FISCAL NOTE

House Bill 498 as introduced establishes the 18-member Alabama Workforce Council Committee on Credential Quality and Transparency to make credential and competency data publicly available through the Alabama Credential Registry. This bill requires the committee to (1) by December 31, 2021, and every December 31 thereafter, provide the Committee on Credentialing and Career Pathways a current list of credentials of value for each of the industry sectors; (2) review the credentials published to the Credential Registry at least quarterly and assign each credential an alpha numeric number using the Alabama Occupational Ontology; and (3) coordinate a credential transparency advisory group, chaired by the Governor.

The Governor’s Recommended Education Trust Fund appropriation act includes an appropriation of $200,000 to the Department of Commerce earmarked for the Alabama Workforce Council to manage the Alabama Credential Registry.