Supporting Federal Investments in Summer Youth Employment

Adopted at the 89th Annual Meeting in 2021

  • WHEREAS, according to research estimates there were six million young people ages 16 to 24 disconnected from both school and work in 2020, representing a steady decade-long increase in youth disconnection rates; and that this number could grow to nine million (one in four) young people; and

    WHEREAS, disconnection during this critical period of development can leave youth without the soft skills, entry-level work experience and post-secondary credentials they need to succeed in the workplace; and also imposes significant costs on affected young people, their communities, and the economy as a whole; and

    WHEREAS, connecting all youth estimated to be disconnected in 2020 could save the federal government $55 billion in public expenditures, including health care, unemployment benefits, and incarceration costs, and generate $71 billion in tax revenues each year; and

    WHEREAS, disconnected young people - also commonly known as "opportunity youth" because of their tremendous potential- come from high-poverty, low-opportunity communities and may need a range of supports to overcome barriers to reconnecting with school or job training to prepare them for the world of work; and

    WHEREAS, the nation's mayors are committed to promoting the well-being and positive development of all of America's young people, including opportunity youth; and

    WHEREAS, a key component of this commitment has been consistent support for federal investments in a nationwide Summer Youth Employment Program to create quality summer job opportunities for youth in cities across the country; and

    WHEREAS, Summer Youth Employment Programs help in-school youth remain connected to the education system and avoid involvement in the criminal and juvenile justice system; and the program provides opportunity youth with the extended entry-level work experiences and work-readiness skills that are vital to improved employment outcomes; and

    WHEREAS, the Opening Doors for Youth Act ( H.R 4403) was reintroduced to the House of Representatives on July 9th, 2021 and;

    WHEREAS, the Opening Doors for Youth Act will subsidize summer jobs and year-long jobs for youths ages 16-24 who are in or out of school or work and;

    WHEREAS, the Opening Doors for Youth Act will build work-readiness skills that are vital to improved employment outcomes and help disconnected youth avoid involvement in the criminal and juvenile justice system; and

    WHEREAS, the Opening Doors for Youth Act will transform disconnected communities into communities of opportunity by awarding local community partners with funds to establish or expand community-based systems that provide at-risk and disconnected youth with comprehensive pathways and supportive systems to connect or reconnect youth with education and training opportunities; and

    WHEREAS, the Opening Doors for Youth Act authorizes $6.75 billion to be appropriated to the Secretary of Labor in order to cover the operations of the program over a 6 year period; and

    WHEREAS, mayors have already taken the lead in developing systematic changes to their local workforce systems to provide opportunities for in- and out-of-school youth to engage in meaningful paid employment opportunities in their cities; and

    WHEREAS, mayors recognize the wealth of potential that disconnected youth present, as well as the needed support in order to unlock their potential; and

    WHEREAS, in 2021 the U.S Conference of Mayors became a sponsoring organization for the Opening Doors for Youth Act,

    NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors urges Congress to include the Opening Doors for Youth Act (H.R 4403) in a bipartisan reauthorization of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), in order to connect and reconnect disconnected youth and their communities; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors urges swift passage of WIOA reauthorization to ensure the nation's workforce system is adequately equipped and appropriately funded as necessary to provide the workforce development services needed to ensure a speedy post COVID-19 economic recovery; and

    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that The United States Conference of Mayors calls for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to include a separate, dedicated federal funding stream for summer employment when it is reauthorized, which will help cities better integrate summer jobs into successful WIOA programs.
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