Congressional Record, Volume 160 Issue 100 (Wednesday, June 25, 2014)

[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 100 (Wednesday, June 25, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3964-S3991]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

WORKFORCE INNOVATION AND OPPORTUNITY ACT

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions is discharged from further
consideration of H.R. 803 and the Senate will proceed to the measure,
which the clerk will report by title.
The bill clerk read as follows:

A bill (H.R. 803) to reform and strengthen the workforce
investment system of the Nation to put Americans back to work
and make the United States more competitive in the 21st
century.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the time until 2:30
shall be equally divided and controlled between the two leaders or
their designees.
The Senator from Tennessee.
Mr. ALEXANDER. Madam President, for the next several hours we will be
moving to a bill that the Senator from Washington, Mrs. Murray, and the
Senator from Georgia, Mr. Isakson, have had the principal role in
fashioning. They will have a chance to talk about that. In just a few
minutes the chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee, Senator Harkin, will proceed with the bill. But before that
happens, I wish to take 3 or 4 minutes to talk about the importance of
what is happening here.
In 1998 Congress passed a sort of ``GI bill'' for workers. The idea
was to do what is at the top of every Governor's agenda in every State
right now: How can we help more Americans get the job skills to fit the
jobs?
When I was home in Granger County last weekend, the concern of
Tennesseans was that it is too hard to find a job; it is too hard to
keep a house; what can I do to get a job?
This legislation we are dealing with today, for the first time since
2003, reauthorizes $9.5 billion in funds that will be spent through
local workforce boards, through community colleges, and through State
governments to help individuals in North Dakota, in Washington, in
Tennessee, in Georgia get the job skills to find a job. This bill will
make it easier for them for them to achieve that goal. It has the great
advantage of not mandating how they do it from Washington but creating
an environment where people can do this for themselves.
Our former Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen said to me that when he
first became Governor and went to find out about the $145 million of
federal workforce development funding that comes to Tennessee, he just
threw up his hands. He said: It is too complicated. I cannot do
anything with it.
So he told his cabinet members: Do the best you can.
Well, working together with the House of Representatives, Senator
Murray and Senator Isakson and a group of us here have taken this law
that was passed 16 years ago and made some dramatic changes to it. They
will tell you more about that. They will be talking about how we have
taken many of the 47 work-training programs that exist in the Federal
Government and simplified them, eliminating 15 programs that were
ineffective or duplicative, eliminating 21 Federal mandates,
streamlining multiple plans into a single State plan that reduces time
spent on paperwork, streamlining reporting requirements, giving
Governors more flexibility, giving local workforce boards more
flexibility, and most importantly, giving the individuals who need jobs
more opportunity to say: This is what I would like to do, and this is
what I choose to do.
This has been no easy task. Senator Murray and Senator Isakson
deserve a lot of credit from all of us because many Congresses have
tried to reauthorize this law before. I am going to come back after
about an hour and deliver a little more extensive discussion on this,
but the 108th Congress, the 109th Congress, and the 112th Congress--all
tried to do this but could not get a consensus about how to move
forward. Finally, Congresswoman Virginia Foxx produced the SKILLS Act
in the House of Representatives. The House passed this bill in March of
2013. It came over here to the Senate. The Senate HELP Committee passed
its bill last July. Led by Senator Murray and Senator Isakson, the
Senate began working with the House, came up with an agreement, and,
working with a number of Senators, we have reduced the number of
amendments that actually have to be voted on today to two. So we will
have two amendments to be voted on and then will vote on final passage.
Then we will send the bill back to the House. Hopefully the President
will have a chance to sign it.
I would like to say that I hope that in the midst of what is too much
dysfunction in the Senate, this will be an example of what can happen
when we put our minds to it.
The members of the HELP Committee, on which I am the ranking
Republican, and Senator Harkin, the ranking Democrat--we have some
pretty big philosophical differences. Ideologically, we are not the
same. But we have passed 19 bills out of the HELP Committee. 13 have
become law this year. That is a record of accomplishment we are proud
of. It shows that Senators with different opinions can come to a
consensus and come to a resolve.
So let me step aside now and let those who have really done the most
work on the bill speak--the Senator from Washington and the Senator
from Georgia. I will be back in about an hour, and then we will be
voting a little later this afternoon. This is good news for the workers
of America, for the Governors who felt hamstrung by Washington, for the
workforce boards who have been limited in their ability to meet the
needs of local employers and workers, and for Senator Coburn, who has
been a real leader in pointing out how many duplicative work programs
we have. We have gone a long way in the direction he wanted us to go. I
congratulate all of those Senators for the result.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.

Amendment No. 3378

(Purpose: In the nature of a substitute)

Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, as provided under the consent
agreement, I now call up the substitute amendment No. 3378.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The bill clerk read as follows:

[[Page S3965]]

The Senator from Washington [Mrs. Murray], for herself, Mr.
Isakson, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Alexander, Ms. Mikulski, Mr.
Sanders, Mr. Casey, Mrs. Hagan, Mr. Franken, Mr. Bennet, Mr.
Whitehouse, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Murphy, Ms. Warren, Mr. Enzi,
Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Booker, Ms. Collins, Mr. Corker, Mr.
Begich, Mr. Scott, Mrs. Fischer, and Mr. Brown, proposes an
amendment numbered 3378.

=========================== NOTE ===========================

On page S3965, June 25, 2014, in the first column, the following
appears: The Senator from Washington [Mrs. MURRAY], for herself, .
. .

The online Record has been corrected to read: The Senator from
Washington [Mrs. MURRAY], for herself, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Harkin,
Mr. Alexander, . . .

========================= END NOTE =========================

Mrs. MURRAY. I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the
amendment be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
(The amendment is printed in today's Record under ``Text of
Amendments.'')
Mrs. MURRAY. I ask unanimous consent that all after the first vote at
2:30 p.m. be 10 minute votes and that upon disposition of H.R. 803, the
time until 4:30 p.m. be equally divided between the two leaders or
their designees.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, just last month I joined seven of my
colleagues, Republicans and Democrats from the House and the Senate, to
introduce a critical piece of legislation called the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act. It is a bill to reauthorize and
dramatically improve the Workforce Investment Act, or WIA, which
authorizes a number of critical workforce development programs in all
50 States.
This legislation is something I have been working on for several
years with a number of our colleagues. It is something that is long
overdue--for more than a decade. Since we introduced a compromise deal
last month, we have been working feverishly with our colleagues on both
sides of the aisle and both sides of the Capitol to iron out any issues
they might have and make a few small technical fixes. We have made sure
that every single Member of the Senate and their staffs have had the
time to look through this deal, ask questions, and propose amendments.
Now, today, we are one final step away from sending this tremendous
bipartisan deal to the House of Representatives and then hopefully to
the President's desk.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a list of over
100 organizations supporting this bill, including business groups,
labor, educators, Governors, mayors, and countless others.
Improving our Federal workforce programs is, as I said, something I
have been working on for more than a decade. During that time, I have
heard from so many workers and businesses in my home State of
Washington and across the country who tell me how important effective
workforce programs are for themselves and their communities. Business
owners, large and small, have told me that while existing programs
help, it has become harder and harder to find workers with the skills
they need to fill new jobs in the 21st century. Workers who want to
advance their careers or get back on the job after being unemployed
have told me that it is more and more difficult to get the education
and skills they need to compete for the new jobs.
I am thrilled that we have reached this important step in the
process. The reason this agreement was even possible is the incredible
bipartisan process we have had over the last 2 months to reach a
compromise on which we could all agree. So today I thank my coauthors
of this bill in the Senate for all of their hard work through the
process and their work to rally support for it today: Senator Tom
Harkin, a Democrat from Iowa, the great chairman of the Senate HELP
Committee; Senator Lamar Alexander, from whom you heard, a Republican
from Tennessee and the esteemed ranking member of the HELP Committee;
and finally, my very close partner in this process, Senator Johnny
Isakson from Georgia.
Senator Isakson and I are the coauthors of the Senate version of this
bill to reauthorize WIA. Throughout this process it has been an
absolute pleasure to work across the aisle with him to get this done.
His integrity and his commitment have been key to making this a
reality.
Senator Isakson's office is right next door to mine. Whether it was
on the phone or while the two of us were walking over here to the
Chamber to cast votes, we must have had hundreds of conversations on
how to reach this point. So it means a lot for me to be here with him
today.
I also thank a few other Senators whose commitment to improving our
workforce systems has been remarkable.
First of all, I thank Senator Enzi, our colleague from Wyoming.
Senator Enzi and I have been working for a very long time to
reauthorize WIA. More than once, we would be at the White House for
meetings, and regardless of the topic, wherever we were, he would tell
President Bush and now President Obama: This should be a bipartisan
effort we can all agree on. I think today's actions are proof that he
was right all along.
Second, I wish to recognize and thank Senator Sherrod Brown from Ohio
for his years of leadership on these issues. Senator Brown's
understanding of the changes in the American economy and our places of
work is unparalleled. The State of Ohio should be very proud to have
him represent them in the Senate.
In particular, Senator Brown's work on the issues of skills,
manufacturing, economic competitiveness, and education reform have been
critical. In crafting this deal, we were fortunate to be able to draw
on his SECTORS Act and weave the concepts of that throughout this bill.
In fact, it is because of Senator Brown's strong advocacy that we were
successful in requiring SECTOR initiatives at both the State and local
levels, as well as including them in plans and functions and reports. I
know that in my State of Washington, we use SECTOR strategies in
everything from aerospace industries to maritime, health, construction,
gaming, finance, renewable energy, and viniculture. They all work to
improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our workforce system. I am
very proud that we have included sections in this bill and have worked
with Senator Brown closely and have benefited from his knowledge and
leadership.
I also thank Senator Kay Hagan from North Carolina for her work on
this legislation. Her America Works bill provided us with a great
framework to think about skills and certification and credentials and
the need to be closely aligned with employers. Because of her
leadership and her vision, this bill requires that training that leads
to recognized postsecondary credentials receive a priority, meaning
that both workers and employers benefit from the training provided
through this act.

We also require that all States and locals report on the number of
credentials offered, meaning that the entire workforce system will be
more closely aligned to the needs of employers and workers and will
yield more direct value in and for the marketplace.
I also wish to mention that Senator Hagan worked hard to ensure that
we focused not just on initial credentials but credentials that are
industry-recognized and both portable and stackable.
Finally, I thank Senator Franken from Minnesota, who represents the
same State as the late Senator Paul Wellstone, who was my Democratic
predecessor lead on this bill.
True to Senator Wellstone's legacy, Senator Franken has shown a deep
understanding of the needs of job seekers, workers, and employers, as
well as a passion to help them all advance and succeed.
I was very pleased to work closely with him on this legislation and
ensure that a number of his priorities were included. Lead among his
priorities was building closer ties with our community colleges, and we
worked hard to make sure that happened.
I am also pleased that we benefited from a truly innovative program
in Minnesota, Twin Cities RISE!, which has been a pioneer in pay-for-
performance models for many years and which helped to inform our
inclusion of pay-for-performance provisions in this bill.
So it is clear this bill is the product of many authors. And while we
know that nobody gets everything they want, I think at the end of the
day we can all proudly say this bill will help our workers, our
businesses, and our economy for years to come, because Federal
workforce programs have proven time and again that the best investment
we can make as a country is an investment in our American workers.
I have seen firsthand in my home State of Washington workers who were

[[Page S3966]]

laid off who were able to get new training, new skills, and new jobs. I
have seen so many Washington State businesses--from our aerospace
companies to video game design firms--that were able to access workers
with the new skills they needed to grow and compete.
But with millions of new jobs that would require postsecondary
education and advanced skills in the coming years, we will fall behind
if we do not modernize our workforce development systems and programs
now. We have to make sure that when high-tech jobs of the 21st century
are created, Americans are ready to fill them, and that is exactly what
we have all done in this bill.
We have doubled down on the programs that work, we have improved the
programs that have become outdated, and we have created a workforce
system that is more nimble, adaptable, better aligned with what our
businesses need, and more accountable so that they can continue to make
it better.
We started with a House proposal, a Senate proposal, and we all met
in the middle. That is exactly what the American people sent us here to
do, to work together to help our workers and help our economy grow.
This is an all too rare opportunity for all of us to get behind a
strong, bipartisan, bicameral bill.
I urge all of our colleagues to support the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act and send it to the House for a vote.
I thank my great friend and partner, who has spent innumerable hours
getting us to this point. I thank him, his staff, and all of our staffs
who have worked hard to find a compromise and not to find a fight.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:

The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act--Investing in America's
Competitiveness

List of Key Supportive Organizations

1. ACT
2. AFL-CIO
3. AFSCME
4. American Association of Community Colleges
5. American Federation of Teachers
6. America Forward Coalition
7. The American Legion
8. American Library Association
9. The Arc
10. Associated Builders and Contractors
11. Associated General Contractors of America
12. Association for Advancing Automation
13. Association for Career and Technical Education
14. Association for Talent Development (formerly ASTD)
15. Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs
16. Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs
17. Association of University Centers on Disabilities
18. Austin Chamber of Commerce
19. Bipartisan Policy Center's Governors Council
20. Business Leaders United
21. Business Roundtable
22. California Workforce Association
23. Center for Law and Social Policy
24. Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce
25. City of Seattle
26. Colorado Municipal League
27. Commercial Vehicle Training Association
28. Consortium for Citizens With Disabilities
29. Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy
30. Dallas Regional Chamber
31. Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce
32. Easter Seals
33. Georgia Municipal Association
34. Goodwill Industries International
35. Governor Terry Branstad (IA)
36. Governor Chris Christie (NJ)
37. Governor Mary FaIlin (OK)
38. Governor Rick Scott (FL)
39. Governor Rick Snyder (MI)
40. Governor Tom Corbett (PA)
41. Greater Baltimore Chamber of Commerce
42. Greater Cleveland Partnership
43. Greater Ft. Lauderdale Chamber of Commerce
44. Greater Houston Partnership
45. Greater Louisville Inc.
46. Greater Memphis Chamber
47. Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce
48. Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce
49. Greater Spokane Incorporated
50. IBM
51. Independent Electrical Contractors
52. International Economic Development Council
53. International Union of Painters and Allied Trades
54. Jobs for the Future
55. Knowledge Alliance
56. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
57. Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
58. Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation
59. Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce
60. Massachusetts Municipal Union
61. Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce
62. Minnesota Workforce Council Association
63. Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce
64. National Association of Councils on Developmental
Disabilities
65. National Association of Counties
66. National Association of Development Organizations
67. National Association of Manufacturers
68. National Association of State Directors of Career
Technical Education Consortium
69. National Association of State Workforce Agencies
70. National Association of Workforce Boards
71. National Association of Workforce Development
Professionals
72. National Center for Learning Disabilities
73. National Coalition for Literacy
74. National Conference of State Legislatures
75. National Council on Independent Living
76. National Council of La Raza
77. National Council of State Directors of Adult Education
78. National Education Association
79. National Federation of the Blind
80. National Governors Association
81. National Job Corps Association
82. National League of Cities
83. National Metropolitan Business Alliance
84. National Restaurant Association
85. National Retail Federation
86. National Roofing Contractors Association
87. National Skills Coalition
88. National Youth Employment Coalition
89. New York Association of Training and Employment
Professionals
90. North America's Building Trades Unions
91. North Carolina Technology Association
92. Opportunity America Jobs and Careers Coalition
93. Oregon Bioscience Association
94. Paralyzed Veterans of America
95. Rural Country Representatives of California
96. San Diego Chamber of Commerce
97. San Francisco Chamber of Commerce
98. San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce
99. Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce
100. Service Employees International Union
101. Siemens Corporation
102. Society for Human Resource Management
103. Spokane Area Workforce Development Council
104. St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association
105. Tennessee Municipal League
106. Twin Cities Rise
107. United States Chamber of Commerce
108. United States Conference of Mayors
109. United Way Worldwide
110. Washington Roundtable
111. Year Up
112. YouthBuild USA

Mrs. MURRAY. I yield for Senator Isakson, and I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. I have to say first and foremost that it has been a real
privilege to work with Senator Murray from the State of Washington. We
are across the hall from one another. We see each other coming and
going and coming back to the floor and from the office.
We have worked hard, our staffs have worked hard, and finally today
lightning has struck. We are about today--in the Congress of the United
States--to reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and
address one of the significant challenges that face America today.
As we sit in this Chamber and talk about this bill, there are 10.6
million Americans who are unemployed. There are also 4 million jobs
waiting to be filled by people who need specific skills. This bill
deals with the skills deficit in America, and it is going to match some
of those unemployed with some of those jobs to lower our unemployment
rate and raise the rate of prosperity in American families. This is an
important bill.
A lot of people who have watched the Senate over the past few years
might have said: How in the world did you reach an agreement on
anything? You always seem to be fighting, you always seem to be
arguing.
I want to tell a brief story. About 1 month ago Senator Murray and I
joined a few other Members of the Senate--Senator Harkin, Senator
Alexander, a couple of Members from the

[[Page S3967]]

House: Representative Foxx of North Carolina and Representative Kline,
the chairman of the Education & the Workforce Committee in the House.
We didn't sit around a table and say: What is it that divides us? We
said: What is it that unites us?
What unites us is the fact that the American people are looking for
leadership from us to deal with the unemployment issue and the training
issue. We have been languishing to try to authorize this bill for 12
years. So we sat down and identified what we agreed on. We identified
what the problems were. We worked with the Members of the House who
opened up and said: Well, we passed the SKILLS Act, but we will sit
down, listen to your side, and try to find common ground.
After a few days, really--not weeks--we found common ground on 80
percent of the issues that confront us in workforce and investment
areas. There are a few places where we found disagreement, sure--and so
did those stop us? No, because the perfect should never be the enemy of
the good, and this bill is the good of the Senate in terms of dealing
with issues.
I want to brag about a few people in this body, if I can, besides
Senator Murray. I want to talk about Scott Cheney for a second, her
loyal assistant. He sat in my office with me--about a week and a half
ago--side-by-side, staff and Senator, working out some of the details
on this bill.
I thank Tommy Nguyen on my staff who has worked countless hours for
countless years to make this happen.
David Cleary, the aide to the committee, the aide to Senator
Alexander, has done a yeoman's job. In fact, he did probably as much of
the hand-holding in the past couple of weeks over amendments as anybody
I know.
I thank Senator Enzi from Wyoming, who is my mentor in the Senate.
When I was first elected to Congress, I was appointed to a Web-based
education joint commission between the House and the Senate. Mike Enzi
was the Republican Senator who was appointed to that commission. I was
the Republican Congressman. I didn't know Mike Enzi, but I watched him
work. I watched him find solutions to problems. I watched his quiet,
patient work to find a solution, and I said: That is the guy I want to
be like.
He is the guy who really got Mrs. Murray and myself to this point
today, because he has forged ahead when nobody else would.
When Chairman Kennedy was chairman of the committee before his tragic
loss, Mike continued to work with Senator Kennedy and said: Let's try
to find a way to do workforce innovation and opportunity.
I am glad we are doing it today, and we are doing it in large measure
because of Senator Enzi.
Senator Tim Scott, who did yeoman's work, introduced the SKILLS Act
that was passed in the House and Senate. He could have folded his arms
and said: I am going to be recalcitrant, I am not going to cooperate.
But he said: What can I do to help? There are some things I want to
make sure we do, but one thing I want to make sure we don't do is not
address the problem of unemployment and training.
Rob Portman was of tremendous help to us too. We had so many Members
whose ideas have been incorporated in this bill to deal with the issue
of skill and deal with the issue of unemployment. I am so appreciative
of each and every one of them, and I think the American people will
appreciate them too.
I want to highlight a couple of features in here that are most
important. Unlike most of what government does, we have scaled down the
size of workforce investment boards in the States and in the local
communities so they are working numbers, not numbers that are so big
they can't work.
We put more money into training and less into bureaucracy. We scaled
down a number of workforce programs and consolidated them to maximize
the Federal dollar to benefit the State level. We gave the State level
the local authority to determine the curriculum of what was best for
Washington or best for Georgia.
Washington is not a one-size-fits-all town, and workforce development
is not a one-size-fits-all issue. Through the labor departments of the
various States, we now are going to empower them to train people for
the jobs they need in their State, not the jobs Washington might think
they might have needed in their State. That is a tremendous advance
forward in this legislation and equally very important.
Some people will sit on the floor and say: Well, did we get all we
wanted? No, we didn't. Nobody did.
Did you get enough?
We got plenty.
There are a lot of labor commissioners and Governors who are going to
be celebrating. In fact, I have had two calls this morning from
Governors' offices or from labor department offices saying: Thank you,
you are finally giving us the power to address what we need to do in
our State to address unemployment and address job training.
It has been a privilege for me to work with Senator Harkin, Senator
Alexander, and Senator Murray.

To close, before I turn the floor over to Senator Harkin--who I think
will be next on the floor--I commend Senator Harkin on his leadership
as the chairman. He and Senator Alexander gave us the encouragement
that we could get a bill done. They didn't insist on something they
wanted in the bill to be there exactly like they wanted it.
As we all know, Senator Harkin is a champion for those with
disabilities. The disability section in this bill is outstanding to
provide training, opportunity, and rehabilitation for those who operate
with developmental disabilities; and that is what we should be doing on
the workforce, because their contribution is as important as the
contribution of any other single American.
Today is a great day for the Senate. It is also a great day for the
workforce in America. It is a great day for training and for the
skills.
We want to fill the 4 million jobs that are vacant in America with 4
million of those 10.6 million who are unemployed in America--to raise
prosperity, raise opportunity, and raise hope in America.
With that said, I yield the floor for the distinguished Senator from
Iowa, Senator Harkin.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
Mr. HARKIN. I am pleased to join with my colleagues on both sides of
the aisle and in both Chambers today in taking up the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act that is a reauthorization of what we
always called the WIA bill, the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.
As the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee, I can say we have worked on this bill, the one that we have
here now, for 5 years. This is the first reauthorization since 2003 of
the Workforce Investment Act.
I especially express my appreciation to Senator Isakson, Senator
Murray, and Senator Alexander for their great working relationship and
sticking to it for all these years when we didn't know if we were ever
going to make it.
I see that our former ranking member Senator Enzi is here, who
started with it when he was ranking member. I thank him also for all of
his work to get to this point.
What is that old saying? Slow cooking beats fast food any day.
This is kind of slow cooking, home cooking. It took a while but some
of these things do take time. They take time to work out and get ironed
out. I understand that.
But, again, I can't express my appreciation enough to my colleagues:
Senator Isakson, Senator Enzi, Senator Murray, and Senator Alexander,
for their stick-to-itiveness, never giving up, and making sure that we
got to this point.
I also thank my House colleagues who worked closely with us over the
last several months: Representatives Kline, Miller, Foxx, and Hinojosa.
During those months of negotiations, we reached a compromise between
the reauthorization bill the House had passed last year and the bill we
passed out of committee in July of last year.
Again, with the great work of Senator Murray and Senator Isakson,
working with our House colleagues, we have a very good bill. It has the
broad support--broadly--from employers, to mayors, to Governors, to
organized labor. Everybody is now supporting this bill. I suppose, as
with any piece of legislation that comes through the Senate, each one
of those entities probably didn't get everything they wanted, but that
is the art of compromise

[[Page S3968]]

and the art of getting good legislation through.
It couldn't come at a better time and a more needed time for
reauthorization. As our economy continues to recover from one of the
worst economic recessions in our history, it is more critical than ever
that we stand with our Nation's workers, our businesses, our young
people, citizens with disabilities, and with a commitment to help them
prosper in the new jobs of the future.
Our economy has undergone substantial changes since the first
Workforce Investment Act bill of 1998. In fact, over the past 40 years,
America's backbone--the middle class--has been finding it harder and
harder to make ends meet as wages have stagnated and costs have risen.
Quite frankly, a lot of the jobs of the past are gone. A lot of those
jobs aren't coming back. We have a new economy that we are now
entering, and so a lot of people need to be trained, a lot of people
need to be retrained, and skills upgraded for these new jobs of the
future.
That is what this bill does. It is part of the solution to this
challenge facing our middle class in America. Access to education,
training, and employment services is critical to helping our workers
secure good jobs, gain access to the middle class, and become
economically self-sufficient.
This new bill includes provisions that support our State workforce
development systems in providing employment and training services for
adults, dislocated workers, and youth through State grant programs and
the public employment service. It also supports disconnected youth
through programs such as an updated youth program focused on out-of-
school youth who need a second chance, such as Job Corps and
YouthBuild.
It provides for employment and training activities for Native
Americans, migrant, and seasonal farm workers. It supports adult
learners through adult education and literacy programs, including
services for English language learners.
This bill includes innovative approaches to providing workforce
development activities, including industry and sector partnerships, on-
the-job and incumbent worker training; transitional job strategies for
those who have poor work histories, but who would like to have more
steady and upgraded jobs; and workplace learning advisers who can help
educate colleagues about services available in the workforce system.
One of the most important parts to me of this bill is a much-needed
update to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
I am particularly pleased that the bill addresses the
disproportionate burden of unemployment and underemployment experienced
by people with disabilities in our country. Despite the enormous
progress we have made in ensuring that disabled people have the same
rights and opportunities as all Americans, the sad fact is that the
unemployment rate among people with disabilities in America is twice as
high as people without disabilities, and their workforce participation
rate is less than half that of the general population.
We have, quite frankly, failed to ensure that people with
disabilities meaningfully participate in the workforce. This bill makes
major steps to correct this injustice. It will help a new generation of
young people with disabilities to prepare for, obtain, and succeed in
competitive integrated employment, not substandard subminimum wage
dead-end jobs but in jobs in which people with disabilities can learn
and grow to their maximum potential. That is what this bill would do,
ensure that young people with disabilities, let's say, who are in high
school and they have an IEP, Individualized Education Program, and they
get through high school, are prepared for transition into the
workplace.
This bill includes things which will give them those experiences,
such as part-time work, summer jobs, internships, workplace skill
development, and preparation for jobs that are in high demand.
Basically, we are going to give persons with disabilities the same
supports and experiences everyone else expects and receives and which
they haven't had in the past.
Through school as part of the IDEA Program, they have their IEPs and
as soon as they quit they are dropped. That is the end of it or maybe
they go into subminimum wage jobs, and that is where they stay and they
never get skills upgrading, but we know from experience that people
with disabilities, whether it is intellectual or physical or a
combination of both, can learn and train and their skills can be
upgraded just like anybody else so they can perform at their maximum
potential.
Again, this bill requires State vocational rehabilitation programs to
work hand in hand with secondary schools, ensures that employers will
have the information necessary to recruit, hire, and retain people with
disabilities, and the bill focuses the efforts of State vocational
rehabilitation on youth, requiring that 15 percent of their funds be
dedicated to transitioning young people into competitive, integrated
employment.
I hope these efforts will directly address the high unemployment rate
among people with disabilities, smooth the transition of young people
with disabilities into the competitive integrated workplace, and help
employers to support their employees with disabilities.
I thank my colleagues for working to make this bill one that will
address the outrageous status quo facing people with disabilities with
regard to employment. More and more employers are finding that with a
small bit of support or maybe a modification of the workplace, people
with disabilities can do those jobs and sometimes do them better than
people without disabilities. More and more employers are finding that
out. In our former Workforce Investment Act bills, we didn't get to
focus on it that much. This bill now puts a major focus on it, and that
is why I am so proud of this bill and why I think this bill is such a
major step forward in all its regards.
This bill represents the best of what Congress can accomplish when we
work together. We have worked diligently to find areas of agreement in
our committee where we can advance legislation on a bipartisan basis.
I heard Senator Alexander earlier mention this, and it is true that
on our committee we probably have the widest divergence of
philosophical views than any committee in the Senate, but we work
together, both on a Senate level and on a staff level.
When this bill passes the Senate, it will mark the 18th bipartisan
HELP Committee bill to successfully move to the Senate and this
Congress, and--assuming the President will sign it--it will be the 14th
bill passed out of our committee this Congress to be signed into law by
the President.
The House leaders have indicated that if the Senate acts swiftly to
pass this bipartisan, bicameral bill without substantial changes, they
will do the same, and we will be able to advance this bill to the
President's desk in very short order.
It is a major victory for our workers, our businesses, and our
economy. I urge all my colleagues to join us in supporting this bill
and in voting yes on final passage.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. COBURN. Madam President, I thank my colleague from Wyoming for
allowing me to jump in for about 5 minutes.
This became an issue as we faced the greatest recession we have ever
had and, at the same time, we had GAO looking at how we are spending
our money.
For just a little history so everybody will know, when GAO did their
first report we had 47 separate job training programs run by nine
different agencies, and that year they looked at we spent $18.5
billion. What we found is only two had metrics on them, and we weren't
even paying attention to the metrics to use them.
I applaud the work of the HELP Committee, Senator Enzi, Senator
Isakson, Senator Alexander, Senator Murray, and Senator Harkin, for
bringing the bill to the floor. It is an improvement over what we are
doing, but I wish to offer a couple of points I think the American
people ought to know. We are not going anywhere far enough, not
anywhere close to where we need to go.
The SKILLS Act coming out of the House markedly changed job training
in this country. Now, this is a big modification to the SKILLS Act, but

[[Page S3969]]

the SKILLS Act actually paid attention to the Government Accountability
Office. What they did is consolidate a lot of programs and put real
metrics and real competition into job training.
There are two critical flaws in this bill that I think are a
mistake--and I know this bill is going to pass, so it is moving the
ball down the road. No. 1, there is no metric in the job training
program to say: Did somebody get a job in the area that they were
trained for?
So it doesn't matter how many people we train. If there is no job and
they got no job for what they trained, we have wasted the money. So
that is not anywhere in the bill.
The second thing is the vast majority of money in this country that
is spent on job training is Job Corps. When we ask behind the scenes
why we didn't have major reform to Job Corps, it is because of all of
the parochial people they employ. In Oklahoma, it is over 1,000. Most
of the Job Corps programs in Oklahoma are highly inefficient and
failing to do what we want them to do, and they are not going to be
held accountable with this bill.
So these are two really disastrous things that, had they been added,
would have made a real difference. And let me say why I can speak to
that. When the GAO put out their report on all the job training
programs, I had every one of my staffers in Oklahoma go to every job
training, State and Federal, in Oklahoma. Let me tell you what we
found.
What we found was the Federal programs were totally failing. We were
very good at employing people in job training programs with Federal
money, but when we looked for the outcome of whether we gave somebody a
skill that gave them an ability to have a life, we failed.
Contrast that to Oklahoma's Career Tech system and their own State-
funded training programs, where they were 90-percent effective in
giving somebody a life skill.
So I am disappointed that the SKILLS Act didn't come over here and
get voted on because that was what was in the SKILLS Act and it is
really accomplishing the goal.
My colleagues have been great with me in working on this bill to try
to attest to and to accommodate my desires to see some changes. But
there are these two critical flaws, and it speaks to the lack of
courage in our country today that because we have people employed in
Job Corps programs, we are not going to really shake that system up and
make it do what it needs to do.
I will never forget. I had a town hall meeting in Guthrie, OK, the
largest Job Corps training in Oklahoma, and I wrote a report that was
highly critical of it. They all came here, and I faced them down and
said: Do you really want Federal Government money spent on your salary
that doesn't accomplish the goal of giving somebody a life skill? They
couldn't answer yes. They had to answer, no, they really didn't want
that.
But that is what Job Corps still is in this bill, and that is by far
the biggest job training program we have.
So I applaud the changes that we have made, the movements that have
gone forward. But when there is no metrics on whether the skill that
was trained for got a job, we don't have any idea what we are going to
be measuring after this bill goes through.
No. 2, if we have not fundamentally gutted the present Job Corps
system and changed it to where it is responsible to actually accomplish
a goal and hold them accountable--like we need to be holding the VA
accountable--if we don't do that, we haven't really fixed anything.
This bill has no CBO score on it. It is at least $58 billion over the
next 6 years--at least. And we are going to vote on a bill again that
doesn't have a score.
So the intentions of my colleagues are pure, but I think they are
missing two critical provisions if they really want to fix job
training. I thank them for their work. I appreciate their
accommodation. I know this bill will pass and it is an improvement, but
it is not going to fix the fundamental problems.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming.
Mr. ENZI. I ask unanimous consent that, following my speech, Senator
Brown from Ohio be allowed to speak next.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. ENZI. Madam President, I rise today to speak in favor of the
reauthorization of Workforce Investment Act.
I first thank Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia, Senator Patty Murray
of Washington, Senator Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, and Senator Tom
Harkin of Iowa for their hard work on this bill. We can see from that
list of Senators alone that this has been a truly bipartisan effort to
reauthorize this Workforce Investment Act.
Of course, we have heard through the course of this discussion how on
the House side Kline, Miller, Foxx, and Hinojosa worked on it, which is
bipartisan on that side of the building. And the two have been working
together, which is bicameral. That doesn't happen a lot around here,
but on bills that make it through to the President's signature it does
happen, and it has happened on this one.
I thank the many Senators who have had suggestions for this bill. A
lot of those suggestions have wound up in here. Some of them had
amendments that we will have to continue to work on in the future, and
they were very gracious in revising some of those so that they would
fit what we are doing and still get the bill done. I know Tim Scott
could have taken a lot more credit for what he did in the House and
when it came over here, but he has been extremely cooperative in using
his knowledge of the bill to further the bill. Senator Portman is
another critical Senator in working on it, and as we can tell by the
passionate speech by Senator Coburn, there are things that could be
done and will need to be done in the future to make it an even better
bill. But it is something that all of government ought to be doing--not
just the workforce.
This is a day of elation for me. We have been working to improve this
program for over 11 years. For 11 years this could have made a big
difference in our country's jobs. The Workforce Investment Act has been
due for reauthorization for 11 years. Who says the Senate works fast?
Who says the Senate works slow? Hopefully, the Senate works and gets it
right.
I am hopeful that now is the time we are able to get this important
piece of legislation renewed and provide some much-needed help to
American workers and businesses through the new profile it provides.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act will transform the
sometimes bureaucratic Federal job training system into a streamlined
program that can help many more people learn the skills they need to
get meaningful jobs. The reauthorization will eliminate 15 programs
identified as ineffective or duplicative--we don't do that very often--
and 21 Federal mandates on State and local workforce boards. That is
what we need to be doing throughout government.
This bill would apply common performance measures for all programs
with the focus on employment outcomes and employer satisfaction with
the trained workers. This will provide stronger accountability for
taxpayer dollars. These are all changes that are long overdue.
This piece of legislation also gives authority back to the State
governments and equips them with tools to help small businesses. This
bill provides Governors and State workforce directors what they told us
they needed in hearing after hearing. They wanted flexibility to use
the money where it was most needed. There were stovepipes where we
required them to do certain things with the money even if they didn't
have customers that needed that part of the stovepipe, which meant that
some of the money went begging. So by actually eliminating some of the
stovepipes, making the money more effective in this program, it
increases the value of the money that is there.

With this reauthorization States will better be able to meet the
regional economic demand and provide training for jobs in which quality
workers are in short supply. We can help people get back to work by
offering training for the skills and services needed in their
community. State and local officials are in the best position to
determine the labor and job training needs of communities across the
Nation. The workforce and opportunity act will help improve our current
stagnated

[[Page S3970]]

economy and foster economic development for private sector job
creation. If it works as it should, hundreds of thousands of people
will be able to move into available jobs that are vacant because folks
don't have the right skills.
I remember the New York Times sent reporters out to see if there were
any jobs available in the New York area. They came back and reported
there were thousands of jobs, there just weren't people trained to be
able to do those jobs. That is what this bill is designed to do. Local
businesses will finally be able to find workers who live in their
communities who have a particular skill set that they need for their
business. The job training program that is included in the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act is what would get our economy going
again.
Job training programs are especially important to small-population
States such as Wyoming where skilled workers are in high demand and the
supply is short. We recently broke ground on the Wind River Job Corps
Center in Riverton, WY. The seven-building center will house 300
students and be the first of its kind in Wyoming. When the center opens
in the next year or so, my constituents will be able to get the job
training they need to succeed in their careers. This project would not
have been possible without the determination of the people of Wyoming,
the cooperation of the communities around there to provide facilities,
the land that was necessary, and legislation like the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act.
I particularly want to thank Senator Harkin for his recognition as
part of the Appropriations Committee that Wyoming and New Hampshire
were the two States that didn't have job corps centers and the help he
gave us in being sure there was money set aside to be able to do that
job corps center. I also appreciate the emphasis on the youth bill that
is in there where young people can work during the summer to actually
learn a trade while they improve their community.
On a broader scale, America is facing an economic climate that
threatens our ability as a nation to compete in the global marketplace.
This bill sends a clear message that we are serious about helping our
American workers and employers remain competitive and that we are
serious about closing the skills gap that is putting America's long-
term competitiveness in jeopardy.
I have been on the floor recently discussing articles that declared
that our current Congress could be the worst ever and that negotiating
political agreements is a lost art. More often than not this year
Senators have had no opportunity to weigh in and dissenting opinions
are rarely considered. But the HELP Committee has broken through the
logjam and produced a bipartisan bill with a bicameral effort that is
going to get through the Senate without cloture, without filling the
amendment tree, or any of the other procedural tricks. That is a
testament to the hard work of Senators Harkin, Alexander, Murray,
Isakson, and their staffs and others who have worked on this bill.
Their efforts are an example all of us should keep in mind in thinking
about how we can and should operate. Almost half of today's sitting
Senators have been here less than 6 years, so they haven't seen many
times when the Senate has worked as it should, as it could, as it did.
I urge them to keep this Workforce Investment Act bill in mind.
The HELP Committee had the first opportunity to shape the
legislation. Members were able to iron out unintended consequences and
input there. That is how committees work. Then Senators Harkin,
Alexander, Murray, and Isakson gave all 100 Members of the Senate the
opportunity to improve the legislation.
It is important to note this isn't the first time the HELP Committee
has followed this process. A few months ago we passed the community
development block grant for child education after it went through
committee and after amendments were offered. I am glad the full Senate
is finally considering reauthorization of this important piece of
legislation.
I urge my fellow Senators to pass this bicameral, bipartisan
agreement based on commonsense policies that will stimulate growth and
the economy. The education and job training programs provided by this
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act are too important to working
families, businesses, local communities, and our Nation's economy to
delay it.
I yield the floor for the Senator from Ohio.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio is recognized.
Mr. BROWN. Thank you, Madam President, and thanks to Senator Enzi who
is one of the most cooperative Members of the Senate on so many levels.
He and I cochaired the Air Force caucus together and he has been good
to work with. When I sat on the Health, Education, Labor and Pension
Committee, he was a member known then, as he still is, as one you can
reach out to and who would get things done.
Special thanks to Senator Isakson who is on the floor and to Senators
Harkin and Murray who did so much to work with our office on our
SECTORS ACT and the whole litany of workforce investment issues. I am
indebted to them.
Passing this legislation would reauthorize and improve the Workforce
Investment Act which first was established some 15-plus years ago. It
includes critical workforce development programs that have helped
thousands of Americans get on their feet. It provides streamlined one-
stop services that empower adults and students and gives them the
tools, skills, and the resources they need to find a new career and
improve their current skills. All of this helps to meet the needs of
employers looking for trained, skilled workers.
The Cuyahoga Works Career Center in Cleveland is one of those
programs. It is run out of The Cuyahoga County Library, known as one of
the best library systems in the country. The center told me of a few
success stories I wish to share.
A teacher was laid off from Cleveland Public Schools 3 years ago,
substitute teaching while she worked with a Cuyahoga Works career
counselor. The counselor showed her how to use social networking and
LinkedIn more effectively. As a result she connected with an
administrator in a local school district that invited her to discuss
her job search. During this meeting the teacher learned that although
she had a strong background, she could benefit from taking a couple
computer classes. The Cuyahoga Works career counselor directed her to
the library's Google workshops along with a few other computer courses.
Shortly afterwards the teacher let her career counselor know she had
accepted a long-term position in one of the local school districts.
Let me share another Cuyahoga Works success story. While visiting the
new Cleveland casino, a Cuyahoga Works career counselor was stopped by
an employee who had worked with this counselor on her job application.
The customer was extremely grateful and went so far as to introduce the
counselor to her supervisor explaining, ``This person is the reason I
got this job.''
It is clear that legislation such as this works. We know that to
compete globally we need workers who can quickly adapt to new
technologies in business processes. So our workforce training programs
must be able to keep up with the times. That is what the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act does. It builds on existing success and
updates it for the 21st century workforce. Part of this improvement
means we take a sector-based approach.

Since 2007, I have held some 250 roundtables around my State. From
the beginning of the first one at the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce
through a whole host of these in agriculture, with farmers and veterans
and small businesspeople, workers and others, what I hear over and over
is despite high unemployment, too many employers are having a hard time
finding workers with the skills necessary. As a result, job openings in
high-growth industries--health care, energy, bioscience, even
manufacturing--are going unfilled.
The skill gap exists, especially for careers in high-tech fields and
for jobs that require more than a high school degree. But often the
skills gap exists with people with less than a college degree. This gap
denies workers new opportunities they deserve. It undermines our
Nation's economic competitiveness

[[Page S3971]]

and limits our ability to attract new jobs and businesses. To close the
gap, we need to create industry or sector partnerships to ensure that
workers have the right skills to get hired in high-tech emerging
industries with good-paying jobs. It means local communities--local
community colleges, local workforce investment boards, local labor
unions, local small businesses--decide what they need to put these
workforce training programs together regionally in community after
community, whether it is in North Dakota, the Presiding Officer's
State, or whether it is in my State of Ohio, driven by what kinds of
jobs are available.
That is why I introduced the Strengthen Employment Clusters to
Organize Regional Success--or SECTORS Act--back in 2008. I reintroduced
this legislation with Republican Senator Collins from Maine this year.
I am pleased that provisions in today's bill are based on our
bipartisan SECTORS bill. This modernization bill requires sector-based
partnerships to ensure workforce training programs are developed with
industry input, with labor input, with local community investment,
workforce investment boards, with local businesses, whether it is in
Chillicothe or Akron or Toledo or anywhere in my State.
Given the difficulty of negotiations, I am grateful for Chairman
Murray's dedication to this bill, for her prioritization of these
partnerships, because we know from experience how important they are.
With too many Americans still unable to find work, we should do all we
can to ensure our workers are fully qualified to fill available jobs.
That is what the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act does, and
that is why I encourage my colleagues to support it.
Madam President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Nevada.
Mr. HELLER. Thank you, Madam President.
I also thank my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in both
Chambers of Congress for their efforts on this important piece of
legislation that is before us. I especially thank Senators Isakson,
Murray, Alexander, and Harkin for their leadership on this issue and
for working together with our colleagues in the House to craft this
compromise. I am pleased that Congress has come together in a
bipartisan manner to address the most pressing issue we face in the
country, which is the need to restore our country's economic health.
We have a responsibility here in Washington to ensure that the needs
of American workers, businesses, and job seekers are all being met. I
believe we need a two-pronged approach to this problem: first, a full-
fledged effort to grow the economy and create new jobs; and second, a
temporary safety net that helps people unable to secure a job in this
current economic environment. The bill now in front of us is a much-
needed effort to reauthorize and streamline the Workforce Investment
Act of 1998, which is the primary Federal law concerning job training
and workforce development programs. The services offered through the
WIA Program--job search assistance, career counseling, skills training,
and on-the-job training--are a critical part of the effort to grow our
economy and to ensure that workers are prepared for the job market.
Importantly, these programs are coordinated at the State and local
levels to ensure that the unique needs of our communities are
appropriately addressed.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act takes some long overdue
steps to modernize our workforce investment system. It eliminates 15
programs that have been identified as duplicative or ineffective. It
removes 21 burdensome Federal mandates on States and local workforce
boards. It promotes State and local control and improves flexibility so
we can better respond to changes in our workforce or the economy. It
also improves accountability and transparency measures to guarantee
that these programs are operating efficiently and effectively.
Given that this law has been due for reauthorization for more than 10
years, providing States and local communities the flexibility they need
is vital to ensuring economic stability. We clearly cannot depend on
the Federal Government to provide workers and businesses with timely
solutions to help our workforce, so I am pleased this legislation puts
much of that control back where it belongs.
The need to reauthorize these important programs is perhaps no more
apparent than in my home State of Nevada. Our State is one of the
States hit hardest by the economic downturn, and although we are slowly
recovering, we still have a long way to go. Industries that thrived for
many years suddenly stalled, leaving thousands of workers out of jobs.
Nevada had a double-digit unemployment rate for 4\1/2\ years,
unfortunately topping the charts at nearly 14 percent for several
months.
Over the past few years, I have spoken with employers and job seekers
in Nevada to look for ways to restore the health of our economy and get
Nevadans back to work. Surprisingly, I heard from many employers that
they have job opportunities available, they want to hire more employees
and grow their businesses, but they are having difficulty finding
workers with the necessary skill sets.
The skills gap problem isn't unique to Nevada. In fact, there are
millions of unfilled jobs throughout the country. With nearly 10
million Americans still unemployed and looking for work, we must take
steps to connect job seekers with employment opportunities in in-demand
sectors.
I was proud to join Senator Joe Donnelly from Indiana in introducing
the Skills Gap Strategy Act to develop a solution to this particular
issue, and I am glad the manager's amendment before us today also
reinforces some of these principles.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act is a bipartisan,
bicameral piece of legislation that represents real efforts to get our
economy back on track. Although no bill is perfect and the nature of
compromise means not everyone gets everything they want, I am grateful
for the work my colleagues have done in writing this bill. Although I
would have preferred to include efforts to provide stability for
uemployed job seekers by temporarily extending unemployment insurance
benefits, I also recognize that these job training and workforce
investment programs are essential in getting Americans back to work.
I still firmly believe that our economic recovery needs a two-pronged
approach that grows the economy and provides stability for job seekers,
and this bill is an important part of that equation.
While the Senate is in session, I call constituents back in my State
and ask them to join me for a telephone town hall meeting. During one
of the calls just last night, I asked Nevadans if they felt as though
the economy was improving. Of those participating, 26 percent said yes,
they do think the economy is improving; 13 percent said they were
unsure; and 60 percent said no, they do not think the economy is
getting any better. On a ratio of 2 to 1, Nevadans feel that the
economic growth is lagging.
We need to fix this and pass policies to help turn this economy
around. In the meantime, we cannot forget about the most important
safety net available to Americans. Make no mistake. I have every
intention of continuing to work with my colleague from Rhode Island to
temporarily extend unemployment benefits for those who are seeking to
work.
I was proud to once again team up with the Senator from Rhode Island
yesterday to reintroduce a new unemployment extension bill that would
provide 5 months of benefits with retroactive eligibility.
We will continue to work with our colleagues here in the Senate, the
House, and this administration to pass this legislation to ensure that
we continue to provide this temporary safety net while still looking
for work.
Again, I thank my friends in both the Senate and the House for their
work on this much-needed legislation. This compromise effort proves
that Congress is capable of working together on legislation to help our
economy. I am hopeful this experience will encourage all of us to
continue to work together to pass more bills, grow our economy, and
create new jobs for people in Nevada and for all of the United States.
Ms. MIKULSKI. Madam President, I am proud to rise today in support of
the Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act. I want to thank Chairman

[[Page S3972]]

Harkin, Ranking Member Alexander, Senator Murray, and Senator Isakson
for putting together a strong reauthorization of the Workforce
Investment Act. I am happy that we were able to come together in a
bipartisan, bicameral way to reauthorize this bill.
As our Nation continues to look at how to best create, sustain, and
support high-paying jobs, we must look at how best to educate our
workforce and how best to provide needed resources to fill jobs in high
demand. WIA does just that. It helps people learn new skills and
increases their chances of succeeding. This bill before us today is a
major step toward improving WIA and helping our Nation remain
competitive globally.
This bill allows local workforce boards to tailor services based on
regional employment and workforce needs. This means that workers will
get access to education and training for the skills needed to fill
jobs, including professional development. It helps ensure that Federal
workforce and training programs are working together by bringing
together multiple programs and providers into a unified State plan to
break down barriers and improve efficiency and effectiveness. This bill
also ensures that all WIA programs are held to one set of common
performance measures. This will help integrate case management and
reporting systems while strengthening evaluations. Finally, this bill
ensures that youth with disabilities will be provided the services and
support they need to be successful in competitive, integrated
employment.
I am particularly proud that this bill takes an in-depth look at
nontraditional occupations. These are jobs where a gender makes up less
than 25 percent of the workforce for that occupation. Women currently
represent half of our Nation's workforce, but two-thirds of women are
concentrated in 21 of 500 occupational jobs. Except for nursing and
teaching, most of these jobs are among the lowest paid, including work
in retail, service, and clerical jobs. Less than 16 percent of women
who go through federally funded workforce programs receive any
training. Most only get a ``needs'' assessment and receive help in
finding a job. The economic recovery is leaving women behind. Of the
1.3 million jobs gained in the United States, nearly 90 percent went to
men. Men have since regained 19 percent of jobs lost while women have
only regained 6 percent. The incomes of women in the workforce are too
often not adequate for a decent standard of living to support a family.
This bill would require one-stop career centers to provide info to
individuals, including women, on opportunities in fields that are
nontraditional. It requires reporting related to job-placement services
for participants, including the number and percentage of participants
who enter a nontraditional occupation. It also requires all programs to
make an effort to develop programs that increase employment
opportunities for those that are interested in nontraditional work.
The Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act supports our workforce
in providing education and training for millions of America's workers.
It ensures that local workforce boards have the flexibility needed to
meet their regional needs. It encourages better coordination between
Federal workforce and training programs and State and local efforts to
attain economic development. It requires all programs to be
accountable, and it provides more opportunities for youth with
disabilities. This bill is a downpayment on our middle class and our
Nation's future. It is my hope this bill be passed in a swift,
expeditious, and uncluttered way and continue to work with Members on
both sides of the aisle and across the dome to improve our workforce
system.
I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Ms. Baldwin). The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. HARKIN. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the quorum
call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

Amendment No. 3381 to Amendment No. 3378

Mr. HARKIN. Madam President, I call up managers' amendment No. 3381.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the amendment.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Iowa [Mr. Harkin] for Mrs. Murray, for
herself, Mr. Isakson, Mr. Harkin, and Mr. Alexander, proposes
amendment No. 3381 to amendment No. 3378.

The amendment is as follows:

On page 6, after the item relating to section 504, insert
the following:

Sec. 505. Report on data capability of Federal and State databases and
data exchange agreements.
On page 6, redesignate the second item relating to section
505 as the item relating to section 506.
On page 16, line 4, strike ``134(c)(2)'' and insert
``134(c)(2)(A)(xii)''.
On page 55, strike line 5.
On page 55, line 9, strike the period and insert ``; and''.
On page 55, between lines 9 and 10, insert the following:
(vi) how the State's strategy will improve access to
activities leading to a recognized postsecondary credential
(including a credential that is an industry-recognized
certificate or certification, portable, and stackable).
On page 116, line 19 strike the semicolon and insert ``,
and improve access to activities leading to a recognized
postsecondary credential (including a credential that is an
industry-recognized certificate or certification, portable,
and stackable);''.
On page 222, line 22, insert ``allotted under section
127(b)(1)(C), reserved under section 128(a), and'' before
``available''.
On page 232, line 8, strike ``may'' and insert ``shall''.
On page 248, lines 6 through 8, strike ``less than the
greater of'' and all that follows through ``(aa) an'' and
insert ``an''.
On page 248, line 11, strike ``; or'' and insert a period.
On page 248, strike lines 12 through 18.
On page 293, line 4, strike ``may'' and insert ``shall,
consistent with clause (i),''.
On page 329, line 9, insert ``information regarding the
entity in any reports developed by the Office of Inspector
General of the Department of Labor and'' before ``the
entity's''.
On page 338, strike lines 13 through 18 and insert the
following:
(A) significant improvements in program performance in
carrying out a performance improvement plan under section
159(f)(2);
On page 338, strike lines 21 and 22 and insert ``such as an
emergency or disaster, as defined in section 170(a)(1);''.
On page 339, between lines 6 and 7, insert the following:
(3) Detailed explanation.--If the Secretary exercises an
option under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall provide, to
the Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a detailed explanation of
the rationale for exercising such option.
On page 339, line 7, strike ``(3)'' and insert ``(4)''.
On page 384, line 25, strike ``to pro-'' and all that
follows through line 5 of page 385, and insert the following:
``to award grants, on a competitive basis, to entities with
demonstrated experience and expertise in developing and
implementing programs for the unique populations who reside
in Alaska or Hawaii, including public and private nonprofit
organizations, tribal organizations, American Indian tribal
colleges or universities, institutions of higher education,
or consortia of such organizations or institutions, to
improve job training and workforce investment activities for
such unique populations.''.
Beginning on page 398, between lines 17 and 18, insert the
following:
(7) Public availability.--Not later than 30 days after the
date the Secretary transmits the final report as described in
paragraph (6), the Secretary shall make that final report
available to the general public on the Internet, on the Web
site of the Department of Labor.
On page 398, line 18, strike ``(7)'' and insert ``(8)''.
On page 399, line 3, strike ``(8)'' and insert ``(9)''.
On page 759, between lines 9 and 10, insert the following:

SEC. 505. REPORT ON DATA CAPABILITY OF FEDERAL AND STATE
DATABASES AND DATA EXCHANGE AGREEMENTS.

(a) In General.--The Comptroller General of the United
States shall prepare and submit an interim report and a final
report to Congress regarding existing Federal and State
databases and data exchange agreements, as of the date of the
report, that contain job training information relevant to the
administration of programs authorized under this Act and the
amendments made by this Act.
(b) Requirements.--The report required under subsection (a)
shall--
(1) list existing Federal and State databases and data
exchange agreements described in subsection (a) and, for
each, describe--
(A) the purposes of the database or agreement;
(B) the data elements, such as wage and employment
outcomes, contained in the database or accessible under the
agreement;
(C) the data elements described in subparagraph (B) that
are shared between States;
(D) the Federal and State workforce training programs from
which each Federal and

[[Page S3973]]

State database derives the data elements described in
subparagraph (B);
(E) the number and type of Federal and State agencies
having access to such data;
(F) the number and type of private research organizations
having access to, through grants, contracts, or other
agreements, such data; and
(G) whether the database or data exchange agreement
provides for opt-out procedures for individuals whose data is
shared through the database or data exchange agreement;
(2) study the effects that access by State workforce
agencies and the Secretary of Labor to the databases and data
exchange agreements described in subsection (a) would have on
efforts to carry out this Act and the amendments made by this
Act, and on individual privacy;
(3) explore opportunities to enhance the quality,
reliability, and reporting frequency of the data included in
such databases and data exchange agreements;
(4) describe, for each database or data exchange agreement
considered by the study described in subsection (a), the
number of individuals whose data is contained in each
database or accessible through the data agreement, and the
specific data elements contained in each that could be used
to personally identify an individual;
(5) include the number of data breaches having occurred
since 2004 to data systems administered by Federal and State
agencies;
(6) include the number of data breaches regarding any type
of personal data having occurred since 2004 to private
research organizations with whom Federal and State agencies
contract for studies; and
(7) include a survey of the security protocols used for
protecting personal data, including best practices shared
amongst States for access to, and administration of, data
elements stored and recommendations for improving security
protocols for the safe warehousing of data elements.
(c) Timing of Reports.--
(1) Interim report.--Not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall
prepare and submit to Congress an interim report regarding
the initial findings of the report required under this
section.
(2) Final report.--Not later than 18 months after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall
prepare and submit to Congress the final report required
under this section.
On page 759, strike line 10 and insert the following:

SEC. 506. EFFECTIVE DATES.

On page 763, between lines 2 and 3, insert the following:
(d) Disability Provisions.--Except as otherwise provided in
title IV of this Act, title IV, and the amendments made by
title IV, shall take effect on the date of enactment of this
Act.

Mr. HARKIN. Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The Senator from Tennessee.
Mr. ALEXANDER. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to rescind
the quorum call.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. ALEXANDER. Madam President, while the Senator from Iowa is still
on the floor, I wish to compliment him. The committee which he chairs--
of which I am the ranking member--has produced 19 bills this year for
this Congress, 10 of which have become law. No other committee has
produced as much--this will add one to that--and that is not because we
agree on everything.
The truth is we disagree on a lot of things, but we have found a
way--when there is a chance to get a result--to come together.
Senator Harkin has helped to create an environment in which Senator
Isakson and Senator Murray, and a group of other Senators, have finally
brought this Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to a conclusion,
and a lot of other Senators have tried, and it has taken a long time to
do it. Our focus today should be on the workers of America and people
who need jobs.
I think it is important to point out that when the Senate tries to do
it this way and allow everybody to have a chance to have a say, we can
get a pretty good result. This is $10 billion, and for our State--I say
to the Senator from Iowa--it is $145 million for the single biggest
issue in our State: How do I get a better job? It is not a matter of
Washington telling you how to do that. This is a bill that empowers
States to enable people to get the skills they need so they can get a
better job.
I thank the chairman for the way he has worked on this, and I wanted
to say that while he was on the floor.
Madam President, I urge my colleagues to support this act today. It
is a jobs bill. I was home in Grainger County in East Tennessee this
past weekend working with the Clinch-Powell Cooperative. It is a great
organization which helps people with home foreclosures and helps them
to find a job.
The worry they have is that it is too hard to find a job. The worry
of the National Federation of Independent Business Leaders--whom I
talked with in Knoxville--is that it is too hard to create a job. We
all have our reasons for that. On our side of the aisle, we think there
are too many taxes, rules, regulations, and mandates from Washington
that make it harder for a person who wants to create a job to do that.
I had one Tennessee small business man tell me he was looking at new
employees as a liability more than an asset. He said: I hate that. I
want to think of every one of my employees as an asset. When I hire
them, I have to think about this health care cost or this tax cost or
this regulatory cost, and all these extra costs, and they become, in my
eyes, a liability and that discourages me from hiring anyone. That is
one reason why so many Americans are having a hard time finding a job.
Another reason is--and the reason we are working together today on this
bill--because the skills don't fit the job.
We have a very good Governor in Tennessee whose name is Bill Haslam.
I think his priority is the same as every other Governor whom I know in
the country, which is he is trying to grow and attract jobs. What he
hears from every employer is: We have the jobs, but the employees don't
have the skills.
Our Governor is working hard, for example, to create a program with
Bridgestone Corporation--the big tire maker headquartered in
Tennessee--at the community college and technical institute level,
where the institute would train people with the exact skills that
Bridgestone needs. So many of the new jobs today require more skills
than they used to.
I was Governor when the Nissan plant came to Tennessee, and it was a
surprise to a lot of people. Automobile plants used to have 20,000 or
30,000 people, but the Nissan plant only had 3,000 or 4,000 or 5,000
people there. Now it has a few more, but it is the largest automobile
plant in North America--and the most efficient. I imagine it is as
profitable as any automobile plant. But the jobs at the Nissan plant
have a lot higher standards and a lot higher skills for the employees.
It is the same today as it was 30 years ago--the biggest challenge
they have is finding Tennesseans, or other people, who have the right
skills for the right jobs.
What can we in Washington do to help with that?
Well, we could sit here and in our wisdom write a lot of rules and
prescriptions about just how to do that. In fact, that is what has been
happening with the Workforce Investment Act. It started out in 1998 as
sort of a GI bill for workers. The idea was we would make it easier for
people to find jobs. We would create work councils in the States, give
Governors flexibility, allow them to make arrangements with community
colleges, such as the one I just described with Bridgestone. But then
the old Washington disease set in, and you know what it is: I have a
good idea, let's make everybody do it. Pretty soon we had 47 workforce
programs, and according to a Government Accountability Office report,
45 of them were duplicative.
Well, the Senator from Oklahoma, who is retiring this year--which I
regret very much--Senator Coburn, has led the charge. He asked for that
report, and he pointed out to us that we are wasting money and not
helping people when we spent $9.5 or $10 billion through the Workforce
Investment Act, which is just a few of those programs, in such a
complicated way.
I mentioned on the floor of the Senate a while ago what our former
Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen said. Governor Bredesen was a very
good Governor and businessman. He likes to get results. He took a look
at the Workforce Investment Act programs that were coming to Tennessee
from the Federal Government through a dozen or more work councils, and
he just threw up his hands.
He said: I told the commissioner of employment security to just do
what you can with it. There were too many well-intentioned rules and
regulations

[[Page S3974]]

from Washington that caused these programs to be such a maze that
Governors and work councils could not deal with them. The work councils
were massive. There were 50 or 60 people who required someone up here
saying: This is who you have to have. There were duplicative proposals.
Instead of allowing people who wanted a job to say, I would like to
have this kind of job with these kinds of skills, we were telling them
what kind of skills they needed to have. This was not working.
The House of Representatives passed something called the SKILLS Act,
which suited most of us on the Republican side of the Senate better
because it eliminated more programs, eliminated more mandates, gave
more discretion to Governors, and decentralized the program.
The Senate passed a bill through our committee that we didn't like
nearly as well because it still had too many Washington rules and
mandates in it.
Senator Isakson, who is on the floor, and Senator Murray from
Washington, led a group of Senators who worked with the House--led by
Congressman Klein and Virginia Foxx and others--and we resolved our
differences. Basically, what we have done is we moved a long way from
where the House of Representatives bill was. I will be specific about
what the bill does that I think makes a difference.
It eliminates 15 programs that were identified as ineffective or
duplicative. It eliminates 21 Federal mandates on State and local
workforce board compensation. In other words, we are saying to
Tennessee, which I think has 13 workforce boards: OK, we don't think we
got a lot smarter flying to Washington this morning. You can decide
more about who is on your workforce board because we assume you know
more about what is going on.
It replaces multiple State plans for multiple Federal programs that
have to be submitted to Washington with a streamlined single-State plan
that will reduce time spent on paperwork.
We are going to spend $10 billion of the taxpayers' money--nearly
10--so we ought to have some accountability, and we ought to know what
is happening, but we don't need everybody spending more time filling
out forms than they are helping people find jobs.
This bill also streamlines reporting requirements, and it focuses on
real outcomes, such as job placement, retention, earnings, credentials,
and employer earning satisfaction.
The second broad thing the bill does is support local and State
decisionmaking and flexibility. In that sense it is like a block grant.
It reinstates the authority of Governors to reserve up to 15 percent of
formula funds for innovative State and local programs. I like that.
I used to be a Governor. I used to think that the Governor of our
State--and I still do--knows more about how to make job training work
in Tennessee than anybody up here because he is there, not here, so let
him or her be in charge of a large part of that. It gives local
workforce boards the freedom to transfer up to 100 percent of funds
between the two largest formula programs serving adults and dislocated
workers.
In other words, if the money we have allocated doesn't really fit
Hohenwald, TN, as well as it does New York City or Madison, WI, or
Atlanta, GA, then the local workforce board can transfer money from
this program to that program. That just makes common sense. It gives
States the ability to incentivize and award performance.

It allows people who want a better job, people who want job training,
people who are out of a job to choose the career and training service
that best meets their needs, and it empowers Governors to recognize or
consolidate local areas that are low-performing in order to better meet
regional needs.
Finally, it tackles the accountability issue which we all care about.
It authorizes consistent measures of quality, including a 5-percent
reduction in funding for poor-performing programs. It requires the U.S.
Department of Labor to conduct independent evaluations of programs at
least once every 4 years.
This is a good piece of work on the No. 1 subject in this country.
Whether one is a Democrat or a Republican, jobs is the issue. It is too
hard to find a job. It is too hard to create jobs. We have some
differences of opinion about what to do about it, but I think we agree
that matching the job skills to the job is a solution for millions of
Americans.
I believe and I suspect most of us believe that in the Internet age
specially, what we should be doing rather than mandating so many
answers from here is empowering Governors and empowering local leaders
on workforce boards to enable people who want a better job or a job at
all to choose what they want to do and to do it. So in Tennessee
Governor Haslam will now have much more freedom and $145 million a year
to spend on helping Tennesseans get a better job at Bridgestone or at
the Nissan plant or start their own work because we are enabling, we
are empowering. We are not mandating. We are doing less telling. And
from the taxpayers' point of view, we are avoiding the waste of a lot
of money by avoiding duplication.
I wish to thank Senators on both sides of the aisle for working
together so well on this, particularly on our side of the aisle. I know
Senator Harkin and Senator Murray worked well with the Democratic
Members. We appreciate their patience as we worked through this.
We had a number of Republican Senators whom Senator Isakson and I
worked with, and I would like to acknowledge their role, starting with
Senator Isakson. He was the majority leader of the Georgia--well, I
guess he was the minority leader of the Georgia Senate. He was the
Republican leader. At that time, they didn't have a majority; they just
had a few Senators. But he learned the skills of negotiation and
compromise in order to get a result, while still sticking to his
conservative principles, and I like to see that skill. So on our side
of the aisle he gets most of the credit for the result we are getting.
Right up there with him is Senator Mike Enzi of Wyoming, who worked
on this, Senator Enzi says, for nearly 10 years. Now, that may seem
hard to do, but this bill was supposed to be reauthorized after 2003,
and this is 2014. So Senator Enzi brought it a long way, and we are
grateful to him.
In addition, Senator Collins and Senator Murkowski are cosponsors of
the bills.
Senator Scott from South Carolina played a great role by picking up
the SKILLS Act from the House and bringing it over to the Senate and
reminding us that we needed to get rid of this maze of regulatory
problems and go as far in that direction as we could possibly go. So in
his first year in the Senate, Senator Scott has played a major role in
the passage of a very important piece of legislation.
I have mentioned Senator Coburn before. We all acknowledge there is
no one on either side of the aisle who is more relentless in looking
for waste, fraud, and duplication than Senator Coburn. Through his work
and his staff's work, he put the spotlight on the fact that 44 of our
47 workforce programs were duplicative and wasteful. That is not him
saying that; that is the General Accountability Office saying that.
Senators Lee and Flake worked with us, and they will be offering
amendments today.
Senator Portman made significant contributions to the legislation,
and we thank him for that.
Senator Hatch and Senator McConnell made important contributions, and
Senator Toomey and Senator Coats did as well.
There are a number of other Senators who did something we would like
to see more of around here; that is, they didn't insist on every right
they had. We are a body that operates by unanimous consent, so if we
all insist on all the rights we have, we don't do anything, which is
where we find ourselves sometimes. But there were a number of Senators
who had good ideas, who had proposals they would like to see adopted.
Many of those we were able to incorporate in the manager's amendment,
but then some we just couldn't. So they stepped aside and they thought
it was more important that we go ahead and come to a consensus and get
a result.
In conclusion, let me say this: The other night the Senator from
Georgia and I were at the home of the Australian Ambassador to the
United States. He was talking about this body. The Australians love the
United

[[Page S3975]]

States--especially Kim Beazley, the Ambassador. He is a Labor Party
member. In our country, that would be called a Democrat. But he is a
big pro-American former Minister in Australia.
He said: You know, we envy the U.S. Senate. It is the greatest
tribunal in the world. We all wish we had it.
It made us all stop and think. Are we really living up to the respect
for this body that people around the world have for the U.S. Senate
when it is operating the way it should?
Well, today it is operating the way it should, but a lot of the time
it does not.
How should it operate? The Senate is different because it is the
single legislative body in the world that is designed for extended
discussion of an important issue until it comes to a consensus, and
then we cut off debate and then we get a result, if it is possible.
That is how we get a civil rights bill. That is how we get Social
Security. That is how we get a workforce investment act. We have
extended discussion and debate and amendment and vote on an important
issue until we come to a consensus.
Why is a consensus needed, which means 60 votes instead of 51 much of
the time? Because we govern a complex country by consensus. We don't do
it by order or edict or any partisan way.
This is a very complicated bill. It brought here today by unanimous
consent, but that is only because we have debated it for an extended
period of time here in the Senate and we have come to a consensus about
it. We have given up on a lot of ideas we had. If we had our way, we
would pass the SKILLS Act in a minute--almost every single Republican
would--but that is not what the Democrats would do. So we have come to
an agreement in the Senate, and we have come to an agreement with the
House. That is the consensus. As a result of that, Governors, such as
the Bipartisan Policy Center's Governors' Council, have praised this
result. I believe our Governor in Tennessee, Governor Haslam, will
be delighted with it. I think our former Governor, Governor Bredesen,
who threw up his hands when he saw the maze he had to work with a
couple of years ago, will welcome what we have done.

I thank the Senators on both sides of the aisle who have done this.
My hope is that this is a disease that is infectious and that we see a
little bit more of this kind of legislating in the Senate.
I would like to extend my deep thanks and sincere appreciation to the
dedicated staff that worked on this bill to reauthorize the 16 year old
Workforce Investment Act for the past several years. Without their hard
work and tireless effort we wouldn't have been able to reach the
successful conclusion on the passage of this important bipartisan bill.
I would like to thank Scott Cheney on Senator Murray's staff, who has
been working on this reauthorization effort for many years, as well as
Evan Schatz.
Senator Isakson's staff worked hard with Senator Murray and our
Republican offices throughout the Committee process and in coming to
this final agreement, including Tommy Nguyen and Brett Layson.
I would also like to thank some former staff who put a lot of time
into this reauthorization effort in the 112th Congress, including Glee
Smith who worked for Senator Isakson, as well as Beth Buehlmann and
Kelly Hastings who worked for Senator Enzi on the HELP Committee.
The Chairman of this committee has an outstanding staff that are very
capable and dedicated, particularly Crystal Bridgeman, Michael Gamel-
McCormick, Lee Perselay, Mildred Otero, and Derek Miller.
Our partners in the House of Representative deserve great thanks for
their willingness to come to the table and negotiate a pre-conferenced
agreement, including Rosemary Lahasky, Brad Thomas, James Bergeron, Amy
Jones, Leticia Mederos, Michele Varnhagen, and Jacque Chevalier on the
majority and minority staff of the House Committee on Education and the
Workforce.
Many of our Senate Republican offices deserve thanks for their work
with the HELP Committee on amendments and other technical fixes to the
bill, including Denzel McGuire and Katelyn Conner on Senator
McConnell's staff, Christopher Toppings and Natasha Hickman on Senator
Burr's staff, Leila Kimbrell and Kate Williams on Senator Murkowski's
staff, Laura Pence on Senator Coburn's staff, Kristin Chapman on
Senator Enzi's staff, Nick Butterfield and Pam Thiessen on Senator
Portman's staff, Christy Knese and Wendy Baig on Senator Lee's staff,
Chandler Morse on Senator Flake's staff, Diane Browning and Katie Neal
on Senator Hatch's staff, Dimple Gupta on Senator Toomey's staff, Casey
Murphy on Senator Coats' staff, and Lizzy Simmons on Senator Scott's
staff.
We know these bills don't just suddenly appear. The Senate
Legislative Counsel staff work long hours on the bill and then on the
amendments, so I would like to especially thank Liz King, Amy Gaynor,
Chelsea Koester, and Kristin Romero.
And we always rely on the experts at the Congressional Research
Service to give us good information in a timely manner, so I extend our
thanks to David Bradley and Benjamin Collins.
Finally, I would like to thank my staff. They have put a lot of time
and effort in to make this a process that the Senate and American
people can be proud of and I appreciate their efforts and late nights
on this bill. So, my thanks go out to Patrick Murray, Bill Knudsen,
Peter Oppenheim, David Cleary, Diane Tran, Jim Jeffries, Margaret
Atkinson, and Liz Wolgemuth.
I thank the Chair.
I yield the floor, and I note the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arizona.
Mr. FLAKE. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call
be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

Amendment No. 3379 to Amendment No. 3378

Mr. FLAKE. Madam President, I call up my amendment No. 3379.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Arizona [Mr. Flake] proposes an amendment
numbered 3379 to amendment No. 3378.

Mr. FLAKE. I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment
be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:

In section 116(g)(2), strike subparagraph (A), and insert
the following:
(A) In general.--If such failure occurs for a program year,
the Governor shall take corrective actions, which shall
include development of a reorganization plan through which--
(i) the Governor shall--

(I) prohibit the use of eligible providers and one-stop
partners identified as achieving a poor level of performance;
or
(II) take such other significant actions as the Governor
determines are appropriate; and

(ii) the Governor may require the appointment and
certification of a new local board, consistent with the
criteria established under section 107(b).

Mr. FLAKE. Madam President, I am pleased to have the opportunity to
offer this amendment today, and I appreciate my colleague, the ranking
member of the HELP Committee, working with my office to make this
possible.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act the Senate will vote on
today establishes a performance accountability system for adults and
youth core programs provided for within it. This bill also establishes
sanctions for both States and localities that fail to meet the
established accountability measures.
My proposed amendment works to increase accountability in local
training programs and one-stop providers.
As the bill currently stands, a Governor can only take corrective
action if a local area fails to meet performance accountability
measures for 3 years in a row. That is a long period of time. My
amendment moves the timeframe that a Governor can get involved in
failing programs lacking corrective actions from 3 years to 1 year. I
think that makes sense, certainly. Simply put, if training providers
and one-stop partners are identified as ``poor performers'' after 1
year, the Governor

[[Page S3976]]

should be required to remove them from the list of eligible providers.
This amendment is simply common sense. Why should poorly performing
programs continue to miss performance accountability measures for 3
years in a row before a Governor can get involved and take corrective
action?
In addition, under this amendment a Governor could replace a local
board if necessary after just 1 year, but that wouldn't be required.
My hope is that if we are going to do these kinds of things--if we
are going to provide these funds--States and localities should work
together to make these programs as successful and beneficial as
possible.
I believe this amendment will provide an additional level of
oversight of these programs, and I ask my colleagues to support this
amendment.
Shifting now from this specific amendment, I now wish to talk a
little bit about the amendment process in general and the position we
find ourselves in today in this body.
At their core, amendments offered on the floor serve as an
opportunity to not only thoroughly debate an issue. We all know that
legislation is often brought to the floor having only had the benefit
of input from just a few Members. What amendments do is provide
individual Senators the chance to change and often improve legislation.
They are a right in this body, not a privilege.
I believe in this fundamental process so strongly that I have
supported controversial cloture motions and other motions to proceed on
underlying bills even if I did not support that legislation, simply on
good-faith assurances that amendments would be offered and that
amendment debate would be allowed. Even though I did not support the
bill as it stood, I would at least have the opportunity to make it
better through an open legislative process. That is how I felt on a
number of pieces of legislation that have moved through this body.
Unfortunately, many of these assurances were not met and my fear is
this body will continue to pass legislation with little to no amendment
consideration.
Since last July, Republicans have only had 11 rollcall votes on
amendments, including the 2 we will see today. By comparison, in the
other body, House Democrats have had over 160 votes on amendments
during that same period--160 for the minority party in the House of
Representatives. That is more than 14 times the votes Senate
Republicans have had.
As my good friend from Kentucky pointed out earlier, Representative
Sheila Jackson Lee has singlehandedly received more amendment votes
than all Senate Republicans, given that she has had 15 votes on her
amendments since last July in the House of Representatives.
Some who lionize this Chamber--and I am one of those--as the world's
most deliberative body often take a dim view to the practices of the
House--I am not one of those; but this is supposed to be the more
deliberative body with open amendments and open debate--they will cite
with trepidation the restrictive and structured approach to debate in
the House and, with a shudder, the very fact that the House has the
dread Rules Committee that picks and chooses which amendments will be
offered. I can tell you from experience, when it comes to the ability
to offer amendments, I now long for those days in the House.
During my service in the House, between the 107th and 112th
Congresses, I personally offered--this is offered; not filed, but
offered on the floor of the House of Representatives--239 amendments.
In fact, in the last four Congresses, I offered between 30 and 70
amendments per Congress.
Outside of the sheer volume, one could reasonably chuckle at my
amendment batting average since very few of my amendments passed. But I
actually had more amendments adopted in the past two Congresses each
than we have had rollcall votes on Republican amendments in the Senate
since July.
Under both Republican and Democratic leadership in the House, my
right to offer amendments, particularly during the appropriations
process, was respected. They were respected by both parties, even when
I was offering dozens of earmark-limitation amendments that most of my
colleagues preferred not see the light of day.
Many of my colleagues here in the Senate served with me in the House.
They all remember those times. Nobody wanted to vote on Flake
amendments. These earmark-limitation amendments were not popular. They
often did not get many votes. But, in fact, in all but one of the 140
earmark-limitation amendments I offered, they failed--all but 1. But I
think we can all agree that joining with a small handful of my
colleagues to spotlight precisely what was going on in these
appropriations bills ultimately aided in the current earmark moratorium
that is in force by both Houses. That is a good thing.
While I prefer to have my amendments prevail, that certainly should
not be the test for whether I am afforded the ability to offer them.
Unfortunately, in my short time in the Senate, I have filed 85
amendments to improve underlying legislation and to address issues
faced by my constituents. It is worth noting that this will be my first
amendment that will be voted on by my colleagues.
During last year's NDAA consideration, I filed an amendment that
would simply ask DOD to report on OCO spending. The amendment would
have required an accounting of OCO funds appropriated during fiscal
year 2013 and requested in fiscal year 2014 and would have withheld 10
percent of the budget for the Office of the Secretary of Defense until
the report was received. This amendment is not a fundamental policy
change; it is simply a reporting requirement that all of us would
benefit from.
Last week, I filed 30 amendments to the minibus appropriations bill,
but not one is likely to see the light of day. With no disrespect to my
colleagues, and having served on the Appropriations Committee in the
House myself, I think we can all agree that spending bills benefit from
a good scrubbing by this entire body before they move through the
legislative process.
For example, one of those amendments would have reduced the USDA
Single Family Housing Direct Loan Program from $560 million to $360
million--the same amount as is in the President's budget. I think most
of us would be surprised to learn that the Department of Agriculture
has a Single Family Housing Direct Loan Program and that we are funding
it to the tune of $560 million. The President wants to move that down
to $360 million. I agree with the President. We ought to. At least we
ought to be allowed to debate it and vote on it.
This is not an outlandish amendment. It would simply reduce funding
levels to the President's request and, more importantly, give this body
the opportunity to discuss the merits of the program.
I know some of my colleagues will disagree and will ultimately oppose
many of these amendments and others if they come to a vote, and that is
fine. What is not fine is the fact that we in the U.S. Senate cannot
even have that debate.
To be clear, this is not just a Republican concern. A recent article
in the Hill mentioned how my colleagues on the other side of the aisle
are seemingly just as frustrated with the current amendment process.
The article included a quote from a Democratic Senator who said: ``I've
never been in a less productive time in my life than I am right now, in
the United States Senate.''
So apparently I should count myself lucky to get a rollcall today on
this amendment because there are many on the other side of the aisle
who have not been afforded the same luxury.
Both Democrats and Republicans are getting shut out of this process,
and it is a very dangerous precedent. I urge my colleagues to encourage
thoughtful, open debate from here on out. I also encourage support for
my commonsense reform to the accountability provisions of this
legislation we are debating today.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, I thank the Senator from Arizona for
his input, and I want to acknowledge his remarks with regard to the
amendment process.
One of the reasons we have a bill which is on the floor today--the
Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act

[[Page S3977]]

is here--is because it is one of the few bills where we have had a
process in working toward a final passage where we have had a lot of
amendments.
This bill has a lot of input from a lot of people. We did that. The
fact that he is having his first vote, after offering 85 amendments, is
a testimony to the reason we ought to have more voting on amendments,
more debate on the floor, and we will pass things and be more
productive in our process.
So I thank the Senator for his leadership. I thank him for helping us
as we brought this legislation forward and encourage him to continue to
offer amendments and work to perfect legislation coming before the
Senate.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, could the Presiding Officer inform us
as to the time remaining on both sides?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia controls 2 minutes
and the Senator from Connecticut controls 45 minutes.
Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, I wish to ask unanimous consent that
the majority side yield an additional 10 minutes of their time to the
minority side in order for Senator Portman to make his speech.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. ISAKSON. Madam President, I yield for Senator Portman.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.
Mr. PORTMAN. Madam President, I thank my colleague from Georgia and
appreciate his work on this legislation. I know that he and the Senator
from Tennessee have been talking about the legislation earlier today. I
understand that Senator Alexander talked about some of the work we have
done together to try to make sure this legislation does not just
reauthorize an existing program but improves that program to give more
focus on how to take our Federal worker retraining program to make it
work for America's workers at a critical time.
We just learned that the economy, in the first quarter, grew even
less than we had thought. I think it now has been readjusted to almost
minus 3 percent--minus 2.9 percent growth. We have big problems in
terms of our economy getting moving. One of the problems we have is we
do not have the trained workers for the 21st century jobs that are out
there.
I rise today as the Senate is on the verge of passing this first
comprehensive reform of our Nation's primary workforce development
programs in about 16 years, to say that I appreciate, again, the fact
that Members on both sides of the aisle have worked with me and others
to put some reforms into this program to ensure it works better for our
workers and for our competitiveness and for our ability to actually get
this economy moving again.
We do have this weak economy. And sometimes we are sort of numb to
it. We forget that this is not just a typical recovery; it is a very
slow recovery. In fact, by measures of growth in economy or
unemployment or other measures, it is the weakest economic recovery we
have had since the Great Depression. We have become numb to some of the
disappointing news.
Almost 20 million Americans are out of work, 317,000 of our friends
and neighbors in Ohio are now unemployed, and millions more have given
up looking for work. In fact, the number of people who have given up
looking for work is growing, so it is a high percentage. As to those
who have given up looking for work, you would have to go back 34 years
ago, to the 1970s, to find similar numbers of people as a percentage of
the workforce.
For men, they say it may go back to the 1940s when we started keeping
track of this. So we have problems. We have problems that can be solved
in part by closing what is called the skills gap. In other words, there
are a whole bunch of jobs that are open, but they cannot be filled
because people do not have the skills to take those jobs.
By the way, you do not have to take my word for it. Will.i.am of the
Black Eyed Peas is someone I do not often have an opportunity to quote
on the floor of the Senate, but he was at the White House recently. In
addition to his work in the music industry, he is also known for his
work with kids back in his hometown of Boyle Heights, CA. A lot of that
is focused on job training, skills training. During an event at the
White House a couple of weeks ago, I saw that he said the following:
There are so many jobs in America we can't fill because people aren't
brought up to speed with the skill sets that are needed.
Will.i.am is right. The numbers back him up, by the way. Today, 4.5
million jobs remain open and unfilled in America. Yet we have these
high levels of unemployment and all of these people who have left the
workforce altogether. What is going on? Part of it is that we do not
have the skills to be able to fill those jobs.
In Ohio today, if you go to the OhioMeansJobs Web site, you will see
140,000 jobs advertised. Yet we have about 317,000 people out of work.
If you look at these jobs, a lot of them require advanced manufacturing
skills, information technology skills, and medical and bioscience
skills for health care workers. We have to do better in terms of
filling that gap so that American workers are able to meet the demands
of the 21st century.
There is a skills gap report by the Manufacturing Institute that came
out recently. Based on a poll they did, it said that 74 percent of
manufacturers are experiencing workforce shortages or skill
deficiencies that keep them from expanding their operations and
improving productivity. Seventy-four percent say they are looking for
better skills to be able to fill those jobs.
We could be doing so much better than we are to close that skills
gap. For too many Americans, the only jobs available are those that
they do not have the skills and qualifications to be able to fill.
The Federal Government spends a lot of money on this. This is not for
lack of funds. The Federal Government spends between $15 and $18
billion a year on these Federal worker retraining programs. As some of
you know, there are 47 different programs spread over 9 different
departments and agencies. We need to do more to try to consolidate and
improve these programs, but in the meanwhile let's do what we can. That
is what this legislation does.
The Government Accountability Office or GAO--which looks at all
Federal agencies and decides how they are doing, spent a lot of time
looking at this. They have said that some of that money--the $18
billion I talked about of our taxpayer money that does provide the
funding for these 47 different programs over 9 departments and
agencies--they are not working very well. They say 45 of the 47
programs overlapped with at least 1 other program. Only five have
conducted an impact study of their efforts since 2004, meaning that the
assessments of outcomes or performance you would expect are not being
done. Only five have conducted an impact study of their efforts since
2004.
GAO concluded that ``little is known about the effectiveness of most
of these programs.'' But actually we do know something about the
effectiveness because these millions of unfilled jobs are an indictment
of the program. In other words, we should be doing a better job of
getting the skills we need to fill these jobs if we are spending $15 to
$18 billion of hard-earned taxpayer money on it.
I hear this story all across Ohio, and I know my colleagues hear it
across their States. I hear from workers, from businesses, from
educators. People are frustrated, and there is good reason for it. I
think the way Washington has handled workforce development is simply
inefficient. It is not working well. I think it is unfair to employers
who have open positions because they cannot find qualified candidates
to fill them. It is certainly unfair to taxpayers who send their money
to Washington believing that their government will be good stewards of
those funds and that we are going to use them effectively for worker
retraining, getting the money into the hands of people to train them
for jobs that are actually out there. I think it is unfair to, of
course, millions of Americans who would like to build a better life for

[[Page S3978]]

their families and find that the Federal resources allocated to them
are not getting the job done.
Because we believe we can do better, this Congress is going to act
today. The Senate and the House are working together on this issue,
which is good. It is bicameral. It is bipartisan.
I have joined with Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado on what is
called the CAREER Act. The CAREER Act is included, in most part, in
this legislation. The CAREER Act first calls for a reduction in the
wasteful and inefficient overlap in the system.
I am pleased to see that the legislation before us today trims 15
programs from our Nation's workforce development program. I think that
is a good start. I also think we can do even more. Understanding that
there were a lot of constraints, different points of view, we need to
consolidate further, in my view.
Second, we called for an increased focus on helping unemployed
workers attain high-quality credentials that give them a leg up in the
local job market. I am pleased this bill includes our provisions that
require those local boards, the workforce investment boards, to give
priority consideration to programs that lead to credentials that are in
demand in their local area.
We worked hard to include a provision requiring the State and local
boards to provide specific strategies for helping folks attain high-
quality credentials. These are industry-recognized credentials that are
in demand, that are portable--they can move from State to State--and
that help them move up the career leader. That is important because we
know that these credentials, based on all the research, are critical to
getting people into these jobs.
Third, we call for a new and innovative accountability program in the
system called Pay for Success. Currently, the workforce development
programs provide funding regardless of performance so long as certain
rules are followed and input requirements are met--not output but
input. This has resulted in this unaccountability the GAO talked about
and many complacent programs that have fallen short. Pay for Success
turns this model on its head by linking payments to outcome, to actual
performance measures. Job-training service providers who do well will
be rewarded under this model. Those who fail to deliver results are
going to be held accountable.
I am pleased that again this underlying legislation--the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act--before us today includes these Pay for
Success provisions that allow local workforce boards to use their
formula to engage in Pay for Success contracts. That is a step in the
right direction. I would like to go even further, but I think it is
historic and it is very important.
Finally, we call for access to better data to make it less difficult
and expensive for State and local officials to assess the effectiveness
of their training activities in real time. I am pleased this
legislation includes the provisions for a study on how to access better
data that can help the system deliver better results for taxpayers and
the unemployed. That is part of the CAREER Act.
These four reforms can help change lives and turn around our economy.
They are the kinds of reforms that can empower millions of Americans to
get the kinds of jobs that do fund retirement, that do buy homes, that
do pay for college educations. These reforms are long overdue.
We live in a dynamic and ever-changing economy, no question about it.
We have to be sure our workforce is also dynamic and ever-changing to
be able to meet the demands. We should not be held back by a workforce
development system that has not been reauthorized since 1998. For
reference, that is the year Google was first incorporated as a company.
So I strongly support the underlying legislation.
Again, I commend my colleagues on both sides of the aisle--I see some
of them here today on the floor--for their work. I thank them for
working with Senator Michael Bennet and me to incorporate some of the
bipartisan CAREER Act provisions.
At a time when the two parties in Washington have been at odds on how
to finally get our economy moving again, this is a jobs bill that is
win-win. It is a win for everyone, especially those Americans who are
still looking for jobs and those businesses that are desperate to fill
the skills gap they see.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.
Mr. REED. Madam President, I rise in strong support of the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act. This legislation represents a long-
overdue upgrade to our workforce investment system. I wish to commend
the bipartisan work of Chairman Harkin, Senator Murray, Senator
Alexander, and Senator Isakson in negotiating this compromise
legislation that will move our job training and adult education systems
forward.
The need to improve our workforce investment system has crystallized
during this recovery from the great recession. My home State of Rhode
Island continues to struggle with high unemployment--the highest rate
in the Nation. Many of our unemployed workers have been out of work for
an extended period of time. Yet employers tell me they have open
positions they cannot fill because they cannot find workers with the
skills they need today. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
takes important steps to help address the skills mismatch that keeps
jobs open and potential workers unemployed.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act streamlines the current
workforce development system by requiring a single comprehensive plan
that incorporates all of the core programs and is aligned with economic
development plans for the States. It also establishes shared
performance metrics that apply to all of the programs in the system. In
other words, it makes sure that employers, educators, and the workforce
system are all on the same page.
The legislation before us today makes some tough choices, eliminating
15 programs. However, it also maintains and strengthens vital national
programs such as Job Corps and Youth Build, which have made a
difference for so many young people in Rhode Island and across the
Nation.
I am particularly pleased that the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act strengthens the partnership between our workforce
investment system and our public libraries. Libraries are where people
go when they need help or information. They are a critical part of the
delivery system for adult education and job training.
In fiscal year 2011, the Institute of Museum and Library Services
reported that there were 1.52 billion visits to public libraries across
the Nation. Senator Cochran and I introduced the Workforce Investments
through Local Libraries Act to harness the potential of public
libraries to expand the reach of the workforce investment system and
ensure that job seekers and adult leaders had the opportunity to
develop the critical digital skills necessary for today's economy. The
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act includes many of the
provisions of this legislation. I was very pleased to work with Senator
Cochran and have great gratitude for Senators Alexander, Isakson,
Harkin, and Murray for incorporating some of our ideas.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act also strengthens adult
education and includes many of the provisions of the Adult Education
and Economic Growth Act that I introduced with Senator Brown.
For 2012, data from the Program for the International Assessment of
Adult Competencies show that an estimated 52 percent of adults age 16
to 65 in the United States lack the literacy skills necessary to
identify, interpret, or evaluate one or more pieces of information.
These are critical skills for postsecondary education and the
workplace. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act will help
address this critical need for adult education and literacy by ensuring
that adult education programs are aligned with job training and
postsecondary education, supporting the professional development of
adult educators, offering technical assistance for adult education
providers, and strengthening the research and evaluation of best
practices in adult education.
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act is an example of what is
possible when we work together to solve problems and strengthen the
tools available to our communities to

[[Page S3979]]

improve the quality of life. We have libraries. We have adult education
programs throughout this country. What I think the sponsors of this
legislation so creatively did is pull them together, so the sum of the
parts is much greater and will have a much more effective impact on the
employment opportunities for Americans and our productivity as a
nation.
In that regard, I would like to discuss for a moment a new bipartisan
bill I have introduced with Senator Heller to restore emergency
benefits for jobseekers for 5 months. What we have done here is we have
addressed the issue of training, but we still have an issue with people
who are desperately looking for work and need the assistance of the
unemployment benefits to do that.
I think this legislation will help us make the case because one of
the legitimate reasons that were raised with respect to the extension
of benefit was, well, we do not have a job training program, so we are
not preparing people for jobs. That is what we should be doing. Well,
this bill goes a long way to do that. I think it helps us in trying to
make the case.

As we know, in April we voted on a bipartisan basis to send the bill
to the House. Unfortunately, it languished there, and then ultimately
the time expired. Our new plan would provide prospective emergency
benefits--just going forward--for those eligible job seekers who lost
their benefits on December 28. They would essentially pick up where
they were on December 28.
This is something that, hand in hand with this new job training bill,
will give people both additional advantages of training and resources
to make it through the training period, pay the rent, have a cell phone
so they can call for a job, do those things that are necessary to get
by. It is fiscally responsible. It is offset. We are waiting for an
official score from CBO, but our intention is to make it a bill that is
fiscally responsible. Madam President, 3.1 million Americans lost these
benefits--that number grows by approximately 72,000 a week. We can do
better. We must do better.
We are doing a lot to try to get people back to work. I commend this
legislation. It is an important step forward.
It is an important step forward, because as so many of my colleagues
have noted, one of the things that is amazing in this recession--and I
have mentioned it previously--is to go into Rhode Island to companies
even with the state unemployment rate of 8 percent--and have the owners
say they are desperately looking for four or five workers. They can't
find them.
Why is that? The skills that 20 years ago got someone a good job in
Rhode Island and for the past 20 years kept them working, after this
downturn slowed their company or pushed them out, those skills are out
of date. Good workers, long work history, they need not only the help
to retrain, but they also certainly need the help to get from day to
day until they can get back in the workforce.
With that, let me again commend and thank the sponsors and authors of
this legislation.
I yield the floor.
Mr. ISAKSON. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Coons). The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. HARKIN. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum
call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. HARKIN. I ask unanimous consent that if the final vote on passage
is successful, the statement of the managers for the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act be printed in the Record immediately
following the text of the Senate-passed bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. HARKIN. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum
call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. ISAKSON. How much time remains on the Republican side?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is 1 minute remaining.
Mr. ISAKSON. I ask unanimous consent that 5 additional minutes be
extended from the Democratic side to the Republican side.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mr. HARKIN. How much time remains on our side?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is 25 minutes remaining on the
Democratic side.
Mr. HARKIN. Sure, absolutely.
Mr. ISAKSON. I yield the balance of our time to the Senator from
Utah, Mr. Lee.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

Amendment No. 3380 to Amendment No. 3378

Mr. LEE. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 3380 to amendment No.
3378.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the amendment.
The bill clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Utah [Mr. Lee] proposes an amendment
numbered 3380 to amendment No. 3378.

Mr. LEE. I ask unanimous consent that the reading of the amendment be
dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To require that evaluation reports are due every fourth year,
to establish a reservation of funds in a fiscal year in which a report
is due, and to establish a reduction in funds if a report is not
submitted)

Beginning on page 395, strike line 20 and all that follows
through line 24, and insert the following:
(B) Periodic independent evaluation.--The evaluations
carried out under this paragraph shall include an independent
evaluation of the programs and activities carried out under
this title. A final report containing the results of the
evaluation shall be submitted under paragraph (5) not later
than June 30 of 2018 and every fourth year thereafter.
On page 399, between lines 6 and 7, insert the following:
(9) Reservation and reduction in funds for failure to
submit evaluation reports.--
(A) Reservation of funds.--At the beginning of a report
year or a succeeding year, the Secretary shall reserve 5
percent of the funds appropriated and made available to the
Office of the Secretary.
(B) Return of funds.--If, by the end of the report year or
succeeding year, respectively, the committees described in
paragraph (6) do not receive the corresponding report, the
funds reserved in subparagraph (A) for the year involved
shall be returned to the Treasury of the United States.
(C) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
(i) Report year.--The term ``report year'' means a fiscal
year in which a report is due under paragraph (1)(B).
(ii) Succeeding year.--The term ``succeeding year'' means
each succeeding fiscal year, after a report year in which a
report is due and not received as described in subparagraph
(B), if the report remains unsubmitted on the first day of
that succeeding fiscal year.

Mr. LEE. Mr. President, Federal job training programs are seldom
evaluated to determine whether they are meeting their intended
purposes.
However, when the United States is $17.5 trillion in debt, we as
representatives of the American taxpayers should do a better job to
ensure that the programs we are funding are actually working and we are
working with them.
We should pay particularly close attention to programs that receive
billions of dollars every year from the Federal Government when their
authorization lapsed over one decade ago.
The Murray-Isakson-Harkin-Alexander substitute amendment takes
important steps to ensure title I State and local programs are more
accurately evaluated, meaning performance measures and held accountable
for unmet goals and resubmitted reports.
More specifically, the bill would sanction State and local programs
should they continually fail to meet their performance measures or fail
to submit required reports. The substitute amendment does not hold the
Department of Labor to similar standards.
The Department is required to conduct evaluations and to submit
separate reports to Congress. I was very pleased to work with Senators
Alexander and Harkin to include in the managers' amendment a provision
that would require the final evaluation reports to be made public and
available

[[Page S3980]]

to the public. In my opinion, requiring the Department to post these
reports to the Department's Web site is a commonsense step toward
improving transparency in the WIOA job training programs.
In addition, I worked closely with the HELP Committee chairman and
ranking member to further discuss a procurement provision within the
Job Corps section of the bill. While I believe there are still some
outstanding concerns that we should continue to discuss, I believe
everyone's goal is to ensure that the best Job Corps operators are able
to compete for these sites.
Today I would like to offer an additional good governance measure
that would subject the Department of Labor to similar sanctions as the
States. It would help tackle the problem of the Department of Labor
delaying congressionally mandated evaluations, which routinely has been
abused by both Republican and Democratic administrations.
It is a shame that Congress passing a law requiring the completion of
an evaluation by a certain date is not enough to get the job done. My
amendment would remedy this problem by reducing the budget of the
Department of Labor's Office of the Secretary by 5 percent in the year
a report is due, should the agency fail to conduct and release the
independent evaluation as required by this bill. This reduction of
funds would continue each year until the report is finalized.
WIOA authorizes $9 billion each year for the next 5 years, and title
I represents half of that funding. Therefore, ensuring an independent
evaluation of title I programs is conducted and made publicly available
for review and scrutiny by Congress and the American public. It is
critically important for any future modification, renewal or
elimination of programs.
I would appreciate the support of my colleagues for the passage of
this amendment.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Iowa.
Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, we worked very hard on this bill to make
sure we had good, strong, independent evaluations and reporting
requirements. Therefore, I am pleased to rise and speak in opposition
to the amendment.
We included in the bill requirements for an independent evaluation to
be conducted every 4 years, which includes what we call the gold
standard impact evaluation, the first of which is due in 2019.
Our House colleagues on both sides of the aisle agreed with and
supported these provisions in a bipartisan, bicameral process. What the
Lee amendment would do would be to inappropriately penalize the
Secretary of Labor if the Secretary does not submit a report by an
arbitrary date.
I understand the intent of the amendment. We all want to see reports
filed in a timely manner. However, the Lee amendment does not give any
allowance for factors that might be outside of the Secretary's control
and then would penalize the Secretary for the failure of others over
whom the Secretary has absolutely no control--and that is why I oppose
the amendment.
As the name suggests, independent evaluations are run by objective,
independent third parties. Sometimes the evaluations encounter delays
that are far beyond the control of the Department.
For example, data may not be available in a timely manner;
alternatively, followup with States, local areas or programs
participating in the evaluation may be necessary. On some occasions,
legal challenges may arise. Any of these factors could delay a
comprehensive report of this nature.
Then to say, however, we are going to penalize the Department for
failing to meet an arbitrary deadline I think is inappropriate and
inequitable, because they may not have control over that. So the Lee
amendment would disregard any and all of these reasons a report might
be delayed even by 1 day.
I wish to make it clear that all of us who worked on this bill
believe in the value of independent evaluations and the information
they can provide policymakers and consumers, but we also believe they
should be done right, without undue pressure of arbitrary deadlines and
no room for corrections.
I would also note the underlying bill does strengthen evaluations and
reporting in the right way. This is something we all worked on and we
have all worked on it in a bipartisan bicameral nature.
Again, the House has been very clear that we work this out. They
would not be accepting of this amendment, so I hope all Senators would
join with us who worked so hard on this bill in a bipartisan manner to
oppose the Lee amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Utah.
Mr. LEE. If I could respond very briefly, I think it is important to
point out that, yes, there may come a time when in any government
office--whether it is an elected government office or appointed
office--when someone who is new to the office might be affected by
something that did or didn't happen during the predecessor's time in
office.
But even were that to occur in the case of the Secretary of Labor,
this is a position that could easily enable, could easily empower the
new Secretary to come in and within a matter of months make sure our
contractor gets a report done and make sure that report gets submitted.
It is also worth noting that when we entrust a Federal agency with
the power to spend $9 billion of the American people's hard-earned
taxpayer money, hard-earned resources, we should expect them to stand
accountable, and they should certainly have the ability to have a study
conducted and have that study released to the American people.
If we don't trust them to be able to issue that report and make it
public, then we should have some reason to be concerned about giving
them $9 billion.
But I think this is a reasonable requirement, and therefore I ask my
colleagues to support this measure.
Mr. HARKIN. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. FRANKEN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. FRANKEN. Mr. President, I rise today to speak in proud support of
the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, and to urge my colleagues
to support it.
This is an extremely important piece of legislation, and one I was
happy to work on in the HELP Committee. It is also long overdue. We
haven't reauthorized the Workforce Investment Act since 1998, and it is
clear that the law isn't working for the 2014 economy. We know it isn't
working because we have a large and growing skills gap.
Now, what is the skills gap? Recent studies have shown that between
one-third and one-half of manufacturers in my State have at least one
job they can't fill because they can't find a worker with the right
skills. That is the skills gap in Minnesota. Of course, it isn't just
Minnesota, it is a nationwide phenomenon, and any colleague I talk to
on the floor says that is the case in his or her State.
A 2011 survey by Deloitte found that there were 600,000 manufacturing
jobs nationwide that were unfilled because of a skills shortage. I just
met with Bob Kill, the president and CEO of Enterprise Minnesota, a
terrific organization that studies manufacturers in my State of
Minnesota, and as he likes to say, ``we've been admiring this problem
for a long time.''
And it is not just manufacturers. There is a skills gap in
information technology, in health care, and in other sectors that have
jobs sitting there waiting for skilled workers to fill them. There are
more than 3 million jobs in this country that could be filled today if
there were workers who had the right skills. With too many Americans
unemployed, we have to find a way to fill those jobs.
The thing is, we know how to solve this, and the Workforce Innovation
and Opportunity Act will help us do that. I have been to the floor of
the Senate a number of times to talk about the strategy. I have talked
about it with the Presiding Officer. I am excited about this, as the
Presiding Officer very well knows. These are partnerships between
businesses and community and technical colleges that are training
workers and getting them into

[[Page S3981]]

high-skilled, high-demand jobs right away.
A number of these partnerships are up and running in Minnesota and
have employers fighting over graduates--and sometimes the fight starts
even before the students have graduated. That is good for the student.
Bob Kill told me about the top student in one of these programs at
Alexandria Technical and Community College--by the way, a community
college which has been doing this for a while and doing a great job.
This student had 14 job offers before he graduated. All 14 employers
said they would pay him to get his engineering degree. I bet if we
asked most recent graduates from 4-year or even graduate degree
programs, they would be jealous of that kind of eagerness from
employers.
So that is a program that is working, and with good reason; employers
were involved in the program from day one, so they helped to shape the
curriculum to their needs. This is obviously more effective than a
training program with no connection to the needs of employers or, as
Labor Secretary Tom Perez calls it, ``train and pray.'' Our education
system needs more of this focus on skills for jobs that exist.
Careers are different than they were a generation ago. Very few
people stay working in one job for one company for their entire life
anymore. As technology progresses faster and faster, workers are going
to need to constantly update their skills. We need a workforce
development system that is agile enough to keep up with these changing
demands. That is essential not just so workers will be able to get the
different skills they will need over the course of their working lives,
it is also going to be one of the keys to the United States remaining
globally competitive. If our workers can't adapt to the new industries
that are constantly forming, we will lose those jobs to our global
competitors. We are seeing manufacturing coming back to our country for
all sorts of reasons, and we need to have the skilled workers to take
advantage of that and be globally competitive. There is no better way
to anticipate and react to these changes than to connect businesses
directly with our schools to get workers exactly the skills they need.
This is also about local competitiveness, it is about jobs, it is
also about college affordability. I already talked about the student
with 14 job offers, all of which included a free engineering degree. We
can't get more affordable than free. Many have heard me talk about this
issue before, a manufacturer from Minnesota named Erick Ajax.
When Erick hires employees from these business-technical college
partnerships, the way he looks at it is they are on a career ladder
that would otherwise not be available to them. He told me about one
such hire. He hired him right after a credentialing program, like a
short CNC credentialed program. The guy did a great job, and so he
said: Well, I am going to send you back to community college to get
your associate's degree while you are working, and I will pay for it.
So the guy got his associate's degree, came back, and he was
magnificent. So then he said: You know what. I am going to send you to
the University of Minnesota to get your bachelor's degree, while you
are working. I believe he is about to get his bachelor's degree, but he
is now the head of quality control for this advanced manufacturing
company--and he will have a couple of degrees, with zero debt. I think
about that story a lot when I think about college affordability.
I could talk about these partnerships for hours, as the Presiding
Officer knows--he has heard me--because they work. I have been
enthusiastic about this. That is why I worked with Patty Murray, the
great Senator from Washington; Johnny Isakson, the great Senator from
Georgia; Tom Harkin, the great Senator from Iowa; and Lamar Alexander,
the great Senator from Tennessee, to make sure this bill would
encourage the formation of these partnerships. I thank each and every
one of them for their leadership on this bill. They worked together on
a bipartisan basis and led a cooperative process in the HELP Committee.
I think the result is a bill of which everyone can be proud.
I will keep working to pass my Community College to Career Fund Act,
because I think these partnerships deserve even more focus as well as a
dedicated funding source. But I am proud that I fought to make sure the
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act contains provisions similar to
my bill, and it does a lot to encourage the formation of more of these
partnerships--and bigger partnerships--create more jobs, more workers
with jobs, and degrees on a path in the right direction. I think this
is a huge step in the right direction, and I thank my colleagues. We
are creating a smarter, nimbler workforce that will be able to respond
to the unique needs of each local area, coordinating all the programs
so they will all be working together toward the same goals and the same
outcome metrics. This will reduce administrative costs and make the
system focus on what counts--getting people good jobs.
Once again, I thank Senators Murray, Harkin, Isakson, and Alexander
for their hard work on this bill. I encourage my colleagues to support
it so we can get our workforce system working for today's economy and
the economy of tomorrow.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, as we end this debate, I thank my
coauthors and managers of this bill, Senator Isakson, Senator Harkin,
and Senator Alexander. And I also again thank Senator Enzi who was for
years my partner on this bill.
For over a decade now some combination of us, along with others, has
been working to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act, and I am so
excited that we are finally on the verge of passing this long overdue
legislation through the Senate.
Let me remind everyone that the workforce development system serves
over 20 million people every year. That is one of every eight working-
age adults in this country--people who are looking for work, people who
want to change their jobs, people who want to upgrade their skills. And
the system serves thousands of employers every year--manufacturers,
construction firms, health care providers, financial institutions. The
list goes on.
Let's also remember that our workforce development system is a vital
partner of economic developers all around the country, making sure that
companies being recruited or expanded have access to training and
skilled workers necessary to compete and grow.
With millions of new jobs that will require postsecondary education
and advanced skills in the coming years, we will fall behind if we do
not modernize our workforce development system and programs now. We
have to make sure when high-tech jobs of the next century are created,
Americans are ready to fill them. That is what we have done with this
bill. We have doubled down on the programs that work, we have
eliminated programs that have become outdated, and created a workforce
system that is more nimble, adaptable, better aligned, and more
accountable.
I am very proud to be at this point. I again especially thank my
partner who has been with me so many critical times, Senator Isakson
from Georgia, who has been incredibly hardworking and diligent in
getting this done.
I look forward to the votes. We have two amendments--I will be
joining all of our cosponsors in voting against those amendments--and
then final passage. I again thank everyone who has worked so hard on
this legislation for so many years.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, as we close the debate, I
enthusiastically support and endorse the Workforce Investment and
Opportunity Act. This is a statement the Senate can send to the United
States of America and all people who are on unemployment, looking for
better opportunities. We are now going to offer training to see to it
those 10,600,000 Americans out of work can find jobs, and hopefully it
will be the 4 million jobs available today in America where skilled
workers are not trained.
I thank Senator Murray for her kind comments and reiterate my
appreciation for her, her staff, Scott Cheney, my staff, Tommy Nguyen.
Chairman Harkin has been a fearless leader on our committee and
allowed us the chance to get to where we are today.

[[Page S3982]]

Senator Alexander's velvet glove on an iron hand helped us get
through an amendment process that was difficult at times but got us to
the point we are today.
I urge my colleagues to vote for the bill and against the two
amendments.
I yield back the remainder of our time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the question is on
agreeing to amendment No. 3379, offered by the Senator from Arizona,
Mr. Flake.
Mrs. MURRAY. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk called the roll.
Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Missouri (Mrs.
McCaskill) and the Senator from West Virginia (Mr. Rockefeller) are
necessarily absent.
Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the
Senator from Mississippi (Mr. Cochran) and the Senator from Nebraska
(Mr. Johanns).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 33, nays 63, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 212 Leg.]

YEAS--33

Ayotte
Barrasso
Blunt
Boozman
Burr
Coats
Coburn
Cornyn
Crapo
Cruz
Fischer
Flake
Graham
Grassley
Hatch
Heller
Inhofe
Johnson (WI)
Kirk
Lee
McCain
McConnell
Paul
Risch
Roberts
Rubio
Scott
Sessions
Shelby
Thune
Toomey
Vitter
Wicker

NAYS--63

Alexander
Baldwin
Begich
Bennet
Blumenthal
Booker
Boxer
Brown
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Chambliss
Collins
Coons
Corker
Donnelly
Durbin
Enzi
Feinstein
Franken
Gillibrand
Hagan
Harkin
Heinrich
Heitkamp
Hirono
Hoeven
Isakson
Johnson (SD)
Kaine
King
Klobuchar
Landrieu
Leahy
Levin
Manchin
Markey
Menendez
Merkley
Mikulski
Moran
Murkowski
Murphy
Murray
Nelson
Portman
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Stabenow
Tester
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Walsh
Warner
Warren
Whitehouse
Wyden

NOT VOTING--4

Cochran
Johanns
McCaskill
Rockefeller
The amendment (No. 3379) was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the question is on
agreeing to the amendment offered by the Senator from Utah, Mr. Lee.
Mrs. MURRAY. I ask for the yeas and nays.
PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be
a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the
Senator from Mississippi (Mr. Cochran) and the Senator from Nebraska
(Mr. Johanns).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 40, nays 58, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 213 Leg.]

YEAS--40

Ayotte
Barrasso
Blunt
Boozman
Burr
Coats
Coburn
Collins
Corker
Cornyn
Crapo
Cruz
Fischer
Flake
Graham
Grassley
Hatch
Heller
Hoeven
Inhofe
Johnson (WI)
Kirk
Lee
McCain
McConnell
Moran
Murkowski
Paul
Portman
Risch
Roberts
Rubio
Scott
Sessions
Shelby
Tester
Thune
Toomey
Vitter
Wicker

NAYS--58

Alexander
Baldwin
Begich
Bennet
Blumenthal
Booker
Boxer
Brown
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Chambliss
Coons
Donnelly
Durbin
Enzi
Feinstein
Franken
Gillibrand
Hagan
Harkin
Heinrich
Heitkamp
Hirono
Isakson
Johnson (SD)
Kaine
King
Klobuchar
Landrieu
Leahy
Levin
Manchin
Markey
McCaskill
Menendez
Merkley
Mikulski
Murphy
Murray
Nelson
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Rockefeller
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Shaheen
Stabenow
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Walsh
Warner
Warren
Whitehouse
Wyden

NOT VOTING--2

Cochran
Johanns

The amendment (No. 3380) was rejected.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the question is on
agreeing to amendment No. 3381 offered by the Senator from Iowa, Mr.
Harkin.
The amendment (No. 3381) was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the substitute
amendment, No. 3378, as amended, is agreed to.
The amendment was ordered to be engrossed and the bill to be read a
third time.
The bill was read the third time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The bill having been read the third time, the
question is, Shall it pass?
Mr. HARKIN. I ask for the yeas and nays.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
There appears to be a sufficient second.
The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk called the roll.
Mr. CORNYN. The following Senators are necessarily absent: the
Senator from Mississippi (Mr. Cochran) and the Senator from Nebraska
(Mr. Johanns).
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Are there any other Senators in the Chamber
desiring to vote?
The result was announced--yeas 95, nays 3, as follows:

[Rollcall Vote No. 214 Leg.]

YEAS--95

Alexander
Ayotte
Baldwin
Barrasso
Begich
Bennet
Blumenthal
Blunt
Booker
Boozman
Boxer
Brown
Burr
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Chambliss
Coats
Collins
Coons
Corker
Cornyn
Crapo
Cruz
Donnelly
Durbin
Enzi
Feinstein
Fischer
Flake
Franken
Gillibrand
Graham
Grassley
Hagan
Harkin
Hatch
Heinrich
Heitkamp
Heller
Hirono
Hoeven
Inhofe
Isakson
Johnson (SD)
Kaine
King
Kirk
Klobuchar
Landrieu
Leahy
Levin
Manchin
Markey
McCain
McCaskill
McConnell
Menendez
Merkley
Mikulski
Moran
Murkowski
Murphy
Murray
Nelson
Paul
Portman
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Risch
Roberts
Rockefeller
Rubio
Sanders
Schatz
Schumer
Scott
Sessions
Shaheen
Shelby
Stabenow
Tester
Thune
Toomey
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Vitter
Walsh
Warner
Warren
Whitehouse
Wicker
Wyden

NAYS--3

Coburn
Johnson (WI)
Lee

NOT VOTING--2

Cochran
Johanns

The bill (H.R. 803), as amended, was passed.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:

Statement of the Managers to Accompany the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act

Contents

I. Purpose and Summary of the Legislation
II. Background and Need for Legislation
III. Legislative History and Committee Action
IV. Explanation of the Bill and Managers' Views
V. Section-by-Section Analysis

I. Purpose and Summary of the Legislation

The purpose of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
is to amend and reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act of
1998, which supports the nation's primary programs and
investments in employment services, workforce development,
adult education, and vocational rehabilitation activities and
has been due for reauthorization since 2003. The bill also
reauthorizes and enhances the Adult Education and Family
Literacy Act, amends the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933, and
amends and reauthorizes certain provisions in the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The legislation is the product of an extensive bipartisan,
bicameral effort in negotiations between the Senate Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee and House
Committee on Education and the Workforce regarding their
respective reauthorization bills and input from the major
stakeholders in workforce development, adult education,
employment services, and vocational rehabilitation and other
disability programs. In addition, two hearings were held in
the 113th Congress regarding the reauthorization of the
Workforce Investment Act of 1998--one in the Senate and one
in the House of Representatives.
This legislation amends the Workforce Investment Act of
1998 by making the changes identified below.

[[Page S3983]]

This legislation repeals the Workforce Investment Act of
1998 and replaces it with new authorization language for
workforce systems in the States and local areas, Job Corps.
national programs, adult education and literacy, and general
provisions. In addition, the legislation includes amendments
to the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933 and the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973, which are important programs connected to the
broader workforce development system.
First, the bill makes a number of specific changes to
workforce investment activities under title I. The number of
required members on State and local workforce boards is
reduced. States are required to submit one plan to address
all of the core programs--title I-B, title II, employment
services under the Wagner-Peyser Act in title and State
vocational rehabilitation under title IV--and develop a
comprehensive State strategy to align workforce activities
with labor market demands and economic development goals. The
bill also includes a process describing the partner
contributions for infrastructure funding. There is an
increased emphasis on ensuring physical and programmatic
accessibility of one-stop centers and training providers.
Flexibility of funds for use at the local level between adult
and dislocated worker funding is enhanced. A set of common
performance indicators is required for all core programs
under the bill. Importance is placed on providing career
pathways and the use of sector strategies for delivering
services. Streamlining reporting requirements and
administrative burdens are applied. Youth who face severe
barriers to employment and education, including out-of-
school youth, are targeted for assistance.
Second, the bill makes a number of changes to the Adult
Education and Family Literacy Act to support successful
transitions to postsecondary education or training, or
employment. The bill requires specific activities at the
local, State, and national level, including integrating basic
adult education and occupational skills training and the use
of career pathways. The bill also requires the Secretary of
Education to conduct evaluations and research regarding adult
education activities provided under the title.
Third, the amendments to the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933
include changes to the Workforce Information Council, which
supports the development of a State-Federal system for
identifying labor market information. The amendments also
include provisions to support professional development for
employment services staff.
Fourth, the bill prioritizes competitive integrated
employment for individuals with disabilities, particularly
young people with disabilities who are transitioning from
education to employment, by ensuring that these individuals
have the skills and training necessary to maximize their
potential. The amendments also include better alignment of
disability programs in order to ensure that individuals
receive the services, technology, and support they need in
order to live inclusive, successful lives.
Fifth, the bill repeals the Workforce Investment Act of
1998 and eliminates the following 15 programs:
Youth Opportunity Grants
21st Century Workforce Commission
National Institute for Literacy under Adult Education
Health Care Gap Coverage for Trade Adjustment Assistance
participants
WIA Incentive Grants
WIA Pilots and Demonstration Projects
Community-based Job Training Grants
Green Jobs Act
Projects with Industry under the Rehabilitation Act
amendments
Recreation Programs under the Rehabilitation Act amendments
In-service Training under the Rehabilitation Act amendments
Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Program under the
Rehabilitation Act amendments
WIA Veterans Workforce Investment Program
WIA Workforce Innovation Fund
Grants to States for Workplace and Community Transition
Training for Incarcerated Individuals under the 1998
Amendments to the Higher Education Act.

II. Background and Need for Legislation

When Congress passed the Workforce Investment Act of 1998,
it was seen as a major step forward in streamlining existing
Federal workforce programs and supporting Federal investment
in workforce development activities. Since the authorization
for the statute expired in 2003, there have been numerous
attempts to reauthorize the legislation in both the House and
the Senate.

III. Legislative History and Committee Action

In the 113th Congress, the Senate took the following action
on reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act. On June
20, 2013, the Senate HELP Committee conducted a hearing on
reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. On
July 24, 2013, Senator Murray, Senator Isakson, Senator
Harkin, and Senator Alexander introduced S. 1356, the
Workforce Investment Act of 2013. On July 31, 2013, the
Senate HELP Committee considered S. 1356 in executive session
and reported it favorably, as amended, to the Senate by a
vote of 18 to 3. The committee considered and adopted two
amendments to the underlying bill. The first amendment was in
the nature of a substitute and included changes recommended
by the bill managers--Senate HELP Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA),
HELP Committee Ranking Member Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Senator
Patty Murray (D-WA), and Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)--and
was adopted by unanimous consent. The second amendment,
offered by Senator Casey (D-PA), Senator Hatch (R-UT), and
Senator Whitehouse (D-RI) included additional reporting
requirements for the Job Corps program. The amendment was
accepted by voice vote.
In the 113th Congress, the House took the following action
on reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act. On
February 26, 2013, the House Education and the Workforce
Committee, in the Subcommittee on Higher Education and
Workforce Training, conducted a hearing on the
reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. On
February 25, 2013, Higher Education and Workforce Training
Subcommittee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) introduced H.R.
803, the Supporting Knowledge and Investing in Lifelong
Skills Act. On March 6, 2013, the Committee on Education and
the Workforce considered H.R. 803 in legislative session and
reported it favorably, as amended, to the House of
Representatives.
The committee considered and adopted the following
amendments to H.R. 803. The first amendment was in the nature
of a substitute and included changes recommended by the bill
manager, Representative Foxx, and was adopted by voice vote.
The second amendment, offered by Representative Tim Walberg
(R-MI), streamlined the unified State plan process at the
Federal level. The third amendment, offered by Representative
Martha Roby (R-AL), prohibited the use of funds for lobbying
and political activities. The fourth amendment, offered by
Representative Susan Brooks (R-IN), allowed State and local
workforce boards to implement pay-for-performance strategies.
The second, third, and fourth amendments were considered en
bloc and adopted by voice vote.
On March 15, 2013, the House of Representatives adopted
H.R. 803 by a vote of 215-202. During debate the House
considered the following amendments. The first amendment,
offered by Representative Foxx provided a local application
process when designating local workforce investment areas and
made technical and clarifying changes to the underlying bill,
and passed by voice vote. The second amendment, offered by
Representative Pete Gallego (D-TX), required State and local
plans include advanced manufacturing workforce development
strategies, and passed by voice vote. The third amendment,
offered by Representative Don Young (R-AK), required the
Secretary of Labor to set aside one percent of the funds for
Native American workforce development programs, and passed by
voice vote. The fourth amendment, offered by Representative
Diane Black (R-TN), expressed a sense of Congress that any
administrative costs be off-set by funds currently being used
for marketing and outreach by the Department of Agriculture,
and was withdrawn by unanimous consent. The fifth amendment,
offered by Representative Scott Garrett (R-NJ), required a
reduction in funds to the Department of Labor if long overdue
evaluations were not completed within a specified amount of
time, and passed by voice vote. Another amendment was offered
by Representative John Tierney (D-MA) and was in the nature
of a substitute, and did not pass by a recorded vote of 192-
227.

IV. Explanation of the Bill and Managers' Views

Sections 1, 2, and 3. Sections 1, 2, and 3 describe the
short title for the bill, the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act; include the purposes of the Act; and state
the definitions for the Act, which are intended to have the
same meaning under each program authorized under the Act
unless otherwise stated. The definitions identify the ``core
programs'' under the Act, which consist of title I State
grant programs; title II adult education programs; the
employment service under title III amendments to the Wagner-
Peyser Act; and State vocational rehabilitation programs
under title IV.

Title I--Workforce Development Activities; Providers; Job Corps;
National Programs; and Administration

Title I of the underlying bill includes the primary
components of State and local area workforce development
systems as well as several national programs for youth and
special populations. In order to strengthen and streamline
the workforce system, the title focuses on changes to
governance, including reducing the number of required board
members at the State and local level; requiring one, unified
State plan; and promoting local workforce areas more closely
aligned to labor markets and economic development regions
while preserving a locally driven workforce system. The bill
also promotes the themes of providing employment services and
workforce development along a career pathway for
participants, and education training in line with in-demand
industry sectors and occupations for a region.
Workforce Boards
In order for boards to be more strategic, the bill reduces
the number of required board members at both the State and
local level. The boards remain a business majority with a
business chairperson, while the representation for the
workforce is increased. At the local level, with the
exception of the core programs under the Act, the one-stop
partners are no longer required members.
Workforce Plans
To support a strategic, comprehensive, and streamlined
system, the bill requires one,

[[Page S3984]]

unified State plan, covering four years, to meet the
requirements for each of the core programs. The plan also
requires a description of the State's overall strategy for
workforce development and how the strategy will help meet
identified skill needs for workers, job seekers and employers
in the State. This unified plan will improve service delivery
to individuals as well as reduce administrative costs and
reporting requirements at the State level. In order to
promote a one-stop system that accommodates the needs of
individuals with disabilities, the State and local plans must
include a description of how the one-stop system in the State
will comply with the applicable requirements of section 188
and the Americans with Disabilities Act regarding the
accessibility of programs and facilities for people with
disabilities.
Workforce Development Areas
In order to maintain the balance between governors and
local elected officials, the bill requires States to consult
with local boards and chief elected officials in order to
identify local areas and planning regions that are in
alignment with labor markets and regional economic
development areas. The bill allows for initial and subsequent
designations based on performance, fiscal integrity, and
participation in regional coordination activities, including
regional planning, information sharing, pooling of
administrative costs, and coordination of service delivery.
Performance Accountability
In order to promote increased transparency about the
outcomes of Federal workforce programs, the bill includes six
primary indicators of performance for adults served under
programs authorized under the Act, and six primary indicators
for youth served under the Act. Commonality among the
indicators will allow policymakers, program users, and
consumers to better understand the value and effectiveness of
the services. The managers recognize that for those
participants who have low levels of literacy skills, or who
are English language learners, the acquisition of basic
English literacy and numeracy skills are critical steps to
obtaining employment and success in postsecondary education
and training. Therefore, the term ``measureable skill gains''
referred to under indicator V in this section for adult and
youth, is intended to encourage eligible providers under
title 11 to serve all undereducated, low-level, and under
prepared adults. The managers agree that reporting and
evaluation requirements are important tools in measuring
effectiveness, especially for the core programs. Therefore,
the legislation includes performance reports to be provided
at the State, local and eligible training provider levels, as
well as evaluations of the core programs by States.
One-Stop Infrastructure
To improve the quality of the one-stop delivery system, the
bill requires the State board, in consultation with chief
local elected officials and local boards, to establish
criteria for use by the local board in assessing the
effectiveness, physical and programmatic accessibility, and
continuous improvement of one-stop centers and delivery
systems at least every three years. Regarding infrastructure
funding for one-stop centers, the bill maintains requirements
for the mandatory one-stop partners in a local area to reach
a voluntary agreement, in the form of a memorandum of
understanding, to fund the costs of infrastructure, other
shared costs, and how the partners will deliver services
under the system. If local areas fail to come to an agreement
regarding sufficient funding of one-stop infrastructure
costs, a State one-stop infrastructure funding mechanism can
be imposed for those local areas. Mandatory partner program
contributions, pursuant to the State one-stop infrastructure
funding mechanism, are based on the proportionate use of the
one-stop centers and subject to specified caps.
Employment and Training Activities
For youth, the bill utilizes the existing formula to allot
funds to States for youth services. It improves upon existing
youth services by placing a priority on out-of-school youth
(75 percent of funding at the State and local level), and
focusing on career pathways for youth, drop-out recovery
efforts, and education and training that lead to the
attainment of a high school diploma and a recognized
postsecondary credential. A priority is also included for
work-based learning activities.
For adults and dislocated workers, the bill utilizes the
existing formulas with the inclusion of a minimum and maximum
allotment percentage for the dislocated worker formula
beginning in fiscal year 2016. The managers believe the
addition of the minimum and maximum percentages will help
bring stability to the only formula that currently does not
include such mechanisms, and will reduce funding volatility
for States year to year. The bill preserves the governor's 15
percent set aside for statewide activities.
To eliminate the perceived ``sequence of services'' under
current law, requiring an individual to proceed through core
and intensive services before training eligibility can be
determined, the bill consolidates core and intensive services
into a new ``career services'' category. While the services
remain similar to those under current law, the structure is
intended to provide more flexibility to one-stop staff in
determining a participant's need for training. Local boards
are required to convene, use, or implement industry or sector
partnerships. The bill also improves upon the mechanisms for
local boards to provide education and training to eligible
participants by adding the following optional methods, under
certain guidelines, for training--contracting for classes of
training for multiple participants or on a pay-for
performance basis; incumbent worker training; and
transitional jobs strategies. Finally, the title includes
authorization levels for appropriations for the State grant
programs.
Job Corps
The bill improves upon the current Job Corps program by
strengthening the contracting requirements for centers,
requiring the program use the performance accountability
indicators for youth described in section 116 and
strengthening reporting requirements, and allowing the
Department of Labor to provide technical assistance to
centers. The bill includes requirements for a financial
report and a third party review of the program every five
years. The bill also includes a provision allowing operators
of a high-performing center, defined by performance criteria,
to be eligible to compete in any procurement process for that
center. Where there is not sufficient performance information
for the time period required under section 147(b)(2)(B) or
Section 147(h)(3) due to the effects of a natural disaster or
the participation of the center in a performance pilot
program, it is the intent of the managers the Secretary apply
the provisions of that section to any performance information
that is available to the Secretary from the relevant period
preceding the time the determination under that provision is
made. This would allow entities operating the center to have
an opportunity to meet performance requirements allowing them
to compete where the absence of complete information is not
the fault of the operating entity.
National Programs
The bill reauthorizes the Native American program; the
Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker program; and YouthBuild. It
also includes provisions for National Dislocated Worker
Grants; technical assistance under title I; and evaluations,
research, studies and multistate projects conducted by the
Secretary of Labor. The bill requires the Secretary of Labor
to conduct a multistate study on strategies for placing
individuals in jobs and education and training programs that
lead to equivalent pay for men and women, including the
participation of women in high-wage, high-demand occupations
in which women are underrepresented. We believe this is
important because a key element of raising women's wages is
to provide access to occupations that are predominantly held
by men, pay well, and are in demand in the economy. Many
occupations today are still dominated by one gender, with
more than 75 percent of the jobs in that occupation held by
men or by women. Jobs that are predominantly held by men--in
industries like transportation, manufacturing, or
construction trades--often pay considerably more than jobs
traditionally held by women, such as child care workers,
health care workers, clerical workers, or workers in retail
or other service sectors industries. The managers expect the
Secretary to review existing programs and research, State
laws and initiatives, and any other relevant project, to
determine successful strategies for placement and retention
of women in relevant training or jobs and to provide States
and localities with the information, tools, and assistance
they need to develop programs and activities that will
replicate such strategies. We request completion of this
project within eighteen months of enactment.
The bill requires an independent evaluation of the
activities under title I at least once every four years for
the purpose of improving the management and effectiveness of
programs and activities. In recognition of the changing
demands of the economy, the bill allows the YouthBuild
program to expand into additional in-demand industry sectors
or occupations in the region.
The bill includes authorization of appropriations for the
programs under subtitle D.
Administration
The bill adds restrictions against lobbying activities with
funds under this title. The managers do not intend for these
provisions to restrict awareness or outreach activities
regarding services and activities under title I.

Title II--The Adult Education and Family Literacy Act

In reauthorizing title II, the Adult Education and Family
Literacy Act, the bill places an emphasis on ensuring States
and local providers offer basic skills, adult education,
literacy activities, and English language acquisition
concurrently or integrated with occupational skills training
to accelerate attainment of secondary school diplomas and
postsecondary credentials. Making sure these skills are
solidly in place for all students is a priority. The bill
also emphasizes utilization of a career pathway approach for
adult learners to support transitions to postsecondary
education or training and employment opportunities.
The bill requires all adult basic education and literacy
programs to use the same set of primary indicators of
performance accountability outlined for all employment and
training activities authorized under this Act. Individuals
receiving these services should be able to use these skills
in obtaining a regular secondary school diploma or its
recognized equivalent, obtaining full time employment,
increasing their median earnings, and enrolling in
postsecondary education or training, or earning a recognized
postsecondary credential.

[[Page S3985]]

It is essential for adult educators to work closely with
workforce development stakeholders in the State, including
State and local workforce boards. To help in achieving a
seamless statewide workforce development system, the bill
requires title II programs to submit a unified State plan
with the other core programs within this Act. The bill also
provides funds for States to use in offering eligible
providers of adult education technical assistance, providing
professional development training to improve the instruction
and outcomes for adult learners, and conducting evaluations.
It encourages State and local leaders to provide activities
contextually and concurrently with workforce preparation and
training activities for a specific occupation or occupational
cluster for the purpose of educational and career
advancement.
The bill authorizes national activities to assist States
and local providers in developing valid, measurable, and
reliable performance data, and in using such performance
information for the improvement of adult education and family
literacy education programs. The bill also includes
provisions to support research and evaluation of adult
education activities at the national level. Finally, the bill
places an emphasis on integrating English literacy with
civics education, as well as adult education and occupational
training activities.

Title III--Amendments to the Wagner-Peyser Act

Title III of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
makes amendments to the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933, which
authorizes the public employment services and the employment
statistics system. Amendments to the Wagner-Peyser Act
generally maintain current law but also reflect the need to
align the statute with the other changes in the bill such as
including the State employment services in the unified State
plan; aligning performance accountability indicators with
those indicators used for core programs--as described in
section 116 of title I; renaming ``employment statistics'' to
the ``workforce and labor market information system'' and
updating the Workforce Information Council; and providing for
staff professional development in order to strengthen the
quality of services. Authorization of appropriations for the
workforce and labor market information system and the
workforce information council is provided for each of the
fiscal years of 2015 through 2020.

Title IV--Amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

Title IV of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
amends and reauthorizes the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The
Rehabilitation Act was last reauthorized in 1998.
The Rehabilitation Act is an important law for individuals
with disabilities, particularly those with significant
disabilities. It authorizes programs that affect the daily
lives of many individuals with disabilities, including the
vocational rehabilitation program (training, services, and
supports for employment); the independent living program; and
research and information on new technology to assist
individuals with disabilities.
There remains a critical need for employment and training
services for individuals with disabilities. Almost 25 years
after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, it
is still difficult for many individuals with significant
disabilities to find full time employment that is
commensurate with their skills, interests, and goals. Yet
State vocational rehabilitation programs can play a
significant role in meeting this need by providing training,
services and supports for individuals with disabilities.
It is especially important to provide young people with
disabilities more opportunities to practice and improve their
workplace skills, to consider their career interests, and to
get real world work experience. Those activities are
prioritized in the amendments to the Act. For example, the
bill requires State vocational rehabilitation agencies to
make ``pre-employment transition services'' available to all
students with disabilities, and to coordinate those services
with transition services provided under the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act. State vocational rehabilitation
programs will set aside at least 15 percent of their Federal
program funds to help young people with disabilities
transition from secondary school to postsecondary education
programs and employment.
In addition, these amendments establish a framework to
ensure every young person with a disability, regardless of
their level of disability, has the opportunity to experience
competitive, integrated employment. These requirements will
provide young people with disabilities with the opportunity
to develop their skills and to use supports, available
through State vocational rehabilitation programs, to
experience competitive, integrated employment as they leave
school and enter the workforce.
In order to better align the Independent Living program
that serves individuals with significant disabilities living
in the community with other similar efforts, the amendments
transition the administration of the Independent Living
program from the Department of Education to the Department of
Health and Human Services, Administration for Community
Living. The transition moves the program to an agency with a
lifespan and community focus and will better allow the
program to fulfill its goal to support ``independent living .
. . and the integration and full inclusion of individuals
with disabilities into the mainstream of American society.''
The amendments also incorporate ``independent living'' into
the name and mission of the National Institute on Disability
and Rehabilitation Research and similarly move that program's
administration from the Department of Education to the
Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for
Community Living in order to better align the program
priorities with agency goals and priorities.

Title V--General Provisions

The bill repeals the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 in
its entirety, replacing it with reforms to better serve
unemployed and underemployed workers as well as employers. In
doing so, authority is provided to the Secretaries of Labor,
Education, and Health and Human Services to establish a
smooth and orderly transition period to implement this Act.

V. Section-by-Section Analysis

Section 1. Short title; Table of Contents
The short title of the bill is the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act.
Section 2. Purposes
Identifies the purposes of the Act.
Section 3. Definitions
Defines terms that are common to all titles, except where
otherwise noted.

TITLE I: WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES

Subtitle A.--System Alignment

Chapter 1--State Provisions

Section 101. State Workforce Development Boards
Establishes State boards. Membership includes the governor;
one member of each chamber of the State legislature; and
members appointed by the governor of which the chair and
majority shall remain representatives of business; requires
that 20 percent of the board be representatives of the
workforce, including labor organizations; requires the
balance of the board to include State government officials
responsible for core programs (title I State grant programs,
adult education programs, employment services under the
Wagner-Peyser Act, and State vocational rehabilitation
programs), and chief elected officials. Identifies the
functions of the board, permits the State board to hire
staff, and directs the State board to establish and apply
objective qualifications for the director's position.
Section 102. Unified State Plan
Establishes unified State plans (hereafter referred to as
State plans), which will meet the planning requirements for
the core programs and describe how the State will develop a
coordinated and comprehensive workforce development system.
Streamlines the process for plan submission, approval, and
modification of State plans among the Federal agencies.
Section 103. Combined State Plan
Establishes a process for the State to allow additional
workforce development-related programs to participate in and
submit federally required plans through the State planning
process.
Chapter 2--Local Provisions

Section 106. Workforce Development Areas
Describes how States, in consultation with local boards and
chief elected officials, will identify local areas and
planning regions in a State based on criteria for alignment
with labor markets, regional economic development, and
availability of resources. Describes process for initial and
subsequent designation based on performance, fiscal
integrity, and participation in regional coordination
activities, including regional planning, information sharing,
and coordination of service delivery for local workforce
areas. Requires States to provide funding and technical
assistance to local areas in a regional planning process that
choose to become a single local workforce area. Provides for
an appeal process and the continuation of single State
designations.
Section 107. Local Workforce Development Boards
Establishes local boards. Membership includes a majority of
representatives of businesses in the local area and a
business chairperson; requires 20 percent of the board be
representatives of the workforce, including labor
organizations; other representatives include education and
training providers in the local area (such as community
colleges), the core programs in the local area, and economic
and community development. With the exception of core
programs, required one-stop programs are not required to be
represented on the board. Describes permissible standing
committees; the appointment, certification, and
decertification requirements for local boards; and continues
to allow the State board of a single State to function as the
local board for the State. Identifies the functions of the
local board, permits the local board to hire staff, and
directs the local board to establish and apply objective
qualifications for the director's position. Provides certain
limitations for the local board concerning the delivery of
career and training services.
Section 108. Local Plan
Requires each local board to develop and submit a local
plan to the governor, including a description of how services
offered through the core programs at the local level will be
coordinated and aligned to regional needs. Requires the
strategy described in the local plan to align with the State
strategy

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for workforce development. Local boards participating in a
regional planning process are required to contribute to and
submit a regional plan. Describes the process for plan
submission, approval, and modifications.
Chapter 3--Board Provisions

Section 111. Funding of State and Local Boards
Clarifies that funding to support State and local boards
must be provided by title I administrative funds, which may
be supplemented by non-Federal funds.
Chapter 4--Performance Accountability

Section 116. Performance Accountability System
Establishes performance accountability indicators at the
State level that are common to each of the core programs for
adults and performance accountability indicators applicable
to all youth programs within the Act. Requires States to
negotiate with the Secretaries of Labor and Education a level
of expected performance for each of the indicators. Describes
factors for consideration in setting and assessing levels of
performance. Establishes performance accountability
indicators for local programs and a performance negotiation
process similar to that required of the State. Requires
performance reports to be prepared and submitted by States,
local areas, and eligible training providers. Requires States
to conduct an evaluation of the core programs, use the
results to continuously improve programs, and make results
available to the public. Establishes sanctions for poor
performance at the State level, including, for those States
not meeting performance targets for two consecutive years, a
reduction in the percentage of funds governors may reserve.
Establishes sanctions for poor performance at the local
level. Requires States to establish and operate a fiscal and
management accountability information system for the core
programs using guidance provided by the Secretaries. Permits
the governor to establish incentives using non-Federal funds
for pay-for-performance contract strategies for the delivery
of services. Requires States to utilize quarterly wage
records, consistent with State law, to measure progress on
State performance accountability measures.

Subtitle B.--Workforce Investment Activities and Providers

Chapter 1--Workforce Investment Activities and Providers

Section 121. Establishment of One-Stop Delivery Systems
Establishes the one-stop delivery system. Identifies one-
stop partners and their roles and responsibilities. Directs
the local board to enter into a MOU with the one-stop
partners regarding the operation and costs of the one-stop
delivery system. Outlines the competitive process for
designating one-stop operators. Describes the services to be
made available through the one-stop system, and the criteria
for certifying one-stop centers. Establishes a process at the
State level for determining one-stop partner program
contributions to infrastructure costs, based on proportionate
use and funding limitations, for those local areas that do
not reach a consensus agreement through the MOU process.
Section 122. Identification of Eligible Providers of Training
Services
Describes eligibility for providers; outlines State
criteria, information requirements, and application and
renewal processes for selecting providers; requires the list
of eligible providers be provided to participants; and
includes sanctions for providers with substantial violations.
Section 123. Eligible Providers of Youth Workforce Investment
Activities
Requires local boards to award grants or contracts to
providers for youth workforce investment activities, taking
the performance of such providers into account.
Chapter 2--Youth Workforce Investment Activities

Section 126. General Authorization
Requires the Secretary to allot funding to States and
grants to outlying areas for youth activities.
Section 127. State Allotments
Establishes reservations for Native Americans, outlying
areas, and States; maintains current law formulas for State
allotments; describes limitations and requirements. Maintains
current law minimum and maximum allotment percentages.
Maintains small State minimums. Describes reallotment
procedures.
Section 128. Within State Allocations
Allows governors to reserve 15 percent of State allotments
for State workforce investment activities. Maintains within-
State formula and minimum allocation percentage. Includes a
10 percent limitation on local administrative costs.
Describes reallocation procedures.
Section 129. Use of Funds for Youth Workforce Investment
Activities.
Describes eligibility for youth participants. Establishes
the percentage of youth funds (75 percent) to be used for
out-of-school youth. Describes statewide and local
activities, including career pathway development, dropout
recovery efforts, occupational skills training, and education
and training leading to a recognized postsecondary
credential. Includes a priority for the provision of work-
based learning experiences for youth, and allows for a
priority for training that leads to a recognized
postsecondary credential.
Chapter 3--Adult and Dislocated Worker Employment and
Training Activities

Section 131. General Authorization
Requires the Secretary to allot funding to States and
grants to outlying areas for adult and dislocated worker
activities.
Section 132. State Allotments
Establishes reservations for outlying areas and States;
maintains current law formulas for State allotments;
describes limitations requirements. For the adult formula,
maintains current law minimum and maximum allotment
percentages, and adds similar provisions to the dislocated
worker formula beginning in fiscal year 2016. Maintains 20
percent reservation for national dislocated worker grants and
technical assistance. Describes reallotment procedures.
Section 133. Within State Allocations
Maintains reservations for governors' statewide and rapid
response activities. Allows local boards to transfer 100
percent of funds between the adult and dislocated worker
programs at the local level. Maintains a within-State formula
and minimum allocations for the adult formula, and adds a
similar minimum allocation for the dislocated worker formula
beginning in fiscal year 2016. Describes reallocation
procedures.
Section 134. Use of Funds for Employment and Training
Activities
Specifies required and allowable statewide employment and
training activities as well as rapid response activities.
Permits incumbent worker and customized training, industry
sector strategies, career pathway programs, layoff aversion
activities, innovative services to individuals with barriers
to employment, and coordination with other workforce-related
programs from other agencies. Removes the current ``sequence
of services'' between core, intensive and training services
by streamlining core and intensive into ``career services.''
Maintains customer choice requirements and allows for the
combined use of individual training accounts, cohort
training, and pay-for-performance contracts. At the local
level, permits boards to utilize incumbent worker training;
on-the-job training; customized training; and transitional
jobs activities; and provide supportive services.
Chapter 4--General Workforce Investment Provisions

Section 136. Authorization of Appropriations
Authorizes appropriations for youth, adult, and dislocated
worker programs.

Subtitle C.--Job Corps

Section 141. Purposes
Identifies the purposes of the subtitle.
Section 142. Definitions
Provides definitions specific to Job Corps.
Section 143. Establishment
Establishes within the Department of Labor a ``Job Corps''.
Section 144. Individuals Eligible for the Job Corps
Describes eligibility for participants and includes a
special rule for veterans.
Section 145. Recruitment, Screening, Selection, and
Assignment of Enrollees
Specifies general requirements for selecting enrollees and
placing them into centers that offer the type of career and
technical education and training selected by the individual.
Ensures these provisions shall be implemented with
organizations that have demonstrated a record of
effectiveness in serving at-risk youth. Prohibits denying
enrollment in Job Corps based solely on contact with the
criminal justice system, but adds an exception barring the
selection of individuals convicted of certain felonies.
Describes process by which the Secretary develops an
assignment plan for enrollment at centers.
Section 146. Enrollment
Outlines two-year enrollment limits and exceptions.
Section 147. Job Corps Centers
Describes the competitive basis for the selection process
and the eligibility requirements to operate a Job Corps
center. Outlines the criteria for determining high-performing
centers. Defines length of agreement and contract renewal
conditions for Job Corps centers based on performance.
Section 148. Program Activities
Describes the activities, education and training, and
graduate services provided by Job Corps centers and links
these activities to in-demand industries and occupations.
Section 149. Counseling and Job Placement
Describes the assessment, counseling, and placement
assistance for enrollees, and allows for services to former
enrollees.
Section 150. Support
Provides for personal and transition allowances for
graduates and support for former enrollees.
Section 151. Operating Plan
Specifies general information for an operating plan.
Section 152. Standards of Conduct
Describes disciplinary measures and zero tolerance
standards, as well as an appeals process.
Section 153. Community Participation
Outlines business and community participation, including
connections with local workforce boards.
Section 154. Workforce Councils
Describes the roles and responsibilities for workforce
councils, including recommending

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training programs that are in in-demand industry sectors or
occupations within the region.
Section 155. Advisory Committees
Allows the Secretary to establish advisory committees, as
necessary, consistent with current law.
Section 156. Experimental, Research, and Demonstration
Projects
Requires the Secretary to inform authorizing committees if
a waiver is required to carry out initiatives under this
section. Allows the Secretary to reserve administrative funds
to provide technical assistance to the Job Corps program.
Section 157. Application of Provisions of Federal Law
Establishes that enrollees are not Federal employees,
consistent with current law.
Section 158. Special Provisions
Generally maintains current law.
Section 159. Management Information
Describes financial management controls and procedures, as
well as audit requirements. Aligns performance accountability
indicators for Job Corps with the indicators for all youth
activities described in section 116. Establishes performance
indicators for recruiters and career transition service
providers. Describes data the Secretary must include in
congressional reports regarding the program and centers.
Outlines performance improvement plan requirements for
centers that fail to reach expected levels of performance.
Section 160. General Provisions
Generally maintains current law outlining general
provisions required by the Secretary.
Section 161. Job Corps Oversight and Reporting
Requires the Secretary to submit financial reports to
applicable congressional committees within a specific
timeframe. Requires a third-party review of the Job Corps
program once every five years, with results to be submitted
to Congress. Directs the Secretary to establish written
criteria for Job Corps center closures and submit such
written criteria to applicable committees.
Section 162. Authorization of Appropriations
Authorizes appropriations for the Job Corps program.

Subtitle D.--National Programs

Section 166. Native American Programs
Describes the requirements for competitive grants for
Native Americans. Aligns performance indicators for Native
American programs with the performance indicators described
in Sec. 116. Clarifies the authority of the Advisory Council
and the ability for the Secretary to provide assistance to
unique populations in Hawaii and Alaska.
Section 167. Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Programs
Describes the requirements for competitive grants for
migrant and seasonal farmworkers. Aligns performance
indicators for Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker programs with
the performance indicators described in section 116. Outlines
the range of activities authorized to access education,
training, and employment opportunities.
Section 168. Technical Assistance
Specifies the activities to be undertaken by the Secretary
to support an effective workforce development system.
Requires the Secretary to establish a system to collect,
evaluate, and disseminate promising and proven practices.
Section 169. Evaluations and Research
Requires the Secretary to conduct an independent evaluation
at least once every four years. Allows for research, studies,
and multistate projects to be conducted by the Secretary.
Section 170. National Dislocated Worker Grants
Provides definitions for areas impacted by ``emergency or
disaster'' and a ``disaster area.'' Permits the Secretary to
provide assistance to such areas.
Section 171. YouthBuild Program
Describes the requirements for YouthBuild grants. Aligns
performance indicators for YouthBuild with the performance
accountability indicators for all youth activities described
in section 116. Allows training for participants to be linked
to industries that are in-demand.
Section 172. Authorization of Appropriations
Authorizes appropriations for Native American programs,
Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker programs, Technical.
Assistance, and Evaluations and Research.

Subtitle E.--Administration

Section 181. Requirements and Restrictions
Specifies the general requirements on the limitations of
funds to carry out the Act.
Section 182. Prompt Allocation of Funds
Describes requirements for the Secretary regarding the
distribution of funds under the title, including the use of
current data and the publishing of the formula used for
funding distribution. Requires the State to distribute funds
to local areas in a timely fashion.
Section 183. Monitoring
Similar to current law, describes monitoring guidelines to
determine compliance.
Section 184. Fiscal Controls: Sanctions
Provides requirements regarding use of fiscal controls;
sanctions for substantial violations; an appeals process;
requirements for repayment of funds not expended in
accordance with this title; and response and remedies
regarding discrimination.
Section 185. Reports; Recordkeeping; Investigations
Describes requirements for record keeping and reporting for
recipients of funds under this title.
Section 186. Administrative Adjudication
Describes complaint and appeal procedures regarding
dissatisfaction with or failure to receive financial
assistance.
Section 187. Judicial Review
Describes the judicial review process for administrative
adjudication decisions.
Section 188. Nondiscrimination
Describes prohibitions on discriminations.
Section 189. Secretarial Administrative Authorities and
Responsibilities
Describes the general administrative responsibilities of
the Secretary in carrying out this title. Excludes
requirements regarding funding of infrastructure costs for
one-stop centers, and those requirements related to the basic
purposes of this title, from provisions the Secretary may
waive. Requires expedited approval of waiver requests that
have been previously approved by the Secretary for any other
State or local area.
Section 190. Workforce Flexibility Plans
Allows States to submit a plan to the Secretary for waiver
approval regarding relevant requirements applicable to local
areas.
Section 191. State Legislative Authority
Clarifies nothing in statute prevents the enactment of
State legislation regarding implementation of provisions of
this title, consistent with the requirements of this title.
Section 192. Transfer of Federal Equity in State Employment
Security Agency Real Property to the States
Maintains current law.
Section 193. Continuation of State Activities and Policies
Maintains current law.
Section 194. General Program Requirements
Prohibits the use of Federal funds under this title to
establish or operate stand-alone, fee-for-service
enterprises. Nothing in this provision prohibits or
discourages one-stop centers from using such agencies or
companies to assist in serving program participants. Includes
a maximum rate of pay for staff hired with funds provided
under this title.
Section 195. Restrictions on Lobbying Activities
Prohibits funds provided under this Act from being used for
lobbying activities.

TITLE II: ADULT EDUCATION AND LITERACY

Section 201. Short Title
Cited as the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act.
Section 202. Purpose
Establishes the purposes of this title.
Section 203. Definitions
Defines those terms specific to this title. Defines
activities that increase coordination between programs and
services to better meet the needs of adult learners and
workers, as well as models that integrate adult education and
literacy activities with workforce preparation activities and
training activities.
Section 204. Home Schools
Retains autonomy of home schools.
Section 205. Rule of Construction Regarding Postsecondary
Transition and Concurrent Enrollment Activities
Provides nothing in the title shall be construed to
prohibit or discourage eligible individuals' transition to
postsecondary education, training, or employment, or
concurrent enrollment activities.
Section 206. Authorization of Appropriations
Authorizes appropriations to carry out this title.

Subtitle A.--Federal Provisions

Section 211. Reservation of Funds; Grants to Eligible
Agencies; Allotments
Describes required reservations for certain programs.
Requires eligible State agencies to participate in the State
planning processes for the core programs described in title
I. Describes process for the allotment and reallotment of
funds to eligible agencies.
Section 212. Performance Accountability System
Aligns performance accountability indicators for this title
with the indicators for adults described in section 116.

Subtitle B.--State Provisions

Section 221. State Administration
Describes responsibilities of eligible State agencies.
Section 222. State Distribution of Funds; Matching
Requirement
Describes requirements for State distribution of funds and
agency match requirements.
Section 223. State Leadership Activities
Delineates required and permissible State activities,
including instruction for adult learners, integrated
education and training, and career pathways development.
Requires alignment of adult education activities with those
of other core programs and one-stop partners in this Act.
Section 224. State Plan
Includes the State agency as part of the unified State
planning requirements for all core programs described in
title I of this Act.
Section 225. Programs for Corrections Education and Other
Institutionalized Individuals
Describes the use of funds under this section and maintains
a priority for those individuals most likely to leave the
correctional

[[Page S3988]]

institution within five years of participation in the
program.

Subtitle C.--Local Provisions

Section 231. Grants and Contracts far Eligible Providers
Describes the considerations the eligible agency must take
into account when making awards to eligible providers,
including alignment with local plans under title I and past
performance.
Section 232. Local Application
Describes requirements for applications from eligible
providers.
Section 233. Local Administrative Cost Limits
Establishes limits for uses of funds for administrative
purposes.

Subtitle D.--General Provisions

Section 241. Administrative Provisions
Maintains requirements related to ``supplement not
supplant'' and maintenance of effort. Includes considerations
for extreme financial hardship.
Section 242. National Leadership Activities
Delineates required and allowable national activities to be
carried out by the Secretary. Requires research on adult
education and literacy and an independent evaluation at least
once every four years of the activities under this title.
Section 243. Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education
Authorizes the Integrated English Literacy and Civics
Education program, which includes serving English language
learners and providing integrated education and training.

TITLE III: AMENDMENTS TO THE WAGNER-PEYSER ACT

Title III amends the Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C 49 et seq.)
Section 301. Employment Service Offices

Clarifies the offices referred to are a part of the public
employment service.
Section 302. Definitions
References definitions under title I.
Section 303. Federal and State Employment Service Offices
Requires co-location of employment service offices with
one-stop centers. Increases access to and improves the
quality of workforce information. Promotes the use of best
practices across the system and provides for staff
professional development.
Section 304. Allotment of Sums
Clarifies the allotment of funds to the States.
Section 305. Use of Sums
Requires employment service offices to provide unemployment
insurance claimants with information about and assistance
with applying for education and training programs.
Section 306. State Plan
Includes State employment services in the unified State
plan described in title I of this Act.
Section 307. Performance Measures
Aligns performance indicators with the adult performance
accountability indicators for all core programs described in
section 116.
Section 308. Workforce and Labor Market Information System
Renames ``employment statistics'' to the ``workforce and
labor market information system.'' Clarifies the duties of
the Secretary and provides for a two year plan. Describes the
composition, roles and responsibilities of the Workforce
Information Advisory Council.

TITLE IV: AMENDMENTS TO THE REHABILITATION ACT

Title IV amends the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701
et seq.)

Sec. 401. References
Identifies the title refers to the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et seq.).
Sec. 402. Findings, Purpose, Policy
States current findings regarding the disability workforce
and identifies the purposes of the title.
Sec. 403. Rehabilitation Services Administration
States the responsibilities of the Commissioner of the
Rehabilitation Services Administration.
Sec. 404. Definitions
Includes definitions for this act including ``competitive
integrated employment,'' ``preemployment transition
services,'' and ``supported employment services.''
Sec. 405. Administration of the Act
Describes the responsibilities of the Commissioner of the
Rehabilitation Services Administration and the Administrator
of the Administration for Community Living in reference to
carrying out the activities of this Act.
Sec. 406. Reports
Clarifies dissemination requirements for the annual report
on activities under the law.
Sec. 407. Evaluation and Information
Describes the responsibilities of the Commissioner of the
Rehabilitation Services Administration and the Administrator
of the Administration for Community Living in reference to
evaluating the activities carried out under this Act.
Sec. 408. Carryover
No changes were made to this section.
Sec. 409. Traditionally Underserved Populations
Updates the section to reflect the demographics of the
United States.
Sec. 411. Declaration of Policy; Authorization of
Appropriations
Sets authorization levels for the program for fiscal years
2015 through 2020.
Sec. 412. State Plans
Specifies the unified State plan, or combined State plan,
under title I of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity
Act, must include the provisions of the State plan for
vocational rehabilitation services. Requires the State plan
to assure that individuals who are otherwise eligible for
vocational rehabilitation services and who are at imminent
risk of losing their jobs unless they receive additional
necessary postemployment services receive priority. Allows
designated State agencies to prioritize serving students with
disabilities. Requires State plan to detail the State's
strategies to serve students with disabilities so they are
prepared for post-school employment.
Sec. 413. Eligibility and Individualized Plan for Employment
Requires applicants for vocational rehabilitation services
be presumed to benefit from an employment outcome, and
individuals should be provided the opportunity to try
different employment experiences, including supported
employment. and the opportunity to become employed in
competitive integrated employment.
Sec. 414. Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Requires States to ensure designated State units provide or
arrange for the provision of preemployment transition
services for all students with disabilities who are in need
of these services. and those services are coordinated with
services provided under the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act. Also allows State agencies to support advanced
training in STEM and other technical professions.
Sec. 415. State Rehabilitation Council
Requires coordination with other entities, and with
activities carried out under the Assistive Technology Act of
1998.
Sec. 416. Evaluation Standards and Performance Indicators
Aligns the evaluation standards of the Rehabilitation Act
with the standards of the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act.
Sec. 417. Monitoring and Review
Provides for the provision of technical assistance to
promote high quality employment outcomes.
Sec. 418. Training and Services for Employers
Allows States to provide services to employers to promote
recruitment, hiring, and retention of workers with
disabilities.
Sec. 419. State Allotments
Requires that 15 percent of a State's allotment be
designated to provide ``pre-employment transition services.''
Sec. 420. Payments to States
No substantive changes made to this section.
Sec. 421. Client Assistance Program
Requires the Secretary to reserve funds to provide services
to American Indians. If the funds appropriated exceed $14M,
requires the Secretary to reserve a small percentage for
grants to provide training and technical assistance to the
client assistance programs in the States. Establishes
authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through 2020.
Sec. 422. Pre-Employment Transition Services
Requires States to ensure that designated State units
provide, or arrange for the provision of, preemployment
transition services for all students with disabilities who
are in need of these services.
Sec. 423. American Indian Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Reserves a small percentage of program funds to make grants
to provide technical assistance and training.
Sec. 424. Vocational Rehabilitation Services Client
Information
No substantive changes made to this section.
Sec. 431. Purpose
Updates purposes of the title.
Sec. 432. Authorization of Appropriations
Sets authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through
2020.
Sec. 433. National Institute on Disability, Independent
Living, and Rehabilitation Research
Adds ``Independent Living'' to the name of the Institute,
and moves the Institute from the Department of Education to
the Department of Health and Human Services, Administration
for Community Living. Requires the dissemination of
educational materials and research results to nongovernmental
agencies and organizations, employers and employer
organizations, and relevant congressional Committees.
Describes the research activities and findings, demonstration
projects, reports, evaluations, and studies that will he made
available.
Sec. 434. Interagency Committee
Adds independent living research. Requires a periodic
meeting of funders, researchers, and individuals with
disabilities to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for
disability, independent living, and rehabilitation research.
Sec. 435. Research and Other Covered Activities
Describes allowable research activities.

[[Page S3989]]

Sec. 436. Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation
Research Advisory Council
Specifies Council membership and qualifications.
Sec. 437 Definition of Covered School
Defines ``covered school'' as an ``elementary school'' or
``secondary school'' as defined in the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 as amended.
Sec. 441. Purpose; Training
Specifies that technical assistance provided to community
rehabilitation programs shall be focused on competitive
integrated employment. Also sets authorization levels for
training for fiscal years 2015 through 2020.
Sec. 442. Demonstration, Training, and Technical Assistance
Programs
Continues to authorize demonstration, training, and
technical assistance projects focused on improving transition
from education to employment for youth who are individuals
with significant disabilities. Repeals the In-Service
Training of Rehabilitation Personnel program. Also sets
authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through 2020.
Sec. 443. Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers; Recreational
Programs
Repeals these programs.
Sec. 451. Establishment
Changes the number of Council members from 15 to 9. Alters
the appointment of the Council members to share that
responsibility among Congress and the President.
Sec. 452. Report
No substantive changes.
Sec. 453. Authorization of Appropriations
Sets authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through
2020.
Sec. 456 Interagency Committee, Board. and Council
Sets authorization levels for the Architectural and
Transportation Barriers Compliance Board for fiscal years
2015 through 2020.
Sec. 457. Protection and Advocacy of Individual Rights
Sets authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through
2020.
Sec. 458. Limitation on the Use of Subminimum Wage
Describes how an entity may not employ an individual with a
disability at wages less than the Federal minimum wage unless
the individual has first received available pre-employment
transition services; applied for vocational rehabilitation
services and, if eligible, made a serious attempt at
competitive integrated employment; and received counseling
and information and referral about alternatives to subminimum
wage employment. Individuals with disabilities who are
currently employed at subminimum wage shall be provided
ongoing career counseling, information and referrals, and
notification of training opportunities in the individual's
geographic area, in order to promote opportunities to move
into competitive integrated employment, as appropriate.
Sec. 461. Employment Opportunities for Individuals with
Disabilities
Describes how States with an allotment under the Supported
Employment Services program must reserve an allotment to
support youth with the most significant disabilities,
describes extended services, and limits the administrative
allotment to be used to administer the program to 2.5
percent. Also establishes a committee to prepare
recommendations to increase employment opportunities for
individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities
in competitive integrated employment, and terminates that
committee after two years. Finally, sets authorization levels
for fiscal years 2015 through 2020.
Sec. 471. Purpose
Includes the purpose of ``improving the independence of
individuals with disabilities.''
Sec. 472. Administration of the Independent Living Program
Transfers the Independent Living program from the
Rehabilitation Services Administration in the Department of
Education to the Administration on Community Living in the
Department of Health and Human Services and establishes an
Administration on Independent Living.
Sec. 473. Definitions
Includes minor definition additions.
Sec. 474. State Plan
Specifies that the State plan shall be jointly developed by
the chairperson of the Statewide Independent Living Council
and the directors of centers for independent living in the
State.
Sec. 475. Statewide Independent Living Council
Requires meaningful representation by directors of centers
for independent living in the State. Amends the
responsibilities of the Council to include development of the
State plan and the monitor, review and evaluation of the
implementation of the plan.
Sec. 475A. Responsibilities of the Administrator
Describes the responsibilities of the Administrator to
develop and publish performance indicators for centers for
independent living and Statewide Independent Living Councils,
and to conduct onsite compliance reviews of such centers and
Councils.
Sec. 476. Administration
Specifies funds allotted or made available to a State under
the section shall be administered by the Statewide
Independent Living Council, in accordance with the approved
State plan. Reserves a small percentage of program funds to
provide training and technical assistance to Statewide
Independent Living Councils. Sets authorization levels for
fiscal years 2015 through 2020.
Sec. 481. Program Authorization
Reserves a small percentage of program funds to make grants
to provide training and technical assistance to centers for
independent living.
Sec. 482. Centers
Details how the Administrator of the Administration for
Community Living should determine how to fund centers for
independent living in an unserved region.
Sec. 483. Standards and Assurances
No substantive changes were made to this section.
Sec. 484. Authorization of Appropriations
Sets authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through
2020.
Sec. 486. Independent Living Services for Older Individuals
who are Blind
Reserves a small percentage of program funds to provide
training and technical assistance to designated State
agencies or other providers of independent living services
for older individuals who are blind.
Sec. 487. Program of Grants
No substantive changes were made to this section.
Sec. 488. Independent Living Services for Older Individuals
who are Blind Authorization of Appropriations.
Sets authorization levels for fiscal years 2015 through
2020.
Sec. 491. Transfer of Functions
Transfers the Independent Living program, the National
Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and
Rehabilitation Research, and the programs authorized under
the Assistive Technology Act of 2004 to the Department of
Health and Human Services, Administration for Community
Living. Requires the Office of Management and Budget to
certify that these transfers do not result in an increase in
full time equivalent positions.

TITLE V: GENERAL PROVISIONS

Subtitle A.--Workforce Investment

Section 501. Privacy
Specifies general privacy protections.
Section 502. Buy-American Requirements
Requires compliance with the Buy American Act. Includes a
Sense of the Congress for the purchase of American-made
equipment and products. Prohibits contracts with persons
falsely labeling products as made in America.
Section 503. Transition Provisions
Describes transition provisions for all titles and programs
under this Act.
Section 504. Reduction of Reporting Burdens and Requirements
Instructs the Secretaries of Labor, Education, and Health
and Human Services to establish procedures and criteria by
which State and local boards may reduce reporting burdens and
requirements.
Section 505. Effective Dates
Stipulates the effective date of the Act.

Subtitle B.--Amendments to Other Laws

Section 511. Repeal of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998
Repeals the entire Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and the
Grants to States for Workplace and Community Transition
Training for Incarcerated Individuals under the Higher
Education Act.
Section 512. Conforming Amendments
Provides conforming amendments to other legislation, as
necessary and appropriate.
Section 513. References
Specifies related references to the Workforce Investment
Act of 1998, the Wagner-Peyser Act, and the Rehabilitation
Act of 1973.
Tom Harkin,
Chairman, Senate HELP Committee.
Patty Murray,
Chairman, Senate Budget Committee and Member, Senate HELP
Committee.
John Kline,
Chairman, House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Virginia Foxx,
Chairwoman, Higher Education and Workforce Training
Subcommittee, House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Lamar Alexander,
Ranking Member, Senate HELP Committee.
Johnny Isakson,
Ranking Member, Senate HELP Subcommittee on Employment and
Workplace Safety.
George Miller,
Ranking Member, House Committee on Education and the
Workforce.

[[Page S3990]]

Rubeen Hinojosa,
Ranking Member, Higher Education and Workforce Training
Subcommittee, House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, I thank all of the Senators for their
strong affirmative vote for the reauthorization of the Workforce
Investment Act, now called the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity
Act. It is a great bill. A 95-to-3 vote I think indicates that people
worked hard, put together a great bill that meets the needs of our
country in training our new workforce for the future.
Again, I thank Senator Alexander, our ranking member, for a very
close working relationship on our committee. I would note for the
record that the passage of this bill marks the 14th bill reported out
of our committee during this session of Congress, during this Congress,
that will go to the President for his signature. Our committee met a
little bit ago. We are now reporting another bill, the Autism Cures
bill we hope to have again before the Senate very shortly also for
passage. Our committee has worked very hard across party lines to reach
these agreements.
Again, I thank Senator Alexander.
On this bill, especially, I thank Senator Isakson and Senator Murray
for sticking with it. This bill took 5 years and a lot of ups and
downs, a lot of knots to untangle. But they did it. They worked hard at
it.
I think there is a lesson here for all of us, that if you stick to it
and you focus on the areas in which you have agreement, not those where
you do not have agreement, but you focus on the areas you have
agreement and build from there, you can get good things done. So this
is a good bill. I want to thank all of the Senators and their staffs.
I again thank my ranking member on the Senate Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions, HELP, Committee, Senator Alexander, and his staff.
I appreciate their assistance in getting this bill through the floor,
and I especially appreciate their partnership in the updates we made to
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which is title IV of the WIOA. My
thanks to David Cleary, William Knudsen, Peter Oppenheim, and Patrick
Murray on Senator Alexander's team.
I again thank the Democratic champion of reauthorizing the Workforce
Investment Act, WIA, Senator Murray. She and her staff have dedicated
countless hours to advancing this bill. In particular, my thanks to
Mike Spahn, Stacy Rich, Evan Schatz, and Scott Cheney.
My thanks as well to Senator Isakson and his team, who have been
great partners in this bipartisan effort. I would especially like to
thank Tommy Nguyen, Brett Layson, and Michael Black.
We absolutely could not have made it to the finish line in the Senate
without the dedication and work of my House colleagues, Representatives
Kline, Miller, Foxx, and Hinojosa. Working with them and their staff
has been a pleasure, and I would like to take a moment to thank some of
the key staff in their offices specifically.
For Representatives Kline and Foxx, my thanks to Amy Jones, Rosemary
Lahasky, Brad Thomas, and James Bergeron who has since moved on to
other professional endeavors.
For Representatives Miller and Hinojosa, my thanks to Megan O'Reilly,
Leticia Mederos, Jamie Fasteau, Jacqueline Chevalier, Brian Kennedy,
and Rosa Garcia. I also thank Michele Varnhagan and Jody Calemine, who
have since moved on to other professional endeavors. I would also like
to thank Kevin McDermott in Representative McDermott's office.
I also offer my appreciation to my own team for their work in
advancing this bill. Specifically, I thank Brian Ahlberg, Derek Miller,
Crystal Bridgeman, Michael Gamel-McCormick, Mildred Otero, Lauren
McFerran, Lee Perselay, Liz Weiss, Michael Kreps, and Robin Juliano. I
would also like to thank Andy Imparato, Pam Smith, David Johns and
Thomas Showalter, former members of my staff who have since moved on to
other professional endeavors.
Let me also express my appreciation to Senator Enzi and his former
HELP Committee staff who dedicated many years to reauthorizing WIA.
Specifically, I would like to express my appreciation to Beth Buehlmann
and Kelly Hastings.
I also greatly appreciate the technical assistance we received from
the Federal agencies and the Congressional Research Service.
Specifically, I thank the Department of Labor and the Department of
Education for their technical assistance. Portia Wu, Gerri Fiala, Mark
Morin, Sean Cartwright, Michelle Rose, Adri Jayaratne, Julia McKinney,
and so many others at the Department played key roles in moving this
legislation forward.
At the Department of Education, I extend my thanks to Gabriella
Gomez, Lloyd Horwich, Brenda Dann-Messier, Jodie Fingland, and Johan
Uvin.
I also thank the following staff at the Congressional Research
Service for the expert assistance they provided during this process--
David Bradley, Benjamin Collins, Adrienne Fernandes-Alcantara, and Kate
Manuel.
Finally, we could not do this work without the help of the Senate
Legislative Counsel. Liz King, Kristin Romero, Amy Gaynor, and others
on their team were instrumental in drafting this bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington.
Mrs. MURRAY. I want to thank our chairman and ranking member, Senator
Harkin and Senator Alexander, for their tremendous work and backing us
as we worked through this process. I again thank my partner, Senator
Isakson, who was so diligent and true to his word and worked through
every issue with us. I want to thank him for that.
I also will take a minute this afternoon to extend a sincere thank
you to all of the staff who worked so hard to help put this bill
together, worked through its challenges, and got us to this point today
where we have passed it in the Senate. If the Senate will bear with me,
we have a lot of names, but I think that tells you how many people
worked so hard on this. From my office: senior advisor Scott Cheney; my
chief of staff Mike Spahn; my Budget Committee staff director Evan
Schatz; Stacy Rich and Emma Fulkerson from my floor and leadership
staff; my entire communications team, especially Eli Zupnick and Sean
Coit; and everyone else from my team who has worked so very hard to
move this bill forward.
I thank the wonderful staff from Senator Isakson's office: Tommy
Nguyen, staff director of the HELP Subcommittee on Employment and
Workplace Safety, as well as Brett Layson and Michael Black who have
been incredible to work with.
I thank Chairman Harkin's Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Committee team: senior education policy adviser Crystal Bridgeman;
chief education counsel Mildred Otero; disability policy director
Michael Gamel-McCormick; disability counsel Lee Perselay; Derek Miller,
staff director of the HELP Committee; deputy staff director and labor
policy director of the HELP Committee Lauren McFerren; and labor policy
adviser Liz Weiss; and many more on his staff who have helped.
I also thank the staff of Senator Alexander: education policy adviser
Patrick Murray; education policy director and counsel Peter Oppenheim;
Bill Knudsen, education policy advisor; and HELP Committee staff
director and chief of staff David Cleary.
We also benefited from the expertise of the Congressional Research
Service. I thank David Bradley, Benjamin Collins, and Adrienne
Fernandes-Alcantara.
I would be remiss if I did not thank the professionals in the Senate
Legislative Counsel's office, especially Liz King, Amy Gaynor, Kristin
Romero, and Katie Grendon.
As you can see, a lot of people worked a very long time to get us
where we are. This has been an 11-year process, so there have been a
lot of staff who worked on various versions of this reauthorization
over the years. I cannot name them all, but there are some who deserve
recognition as well: Gerri Fiala, Bill Kamela, Beth Buehlmann, Kelly
Hastings, Pam Smith, David Johns, and Glee Smith.
Of course, my thanks to the staff in the House and the
administration, of whom there are far too many to mention here.
I think that tells all of us that this is a bill that was worked on
diligently by

[[Page S3991]]

many over the years. Who will benefit at the end of the day are our
workforce and our employers and our country.
I thank again my counterpart Senator Isakson for working with me to
get this done.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. I want to associate myself with the remarks of Senator
Harkin and Senator Patty Murray from Washington. I reiterate what I
said in my opening statement about how much regard and respect I have
for Senator Murray, for the job she has done. We would not be here
today if it were not for Patty Murray. I am grateful for her support
and her kind words.
I want to reiterate all of the names she said, all the thanks that we
have. But I want to particularly thank my staff who have made me once
again look good. That is a difficult job to do sometimes. I thank Tommy
Nguyen, Amanda Maddox, Michael Black, Brett Layson. I appreciate all
they have done; Joan Kirchner, my chief of staff, who came to our aid
last week and pulled a rabbit out of the hat in the Republican
conference that allowed us to be here.
We all get a lot of credit as Members of the Senate. But it is our
staff who make or break what we do. We are very grateful to our staff
or the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act would not become law,
would not get to the President's desk.
So to Patty Murray, to Senator Harkin, to Senator Alexander, thank
you. And to all of our staff, thank you for day in and day out doing
the real work of the Senate and for the people of the United States of
America.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, H.R. 803, as
amended, having passed, amendment No. 3382 to the title is agreed to
and the motion to reconsider is considered made and laid upon the
table.
The amendment (No. 3382) was agreed to, as follows:

(Purpose: To amend the title)

Amend the title so as to read: ``An Act to amend the
Workforce Investment Act of 1998 to strengthen the United
States workforce development system through innovation in,
and alignment and improvement of, employment, training, and
education programs in the United States, and to promote
individual and national economic growth, and for other
purposes.''.

____________________