Summary
Established by the 74th Legislature in 1995, The Skills Development Fund was designed to better utilize the public community and technical college system in Texas as well as other training organizations and have them partner with businesses throughout the state (with priority on small businesses) to train workers to meet the labor needs of employers and the regional labor market.
The Skills Development Fund is Texas' premier job–training program providing training dollars for Texas businesses and workers. Administered by the Texas Workforce Commission, success is achieved through collaboration among businesses, public Community and Technical colleges, Local Workforce Development Boards and economic development partners. The Skills Development Fund pays for the training, the local community college administers the grant, and businesses create new jobs and improve the skills of their current workers. Awards can be up to $1,800 per employee. Grants for a single business may be limited to $500,000. Tuition, curriculum development, instructor fees and training materials can be included, however, trainee wages, drug testing and certain travel cost and equipment purchases cannot be covered. Contract typically are for 12 months.