Pasco County is committing another $2.43 million over three years to AmSkills, the manufacturing job-training nonprofit the county helped launch in 2014.
But not every commissioner agreed it was the right move.
County commissioners approved $810,000 a year for three years by a slim 3-2 margin Oct. 20, with commissioners Ron Oakley and Seth Weightman voting against it.
Weightman argued that after 12 years, the group keeps returning to taxpayers for financial help, and he could not support another lifeline.
The county had already approved another $375,000 for AmSkills in January, when the organization was struggling with declining grant funding and delayed contributions from employers. At that meeting, commissioners raised concerns about the nonprofit’s financial stability and continued reliance on government support, but passed funding by a 4-1 vote, with Weightman dissenting and saying “juice is not worth the squeeze.”
The latest agreement the board approved is built around performance, according to County Planning and Economic Development Director David Engel.
AmSkills will receive $300,000 upfront each year to train 200 Pasco residents, or roughly $1,500 per student. It only gets the remaining $510,000 if it shows that residents have landed full-time manufacturing or technical jobs, up to 60 placements at $8,500 apiece.
The money comes from Penny for Pasco funds, Engel said, and pays for programs, not salaries or operations.
In 2014, the commission provided AmSkills with seed funding when it was still a pilot program. AmSkills has received about $2.6 million in funding from the county since.
Over the past 12 years, according to Engel, AmSkills has developed 29 workforce programs, trained more than 3,000 people and placed 193 people in full-time manufacturing jobs and helped nearly 1,100 people earn industry credentials.
Under the new agreement, AmSkills is looking to place 180 people in full-time jobs over the next three years, nearly as many as the 193 manufacturing placements Engel said the organization recorded over its previous 12 years. But the county is also committing nearly as much money over those three years, $2.43 million, as the $2.6 million it provided during the previous 12.
Engel said the county is keeping a closer eye on the organization’s finances and bookkeeping, and that a new CEO and board-approved business plan have put AmSkills in a better position to meet those goals.
There are also safeguards if AmSkills falls short.
“This is a three-year deal. So the question is, what if,” Engel said. “What if AmSkills doesn’t train 200 people in year one of the three-year period? Then they don’t get additional funding.”
AmSkills also would receive only $8,500 for each verified fulltime job placement, rather than the $510,000 upfront. Engel said failure to meet the requirements “turns off the funding spigot as well.”
Weightman, however, questioned whether the latest funds approved for AmSkills would be used to pay off the $150,000 the nonprofit has already borrowed from the county.
“Are we going to be paying our own debt that’s accruing interest with the money that comes that you’re asking for today?”
Weightman said it was a yes or no question, to which Engel replied “No.”
The commissioner asked for a guarantee.
“I will guarantee it because now I’ll make sure it happens, because we are looking, we’re watching their finances and bookkeeping closely,” Engel said.
Engel said AmSkills would repay the debt using private contributions, rather than the county’s program funds, by the end of fiscal 2027.
Engel added that AmSkills has contributed to the local economy by helping residents build skills to help find better-paying jobs. The program also helps those seeking new career paths, including military veterans and others looking to upgrade their skills.
He said the demand for skilled manufacturing workers in Pasco is growing, with more companies moving into the county and others considering it.
“The industrial pipeline in Pasco County, for the eight and a half years I’ve been an employee here, has never looked better,” Engel said.
Commissioners Jack Mariano and Kathryn Starkey praised AmSkills, arguing that it was making more than a funding request, it was deepening the pool of skilled workers for local companies.
“This is not a handout,” Starkey said, contrasting it with CareerSource, which she said merely refers people to training providers while AmSkills does the actual training.
She argued that Pasco already provides CareerSource with $1 million a year under a five-year agreement, and that AmSkills deserves the same stability.
She initially asked for a five-year deal, rather than three, but ultimately agreed to a shorter agreement after Mariano suggested the board could revisit it later.
Weightman said the comparison with CareerSource was wrong.
“CareerSource does not need Pasco County government to survive,” he said.
Weightman praised Starkey’s passion for successful manufacturing, saying it was unmatched. However, he said AmSkills has had 12 years to establish itself, and continues to rely on government support and already had to be “bailed out” earlier this year.
“It’s a private not-for-profit that’s coming here to ask for a lifeline again,” Weightman said, “and I’m not going to support it. I’m not going to support any of the proposal that’s on the table.”
But Starkey maintained that AmSkills is an investment in the county’s workforce.
“Not every high school kid is going to college, and they need to have vocational training,” she said. “We are going to specialize in manufacturing because it’s important to this country.”