I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2112 

To direct the Secretary of Labor to award funds to States to promote 

the skill acquisition, employment, and retention of individuals, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 19, 2021 

Ms. STEFANIK (for herself and Mr. CROW) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Labor to award funds to States 

to promote the skill acquisition, employment, and retention of individuals, 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 ‘‘American Workforce 

5 Recovery Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. STATE ALLOTMENTS AND LOCAL ALLOCATIONS. 

7 (a) STATE ALLOTMENTS.— 

8 (1) RESERVATION FOR OUTLYING AREAS.— 

9 From the amount made available under section 6(a) 


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1 for a fiscal year, the Secretary of Labor shall reserve 

not more than 1 2 ⁄4 of 1 percent of such amount to 

3 provide assistance to the outlying areas. 

4 (2) STATE ALLOTMENTS.—After determining 

5 the amount to be reserved under paragraph (1), the 

6 Secretary shall allot the remainder of the amount 

7 made available under section 6(a) for that fiscal year 

8 to the States in accordance with clause (ii) of section 

9 132(b)(2)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and Op10 portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3172(b)(2)(B)) for the ac11 tivities described in this Act, except that clause (iii) 

12 of such section shall not apply to allotments made 

13 under this paragraph. 

14 (b) WITHIN STATE ALLOCATION.— 

15 (1) RESERVATION FOR STATE USES.—The Gov16 ernor shall reserve not more than 15 percent of the 

17 amount allotted to the State under subsection (a)(2) 

18 for the State activities described in section 3. 

19 (2) ALLOCATIONS TO LOCAL AREAS.—After de20 termining the amount to be reserved under para21 graph (1) and not later than 30 days after receiving 

22 funds allotted under subsection (a)(2), the Governor 

23 shall allocate the remainder of such allotment to 

24 local areas in the State, on the basis of the alloca25 tion formula prescribed by the Governor of the State 


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1 under clause (i) of section 133(b)(2)(B) of the 

2 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

3 U.S.C. 3173(b)(2)(B)) for the program year that is 

4 in effect on the date of such allocation. 

5 (3) REALLOCATION REQUIREMENTS.—Any 

6 amounts allocated to a local area under paragraph 

7 (1) or (2) that remain unobligated for 1 year after 

8 the date of allocation may be reallocated to other 

9 local areas in the State by the Governor, as deter10 mined by the Governor. 

11 SEC. 3. STATE USES OF FUNDS. 

12 The State activities referred to in section 2(b)(1) are 

13 as follows: 

14 (1) Reviewing new applications from training 

15 providers seeking to be included on the list of eligi16 ble providers of training services under section 

17 122(d) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity 

18 Act (29 U.S.C. 3152(d)) for such State not later 

19 than 30 days after receipt of such application. 

20 (2) Evaluating the training providers included 

21 on the list of eligible providers of training services 

22 under section 122(d) of the Workforce Innovation 

23 and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3152(d)) for such 

24 State to determine if such providers have the capac25 ity to meet the job training needs of displaced workVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2112.IH H2112

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1 ers and the employment needs of employers in the 

2 State, including the capacity of remote or virtual 

3 training options in such State. 

4 (3) Carrying out activities to facilitate remote 

5 access to employment and training activities, includ6 ing career services, through a one-stop center. 

7 (4) Improving the quality of local and regional 

8 labor market information relating to in-demand in9 dustry sectors or occupations, including by ensuring 

10 such information is up-to-date, searchable, com11 parable, informed by best practices on public provi12 sion of credential information, and includes informa13 tion on skills required by in-demand industry sectors 

14 or occupations in the local area. 

15 (5) Improving the public availability and acces16 sibility of the performance reports of eligible train17 ing providers required under section 116(d)(4) of 

18 the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

19 U.S.C. 3141(d)(4)). 

20 (6) Carrying out any statewide employment and 

21 training activities under section 134(a)(3)(A) of the 

22 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

23 U.S.C. 3174(a)(3)(A)). 


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1 (7) Providing supplemental allocations to local 

2 areas most in need of additional employment and 

3 training resources, as determined by the Governor. 

4 SEC. 4. LOCAL AREA USES OF FUNDS. 

5 (a) USES OF FUNDS.— 

6 (1) REQUIRED USES.—A local area receiving an 

7 allocation under this Act shall use not less than 75 

8 percent of the allocation for the following: 

9 (A) To provide the following training or 

10 jobs: 

11 (i) Training services provided through 

12 individual training accounts described in 

13 subsection (b); 

14 (ii) On-the-job training, for which the 

15 local board may take into account the im16 pact of a qualifying emergency as a factor 

17 in determining whether to increase the 

18 amount of a reimbursement to an amount 

19 of up to 75 percent of the wage rate of a 

20 participant in accordance with section 

21 134(c)(3)(H) of the Workforce Innovation 

22 and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

23 3174(c)(3)(H)). 

24 (iii) Customized training, for which 

25 the local board may take into account the 


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1 impact of a qualifying emergency as a fac2 tor in determining the portion of the cost 

3 of training an employer shall provide. 

4 (iv) Transitional jobs that meet the 

5 requirements of section 134(d)(5) of the 

6 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 

7 (29 U.S.C. 3174(d)(5)). 

8 (v) Training programs for incumbent 

9 workers carried out in accordance with sec10 tion 134(d)(4) of the Workforce Innovation 

11 and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

12 3174(d)(4)). 

13 (B) To establish a Pandemic Reskilling 

14 Fund for dislocated workers participating in 

15 training services described in clauses (i) 

16 through (iii) of subparagraph (A). 

17 (2) AUTHORIZED USES.—A local area receiving 

18 an allocation under this Act may use the alloca19 tion— 

20 (A) to provide the career services described 

21 in paragraph (2) of section 134(c) of the Work22 force Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

23 U.S.C. 3174(c)(2)) to adults and dislocated 

24 workers— 


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1 (i) which shall include the 

2 prioritization of the use of the assessments 

3 and the development of individual employ4 ment plans described in subclauses (I) and 

5 (II) of paragraph (2)(A)(xii) of such sec6 tion 134(c), respectively; 

7 (ii) be based on the most recent local 

8 and regional labor market information re9 lating to in-demand industry sectors or oc10 cupations for such local area; and 

11 (iii) carried out in coordination with 

12 reemployment activities conducted under 

13 section 306 of the Social Security Act; 

14 (B) to provide the employment and train15 ing activities described in section 134(d)) of the 

16 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

17 U.S.C. 3174(d)); 

18 (C) to provide information to adults and 

19 dislocated workers on employers seeking indi20 viduals to participate in the on-the-job training 

21 described in subsection (b); and 

22 (D) for administrative costs to carry out 

23 the requirements of this section, as long as not 

24 more than 10 percent of the allocation is used 

25 for such costs. 


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1 (b) INDIVIDUAL TRAINING ACCOUNTS.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

3 134(c)(3)(G) of the Workforce Innovation and Op4 portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(3)(G)), an indi5 vidual training account established with an alloca6 tion made under this Act may be used to support— 

7 (A) on-the-job training if a work-based 

8 training agreement is established by the indi9 vidual and the employer, and is approved by the 

10 one-stop operator involved; or 

11 (B) training services with a provider de12 scribed in paragraph (3). 

13 (2) WORK-BASED TRAINING AGREEMENT.— 

14 (A) CONTENTS.—A work-based training 

15 agreement referred to in paragraph (1)(A) shall 

16 establish the length of training, the hourly wage 

17 rate of the individual, the skills necessary for 

18 the job, and the individual’s current skill level 

19 as of the date of the agreement, the skills to be 

20 learned during the training, any recognized 

21 postsecondary credential that may be acquired 

22 during the training, and the reimbursement to 

23 be provided to the employer. 

24 (B) DOCUMENTATION REQUIREMENTS.—A 

25 work-based training agreement that is approved 


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1 by the one-stop operator shall ensure that the 

2 individual provides the one-stop operator in3 volved with any documentation of the wages 

4 earned by the individual while engaged in such 

5 training for the purpose of reimbursement to 

6 the employer. 

7 (3) ELIGIBLE TRAINING PROVIDERS.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—An individual training 

9 account described in paragraph (1) established 

10 on behalf of an individual shall pay for training 

11 provided through— 

12 (i) a provider on the list of eligible 

13 providers of training services under section 

14 122(d) of the Workforce Innovation and 

15 Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3152(d)) for 

16 the State of the local area; or 

17 (ii) a training provider that is not on 

18 such list— 

19 (I) in a case in which the State 

20 board or local board approves such 

21 provider upon a determination that 

22 the individual is seeking training for 

23 an in-demand industry sector or occu24 pation in the local area for which such 


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1 provider has demonstrated effective2 ness; or 

3 (II) in a case in which an em4 ployer identifies such provider as hav5 ing the ability to help the individual 

6 acquire the skills necessary to be 

7 hired by such employer, and for which 

8 the employer covers not less than 20 

9 percent of the training cost. 

10 (B) PERFORMANCE REPORTS.—To receive 

11 a payment under an individual training account 

12 described in paragraph (1), a training provider 

13 described in subparagraph (A)(ii) shall submit 

14 the necessary information to be included in the 

15 performance report with respect to such pro16 vider under section 116(d)(4) of the Workforce 

17 Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

18 3141(d)(4)). 

19 (c) PANDEMIC RESKILLING FUND.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—For dislocated workers re21 ceiving training services under subsection (a)(1), the 

22 local area shall establish a Pandemic Reskilling 

23 Fund that the individual can access to receive reim24 bursement for supportive services necessary for the 

25 individual to participate in the training. 


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1 (2) ONE-STOP OPERATOR.—The one-stop oper2 ator involved shall— 

3 (A) have the discretion to approve an indi4 vidual’s supportive services expenses and make 

5 payments from the individual’s Pandemic 

6 Reskilling Fund; and 

7 (B) provide information, in formats that 

8 are usable by and understandable to one-stop 

9 center customers, relating to the availability of 

10 other supportive services and funding for such 

11 services in the local area. 

12 (3) AMOUNT PER INDIVIDUAL.—The Pandemic 

13 Reskilling Fund shall provide the following reim14 bursement amounts: 

15 (A) $1,000 for a dislocated worker who is 

16 a low-income individual. 

17 (B) $500 for a dislocated worker who is 

18 not covered under subparagraph (A). 

19 (4) COMPLETION INCENTIVE AND REALLOCA20 TION.— 

21 (A) COMPLETION INCENTIVE.—Any funds 

22 remaining in a Pandemic Reskilling Fund of an 

23 individual shall be provided in cash to the indi24 vidual if— 


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1 (i) not later than 6 weeks after an in2 dividual completes the training for which 

3 such Fund was established, the individual 

4 obtains full-time, unsubsidized employ5 ment; and 

6 (ii) the individual has been so em7 ployed for 6 weeks. 

8 (B) REALLOCATION.—With respect to any 

9 funds remaining in the Pandemic Reskilling 

10 Fund of an individual who does not meet the 

11 requirements of subparagraph (A), after com12 pletion of the training for which such Fund was 

13 established, such funds shall be returned to the 

14 local area for redistribution by such area. 

15 (d) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.—The requirements of 

16 section 134(c)(3)(B) of the Workforce Innovation and Op17 portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(3)(B)) shall not apply 

18 in determining an individual’s eligibility to receive training 

19 services funded under this section. 

20 SEC. 5. GAO REPORT. 

21 Not later than one year following the date of enact22 ment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 

23 States shall— 

24 (1) conduct an evaluation of the— 


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1 (A) flexibility provided through individual 

2 training accounts established under this Act; 

3 and 

4 (B) the overall effectiveness of the funds 

5 provided under this Act with respect to pro6 moting the skill acquisition, employment, and 

7 retention of the individuals who were assisted 

8 with such funds, including individuals with bar9 riers to employment, disaggregated— 

10 (i) by each subpopulation of such indi11 viduals; and 

12 (ii) by race, ethnicity, sex, and age. 

13 (2) submit the results of the evaluation to Con14 gress. 

15 SEC. 6. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 

16 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

17 are authorized to be appropriated $7,000,000,000 to carry 

18 out this Act. 

19 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 

20 (1) QUALIFYING EMERGENCY.—The term 

21 ‘‘qualifying emergency’’ has the meaning given the 

22 term in section 3502(a) of the CARES Act (20 

23 U.S.C. 1001 note). 

24 (2) SUPPORTIVE SERVICES.—The term ‘‘sup25 portive services’’ means services such as transporVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:26 May 25, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2112.IH H2112

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1 tation, child care, dependent care, housing, tech2 nology and equipment, and needs-related payments, 

3 that are necessary to enable an individual to partici4 pate in activities authorized under this Act. 

5 (3) WIOA DEFINITIONS.—Except as otherwise 

6 provided, a term used in this Act that is defined in 

7 section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Oppor8 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102) shall have the meaning 

9 given that term in such section. 

Æ 


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