Bill Text: AZ SB1476 | 2019 | Fifty-fourth Legislature 1st Regular | Engrossed


Bill Title: Agricultural workforce; interns; appropriation

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 3-1)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-05-15 - Assigned to House RULES Committee [SB1476 Detail]

Download: Arizona-2019-SB1476-Engrossed.html

 

 

 

Senate Engrossed

 

 

 

 

State of Arizona

Senate

Fifty-fourth Legislature

First Regular Session

2019

 

 

 

SENATE BILL 1476

 

 

 

AN ACT

 

Amending Title 3, chapter 1, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 3-109.03; appropriating monies; relating to the Arizona department of agriculture.

 

 

(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)

 


Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1.  Title 3, chapter 1, article 1, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 3-109.03, to read:

START_STATUTE3-109.03.  Agricultural workforce development program; rulemaking; definitions; program termination

A.  The agricultural workforce development program is established to provide incentives to food-producing agricultural organizations to hire interns through partial reimbursement of internship costs.

B.  The director shall adopt rules pursuant to title 41, chapter 6 to carry out this section.  At a minimum, the rules shall establish:

1.  Qualifications for a food-producing agricultural organization to participate in the program, including need and the ability to effectively supervise an intern and provide the intern with meaningful work experience that is focused on agricultural food production.

2.  Internship requirements. At a minimum, an internship shall provide an intern at least one hundred thirty hours of work experience for not more than six months in duration per intern.

3.  Criteria for a food-producing agricultural organization to select qualified interns, including an intern's required educational experience and ability to perform meaningful work.

4.  The process and time frame for selecting qualified, food‑producing agricultural organizations and qualified interns.

5.  Accounting requirements for tracking internship costs.

6.  The process for a food-producing agricultural organization to seek reimbursement.

C.  Subject to legislative appropriation, the department may reimburse a qualified, food-producing agricultural organization an amount not to exceed fifty percent of the actual cost to the food-producing agricultural organization to employ an intern.  Based on the annual legislative appropriation for this program, the director shall determine how many internships to approve, the amount of reimbursement per internship and whether a food‑producing agricultural organization may be reimbursed for more than one internship in the same fiscal year.  A food‑producing agricultural organization may not be reimbursed for more than three internships in the same fiscal year.

D.  For the purposes of this section:

1.  "Actual cost" means the wages paid to an intern, a reasonable allocation of fixed overhead expenses and all incidental costs directly related to the internship.

2.  "Agricultural organization" means a business, nonprofit organization or community college program related to agriculture.

E.  The program established by this section ends on July 1, 2025 pursuant to section 41‑3102. END_STATUTE

Sec. 2.  Appropriation; Arizona department of agriculture; agricultural workforce development program

The sum of $275,000 is appropriated from the state general fund in fiscal year 2019-2020 to the Arizona department of agriculture to implement the agricultural workforce development program established by section 3-109.03, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act.

Sec. 3.  Effective date

Section 3‑109.03, Arizona Revised Statutes, as added by this act, is effective from and after December 31, 2019.

feedback