(a) State performance accountability measures.—

(1) PRIMARY INDICATORS OF PERFORMANCE.—Section 116(b)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(b)(2)(A)) is amended—

(A) in clause (i)—

(i) in subclause (II)—

(I) by striking “fourth” and inserting “second”; and

(II) by inserting “and remain in unsubsidized employment during the fourth quarter after exit from the program” after “the program”;

(ii) in subclause (IV), by striking “secondary school diploma” and inserting “regular high school diploma”;

(iii) in subclause (V)—

(I) by striking “, during a program year,”;

(II) by striking “are in” and inserting “enter into”; and

(III) by inserting before the semicolon at the end the following: “within 12 months after the quarter in which the participant enters into the education and training program”; and

(iv) by amending subclause (VI) to read as follows:

“(VI) of the program participants who received training services during a program year, the percentage of such program participants who participated in on-the-job training, employer-directed skills development, incumbent worker training, or an apprenticeship.”;

(B) in clause (ii)—

(i) in subclause (II)—

(I) by striking “fourth” and inserting “second”;

(II) by inserting “, and who remain either in such activities or unsubsidized employment during the fourth quarter after exit from the program” after “the program”; and

(III) by striking “and” at the end;

(ii) in subclause (III)—

(I) by striking “(VI)” and inserting “(V)”; and

(II) by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

“(IV) of the program participants who exited the program during a program year, the percentage of such program participants who completed, prior to such exit, a work experience as described in section 129(c)(2)(C).”; and

(C) in clause (iii), by striking “secondary school diploma” and inserting “regular high school diploma”; and

(D) by striking clause (iv).

(2) LEVELS OF PERFORMANCE.—Section 116(b)(3)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(b)(3)(A)) is amended—

(A) by amending clause (iii) to read as follows:

“(iii) IDENTIFICATION IN STATE PLAN.—

“(I) SECRETARIES.—For each State submitting a State plan, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall, not later than January 15 of the year in which such State plan is submitted, for the first 2 program years covered by the State plan, and not later than January 15 of the second program year covered by the State plan, for the third and fourth program years covered by the State plan—

“(aa) propose to the State expected levels of performance, for each of the corresponding primary indicators of performance for each of the programs described in clause (ii) for such State, which shall—

“(AA) be consistent with the factors listed in clause (v); and

“(BB) be proposed in a manner that ensures sufficient time is provided for the State to evaluate and respond to such proposals; and

“(bb) publish, on a public website of the Department of Labor, the statistical model developed under clause (viii) and the methodology used to develop each such expected level of performance.

“(II) STATES.—Each State shall—

“(aa) evaluate each of the expected levels of performance proposed under subclause (I) with respect to such State;

“(bb) based on such evaluation of each such expected level of performance—

“(AA) accept the expected level of performance as so proposed; or

“(BB) provide a counterproposal for such expected level of performance, including an analysis of how the counterproposal addresses factors or circumstances unique to the State that may not have been accounted for in the expected level of performance; and

“(cc) include in the State plan, with respect to each of the corresponding primary indicators of performance for each of the programs described in clause (ii) for such State—

“(AA) the expected level of performance proposed under subclause (I);

“(BB) the counterproposal for such proposed level, if any; and

“(CC) the level of performance that is agreed to under clause (iv).”;

(B) in clause (iv)—

(i) in subclause (I)—

(I) in the second sentence, by striking “the levels identified in the State plan under clause (iii) and the factors described in clause (v)” and inserting “the factors described in clause (v) and any counterproposal, and the analysis provided by the State with such counterproposal, described in clause (iii)(II)(bb)(BB)”; and

(II) in the third sentence, by striking “incorporated into the State plan” and inserting “included in the State plan, as described in clause (iii)(II)(cc),”; and

(ii) in subclause (II)—

(I) in the second sentence, by striking “the factors described in clause (v)” and inserting “the factors described in clause (v) and any counterproposal, and the analysis provided by the State with such counterproposal, described in clause (iii)(II)(bb)(BB)”; and

(II) in the third sentence, by striking “incorporated into the State plan” and inserting “included in the State plan, as described in clause (iii)(II)(cc),”; and

(C) in clause (v)(II)—

(i) in the matter preceding item (aa), by striking “based on” and inserting “based on each consideration that is found to be predictive of performance on an indicator for a program and consists of”; and

(ii) in item (bb), by striking “ex-offender status, and welfare dependency” and inserting “justice-involved individual status, foster care status, school status, education level, highest grade level completed, low-income status, and receipt of public assistance”.

(b) Performance reports.—Section 116(d) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(d)) is amended—

(1) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:

“(1) IN GENERAL.—

“(A) TEMPLATES FOR PERFORMANCE REPORTS.—Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of the A Stronger Workforce for America Act, the Secretary of Labor, in conjunction with the Secretary of Education, shall develop, or review and modify, as appropriate, to comply with the requirements of this subsection, the templates for performance reports that shall be used by States (including by States on behalf of eligible providers of training services under section 122) and local areas to produce a report on outcomes achieved by the core programs. In developing, or reviewing and modifying, such templates, the Secretary of Labor, in conjunction with the Secretary of Education, shall take into account the need to maximize the value of the templates for workers, jobseekers, employers, local elected officials, State officials, Federal policymakers, and other key stakeholders.

“(B) STANDARDIZED REPORTING.—In developing, or reviewing and modifying, the templates under subparagraph (A), the Secretary of Labor, in conjunction with the Secretary of Education, shall ensure that States and local areas, in producing performance reports for core programs and eligible providers of training services, collect and report information on common data elements—

“(i) in a comparable and uniform format; and

“(ii) using terms that are assigned identical meanings across all such reports.

“(C) ADDITIONAL REPORTING.—The Secretary of Labor, in conjunction with the Secretary of Education—

“(i) in addition to the information on the common data elements, may require additional information with respect to any core program as necessary for effective reporting; and

“(ii) shall periodically review any such requirement for additional information to ensure the requirement is necessary and does not impose an undue reporting burden.

“(D) PRIVACY.—The Secretary of Labor, in conjunction with the Secretary of Education, shall ensure subparagraph (B) is carried out in a manner that protects and promotes individual privacy and data security, in accordance with applicable Federal privacy laws.

“(E) ACCESS TO WAGE RECORDS.—

“(i) ACCESS.—A State may facilitate for a local area that meets the requirements of clause (ii), for the sole purpose of fulfilling the reporting requirements under this subsection, access to the quarterly wage records (excluding such records made available by any other State) of program participants in the local area.

“(ii) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—To receive access to such quarterly wage records, the local area shall have demonstrated to the State the ability to comply, and agree to comply, with all applicable Federal and State requirements relating to the access and use of such quarterly wage records, including requirements relating to data privacy and cybersecurity.”;

(2) in paragraph (2)—

(A) in subparagraph (B), by inserting “, and aggregated to compare those levels of performance for all individuals with barriers to employment with those levels of performance for all other individuals” before the semicolon at the end;

(B) in subparagraphs (D) and (F), by striking “career and training services, respectively” and inserting “career services, training services, and supportive services, respectively”;

(C) by redesignating subparagraphs (J) through (L) as subparagraphs (K) through (M), respectively and inserting after subparagraph (I) the following:

“(J) the median earnings gain of participants who received training services, calculated as the median value of the difference between—

“(i) participant earnings in unsubsidized employment during the 4 quarters after program exit; and

“(ii) participant earnings in the 4 quarters prior to entering the program;”; and

(D) in subparagraph (L), as so redesignated—

(i) by striking clause (ii); and

(ii) by striking “strategies for programs” and all that follows through “the performance”, and inserting “strategies for programs, the performance”;

(3) in paragraph (3)—

(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking “(L)” and inserting “(M)”;

(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking “and” at the end;

(C) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (F); and

(D) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:

“(C) the percentage of the local area’s allocation under section 133(b) that the local area spent on services paid for through an individual training account described in section 134(c)(3)(F)(iii) or a training contract described in section 134(c)(3)(G)(ii);

“(D) the percentage of the local area’s allocation under section 133(b) that the local area spent on supportive services;

“(E) the percentage of the local area’s allocation under section 133(b), if any, that is spent on incumbent worker training, disaggregated by whether the amount so spent was spent on the provision of incumbent worker training through contracts or through incumbent worker upskilling accounts described in section 134(d)(4)(E); and”;

(4) by amending paragraph (4) to read as follows:

“(4) CONTENTS OF ELIGIBLE TRAINING PROVIDERS PERFORMANCE REPORT.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—The State shall use the information submitted by the eligible providers of training services under section 122 and administrative records, including quarterly wage records, of the participants of the programs offered by the providers to produce a performance report on the eligible providers of training services in the State, which shall include, subject to paragraph (6)(C)—

“(i) with respect to each program of study (or the equivalent) of a provider on the list described in section 122(d)—

“(I) information specifying the levels of performance achieved with respect to the primary indicators of performance described in subclauses (I) through (IV) of subsection (b)(2)(A)(i) with respect to all individuals engaging in the program of study (or the equivalent); and

“(II) the total number of individuals exiting from the program of study (or the equivalent), disaggregated by whether such individuals completed the program of study (or equivalent); and

“(ii) with respect to all eligible providers of training services under section 122—

“(I) the total number of participants who received training services through each adult and dislocated worker program authorized under chapter 3 of subtitle B, disaggregated by the type of entity that provided the training services, during the most recent program year and the 3 preceding program years;

“(II) the total number of participants who exited from training services, disaggregated by the type of entity that provided the training services, and by whether such participants completed the training services, during the most recent program year and the 3 preceding program years;

“(III) the average cost per participant for the participants who received training services, disaggregated by the type of entity that provided the training, during the most recent program year and the 3 preceding program years;

“(IV) the average of the per-program ratios of median earnings increase for a participant to the total cost of the provider's program, as described in section 122(b)(5)(B)(i)(III) for the participant; and

“(V) the number of individuals with barriers to employment served by each adult and dislocated worker program authorized under chapter 3 of subtitle B, disaggregated by each subpopulation of such individuals, and by race, ethnicity, sex, and age; and

“(iii) to the extent practicable, with respect to each recognized postsecondary credential on the list of credentials awarded by eligible providers in the State described in section 122(d)(2)—

“(I) information specifying the levels of performance achieved with respect to the primary indicators of performance described in subclauses (I) through (IV) of subsection (b)(2)(A)(i) for all participants in the State receiving such credential; and

“(II) information specifying the levels of performance achieved with respect to the primary indicators of performance described in subclauses (I) through (IV) of subsection (b)(2)(A)(i) for participants in the State receiving such credential who are individuals with barriers to employment, disaggregated by each subpopulation of such individuals, and by race, ethnicity, sex, and age.”; and

(5) in paragraph (6)—

(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:

“(A) STATE PERFORMANCE REPORTS.—The Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall annually make available the performance reports for States containing the information described in paragraph (2), which shall include making such reports available—

“(i) digitally using transparent, linked, open, and interoperable data formats that are human readable and machine actionable such that the data from these reports—

“(I) are easily understandable; and

“(II) can be easily included in web-based tools and services supporting search, discovery, comparison, analysis, navigation, and guidance;

“(ii) in a printable format; and

“(iii) in multiple languages, to the extent practicable.”;

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) by striking “(including by electronic means), in an easily understandable format,”; and

(ii) by adding at the end the following: “The Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall include, on the website where the State performance reports are required under subparagraph (A) to be made available, a link to local area performance reports and the eligible provider of training services report for each State. Such reports shall be made available in each of the formats described in subparagraph (A).”; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

“(E) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to require the retroactive collection of information, from program years prior to the effective date described in section 502(a)(1) of the A Stronger Workforce for America Act, that was not required under this subsection prior to that effective date.”.

(c) Evaluation of State programs.—Section 116(e) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(e)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1)—

(A) in the first sentence, by striking “shall conduct ongoing” and inserting “shall use data to conduct analyses and ongoing”; and

(B) in the second sentence, by striking “conduct the” and inserting “conduct such analyses and”; and

(2) in paragraph (2), by adding “A State may use various forms of analysis, such as machine learning or other advanced analytics, to improve program operations and outcomes and to identify areas for further evaluation.” at the end.

(d) Sanctions for State failure To meet State performance accountability measures.—Section 116(f) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(f)) is amended to read as follows:

“(f) Sanctions for State failure To meet State performance accountability measures.—

“(1) TARGETED SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—If a State fails to meet 80 percent of the State adjusted level of performance for an indicator described in subsection (b)(2)(A) (referred to in the regulations carrying out this section as an ‘individual indicator score’) for a core program for any program year, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall provide technical assistance.

“(B) SANCTIONS.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—If the State fails in the manner described in subclause (I) or (II) of clause (ii) with respect to the program year specified in that subclause, the percentage of each amount that could (in the absence of this subsection) be reserved by the Governor under section 128(a)(1) for the immediately succeeding program year shall be reduced by 5 percent and an amount equivalent to the amount reduced shall be returned to the Secretary of Labor until such date as the Secretary of Labor or the Secretary of Education, as appropriate, determines that the State meets the State adjusted level of performance, in the case of a failure described in clause (ii)(II), or has submitted the reports for the appropriate program years, in the case of a failure described in clause (ii)(I).

“(ii) FAILURES.—A State shall be subject to clause (i)—

“(I) if (except in the case of exceptional circumstances as determined by the Secretary of Labor or the Secretary of Education, as appropriate), such State fails to submit a report under subsection (d) for any program year; or

“(II) for a failure under subparagraph (A) that has continued for a second consecutive program year.

“(2) COMPREHENSIVE SUPPORT AND ASSISTANCE.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—If a State fails to meet an average of 90 percent of the State adjusted levels of performance for a single core program across all indicators of performance (referred to in the regulations carrying out this section as an ‘overall State program score’) for any program year, or if a State fails to meet an average of 90 percent of the State adjusted levels of performance for a single indicator of performance across all core programs (referred to in the regulations carrying out this section as an ‘overall State indicator score’) for any program year, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall provide technical assistance, as described and authorized under section 168(b), including assistance in the development of a comprehensive performance improvement plan.

“(B) SECOND CONSECUTIVE YEAR FAILURE.—If such failure under subparagraph (A) continues for a second consecutive program year, the percentage of each amount that could (in the absence of this subsection) be reserved by the Governor under section 128(a)(1) for the immediately succeeding program year shall be reduced by 8 percent and an amount equivalent to the amount reduced shall be returned to the Secretary of Labor until such date as the Secretary of Labor or the Secretary of Education, as appropriate, determines that the State meets such State adjusted levels of performance.

“(3) LIMITATION.—The total reduction under this subsection to the percentage of each amount that could (in the absence of this subsection) be reserved by the Governor under section 128(a)(1) may not exceed 10 percent for a program year.

“(4) REALLOTMENT OF REDUCTIONS.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—The amounts available for reallotment for a program year shall be reallotted to a State (in this paragraph referred to as an ‘eligible State’) that—

“(i) was not subject to a reduction of funds under paragraph (1)(B) or paragraph (2)(B) of this subsection for such program year;

“(ii) in the case of amounts available under section 127(b)(1)(C), was 1 of the 5 States that achieved, in the most recent program year, the greatest increase from the prior year to the average of the State's adjusted levels of performance across all indicators of performance for the youth program under chapter 2 of subtitle B;

“(iii) in the case of amounts available under section 132(b)(1)(B), was 1 of the 5 States that achieved, in the most recent program year, the greatest increase from the prior year to the average of the State's adjusted levels of performance across all indicators of performance for the adult program under chapter 3 of subtitle B; and

“(iv) in the case of amounts available under section 132(b)(2)(B), was 1 of the 5 States that achieved, in the most recent program year, the greatest increase from the prior year to the average of the State's adjusted levels of performance across all indicators of performance for the dislocated worker program under chapter 3 of subtitle B.

“(B) AMOUNTS AVAILABLE FOR REALLOTMENT.—In this paragraph, the term ‘amounts available for reallotment for a program year’ means the amounts available under section 127(b)(1)(C) and paragraphs (1)(B) and (2)(B) of section 132(b) for such program year which could (in the absence of the requirements to return funds of paragraph (1)(B) or paragraph (2)(B) of this subsection) have otherwise been reserved under section 128(a)(1) by a Governor of a State for such program year.

“(C) REALLOTMENT AMOUNTS.—In making reallotments under subparagraph (A) for a program year to eligible States, the Secretary shall allot to each eligible State—

“(i) in the case of amounts available under section 127(b)(1)(C), an amount based on the relative amount of the allotment made (before the reallotments under this paragraph are made) to such eligible State under section 127(b)(1)(C) for such program year, compared to the total allotments made (before the reallotments under this paragraph are made) to all eligible States under section 127(b)(1)(C) for such program year;

“(ii) in the case of amounts available under paragraph (1)(B) of section 132(b), an amount based on the relative amount of the allotment made (before the reallotments under this paragraph are made) to such eligible State under paragraph (1)(B) of section 132(b) for such program year, compared to the total allotments made (before the reallotments under this paragraph are made) to all eligible States under paragraph (1)(B) of section 132(b) for such program year; and

“(iii) in the case of amounts available under paragraph (2)(B) of section 132(b), an amount based on the relative amount of the allotment made (before the reallotments under this paragraph are made) to such eligible State under paragraph (2)(B) of section 132(b) for such program year, compared to the total allotments made (before the reallotments under this paragraph are made) to all eligible States under paragraph (2)(B) of section 132(b) for such program year.”.

(e) Sanctions for local area failure To meet local performance accountability measures.—Section 116(g) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(g)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1)—

(A) by inserting “80 percent of the” before “local performance”; and

(B) by striking “local performance accountability measures established under subsection (c)” and inserting “local level of performance established under subsection (c) for an indicator of performance described in subsection (b)(2)(A) for a single program, an average of 90 percent of the local levels of performance across all such indicators for a single program, or an average of 90 percent of the local levels of performance for a single such indicator across all programs,”; and

(2) in paragraph (2)—

(A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:

“(A) IN GENERAL.—If such failure continues, the Governor shall take corrective actions, which shall include—

“(i) in the case of such failure, as described in paragraph (1), for a second consecutive year, on any single indicator, across indicators for a single program, or on a single indicator across programs, a 5-percent reduction in the amount that would (in the absence of this clause) be allocated to the local area for the immediately succeeding program year under chapter 2 or 3 of subtitle B for the program subject to the performance failure;

“(ii) in the case of such failure, as described in paragraph (1), for a third consecutive year, the development of a reorganization plan through which the Governor shall—

“(I) require the appointment and certification of a new local board, consistent with the criteria established under section 107(b);

“(II) prohibit the use of one-stop delivery system contractors or service providers identified as achieving a poor level of performance; and

“(III) redesignate a local area (which may include merging a local area with another local area), if the Governor determines that the likely cause of such continued performance failure of a local area is due to such local area’s designation being granted without the appropriate consideration of parameters described under section 106(b)(1)(B); or

“(iii) taking another significant action determined appropriate by the Governor.”;

(B) in subparagraph (B)(i), by inserting “(ii)” after “subparagraph (A)”; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

“(D) REALLOCATION OF REDUCTIONS.—With respect to any amounts available to carry out section 128(b), paragraph (2)(A) or (3) of section 133(b), and section 133(b)(2)(B) to a Governor for a program year which would (in the absence of subparagraph (A)(i)) have otherwise been allocated by such Governor to a local area (referred to individually in this subparagraph as an ‘unallocated amount’) for such program year—

“(i) 10 percent of those 3 unallocated amounts shall be reserved by the Governor to provide technical assistance to local areas within the State that were subject to a reduction of allocation amounts pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i) for such program year; and

“(ii) the amounts remaining after the reservations under clause (i) shall be reallocated by the Governor, to the local areas within the State that were not subject to a reduction of allocation amounts pursuant to subparagraph (A)(i) for such program year, in a manner determined by the Governor, which may take into consideration the extent to which local areas serve a significant number, as determined by the Governor, of individuals with barriers to employment.”.

(f) Establishing pay-for-Performance contract strategy incentives.—Section 116(h) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(h)) is amended by striking “non-Federal funds” and inserting “not more than 5 percent of the funds reserved under section 128(a)(1)”.

(g) Information and technical assistance.—Section 116 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141) is amended—

(1) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection (j); and

(2) by inserting after subsection (h) the following:

“(i) Information and technical assistance.—Beginning not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of the A Stronger Workforce for America Act, the Secretary of Labor shall hold meetings with each State board and State agency that administers a core program, and that requests such a meeting, to provide information and technical assistance concerning the performance accountability measures established in accordance with subsection (b), and related requirements for States under this section.”.

(h) Fiscal and management accountability information systems.—Section 116(j) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141(j)), as so redesignated, is amended—

(1) in the first sentence of paragraph (2), by inserting “, and may use information provided from the National Directory of New Hires in accordance with section 453(j)(8) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 653(j)(8))” after “State law”;

(2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and

(3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:

“(3) DESIGNATED ENTITY.—The Governor shall designate a State agency (or appropriate State entity) to assist in carrying out the performance reporting requirements of this section for core programs and eligible providers of training services. The designated State agency (or appropriate State entity) shall be responsible for—

“(A) facilitating data matches using quarterly wage record information, including wage record information made available by other States, to measure employment and earnings outcomes;

“(B) notifying State agencies that administer core programs and eligible providers of training services of the State's procedures for data validation and reliability, as described in subsection (d)(5); and

“(C) protection against disaggregation that would violate applicable privacy standards, as described in subsection (d)(6)(C).”.

(i) Implementation of performance accountability measures.—Section 116 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(k) Implementation of performance accountability measures.—Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of the A Stronger Workforce for America Act, the Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall fully implement the requirements of this section for programs described in subsection (b)(3)(A)(iv), including—

“(1) developing and disseminating the objective statistical adjustment model described in subsection (b)(3)(A)(viii) and using the model as described in subsection (b)(3)(A)(viii) for each program; and

“(2) notifying the State agencies carrying out such programs of the performance accountability measures established under this section, of the reporting and evaluation requirements for such programs, and of the sanctions requirements for programs that fail to meet State adjusted levels of performance under subsection (b)(3)(A)(iv).”.

(a) One-Stop partners.—Section 121(b) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(b)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1)—

(A) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) in clause (xi), by inserting “and” at the end;

(ii) by striking clause (xii); and

(iii) by redesignating clause (xiii) as clause (xii); and

(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking “subparagraph (B)(xiii)” and inserting “subparagraph (B)(xii)”; and

(2) in paragraph (2)—

(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking “With” and inserting “At the direction of the Governor or with”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) in clause (vi), by striking “and” at the end;

(ii) by redesignating clause (vii) as clause (viii);

(iii) by inserting after clause (vi) the following:

“(vii) any applicable economic development and workforce development programs carried out in the State—

“(I) by the Economic Development Administration;

“(II) under Public Law 117–167 (commonly known as the ‘CHIPS and Science Act of 2022’);

“(III) under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117–58); or

“(IV) under Public Law 117–168 (commonly known as the ‘Inflation Reduction Act of 2022’); and”; and

(iv) in clause (viii), as so redesignated—

(I) by inserting “opportunity youth services,” after “education,”; and

(II) by inserting “, by community-based organizations,” after “libraries”.

(b) Memorandum of understanding.—Section 121(c)(2)(A)(iv) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(c)(2)(A)(iv)) is amended by striking “access to services, including access to technology and materials, made” and inserting “access or referral to services, including access or referral to technology, materials, and other supportive services, made”.

(c) One-Stop operators.—Section 121(d) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(d)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1), by striking “paragraphs (2) and (3)” and inserting “paragraphs (2) and (5)”;

(2) in paragraph (2)(B)—

(A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by inserting “(including effectiveness in serving individuals with barriers to employment)” after “demonstrated effectiveness”;

(B) in clause (i), by inserting after “education” the following: “or an area career and technical education school”;

(C) in clause (v), by striking “and”;

(D) by redesignating clause (vi) as clause (viii);

(E) by inserting after clause (v) the following:

“(vi) a public library;

“(vii) a local board that meets the requirements of paragraph (4); and”; and

(F) in clause (viii), as so redesignated, by inserting after “labor organization” the following: “or joint labor-management organization”;

(3) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively; and

(4) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:

“(3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—In operating a one-stop delivery system referred to in subsection (e), a one-stop operator—

“(i) shall—

“(I) manage the physical and virtual infrastructure and operations of the one-stop delivery system in the local area;

“(II) facilitate coordination among the one-stop partners in such one-stop delivery system; and

“(III) take the necessary steps to ensure efficient and effective service delivery for individuals served by the one-stop delivery system, including individuals with barriers to employment; and

“(ii) may, subject to the requirements under subparagraph (B), directly provide services to job seekers and employers.

“(B) INTERNAL CONTROLS.—In a case in which a one-stop operator seeks to operate as a service provider pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii), the local board shall establish internal controls (which shall include written policies and procedures)—

“(i) with respect to the competition in which the one-stop operator will compete to be selected as such service provider, and the subsequent oversight, monitoring, and evaluation of the performance of such one-stop operator as such service provider; and

“(ii) which—

“(I) require compliance with—

“(aa) relevant Office of Management and Budget circulars relating to conflicts of interest; and

“(bb) any applicable State conflict of interest policy; and

“(II) prohibit a one-stop operator from developing, managing, or conducting the competition in which the operator intends to compete to be selected as a service provider.

“(4) LOCAL BOARDS AS ONE-STOP OPERATORS.—Subject to approval from the chief elected official and Governor and in accordance with any other eligibility criteria established by the State, a local board may serve as a one-stop operator, if the local board—

“(A) enters into a written agreement with the chief elected official that clarifies how the local board will carry out the functions and responsibilities as a one-stop operator in a manner that complies with the appropriate internal controls to prevent any conflicts of interest, which shall include how the local board, while serving as a one-stop operator, will—

“(i) comply with the relevant Office of Management and Budget circulars relating to conflicts of interest; and

“(ii) any applicable State conflict of interest policy; and

“(B) complies with the other applicable requirements of this subsection.”.

(d) One-Stop delivery.—Section 121(e) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(e)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1)—

(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) and (E) as subparagraphs (E) and (F), respectively; and

(B) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:

“(D) provide referrals to supportive services, to the extent practicable;”;

(2) in paragraph (2)—

(A) in subparagraph (A), to read as follows:

“(A) shall make each of the programs, services (meaning a referral in the case of supportive services, for the purposes of this paragraph), and activities described in paragraph (1) available—

“(i) at not less than 1 physical or virtual center for each local area of the State, except that, in the case of 1 or more local areas that share at least 1 common border, each such local area may share—

“(I) a virtual center if the local area complies with subparagraph (E); or

“(II) a physical center, if such center is located in a location that promotes accessibility to services for individuals residing in all such local areas served by the center; and

“(ii) in a manner that is designed to promote efficiency, coordination, quality, and accessibility for individuals with barriers to employment, as determined by the local board, in the delivery of such programs, services, and activities;”;

(B) in subparagraph (B)(i), by inserting after “affiliated sites” the following: “(such as a site of any of the entities described in subsection (d)(2)(B))”;

(C) in subparagraph (C)—

(i) by inserting after “centers” the following: “(which may be virtual or physical centers)”; and

(ii) by striking “and” at the end;

(D) in subparagraph (D)—

(i) by striking “as applicable and practicable, shall” and inserting “in the case of a one-stop delivery system that is making each of the programs, services, and activities described in paragraph (1) accessible at not less than 1 physical center, as described in subparagraph (A)(i)(II), shall, as applicable and practicable,”; and

(ii) by striking the period at the end and inserting “, and local areas that share at least 1 common border may coordinate in making such programs, services, and activities accessible through electronic means through such a one-stop delivery system; and”; and

(E) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following:

“(E) in the case of a one-stop delivery system that is making each of the programs, services, and activities accessible through electronic means, as described in subparagraph (A)(i)(I), shall have not fewer than 2 affiliated sites (not fewer than 1 of which will have not fewer than 1 professional staff member) with a physical location where individuals can access, virtually, each of the programs, services, and activities described in paragraph (1) that are virtually accessible.”; and

(3) in paragraph (4), by inserting after the first sentence the following: “The system identifier shall be prominently and visibly displayed at each comprehensive and specialized one-stop center operated by the one-stop delivery system, including physical and virtual centers identified in paragraph (2)(A), and the sites and centers described in subparagraphs (B) through (E) of paragraph (2).”.

(e) Certification and improvement criteria.—Section 121(g)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(g)(2)(A)) is amended by striking “under subsections (h)(1)” and inserting “under subsections (h)(1)(C)”.

(f) Funding of One-Stop infrastructure.—Section 121(h) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(h)) is amended—

(1) by striking paragraph (1);

(2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively;

(3) in paragraph (1), as so redesignated—

(A) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows:

“(B) PARTNER CONTRIBUTIONS.—Subject to subparagraph (D), the covered portions of funding for a fiscal year shall be provided to the Governor from the programs described in subsection (b)(1) to pay the costs of infrastructure of one-stop centers in local areas of the State.”;

(B) in subparagraph (C)(i)—

(i) by striking “for funding pursuant to clause (i)(II) or (ii) of paragraph (1)(A) by each partner,”; and

(ii) by striking the third sentence; and

(C) in subparagraph (D)—

(i) in clause (ii), by striking “For local areas in a State that are not covered by paragraph (1)(A)(i)(I), the” and inserting “The”;

(ii) in clause (ii)—

(I) in subclause (I)—

(aa) by striking “Wia” in the header and inserting “Wioa”; and

(bb) by striking “3 percent” and inserting “5 percent”; and

(II) by striking subclause (III) and inserting the following:

“(III) VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION.—Notwithstanding subclauses (I) and (II), an entity administering a program described in subsection (b)(1)(B)(iii) shall not be required to provide from that program, under this paragraph, a portion that exceeds 1.5 percent of the amount of Federal funds provided to carry out such program in the State for a program year.”; and

(iii) in clause (iii), by striking “For local areas in a State that are not covered by paragraph (1)(A)(i)(I), an” and inserting “An”;

(4) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated—

(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking “purposes of assisting in” and inserting “purpose of”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) in the first sentence, by striking “not funding costs of infrastructure under the option described in paragraph (1)(A)(i)(I)”; and

(ii) in the second sentence, by inserting after “local area,” the following: “the intensity of services provided by such centers, the number and types of one-stop partners engaged by or providing services through such centers”;

(5) by inserting after paragraph (2), as so redesignated, the following:

“(3) SUPPLEMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE FUNDING.—For any fiscal year in which the allocation received by a local area under paragraph (2) is insufficient to cover the total costs of infrastructure of one-stop centers in such local area, the local board, the chief elected official, and the one-stop partners that have entered into the local memorandum of understanding with the local board under subsection (c) may agree to fund the remainder of any such costs using a method described in such memorandum.”; and

(6) in paragraph (4), by inserting after “operation of the one-stop center” the following: “(whether for in-person or virtual service delivery)”.

(g) Other funds.—Section 121(i)(2) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3151(i)(2)) is amended by striking “intake,” and all that follows through “skills,” and inserting “intake, case management, assessment of needs, appraisal of foundational skill needs,”.

(a) In general.—Section 122 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3152) is amended—

(1) by redesignating subsections (f) through (i) as subsections (g) through (j), respectively;

(2) by striking the section heading and all that follows through subsection (e) and inserting the following:

(3) by striking subsections (i) and (j) and inserting the following:

“(i) On-the-Job training, employer-Directed skills development, incumbent worker training, and other training exceptions.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—Providers of on-the-job training, employer-directed skills development, incumbent worker training, internships, paid or unpaid work experience opportunities, or transitional employment shall not be subject to the requirements of subsections (a) through (f).

“(2) COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.—A one-stop operator in a local area shall collect the minimum amount of information from providers of on-the-job training, employer-directed skills development, incumbent worker training, internships, paid or unpaid work experience opportunities, and transitional employment as necessary to enable the use of State administrative data to generate such performance information as the Governor may require, and use the information to determine whether the providers meet such performance criteria as the Governor may require. The one-stop operator shall disseminate information identifying such providers that meet the criteria as eligible providers, and the performance information, through the one-stop delivery system. Providers determined to meet the criteria shall be considered to be identified as eligible providers of training services.

“(j) Technical assistance.—The Governor may apply to the Secretary for technical assistance, as described in section 168(c), for purposes of carrying out the requirements of the amendments made by the A Stronger Workforce for America Act to this section, and the Secretary shall provide such technical assistance in a timely manner.”.

(b) Report to Congress on State performance criteria.—Not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of the A Stronger Workforce for America Act, the Secretary shall submit a report 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 on eligible providers of training services under section 122 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3152), as amended by this division, in each State that shall include—

(1) the minimum levels of performance established by the Governor of each State with respect to the performance criteria under subsection (b)(2) of that section 122 for such eligible providers of training services in the State;

(2) the number of such eligible providers of training services in the State in each program year that begins after the date of enactment of this Act, compared with the number of such providers in the State in the program year that began immediately preceding that date of enactment; and

(3) the average length of time that such eligible providers of training services in the State maintain eligibility, disaggregated by the type of entity that provided the training services.

Section 123(a) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3153(a)) is amended by inserting “, which may include providers of pre-apprenticeship programs, and apprenticeship programs, that serve youth,” before “identified based”.

(a) Reservations for statewide activities.—Section 128(a) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3163(a)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (2), by striking “reserved amounts” in each place and inserting “reserved amounts required under paragraph (1)”; and

(2) by adding at the end the following:

“(3) CRITICAL INDUSTRY SKILLS FUND, AND INDUSTRY SECTOR PARTNERSHIP AND CAREER PATHWAYS DEVELOPMENT FUND.—

“(A) AUTHORIZED RESERVATION.—In addition to the reservations required under paragraph (1) and section 133(a)(2), and subject to subparagraph (B), the Governor may reserve not more than 10 percent of each of the amounts allotted to the State under section 127(b)(1)(C) and paragraphs (1)(B) and (2)(B) of section 132(b) for a fiscal year to establish and administer any one, or both, of the following:

“(i) A critical industry skills fund described in section 134(a)(4).

“(ii) An industry or sector partnership and career pathways development fund described in section 134(a)(5).

“(B) MATCHING FUNDS.—

“(i) REQUIREMENT.—The amount of funds reserved by a Governor under subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year may not exceed the amount of funds that such Governor commits to using from any of the funds listed in clause (ii) of this subparagraph for the purposes of establishing and administering the funds described in clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (A) for such fiscal year.

“(ii) SOURCES OF MATCHING FUNDS.—The funds listed in this clause are as follows:

“(I) Funds reserved by the Governor under paragraph (1) of this subsection.

“(II) Other Federal funds not described in subclause (I).

“(III) State funds.”.

(b) Reallocation among local areas.—Section 128(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3173(c)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting the following before the period at the end: “as performance-based incentive payments”; and

(2) in paragraph (4)—

(A) by striking “that does not” and inserting the following: “that—

“(A) does not”;

(B) by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

“(B) has met or exceeded an average of 100 percent of the local level of performance described in section 116(c)(1)(B) for the local area across all indicators for the youth program authorized under this chapter for the most recent program year for which performance data is available; and

“(C) was not subject to corrective action by the Governor under section 184(a)(5)(A) for a determination of non-compliance with the uniform administrative requirements described in section 184(a)(3) for the program year for which the determination under paragraph (2) is made.”.

(a) Opportunity youth.—Section 129 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164) is amended by striking “out-of-school” each place it appears and inserting “opportunity”.

(b) Youth participant eligibility.—

(1) ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION.—

(A) ELIGIBILITY.—Subparagraph (A) of section 129(a)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:

“(A) ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to participate in activities carried out under this chapter during any program year, an individual shall, at the time the eligibility determination is made, be an opportunity youth or an in-school youth.

“(ii) ENROLLMENT.—If a one-stop operator or eligible provider of youth workforce activities carrying out activities under this chapter reasonably believes that an individual is eligible to participate in such activities, the operator or provider may allow such individual to participate in such activities for not more than a 40-day period during which the operator or provider shall obtain the necessary information to make an eligibility determination with respect to such individual (which may involve working with such individual and other entities in the local area, and using available sources of administrative data, to obtain the necessary information).

“(iii) DETERMINATION OF INELIGIBILITY.—With respect to an individual who is determined to be ineligible for activities under this chapter by a one-stop operator or an eligible provider of youth workforce activities during the period described in clause (ii) and who does not qualify for an exception under paragraph (3)(A)(ii) applicable to the local area involved, such operator or service provider—

“(I) may—

“(aa) continue serving such individual using non-Federal funds; or

“(bb) end the participation of such individual in activities under this chapter and refer the individual to other services that may be available in the local area for which the individual may be eligible; and

“(II) shall be paid for any services provided to such individual under this chapter during the period described in clause (ii) by the local area involved using funds allocated to such area under section 128(b).

“(iv) DETERMINATION PROCESS FOR YOUTH EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS AND FOSTER YOUTH.—In determining whether an individual is eligible to participate in activities carried out under this chapter on the basis of being an individual who is a youth experiencing homelessness, or a youth in foster care, as described in subparagraph (B)(iii)(V), the one-stop operator or service provider involved shall—

“(I) if determining whether the individual is a youth experiencing homelessness, use a process that is in compliance with the requirements of subsection (a) of section 479D of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087uu–2) for financial aid administrators; and

“(II) if determining whether the individual is a youth in foster care, use a process that is in compliance with the requirements of subsection (b) of section 479D of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1087uu–2) for financial aid administrators.”.

(B) DEFINITION OF OPPORTUNITY YOUTH.—Subparagraph (B) of section 129(a)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(a)(1)) is amended—

(i) in the subparagraph heading, by striking “Out-of-school” and inserting “Opportunity”;

(ii) in clause (i), by inserting “, except that an individual described in subparagraph (IV) or (V) of clause (iii) may be attending school (as defined under State law)” after “(as defined under State law)”;

(iii) in clause (ii), by inserting before the semicolon at the end, the following : “, except that an individual described in subparagraph (IV) or (V) of clause (iii) may be not younger than age 14 or older than age 24”; and

(iv) in clause (iii)—

(I) in subclause (III)—

(aa) in the matter preceding item (aa)—

(AA) by striking “secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent” and inserting “regular high school diploma or its recognized equivalent”; and

(BB) by striking “and is” and inserting “and”;

(bb) in item (aa), by striking “basic skills deficient;” and inserting “has foundational skill needs;”; and

(cc) in item (bb), by striking “an English language learner” and inserting “is an English learner”; and

(II) in subclause (V)—

(aa) by striking “A homeless individual (” and inserting “An individual experiencing homelessness (meaning a homeless individual,”;

(bb) by striking “(42 U.S.C. 14043e-2(6))” and inserting “(34 U.S.C. 12473(6))”; and

(cc) by striking “a homeless child or youth (” and inserting “a youth experiencing homelessness (meaning a homeless child or youth,”.

(C) DEFINITION OF IN-SCHOOL YOUTH.—Clause (iv) of section 129(a)(1)(C) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(a)(1)(C)) is amended—

(i) in subclause (I), by striking “Basic skills deficient.” and inserting “An individual who has foundational skill needs.”;

(ii) in subclause (II), by striking “language”;

(iii) by striking subclauses (III) and (IV); and

(iv) by redesignating subclauses (V), (VI), and (VII) as subclauses (III), (IV), and (V), respectively.

(D) RULE FOR CERTAIN OPPORTUNITY YOUTH.—Section 129(a)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(D) RULE FOR CERTAIN OPPORTUNITY YOUTH.—An opportunity youth described in subclause (IV) or (V) of subparagraph (B)(iii) who is attending any school (as defined under State law) shall be eligible to participate in any activity for in-school youth carried out under this chapter.”.

(2) EXCEPTION AND LIMITATION.—Section 129(a)(3) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(a)(3)) is amended—

(A) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by striking “5” and inserting “10”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) by striking “5” and inserting “10”; and

(ii) by striking “paragraph (1)(C)(iv)(VII)” and inserting “paragraph (1)(C)(iv)(V)”.

(3) OPPORTUNITY YOUTH PRIORITY.—Section 129(a)(4) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(a)(4)) is amended—

(A) in the paragraph heading, by striking “Out-of-school” and inserting “Opportunity”;

(B) in subparagraph (A)—

(i) by striking “75” each place it appears and inserting “70”;

(ii) by inserting “the total amount of” before “funds available”; and

(iii) by inserting “in the State” after “subsection (c)”;

(C) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking “75” and inserting “70”;

(D) by redesignating subparagraph (B), as so amended, as subparagraph (C); and

(E) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:

“(B) LOCAL AREA TARGETS.—The local board, the chief elected official, and the Governor shall negotiate and reach agreement on the minimum amount of funds provided to a local area under subsection (c) that shall be used to provide youth workforce investment activities for opportunity youth based on the needs of youth in the local area, which—

“(i) may not be an amount that is less than 45 percent of the funds provided to such local area under subsection (c); and

“(ii) shall be the amount that is necessary for the State to meet the requirements of subparagraph (A) with respect to the total amount of funds available for local areas under subsection (c).”.

(c) Required statewide youth activities.— Section 129(b)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(b)(1)) is amended—

(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “sections 128(a)” and inserting “sections 128(a)(1)”;

(2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting “through a website that is consumer-tested to ensure that the website is easily understood, searchable, and navigable and allows for comparison of eligible providers based on the program elements offered by such providers and the performance of such providers on the primary indicators of performance for the youth program as described in section 116(b)(2)(A)(ii)” after “under section 123”; and

(3) in subparagraph (D), by striking “section 116(i)” and inserting “section 116(j)”.

(d) Allowable statewide youth activities.—Section 129(b)(2) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(b)(2)) is amended—

(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “sections 128(a)” and inserting “sections 128(a)(1)”;

(2) in subparagraph (C), by inserting “, which may include providing guidance on career options in in-demand industry sectors or occupations” after “in the State”;

(3) in subparagraph (D)—

(A) in clause (iv), by striking “and” at the end; and

(B) by inserting after clause (v) the following:

“(vi) supporting the ability to understand relevant tax information and obligations;”;

(4) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(5) by adding at the end the following:

“(F) establishing, supporting, and expanding work-based learning opportunities, including transitional jobs, that are aligned with career pathways;

“(G) raising public awareness (including through public service announcements, such as social media campaigns and elementary and secondary school showcases and school visits) about career and technical education programs and community-based and youth services organizations, and other endeavors focused on programs that prepare students for in-demand industry sectors or occupations;

“(H) developing partnerships between educational institutions (including area career and technical schools and institutions of higher education) and employers to create or improve workforce development programs to address the identified education and skill needs of the workforce and the employment needs of employers in the regions or local areas of the State, as determined based on the most recent analysis conducted under subparagraphs (B) and (C) of section 102(b)(1);

“(I) coordinating activities with providers of a pre-apprenticeship program or apprenticeship program for youth in the State to establish, support, or expand the program described in this subparagraph, including any such program in the State receiving assistance under section 173;

“(J) coordinating activities with entities implementing reentry projects in the State focused on establishing or improving workforce development programs for justice- involved youth, including any such reentry projects in the State receiving assistance under section 172; and

“(K) coordinating activities with agencies implementing corrections education and other education programs in the State focused on providing incarcerated youth with education and skills development programs, including any such programs in the State receiving assistance under section 225.”.

(e) Local elements and requirements.—

(1) PROGRAM DESIGN.—Section 129(c)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)(1)) is amended—

(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking “basic skills” and inserting “foundational skill needs”;

(B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting “(which, in the case of a participant 18 years or older, may include co-enrollment in any employment or training activity provided under section 134 for adults) ” after “services for the participant”;

(C) in subparagraph (C)—

(i) in clause (i), by striking “secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent” and inserting “regular high school diploma or its recognized equivalent”; and

(ii) in clause (v), by inserting “high-skill, high-wage, or” after “small employers, in”; and

(D) in subparagraph (D), by striking “10” and inserting “30”.

(2) PROGRAM ELEMENTS.—Section 129(c)(2) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)(2)) is amended—

(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent” and inserting “regular high school diploma or its recognized equivalent”;

(B) in subparagraph (A), by striking “secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent” and inserting “regular high school diploma or its recognized equivalent”;

(C) in subparagraph (C)—

(i) in clause (i)—

(I) by striking “other” and inserting “year-round”; and

(II) by inserting “that meet the requirements of paragraph (10)” after “school year”;

(ii) in clause (ii), by inserting “and apprenticeship programs that serve youth” after “programs”;

(iii) by amending clause (iii) to read as follows:

“(iii) internships that—

“(I) are paid internships or are unpaid internships for which academic credit may be awarded;

“(II) are, to the extent practicable, aligned with in-demand industry sectors or occupations in the State or local area; and

“(III) for which participants shall be paid (by the entity providing the internship, through funds allocated to the local area pursuant to paragraph (1) for the program, or by another entity) if such internships are longer than—

“(aa) 4 weeks in the summer or 8 weeks during the school year for in-school youth and opportunity youth who are enrolled in school; or

“(bb) 8 weeks for opportunity youth who are not enrolled in school;”;

(iv) by redesignating clause (iv) as clause (v);

(v) by inserting after clause (iii), as so amended, the following:

“(iv) job shadowing;”;

(vi) in clause (v), as so redesignated, by inserting “and” at the end; and

(vii) by adding at the end the following:

“(vi) work-based learning;”;

(D) in subparagraph (H), by striking “adult mentoring” and inserting “coaching and adult mentoring services”;

(E) in subparagraph (I), by inserting “(including case management)” after “services”;

(F) in subparagraph (M)—

(i) by inserting “high-skill, high-wage, or” before “in-demand industry”; and

(ii) by striking the “and” at the end;

(G) in subparagraph (N), by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and

(H) by adding at the end the following:

“(O) activities to develop fundamental workforce readiness, which may include creativity, collaboration, critical thinking, digital literacy, persistence, and other relevant skills.”.

(3) PRIORITY.—Section 129(c)(4) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)(4)) is amended to read as follows:

“(4) PRIORITY.—

“(A) WORK EXPERIENCES.—Not less than 40 percent of the funds allocated to the local area as described in paragraph (1) shall be used to provide in-school youth and opportunity youth with activities under paragraph (2)(C).

“(B) APPRENTICESHIPS AND PRE-APPRENTICESHIPS FOR YOUTH.—Not less than 12 and ¹⁄2 percent of the funds used for the purposes described in subparagraph (A) shall be used to provide in-school youth and opportunity youth with activities under paragraph (2)(C)(ii).”.

(4) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 129(c)(5) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)(5)) is amended by inserting “or local area” after “youth services”.

(5) LINKAGES.—Section 129(c)(7) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)(7)) is amended by inserting “, secondary schools, and area career and technical schools” after “agencies”.

(6) INDIVIDUAL TRAINING ACCOUNTS.—Section 129(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(9) INDIVIDUAL TRAINING ACCOUNTS.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subparagraph (B), funds allocated pursuant to paragraph (1) to a local area may be used to pay, through an individual training account, an eligible provider of training services described in section 122(d) for training services described in section 134(c)(3) provided to in-school youth who are not younger than age 16 and not older than age 21 and opportunity youth, in the same manner that an individual training account is used to pay an eligible provider of training services under section 134(c)(3)(F)(iii) for training services provided to an adult or dislocated worker.

“(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR IN-SCHOOL YOUTH YOUNGER THAN AGE 18.—To use an individual training account to pay for a program of training services that will take place during regular school hours for an in-school youth who is younger than the age 18, the local area shall receive written approval from the secondary school at which the in-school youth is enrolled prior to the start of the program of training services.”.

(7) SUMMER AND YEAR-ROUND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES REQUIREMENTS.—Section 129(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(10) SUMMER AND YEAR-ROUND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES REQUIREMENTS.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—A summer employment opportunity or a year-round employment opportunity referred to in paragraph (2)(C)(i) shall be a program that matches eligible youth participating in such program with an appropriate employer (based on factors including the needs of the employer and the age, skill, and informed aspirations of the eligible youth) that—

“(i) shall include—

“(I) a component of occupational skills education; and

“(II) not less than 2 of the activities described in subparagraphs (G), (H), (I), (K), (M), and (O) of paragraph (2);

“(ii) may not use funds allocated under this chapter to subsidize more than 50 percent of the wages of each eligible youth participant in such program;

“(iii) in the case of a summer employment opportunity, complies with the requirements of subparagraph (B); and

“(iv) in the case of a year-round employment opportunity, complies with the requirements of subparagraph (C).

“(B) SUMMER EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY.—In addition to the applicable requirements described in subparagraph (A), a summer employment opportunity—

“(i) may not be less than 4 weeks; and

“(ii) may not pay less than the highest applicable wage required by the applicable Federal, State, or local minimum wage law.

“(C) YEAR-ROUND EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY.—In addition to the applicable requirements described in subparagraph (A), a year-round employment opportunity—

“(i) may not be shorter than 180 days or longer than 1 year;

“(ii) may not pay less than the highest applicable wage required by the applicable Federal, State, or local minimum wage law; and

“(iii) may not employ the eligible youth for less than 20 hours per week, except in instances when the eligible youth are under the age of 18 or enrolled in school.

“(D) PRIORITY.—In selecting summer employment opportunities or year-round employment opportunities for purposes of paragraph (2)(C)(i), a local area shall give priority to such opportunities that meet the requirements of this paragraph and that are in existing or emerging high-skill, high-wage, or in-demand industry sectors or occupations.”.

(8) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 129(c)(3)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3164(c)(3)(B)) is amended by striking “basic skills” and inserting “foundational skill needs”.

Section 132(a)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3172(a)(2)(A)) is amended by—

(1) striking “, 169(c) (relating to dislocated worker projects),”; and

(2) by inserting “, and under subsections (c) (related to dislocated worker projects) and (d) (related to workforce data quality initiatives) of section 169” before “; and”

(a) Reservations for State activities.—Section 133(a) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3173(a)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1), by striking “section 128(a)” and inserting “section 128(a)(1)”; and

(2) by adding at the end the following:

“(3) CRITICAL INDUSTRY SKILLS FUND, AND INDUSTRY OR SECTOR PARTNERSHIP AND CAREER PATHWAYS FUND.—In addition to the reservations required under paragraphs (1) and (2), the Governor may make the reservation authorized under section 128(a)(3).”.

(b) Within State allocations.—Section 133(b)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3173(b)) is amended—

(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking “subsection (a)(1)” and inserting “paragraph (1) or (3) of subsection (a)”; and

(2) in subparagraph (B), by striking “paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (a)” and inserting “paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a)”.

(c) Reallocation among local areas.—Section 133(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3173(c)) is amended—

(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the period at the end, the following: “as performance-based incentive payments”;

(2) in paragraph (4)—

(A) in subparagraph (A)—

(i) by striking “that does not” and inserting the following: “that—

“(i) does not”;

(ii) by striking “; and” and inserting a semicolon; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

“(ii) has met or exceeded an average of 100 percent of the local level of performance described in section 116(c)(1)(B) for the local area across all indicators for the adult program authorized under this chapter for the most recent program year for which performance data is available; and

“(iii) was not subject to corrective action by the Governor under section 184(a)(5)(A) for a determination of non-compliance with the uniform administrative requirements described in section 184(a)(3) for the program year for which the determination under paragraph (2) is made; and”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) by striking “that does not” and inserting the following: “that—

“(i) does not”;

(ii) by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

“(ii) has met or exceeded an average of 100 percent of the local level of performance described in section 116(c)(1)(B) for the local area across all indicators for the dislocated worker program authorized under this chapter for the most recent program year for which performance data is available; and

“(iii) was not subject to corrective action by the Governor under section 184(a)(5)(A) for a determination of non-compliance with the uniform administrative requirements described in section 184(a)(3) for the program year for which the determination under paragraph (2) is made; and”; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

“(5) USE OF INCENTIVE FUNDS.—Any amounts provided to a local area as a performance incentive payment under this subsection shall not be subject to the requirements described in section 134(c)(1)(B).”.

(a) Statewide employment and training activities.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 134(a)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(a)(1))—

(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking “and” at the end;

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking “128(a)” and inserting “128(a)(1)”; and

(ii) by amending clause (ii) to read as follows:

“(ii) may be used to carry out any of the statewide employment and training activities described in paragraph (3) (including establishing and administering any one, or both, of the funds referred to in subparagraph (C));”; and

(C) by inserting before the flush left text at the end the following:

“(C) as described in section 128(a)(3), shall be used to establish and administer any one, or both, of the following:

“(i) a critical industry skills fund described in paragraph (4); or

“(ii) an industry or sector partnership and career pathways development fund described in paragraph (5),”.

(2) REQUIRED STATEWIDE EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ACTIVITIES.—

(A) STATEWIDE RAPID RESPONSE ACTIVITIES.—Section 134(a)(2)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(a)(2)(A)) is amended—

(i) in clause (i)—

(I) in subclause (I)—

(aa) by striking “working” and inserting “as a rapid response unit working”; and

(bb) by striking “and” at the end;

(II) in subclause (II), by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and

(III) by adding at the end the following:

“(III) provision of additional assistance to any local area that has excess demand for individual training accounts for dislocated workers in such local area and requests such additional assistance under this subclause in accordance with paragraph (4) of section 414(c) of the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 3224a(5)), upon a determination by the State that, in using funds allocated to such local area pursuant to paragraph (1) of such section 414(c) and in using funds as required under subsection (c)(1)(B) of this section for the purpose described in paragraph (2)(A) of such section 414(c)), the local area is in compliance with the requirements of such section 414(c).”; and

(ii) by adding at the end the following:

“(iii) INSUFFICIENT FUNDS TO MEET EXCESS DEMAND.—If a State determines that a local area with excess demand as described in clause (i)(III) has met the compliance requirements described in such clause, but the State does not have sufficient funds reserved under section 133(a)(2) to meet such excess demand, the State—

“(I) shall notify the Secretary of such excess demand; and

“(II) if eligible, may apply for a national dislocated worker grant under section 170 of this Act.”.

(B) STATEWIDE EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ACTIVITIES.—Section 134(a)(2)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(a)(2)(B) is amended—

(i) in clause (i)—

(I) in subclause (III), by striking “and” at the end;

(II) by amending subclause (IV) to read as follows:

“(IV) local areas, one-stop operators, one-stop partners, and eligible providers, including the development and training of staff, which may include—

“(aa) the development and training of staff to provide information about wage levels and available benefits across in-demand industry sectors or occupations, and information about opportunities for individuals with barriers to employment to enter in-demand industry sectors or occupations and nontraditional occupations;

“(bb) providing capacity building and technical assistance to State board and local board members on the development of exemplary program activities;

“(cc) the development and education of staff to increase expertise in providing opportunities for covered veterans (as defined in section 4212(a)(3)(A) of title 38, United States Code) to enter in-demand industry sectors or occupations and nontraditional occupations: and

“(dd) the provision of technical assistance to local areas that fail to meet local performance accountability measures described in section 116(c); and”; and

(III) by adding at the end the following:

“(V) local boards and eligible providers of training services in carrying out the performance reporting required under section 116(d), including facilitating data matches for program participants—

“(aa) using quarterly wage record information (including the wage records made available by any other State and information provided from the National Directory of New Hires in accordance with section 453(j)(8) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 653(j)(8))); and

“(bb) other sources of information, as necessary to measure the performance of programs and activities conducted under this chapter or chapter 2 of this subtitle;”;

(ii) in clause (ii), by striking “section 106(b)(7)” and inserting “section 106(b)(6)”;

(iii) in clause (iii), by striking “section 116(i)” and inserting “section 116(j)”; and

(iv) in clause (v)—

(I) in subclause (II)—

(aa) by striking “customized training” and inserting “employer-directed skills development”; and

(bb) by striking “transitional jobs” and inserting “transitional jobs, or sponsors of apprenticeships and pre-apprenticeships”;

(II) in subclause (III), by inserting “, including business engaged in joint labor-management partnerships” before the semicolon;

(III) in subclause (IV), by inserting “, including on the principles of universal design for learning” before the semicolon;

(IV) by redesignating subclauses (V) and (VI) as subclauses (VI) and (VII), respectively;

(V) by inserting after subclause (IV) the following:

“(V) information on effective coordination of supportive services for workers and jobseekers;”;

(VI) in subclause (VI), as so redesignated—

(aa) by striking “subsections (d) and (h) of section 122” and inserting “subsections (d) and (i) of section 122”; and

(bb) by striking “and” at the end; and

(VII) by adding at the end the following:

“(VIII) information to participants on understanding and accessing State-administered programs and services available to jobseekers;”;

(v) by redesignating clause (vi) as clause (vii);

(vi) by inserting after clause (v) the following:

“(vi) notifying participants of an eligible program of training services whose participation is funded under this Act, if such program’s status as an eligible program of training services is revoked under section 122(c)(4);”;

(vii) in clause (vii), as so redesignated, by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(viii) by adding at the end the following:

“(viii) coordinating (which may be done in partnership with other States) with industry organizations, employers (including small and mid-sized employers), industry or sector partnerships, training providers, local boards, and institutions of higher education to identify or develop competency-based assessments that are a valid and reliable method of collecting information with respect to, and measuring, the prior knowledge, skills, and abilities of individuals who are adults or dislocated workers for the purpose of—

“(I) awarding, based on the knowledge, skills, and abilities of such an individual validated by such assessments—

“(aa) a recognized postsecondary credential that is used by employers in the State for recruitment, hiring, retention, or advancement purposes;

“(bb) postsecondary credit toward a recognized postsecondary credential aligned with in-demand industry sectors and occupations in the State for the purpose of accelerating attainment of such credential; and

“(cc) postsecondary credit for progress along a career pathway developed by the State or a local area within the State;

“(II) developing individual employment plans under subsection (c)(2)(B)(vii)(II) that incorporate the knowledge, skills, and abilities of such an individual to identify—

“(aa) in-demand industry sectors or occupations that require similar knowledge, skills, and abilities; and

“(bb) any upskilling needed for the individual to secure employment in such a sector or occupation; and

“(III) helping such an individual communicate such knowledge, skills, and abilities to prospective employers through a skills-based resume, profile, or portfolio; and

“(ix) disseminating to local areas and employers information relating to the competency-based assessments identified or developed pursuant to clause (viii), including—

“(I) any credential or credit awarded pursuant to items (aa) through (cc) of clause (viii)(I);

“(II) the industry organizations, employers, training providers, and institutions of higher education located within the State that recognize the knowledge, skills, and abilities of an individual validated by such assessments;

“(III) how such assessments may be provided to, and accessed by, individuals through the one-stop delivery system; and

“(IV) information on the extent to which such assessments are being used by employers and local areas in the State.”.

(3) ALLOWABLE STATEWIDE EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ACTIVITIES.—Section 134(a)(3)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(a)(3)(A))—

(A) in clause (i)—

(i) by inserting “or evidence-based” after “innovative”;

(ii) by inserting “local communities and” after “needs of”;

(iii) by striking “customized training” and inserting “employer-directed skills development”;

(iv) by inserting “and partnerships with” after “utilization of”;

(v) by inserting “and labor-management partnerships” after “business intermediaries”; and

(vi) by inserting “and medium-sized” before “employers) in the State, and”;

(B) in clause (ii)—

(i) by inserting “, or bringing evidence-based strategies to scale,” after “strategies”; and

(ii) by inserting “supporting such individuals in achieving economic self-sufficiency and mobility, and” after “employment and”;

(C) in clause (iii)—

(i) by striking “ and prior learning assessment to” and inserting “, prior learning assessment, or a competency-based assessment identified or developed by the State under paragraph (2)(B)(viii), to”; and

(ii) by striking “stackable” and inserting “permit articulation into higher level degree or other credential programs”;

(D) in clause (iv), by inserting “, which may include on-the job training, employer-directed skills development, transitional jobs, industry or sector partnerships, apprenticeships, and other programs” after “employment”;

(E) in clause (v), by inserting “which activities may incorporate the principles of universal design for learning and be” after “subsection (c)(3),”;

(F) in clause (viii)—

(i) in subclause (I), by inserting “, including such activities funded through other Federal and State laws” after “development activities”; and

(ii) in subclause (II)—

(I) in item (cc), by inserting “activities carried out by comprehensive transition and postsecondary programs for students with intellectual disabilities established under section 767 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1140g),” after “developmental disabilities,”;

(II) in item (dd), by striking “activities, including those” and inserting “activities and services to promote digital literacy skills, including activities and services”;

(III) in item (ee), by striking “ex-offenders in reentering the workforce; and” and inserting “ justice-involved individuals in reentering the workforce;”; and

(IV) by adding at the end the following:

“(gg) programs under the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) that support employment and economic security; and”;

(G) in clause (xi), by inserting “that exceed the local levels of performance” after “local areas”;

(H) in clause (xiii), by striking “and” at the end;

(I) in clause (xiv)—

(i) by inserting “conducting feasibility studies for the effectiveness of such strategies in meeting the employment and skills development needs of target populations in the local areas that are using such feasibility studies,” after “data collection,”; and

(ii) by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(J) by adding at the end the following:

“(xv) supporting employers seeking to implement skills-based hiring practices, which may include technical assistance on the use and validation of employment assessments (including competency-based assessments developed or identified by the State pursuant to paragraph (2)(B)(viii)), and support in the creation of skills-based job descriptions;

“(xvi) developing partnerships between educational institutions (including area career and technical education schools, local educational agencies, and institutions of higher education) and employers to create or improve workforce development programs to address the identified education and skill needs of the workforce and the employment needs of employers in regions of the State, as determined by the most recent analysis conducted under subparagraphs (A), (B), and (D) of section 102(b)(1);

“(xvii) identifying and making available to residents of the State, free or reduced cost access to online skills development programs that are aligned with in-demand industries or occupations in the State and lead to attainment of a recognized postsecondary credential valued by employers in such industries or occupations;

“(xviii) establishing and administering a critical industry skills fund described in paragraph (4); and

“(xix) establishing and administering an industry or sector partnership and career pathways development fund described in paragraph (5).”.

(4) CRITICAL INDUSTRY SKILLS FUND.—Section 134(a) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(a)), as amended, is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(4) CRITICAL INDUSTRY SKILLS FUND.—

“(A) PERFORMANCE-BASED PAYMENTS.—In addition to the funds described in paragraph (3)(A), a State may use any funds reserved under paragraph (3)(A) of section 128(a) to establish and administer a critical industry skills fund to award performance-based payments on a per-worker basis to eligible entities that provide, to prospective workers or incumbent workers (which may include youth age 18 through age 24), eligible skills development programs that are in any of the industries and occupations identified by the Governor (in consultation with the State board) for purposes of this paragraph, and that will result in employment or retention with an employer in such an industry or occupation (in this paragraph referred to as a ‘participating employer’).

“(B) OPTIONAL PRIORITY.—The Governor (in consultation with the State board) may select the industries and occupations identified under subparagraph (A) that should be prioritized under this paragraph.

“(C) SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS.—To be eligible to receive a payment under the critical industry skills fund established under this paragraph by a State, an eligible entity shall submit to the Governor, a proposal describing the eligible skills development program to be provided by the eligible entity under this paragraph, in such form, at such time, and containing such information, as the Governor may reasonably require.

“(D) REIMBURSEMENT FOR APPROVED PROPOSALS.—

“(i) STATE REQUIREMENTS.—

“(I) IN GENERAL.—With respect to each eligible entity whose proposal under subparagraph (C) has been approved by the Governor, the Governor shall make payments (in an amount determined by the Governor and subject to the requirements of subclause (II) of this clause, subparagraph (E), and any other limitations determined necessary by the State) from the critical industry skills fund established under this paragraph to such eligible entity for each participant of the eligible skills development program described in such proposal and with respect to whom the eligible entity meets the requirements of clause (ii).

“(II) PAYMENTS.—In making payments to an eligible entity under subclause (I) with respect to a participant—

“(aa) a portion of the total payment shall be made after the participant successfully completes the eligible skills development program offered by the eligible entity; and

“(bb) the remainder of such total payment shall be made after the participant has been employed by the participating employer of the eligible entity for the 6-month period after successful completion of the program.

“(ii) ELIGIBLE ENTITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible to receive the payments described in clause (i) with respect to a participant, an eligible entity shall submit such documentation as the Governor determines necessary to verify whether the participant meets the requirements of items (aa) and (bb) of clause (i)(II), and to comply with the performance reporting described in subparagraph (F).

“(E) NON-FEDERAL COST SHARING.—

“(i) LIMITS ON FEDERAL SHARE.—An eligible entity may not receive funds under subparagraph (D) with respect to a participant of the eligible skills development program offered by the eligible entity in excess of the following costs of such program with respect to such participant:

“(I) In the case of a participating employer of such eligible entity with 25 or fewer employees, 90 percent of the costs.

“(II) In the case of a participating employer of such eligible entity with more than 25 employees, but fewer than 100 employees, 75 percent of the costs.

“(III) In the case of a participating employer of such eligible entity with 100 or more employees, 50 percent of the costs.

“(ii) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—

“(I) IN GENERAL.—Any costs of the eligible skills development program offered to a participant by such eligible entity that are not covered by the funds received under subparagraph (D) shall be the non-Federal share provided by the eligible entity (in cash or in-kind).

“(II) EMPLOYER COST SHARING.—If the eligible skills development program is being provided on-the-job, the non-Federal share provided by an eligible entity may include the amount of the wages paid by the participating employer of the eligible entity to a participant while such participant is receiving the training.

“(F) PERFORMANCE REPORTING.—Using the participant information provided by eligible entities under subparagraph (D)(ii), the State shall submit to the Secretary a report, on an annual basis, with respect to all participants for which the eligible entities received funds under this paragraph for the most recent program year, which shall include—

“(i) the number of individuals who participated in eligible skills development programs provided by such eligible entities through the critical industry skills fund under this paragraph; and

“(ii) the performance of such participants on the primary indicators of performance described in subclauses (I) through (III) of section 116(b)(2)(A)(i).

“(G) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph:

“(i) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible entity’ means—

“(I) a participating employer or a group of participating employers;

“(II) an industry or sector partnership that includes a participating employer; or

“(III) another entity serving as an intermediary (such as a local board) that is in partnership with a participating employer.

“(ii) ELIGIBLE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.—The term ‘eligible skills development program’, when used with respect to an eligible entity—

“(I) means a program with respect to which a State may set a maximum and minimum length (in weeks);

“(II) includes work-based education or related occupational skills instruction that—

“(aa) develops the specific technical skills necessary for successful performance of the occupations in which participants are to be employed upon completion; and

“(bb) may be provided—

“(AA) by the eligible entity; or

“(BB) by any training provider that is selected by the eligible entity and without regard to whether such provider is on a list of eligible providers of training services described in section 122(d); and

“(III) does not include employee onboarding, orientation, or professional development generally provided to employees.”.

(5) INDUSTRY OR SECTOR PARTNERSHIP AND CAREER PATHWAYS DEVELOPMENT FUND.—Section 134(a) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(a)), as amended, is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(5) INDUSTRY OR SECTOR PARTNERSHIP AND CAREER PATHWAYS DEVELOPMENT FUND.—

“(A) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this paragraph is to establish new or expand existing industry or sector partnerships and career pathway programs to encourage regional economic growth and competitiveness, and improve worker training, retention, and advancement.

“(B) DESCRIPTION OF FUND.—In addition to the funds described in paragraph (3)(A), a State may use any funds reserved under paragraph (3)(A) of section 128(a) to establish and administer an industry or sector partnership and career pathways development fund to award grants to eligible partnerships to establish or expand industry or sector partnerships that include employers in a high-growth or high-wage industry of the State in order to meet the following objectives:

“(i) Build capacity among such partnerships to prepare jobseekers and incumbent workers participating in such partnerships for careers in such a high-growth or high-wage industry.

“(ii) Leverage the capacity of such partnerships to develop, improve, expand, or implement education, employment, and training opportunities for individuals with barriers to employment.

“(iii) Strengthen coordination between such industry or sector partnerships and one-stop partners for the local areas involved that are described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 121(b).

“(iv) Develop or expand a career pathway program that utilizes integrated education and training strategies and supports multiple points of entry and exit for working learners.

“(C) DURATION.—Each grant awarded under this paragraph shall be for a period of not more than 2 years.

“(D) AWARD BASIS.—

“(i) GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY.—The Governor shall award grants under this paragraph in a manner that ensures geographic diversity in the areas in the State in which activities will be carried out under the grants.

“(ii) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this paragraph, the Governor shall give priority consideration to eligible partnerships that—

“(I) include (or will include) as a partner in the industry or sector partnership to be established or expanded under this paragraph, a 2-year public institution of higher education;

“(II) demonstrate long-term sustainability of such industry or sector partnership; and

“(III) demonstrate the ability of such industry or sector partnership to serve individuals who—

“(aa) are individuals with a barrier to employment, including individuals with disabilities;

“(bb) are facing significant worker dislocation due to a disruption or change in the regional or State economy or labor market;

“(cc) have traditionally been underserved by regional economic development and sector partnership activities (including rural areas in the State); or

“(dd) are—

“(AA) opportunity youth, disadvantaged youth, or disadvantaged adults; or

“(BB) unemployed individuals, within the meaning of section 6(b)(1)(B) of the Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C. 49e(b)(1)(B)).

“(iii) ADDITIONAL OPTIONAL PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this paragraph, in addition to the priority consideration required under clause (ii), the Governor may give priority consideration to eligible partnerships that include, or will include, as a partner in the industry or sector partnership to be established or expanded under this section—

“(I) a 4-year public institution of higher education at which the highest degree that is predominantly awarded to students is an associate degree; or

“(II) a 2-year Tribal College or University (as defined in section 316(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1059c(b)).

“(E) APPLICATION.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—An eligible partnership seeking a grant under this paragraph shall submit an application to the Governor at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Governor may reasonably require, including the contents described in clause (ii).

“(ii) CONTENTS.—An eligible partnership seeking a grant under this paragraph shall submit an application to the Governor under clause (i) containing, at minimum—

“(I) a description of the eligible partnership, and the industry or sector partnership that will be established or expanded with such grant;

“(II) the expected participation and responsibilities of each of the partners that will be included in such industry or sector partnership;

“(III) a description of the high-growth or high-wage industry sector to be served by such industry or sector partnership, and a description of how such industry sector was identified;

“(IV) a description of the workers and other individuals who will be targeted or recruited by such industry or sector partnership, including the number of workers and other individuals who will be served by the partnership;

“(V) an analysis of the existing labor market to be served by such industry or sector partnership, which includes—

“(aa) a description of potential barriers to employment for the targeted workers and other individuals;

“(bb) the estimated share of such workers and other individuals who are individuals with a barrier to employment; and

“(cc) a description of strategies that will be developed to help such workers and other individuals overcome such barriers;

“(VI) a description of the Federal and non-Federal resources, available under provisions of law other than this paragraph, that will be leveraged in support of such industry or sector partnership and the activities carried out by the partnership under this paragraph;

“(VII) a description, using common, linked, open-data descriptive language, of the recognized postsecondary credential that will be provided to individuals who successfully complete the education and training program provided through an education provider in such industry or sector partnership;

“(VIII) an assurance that any eligible provider of training services in such industry or sector partnership is on a list of eligible providers of training services described in section 122(d); and

“(IX) a commitment from a participating employer in such industry or sector partnership to employ each participant of such education and training program (which may be a career pathway program) for not less than a 1-year period, in accordance with the employment policies of such employer, after successful completion of the training portion of the education and training program operated by such participating employer.

“(F) USES OF FUNDS.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—An eligible partnership awarded a grant under this paragraph shall use such grant funds to establish a new industry or sector partnership or expand the industry or sector partnership of the eligible partnership to meet the objectives listed in subparagraph (B)—

“(I) by engaging businesses in accordance with clause (iii); and

“(II) by carrying out an education and training program that—

“(aa) leads to the recognized postsecondary credential described in the eligible partnership’s application in subparagraph (E)(ii)(VII);

“(bb) includes an apprenticeship, work-based learning, or on-the-job training program that leads to an employment commitment described in subparagraph (E)(ii)(IX) with a participating employer of the industry or sector partnership;

“(cc) may include the development or expansion of a new or existing career pathway program as described in clause (iv); and

“(dd) may include the provision of supportive services as described in clause (v).

“(ii) PLANNING ACTIVITIES.—An eligible partnership receiving a grant under this paragraph may use not more than 20 percent of the grant funds to carry out planning activities during the first year of the grant period that are necessary to establish a new industry or sector partnership or expand the industry or sector partnership of the eligible partnership, which may include—

“(I) recruiting key stakeholders in the high-growth or high-wage industry to be served by such industry or sector partnership;

“(II) conducting outreach to local businesses, employers, labor organizations, local boards, education and training providers, and business and employer associations;

“(III) identifying, through an evaluation, the training needs of multiple businesses in the high-growth or high-wage industry, including identifying any needs for—

“(aa) skills critical to competitiveness and innovation in the high-growth or high-wage industry;

“(bb) an education and training program, including any apprenticeship program or other work-based learning program supported by the grant; and

“(cc) the usage of career pathways to align education and training with job openings in the high-growth or high-wage industry; and

“(IV) recruiting individuals with barriers to employment to participate in the education and training program.

“(iii) BUSINESS ENGAGEMENT.—An industry or sector partnership established or expanded with a grant under this paragraph shall use the grant funds to engage businesses (including small and medium-sized businesses that are in the high-growth or high-wage industry and that may be a participating employer of the partnership) in the establishment and implementation of an apprenticeship, work-based learning, or on-the-job training program offered through the education and training program of the partnership, and which may include—

“(I) the navigation of the registration process for a sponsor of such an apprenticeship program;

“(II) the connection of the business with an education provider in the industry or sector partnership to develop classroom instruction to complement learning through such an apprenticeship, work-based learning, or on-the-job training program;

“(III) the development of such a work-based learning program;

“(IV) the provision of career awareness activities for participants of such an apprenticeship, work-based learning, or on-the-job training program, such as career guidance and academic counseling;

“(V) the recruitment of individuals with barriers to employment to participate in such an apprenticeship, work-based learning, or on-the-job training program; and

“(VI) other evidence-based approaches to connecting businesses with workers and establishing pathways to unsubsidized employment for individuals participating in the education and training program and other programs funded under this title.

“(iv) CAREER PATHWAY PROGRAMS.—

“(I) IN GENERAL.—An industry or sector partnership established or expanded with a grant under this paragraph may use such grant funds for the development or expansion of a new or existing career pathway program that utilizes integrated education and training strategies and supports multiple entry and exit points for working students and other working participants, which may include—

“(aa) dual-enrollment approaches for participants, including youth, seeking to participate in a career pathway program;

“(bb) strategies that help working students and other nontraditional and adult student populations access skills and the recognized postsecondary credentials described in subparagraph (E)(ii)(VII) of the eligible partnership’s application; and

“(cc) strategies that incorporate the principles of universal design for learning.

“(II) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In establishing or expanding such new or existing career pathway program, the industry or sector partnership may use a grant under this paragraph for—

“(aa) the provision of evidence-based professional development for faculty and other staff of an education provider in the industry or sector partnership, which may incorporate the principles of universal design for learning, as appropriate;

“(bb) the acquisition of equipment necessary to support the delivery of the career pathway program; and

“(cc) any other evidence-based activities to support the development or implementation of the career pathway program.

“(v) SUPPORTIVE SERVICES.—In accordance with section 181(h), an industry or sector partnership established or expanded with a grant under this paragraph may use such grant funds to provide supportive services to support the success of individuals, including individuals with barriers to employment, who are participating in training services, as described in subsection (c)(3)(D), which are offered through such partnership.

“(G) DESIGNATION OF A FISCAL AGENT.—An eligible partnership receiving a grant under this paragraph shall designate an entity of the eligible partnership as the fiscal agent for the receipt, management, and expenditure of the grant funds.

“(H) NON-FEDERAL COST SHARING.—

“(i) LIMITS ON FEDERAL SHARE.—An industry or sector partnership established or expanded with a grant under this paragraph may not receive such grant funds for purposes of funding the education and training program offered through such partnership in excess of the following costs of establishing, operating, and sustaining such program:

“(I) In the case in which the participating employers in such eligible partnership employ 25 or fewer employees, 70 percent of the costs.

“(II) In the case in which the participating employers in such eligible partnership employ more than 25 employees, but fewer than 100 employees, 55 percent of the costs.

“(III) In the case in which the participating employers in such eligible partnership employ 100 or more employees, 40 percent of the costs.

“(ii) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—Any costs of establishing, operating, and sustaining such program that are not covered by the grant received under this paragraph shall be the non-Federal share provided by the industry or sector partnership.

“(I) PERFORMANCE REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the first award of funds under this paragraph is made by the Governor and on an annual basis thereafter, the Governor shall prepare and submit to the Secretary a report with respect to the participants served by each eligible partnership receiving funds under this paragraph in the most recent program year, which report shall include—

“(i) levels of performance achieved by the eligible partnership, with respect to the primary indicators of performance under clause (i) or (ii) of section 116(b)(2)(A), as applicable, for all individuals served by the eligible partnership, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, sex, disability status, and age; and

“(ii) levels of performance achieved by the eligible partnership with respect to the primary indicators of performance under clause (i) or (ii) of section 116(b)(2)(A), as applicable, for individuals with barriers to employment served by the eligible partnership, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, sex, disability status, and age.

“(J) AVAILABILITY OF REPORT.—The report submitted by eligible partnerships under subparagraph (I) shall—

“(i) be made digitally available by the Secretary using linked, open, and interoperable data; and

“(ii) include the number of individuals who were served by each such eligible partnership.

“(K) LIMIT ON ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—An eligible partnership receiving a grant under this paragraph may not use more than 10 percent of the grant funds for administrative costs.

“(L) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph:

“(i) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘eligible partnership’ means—

“(I) an industry or sector partnership that—

“(aa) includes a participating employer; and

“(bb) is seeking to further implement or expand such industry or sector partnership; or

“(II) a workforce collaborative that is seeking to become an industry or sector partnership that includes a participating employer.

“(ii) HIGH-GROWTH OR HIGH-WAGE INDUSTRY.—The term ‘high-growth or high-wage industry’, when used with respect to an eligible partnership, means an industry that—

“(I) has, or is expected to have, a high rate of growth and an unmet demand for skilled workers, as determined by the Governor of the State in which the eligible partnership is located;

“(II) has been designated by the Governor as an in-demand industry experiencing high growth in such State; and

“(III) includes occupations determined by the Governor—

“(aa) with wages that are significantly higher than an occupation of similar level of skill or needed skill development; or

“(bb) that are aligned with career pathways into higher wage occupations.

“(iii) PARTICIPATING EMPLOYER.—The term ‘participating employer’, when used with respect to an eligible partnership, means an employer in a high-growth or high-wage industry that is (or will be) part of the industry or sector partnership that will be expanded (or established) by the eligible partnership under this paragraph.”.

(b) Required local employment and training activities.—

(1) MINIMUM AMOUNT FOR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT.—Section 134(c)(1) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(1)) is amended—

(A) in subparagraph (A)(iv), by striking “to” and inserting “to provide business services described in paragraph (4) and”;

(B) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); and

(C) by inserting after subparagraph (A), as so amended, the following:

“(B) MINIMUM AMOUNT FOR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—Subject to clause (ii), not less than 50 percent of the funds described in subparagraph (A) shall be used by the local area—

“(I) for the payment of training services—

“(aa) provided to adults under paragraph (3)(F)(iii); and

“(bb) provided to adults and dislocated workers under paragraph (3)(G)(ii); and

“(II) for the payment of training services under paragraph (2)(A) of section 414(c) of the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 3224a(c)) after funds allocated to such local area under paragraph (1) of such section 414(c) have been exhausted.

“(ii) EXCEPTION.—With respect to a local area that uses any funds described in subparagraph (A) to provide supportive services, in accordance with subsection (d)(2) of this section, for adults and dislocated workers who are participating in training services, or individualized career services described in clauses (iii) and (vii) of paragraph (2)(B) that enable participation in training services, each percentage of such funds so used shall reduce, by one percentage point, the percentage of such funds required to be used by such local area in accordance with clause (i), except that such percentage of funds may not be reduced by more than 10 percentage points pursuant to this clause.”; and

(D) in subparagraph (C), as so redesignated, by striking “and (ii)” and inserting “, (ii), and (iv)”.

(2) CAREER SERVICES.—Section 134(c)(2) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(2)) is amended—

(A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through (C) as subparagraphs (B) through (D), respectively;

(B) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so redesignated, the following:

“(A) BASIC CAREER SERVICES.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—The one-stop delivery system—

“(I) shall coordinate with the Employment Service office colocated with the one-stop delivery system for such Employment Service office to provide, using the funds allotted to the State under section 6 of the Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C. 49e), basic career services, which shall—

“(aa) include, at a minimum, the services listed in clause (ii); and

“(bb) be available to individuals who are adults or dislocated workers in an integrated manner to streamline access to assistance for such individuals, to avoid duplication of services, and to enhance coordination of services; and

“(II) may use funds allocated under paragraph (1), as necessary, to supplement the services that are provided pursuant to subclause (I) to individuals who are adults or dislocated workers.

“(ii) SERVICES.—The basic career services provided pursuant to clause (i) shall include—

“(I) provision of workforce and labor market employment statistics information, including the provision of accurate (and, to the extent practicable, real-time) information relating to local, regional, and national labor market areas, including—

“(aa) job vacancy listings in such labor market areas;

“(bb) information on job skills necessary to obtain the jobs included on such listings; and

“(cc) information relating to local occupations in demand (which may include entrepreneurship opportunities), and the earnings, skill requirements, and opportunities for advancement for such occupations;

“(II) labor exchange services, including job search and placement assistance and, in appropriate cases, career counseling, including—

“(aa) provision of information on in-demand industry sectors and occupations;

“(bb) provision of information on nontraditional employment; and

“(cc) provision of information on entrepreneurship, as appropriate;

“(III) (aa) provision of information, in formats that are usable by and understandable to one-stop center customers, relating to the availability of supportive services or assistance, including child care, child support, medical or child health assistance under title XIX or XXI of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq. and 1397aa et seq.), benefits under the supplemental nutrition assistance program established under the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), assistance through the earned income tax credit under section 32 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and assistance under a State program for temporary assistance for needy families funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) and other supportive services and transportation provided through funds made available under such part, available in the local area; and

“(bb) referral to the services or assistance described in item (aa), as appropriate;

“(IV) provision of information and assistance regarding filing claims for unemployment compensation; and

“(V) assistance in establishing eligibility for programs of financial aid assistance for training and education programs that are not funded under this Act.”;

(C) in subparagraph (B), as so redesignated—

(i) in the heading, by striking the heading and inserting “Individualized career”;

(ii) in the matter preceding clause (i)—

(I) by inserting “individualized” before “career services”; and

(II) by inserting “shall, to the extent practicable, be evidence-based,” before “and shall”;

(iii) in clause (iii), by inserting “, and a determination (considering factors including prior work experience, military service, education, and the in-demand industry sectors and occupations in the local area) of whether such an individual would benefit from a competency-based assessment developed or identified by the State pursuant to subsection (a)(2)(B)(viii) to accelerate the time to obtaining employment that leads to economic self-sufficiency or career advancement” before the semi-colon at the end;

(iv) by striking clauses (iv), (vi), (ix), (x), and (xi);

(v) by redesignating clauses (v), (vii), (viii), (xii), and (xiii) as clauses (iv), (v), (vi), (vii), and (viii), respectively;

(vi) in clause (v), as so redesignated, by inserting “and credential” after “by program”;

(vii) in clause (vi), as so redesignated, by inserting “and in multiple languages, to the extent practicable,” after “customers,”; and

(viii) in clause (vii), as so redesignated—

(I) in subclause (I)(aa), as so redesignated, by inserting “, including a competency-based assessment developed or identified by the State pursuant to subsection (a)(2)(B)(viii)” after “tools”;

(II) in subclause (VI), by inserting “digital literacy skills,” after “learning skills,”;

(III) in subclause (X), by striking “or” at the end;

(IV) in subclause (XI)—

(aa) by striking “language”; and

(bb) by striking “and” at the end and inserting “or”;

(V) by adding at the end the following:

“(XII) review or creation of a resume or similar document showcasing the skills, experience, relevant credentials, and education of the individual; and”.

(D) by amending subparagraph (C), as so redesignated, to read as follows:

“(C) USE OF PREVIOUS ASSESSMENTS.—A one-stop operator or one-stop partner shall not be required to conduct a new interview, evaluation, or assessment of a participant under subparagraph (B)(vii) if the one-stop operator or one-stop partner determines that—

“(i) it is appropriate to use a recent interview, evaluation, or assessment of the participant conducted pursuant to another education or training program; and

“(ii) using such recent interview, evaluation, or assessment will accelerate an eligibility determination.”; and

(E) in subparagraph (D), as so redesignated—

(i) in the matter preceding clause (i)—

(I) by inserting “individualized” before “career”; and

(II) by striking “subparagraph (A)” and inserting “subparagraph (B)”; and

(ii) in clause (ii), by inserting “, libraries, and community-based organizations” after “nonprofit service providers”.

(3) TRAINING SERVICES.—Section 134(c)(3) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(3)) is amended—

(A) in subparagraph (A)—

(i) in clause (i), in the matter preceding subclause (I), by striking “clause (ii)” and inserting “clause (ii) or (iii)”;

(ii) by amending clause (i)(II) to read as follows:

“(II) who select programs of training services that are directly linked to the employment opportunities—

“(aa) in the local area or the planning region;

“(bb) in another area to which the adults or dislocated workers are willing to commute or relocate; or

“(cc) that may be performed remotely;”.

(iii) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv);

(iv) by inserting after clause (ii) the following:

“(iii) EMPLOYER REFERRAL.—

“(I) IN GENERAL.—A one-stop operator or one-stop partner shall not be required to conduct an interview, evaluation, or assessment of an individual under clause (i) if such individual—

“(aa) is referred by an employer to receive on-the-job training or employer-directed skills development in connection with that employer; and

“(bb) has been certified by the employer as being an individual who is in need of training services to obtain unsubsidized employment with such employer and who has the skills and qualifications to successfully participate in the selected program of training services.

“(II) PRIORITY.—A one-stop operator or one-stop partner shall follow the priority system in effect under subparagraph (E) to determine whether an individual who meets the requirements of subclause (I) of this clause is eligible to receive training services.”; and

(v) by adding at the end the following:

“(v) ADULT EDUCATION AND FAMILY LITERACY ACTIVITIES.—In the case of an individual who, after an interview, evaluation, or assessment under clause (i)(I), is determined to not have the skills and qualifications to successfully participate in the selected program of training services under clause (i)(I)(cc), the one-stop operator or one-stop partner shall refer such individual to adult education and literacy activities under title II, including for co-enrollment in such activities, as appropriate.”;

(B) in subparagraph (B)—

(i) in clause (i)—

(I) in subclause (I), by striking “other grant assistance for such services, including” and inserting “assistance for such services under”; and

(II) by striking “under other grant assistance programs, including” and inserting “under”; and

(ii) by adding at the end the following:

“(iv) PARTICIPATION DURING ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION.—An individual may participate in a program of training services during the period during which such individual’s eligibility for training services under subparagraph (A)(i) is being determined, except that the provider of such a program shall receive reimbursement under this Act for the individual’s participation during such period only if such individual is determined to be eligible under subparagraph (A)(i).”;

(C) in subparagraph (D)(xi), by striking “customized training” and inserting “employer-directed skills development”;

(D) in subparagraph (E)—

(i) by striking “are basic skills deficient” and inserting “have foundational skill needs”; and

(ii) by striking “paragraph (2)(A)(xii)” and inserting “paragraph (2)(B)(vii)”;

(E) in subparagraph (F)(ii), by inserting “and the levels of performance for such providers on the performance criteria described in section 122(b) for the 2 most recent program years” after “in section 122(d)”;

(F) in subparagraph (G)(ii)—

(i) in subclause (II), by striking “customized training” and inserting “employer-directed skills development”; and

(ii) in subclause (IV)—

(I) by striking “is a” and inserting “is an evidence-based”; and

(II) by inserting “and to support such individuals in gaining requisite skills for in-demand industry sectors or occupations in the local area, obtaining recognized postsecondary credentials, and entering unsubsidized employment” after “employment”;

(G) in subparagraph (H)—

(i) in clause (i), in the matter preceding subclause (I), by striking “reimbursement described in section 3(44)” and inserting “reimbursement described in section 3(48)”; and

(ii) in clause (ii)—

(I) in subclause (I), by inserting “, such as the extent to which participants are individuals with barriers to employment” after “participants”; and

(II) in subclause (III), by inserting “in an occupation or industry sector, including whether the skills a participant will obtain are transferable to other employers, occupations, or industries in the local area or the State” after “opportunities”; and

(H) by adding at the end the following:

“(I) EMPLOYER-DIRECTED SKILLS DEVELOPMENT.—An employer may receive a contract from a local board to provide employer-directed skills development to a participant or group of participants if the employer submits to the local board an agreement that establishes—

“(i) the provider of the skills development program, which may be the employer;

“(ii) the length of the skills development program;

“(iii) the recognized postsecondary credentials that will be awarded to, or the occupational skills that will be gained by, program participants;

“(iv) the cost of the skills development program;

“(v) the estimated earnings of program participants upon successful completion of the program;

“(vi) the amount of such cost that will be paid by the employer, which shall not be less than the amount specified in subparagraph (C) of section 3(19); and

“(vii) a commitment by the employer to employ the participating individual or individuals upon successful completion of the program.”.

(c) Business services.—Section 134(c) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(4) BUSINESS SERVICES.—Funds described in paragraph (1) shall be used to provide appropriate recruitment and other business services and strategies on behalf of employers, including small employers and mid-sized employers, that meet the workforce investment needs of area employers, as determined by the local board and consistent with the local plan under section 108, which services—

“(A) may be provided—

“(i) through effective business intermediaries working in conjunction with the local board;

“(ii) on a fee-for-service basis; or

“(iii) through the leveraging of economic development, philanthropic, and other public and private resources in a manner determined appropriate by the local board; and

“(B) may include one or more of the following:

“(i) Developing and implementing industry sector strategies (including strategies involving industry partnerships, regional skills alliances, industry skill panels, and sectoral skills partnerships).

“(ii) Developing and delivering innovative workforce investment services and strategies for area employers, which may include career pathways, skills upgrading, skill standard development and certification for recognized postsecondary credential or other employer use, apprenticeship, developing and offering industry-recognized credential (including short-term industry-recognized credential) programs, including those that support individuals with foundational skill needs, and other effective initiatives for meeting the workforce investment needs of area employers and workers.

“(iii) Assistance to area employers in managing reductions in force in coordination with rapid response activities provided under subsection (a)(2)(A) and developing strategies for the aversion of layoffs, which strategies may include early identification of firms at risk of layoffs, use of feasibility studies to assess the needs of and options for at-risk firms, and the delivery of employment and training activities to address risk factors.

“(iv) The marketing of business services offered under this title to appropriate area employers, including small and mid-sized employers.

“(v) Technical assistance or other support to employers seeking to implement skills-based hiring practices, which may include technical assistance on the use and validation of employment assessments, including competency-based assessments developed or identified by the State pursuant to paragraph (2)(B)(viii), and support in the creation of skills-based job descriptions.

“(vi) Other services described in this subsection, including providing information and referral to microenterprise services, as appropriate, and specialized business services not traditionally offered through the one-stop delivery system.”.

(d) Permissible local employment and training activities.—

(1) ACTIVITIES.—Section 134(d)(1)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(1)(A)) is amended—

(A) in clause (iii), by striking “10 percent” and inserting “30 percent”;

(B) in clause (v), by inserting “case management,” after “assessments,”;

(C) in clause (vi)—

(i) in subclause (III), by striking “and” at the end;

(ii) by redesignating subclause (IV) as subclause (VI); and

(iii) by inserting after subclause (III) the following:

“(IV) employment and training activities under subsections (d) and (o) of section 6 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2015);

“(V) programs under the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) that support employment and economic security; and”;

(D) in clause (vii)—

(i) in subclause (II)—

(I) by inserting “and providers of supportive services,” after “small employers,”; and

(II) by striking “and” at the end;

(ii) in subclause (III), by inserting “and” at the end; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

“(IV) to strengthen, through professional development activities, the knowledge and capacity of one-stop staff to use the latest digital technologies, tools, and strategies to deliver high quality services and outcomes for jobseekers, workers, and employers, which may incorporate universal design for learning;”;

(E) by striking clause (ix);

(F) by redesignating clauses (x) through (xii) as clauses (ix) through (xi), respectively;

(G) in clause (x), as so redesignated, by striking “and” at the end;

(H) in clause (xi), as so redesignated, by striking the period at the end and inserting a semicolon; and

(I) by adding at the end the following:

“(xii) training programs for individuals who are dislocated workers as a result of advances in automation technology;

“(xiii) the use of competency-based assessments for individuals upon initial assessment of skills (pursuant to subsection (c)(2)(A)(iii)) or completion of training services or other learning experiences;

“(xiv) the development of partnerships between educational institutions (including area career and technical education schools, local educational agencies, and institutions of higher education) and employers to create or improve workforce development programs to address the identified education and skill needs of the workforce and the employment needs of employers in a region, as determined based on the most recent analysis conducted by the local board under section 107(d)(2); and

“(xv) assistance to one or more public libraries located in the local area that has demonstrated success in leveraging additional resources (such as staff, facilities, computers, and learning materials) to provide free and open access to individualized career services, in order to promote and expand access to such services.”.

(2) SUPPORTIVE SERVICES.—Section 134(d)(2)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(2)(B)) is amended, by inserting “, including through programs of one-stop partners, who are” after “programs”.

(3) NEEDS-RELATED PAYMENTS.—Section 134(d)(3) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(3)) is amended—

(A) in subparagraph (A), by inserting “or for financial assistance through a program carried out by a one-stop partner” after “compensation”; and

(B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting “or financial assistance through a program carried out by a one-stop partner” after “compensation”

(4) INCUMBENT WORKER TRAINING PROGRAMS.—

(A) IN GENERAL.—Section 134(d)(4)(A) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(4)(A)) is amended—

(i) in clause (i), by striking “20” and inserting “30”;

(ii) by redesignating clauses (ii) and (iii) as clauses (iii) and (iv), respectively; and

(iii) by inserting after clause (i) the following:

“(ii) INCREASE IN RESERVATION OF FUNDS.—Notwithstanding clause (i)—

“(I) with respect to a local area that had a rate of unemployment of not more than 3 percent for not less than 6 months during the preceding program year, clause (i) shall be applied by substituting ‘40 percent’ for ‘30 percent’; or

“(II) with respect to a local area that meets the requirement in subclause (I) and is located in a State that had a labor force participation rate of not less than 69 percent for not less than 6 months during the preceding program year, clause (i) shall be applied by substituting ‘45 percent’ for ‘30 percent’.”.

(B) TRAINING ACTIVITIES.—Section 134(d)(4)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(4)(B)) is amended—

(i) by striking “The training”, and inserting the following:

“(i) IN GENERAL.—The training”; and

(ii) by striking “delivering training” and inserting “delivering training, such as industry or sector partnerships”.

(C) NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—Section 134(d)(4)(D)(ii)(III) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(4)(D)(ii)(III)) is amended by striking “50” and inserting “55”.

(D) INCUMBENT WORKER UPSKILLING ACCOUNTS.—Section 134(d)(4) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(4)) is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(E) INCUMBENT WORKER UPSKILLING ACCOUNTS.—

“(i) IN GENERAL.—To establish incumbent worker upskilling accounts through which an eligible provider of training services under section 122 may be paid for the program of training services provided to an incumbent worker, a local board—

“(I) (aa) may use, from the funds reserved by the local area under subparagraph (A)(i), an amount that does not exceed 5 percent of the funds allocated to such local area under section 133(b); or

“(bb) if the local area reserved funds under subparagraph (A)(ii), may use, from the funds reserved by the local area under subparagraph (A)(ii), an amount that does not exceed 10 percent of the funds allocated to such local area under section 133(b); and

“(II) may use funds reserved under section 134(a)(2)(A) for statewide rapid response activities and provided by the State to local area to establish such accounts.

“(ii) ELIGIBILITY.—

“(I) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subclause (II), a local board that seeks to establish incumbent worker upskilling accounts under clause (i) shall establish criteria for determining the eligibility of an incumbent worker to receive such an account, which shall take into account factors of—

“(aa) the wages of the incumbent worker as of the date of determining such worker’s eligibility under this clause;

“(bb) the career advancement opportunities for the incumbent worker in the occupation of such worker as of such date; and

“(cc) the ability of the incumbent worker to, upon completion of the program of training services selected by such worker, secure employment in an in-demand industry or occupation in the local area that will lead to economic self-sufficiency and wages higher than the current wages of the incumbent worker.

“(II) LIMITATION.—

“(aa) IN GENERAL.—An incumbent worker described in item (bb) shall be ineligible to receive an incumbent worker upskilling account under this subparagraph.

“(bb) INELIGIBILITY.—Item (aa) shall apply to an incumbent worker—

“(AA) whose total annual wages for the most recent year are greater than the median household income of the State; or

“(BB) who has earned a baccalaureate or professional degree.

“(iii) COST SHARING FOR CERTAIN INCUMBENT WORKERS.—With respect to an incumbent worker who is determined to be eligible to receive an incumbent worker upskilling account and who is not a low-income individual—

“(I) such incumbent worker shall pay not less than 25 percent of the cost of the program of training services selected by such worker; and

“(II) funds provided through the incumbent worker upskilling account established for such worker shall cover the remaining 75 percent of the cost of the program.”.

(E) TRANSITIONAL JOBS.—Section 134(d)(5) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(5)) is amended by striking “10” and inserting “15”.

(e) Rule of construction.—Section 134 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174) is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(e) Rule of construction.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to abrogate a collective bargaining agreement that covers employees of an entity providing a program of training services, including an incumbent worker training program.”.

Section 136 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3181) is amended to read as follows:

Section 141 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3191) is amended—

(1) by striking “centers” each place it appears and inserting “campuses”; and

(2) in paragraph (1)(A)—

(A) by striking “secondary school diplomas” and inserting “regular high school diplomas or their recognized equivalents”;

(B) in clause (i), by striking “or” at the end;

(C) in clause (ii), by striking “, including an apprenticeship program; and” and inserting “; or”; and

(D) by adding at the end the following:

“(iii) enrollment in an apprenticeship program; and”.

Section 142 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3192) is amended—

(1) in paragraphs (1), (7), (8), and (10), by striking “center” each place it appears and inserting “campus”;

(2) in paragraph (1)(B), by inserting “the community in which the Job Corps campus is located or the” after “serves”;

(3) in paragraph (5)—

(A) by striking “secondary school diploma or” and inserting “regular high school diploma or its”;

(B) by striking “that prepares” and inserting “that—

“(A) prepares”;

(C) in subparagraph (A), as so redesignated, by striking the period at the end and inserting “; and”; and

(D) by adding at the end the following:

“(B) may lead to the attainment of a recognized postsecondary credential.”; and

(4) in paragraph (7), by striking “center” in the heading and inserting “campus”.

Section 144 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3194) is amended—

(1) in subsection (a)—

(A) in paragraph (1)—

(i) by striking “21” and inserting “24”;

(ii) by inserting “ or, if the date of enrollment is not greater than 60 days after the date of application, the date of application,” after “enrollment,”;

(iii) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:

“(A) an individual who is age 16 or 17 shall be eligible only upon an individual determination by the director of a Job Corps campus that such individual meets the criteria described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 145(b)(1); and”; and

(iv) in subparagraph (B), by striking “either”;

(B) in paragraph (2), by inserting after “individual” the following: “or a resident of a qualified opportunity zone as defined in section 1400Z–1(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986”; and

(C) in paragraph (3)—

(i) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as follows:

“(A) Has foundational skill needs.”; and

(ii) in subparagraph (C)—

(I) by striking “A homeless individual (as” and inserting “An individual experiencing homelessness (meaning a homeless individual as”;

(II) by striking “(42 U.S.C. 14043e-2(6)))” and inserting “(34 U.S.C. 12473(6)))”; and

(III) by striking “homeless child or youth (as” and inserting “youth experiencing homelessness (meaning a homeless child or youth as”;