I 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 989 
To promote registered apprenticeships and other work-based learning pro-
grams for small and medium-sized businesses within in-demand industry 
sectors, through the establishment and support of industry or sector 
partnerships. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 6, 2019 
Ms. BONAMICI (for herself, Mr. FERGUSON, Mrs. DAVIS of California, and Mr. 
GUTHRIE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committee on the 
Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic-
tion of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To promote registered apprenticeships and other work-based 
learning programs for small and medium-sized businesses 
within in-demand industry sectors, through the establish-
ment and support of industry or sector partnerships. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Promoting Apprentice-
ships through Regional Training Networks for Employers 
Required Skills Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘PARTNERS Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this Act is to promote registered ap-
prenticeships and other work-based learning programs for 
small and medium-sized businesses within in-demand in-
dustry sectors, through the establishment and support of 
industry or sector partnerships. 
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘‘eligi-
ble partnership’’ means an industry or sector part-
nership as defined in section 3 of the Workforce In-
novation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102) that 
submits and obtains approval of an application con-
sistent with section 5(c). 
(2) IN-DEMAND INDUSTRY SECTOR.—The term 
‘‘in-demand industry sector’’ means a sector de-
scribed in subparagraphs (A)(i) and (B) of section 
3(23) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity 
Act (29 U.S.C. 3102(23)). 
(3) LOCAL OR REGIONAL.—The term ‘‘local or 
regional’’, used with respect to an entity, means that 
the entity provides services in, respectively, a local 
area or region. 
(4) REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP.—The term 
‘‘registered apprenticeship’’ means an apprenticeship 
registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 (com-
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monly known as the ‘‘National Apprenticeship Act’’; 
50 Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.). 
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘work-based 
learning program’’ means a program that pro-
vides workers with paid work experience and 
corresponding classroom instruction, delivered 
in an employment relationship that both the 
business and worker intend to lead to con-
tinuing employment after the program ends. 
(B) WORK
EXPERIENCE.—In subpara-
graph (A), the term ‘‘paid work experience’’ in-
cludes training by an employer that is provided 
to a paid employee while engaged in productive 
work in a job that provides knowledge or skills 
essential to the full and adequate performance 
of the job. 
(5) WORKFORCE
TERMS.—The terms ‘‘Gov-
ernor’’, ‘‘individual with a barrier to employment’’, 
‘‘industry or sector partnership’’, ‘‘local area’’, ‘‘local 
board’’, ‘‘State board’’, ‘‘outlying area’’, ‘‘recognized 
postsecondary credential’’, ‘‘region’’, ‘‘State’’, and 
‘‘supportive services’’, used with respect to activities 
supported under this Act, have the meanings given 
the terms in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation 
and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102). 
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(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Labor. 
SEC. 4. AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS. 
From funds paid into the general fund of the Treas-
ury and available under section 286(s)(2) of the Immigra-
tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1356(s)(2)), the Sec-
retary shall carry out this Act. 
SEC. 5. ALLOTMENTS TO STATES. 
(a) RESERVATION.—Of the amounts available for this 
Act under section 4, the Secretary may reserve— 
(1) not more than 5 percent of those amounts 
for the costs of technical assistance and Federal ad-
ministration of this Act; 
(2) not more than 2 percent of those amounts 
for the costs of evaluations conducted under section 
8(b); and 
(3) not more than 1⁄4 of 1 percent of such 
amounts to provide assistance to the outlying areas. 
(b) ALLOTMENTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts available for 
this Act under section 4 that remain after the Sec-
retary makes the reservations under subsection (a), 
the Secretary shall, for the purpose of supporting 
(which may include assistance in establishing ex-
panded) local or regional eligible partnerships to 
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support work-based learning programs under this 
Act, make allotments to eligible States in accordance 
with clauses (ii) through (v) of section 132(b)(1)(B) 
of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 
(29 U.S.C. 3162(b)(1)(C)), subject to paragraph 
(2). 
(2) APPLICATION.—For purposes of applying 
the clauses described in paragraph (1), under para-
graph (1), the Secretary— 
(A) shall not apply subclauses (I) and (III) 
of clause (iv) with respect to the first fiscal year 
after the date of enactment of this Act; 
(B) shall apply clause (iv)(II) by sub-
stituting ‘‘0.5 percent of the remaining amounts 
described in paragraph (1)’’ for the total de-
scribed in that clause; 
(C) shall not apply clause (iv)(IV); 
(D) shall apply clause (v)(II) by sub-
stituting the term ‘‘allotment percentage’’, used 
with respect to the second full fiscal year after 
the date of enactment of this Act, or a subse-
quent fiscal year, means a percentage of the re-
maining amounts described in paragraph (1) 
that is received through an allotment made 
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under this subsection for the fiscal year for the 
two sentences in that clause; and 
(E) shall apply clause (v)(III) by sub-
stituting ‘‘a work-based learning program car-
ried out under this Act’’ for ‘‘a program of 
workforce investment activities carried out 
under this subtitle’’. 
(3) USE OF UNALLOTTED FUNDS.—If a State 
fails to meet the requirements for an allotment 
under this subsection, the Secretary may allot funds 
that are not allotted under paragraphs (1) and (2) 
to eligible States under a formula based on the for-
mula specified in section 132(c) of the Workforce In-
novation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3173(c)). 
(4) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 
‘‘eligible State’’ means a State that meets the re-
quirements of section 102 or 103 of the Workforce 
Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3112, 
3113) and subsection (c). 
(c) STATE ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive an 
allotment under subsection (b), a State, in consultation 
with State boards and local boards, shall submit an appli-
cation to the Secretary, at such time, in such manner, and 
containing a description of the activities to be carried out 
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with the grant funds. At a minimum, the application shall 
include information on— 
(1) the local or regional industry or sector part-
nerships that will be supported, including the lead 
partners for the partnerships, and how the partner-
ships will work to engage small and medium-sized 
businesses, as applicable, in the activities of the 
partnerships; 
(2) the in-demand industry sectors that will be 
served, including how such industry sectors were 
identified, and how the activities of the partnerships 
will align with State, regional, and local plans as re-
quired under title I of the Workforce Innovation and 
Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111 et seq.); 
(3) the registered apprenticeship programs or 
other work-based learning programs to be supported 
though the partnerships; 
(4) the populations that will receive services, in-
cluding individuals with barriers to employment and 
populations that were historically underrepresented 
in the industry sectors to be served through the 
partnerships; 
(5) the services, including business engagement, 
classroom instruction, and support services (includ-
ing at least 6 months of post-employment support 
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services), that will be supported through the grant 
funds; 
(6) the recognized postsecondary credentials 
that workers will obtain through participation in the 
program and the quality of the program that leads 
to the credentials; 
(7) levels of performance to be achieved on the 
performance indicators described in section 8, to 
measure progress towards expanding work-based 
learning programs; 
(8) how local or regional partnerships will lever-
age additional resources, including funding provided 
under title I of the Workforce Innovation and Op-
portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3111 et seq.) and non- 
Federal resources, to support the activities carried 
out under this Act; and 
(9) such other subjects as the Secretary may 
require. 
(d) REVIEW OF APPLICATIONS.—The Secretary shall 
review applications submitted under subsection (c) in con-
sultation with the Secretary of Education and the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services. 
SEC. 6. GRANTS TO PARTNERSHIPS. 
(a) GRANTS.— 
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(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Governor of a State 
that receives an allotment under section 5 shall use 
the funds made available through the allotment and 
not reserved under subsection (d) to award grants to 
eligible partnerships. The Governor shall award the 
grants for the purpose of assisting (which may in-
clude establishing or expanding) local or regional in-
dustry or sector partnerships that are identified in 
the application submitted under section 5(c), to 
carry out activities described in section 7. 
(2) PERIOD AND AMOUNT OF GRANT.—A State 
may make a grant under this section for a period of 
3 years, and in an amount of not more than 
$500,000. 
(3) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—The Governor of 
a State that receives an allotment under section 5 
for a fiscal year may use the funds made available 
through the allotment during that year or the 2 sub-
sequent fiscal years. 
(b) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 
under this section, an industry or sector partnership de-
scribed in subsection (a)(1) shall— 
(1) submit an application to the State at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such informa-
tion as the State may require; and 
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(2) designate a partner in the industry or sector 
partnership, to serve as the fiscal agent for purposes 
of the grant. 
(c) AWARDS OF GRANTS.— 
(1) PARTICIPATION
IN
MULTIPLE
ELIGIBLE 
PARTNERSHIPS.—Subject to paragraph (2), a State 
may award grants under this section in a way that 
results in an entity being represented in more than 
one partnership that receives such a grant. 
(2) GEOGRAPHIC
DIVERSITY.—In making the 
grants, a State shall ensure that there is geographic 
diversity in the areas in which activities will be car-
ried out under the grants. 
(d) ADMINISTRATION.—The State may reserve not 
more than 5 percent of the amount of an allotment under 
section 5 for the administration of the grants awarded 
under this section. 
SEC. 7. USE OF FUNDS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible partnership that re-
ceives a grant under section 6 shall use the grant funds 
to support a registered apprenticeship or other work-based 
learning program. The eligible partnership shall use the 
grant funds to support the activities described in sub-
sections (b) and (c) and such other strategies as may be 
necessary to support the development and implementation 
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