[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1920 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1920

To require the Comptroller General of the United States to develop and 
submit to Congress a biennial report on the current state of the skills 
 gap in the United States, as of the date of the report, that includes 
an analysis of the effectiveness of efforts to close the skills gap and 
policy recommendations to improve such efforts, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             August 4, 2015

  Mr. Donnelly (for himself and Mr. Heller) introduced the following 
  bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Comptroller General of the United States to develop and 
submit to Congress a biennial report on the current state of the skills 
 gap in the United States, as of the date of the report, that includes 
an analysis of the effectiveness of efforts to close the skills gap and 
policy recommendations to improve such efforts, 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 ``Biennial Report on the Skills Gap 
Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF SKILLS GAP.

    In this Act, the term ``skills gap'' means the difference or gap 
between the specific skills set of employees and the skills that are 
desired by employers in the workforce.

SEC. 3. BIENNIAL REPORT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, and every other year thereafter, the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall develop and submit to Congress a 
report on the current state of the skills gap in the United States, as 
of the date of the report, that includes--
            (1) an analysis of the effectiveness of efforts to close 
        the skills gap; and
            (2) policy recommendations to improve such efforts.
    (b) Content of Report.--Each report required under subsection (a) 
may include the following:
            (1) An analysis of employer participation in 
        apprenticeships and on-the-job training in the United States.
            (2) An assessment of the Registered Apprenticeship program 
        of the Department of Labor (Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly 
        known as the ``National Apprenticeship Act''; 50 Stat. 664, 
        chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.)) to determine if the program 
        can be better utilized.
            (3) An analysis of the prevalence and portability of 
        recognized postsecondary credentials, including industry-
        recognized credentials, that align with occupations that are in 
        demand.
            (4) A comparison of policies and strategies addressing the 
        current skills gap in the United States, as of the date of the 
        report, with the policies and strategies employed by other 
        large countries.
            (5) An analysis of the specific barriers preventing the 
        United States workforce from acquiring the skills desired by 
        United States employers, including an assessment of 
        opportunities to reduce those barriers.
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