[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6247 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6247

  To establish a competitive grant program at the U.S. Department of 
 Education to support the development, production, and distribution of 
 public media programming designed to prepare Americans for in-demand 
    occupations that address the needs of State and local economies.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 12, 2020

    Mr. Krishnamoorthi (for himself and Mr. Meuser) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 
                                 Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To establish a competitive grant program at the U.S. Department of 
 Education to support the development, production, and distribution of 
 public media programming designed to prepare Americans for in-demand 
    occupations that address the needs of State and local economies.

    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 ``Partnerships for American Jobs 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The terms ``career pathway'', ``State board'', and 
        ``local board'' have the meanings given the terms in section 3 
        of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 
        3102).
            (2) The term ``digital media programming'' means video and 
        audio programming that may be delivered through a variety of 
        media platforms, including broadcast television and radio, the 
        internet, mobile devices, and other platforms.
            (3) The term ``in-demand industry sector or occupation'' 
        has the meaning given in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation 
        and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102).
            (4) The term ``institutions of higher education'' has the 
        meaning given in section 102 of the Higher Education Act (20 
        U.S.C. 1001).
            (5) The terms ``local educational agency'' and ``State 
        educational agency'' have the meanings given such terms in 
        section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (6) The terms ``public broadcast station'' and ``public 
        telecommunications entity'' have the meanings given such terms 
        in section 397 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 
        397).
            (7) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
        Education.

SEC. 3. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to support the development and 
distribution of digital media programming that--
            (1) promotes middle school, high school, and postsecondary 
        student entrance into in-demand occupations;
            (2) promotes student entrance into career pathway programs 
        that provide such preparation; and
            (3) assists in meeting the needs of State and local 
        economies through increased workers in in-demand industry 
        sectors or occupations.

SEC. 4. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Education, in consultation with 
the Secretary of Labor, may award competitive grants to, or enter into 
contracts or cooperative agreements with, eligible entities described 
in subsection (c) to enable such entities--
            (1) to develop, produce, and distribute educational and 
        promotional digital media programming that is designed--
                    (A) to illustrate the value of career pathways in 
                in-demand industry sectors and occupations;
                    (B) to encourage secondary and postsecondary 
                graduation and demonstrate successful student outcomes;
                    (C) to inform young Americans, particularly those 
                who live in communities not currently served by career 
                pathway programs, of a full range of secondary or 
                postsecondary education options which align with the 
                skill needs of industries in the economy of the State 
                or a locality as specified in subparagraph (D); and
                    (D) to address the economic needs of a State as 
                specified in the unified State plan that such State 
                established under section 102 of the Workforce 
                Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3112) or 
                locality as specified in a local plan established under 
                section 108 of such Act (29 U.S.C. 3123) through 
                encouragement of students and workers to enter 
                professions and occupations related to in-demand 
                industries or occupations;
            (2) to facilitate the development, directly or through 
        contracts with producers of educational television and audio 
        programming, of educational programming for middle school, high 
        school, and postsecondary learners, and accompanying support 
        materials and services that promote the effective use of such 
        programming;
            (3) to facilitate the development of programming, digital 
        content, and support materials, for parents, educators, 
        specialized instructional support personnel, and employers, 
        that is designed for distribution over the broadcast channels 
        of television and radio public broadcast stations and the 
        internet; and
            (4) to contract with entities (such as public 
        telecommunications entities) to disseminate and distribute 
        programming developed under this Act to the widest possible 
        audience through the most appropriate distribution 
        technologies, including broadcast and online platforms.
    (b) Availability.--In awarding grants, contracts, or cooperative 
agreements under this section, the Secretary shall ensure that eligible 
entities make programming widely available, with support materials as 
appropriate, to local educational agencies, institutions of higher 
education, workforce development systems, and employers in relevant 
industries.
    (c) Eligible Entities.--To be eligible to receive a grant, contract 
or cooperative agreement under this section an entity shall be a public 
telecommunications entity that is able to demonstrate each of the 
following:
            (1) A capacity to contract for the development and national 
        distribution of educational and promotional video, audio, and 
        other media programming that is accessible by middle school, 
        high school, and postsecondary learners.
            (2) A capacity to distribute programming, digital content, 
        and support materials, for parents, educators, specialized 
        instructional support personnel, and employers, that is 
        designed for distribution over the broadcast channels of 
        television and radio public broadcast stations and the 
        internet.
            (3) A capacity, consistent with the entity's mission and 
        nonprofit nature, to negotiate the contracts described in 
        paragraphs (2) and (4) of subsection (a) in a manner that 
        returns to the entity an appropriate share of any ancillary 
        income from sales of any program-related products.
            (4) A capacity to localize programming and materials to 
        meet specific State and local needs and to provide educational 
        outreach at the local level.

SEC. 5. COORDINATION OF ACTIVITIES.

    (a) Consultation With the Secretary.--An eligible entity receiving 
a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this Act shall 
consult with the Secretary--
            (1) to maximize the utilization of educational programming 
        by secondary and postsecondary learners, and make such 
        programming widely available to federally funded programs 
        serving such populations; and
            (2) to coordinate activities with Federal, State, and local 
        programs that support workforce development and career and 
        technical education, including programs under the Carl D. 
        Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (29 U.S.C. 
        2301 et seq.), the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
        1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.), the Higher Education Act of 1965 
        (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.), and the Workforce Innovation and 
        Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.).
    (b) Coordination With Other Entities.--To the extent feasible, an 
eligible entity receiving a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement 
shall also coordinate its activity under such award with the activities 
of one or more of the following entities:
            (1) Employers.
            (2) Workforce development professionals and agencies.
            (3) Educators.
            (4) Labor organizations.
            (5) Joint labor-management partnerships.
            (6) State educational agencies and local educational 
        agencies.
            (7) State boards and local boards.
            (8) Institutions of higher education.
            (9) Business councils.

SEC. 6. APPLICATIONS.

    An eligible entity desiring to receive a grant, contract, or 
cooperative agreement under this Act shall submit to the Secretary in 
consultation with the Secretary of Labor an application at such time, 
in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 
reasonably require. This application must include--
            (1) the full scale and content of the programming to be 
        produced;
            (2) the population and geographic area to be targeted by 
        the programming;
            (3) the economic need of the State or locality that the 
        programming is designed to meet through increased participation 
        in in-demand industries and occupations; and
            (4) the initiatives to be undertaken by the eligible entity 
        to develop public-private partnerships to secure non-Federal 
        support for the development, distribution, and broadcast of the 
        programming.

SEC. 7. REPORTS AND EVALUATIONS.

    (a) Biennial Report to the Secretary.--An eligible entity receiving 
a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this Act shall 
prepare and submit to the Secretary a biennial report that contains 
such information as the Secretary may require. At a minimum, the report 
shall describe the activities undertaken with funds received under the 
grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, including each of the 
following:
            (1) The programming that has been developed, directly or 
        indirectly, by the eligible entity.
            (2) The target population for this programming.
            (3) The economic needs of the State or locality (as 
        identified in the application of the eligible entity under 
        section 6(3)) that this programming was attempting to meet 
        through the encouragement of new workers in in-demand sectors 
        and occupations.
            (4) The degree to which the number of workers working in 
        such in-demand sectors and occupations has increased since the 
        programming was distributed.
            (5) The means by which programming developed under this 
        section has been distributed, and the geographic distribution 
        achieved.
            (6) The initiatives undertaken by the eligible entity to 
        develop public-private partnerships to secure non-Federal 
        support for the development, distribution, and broadcast of 
        educational and promotional programming.
    (b) Report to Congress.--The Secretary shall prepare and submit to 
the relevant committees of Congress a biennial report that includes the 
following:
            (1) A summary of the activities assisted under this Act.
            (2) A description of the educational and promotional 
        materials made available under section 4(a)(4), and the manner 
        in which such materials have been distributed in accordance 
        with such section.

SEC. 8. ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.

    An eligible entity that receives a grant, contract, or cooperative 
agreement under this Act may use up to 5 percent of the amount received 
under the grant, contract, or agreement for the normal and customary 
expenses of administering the grant, contract, or agreement.

SEC. 9. SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATIONS.

    The authority provided by section 4 may be exercised only to such 
extent and in such amounts as are provided in advance in appropriations 
Acts.
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