[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 139 (Wednesday, August 4, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5878-S5879]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2553. Mr. HEINRICH (for himself, Mr. Moran, and Mr. Lujan) 
submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 2137 
proposed by Mr. Schumer (for Ms. Sinema (for herself, Mr. Portman, Mr. 
Manchin, Mr. Cassidy, Mrs. Shaheen, Ms. Collins, Mr. Tester, Ms. 
Murkowski, Mr. Warner, and Mr. Romney)) to the bill H.R. 3684, to 
authorize funds for Federal-aid highways, highway safety programs, and 
transit programs, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on 
the table; as follows:

        At the appropriate place in division G, insert the 
     following:

TITLE __--CHAMPIONING APPRENTICESHIPS FOR NEW CAREERS AND EMPLOYEES IN 
                               TECHNOLOGY

     SEC. _____1. SHORT TITLE.

       This title may be cited as the ``Championing 
     Apprenticeships for New Careers and Employees in Technology 
     Act'' or the ``CHANCE in TECH Act''.

     SEC. _____2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) During any given 90-day period there can be more than 
     500,000 information technology job openings in the United 
     States.
       (2) Employment in the technology sector is growing twice as 
     fast as employment in the United States.
       (3) Jobs in the technology sector tend to provide higher 
     pay and better benefits than other jobs and have been more 
     resilient to economic downturn than jobs available in other 
     private sector industries.
       (4) Information technology skills are transferrable across 
     nearly all industries.
       (5) Exceptional education and on-the-job training programs 
     exist and should be scaled to meet the demands of the modern 
     technology workforce.
       (6) Adoption of existing employer-driven intermediary 
     models, such as ApprenticeshipUSA under the Department of 
     Labor, will help grow the information technology workforce.
       (7) Career pathway education should start in high school 
     through pathways and programs of study that align with local 
     and regional employer needs.
       (8) Preparing a student for a job in the technology sector 
     is essential to the growth and competitiveness of the economy 
     in the United States in the 21st Century.
       (9) Nearly 800,000 information technology workers will 
     retire between 2017 and 2024.
       (10) According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in May 
     2020, the median annual wage for computer and information 
     technology occupations was $91,250, which was higher than the 
     median annual wage for all occupations of $41,950.

     SEC. _____3. TECHNOLOGY APPRENTICESHIP CONTRACTS.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of Labor (referred to in 
     this section as ``the Secretary'') shall enter into contracts 
     with industry intermediaries for the purpose of promoting the 
     development of and access to apprenticeships in the 
     technology sector, from amounts appropriated under subsection 
     (e).
       (b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to be awarded a contract 
     under this section, an industry intermediary shall submit an 
     application to the Secretary, at such time and in such a 
     manner as may be required by the Secretary, that identifies 
     proposed activities designed to further the purpose described 
     in subsection (a).
       (c) Selection.--The Secretary shall award contracts under 
     this section based on competitive criteria to be prescribed 
     by the Secretary.
       (d) Contractor Activities.--An industry intermediary that 
     is awarded a contract under this section may only use the 
     funds made available through such contract to carry out 
     activities designed to further the purpose described in 
     subsection (a), including--
       (1) facilitating the provision and development of 
     apprenticeships in the technology sector through 
     collaborations with public and private entities that provide 
     job-related instruction, such as on-the-job training, pre-
     apprenticeship training, and technical training;
       (2) encouraging entities to establish such apprenticeships;
       (3) identifying, assessing, and training applicants for 
     such apprenticeships who are--
       (A) enrolled in high school;
       (B) enrolled in an early college high school that focuses 
     on education in STEM subjects;
       (C) individuals aged 18 years or older who meet appropriate 
     qualification standards; or
       (D) enrolled in pre-apprenticeship or apprenticeship 
     training initiatives that allow adults to concurrently 
     increase academic and workforce skills through proven, 
     evidence-based models that connect all learning to the 
     specific apprenticeship involved and significantly accelerate 
     completion of preparation for the apprenticeship; and
       (4) tracking the progress of such applicants who 
     participate in such apprenticeships.
       (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to

[[Page S5879]]

     the Secretary such sums as may be necessary for the purposes 
     of carrying out this section.

     SEC. _____4. CHANCE IN TECH AWARDS FOR 21ST CENTURY SCHOOLS.

       (a) Awards Authorized.--The Secretary of Education may 
     issue awards, to be known as ``CHANCE in TECH Awards for 21st 
     Century Schools'', to schools (referred to in this section as 
     ``covered schools'') that--
       (1) are secondary schools or junior or community colleges; 
     and
       (2) demonstrate high achievement in providing students 
     necessary skills to compete in the 21st century workforce.
       (b) Criteria.--In selecting a covered school for an award 
     under subsection (a), the Secretary shall take into account--
       (1) the availability of STEM, career and technical 
     education, and computer technology courses at the covered 
     school;
       (2) State academic assessments, as described in section 
     111(b)(2) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)), of students at the covered 
     school in STEM subjects;
       (3) any coordination between the covered school and local 
     and regional employers in the technology sector for the 
     purpose of providing work-based learning programs such as 
     apprenticeships and internships; and
       (4) the availability of individualized plans provided by 
     the covered school to students relating to postsecondary 
     education or training, career paths, and financial aid.

     SEC. _____5. FUNDING.

       (a) Fiscal Year 2021.--Amounts made available to the 
     Secretary of Labor under the Department of Labor 
     Appropriations Act, 2021 to carry out the Act referred to in 
     section _____6(1) may be used to carry out this title.
       (b) Subsequent Years.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated to carry out this title such sums as may be 
     necessary for fiscal year 2022 and each subsequent fiscal 
     year.

     SEC. _____6. DEFINITIONS.

       In this title:
       (1) Apprenticeship.--The term ``apprenticeship'' means an 
     apprenticeship registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 
     (commonly known as the ``National Apprenticeship Act''; 50 
     Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.).
       (2) Career and technical education.--The term ``career and 
     technical education'' has the meaning given such term in 
     section 3 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical 
     Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2302).
       (3) Early college high school.--The term ``early college 
     high school'' has the meaning given such term in section 8101 
     of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
     U.S.C. 7801).
       (4) High school.--The term ``high school'' has the meaning 
     given such term in section 8101 of the Elementary and 
     Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
       (5) Industry intermediary.--The term ``industry 
     intermediary'' means an entity that--
       (A) in order to accelerate apprenticeship program 
     development and helps establish new apprenticeship 
     partnerships at the national, State, or regional level, 
     serves as a conduit between an employer and an entity, such 
     as--
       (i) an industry partner;
       (ii) the Department of Labor; and
       (iii) a State agency responsible for workforce development 
     programs;
       (B) demonstrates a capacity to work with employers and 
     other key partners to identify workforce trends and foster 
     public-private funding to establish new apprenticeship 
     programs; and
       (C) is an entity such as--
       (i) a business;
       (ii) a consortium of businesses;
       (iii) a business-related nonprofit organization, including 
     industry associations and business federations;
       (iv) a private organization functioning as a workforce 
     intermediary for the express purpose of serving the needs of 
     businesses, including community-based nonprofit service 
     providers and industry-aligned training providers; or
       (v) a consortium of any of the entities described in 
     clauses (i) through (iv).
       (6) Institution of higher education.--The term 
     ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given 
     such term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 
     (20 U.S.C. 1002).
       (7) Junior or community college.--The term ``junior or 
     community college'' has the meaning given the term in section 
     312(f) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     1058(f)).
       (8) Local educational agency.--The term ``local educational 
     agency'' has the meaning given such term in section 8101 of 
     the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7801).
       (9) Secondary school.--The term ``secondary school'' has 
     the meaning given such term in section 8101 of the Elementary 
     and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
       (10) State educational agency.--The term ``State 
     educational agency'' has the meaning given such term in 
     section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
       (11) STEM.--The term ``STEM'' means science, technology, 
     engineering, and mathematics.
       (12) Technology sector.--The term ``technology sector'' 
     means the industry sector involved in the design or 
     development of hardware, software, or security of digital 
     data.
                                 ______