§ 11-13-107 - Participation. - Arkansas Statutes

11-13-107. Participation.

(a) Persons participating in the Arkansas Conservation Corps program shall be persons who:

(1) Are between the ages of sixteen (16) and twenty-five (25);

(2) Have been residents of the state for at least six (6) months prior to participating in the program;

(3) Are registered with the local office of the Arkansas Employment Security Department for employment;

(4) Are physically and mentally capable of performing labor-intensive work; and

(5) Are able to provide assurance that they did not leave school for the purpose of participating in the program.

(b) Preference in hiring and enrolling corpsmembers in the corps shall be given to economically disadvantaged persons, especially those eligible applicants who receive public assistance grants, general relief, Aid To Families With Dependent Children, or other public assistance benefits.

(c) (1) (A) Eligibility for corpsmembers shall be determined by the Arkansas Employment Security Department, which shall refer eligible participants to the Department of Labor by order of classification.

(B) For referral purposes, the Arkansas Employment Security Department shall develop standards for classifying applicants into various levels of eligibility based on the degree to which an applicant is economically disadvantaged.

(2) The Arkansas Employment Security Department shall seek referrals from schools, local agencies, community-based agencies, and other youth and human service organizations for purposes of enrolling applicants in corps programs.

(3) If the number of corps jobs is insufficient to employ all eligible individuals who apply for participation in the program, the Arkansas Employment Security Department may provide the names of those eligible individuals to private-sector employers or to job training programs requesting referrals, so long as the individuals referred agree to the referral being provided.