Section 400.2905 - Approval of applications and award of grantsThe department may approve and award grants to applicants in accordance with all of the following:
(1) The department must find that the applicant has satisfied the applicable matching fund requirement and that the grant will be used by the applicant to provide training or instruction only to Commonwealth residents.(2) The department must find that the grant will result in any of the following objectives:(i) The location or expansion of a private company or greenhouse within this Commonwealth with the creation of jobs paying competitive wages and the private company or greenhouse making capital expenditures.(ii) The expansion or upgrade of existing jobs which result in increased wages for the jobs.(iii) The retention of jobs in this Commonwealth which would otherwise be lost.(iv) The promotion of local education agency and private company partnerships and private company and private company partnerships if a direct connection between the development of skills and subsequent employment by one or more private companies can be demonstrated.(v) The promotion of efforts by a labor organization to upgrade the skills of its members.(3) The department shall give priority to those applications which have any of the following characteristics: (i) The application would establish a training program determined by the department to be in a growth industry vital to this Commonwealth's competitiveness. These industries include: agribusiness, advanced manufacturing, advanced materials, life sciences, biotechnology and health care, environmental technology and information technology.(ii) The application is submitted on behalf of a private company or labor organization which is located: (A) in a municipality in which the average unemployment rate in the most recently completed calendar year is above the Statewide average unemployment rate for the same period;(B) in a State-designated enterprise zone; or(C) in a municipality or region which has suffered a significant loss of jobs due to one or more major plant closings, layoffs or natural or man-made disaster.(iii) The application is submitted by or on behalf of a private company which plans to create 50 or more jobs and which is making a capital investment of at least $1,000,000.(4) The department may determine that the grant will be used by the applicant to reimburse the cost of training. Costs may include instructional costs, costs of instructional or training material or software, costs associated with tuition reimbursement and reasonable administrative costs as determined by the department.1996, June 29, P.L. 434, No. 67, § 2905, added 2002, Dec. 9, P.L. 1682, No. 213, § 4, imd. effective.