Montana an opportunity to catch up with Idaho, North Dakota and Wyoming, which all have developed successful workforce training programs.
McClure said legislators will be asked to consider a variety of funding mechanisms for a workforce training program.
"We went to the bill drafters and said, 'Here's what they're doing in different states. Let's look at how we can best incorporate these kinds of ideas into our system,'" McClure said.
One model calls for funding a job training program by diverting part of the money that goes into the state's unemployment insurance program. Employers pay into the fund, which is used to pay unemployment benefits when workers are laid off.
Another potential method for funding an employee training program would be to divert state income tax dollars generated by businesses that have created new jobs, McClure said.
Johnson said a workforce training program could be helpful, but at this point no one knows how much it would cost. However, Johnson said he believes Montana's economy would receive an even bigger benefit if Bull Mountain Development Co. succeeds in building its coal mine and power plant between Billings and Roundup.
Lindeen was in Helena Friday talking to bill draft specialists about proposed job training legislation. Lindeen said she introduced a workforce training bill during the last legislative session, but it died in part because it was introduced late.
The federal government provides some job training money. But those programs tend to be bureaucratic and are targeted to certain industries, McClure said.
"We want to provide training money for base industries," McClure said. "And we don't want to tell employers how to spend it."
Tom Howard can be reached at 657-1261 or at thoward@billingsgazette.com
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