I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 496 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to extend Federal Pell Grant 

eligibility to certain short-term workforce programs. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 25, 2023 

Ms. STEFANIK (for herself, Ms. FOXX, Mr. BANKS, Mrs. HINSON, and Mr. 

THOMPSON of Pennsylvania) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to extend 

Federal Pell Grant eligibility to certain short-term workforce 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 ‘‘Promoting Employ5 ment and Lifelong Learning Act’’ or the ‘‘PELL Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY FOR WORKFORCE PELL 

7 GRANTS. 

8 Section 481(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

9 (20 U.S.C. 1088(b)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

2 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; and 

3 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(3) (A) A program is an eligible program for 

6 purposes of the Workforce Pell Grants program 

7 under section 401(k) only if— 

8 ‘‘(i) it is at least 150 clock hours of in9 struction, but not more than 600 clock hours of 

10 instruction, or an equivalent number of credit 

11 hours, offered during a minimum of 8 weeks, 

12 but not more than 15 weeks; 

13 ‘‘(ii) it is determined by an accrediting 

14 agency or association recognized by the Sec15 retary pursuant to section 496(a) to— 

16 ‘‘(I) provide an education aligned with 

17 the requirements of in-demand industry 

18 sectors or occupations, as defined in sec19 tion 3 of the Workforce Innovation and 

20 Opportunity Act; 

21 ‘‘(II) meet the hiring requirements of 

22 potential employers in the sectors or occu23 pations described in subclause (I); 

24 ‘‘(III) have been offered by an institu25 tion for not less than 1 year prior to a deVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:39 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H496.IH H496

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1 termination by such agency or association 

2 under this paragraph; 

3 ‘‘(IV) have a verified completion rate 

4 of at least 70 percent, calculated so as to 

5 ensure that a student shall be counted as 

6 a completion if the student completes the 

7 program within 150 percent of the normal 

8 time for completion; and 

9 ‘‘(V) have verified a job placement 

10 rate of at least 70 percent; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) for each award year, the total 

12 amount of the published tuition and fees of the 

13 program for such year is an amount that does 

14 not exceed the value-added earnings of students 

15 who received Federal financial aid under this 

16 title and who completed the program 3 years 

17 prior to the award year, as such earnings are 

18 determined by calculating the difference be19 tween— 

20 ‘‘(I) the median earnings of such stu21 dents, as adjusted by the State and metro22 politan area regional price parities of the 

23 Bureau of Economic Analysis based on the 

24 location of such program; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) 150 percent of the poverty line 

2 applicable to a single individual as deter3 mined under section 673(2) of the Commu4 nity Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 

5 9902(2)) for such year. 

6 ‘‘(B)(i) In the case of a program that has not 

7 previously participated in programs under this title 

8 and is being determined eligible for the first time 

9 under this paragraph, the Secretary may consider 

10 such program to be an eligible program for purposes 

11 of the Workforce Pell Grants program under section 

12 401(k) for a provisional eligibility period that may 

13 not exceed 3 years, if such program— 

14 ‘‘(I) subject to subclause (II), meets the 

15 requirements of subparagraph (A); and 

16 ‘‘(II) in lieu of the determination of me17 dian earnings under subclause (I) of subpara18 graph (A)(iii), provides to the Secretary for 

19 purposes of meeting the requirements of sub20 paragraph (A)(iii), alternate earnings of stu21 dents who complete the program, which are sta22 tistically rigorous, accurate, comparable, and 

23 representative of students who complete such 

24 program. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) In a case in which the Secretary deter2 mines that a program provided inaccurate earnings 

3 data under clause (i)(II) for purposes of receiving 

4 provisional eligibility under clause (i), such program 

5 shall return to the Secretary any funds received 

6 under this title during the period beginning on first 

7 date of the provisional eligibility period and ending 

8 on the date of determination under this clause. 

9 ‘‘(C) The Secretary shall establish an appeals 

10 process to permit eligible programs for purposes of 

11 the Workforce Pell Grants program under section 

12 401(k) to submit alternate earnings data to comply 

13 with subparagraph (A)(iii), provided that such data 

14 are statistically rigorous, accurate, comparable, and 

15 representative of students who receive a Workforce 

16 Pell Grant and complete the eligible program.’’. 

17 SEC. 3. DATA COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION RELATED 

18 TO WORKFORCE PELL. 

19 Section 131 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

20 U.S.C. 1015) is amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(i) DATA COLLECTION AND DISSEMINATION RE23 LATED TO WORKFORCE PELL.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, on an 

25 annual basis, collect, verify, and make publicly availVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:39 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H496.IH H496

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1 able on the College Scorecard or any similar suc2 cessor website, the information required under 

3 clause (i), subclauses (IV) and (V) of clause (ii), and 

4 clause (iii), and of subsection (b)(3)(A) of section 

5 481, with respect to each eligible program that 

6 meets the requirements of section 481(b)(3), includ7 ing— 

8 ‘‘(A) the length of the program (as meas9 ured in clock hours, credit hours, or weeks); 

10 ‘‘(B) the number of students enrolled in 

11 the eligible program during the most recent 

12 academic year for which data is available; 

13 ‘‘(C) the percentage of students who enroll 

14 in the eligible program and who complete the 

15 eligible program within— 

16 ‘‘(i) 150 percent of the normal time 

17 for completion of such program; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) 200 percent of the normal time 

19 for completion of such program; 

20 ‘‘(D) the percentage of students who are 

21 employed not later than 180 days after com22 pleting the eligible program; and 

23 ‘‘(E) the percentage of individuals— 

24 ‘‘(i) who have completed such eligible 

25 program; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) 3 years after such completion, 

2 whose median earnings exceed 150 percent 

3 of the poverty line applicable to a single in4 dividual, as determined under section 

5 673(2) of the Community Services Block 

6 Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)). 

7 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Notwithstanding any other 

8 provision of this subsection, if disclosure of any data 

9 under paragraph (1) is prohibited under State or 

10 Federal privacy laws or regulations, the Secretary 

11 shall take such steps as the Secretary determines 

12 necessary to make publicly available such data in ac13 cordance with such laws and regulations.’’. 

14 SEC. 4. WORKFORCE PELL GRANTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 401 of the Higher Edu16 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a), as amended by sec17 tion 703 of the FAFSA Simplification Act (title VII of 

18 division FF of Public Law 116–260), is amended by add19 ing at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(k) WORKFORCE PELL GRANTS PROGRAM.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For the award year begin22 ning on July 1, 2024, and each subsequent award 

23 year, the Secretary shall award grants (referred to 

24 as ‘Workforce Pell Grants’) to eligible students 


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1 under paragraph (2) in accordance with this sub2 section. 

3 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE STUDENTS.—For award year 

4 2024–2025 and each succeeding award year, to be 

5 eligible to receive a Workforce Pell Grant under this 

6 subsection for any period of enrollment, a student 

7 shall meet the eligibility requirements for a Federal 

8 Pell Grant under this section, except that the stu9 dent— 

10 ‘‘(A) shall be enrolled, or accepted for en11 rollment, in an eligible program described in 

12 section 481(b)(3); and 

13 ‘‘(B) may not have received a 

14 postbaccalaureate degree. 

15 ‘‘(3) TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF AWARDS.— 

16 The Secretary shall award Workforce Pell Grants 

17 under this subsection in the same manner and with 

18 the same terms and conditions as the Secretary 

19 awards Federal Pell Grants under subsection (b), ex20 cept that a student who is eligible for a grant equal 

21 to less than the amount of the minimum Federal 

22 Pell Grant because the eligible workforce develop23 ment program in which the student is enrolled or ac24 cepted for enrollment is less than an academic year 


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1 (in hours of instruction or weeks of duration) may 

2 still be eligible for a Workforce Pell Grant. 

3 ‘‘(4) PREVENTION OF DOUBLE BENEFITS.—No 

4 eligible student described in paragraph (2) may, for 

5 the same period of enrollment, receive both a grant 

6 under this subsection and a Federal Pell Grant 

7 under subsection (b).’’. 

8 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

9 subsection (a) shall take effect as if included in section 

10 703 of the FAFSA Simplification Act (title VII of division 

11 FF of Public Law 116–260; 134 Stat. 3191) and in ac12 cordance with section 701(b) of such Act. 

13 SEC. 5. ACCREDITING AGENCY DETERMINATION OF ELIGI14 BILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE WORK15 FORCE PELL GRANTS PROGRAM. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 496(a)(4) of the Higher 

17 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b(a)(4)) is amend18 ed— 

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

20 the end; 

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

22 at the end; and 

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

24 ‘‘(C) if such agency or association has or seeks 

25 to include within its scope of recognition the evaluaVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:39 Mar 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H496.IH H496

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1 tion of the quality of institutions offering an eligible 

2 program for purposes of the Workforce Pell Grants 

3 program (in accordance with section 481(b)(3)), 

4 such agency or association shall, in addition to meet5 ing the other requirements of this subpart, dem6 onstrate to the Secretary that, with respect to such 

7 eligible programs— 

8 ‘‘(i) the agency’s or association’s standards 

9 include a process for determining if the institu10 tion has the capability to effectively offer such 

11 an eligible program; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) the agency or association requires a 

13 demonstration that the program— 

14 ‘‘(I) satisfies the requirements of sub15 paragraph (A)(ii) of section 481(b)(3); and 

16 ‘‘(II) provides academic content, an 

17 amount of instructional time, and com18 petencies to satisfy any applicable edu19 cational requirement so that a student who 

20 completes the program and seeks employ21 ment is qualified to practice or work in the 

22 sectors or occupations that the program 

23 prepares students to enter;’’. 

24 (b) ADDITIONAL NACIQI REVIEW MEETINGS.—For 

25 the purpose of preparing for the implementation of the 


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1 Workforce Pell Grant program under section 401(k) of the 

2 Higher Education Act of 1965 (as added by section 4), 

3 in addition to the meetings required under section 

4 114(d)(1) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

5 U.S.C. 1011c(d)(1)), the National Advisory Committee on 

6 Institutional Quality and Integrity (as established by such 

7 section 114) shall, through 2025, hold meetings to evalu8 ate the additions to the scope of recognition of accrediting 

9 agencies and associations with respect to an eligible pro10 gram for purposes of the Workforce Pell Grants program 

11 (in accordance with section 481(b)(3) of the Higher Edu12 cation Act of 1965, as added by section 2). 

13 (c) INTERIM ACCREDITATION AUTHORITY.— 

14 (1) NOTIFICATION.—Beginning on the date of 

15 enactment of this Act, a qualified accrediting agency 

16 or association which seeks to include within its scope 

17 of recognition the evaluation of the quality of insti18 tutions offering eligible programs for the purposes of 

19 the Workforce Pell Grants program, may include 

20 within its scope of recognition the evaluation of such 

21 institutions if the accrediting agency or associa22 tion— 

23 (A) submits to the Secretary a notification 

24 of the agency’s or association’s intent to add 


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1 the evaluation of such institutions to its scope 

2 of recognition; and 

3 (B) includes with such notification an ex4 planation of how the agency or association in5 tends to meet the criteria under section 

6 496(a)(4)(C) of the Higher Education Act of 

7 1965 (as added by subsection (a)) with respect 

8 to the evaluation of institutions for purposes of 

9 the Workforce Pell Grants program. 

10 (2) REVIEW OF SCOPE OF CHANGES.—Upon re11 ceipt of a notification from an accrediting agency or 

12 association under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

13 direct the National Advisory Committee on Institu14 tional Quality and Integrity (as established by sec15 tion 114 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

16 U.S.C. 1011c)) to evaluate, at the next available 

17 meeting of such Committee, the addition to the 

18 scope of recognition of the agency or association and 

19 to advise the Secretary with respect to whether the 

20 agency or association meets the criteria under sec21 tion 496(a)(4)(C) of the Higher Education Act of 

22 1965 (as added by subsection (a)). 

23 (3) TERMINATION OF INTERIM AUTHORITY.— 

24 The interim authority under this subsection for an 

25 agency or association to include within its scope of 


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1 recognition the evaluation of the quality of institu2 tions offering eligible programs for the purposes of 

3 the Workforce Pell Grants program shall terminate 

4 on the earlier of— 

5 (A) the date that is 5 years after the date 

6 of enactment of this Act; or 

7 (B) the date on which the Secretary deter8 mines whether such agency or association meets 

9 the criteria under section 496(a)(4)(C) of the 

10 Higher Education Act of 1965 (as added by 

11 subsection (a)). 

12 (4) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

13 (A) The term ‘‘qualified accrediting agency 

14 or association’’ means an accrediting agency or 

15 association recognized by the Secretary under 

16 section 496 of the Higher Education Act of 

17 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1099b) that seeks, for the 

18 first time, to add to its scope of recognition the 

19 evaluation of the quality of institutions offering 

20 an eligible program for purposes of the Work21 force Pell Grants program. 

22 (B) The term ‘‘Workforce Pell Grants pro23 gram’’ means the Workforce Pell Grant pro24 gram under section 401(k) of the Higher Edu25 cation Act of 1965 (as added by section 4). 


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1 SEC. 6. ORDERLY IMPLEMENTATION OF WORKFORCE PELL 

2 GRANT PROGRAM. 

3 The Secretary of Education shall have the authority 

4 to take such steps as are necessary before July 1, 2024, 

5 to provide for the orderly implementation on such date of 

6 the amendments to the Higher Education Act of 1965 

7 made by this Act. 

Æ 


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