II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 864 

To extend Federal Pell Grant eligibility of certain short-term programs. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 18, 2021 

Mr. KAINE (for himself, Mr. PORTMAN, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, 

Mr. BLUNT, Mr. BRAUN, Mr. BROWN, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. CARDIN, Ms. 

COLLINS, Mr. COONS, Mr. CRAMER, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Ms. ERNST, Mrs. 

FEINSTEIN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Ms. HASSAN, Mr. HOEVEN, Mr. KELLY, 

Mr. KING, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. MORAN, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Ms. SINEMA, Ms. SMITH, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. WICKER, Mr. SULLIVAN, and Mr. INHOFE) introduced the following bill; which was read 

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

Pensions 

A BILL 

To extend Federal Pell Grant eligibility of certain shortterm programs. 

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‘‘Jumpstart Our Busi5 nesses by Supporting Students Act of 2021’’ or the 

6 ‘‘JOBS Act of 2021’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. EXTENDING FEDERAL PELL GRANT ELIGIBILITY OF 

2 CERTAIN SHORT-TERM PROGRAMS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

4 (1) PRIOR TO FAFSA SIMPLIFICATION.—Section 

5 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

6 U.S.C. 1070a) is amended by inserting after sub7 section (j) the following: 

8 ‘‘(k) JOB TRAINING FEDERAL PELL GRANT PRO9 GRAM.— 

10 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

11 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE CAREER PATHWAY PRO12 GRAM.—The term ‘eligible career pathway pro13 gram’ means a program that— 

14 ‘‘(i) meets the requirements of section 

15 484(d)(2); 

16 ‘‘(ii) is listed on the provider list 

17 under section 122(d) of the Workforce In18 novation and Opportunity Act; 

19 ‘‘(iii) is part of a career pathway, as 

20 defined in section 3 of that Act; and 

21 ‘‘(iv) is aligned to a program of study 

22 as defined in section 3 of the Carl D. Per23 kins Career and Technical Education Act 

24 of 2006. 

25 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE JOB TRAINING PRO26 GRAM.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘eligible 

2 job training program’ means a career and 

3 technical education program at an institu4 tion of higher education that— 

5 ‘‘(I) provides not less than 150, 

6 and not more than 600, clock hours of 

7 instructional time over a period of not 

8 less than 8 weeks and not more than 

9 15 weeks; 

10 ‘‘(II) provides training aligned 

11 with the requirements of high-skill, 

12 high-wage, or in-demand industry sec13 tors or occupations in the State or 

14 local area, as determined by an indus15 try or sector partnership; 

16 ‘‘(III) is a program of training 

17 services, and provided through an eli18 gible training provider, as described 

19 under section 122(d) of the Workforce 

20 Innovation and Opportunity Act; 

21 ‘‘(IV) provides a student, upon 

22 completion of the program, with a rec23 ognized postsecondary credential that 

24 is recognized by employers in the rel25 evant industry, including credentials 


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1 recognized by industry or sector part2 nerships in the relevant industry in 

3 the State or local area where the in4 dustry is located and the job training 

5 program is provided; 

6 ‘‘(V) has been determined by the 

7 institution of higher education (after 

8 validation of that determination by an 

9 industry or sector partnership) to pro10 vide academic content, an amount of 

11 instructional time, and a recognized 

12 postsecondary credential that are suf13 ficient to— 

14 ‘‘(aa) meet the hiring re15 quirements of potential employ16 ers; and 

17 ‘‘(bb) satisfy any applicable 

18 educational prerequisite require19 ment for professional licensure or 

20 certification, so that the student 

21 who completes the program and 

22 seeks employment qualifies to 

23 take any licensure or certification 

24 examination needed to practice or 

25 find employment in an occupaVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:33 Apr 11, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S864.IS S864

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1 tion that the program prepares 

2 students to enter; 

3 ‘‘(VI) may include integrated 

4 education and training; 

5 ‘‘(VII) may be offered as part of 

6 an eligible career pathway program; 

7 ‘‘(VIII) does not exceed by more 

8 than 50 percent the minimum number 

9 of clock hours required for training if 

10 the State has established such a re11 quirement; and 

12 ‘‘(IX) shall include institutional 

13 credit articulation for a student en14 rolled in a noncredit job training pro15 gram. 

16 ‘‘(ii) APPROVAL BY THE SEC17 RETARY.—In the case of a program that is 

18 seeking to establish eligibility as an eligible 

19 job training program under this subpara20 graph, the Secretary shall make a deter21 mination about whether the program meets 

22 the requirements of this subparagraph not 

23 more than 60 days after the date on which 

24 such program is submitted for consider25 ation as an eligible job training program. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) ADDITIONAL ASSURANCE.—The 

2 Secretary shall not determine that a pro3 gram is an eligible job training program in 

4 accordance with clause (ii) unless the Sec5 retary receives a certification from the ap6 propriate State board containing an assur7 ance that the program meets the require8 ments of clause (i). 

9 ‘‘(C) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDU10 CATION.—The term ‘institution of higher edu11 cation’ means— 

12 ‘‘(i) an institution of higher education, 

13 as defined in section 101; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) a postsecondary vocational insti15 tution, as defined in section 102(c). 

16 ‘‘(D) INSTITUTIONAL CREDIT ARTICULA17 TION.—The term ‘institutional credit articula18 tion’ means an institution of higher education 

19 provides a student who has completed a non20 credit program with the equivalent academic 

21 credit that may be applied to a subsequent 

22 credit-bearing certificate or degree program 

23 upon enrollment in such program at such insti24 tution. 


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1 ‘‘(E) WIOA DEFINITIONS.—The terms ‘in2 dustry or sector partnership’, ‘in-demand indus3 try sector or occupation’, ‘recognized postsec4 ondary credential’, and ‘State board’ have the 

5 meanings given such terms in section 3 of the 

6 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. 

7 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—For the award year begin8 ning on July 1, 2021, and each subsequent award 

9 year, the Secretary shall carry out a program 

10 through which the Secretary shall award Federal 

11 Pell Grants to students in eligible job training pro12 grams (referred to as a ‘job training Federal Pell 

13 Grant’). Each eligible job training Federal Pell 

14 Grant awarded under this subsection shall have the 

15 same terms and conditions, and be awarded in the 

16 same manner, as other Federal Pell Grants awarded 

17 under subsection (a), except as follows: 

18 ‘‘(A) A student who is eligible to receive a 

19 job training Federal Pell Grant under this sub20 section is a student who— 

21 ‘‘(i) has not yet attained a 

22 postbaccalaureate degree; 

23 ‘‘(ii) attends an institution of higher 

24 education; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) is enrolled, or accepted for en2 rollment, in an eligible job training pro3 gram at such institution of higher edu4 cation; and 

5 ‘‘(iv) meets all other eligibility re6 quirements for a Federal Pell Grant (ex7 cept with respect to the type of program of 

8 study, as provided in clause (iii)). 

9 ‘‘(B) The amount of a job training Federal 

10 Pell Grant for an eligible student shall be deter11 mined under subsection (b), except that sub12 section (b)(4) shall not apply. 

13 ‘‘(3) INCLUSION IN TOTAL ELIGIBILITY PE14 RIOD.—Any period during which a student receives 

15 a job training Federal Pell Grant under this sub16 section shall be included in calculating the student’s 

17 period of eligibility for Federal Pell Grants under 

18 subsection (c), and the eligibility requirements re19 garding students who are enrolled in an under20 graduate program on less than a full-time basis shall 

21 similarly apply to students who are enrolled in an el22 igible job training program at an eligible institution 

23 on less than a full-time basis.’’. 

24 (2) AFTER FAFSA SIMPLIFICATION ACT.—Sec25 tion 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 


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1 U.S.C. 1070a), as amended by section 703 of the 

2 FAFSA Simplification Act (title VII of division FF 

3 of Public Law 116–260), is further amended by add4 ing at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(k) JOB TRAINING FEDERAL PELL GRANT PRO6 GRAM.— 

7 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

8 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE CAREER PATHWAY PRO9 GRAM.—The term ‘eligible career pathway pro10 gram’ means a program that— 

11 ‘‘(i) meets the requirements of section 

12 484(d)(2); 

13 ‘‘(ii) is listed on the provider list 

14 under section 122(d) of the Workforce In15 novation and Opportunity Act; 

16 ‘‘(iii) is part of a career pathway, as 

17 defined in section 3 of that Act; and 

18 ‘‘(iv) is aligned to a program of study 

19 as defined in section 3 of the Carl D. Per20 kins Career and Technical Education Act 

21 of 2006. 

22 ‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE JOB TRAINING PRO23 GRAM.— 

24 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘eligible 

25 job training program’ means a career and 


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1 technical education program at an institu2 tion of higher education that— 

3 ‘‘(I) provides not less than 150, 

4 and not more than 600, clock hours of 

5 instructional time over a period of not 

6 less than 8 weeks and not more than 

7 15 weeks; 

8 ‘‘(II) provides training aligned 

9 with the requirements of high-skill, 

10 high-wage, or in-demand industry sec11 tors or occupations in the State or 

12 local area, as determined by an indus13 try or sector partnership; 

14 ‘‘(III) is a program of training 

15 services, and provided through an eli16 gible training provider, as described 

17 under section 122(d) of the Workforce 

18 Innovation and Opportunity Act; 

19 ‘‘(IV) provides a student, upon 

20 completion of the program, with a rec21 ognized postsecondary credential that 

22 is recognized by employers in the rel23 evant industry, including credentials 

24 recognized by industry or sector part25 nerships in the relevant industry in 


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1 the State or local area where the in2 dustry is located and the job training 

3 program is provided; 

4 ‘‘(V) has been determined by the 

5 institution of higher education (after 

6 validation of that determination by an 

7 industry or sector partnership) to pro8 vide academic content, an amount of 

9 instructional time, and a recognized 

10 postsecondary credential that are suf11 ficient to— 

12 ‘‘(aa) meet the hiring re13 quirements of potential employ14 ers; and 

15 ‘‘(bb) satisfy any applicable 

16 educational prerequisite require17 ment for professional licensure or 

18 certification, so that the student 

19 who completes the program and 

20 seeks employment qualifies to 

21 take any licensure or certification 

22 examination needed to practice or 

23 find employment in an occupa24 tion that the program prepares 

25 students to enter; 


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1 ‘‘(VI) may include integrated 

2 education and training; 

3 ‘‘(VII) may be offered as part of 

4 an eligible career pathway program; 

5 ‘‘(VIII) does not exceed by more 

6 than 50 percent the minimum number 

7 of clock hours required for training if 

8 the State has established such a re9 quirement; and 

10 ‘‘(IX) shall include institutional 

11 credit articulation for a student en12 rolled in a noncredit job training pro13 gram. 

14 ‘‘(ii) APPROVAL BY THE SEC15 RETARY.—In the case of a program that is 

16 seeking to establish eligibility as an eligible 

17 job training program under this subpara18 graph, the Secretary shall make a deter19 mination about whether the program meets 

20 the requirements of this subparagraph not 

21 more than 60 days after the date on which 

22 such program is submitted for consider23 ation as an eligible job training program. 

24 ‘‘(iii) ADDITIONAL ASSURANCE.—The 

25 Secretary shall not determine that a proVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:33 Apr 11, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S864.IS S864

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1 gram is an eligible job training program in 

2 accordance with clause (ii) unless the Sec3 retary receives a certification from the ap4 propriate State board containing an assur5 ance that the program meets the require6 ments of clause (i). 

7 ‘‘(C) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDU8 CATION.—The term ‘institution of higher edu9 cation’ means— 

10 ‘‘(i) an institution of higher education, 

11 as defined in section 101; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) a postsecondary vocational insti13 tution, as defined in section 102(c). 

14 ‘‘(D) INSTITUTIONAL CREDIT ARTICULA15 TION.—The term ‘institutional credit articula16 tion’ means an institution of higher education 

17 provides a student who has completed a non18 credit program with the equivalent academic 

19 credit that may be applied to a subsequent 

20 credit-bearing certificate or degree program 

21 upon enrollment in such program at such insti22 tution. 

23 ‘‘(E) WIOA DEFINITIONS.—The terms ‘in24 dustry or sector partnership’, ‘in-demand indus25 try sector or occupation’, ‘recognized postsecVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:33 Apr 11, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S864.IS S864

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1 ondary credential’, and ‘State board’ have the 

2 meanings given such terms in section 3 of the 

3 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. 

4 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—For the award year begin5 ning on July 1, 2023, and each subsequent award 

6 year, the Secretary shall carry out a program 

7 through which the Secretary shall award Federal 

8 Pell Grants to students in eligible job training pro9 grams (referred to as a ‘job training Federal Pell 

10 Grant’). Each eligible job training Federal Pell 

11 Grant awarded under this subsection shall have the 

12 same terms and conditions, and be awarded in the 

13 same manner, as other Federal Pell Grants awarded 

14 under subsection (b), except as follows: 

15 ‘‘(A) A student who is eligible to receive a 

16 job training Federal Pell Grant under this sub17 section is a student who— 

18 ‘‘(i) has not yet attained a 

19 postbaccalaureate degree; 

20 ‘‘(ii) attends an institution of higher 

21 education; 

22 ‘‘(iii) is enrolled, or accepted for en23 rollment, in an eligible job training pro24 gram at such institution of higher edu25 cation; and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) meets all other eligibility re2 quirements for a Federal Pell Grant (ex3 cept with respect to the type of program of 

4 study, as provided in clause (iii)). 

5 ‘‘(B) The amount of a job training Federal 

6 Pell Grant for an eligible student shall be deter7 mined under subsection (b), except that not8 withstanding subsection (b)(1)(B) a student 

9 who is eligible for less than the minimum Fed10 eral Pell Grant for an academic year in which 

11 the student is enrolled in an eligible program 

12 full time may still be eligible for a Federal Pell 

13 Grant. 

14 ‘‘(3) INCLUSION IN TOTAL ELIGIBILITY PE15 RIOD.—Any period during which a student receives 

16 a job training Federal Pell Grant under this sub17 section shall be included in calculating the student’s 

18 period of eligibility for Federal Pell Grants under 

19 subsection (d), and the eligibility requirements re20 garding students who are enrolled in an under21 graduate program on less than a full-time basis shall 

22 similarly apply to students who are enrolled in an el23 igible job training program at an eligible institution 

24 on less than a full-time basis.’’. 


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1 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

2 by paragraph (2) shall take effect as if included in 

3 section 703 of the FAFSA Simplification Act (title 

4 VII of division FF of Public Law 116–260) and sub5 ject to the effective date of section 701(b) of such 

6 Act. 

7 (b) ACCREDITING AGENCY RECOGNITION OF ELIGI8 BLE JOB TRAINING PROGRAMS.—Section 496(a)(4) of the 

9 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)(4)) 

10 is amended— 

11 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

12 after the semicolon; 

13 (2) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by inserting ‘‘and’’ 

14 after the semicolon; and 

15 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(C) if such agency or association has or 

17 seeks to include within its scope of recognition 

18 the evaluation of the quality of institutions of 

19 higher education participating in the job train20 ing Federal Pell Grant program under section 

21 401(k), such agency or association shall, in ad22 dition to meeting the other requirements of this 

23 subpart, demonstrate to the Secretary that, 

24 with respect to such eligible job training pro25 grams (as defined in that subsection)— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the agency or association’s stand2 ards include a process for determining if 

3 the institution has the capability to effec4 tively offer an eligible job training pro5 gram; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) the agency or association re7 quires a demonstration that the program— 

8 ‘‘(I) has identified each recog9 nized postsecondary credential offered 

10 and the corresponding industry or sec11 tor partnership that actively recog12 nizes each credential in the relevant 

13 industry in the State or local area 

14 where the industry is located; and 

15 ‘‘(II) provides the academic con16 tent and amount of instructional time 

17 that is sufficient to— 

18 ‘‘(aa) meet the hiring re19 quirements of potential employ20 ers; and 

21 ‘‘(bb) satisfy any applicable 

22 educational prerequisites for pro23 fessional licensure or certification 

24 requirements so that the student 

25 who completes the program and 


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1 seeks employment qualifies to 

2 take any licensure or certification 

3 examination that is needed to 

4 practice or find employment in 

5 an occupation that the program 

6 prepares students to enter.’’. 

7 (c) INTERAGENCY DATA SHARING.—The Secretary 

8 of Education shall coordinate and enter into a data shar9 ing agreement with the Secretary of Labor to ensure ac10 cess to data related to indicators of performance collected 

11 under section 116 of the Workforce Innovation and Oppor12 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3141). Under such data sharing 

13 agreement, the Commissioner of the National Center for 

14 Education Statistics shall collect and review the contents 

15 of performance reports for eligible providers of training 

16 services described in section 116(d)(4) of that Act not less 

17 frequently than once each year. 

18 (d) MINIMUM FEDERAL PELL GRANT.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 401(b)(4) of the 

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

21 1070a(b)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘ten percent’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘5 percent’’. 

23 (2) FAFSA SIMPLIFICATION.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 401(a)(2)(F) of 

25 the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 


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1 1070a(a)(2)(F)), as amended by section 703 of 

2 the FAFSA Simplification Act (title VII of divi3 sion FF of Public Law 116–260), is further 

4 amended by striking ‘‘ten percent’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘5 percent’’. 

6 (B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment 

7 made by this paragraph shall take effect as if 

8 included in section 703 of the FAFSA Sim9 plification Act (title VII of division FF of Pub10 lic Law 116–260) and subject to the effective 

11 date of section 701(b) of such Act. 

12 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Unless otherwise specified, 

13 this section, and the amendments made by this section, 

14 shall take effect on July 1, 2021. 

Æ 


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