II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 3226 

To require the Secretary of Labor to establish an offshore wind career 

training grant program, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 2, 2023 

Mr. MARKEY (for himself, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, Mr. CARDIN, 

and Mr. KAINE) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of Labor to establish an offshore 

wind career training grant program, 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 ‘‘Offshore Wind Jobs 

5 and Opportunity Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. OFFSHORE WIND CAREER TRAINING GRANT PRO7 GRAM. 

8 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

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1 (1) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON2 GRESS.—The term ‘‘appropriate committees of Con3 gress’’ means— 

4 (A) the Committee on Health, Education, 

5 Labor, and Pensions of the Senate; 

6 (B) the Committee on Energy and Natural 

7 Resources of the Senate; 

8 (C) the Committee on Education and the 

9 Workforce of the House of Representatives; and 

10 (D) the Committee on Energy and Com11 merce of the House of Representatives. 

12 (2) COMMUNITY COLLEGE.—The term ‘‘commu13 nity college’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘junior 

14 or community college’’ in section 312 of the Higher 

15 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058). 

16 (3) DISLOCATED WORKER.—The term ‘‘dis17 located worker’’ has the meaning given the term in 

18 section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Oppor19 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102). 

20 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti21 ty’’ means an entity that is— 

22 (A) an institution of higher education; 

23 (B) a labor organization; 

24 (C) a maritime center of excellence; or 

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1 (D) a nonprofit organization the primary 

2 mission of which is to provide education and 

3 training to meet the needs of maritime profes4 sionals and the United States maritime indus5 try. 

6 (5) GRANT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘grant pro7 gram’’ means the grant program established under 

8 subsection (d). 

9 (6) GRANTEE.—The term ‘‘grantee’’ means an 

10 eligible entity that has received a grant under this 

11 section. 

12 (7) INDIVIDUAL WITH A BARRIER TO EMPLOY13 MENT.—The term ‘‘individual with a barrier to em14 ployment’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

15 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 

16 (29 U.S.C. 3102). 

17 (8) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 

18 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 

19 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher 

20 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001). 

21 (9) LEAD APPLICANT.—The term ‘‘lead appli22 cant’’ means the eligible entity that is primarily re23 sponsible for the preparation, conduct, and adminis24 tration of the project for which a grant is awarded 

25 under this section. 

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1 (10) MARITIME CENTER OF EXCELLENCE.— 

2 The term ‘‘maritime center of excellence’’ means a 

3 center of excellence for domestic maritime workforce 

4 training and education designated by the Secretary 

5 of Transportation under section 51706(a) of title 46, 

6 United States Code. 

7 (11) QUALIFIED INTERMEDIARY.—The term 

8 ‘‘qualified intermediary’’ has the meaning given the 

9 term in section 3 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and 

10 Technical Education Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2302). 

11 (12) RECOGNIZED POSTSECONDARY CREDEN12 TIAL.—The term ‘‘recognized postsecondary creden13 tial’’ has the meaning given the term in section 3 of 

14 the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

15 U.S.C. 3102). 

16 (13) REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PRO17 GRAM.—The term ‘‘registered apprenticeship pro18 gram’’ means an apprenticeship program registered 

19 under the Act of August 16, 1937 (commonly known 

20 as the ‘‘National Apprenticeship Act’’) (50 Stat. 

21 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.). 

22 (14) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

23 means the Secretary of Labor. 

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1 (15) UNITED STATES MARITIME INDUSTRY.— 

2 The term ‘‘United States maritime industry’’ 

3 means— 

4 (A) all segments of the maritime-related 

5 transportation system of the United States, in6 cluding in— 

7 (i) domestic trade; 

8 (ii) foreign trade; and 

9 (iii) coastal, offshore, and inland 

10 waters; 

11 (B) non-commercial maritime activities, 

12 such as pleasure boating and marine sciences 

13 (including all scientific research vessels); and 

14 (C) all industries that support offshore 

15 wind development, including vessel construction 

16 and repair, vessel operations, ship logistics sup17 ply, berthing, port operations, port intermodal 

18 operations, marine terminal operations, vessel 

19 design, marine brokerage, marine insurance, 

20 marine financing, chartering, maritime-oriented 

21 supply chain operations, and maritime-oriented 

22 research and development. 

23 (16) VETERAN.—The term ‘‘veteran’’ has the 

24 meaning given the term in section 101 of title 38, 

25 United States Code. 

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1 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF EDUCATIONAL AND CAREER

2 TRAINING NEEDS.—Not later than 120 days after the 

3 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consulta4 tion with the Secretary of Energy, representatives from 

5 the offshore wind industry, the United States maritime in6 dustry, eligible entities, including eligible entities that are 

7 community colleges and labor organizations, State and 

8 local governments, ports, and nonprofit organizations, 

9 shall identify educational and career training needs with 

10 respect to the offshore wind industry, including needs re11 lating to manufacturing, construction, installation, oper12 ation, vessels, engineering training and education, and 

13 maintenance activities. 

14 (c) GUIDELINES.—Not later than 180 days after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— 

16 (1) issue guidelines for the submission of grant 

17 proposals under this section, which shall include a 

18 list of the educational and career training needs 

19 identified under subsection (b); and 

20 (2) publish and maintain the guidelines de21 scribed in paragraph (1) on a public website of the 

22 Secretary. 

23 (d) ESTABLISHMENT OF GRANT PROGRAM.—Not 

24 later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act 

25 and in consultation with the Secretary of Energy, the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:17 Nov 04, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3226.IS S3226
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1 retary shall establish a grant program under which the 

2 Secretary may award offshore wind career training grants 

3 to eligible entities for the purpose of developing, offering, 

4 or improving educational or career training programs that 

5 provide individuals who are enrolled in those programs 

6 with skills that are necessary for employment in the off7 shore wind industry or the United States maritime indus8 try. 

9 (e) ALLOCATION OF GRANTS.— 

10 (1) LIMITATION ON GRANT QUANTITY AND

11 SIZE.—In carrying out this section, the Secretary 

12 may not award to an eligible entity— 

13 (A) more than 1 grant for which the eligi14 ble entity is the lead applicant; or 

15 (B) a grant that is in an amount that is 

16 more than $2,500,000. 

17 (2) ALLOCATION TO ENTITIES WITH REG18 ISTERED APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAMS.—The Sec19 retary shall ensure that, in a fiscal year, not less 

20 than 25 percent of the total amount that the Sec21 retary awards in grants under this section is award22 ed to eligible entities that sponsor registered appren23 ticeship programs. 

24 (3) ALLOCATION OF CONSTRUCTION AND MAIN25 TENANCE GRANTS.—To the maximum extent pracVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:17 Nov 04, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3226.IS S3226
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1 ticable, the Secretary shall ensure that grants relat2 ing to construction and maintenance career training 

3 are reserved for— 

4 (A) eligible entities that sponsor a reg5 istered apprenticeship program or offer a pre6 apprenticeship program that facilitates entry 

7 into a registered apprenticeship program; and 

8 (B) eligible entities that are participating 

9 in a joint labor-management partnership. 

10 (f) PARTNERSHIPS.—An eligible entity seeking to re11 ceive a grant under this section may partner with 1 or 

12 more of the following: 

13 (1) Another eligible entity, including an eligible 

14 entity that is— 

15 (A) a community college; or 

16 (B) participating in a joint labor-manage17 ment partnership. 

18 (2) A State or local government agency respon19 sible for education, workforce development, or off20 shore wind energy activities. 

21 (3) A nonprofit organization. 

22 (4) A provider who is an eligible provider of 

23 training services under section 122 of the Workforce 

24 Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3152). 

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1 (g) USE OF GRANT.—An eligible entity may use a 

2 grant awarded under this section to carry out— 

3 (1) occupational skills training, including cur4 riculum and career pathway development, on-the-job 

5 training, safety and health training, and classroom 

6 training; 

7 (2) incumbent worker and career ladder train8 ing and retraining, including skill upgrading and 

9 transitional job strategizing; 

10 (3) individual referral and tuition assistance for 

11 a training program through which an individual may 

12 attain a recognized postsecondary credential; 

13 (4) customized training in conjunction with an 

14 existing registered apprenticeship program or pre15 apprenticeship program, paid internship, or joint 

16 labor-management partnership; and 

17 (5) other activities that the Secretary, in con18 sultation with the Secretary of Energy, determines 

19 meet the purposes of this section. 

20 (h) SUBMISSION PROCEDURE FOR GRANT PRO21 POSALS.—An eligible entity seeking to receive a grant 

22 under this section shall submit a grant proposal to the 

23 Secretary at such time, in such manner, and, in accord24 ance with the guidelines issued under subsection (c)(1), 

25 containing such information as the Secretary may require. 

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1 (i) CRITERIA FOR AWARD OF GRANTS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of 

3 appropriations, the Secretary may award a grant 

4 under this section only after an evaluation of— 

5 (A) the merits of the grant proposal with 

6 respect to the grant; 

7 (B) the employment opportunities or pro8 jected employment opportunities, including the 

9 projected wages, benefits, future skill and ca10 reer advancement opportunities, job security, 

11 and working conditions available to individuals 

12 who complete the educational or career training 

13 program that the eligible entity applying for the 

14 grant proposes to develop, offer, or improve; 

15 (C) the recruitment practices of the edu16 cational or career training program that the eli17 gible entity applying for the grant proposes to 

18 develop, offer, or improve to ensure such prac19 tices are free from discrimination and that un20 necessary educational, credential, or experience 

21 requirements are minimized; 

22 (D) the availability and capacity of existing 

23 educational or career training programs in the 

24 community served by the eligible entity applying 

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1 for the grant to meet future demand for the 

2 educational or career training programs; and 

3 (E) the employment opportunities or pro4 jected employment opportunities for members of 

5 groups that have been historically underserved 

6 in the engineering and construction of energy 

7 facilities or the engineering and manufacture of 

8 energy facility components. 

9 (2) PRIORITY.—In awarding grants under this 

10 section, the Secretary shall give priority to eligible 

11 entities that— 

12 (A) are— 

13 (i) institutions of higher education 

14 that have formed partnerships with labor 

15 organizations; 

16 (ii) labor organizations that have 

17 formed partnerships with institutions of 

18 higher education; 

19 (iii) nonprofit organizations described 

20 in subsection (a)(4)(D) that primarily 

21 serve members of a maritime labor organi22 zation; or 

23 (iv) labor organizations that support, 

24 sponsor, partner with, or are otherwise afVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:17 Nov 04, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3226.IS S3226
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1 filiated with a nonprofit organization de2 scribed in that subsection; 

3 (B) have entered into a memorandum of 

4 understanding with 1 or more employers in the 

5 offshore wind industry or the United States 

6 maritime industry to partner on the establish7 ment or expansion of the educational or career 

8 offshore wind training program that the eligible 

9 entity applying for the grant proposes to de10 velop, offer, or improve; or 

11 (C) will use the grant funds to assist indi12 viduals who are— 

13 (i) dislocated workers or mariners, 

14 with a focus on workers or mariners dis15 placed from the offshore oil and gas, on16 shore fossil fuel, nuclear energy, or fishing 

17 industry; 

18 (ii) veterans, members of the reserve 

19 components of the Armed Forces, or 

20 former members of those reserve compo21 nents; or 

22 (iii) individuals with a barrier to em23 ployment. 

24 (j) MATCHING REQUIREMENTS.—A grant awarded 

25 under this section may not be used to satisfy any nonVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:17 Nov 04, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3226.IS S3226
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1 Federal funds matching requirement under any other pro2 vision of law. 

3 (k) GRANTEE DATA COLLECTION.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—A grantee shall collect and 

5 report to the Secretary on an annual basis the fol6 lowing information regarding the educational or ca7 reer training program for which the grantee receives 

8 a grant under this section: 

9 (A) The number of participants enrolled in 

10 the educational or career training program (re11 ferred to in this subsection as ‘‘participants’’). 

12 (B) The number of participants that com13 pleted the educational or career training pro14 gram during the previous 1-year period. 

15 (C) The services received in the edu16 cational or career training program by the par17 ticipants, including a description of training, 

18 educational, and supportive services. 

19 (D) The amount of grant funds expended 

20 by the grantee per participant. 

21 (E) The rate of job placement of partici22 pants in the offshore wind industry, the United 

23 States maritime industry, or related fields that 

24 have completed the educational or career train25 ing program. 

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1 (F) The rate at which participants are re2 tained in positions of employment 1 year after 

3 the date on which the participant has completed 

4 the program. 

5 (G) The percentage of participants enrolled 

6 in the educational or career training program 

7 who obtain a recognized postsecondary creden8 tial or a secondary school diploma or its recog9 nized equivalent not later than 1 year after 

10 exiting the program. 

11 (H) The wage amount of participants 1 

12 year after program completion. 

13 (2) DISAGGREGATION OF DATA.—The data col14 lected and reported under this subsection shall be 

15 disaggregated by— 

16 (A) each population specified in subpara17 graphs (A) through (M) of section 3(24) of the 

18 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

19 U.S.C. 3102(24)); 

20 (B) race; 

21 (C) ethnicity; 

22 (D) sex; and 

23 (E) age. 

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1 (3) DATA COLLECTION ASSISTANCE.—The Sec2 retary shall assist grantees in the collection of data 

3 under this subsection— 

4 (A) by making available, in coordination 

5 with the Secretary of Energy and where prac6 ticable, low-cost means of tracking the labor 

7 market outcomes of participants; and 

8 (B) by providing standardized reporting 

9 forms, where appropriate. 

10 (l) TECHNICAL AND OVERSIGHT ASSISTANCE.—The 

11 Secretary shall provide technical assistance and over12 sight— 

13 (1) to assist eligible entities in applying for 

14 grants under this section; and 

15 (2) to assist grantees in administering grants 

16 received under this section. 

17 (m) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 

18 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 18 

19 months after the date on which the grant program 

20 is established, the Secretary shall submit to the ap21 propriate committees of Congress an initial report 

22 describing the results of the grant program, includ23 ing a description of— 

24 (A) the grantees that were awarded a 

25 grant under this section; and 

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1 (B) the activities for which the grantees 

2 described in subparagraph (A) used a grant 

3 awarded under this section. 

4 (2) ADDITIONAL REPORTS.—Not later than 2 

5 years after the date on which the initial report is 

6 submitted under paragraph (1), and every 2 years 

7 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the appro8 priate committees of Congress a report describing 

9 the results of the grant program for the 2-year pe10 riod preceding the report. 

11 (n) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

13 appropriated to carry out this section $25,000,000 

14 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028. 

15 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—The Sec16 retary may use not more than 4 percent of the 

17 amount appropriated under paragraph (1) for each 

18 fiscal year for administrative expenses, including ex19 penses relating to providing technical assistance and 

20 oversight activities under subsection (l). 

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