[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1834 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1834
To direct the Secretary of Labor to award grants to develop,
administer, and evaluate early childhood education apprenticeships, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 28, 2023
Mr. Guthrie (for himself, Ms. Wild, and Mr. Trone) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and
the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Labor to award grants to develop,
administer, and evaluate early childhood education apprenticeships, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. GRANTS FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION APPRENTICESHIP
PROGRAMS.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary, in consultation with the
Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary of Education,
shall award grants to States to develop, administer, and evaluate
apprenticeships.
(b) Application.--A State seeking a grant under this Act shall
submit an application to the Secretary for approval at such time, in
such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may
require.
(c) Uses of Funds.--
(1) Required uses.--A grant under subsection (a) shall be
used for activities that develop, administer, and evaluate an
apprenticeship, including--
(A) equipping apprentices with specialized
knowledge, skills, and competencies required to work in
early childhood education;
(B) increasing the number of apprentices (including
apprentices that are in areas that are underserved or
rural) with a recognized postsecondary credential, a
certificate of completion of an apprenticeship, or a
degree from an institution of higher education;
(C) promoting recruitment and retention of
apprentices;
(D) providing a pathway to career advancement for
apprentices by assisting such apprentices in completing
an apprenticeship and tracking the percent of such
completions, including the apprentices who--
(i) attend an institution of higher
education after completing an apprenticeship;
and
(ii) enter into employment that is
unsubsidized after completing an
apprenticeship;
(E) supporting partnerships with institutions of
higher education in the State, businesses, and other
entities participating in an apprenticeship to provide
for academic credit for instruction related to the
apprenticeship and the application of such credit
toward a degree at an institution of higher education;
and
(F) developing strategies to hire and retain
qualified supervisors for apprentices that support such
apprentices through--
(i) professional development;
(ii) mentorship;
(iii) evaluation; and
(iv) training.
(2) Permitted uses.--In addition to the requirements under
paragraph (1), a grant under subsection (a) may be used to--
(A) coordinate with the State apprenticeship agency
to determine and disseminate best practices,
recommended curricula, or other resources on
administering effective apprenticeships for businesses,
institutions of higher education, or other entities
participating in an apprenticeship; and
(B) establish primary indicators of performance
with respect to apprentices and individuals who have
completed an apprenticeship to be shared on State and
national workforce registries (commonly known as
``Registered Apprenticeship Partners Information Data
Systems''), including--
(i) the percentage of individuals who have
completed an apprenticeship and remain employed
full-time in early childhood education--
(I) 6 months after completing such
apprenticeship; and
(II) 1 year after completing such
apprenticeship;
(ii) the median earnings of individuals who
have completed an apprenticeship and are
employed full-time in early childhood education
within 6 months after completing such
apprenticeship;
(iii) the percentage of apprentices who
obtain a recognized postsecondary credential, a
secondary school diploma, or the recognized
equivalent of such diploma while participating
in an apprenticeship; and
(iv) the percentage of individuals who have
completed an apprenticeship and who begin or
obtain a recognized postsecondary credential or
degree, a secondary school diploma, or the
recognized equivalent of such diploma within 1
year after completing an apprenticeship.
(d) Priority.--The Secretary shall prioritize State applicants
that--
(1) have developed partnerships with--
(A) Indian Tribes in such State; or
(B) institutions of higher education that serve
minority populations;
(2) have a statewide credit articulation agreement in place
that ensures credit transfer between participating institutions
of higher education in the State and other relevant credential
programs; or
(3) assure that no less than 25 percent of the grant funds
will be used to support apprenticeships in underserved or rural
communities.
(e) Grant Term and Limitation.--
(1) Term.--The term of a grant made under this Act shall be
3 years.
(2) Limitation.--The Secretary shall award no greater than
20 grants each fiscal year.
(f) Cost-Sharing.--
(1) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of any
activity carried out using a grant made under this Act shall be
not more than 75 percent.
(2) In-kind contributions.--The non-Federal share of the
total cost of any activity carried out using a grant made under
this Act may be in the form of donations or in-kind
contributions of goods or services fairly valued.
(g) State Evaluation and Report to Secretary.--
(1) Evaluation and report.--Not later than 1 year after
receiving a grant under this Act, and annually thereafter for
the duration of the grant, a State shall submit to the
Secretary a report containing an evaluation of the
apprenticeships to determine which program strategies made
progress toward--
(A) increasing the aggregate number of apprentices;
and
(B) increasing the retention rates of apprentices.
(2) Rule for reporting data.--The disaggregation of data
under this Act shall not be required when the number of
apprentices in a category is insufficient to yield
statistically reliable information or when the results would
reveal personally identifiable information about an apprentice.
(h) Report to Congress.--Not later than 5 years after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a
report on the effectiveness of each State that received a grant under
this Act to develop, administer, and evaluate apprenticeships,
including evaluating--
(1) an increase in the number of apprentices in early
childhood education;
(2) an increase in the retention rates of individuals who
work in early childhood education after completing an
apprenticeship;
(3) the career path of apprentices and individuals who have
completed an apprenticeship; and
(4) an increase in the number of credentials and degrees
obtained by apprentices.
(i) Funding.--To carry out the grant program under this Act, the
Secretary shall use amounts allocated under section 414(c) of the
American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (29
U.S.C. 3224a).
(j) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Apprentice.--The term ``apprentice'' means an
individual participating in a registered apprenticeship program
focused on early childhood education as that term is defined
under section 103 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1003).
(2) Apprenticeship.--The term ``apprenticeship'' means a
registered apprenticeship program that trains apprentices.
(3) Institution of higher education.--The term
``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the
term under section 102(a)(1) of the Higher Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002(a)(1)).
(4) Registered apprenticeship program.--The term
``registered apprenticeship program'' means an apprenticeship
program registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly
known as the ``National Apprenticeship Act''; 29 U.S.C. 50 et
seq.).
(5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Labor.
(6) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several
States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of
Puerto Rico.
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