[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3518 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 3518

To authorize the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Secretary 
  of Education, to make grants to eligible entities to assist certain 
     individuals in reentering a secondary school or a high school 
              equivalency program, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 14, 2023

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the Secretary 
  of Education, to make grants to eligible entities to assist certain 
     individuals in reentering a secondary school or a high school 
              equivalency program, 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 ``Reengage the Workforce Act''.

SEC. 2. SECONDARY SCHOOL DROPOUT REENGAGEMENT GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) Grants Authorized.--From the amounts made available to carry 
out this section, the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Education, shall make grants, on a competitive basis, to 
eligible entities to carry out in-person or virtual programs to provide 
eligible secondary school dropouts each of the services described in 
subsection (b).
    (b) Uses of Funds.--A program funded with a grant under this 
section shall provide each of the following services to eligible 
secondary school dropouts:
            (1) Assistance in reentering a secondary school or entering 
        an in-person or virtual high school equivalency program.
            (2) Flexible secondary school credit recovery to accelerate 
        the time to receipt of a high school diploma, which may include 
        waiving seat time barriers, allowing virtual credit recovery 
        programming, providing prior learning assessments, accepting 
        alternative credits from internships, community service, or 
        independent study, or providing assessment tests (or pre-
        employment tests) or GED ready tests (or high school 
        equivalency program tests).
            (3) Life and career workshops, including--
                    (A) career planning and career exploration;
                    (B) assistance in enrolling in a program of 
                training or education at an institution of higher 
                education that leads to a recognized postsecondary 
                credential;
                    (C) resume support services;
                    (D) interview assistance; and
                    (E) work-based learning such as registered 
                apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships, practicums, 
                internships, and on-the-job training.
            (4) Supportive services, such as transportation, child 
        care, dependent care, housing, and needs-related payments, that 
        are necessary to enable an individual to participate in 
        activities described in paragraphs (1) through (3).
    (c) Application.--
            (1) In general.--To receive a grant under this section, an 
        eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary an application at 
        such time, in such manner, and containing such information as 
        the Secretary may require.
            (2) Contents.--An application under paragraph (1) shall 
        include--
                    (A) a description of the program that will be 
                funded under the grant; and
                    (B) in the case of an application that supports an 
                existing program (as of the date of application), the 
                number of individuals who are enrolled in the program 
                as of such date, in the aggregate and disaggregated by 
                race, gender, age, and disability status.
    (d) Preference.--In awarding grants under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall give preference to eligible entities that will use the 
grant to carry out programs described subsection (b)--
            (1) in low-income communities; or
            (2) that will implement evidence-based practices, as 
        determined by the Secretary, in providing the services offered 
        through the programs.
    (e) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date on which the 
first grant is awarded under subsection (a) and annually thereafter for 
10 years, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the 
implementation of this section, which shall include the following:
            (1) The percentage of the grant funds awarded during the 
        most recent fiscal year, which are used to improve the 
        education of eligible secondary school dropouts and prepare 
        such individuals for the workforce.
            (2) The percentage of the grant funds awarded during the 
        most recent fiscal year, which are used to provide the 
        supportive services described in subsection (b)(4) to eligible 
        secondary school dropouts.
            (3) The number and types of programs funded under this 
        section in the most recent academic year.
            (4) (A) For each milestone described in subparagraph (B), 
        the number of individuals who, during the period beginning on 
        the date on which such first grant is awarded and ending on the 
        last day of the most recent full academic year, met the 
        milestone, in the aggregate and disaggregated by program and by 
        race, gender, age, and disability status of the individuals.
            (B) The milestones described in this subparagraph are the 
        following:
                    (i) Enrolled in a program funded under this 
                section.
                    (ii) Enrolled in, and completed, a program funded 
                under this section.
                    (iii) After enrollment in a program funded under 
                this section, enrolled in a program of training or 
                education at an institution of higher education that 
                leads to a recognized postsecondary credential.
                    (iv) After completion of a program funded under 
                this section, obtained employment in a relevant field.
            (5) Any additional data needed to determine the impact of 
        programs funded under this section on workforce readiness, as 
        determined by the Secretary.
    (f) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) ESEA terms.--The terms ``high school'', ``local 
        educational agency'', and ``secondary school'' have the 
        meanings given such terms in section 8101 of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
            (2) WIOA terms.--The terms ``career planning'', 
        ``community-based organization'', ``local board'', ``poverty 
        line'', ``recognized postsecondary credential'', ``State 
        board'', and ``unit of general local government'' have the 
        meanings given the terms in section 3 of the Workforce 
        Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102).
            (3) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means a 
        partnership between or among--
                    (A)(i) a local educational agency;
                    (ii) a unit of general local government;
                    (iii) a nonprofit intermediary (such as a local 
                educational agency or other educational organization); 
                or
                    (iv) a consortium of any of the entities described 
                in clauses (i) through (iii); and
                    (B) one or more of the following:
                            (i) A community-based organization.
                            (ii) An institution of higher education.
                            (iii) A local board or State board.
            (4) Eligible secondary school dropout.--The term ``eligible 
        secondary school dropout'' means an individual who is--
                    (A) not younger than 16 years of age; and
                    (B) not enrolled in a secondary school or high 
                school equivalency program.
            (5) Institution of higher education.--The term 
        ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1002).
            (6) Low-income community.--The term ``low-income 
        community'' means any census block group in which 30 percent or 
        more of the population are individuals with an annual household 
        equal to, or less than, the greater of--
                    (A) an amount equal to 80 percent of the median 
                income of the area in which the household is located, 
                as reported by the Department of Housing and Urban 
                Development; and
                    (B) an amount equal to 200 percent of the poverty 
                line.
            (7) Registered apprenticeship.--The term ``registered 
        apprenticeship'' means an apprenticeship registered under the 
        Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly known as the ``National 
        Apprenticeship Act''); 50 Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 
        et seq.).
            (8) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Labor.
    (g) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated $5,520,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2024 through 2034.
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