Existing law establishes, until July 1, 2027, the Displaced Oil and Gas Worker Pilot Program, to be administered by the Employment Development Department (department), for the purpose of addressing employment dislocations associated with oil, gas, and related industries. That program requires the department, using funds to be appropriated by the Legislature for purposes of the program, to award grants on a competitive basis to qualified applicants, as specified, for specified eligible activities.

This bill would extend the program indefinitely by removing the July 1, 2027, repeal date. The bill would also require the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to contract within 120 days with the University of California, Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education (labor center) to complete an assessment analyzing the success of the program, as described. The bill would also require the department to work with the labor center to develop a recommended program design for turning the program from a pilot into a permanent program able to support displaced fossil fuel workers during the clean energy transition, as described. The bill would require the assessment to be submitted to the Legislature no later than 18 months after the execution of the contract.