Section 4. Section 6 of the act, amended July 2, 1986 (P.L.341, No.78) and July 1, 1989 (P.L.119, No.25), is amended to read:
Section 6. Eligibility for program.
(a) Criteria.--Persons participating in the corps program shall be young men and women who are:
(1) Between the ages of [18] 16 and 25.
(2) Domiciled in the Commonwealth for at least six
months prior to participating in the program.
(3) Registered with the [Office of Employment Security]
local Job Center for employment.
(4) Physically and mentally capable of performing labor
intensive work.
(5) [Not attending high school or postsecondary
institution full time and who] Able to provide assurance that
they did not leave school for the purpose of participating in
the program. [Full-time high school and postsecondary
students may participate in this program during authorized
school vacations.]
(b) Referrals.--Eligibility for corpsmembers shall be determined by the [Office of Employment Security] Job Centers which shall refer eligible participants to the department. For referral purposes, the [Office of Employment Security] Job Centers shall develop standards for classifying applicants into various levels of eligibility, based on the degree to which an applicant is economically disadvantaged, in accordance with applicant local labor supply. Job Centers 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. The [Office of Employment Security] Job Centers shall refer applicants by order of classification, giving first priority to applicants between the ages of [18] 16 and 21 whose eligibility is based on financial status as required by joint or separate employment programs of the Federal and State governments. If the number of corps jobs is insufficient to employ all eligible individuals who apply for participation in the program, the [Office of Employment Security] Job Centers may provide the names of these 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.
(c) Preference.--Preference in hiring shall be given to [the economically disadvantaged.] economically disadvantaged young people, especially those eligible applicants who receive general assistance, aid to families with dependent children (AFDC) or other public assistance benefits.
(d) Minors.--Persons 16 and 17 years of age must present an employment certificate issued under section 1391 of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known as the Public School Code of 1949, on the same basis as would be required if they were employed by a firm, association or corporation.