II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 620 

To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to support 

community college and industry partnerships, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 14, 2017 

Mr. FRANKEN (for himself and Ms. DUCKWORTH) introduced the following 

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 

to support community college and industry partnerships, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Community College 

5 to Career Fund Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. COMMUNITY COLLEGE TO CAREER FUND. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Workforce Innova8 tion and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111 et seq.) is 

9 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘Subtitle F—Community College to 

2 Career Fund 

3 ‘‘SEC. 199. COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND INDUSTRY PARTNER4 SHIPS PROGRAM. 

5 ‘‘(a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—Not later than the end 

6 of the first full fiscal year after the date of enactment of 

7 the Community College to Career Fund Act, from funds 

8 appropriated under section 199A, the Secretary of Labor 

9 (in coordination with the Secretary of Education and the 

10 Secretary of Commerce) shall award competitive grants to 

11 eligible entities described in subsection (b) for the purpose 

12 of developing, offering, improving, and providing edu13 cational or career training programs for workers. The 

14 grants shall be awarded for periods of 3 years. 

15 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.— 

16 ‘‘(1) PARTNERSHIPS WITH EMPLOYERS OR AN

17 EMPLOYER OR INDUSTRY PARTNERSHIP.— 

18 ‘‘(A) GENERAL DEFINITION.—For pur19 poses of this section, an ‘eligible entity’ means 

20 any of the entities described in subparagraph 

21 (B) (or a consortium of any of such entities) in 

22 partnership with employers or an employer or 

23 industry partnership representing multiple em24 ployers. 


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1 ‘‘(B) DESCRIPTION OF ENTITIES.—The en2 tities described in this subparagraph are— 

3 ‘‘(i) a community college; 

4 ‘‘(ii) a 4-year public institution of 

5 higher education (as defined in section 

6 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

7 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a))) that offers 2- 

8 year degrees, and that will use funds pro9 vided under this section for activities at 

10 the certificate and associate degree levels; 

11 ‘‘(iii) a Tribal College or University 

12 (as defined in section 316(b) of the Higher 

13 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

14 1059c(b))); or 

15 ‘‘(iv) a public or private nonprofit, 2- 

16 year institution of higher education (as de17 fined in section 102 of the Higher Edu18 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)) in 

19 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, 

20 the United States Virgin Islands, American 

21 Samoa, the Commonwealth of the North22 ern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the 

23 Marshall Islands, the Federated States of 

24 Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau. 

25 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL PARTNERS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) AUTHORIZATION OF ADDITIONAL

2 PARTNERS.—In addition to partnering with em3 ployers or an employer or industry partnership 

4 representing multiple employers as described in 

5 paragraph (1)(A), an entity described in para6 graph (1) may include in the partnership de7 scribed in paragraph (1) one or more of the or8 ganizations described in subparagraph (B). 

9 Each eligible entity that includes one or more 

10 such organizations shall collaborate with the 

11 State or local board in the area served by the 

12 eligible entity. 

13 ‘‘(B) ORGANIZATIONS.—The organizations 

14 described in this subparagraph are as follows: 

15 ‘‘(i) A provider of adult education (as 

16 defined in section 203) or an institution of 

17 higher education (as defined in section 101 

18 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

19 U.S.C. 1001)). 

20 ‘‘(ii) A community-based organization. 

21 ‘‘(iii) A joint labor-management part22 nership. 

23 ‘‘(iv) A State board. 

24 ‘‘(v) An elementary school or sec25 ondary school, as defined in section 8101 


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1 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu2 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 

3 ‘‘(vi) Any other organization that the 

4 Secretaries consider appropriate. 

5 ‘‘(c) EDUCATIONAL OR CAREER TRAINING PRO6 GRAM.—For purposes of this section, the Governor of the 

7 State in which at least one of the entities described in sub8 section (b)(1)(B) of an eligible entity is located shall es9 tablish criteria for an educational or career training pro10 gram leading to a recognized postsecondary credential for 

11 which an eligible entity submits a grant proposal under 

12 subsection (d). 

13 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity seeking a 

14 grant under this section shall submit an application con15 taining a grant proposal, for an educational or career 

16 training program leading to a recognized postsecondary 

17 credential, to the Secretaries at such time and containing 

18 such information as the Secretaries determine is required, 

19 including— 

20 ‘‘(1) a detailed description of— 

21 ‘‘(A) the extent to which the educational or 

22 career training program described in the grant 

23 proposal fits within an overall strategic plan 

24 consisting of— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the State plan described in sec2 tion 102 or 103, for the State involved; 

3 ‘‘(ii) the local plan described in sec4 tion 108, for each local area that com5 prises a significant portion of the area to 

6 be served by the eligible entity; and 

7 ‘‘(iii) a strategic plan developed by the 

8 eligible entity; 

9 ‘‘(B) the extent to which the program will 

10 meet the needs of employers in the area for 

11 skilled workers in in-demand industry sectors 

12 and occupations; 

13 ‘‘(C) the extent to which the program will 

14 meet the educational or career training needs of 

15 workers in the area; 

16 ‘‘(D) the specific educational or career 

17 training program and how the program meets 

18 the criteria established under subsection (e), in19 cluding the manner in which the grant will be 

20 used to develop, offer, improve, and provide the 

21 educational or career training program; 

22 ‘‘(E) any previous experience of the eligible 

23 entity in providing educational or career train24 ing programs, the absence of which shall not 


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1 automatically disqualify an eligible institution 

2 from receiving a grant under this section; and 

3 ‘‘(F) how the program leading to the cre4 dential meets the criteria described in sub5 section (c); and 

6 ‘‘(2) a detailed plan on how the entity will en7 sure that the program will meet the performance 

8 measures described in subsection (g), and an assur9 ance that the entity will annually submit to the Sec10 retary information on the performance of the pro11 gram on the performance measures described in sub12 section (g). 

13 ‘‘(e) CRITERIA FOR AWARD.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Grants under this section 

15 shall be awarded based on criteria established by the 

16 Secretaries, that include the following: 

17 ‘‘(A) A determination of the merits of the 

18 grant proposal submitted by the eligible entity 

19 involved to develop, offer, improve, and provide 

20 an educational or career training program to be 

21 made available to workers. 

22 ‘‘(B) An assessment of the likely employ23 ment opportunities available in the area to indi24 viduals who complete an educational or career 


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1 training program that the eligible entity pro2 poses to develop, offer, improve, and provide. 

3 ‘‘(C) An assessment of prior demand for 

4 training programs by individuals eligible for 

5 training and served by the eligible entity, as 

6 well as availability and capacity of existing (as 

7 of the date of the assessment) training pro8 grams to meet future demand for training pro9 grams. 

10 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

11 section, the Secretaries shall give priority to eligible 

12 entities that— 

13 ‘‘(A) include a partnership, with employers 

14 or an employer or industry partnership, that— 

15 ‘‘(i) pays a portion of the costs of 

16 educational or career training programs; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) agrees to hire individuals who 

18 have attained a recognized postsecondary 

19 credential resulting from the educational or 

20 career training program of the eligible en21 tity; 

22 ‘‘(B) enter into a partnership with a labor 

23 organization or labor-management training pro24 gram to provide, through the program, tech25 nical expertise for occupationally specific eduVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:51 Mar 17, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S620.IS S620

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1 cation necessary for a recognized postsecondary 

2 credential leading to a skilled occupation in an 

3 in-demand industry sector; 

4 ‘‘(C) are focused on serving individuals 

5 with barriers to employment, students who are 

6 veterans, spouses of member of the Armed 

7 Forces, incumbent workers who are low-skilled 

8 and who need to increase their work-related 

9 skills; 

10 ‘‘(D) include any eligible entities serving 

11 areas with high unemployment rates; and 

12 ‘‘(E) are eligible entities that include an 

13 institution of higher education eligible for as14 sistance under title III or V of the Higher Edu15 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1051 et seq.; 20 

16 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). 

17 ‘‘(f) USE OF FUNDS.—Grant funds awarded under 

18 this section shall be used for one or more of the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) The development, offering, improvement, 

20 and provision of educational or career training pro21 grams, that provide relevant job training for skilled 

22 occupations, that lead to recognized postsecondary 

23 credentials, that will meet the needs of employers in 

24 in-demand industry sectors, and that may include 

25 registered apprenticeship programs, on-the-job trainVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:51 Mar 17, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S620.IS S620

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1 ing programs, and programs that support employers 

2 in upgrading the skills of their workforce. 

3 ‘‘(2) The development and implementation of 

4 policies and programs to expand opportunities for 

5 students to earn a recognized postsecondary creden6 tial, including a degree, in in-demand industry sec7 tors and occupations, including by— 

8 ‘‘(A) facilitating the transfer of academic 

9 credits between institutions of higher education, 

10 including the transfer of academic credits for 

11 courses in the same field of study; 

12 ‘‘(B) expanding articulation agreements 

13 and policies that guarantee transfers between 

14 such institutions, including through common 

15 course numbering and use of a general core 

16 curriculum; 

17 ‘‘(C) developing or enhancing student sup18 port services programs; and 

19 ‘‘(D) establishing policies and processes for 

20 assessing and awarding course credit for work21 related learning. 

22 ‘‘(3) The creation of career pathway programs 

23 that provide a sequence of education and occupa24 tional training that leads to a recognized postsecVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:51 Mar 17, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S620.IS S620

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1 ondary credential, including a degree, including pro2 grams that— 

3 ‘‘(A) blend basic skills and occupational 

4 training; 

5 ‘‘(B) facilitate means of transitioning par6 ticipants from non-credit occupational, basic 

7 skills, or developmental coursework to for-credit 

8 coursework within and across institutions; 

9 ‘‘(C) build or enhance linkages, including 

10 the development of dual enrollment programs 

11 and early college high schools, between sec12 ondary education or adult education programs 

13 (including programs established under the Carl 

14 D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act 

15 of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2301 et seq.) and title II 

16 of this Act); 

17 ‘‘(D) are innovative programs designed to 

18 increase the provision of training for students, 

19 including students who are members of the Na20 tional Guard or Reserves, to enter skilled occu21 pations in in-demand industry sectors; 

22 ‘‘(E) support paid internships that will 

23 allow students to simultaneously earn credit for 

24 work-based learning and gain relevant employ25 ment experience in an in-demand industry secVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:51 Mar 17, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S620.IS S620

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1 tor or occupation, which shall include opportu2 nities that transition individuals into employ3 ment; and 

4 ‘‘(F) develop competency-based education 

5 programs that offer an outcome-oriented ap6 proach through which recognized postsecondary 

7 credentials are awarded based on successful 

8 demonstration of skills and proficiency. 

9 ‘‘(4) The development and implementation of— 

10 ‘‘(A) a Pay-for-Performance program that 

11 leads to a recognized postsecondary credential, 

12 for which an eligible entity agrees to be reim13 bursed under the grant primarily on the basis 

14 of achievement of specified performance out15 comes and criteria agreed to by the Secretary; 

16 or 

17 ‘‘(B) a Pay-for-Success program that leads 

18 to a recognized postsecondary credential, for 

19 which an eligible entity— 

20 ‘‘(i) enters into a partnership with an 

21 investor, such as a philanthropic organiza22 tion that provides funding for a specific 

23 project to address a clear and measurable 

24 educational or career training need in the 

25 area to be served under the grant; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) agrees to be reimbursed under 

2 the grant only if the project achieves speci3 fied performance outcomes and criteria 

4 agreed to by the Secretary. 

5 ‘‘(g) PERFORMANCE MEASURES.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab7 lish performance measures for the programs carried 

8 out under this section. 

9 ‘‘(2) MEASURES.—The performance measures 

10 shall consist of— 

11 ‘‘(A) indicators of performance, including 

12 the number of program participants who are in 

13 unsubsidized employment during the second 

14 quarter after exit from the program; and 

15 ‘‘(B) a level of performance for each indi16 cator described in subparagraph (A). 

17 ‘‘(3) MONITORING PROGRESS.—The Secretary 

18 shall monitor the progress of eligible entities that re19 ceive grants under this section in ensuring that their 

20 programs meet the performance measures. 

21 ‘‘SEC. 199A. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be ap23 propriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out 

24 the program established by section 199. Funds appro25 priated under this subsection shall remain available until 


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1 the end of the 5th full fiscal year after the date of enact2 ment of the Community College to Career Fund Act. 

3 ‘‘(b) ADMINISTRATIVE COST.—Not more than 5 per4 cent of the amounts made available under subsection (a) 

5 may be used by the Secretaries for Federal administration 

6 the program described in that subsection, including pro7 viding technical assistance and carrying out evaluations 

8 for the program described in that subsection. 

9 ‘‘(c) PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY.—The funds appro10 priated pursuant to subsection (a) for a fiscal year shall 

11 be available for Federal obligation for that fiscal year and 

12 the succeeding 4 fiscal years. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 199B. DEFINITIONS. 

14 ‘‘For purposes of this subtitle: 

15 ‘‘(1) COMMUNITY COLLEGE.—The term ‘com16 munity college’ has the meaning given the term ‘jun17 ior or community college’ in section 312(f) of the 

18 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058(f)). 

19 ‘‘(2) EDUCATIONAL OR CAREER TRAINING PRO20 GRAM.—The term ‘educational or career training 

21 program’ means— 

22 ‘‘(A) a career pathway program, as defined 

23 in section 3; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) a program with an integrated edu2 cation and training approach, as defined in sec3 tion 203.’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con5 tents for the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 

6 is amended by inserting after the items relating to subtitle 

7 E of title I the following: 

‘‘Subtitle F—Community College to Career Fund 

‘‘Sec. 199. Community college and industry partnerships program. 

‘‘Sec. 199A. Authorization of appropriations. 

‘‘Sec. 199B. Definition.’’. 

8 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This Act, including the 

9 amendments made by this Act, takes effect as if included 

10 in the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. 

Æ 


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