A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to establish the youth development pilot program.
Whereas, Section 15 of Article I of the Constitution of North Carolina provides that "[t]he people have a right to the privilege of education, and it is the duty of the state to guard and maintain that right"; and
Whereas, Section 1 of Article IX of the Constitution of North Carolina provides, in part, that "…the means of education shall forever be encouraged"; and
Whereas, Section 1 of Article IX of the Constitution of North Carolina gives the General Assembly broad powers in certain responsibilities regarding education in our State; and
Whereas, many studies recognize that family background has a strong positive influence on student achievement and that students from two‑parent families are the higher achievers; and
Whereas, nearly forty percent (40%) of North Carolina's students' family backgrounds include only one parent or guardian, a situation which studies suggest is not as positive an influence on student achievement as two‑parent families; and
Whereas, the data indicate that students in homes with one parent or guardian are more likely to have disciplinary problems; and
Whereas, there is strong evidence that, in some cases, community programs can offset, to some degree, the absence of a strong family background; and
Whereas, it would seem within the scope of the Constitutional responsibilities of the Senate to investigate ways to strengthen community activities that support higher student achievement; and
Whereas, it is the intent of this legislation to take that first investigative step; Now, therefore;
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.(a)  Pilot Program Created. – The Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Social Services (Division), shall establish a two‑year youth development pilot program to focus on serving the needs of youth in the community. The Division shall designate three counties in the State to conduct the pilot program. The three counties selected for the pilot program shall be geographically diverse and each represent a tier one, tier two, or tier three county, respectively. For purposes of this section, tier one, tier two, and tier three counties shall have the same designations as those established by the N.C. Department of Commerce's 2017 County Tier Designations.
SECTION 1.(b)  Committees. – For each county selected to participate in the pilot program, the county board of commissioners in that county shall appoint volunteer members to a local youth development committee. Each local youth development committee shall consist of five members, including:
(1)	One member from the county board of commissioners.
(2)	One member from the local board of education.
(3)	One member from the local chamber of commerce.
(4)	Two members recommended by the county board of commissioners who do not meet the criteria of any of the members under subdivisions (1) through (3) of this subsection.
SECTION 1.(c)  Duties. – The local youth development committee shall be responsible for establishing criteria for grants and approving grant requests from each eligible youth development activity organization, which is a community organization that provides a place where school‑aged students from grades K‑12 receive counseling, mentoring, tutoring, and any other related services after school and during vacations from school. The local youth development committee shall not use funds for administrative costs.
SECTION 1.(d)  Eligibility. – In order to be eligible to receive grant funds under this section, a youth development activity organization shall fulfill the criteria established by the local youth activity committee. The application process shall include measures for effectiveness, including, at a minimum, data from each of the following groups:
(1)	The number of K‑12 students attending, by each grade level.
(2)	The average number of students who have dropped out of school in the age range of grade levels K‑12.
SECTION 1.(e)  Reports. – Each local youth development committee from the three counties selected to participate in the pilot program shall monitor the success of the youth development activity organizations awarded grants pursuant to this section and shall make an interim report to the Division on the success of those organizations by July 1, 2018. The Division shall then make an interim report to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services by October 1, 2018, on the youth development activity organizations receiving grants pursuant to the pilot program, the success of those programs, and the costs associated with administering the program. By July 1, 2019, those local youth development committees participating in the pilot program shall make a final report to the Division on the success of the organizations awarded grants pursuant to this section. The Division shall make a final report to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services by October 1, 2019, on the success of the programs, along with any recommendations for sustaining the program.
SECTION 2.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Social Services, the sum of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) for the 2017‑2018 fiscal year and the sum of three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) for the 2018‑2019 fiscal year to fund the youth development pilot program established under Section 1 of this act, with each of the three counties selected to participate in the pilot program receiving one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for the 2017‑2018 fiscal year and one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) for the 2018‑2019 fiscal year.
SECTION 3.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2017.