I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6255 

To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to establish 

employer-directed skills accounts, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 13, 2021 

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

was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 

A BILL 

To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 

to establish employer-directed skills accounts, 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 ‘‘Employer-Directed 

5 Skills Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. EMPLOYER-DIRECTED SKILLS ACCOUNTS. 

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.— 

8 (1) EMPLOYER-SPONSORED SKILLS DEVELOP9 MENT.—Section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and 

10 Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102) is amended— 


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1 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (19) 

2 through (71) as paragraphs (20) through (72), 

3 respectively; and 

4 (B) by inserting after paragraph (18), the 

5 following: 

6 ‘‘(19) EMPLOYER-SPONSORED SKILLS DEVEL7 OPMENT.—The term ‘‘employer-sponsored skills de8 velopment’’ means a skills development program— 

9 ‘‘(A) that is selected by an employer to 

10 meet the specific skill demands of the employer; 

11 ‘‘(B) that is conducted pursuant to terms 

12 and conditions which are established under an 

13 employer-sponsored skills development agree14 ment described in section 134(c)(3)(I)(iv), in15 cluding a commitment by the employer to em16 ploy an individual upon successful completion of 

17 the program; 

18 ‘‘(C) for which an employer pays a portion 

19 of the cost of the program, which shall not be 

20 less than— 

21 ‘‘(i) 10 percent of the cost, in the case 

22 of an employer with not more than 50 em23 ployees; 

24 ‘‘(ii) 25 percent of the cost, in the 

25 case of an employer with more than 50 


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1 employees but not more than 100 employ2 ees; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) 50 percent of the cost, in the 

4 case of an employer with more than 100 

5 employees; and 

6 ‘‘(D) for which the Federal share of the 

7 cost of the program is provided to the employer 

8 through an employer-directed skills account in 

9 accordance with section 134(c)(3)(I)(ii).’’. 

10 (2) ON-THE-JOB TRAINING.—Paragraph (45) of 

11 section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Oppor12 tunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102) is amended, as redesig13 nated by paragraph (1)(A)— 

14 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

15 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

16 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the 

17 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(D) in a case in which each of the condi20 tions under section 134(c)(3)(I)(i) are met with 

21 respect to such training (including the estab22 lishment of an on-the-job training agreement 

23 described in section 134(c)(3)(I)(iii)), provides 

24 the Federal share of the cost of training to the 


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1 employer through an employer-directed skills 

2 account.’’. 

3 (3) RELATED CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

4 The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

5 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) is amended— 

6 (A) in section 134(c)(3)(H)(i) (20 U.S.C. 

7 3174(c)(3)(H)(i)), by striking ‘‘section 3(44)’’ 

8 and by inserting ‘‘section 3(45)’’; and 

9 (B) in section 211(e)(3) (20 U.S.C. 

10 3291(e)(3)), by striking ‘‘section 3(45)’’ and in11 serting ‘‘section 3(46)’’. 

12 (b) EXCEPTIONS FOR EMPLOYER-SPONSORED

13 SKILLS DEVELOPMENT.—Section 122(h) of the Work14 force Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

15 3152(h)) is amended— 

16 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘employer17 sponsored skills development,’’ after ‘‘incumbent 

18 worker training,’’; and 

19 (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘employer20 sponsored skills development,’’ after ‘‘incumbent 

21 worker training,’’. 

22 (c) CAREER SERVICES.—Section 134(c)(2)(A) of the 

23 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

24 3174(c)(2)(A)) is amended— 

25 (1) in clause (xii), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 


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1 (2) in clause (xiii), by striking the period and 

2 inserting a semicolon; and 

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

4 ‘‘(xiv) provision of information on em5 ployers in the local areas that are offering 

6 employer-sponsored skills development or 

7 on-the-job training programs that may be 

8 reimbursed through an employer-directed 

9 skills account established under section 

10 134(c)(3)(I) and the performance informa11 tion available on such programs; and 

12 ‘‘(xv) provision of assistance, in co13 ordination with employers in the local 

14 areas that are offering employer-sponsored 

15 skills development or on-the-job training, 

16 in establishing employer-sponsored skills 

17 development agreements or on-the-job 

18 training agreements.’’. 

19 (d) ELIGIBILITY FOR TRAINING SERVICES.—Section 

20 134(c)(3) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity 

21 Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(3)) is amended— 

22 (1) in subparagraph (A)— 

23 (A) in clause (i), by inserting ‘‘or (iii)’’ 

24 after ‘‘clause (ii)’’; 


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1 (B) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause 

2 (iv); and 

3 (C) by inserting after clause (ii) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(iii) PARTICIPANTS SELECTED FOR

6 ON-THE-JOB TRAINING OR EMPLOYER7 SPONSORED SKILLS DEVELOPMENT.—A 

8 one-stop operator or one-stop partner shall 

9 not be required to conduct an interview, 

10 evaluation, or assessment of a participant 

11 under clause (i) if such participant is se12 lected by an employer under section 

13 134(c)(3)(I)(i) to receive on-the-job train14 ing or employer-sponsored skills develop15 ment, and the applicable conditions under 

16 such section are met for such individual to 

17 receive such services.’’; and 

18 (2) in subparagraph (D)— 

19 (A) in clause (x), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

20 end; 

21 (B) in clause (xi), by striking the period at 

22 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

24 ‘‘(xii) employer-sponsored skills devel25 opment programs conducted with a comVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:44 Dec 22, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6255.IH H6255

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1 mitment by an employer to employ an indi2 vidual upon successful completion of such 

3 a program.’’. 

4 (e) EMPLOYER-DIRECTED SKILLS ACCOUNTS.— 

5 (1) LOCAL PLAN.—Section 108(b)(19) of the 

6 Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 

7 U.S.C. 3123) is amended by inserting ‘‘or employer8 directed skills accounts’’ after ‘‘individual training 

9 accounts’’. 

10 (2) CONSUMER CHOICE REQUIREMENTS.—Sec11 tion 134(c)(3)(F) of the Workforce Innovation and 

12 Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(3)(F) is 

13 amended— 

14 (A) by redesignating clauses (iv) and (v) as 

15 clauses (v) and (vi), respectively; 

16 (B) by inserting after clause (iii), the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(iv) EMPLOYER-DIRECTED SKILLS

19 ACCOUNTS.—In a case in which an indi20 vidual is selected by an employer under 

21 section 134(c)(3)(I)(i) to receive on-the-job 

22 training or employer-sponsored skills devel23 opment, and the applicable conditions 

24 under such section are met for such indi25 vidual to receive such services, the one-stop 


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1 operator involved shall arrange for pay2 ment for such services through an em3 ployer-directed skills account in accordance 

4 with section 134(c)(3)(I)(ii).’’; and 

5 (C) in clause (v), as redesignated by sub6 paragraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or employer-di7 rected skills accounts’’ after ‘‘individual train8 ing accounts’’. 

9 (3) ADDITIONAL EXCEPTION TO USE OF INDI10 VIDUAL TRAINING ACCOUNTS.—Section 134(c)(3)(G) 

11 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 

12 (29 U.S.C. 3174(c)(3)(G)) is amended— 

13 (A) by redesignating clauses (iii) and (iv) 

14 as clauses (iv) and (v), respectively; 

15 (B) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘clause (ii)’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘clauses (ii) and (iii)’’; 

17 (C) by inserting after clause (ii), the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(iii) EMPLOYER-DIRECTED SKILLS

20 ACCOUNTS.—Services authorized under 

21 this paragraph may be provided pursuant 

22 to an employer-directed skills account in 

23 lieu of an individual training account if 

24 such services are employer-sponsored skills 

25 development or on-the-job training and the 


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1 applicable conditions under section 

2 134(c)(3)(I)(i) are met for an individual to 

3 receive such services.’’; and 

4 (D) in clause (v) (as redesignated by sub5 paragraph (A)), by inserting ‘‘, employer-di6 rected skills accounts,’’ after ‘‘individual train7 ing accounts’’. 

8 (4) ESTABLISHMENT OF EMPLOYER-DIRECTED

9 SKILLS ACCOUNTS.—Section 134(c)(3) of the Work10 force Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 

11 3174(c)(3)) is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(I) EMPLOYER-DIRECTED SKILLS AC14 COUNTS.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An individual 

16 shall receive on-the-job training or em17 ployer-sponsored skills development 

18 through the use of an employer-directed 

19 skills account, if each of the following con20 ditions are met: 

21 ‘‘(I) An employer selects the indi22 vidual, who is not an employee of such 

23 employer, for on-the-job training or 

24 employer-sponsored skills develop25 ment. 


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1 ‘‘(II)(aa) In the case of an indi2 vidual selected under subclause (I) to 

3 receive on-the-job training, an on-the4 job training agreement that meets the 

5 requirements of clause (iii) is estab6 lished and signed by the individual 

7 and the employer; or 

8 ‘‘(bb) in the case of an individual 

9 selected under subclause (I) to receive 

10 employer-sponsored skills develop11 ment, an employer-sponsored skills de12 velopment agreement that meets the 

13 requirements of clause (iv) is estab14 lished and signed by the individual 

15 and the employer. 

16 ‘‘(III) The employer submits to 

17 the local one-stop operator each of the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(aa) A certification that 

20 the individual requires an on-the21 job training or employer-spon22 sored skills development program 

23 to obtain employment with the 

24 employer, and has the skills and 


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1 qualifications to successfully par2 ticipate in such a program. 

3 ‘‘(bb) A certification that 

4 the employer will submit the nec5 essary performance information 

6 to the one-stop operator in ac7 cordance with section 122(h). 

8 ‘‘(cc) The on-the-job train9 ing agreement or the employer10 sponsored skills development 

11 agreement described in subclause 

12 (II), as applicable. 

13 ‘‘(IV) The one-stop operator in14 volved reviews and approves each cer15 tification and agreement received 

16 under subclause (III). 

17 ‘‘(ii) PAYMENT TO EMPLOYERS.—The 

18 one-stop operator involved in on-the-job 

19 training or employer-sponsored skills devel20 opment under clause (i) shall arrange for 

21 the appropriate payment of such services 

22 through an employer-directed skills ac23 count as follows: 

24 ‘‘(I) ON-THE-JOB TRAINING.— 

25 For on-the-job training, the one-stop 


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1 operator involved shall reimburse the 

2 employer from funds in the employer3 directed skills account in accordance 

4 to the reimbursement requirements of 

5 section 3(45)(B) and after receipt of 

6 documentation of the wages earned by 

7 the individual during such training. 

8 ‘‘(II) EMPLOYER-SPONSORED

9 SKILLS DEVELOPMENT.—For em10 ployer-sponsored skills development 

11 services, the one-stop operator in12 volved shall reimburse the employer 

13 from funds in the employer-directed 

14 skills account for the Federal share of 

15 the costs of the program after receipt 

16 of documentation from the employer 

17 of payment of such costs. 

18 ‘‘(iii) ON-THE-JOB TRAINING AGREE19 MENT.—An on-the-job training agreement 

20 under clause (i) shall— 

21 ‘‘(I) establish— 

22 ‘‘(aa) the length of the on23 the-job training; 

24 ‘‘(bb) the hourly wage rate 

25 of the individual; 


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1 ‘‘(cc) the skills necessary for 

2 the job and the individual’s cur3 rent skill level as of the date of 

4 the agreement; and 

5 ‘‘(dd) the skills to be learned 

6 during the on-the-job training; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(II) include an assurance that 

9 the employer will provide the one-stop 

10 operator involved with documentation 

11 of the wages earned by the individual 

12 while engaged in such on-the-job 

13 training for the purpose of reimburse14 ment to the employer. 

15 ‘‘(iv) EMPLOYER-SPONSORED SKILLS

16 DEVELOPMENT AGREEMENT.—An em17 ployer-sponsored skills development agree18 ment referred to in clause (i) shall estab19 lish— 

20 ‘‘(I) the provider of the employer21 sponsored skills development program; 

22 ‘‘(II) the length of such program; 

23 ‘‘(III) the skills to be learned 

24 during such program; 


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1 ‘‘(IV) a commitment by the em2 ployer to employ the individual upon 

3 successful completion of the program; 

4 ‘‘(V) the cost of the program; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(VI) the amount of such cost 

7 that will be paid by the employer (the 

8 non-Federal share), which shall be not 

9 less than the amount specified in sec10 tion 3(19)(C).’’. 

Æ 


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