I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5908 

To provide funding to summer youth employment programs to expand the 

availability of subsidized jobs for youths and to develop innovative program activities that improve academic, economic, and criminal justice 

outcomes for youths, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 6, 2023 

Ms. SHERRILL (for herself, Mr. LAWLER, Mr. DAVIS of North Carolina, Mrs. 

FOUSHEE, Mr. GOTTHEIMER, Mr. KIM of New Jersey, Ms. MANNING, 

Mr. PANETTA, and Mr. TRONE) introduced the following bill 

OCTOBER 25, 2023 

Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL 

To provide funding to summer youth employment programs 

to expand the availability of subsidized jobs for youths 

and to develop innovative program activities that improve 

academic, economic, and criminal justice outcomes for 

youths, 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 ‘‘Strengthening Commu5 nities through Summer Employment Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS; DISTRIBU2 TION OF FUNDS . 

3 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

4 authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Labor 

5 to carry out this Act— 

6 (1) $200,000,000 for fiscal year 2024; 

7 (2) $210,000,000 for fiscal year 2025; 

8 (3) $220,000,000 for fiscal year 2026; 

9 (4) $230,000,000 for fiscal year 2027; and 

10 (5) $240,000,000 for fiscal year 2028. 

11 (b) DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS.—Of the amounts ap12 propriated under subsection (a), the Secretary of Labor 

13 shall use— 

14 (1) 45 percent of such amount to award grants 

15 under section 3; 

16 (2) 45 percent of such amount to award grants 

17 under section 4; 

18 (3) 5 percent of such amount to carry out eval19 uation activities under section 5(b); and 

20 (4) 5 percent of such amount to fund the Advi21 sory Board under section 6. 

22 SEC. 3. EXPANSION AND SCALING OF SUMMER YOUTH EM23 PLOYMENT PROGRAMS. 

24 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts avail25 able under section 2(b)(1), the Secretary of Labor shall 

26 award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible entities 


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1 to develop and implement new, or expand existing, sum2 mer youth employment programs in a State or local area, 

3 for the purpose of improving academic, economic, and 

4 criminal justice outcomes for participants, including— 

5 (1) high school graduation rates; 

6 (2) enrollment rates in postsecondary education; 

7 (3) employment and wage rates; and 

8 (4) arrest, conviction, and incarceration rates. 

9 (b) GRANT PRIORITIZATION.—In awarding grants to 

10 eligible entities under this section, the Secretary of Labor, 

11 in coordination with the Advisory Board, shall prioritize 

12 eligible entities that, based upon the applications sub13 mitted under subsection (c)— 

14 (1) have higher youth unemployment rates and 

15 violent crime rates in the local areas to be served; 

16 (2) will offer higher quality and more rigorous 

17 the summer youth employment programs (which 

18 shall include a consideration of whether the program 

19 has been evaluated and, if so, the impact of the pro20 gram on the youth outcomes listed under subsection 

21 (a)); and 

22 (3) will serve a higher number of youth histori23 cally underserved by summer youth employment pro24 grams, including youth in rural and suburban local 

25 areas. 


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1 (c) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible to 

2 receive a grant under this section, an eligible entity shall 

3 submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in 

4 such manner, and containing such information as the Sec5 retary may determine to be necessary, which shall include 

6 information that demonstrates that the eligible entity will 

7 use such grant to develop and implement, or expand, a 

8 summer youth employment program that includes each of 

9 the elements listed in subsection (d). 

10 (d) REQUIRED ELEMENTS FOR SUMMER YOUTH EM11 PLOYMENT PROGRAMS.—A summer youth employment 

12 program funded under this section shall include each of 

13 the following elements: 

14 (1) Provides youth participants under the age 

15 of 25 with subsidized employment for at least 4 

16 weeks during the summer. 

17 (2) Pays at least the greater of the applicable 

18 Federal, State, or local minimum wage. 

19 (3) Provides community engagement and out20 reach to ensure equitable access to the program in 

21 terms of awareness, application process, and comple22 tion of the hiring process, including documentation 

23 of eligibility. 


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1 (4) Matches each youth participant with an em2 ployer based on the needs of the employer and the 

3 skills and interests of the youth participant. 

4 (5) Provides coaching and mentoring services 

5 for each youth participant to support the partici6 pant’s completion of the summer employment pro7 gram. 

8 (6) Provides assistance to each youth partici9 pant in obtaining educational and employment op10 portunities after the completion of the program, 

11 such as by connecting participants with secondary 

12 school programs, postsecondary education opportuni13 ties, apprenticeships, career and technical education, 

14 or adult job training programs, if applicable. 

15 (7) Provides training, coaching, and mentoring 

16 services, and technical assistance to participating 

17 employers to best help such employers structure the 

18 job opportunities of the employers to meet the em19 ployer’s needs and the support the success of youth 

20 participants. 

21 (8) Provides program supports to youth partici22 pants before, during, and after their program (such 

23 as digital literacy training, work-readiness opportu24 nities, financial literacy training, specific job trainVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:27 Nov 01, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5908.IH H5908

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1 ing for their summer job placement, and career 

2 counseling services). 

3 SEC. 4. IMPLEMENTATION OF INNOVATIVE PROGRAM AC4 TIVITIES. 

5 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts ap6 propriated under section 2(b)(2) for this section, the Sec7 retary of Labor shall provide grants, on a competitive 

8 basis, to eligible entities that operate summer youth em9 ployment programs that include each of the program ele10 ments listed in section 3(d) to integrate innovative ap11 proaches in carrying out such programs for the purposes 

12 of improving the youth outcomes listed under section 3(a). 

13 (b) GRANT PRIORITIZATION.—In awarding grants to 

14 eligible entities under this section, the Secretary of Labor, 

15 in coordination with the Advisory Board, shall prioritize 

16 eligible entities that, based upon the applications sub17 mitted under subsection (c)— 

18 (1) have higher youth unemployment rates and 

19 violent crime rates in the local areas to be served; 

20 (2) will offer a higher quality and more rigorous 

21 summer youth employment program (which shall in22 clude a consideration of whether the program has 

23 been evaluated and, if so, the impact of the program 

24 on the youth outcomes listed in section 3(a)); 


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1 (3) will offer a higher quality and more rigorous 

2 innovative approach for such program (which shall 

3 include a consideration of whether that innovative 

4 approach has been evaluated and, if so, the impact 

5 of the innovative approach on the youth outcomes 

6 listed under section 3(a)); and 

7 (4) will serve a higher number of youth histori8 cally underserved by summer youth employment pro9 grams, including youth in rural and suburban local 

10 areas. 

11 (c) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for 

12 a grant under this section, an eligible entity shall submit 

13 to the Secretary an application at such time, and in such 

14 manner as may be required by the Secretary, which in15 cludes a description of the plan to integrate one or more 

16 of the innovative approaches listed in subsection (d) into 

17 the summer youth employment program operated by the 

18 eligible entity. 

19 (d) INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO SUMMER YOUTH

20 EMPLOYMENT PROGRAMS.—An eligible entity that oper21 ates a summer youth employment program that includes 

22 the required program elements listed in section 3(d) shall 

23 use funds received under this section to integrate into such 

24 program one or more of the following innovative ap25 proaches: 


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1 (1) Individualized mentoring and coaching for 

2 youth participants, under which each youth partici3 pant— 

4 (A) before and after the participant starts 

5 the program and regularly during the program, 

6 meets one-on-one with a dedicated mentor; 

7 (B) develops a comprehensive success plan 

8 with the mentor, including academic and em9 ployment goals and the steps needed to achieve 

10 such goals; 

11 (C) receives other support from the men12 tor, which shall include— 

13 (i) coaching to overcome barriers that 

14 could impact progress in completing the 

15 employment received under the summer 

16 youth employment program; 

17 (ii) providing letters of recommenda18 tion; and 

19 (iii) making referrals to educational 

20 and social services, where necessary. 

21 (2) High-quality job training, career counseling, 

22 or educational tutoring programs to be delivered in 

23 small group settings before the program, on evenings 

24 and weekends during the program, and after the 

25 program, with the goal of preparing youth particiVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:27 Nov 01, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5908.IH H5908

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1 pants for future employment, which shall include as2 sisting youth participants— 

3 (A) with developing resumes and inter4 viewing skills, and financial literacy; and 

5 (B) in completing a regular high school di6 ploma or its recognized equivalent and literacy 

7 classes, if applicable. 

8 (3) Social-emotional learning for youth partici9 pants, including proven interventions to help develop 

10 empathy, self-efficacy, positive decision-making, and 

11 communication skills. 

12 (4) Wrap-around financial assistance services, 

13 including for food, shelter, and transportation. 

14 (5) Mental health supports for youth partici15 pants, as applicable. 

16 (6) Substance abuse and addiction treatment 

17 supports for youth participants, as applicable. 

18 (7) The continuation of certain program ele19 ments (particularly the individualized mentoring, 

20 mental health and behavioral supports, and career 

21 counseling), in coordination with their school dis22 tricts, for a period of time after the employment por23 tion of the program ends to help participants con24 tinue their engagement with the education and em25 ployment system, with financial assistance available 


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1 to youth who continue to participate in these pro2 gram elements after their summer employment has 

3 ended. 

4 (8) The provision of one or more of the pro5 gram elements listed in section 3(d) virtually to de6 velop digital literacy and remote work skills that are 

7 a part of many professional settings. 

8 (9) The provision of Learn and Earn opportuni9 ties, in which participants take postsecondary or 

10 training courses during nonsummer months coupled 

11 with work experience in related fields during the 

12 summer. 

13 (10) The expansion of private sector opportuni14 ties with employers in in-demand occupations or in15 dustry sectors (as defined in section 3 of the Work16 force Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

17 3102)), such as information technology, health care, 

18 life sciences, and vocational careers. 

19 (11) The development of skill-based digital 

20 badges issued by cities that are recognized by high 

21 schools, community colleges, and employers. 

22 (12) The laddering of job opportunities from 

23 one summer to the next to enable participants to 

24 build skills over multiple summers by progressing 

25 from entry-level to more senior positions that further 


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1 develop soft skills (such as leadership skills) or hard 

2 skills (such as technical skills). 

3 (13) A program element identified by the Advi4 sory Board under section 6(i)(3). 

5 (14) A new innovative program element that is 

6 not identified by the Advisory Board under section 

7 6(i)(3) and is not listed in this subsection, which 

8 is— 

9 (A) proposed by the eligible entity in the 

10 application submitted under subsection (b); 

11 (B) determined by the Secretary, in con12 sultation with the Advisory Board, as being rea13 sonably expected to demonstrate evidence, in 

14 the case of an element in which such evidence 

15 does not exist, in carrying out the purposes de16 scribed in subsection (a). 

17 SEC. 5. EVALUATION ACTIVITIES. 

18 (a) PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT ASSESSMENTS.— 

19 Beginning not later than 1 year after receiving such grant 

20 and for each succeeding year of the grant period, each eli21 gible entity receiving a grant under section 3 or 4, in con22 sultation with the Advisory Board established under sec23 tion 6, shall develop and implement a performance meas24 urement assessment of such program to assess whether 


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1 the program is being implemented in a way that meets 

2 the requirements of section 3 or 4, respectively. 

3 (b) IMPACT EVALUATIONS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—From the amounts appro5 priated under section 2(b)(3), the Secretary of 

6 Labor shall, in consultation with the Advisory Board 

7 established under section 6, award a contract to one 

8 or more independent research organizations or non9 profit organizations to carry out evaluations to 

10 measure the impact of each summer youth employ11 ment program that is being supported by a grant 

12 awarded under section 3 or 4. 

13 (2) REQUIREMENTS OF EVALUATIONS.—An im14 pact evaluation of a program that is being supported 

15 by a grant awarded under section 3 or 4 shall meet 

16 the following requirements: 

17 (A) The evaluation begins not later than 3 

18 years after the program first receives such sup19 port. 

20 (B) The evaluation shall meet each of the 

21 following: 

22 (i) Impact evaluation design and anal23 ysis methods are shared with the Advisory 

24 Board before the beginning of the evalua25 tion. 


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1 (ii) The evaluation uses administrative 

2 data to assess the impact of the program 

3 as a whole on participants for 1 year, 3 

4 years, and 5 years after the completion of 

5 the program on each of the following: 

6 (I) High school graduation rates. 

7 (II) Enrollment rates in postsec8 ondary education. 

9 (III) Employment and wage 

10 rates. 

11 (IV) Crime rates (such as arrest, 

12 arraignment, or incarceration rates). 

13 (iii) The evaluation uses survey data 

14 collected during the program to assess pro15 gram impacts on short-term changes in 

16 soft skills (such as such as interpersonal, 

17 communication, and time management 

18 skills), academic and career goals, and job 

19 readiness. 

20 (iv) The evaluation uses randomized 

21 experimental designs, when feasible, or 

22 other research methods that allow for the 

23 strongest possible causal inferences when 

24 random assignment is not feasible. 


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1 (3) ADVISORY BOARD.—In assisting the organi2 zation that receives a contract under this subsection, 

3 the Advisory Board established under section 6 shall 

4 provide additional resources to such organization to 

5 carry out the evaluations under this subsection, in6 cluding assistance with using randomized experi7 mental designs. 

8 SEC. 6. ADVISORY BOARD. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—From the amounts available 

10 under section 2(b)(4), the Secretary of Labor shall estab11 lish within the Department of Labor an Advisory Board 

12 to carry out the duties listed in subsection (i). 

13 (b) MEMBERS.— 

14 (1) NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—The Secretary 

15 shall determine the number of members to serve on 

16 the Advisory Board. 

17 (2) APPOINTMENT AND EXPERTISE.—Each 

18 member of the Advisory Board shall be appointed by 

19 the Secretary of Labor, and shall have expertise in 

20 designing and administering summer youth employ21 ment programs or experience in program evaluation 

22 and evidence-based policy in the workforce develop23 ment field. 

24 (3) TERMS.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each member shall be 

2 appointed for a term of 4 years, and may be re3 appointed for subsequent terms by the Sec4 retary. 

5 (B) VACANCIES.—Any member appointed 

6 to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration 

7 of the term for which the member’s predecessor 

8 was appointed shall be appointed only for the 

9 remainder of that term. A member may serve 

10 after the expiration of that member’s term until 

11 a successor has taken office. A vacancy in the 

12 Advisory Board shall be filled in the manner in 

13 which the original appointment was made. 

14 (c) BASIC PAY.— 

15 (1) RATES OF PAY.—Except as provided in 

16 paragraph (2), Advisory Board Members and staff, 

17 including the Chairperson, Vice Chairperson, and 

18 Director, shall each be paid at a rate determined by 

19 the Secretary. 

20 (2) PROHIBITION OF COMPENSATION OF FED21 ERAL EMPLOYEES.—Members of the Advisory Board 

22 who are full-time officers or employees of the United 

23 States may not receive additional pay, allowances, or 

24 benefits by reason of their service on the Advisory 

25 Board. 


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1 (d) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member shall receive 

2 travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, 

3 in accordance with applicable provisions under subchapter 

4 I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code. 

5 (e) QUORUM.—Fifty percent plus one members of the 

6 Advisory Board shall constitute a quorum but a lesser 

7 number may hold hearings. 

8 (f) CHAIRPERSON; VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The Chair9 person and Vice Chairperson of the Advisory Board shall 

10 be designated by the Secretary at the time of the appoint11 ment. The term of office of the Chairperson and Vice 

12 Chairperson shall be 4 years. 

13 (g) MEETINGS.—The Advisory Board shall meet 

14 monthly and at the call of the Chairperson or a majority 

15 of its members. 

16 (h) DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF ADVISORY BOARD; EX17 PERTS AND CONSULTANTS.— 

18 (1) DIRECTOR.—The Advisory Board shall have 

19 a Director who shall be appointed by the Chair20 person. 

21 (2) STAFF.—The Advisory Board Chairperson 

22 may appoint additional personnel as they consider 

23 appropriate. Such staff shall provide specific over24 sight and guidance, pursuant to the functions of the 

25 Advisory Board under this section. 


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1 (3) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERVICE

2 LAWS.—The Director and staff of the Advisory 

3 Board shall be appointed subject to the provisions of 

4 title 5, United States Code, governing appointments 

5 in the competitive service. 

6 (4) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—The Advi7 sory Board may procure temporary and intermittent 

8 services under section 3109(b) of title 5, United 

9 States Code. 

10 (5) STAFF OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Upon re11 quest of the Advisory Board, the head of any Fed12 eral department or agency may detail, on a reim13 bursable basis, any of the personnel of that depart14 ment or agency to the Advisory Board to assist it in 

15 carrying out its duties under this Act. 

16 (i) DUTIES.—The Advisory Board shall assist the 

17 Secretary in carrying out each of the following: 

18 (1) APPLICATION REVIEW.—Reviewing applica19 tions submitted by eligible entities under sections 

20 4(d) and 5(b) to ensure that each eligible entity se21 lected to receive a grant under this Act will use such 

22 grant as required under this Act. 

23 (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Providing technical as25 sistance to eligible entities receiving grants 


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1 under section 3, for the purpose of assisting 

2 such eligible entities to best implement the sum3 mer youth employment programs to be assisted 

4 with such grants, by identifying existing sum5 mer youth employment programs that dem6 onstrate, through evaluations conducted under 

7 section 5(b) or through outside studies, that 

8 each of the program elements listed in section 

9 3(d) and implemented under such programs 

10 have a significant impact on academic, eco11 nomic, and criminal justice outcomes. 

12 (B) WORKING GROUP.—Technical assist13 ance may be provided under subparagraph (A) 

14 through the creation and administration of a 

15 working group of the administrators of eligible 

16 entities to share best practices regarding the 

17 implementation of summer youth employment 

18 programs. 

19 (3) INNOVATIVE PROGRAM ELEMENTS.— 

20 (A) IDENTIFYING PROGRAM ELEMENTS.— 

21 Identifying any innovative approaches to sum22 mer youth employment programs for purposes 

23 of paragraph (13) of section 4(d) that are not 

24 listed in section 4(d), which demonstrate or are 

25 reasonably expected to demonstrate evidence of 


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1 improving the youth outcomes listed under sec2 tion 3(a). 

3 (B) APPROVING NEW PROGRAM ELE4 MENTS.—Providing recommendations to the 

5 Secretary with respect to whether any new pro6 gram element proposed by any eligible entity 

7 under section 4(d)(14) demonstrate or are rea8 sonable expected to demonstrate such evidence. 

9 (4) DATABASE OF IMPACT EVALUATIONS.— 

10 Publishing a database of completed evaluations con11 ducted under section 5(b), which maintains evidence 

12 on the impact of programs (including the program 

13 elements of programs) supported with grants under 

14 this Act. 

15 (5) PROGRAM EVALUATIONS.—Providing assist16 ance with respect to impact evaluations described in 

17 section 5(b)(3). 

18 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

19 In this Act: 

20 (1) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti21 ty’’ means a State (or State board) or unit of gen22 eral local government (or a local board), or a non23 profit organization, or a consortium of any of such 

24 entities. 


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1 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

2 the Secretary of Labor. 

3 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any 

4 State of the United States, the District of Columbia, 

5 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Is6 lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Common7 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

8 (4) WIOA TERMS.—The terms ‘‘local area’’, 

9 ‘‘local board’’, ‘‘State board’’, and ‘‘unit of general 

10 local government’’ have the meanings given such 

11 terms in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and 

12 Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102). 

Æ 


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