National Transit Workforce Training Act of 2020

To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a national transit frontline workforce training center, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the National Transit Workforce Training Act of 2020 2. National transit frontline workforce training center Section 5314(b) of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read as follows: (b) National frontline workforce training center (1) Establishment The Secretary shall establish a national transit frontline workforce training center (hereinafter referred to as the Center (2) Duties (A) In general In cooperation with the Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, public transportation authorities, and national entities, the Center shall develop and conduct training and educational programs for frontline local transportation employees engaged in Government-aid public transportation work. (B) Training and educational programs The training and educational programs developed under subparagraph (A) may include courses in recent developments, techniques, and procedures related to— (i) developing consensus national training standards in partnership with industry stakeholders for key frontline occupations with demonstrated skill gaps; (ii) developing national systems of qualification and apprenticeship for transit maintenance and operations occupations; (iii) building local, regional, and Statewide transit training partnerships to identify and address workforce skill gaps and develop skills needed for delivering quality transit service and supporting employee career advancement; (iv) developing programs for training of frontline workers, instructors, mentors, and labor-management partnership representatives, in the form of classroom, hands-on, on-the-job, as well as web-based training. Training can be delivered at a national center regionally, or at individual transit agencies; (v) developing training programs for skills related to existing and emerging transit technologies, e.g. for zero-emission buses (ZEBs); (vi) developing improved capacity for safety, security, and emergency preparedness in local transit systems and in the industry as a whole through— (I) developing the role of the frontline workforce in building and sustaining safety culture and safety systems in the industry and in individual public transportation systems; and (II) training to address frontline worker roles in promoting health and safety for transit workers and the riding public; (vii) developing local transit capacity for career pathways partnerships with schools and other community organizations for recruiting and training under-represented populations as successful transit employees who can develop careers in the transit industry; and (viii) in collaboration with the Federal Transit Administration, conducting and disseminating research to— (I) provide transit workforce job projections and identify training needs and gaps; (II) determine the most cost-effective methods for transit workforce training and development, including return on investment analysis; (III) identify the most effective methods for implementing successful safety systems and a positive safety culture; and (IV) promote transit workforce best practices for achieving cost-effective, quality, safe, and reliable public transportation services. (3) Coordination The Secretary shall coordinate activities under this section, to the maximum extent practicable, with the National Office of Apprenticeship of the Department of Labor and the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education of the Department of Education. (4) National Transit Database For the purposes of carrying out this section, the Secretary shall require that the National Transit Database collect additional human capital data on an annual basis. Such human capital data shall be collected and defined with industry input. (5) Availability of amounts (A) In general Not more than 0.5 percent of amounts made available to a recipient under sections 5307, 5337, and 5339 is available for expenditures by the recipient, with the approval of the Secretary, to pay not more than 80 percent of the cost of eligible activities under this subsection. (B) Existing programs A recipient may use amounts made available under subparagraph (A) to carry out existing local education and training programs for public transportation employees supported by the Secretary, the Department of Labor, or the Department of Education. (6) Human capital defined In this subsection, the term human capital . 3. Data required to be reported in National Transit Database Section 5335 of title 49, United States Code, is amended— (1) in subsection (c) by inserting , either human capital or physical capital (2) by adding at the end the following: (d) Definition of human capital In this section, the term human capital .

Summary: National Transit Workforce Training Act of 2020 This bill directs the Department of Transportation to establish a national transit frontline workforce training center (targeted to both rural and urban transit systems) and award grants to a nonprofit organization with a demonstrated capacity to develop and provide transit career ladder programs through labor-management partnerships and apprenticeships on a nationwide basis. The center must (1) be dedicated to the needs of the frontline transit workforce through standards-based training in the maintenance and operations occupations, and (2) develop and conduct training and educational programs for frontline local transportation employees engaged in government-aid public transportation work.