[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2124 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2124

 To establish a Federal tax credit approximation matching program for 
      State new jobs training tax credits, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 1, 2015

 Ms. Stabenow introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To establish a Federal tax credit approximation matching program for 
      State new jobs training tax credits, 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 ``New Skills for New Jobs Act''.

SEC. 2. FEDERAL MATCHING PAYMENTS FOR STATE NEW JOBS TRAINING TAX 
              CREDITS.

    (a) Authority To Make Payments.--Subject to subsection (h), the 
Secretary of the Treasury shall, on a quarterly basis, make a payment 
to each eligible community college in an amount equal to the aggregate 
new job tax withholding matches for all eligible trainees with respect 
to such eligible community college for such quarter.
    (b) New Job Tax Withholding Match.--In the case of any quarter, the 
new job tax withholding match with respect to any eligible trainee is 
an amount equal to the amounts remitted as described in subsection 
(d)(1)(A) during such quarter with respect to such trainee by a 
participating employer.
    (c) Eligible Community College.--For purposes of this section, the 
term ``eligible community college'' means a public institution of 
higher education, as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act 
of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)--
            (1) at which the majority of degrees awarded, for any 
        academic year, are 2-year associate's degrees that are 
        acceptable for full credit toward a baccalaureate degree,
            (2) that is located in a State that has a State new jobs 
        training tax credit program in effect, and
            (3) that participates in such program by having in effect a 
        contract that meets the requirements of subsection (d)(2).
    (d) State New Jobs Training Tax Credit Program.--
            (1) Programs described.--For purposes of this section, the 
        term ``State new jobs training tax credit program'' means a 
        program established by a State government that provides that, 
        if an eligible community college and an employer sign a 
        contract that meets the requirements of paragraph (2) with 
        respect to an eligible trainee--
                    (A) the State income taxes withheld by the employer 
                on behalf of the eligible trainee, once employed by the 
                employer, to the extent they do not exceed the cost of 
                qualified training specified in such contract, will not 
                be remitted to the State in payment of income taxes, 
                but will be remitted to the eligible community college,
                    (B) the amounts so remitted will be treated in the 
                hands of the eligible community college as payment for 
                education provided by such community college, and
                    (C) for purposes of determining the State income 
                tax liability of the eligible trainee, the amounts so 
                remitted will be treated as if they had been remitted 
                to the State in payment of income taxes owed by the 
                eligible trainee.
            (2) Qualified contract.--A contract meets the requirements 
        of this paragraph if--
                    (A) the contract is between an eligible community 
                college located in the State that has the program 
                described in paragraph (1) and an employer with at 
                least 1 job site located in such State,
                    (B) the contract meets all applicable requirements 
                under such State program,
                    (C) the contract provides that--
                            (i) the eligible community college will 
                        directly provide qualified training to 
                        individuals designated by the employer or will 
                        contract with a provider of qualified training 
                        to provide such training to such individuals,
                            (ii) the eligible community college will 
                        not charge tuition or fees to such individuals,
                            (iii) the employer will hire such 
                        individuals for full-time employment at a job 
                        site located within the State,
                            (iv) such individuals will be paid by the 
                        employer a wage that is not less than the 
                        greater of--
                                    (I) 175 percent of the Federal 
                                minimum wage, or
                                    (II) the amount specified under the 
                                State program, and
                            (v) as provided under the State program, 
                        the employer will remit the State income taxes 
                        withheld by the employer on behalf of the 
                        individual to the community college in payment 
                        for the training, to the extent such taxes do 
                        not exceed the cost described in subparagraph 
                        (D),
                    (D) the contract specifies the entire cost of the 
                qualified training (including all costs for equipment 
                or instructional materials) that will be provided to 
                each individual, and
                    (E) the cost and terms specified under subparagraph 
                (D) are reasonable by market standards.
            (3) Qualified training.--For purposes of this section, the 
        term ``qualified training'' means education or training which, 
        if completed, will provide the individual with--
                    (A) education or skills necessary to perform the 
                job for which such individual will be employed,
                    (B) education or skills necessary to obtain a 
                license required under Federal, State, or local 
                governmental regulation for the employment of the 
                individual in the job for which such individual will be 
                employed,
                    (C) a certificate or credential which is required 
                under Federal, State, or local governmental regulation 
                for the employment of the individual in the job for 
                which such individual will be employed, or
                    (D) a certificate or credential aligned with 
                national or regionally recognized industry standards 
                determined appropriate by the State.
            (4) Job must be new job.--
                    (A) In general.--A State program will not be 
                treated as a State new jobs training tax credit program 
                for purposes of this subsection unless the program 
                provides that, in order to be eligible to participate, 
                the employer must show with respect to each eligible 
                trainee that such eligible trainee is hired for a job 
                that--
                            (i) is a new job (which, for purposes of 
                        this paragraph, may include a new position 
                        within an existing job category), and not a job 
                        of a recalled worker, a replacement job, or any 
                        other job that existed in the employer's 
                        business within the 1-year period preceding the 
                        date of hire,
                            (ii) is not a job that existed in a 
                        business operation or substantially similar 
                        business operation of the employer formerly 
                        located in another location which was closed or 
                        substantially reduced by the employer, and
                            (iii) results in a net increase in 
                        employment for the employer.
                    (B) Only u.s. employees taken into account.--For 
                purposes of subparagraph (A), only employees at job 
                sites located in the United States (including the 
                possessions of the United States) shall be taken into 
                account.
            (5) Aggregation rules.--All persons treated as a single 
        employer under subsection (a) or (b) of section 52, or 
        subsection (m) or (o) of section 414, of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986, shall be treated as a single employer for 
        purposes of this section.
            (6) Cooperation with local workforce investment boards.--An 
        employer or eligible community college participating in a State 
        new jobs training tax credit program may work with local 
        workforce development boards established under section 107 of 
        the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3122) 
        in searching for individuals to hire and train through such 
        program.
    (e) Eligible Trainee.--For purposes of this section, the term 
``eligible trainee'' means an individual--
            (1) who received qualified training through an eligible 
        community college pursuant to a contract that meets the 
        requirements of subsection (d)(2), under a State new jobs 
        training tax credit program, and
            (2) who is employed on a full-time basis, during the 
        quarter for which payment is made under subsection (a), by the 
        employer who was a party to such contract--
                    (A) at a job site located in the same State as the 
                eligible community college,
                    (B) at a wage that meets the requirements of 
                subsection (d)(2)(C)(iv),
                    (C) in a job that meets the new job requirement of 
                subsection (d)(4), and
                    (D) in a job for which such qualified training is 
                required, either by law or regulation or by the 
                inherent requirements of the job.
    (f) Appropriation.--Out of any sums in the Treasury not otherwise 
appropriated, there are appropriated on an ongoing basis such sums as 
are necessary to carry out this section.
    (g) Remission of State Income Tax Withholdings Not Treated as 
Payments for Training or Education.--In the case of an employer, the 
amount of withheld State income tax which is remitted by the employer 
to an eligible community college as described in subsection (d)(1)(A) 
shall not be treated as an amount paid or incurred by the employer for 
purposes of any credit or deduction available under the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 to such employer, but shall be treated as if such 
amount had been remitted to the State in payment of income taxes owed 
by the employee.
    (h) Tax Treatment of Payments With Respect to Eligible Trainee.--In 
the case of an eligible trainee, neither--
            (1) the amount of any withheld State income tax which is 
        remitted by an employer to an eligible community college as 
        described in subsection (d)(1)(A), nor
            (2) the amount of any payment made under subsection (a),
shall be treated for purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 as 
income of the eligible trainee. For purposes of determining the 
deduction under section 164(a)(3) of such Code, amounts described in 
paragraph (1) shall be treated as amounts paid for State income taxes 
by the eligible trainee.
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