[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 14, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1969-1970]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00470]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration


Notice of Intent To Renew the Advisory Committee on 
Apprenticeship (ACA) Charter

AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration (ETA), Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Secretary of Labor has determined that the renewal of the 
Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship is necessary and in the public 
interest. The Department of Labor intends to renew the ACA Charter with 
revisions. The revisions are not intended to change the purpose or the 
Committee's original intent. The revisions are a routine updating of 
the Charter to ensure closer alignment with the Department's current 
apprenticeship expansion goals.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The Designated Federal Official, Mr. 
John V. Ladd, Administrator, Office of Apprenticeship, Employment and 
Training Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution 
Avenue NW., Room N-5311, Washington, DC 20210, Telephone: (202) 693-
2796 (this is not a toll-free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Registered Apprenticeship is a unique public 
private partnership that is highly dependent on the engagement and 
involvement of its stakeholders and partners for its ongoing 
operational effectiveness. Apart from the ACA, there is no single 
organization or group with the broad representation of labor, 
employers, and the public available to consider the complexities and 
relationship of apprenticeship activities to other training efforts or 
to provide advice on such matters to the Secretary. It is particularly 
important to have such considerations at this time in light of the 
current national interest in apprenticeship and the Department of 
Labor's goal to double the number of apprentices across the country, in 
the next five years by expanding into a variety of non-traditional 
industries. The ACA's insight and recommendations on the best ways to 
grow apprenticeship to meet the emerging skill needs of employers is 
critical. For these reasons, the Secretary of Labor has determined that 
the renewal of a national advisory committee on apprenticeship is 
necessary and in the public interest. The ACA Charter is being renewed 
to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary on the 
following: (1) The development and implementation of policies, 
legislation and regulations affecting the National Registered 
Apprenticeship system; (2) strategies that can expand the use of the 
Registered Apprenticeship model in non-traditional industries such as, 
but not limited to, Transportation/Logistics, Healthcare, Energy, 
Advanced Manufacturing, and Information Technology and Communications; 
(3) ways to more effectively partner with the public workforce system 
and educational institutions and communities to leverage Registered 
Apprenticeship as a valued post-secondary credential; including 
policies related to the Registered Apprenticeship College Consortium; 
(4) the development of career pathways that can lead to good jobs for 
everyone and sustained employment for new and incumbent workers, youth, 
Veterans, women, minorities and other under-utilized and disadvantaged 
populations; and (5) efforts to improve performance, quality and 
oversight, and utilization of the National Registered Apprenticeship 
system. The current ACA Charter will expire on January 15, 2017. The 
ACA's Charter is required to be renewed every two years. Since the 
Charter was last renewed in January 2013, it has been revised in three 
sections to ensure alignment with departmental priorities. The 
following three sections have been

[[Page 1970]]

updated (1) Objectives and Scope of Activities; (2) Estimated Annual 
Operating Cost and Staff Years; and (3) Membership and Designation.

Summary of the Changes

    1. Objectives and Scope of Activities--The objectives and scope 
section of the ACA Charter outlines the areas of focus where the ACA 
will provide advice and recommendations. The current ACA Charter states 
that the ACA will advise on strategies to expand apprenticeship into 
the Manufacturing, Energy, and the Healthcare industries. The proposed 
ACA Charter is being updated to reflect the industries currently being 
targeted for expansion and now includes Transportation/Logistics, 
Healthcare, Energy, Advanced Manufacturing, and Information Technology 
and Communications industries.
    2. Estimated Annual Operating Cost and Staff Years--The operating 
costs in the proposed Charter are being increased to account for 
increases in travel costs, resulting from an increase in the number of 
ACA members from outside of the Washington, DC metropolitan area. 
Further cost have been updated to more accurately account for the 
decrease in contractor support and the subsequent increase in federal 
staff time utilized to support the ACA, as well as, the participation 
of its ex-officio federal members.
    3. Membership and Designation--Given the apprenticeship expansion 
efforts, the ACA representatives will be balanced in terms of (1) 
points of view, (2) sectors (employers, labor and public), and (3) 
industries targeted for expansion. Therefore, the range of voting 
members is being increased from 24-27 members to 27-30 members to 
provide the flexibility to ensure balance is maintained and all the 
necessary stakeholder groups are represented. In addition, the current 
ACA Charter states that the ACA may consult with industry experts and 
others as appropriate. The proposed ACA Charter includes language to 
affirm that the ACA will consult with industry experts, and further 
clarifies that they will specifically consult with experts from the 
industries that are being targeted for apprenticeship expansion.

Portia Wu,
Assistant Secretary for the Employment and Training Administration.
[FR Doc. 2015-00470 Filed 1-13-15; 8:45 am]
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