HB 19-1236 Summary

• Creates a Workforce Diploma Pilot Program in the Colorado Department of Education to provide performance-based payments to qualified providers for adults age 21+ who complete high school diplomas and related credentials.

• Establishes payment tiers ranging from $250 per half-credit to $1,000 for diploma completion, with industry credential payments of $250-$750 depending on training hours required, capped at $7,000 per student.

• Requires qualified providers to meet criteria including two years of dropout recovery experience, academic assessment capabilities, remedial coursework, employability skills training, and regional accreditation.

• Imposes performance standards requiring providers to maintain a minimum 50% graduation rate and cost per graduate not exceeding $7,000; providers failing standards for two consecutive years are removed from the program.

• Appropriates $1,012,201 from the general fund for fiscal year 2019-20 and repeals the program effective July 1, 2022, with mandatory reporting to legislative committees on program outcomes and workforce placement.