[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1965 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1965

 To provide for the creation of private-sector-led Community Workforce 
                 Partnerships, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 25, 2003

   Mr. Bayh introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide for the creation of private-sector-led Community Workforce 
                 Partnerships, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Community Workforce Development and 
Modernization Partnership Act''.

SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION.

    (a) In General.--From amounts made available to carry out this Act, 
the Secretary of Labor (referred to in this Act as the ``Secretary''), 
in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the Secretary of 
Education, shall award grants on a competitive basis to eligible 
entities described in subsection (b) to assist each entity to--
            (1) help workers improve those job skills that are 
        necessary for employment by businesses in the industry with 
        respect to which the entity was established;
            (2) help dislocated workers find employment; and
            (3) upgrade the operating and competitive capacities of 
        businesses that are members of the entity.
    (b) Eligible Entities.--An eligible entity described in this 
subsection is a consortium (either established prior to the date of 
enactment of this Act or established specifically to carry out programs 
under this Act) that--
            (1) shall include--
                    (A) 2 or more businesses (or nonprofit 
                organizations representing businesses) that are facing 
                similar workforce development or business modernization 
                challenges;
                    (B) labor organizations, if the businesses 
                described in subparagraph (A) employ workers who are 
                covered by collective bargaining agreements; and
                    (C) 1 or more businesses (or nonprofit 
                organizations that represent businesses) with resources 
                or expertise that can be brought to bear on the 
                workforce development and business modernization 
                challenges referred to in subparagraph (A); and
            (2) may include--
                    (A) State governments and units of local 
                government;
                    (B) educational institutions;
                    (C) labor organizations; or
                    (D) nonprofit organizations.
    (c) Common Geographic Region.--To the maximum extent practicable, 
the organizations that are members of an eligible entity described in 
subsection (b) shall be located within a single geographic region of 
the United States.
    (d) Priority Consideration.--In awarding grants under subsection 
(a), the Secretary shall give priority consideration to--
            (1) eligible entities that serve dislocated workers or 
        workers who are threatened with becoming totally or partially 
        separated from employment;
            (2) eligible entities that include businesses with fewer 
        than 250 employees; or
            (3) eligible entities from a geographic region in the 
        United States that has been adversely impacted by the movement 
        of manufacturing operations or businesses to other regions or 
        countries, due to corporate restructuring, technological 
        advances, Federal law, international trade, or another factor, 
        as determined by the Secretary.

SEC. 3. PARTNERSHIP ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Use of Grant Amounts.--Each eligible entity that receives a 
grant under section 2 shall use the amount made available through the 
grant to carry out a program that provides--
            (1) workforce development activities to improve the job 
        skills of individuals who have, are seeking, or have been 
        dislocated from, employment with a business that is a member of 
        that eligible entity, or with a business that is in the 
        industry of a business that is a member of that eligible 
        entity;
            (2) business modernization activities; or
            (3) activities that are--
                    (A) workforce investment activities (including such 
                activities carried out through one-stop delivery 
                systems) carried out under subtitle B of title I of the 
                Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (42 U.S.C. 2811 et 
                seq.); or
                    (B) activities described in section 25 of the 
                National Institute of Standards and Technology Act (15 
                U.S.C. 278k).
    (b) Activities Included.--
            (1) Workforce development activities.--The workforce 
        development activities referred to in subsection (a)(1) may 
        include activities that--
                    (A) develop skill standards and provide training, 
                including--
                            (i) assessing the training and job skill 
                        needs of the industry involved;
                            (ii) developing a sequence of skill 
                        standards that are benchmarked to advanced 
                        industry practices;
                            (iii) developing curricula and training 
                        methods;
                            (iv) purchasing, leasing, or receiving 
                        donations of training equipment;
                            (v) identifying and developing the skills 
                        of training providers;
                            (vi) developing apprenticeship programs; 
                        and
                            (vii) developing training programs for 
                        dislocated workers;
                    (B) assist workers in finding new employment; or
                    (C) provide supportive services to workers who--
                            (i) are participating in a program carried 
                        out by the entity under this Act; and
                            (ii) are unable to obtain the supportive 
                        services through another program providing the 
                        services.
            (2) Business modernization activities.--The business 
        modernization activities referred to in subsection (a)(2) may 
        include activities that upgrade technical or organizational 
        capabilities in conjunction with improving the job skills of 
        workers in a business that is a member of that entity.

SEC. 4. APPLICATION.

    To be eligible to receive a grant under section 2, an entity shall 
submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 
and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably 
require.

SEC. 5. SEED GRANTS AND OUTREACH ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Seed Grants.--The Secretary shall provide technical assistance 
and award financial assistance (not to exceed $150,000 per award) on 
such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines to be 
appropriate--
            (1) to businesses, nonprofit organizations representing 
        businesses, and labor organizations, for the purpose of 
        establishing an eligible entity; and
            (2) to entities described in paragraph (1) and established 
        eligible entities, for the purpose of preparing such 
        application materials as may be required under section 4.
    (b) Outreach and Promotional Activities.--The Secretary may 
undertake such outreach and promotional activities as the Secretary 
determines will best carry out the objectives of this Act.
    (c) Limitations on Expenditures.--The Secretary may not use more 
than 10 percent of the amount authorized to be appropriated under 
section 8 to carry out this section.

SEC. 6. LIMITATIONS ON FUNDING.

    (a) Requirement of Matching Funds.--The Secretary may not award a 
grant under this Act to an eligible entity unless such entity agrees 
that the entity will make available non-Federal contributions toward 
the costs of carrying out activities funded by that grant in an amount 
that is not less than $2 for each $1 of Federal funds made available 
through the grant.
    (b) In-Kind Contributions.--The Secretary--
            (1) shall, in awarding grants under this Act, give priority 
        consideration to those entities whose members offer in-kind 
        contributions; and
            (2) may not consider any in-kind contribution in lieu of or 
        as any part of the contributions required under subsection (a).
    (c) Senior Management Training and Development.--An eligible entity 
may not use any amount made available through a grant awarded under 
this Act for training and development activities for senior management, 
unless that entity certifies to the Secretary that expenditures for the 
activities are--
            (1) an integral part of a comprehensive modernization plan; 
        or
            (2) dedicated to team building or employee involvement 
        programs.
    (d) Performance Measures.--Each eligible entity shall, in carrying 
out the activities described in section 3, provide for development of, 
and tracking of performance according to, performance outcome measures.
    (e) Administrative Costs.--Each eligible entity may use not more 
than 10 percent of the amount made available to that entity through a 
grant awarded under this Act to pay for administrative costs.
    (f) Maximum Amount of Grant.--No eligible entity may receive--
            (1) a grant under this Act in an amount of more than 
        $1,000,000 for any fiscal year; or
            (2) grants under this Act in any amount for more than 3 
        fiscal years.
    (g) Support for Existing Operations.--
            (1) In general.--In making grants under this Act, the 
        Secretary may use a portion equal to not more than 50 percent 
        of the funds appropriated to carry out this Act for a fiscal 
        year, to support the existing training and modernization 
        operations of existing eligible entities.
            (2) Entities.--The Secretary may award a grant to an 
        existing eligible entity for existing training and 
        modernization operations only if the entity--
                    (A) currently offers (as of the date of the award 
                of the grant) a combination of training, modernization, 
                and business assistance services; and
                    (B) has demonstrated success in accomplishing the 
                objectives of activities described in section 3.
            (3) Application.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to support 
        for the expansion of training and modernization operations of 
        existing eligible entities.
            (4) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    (A) Existing training and modernization activity.--
                The term ``existing training and modernization 
                activity'' means a training and modernization activity 
                carried out prior to the date of enactment of this Act.
                    (B) Existing eligible entity.--The term ``existing 
                eligible entity'' means an eligible entity that was 
                established prior to the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 7. GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE STUDY.

    (a) Study.--Beginning 3 years after the date of enactment of this 
Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study 
concerning the activities carried out under this Act. In conducting the 
study, the Comptroller General shall assess the effectiveness of the 
activities and suggest improvements to the grant program established 
under this Act, including recommending whether the program should be 
administered by the Department of Labor or by another agency or an 
alternative entity.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 3 years and 6 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall prepare and submit to Congress a report containing the results of 
the study.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act--
            (1) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2004;
            (2) $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2005;
            (3) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2006; and
            (4) $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2007.
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