I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1855 
To promote industry growth and competitiveness and to improve worker 
training, retention, and advancement, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 1, 2009 
Mr. LOEBSACK (for himself and Mr. PLATTS) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor, and in 
addition to the Committees on Ways and Means and the Judiciary, for 
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee concerned 
A BILL 
To promote industry growth and competitiveness and to im-
prove worker training, retention, and advancement, and 
for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Strengthening Employ-
ment Clusters to Organize Regional Success Act of 2009’’ 
or the ‘‘SECTORS Act of 2009’’. 
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SEC. 2. INDUSTRY OR SECTOR PARTNERSHIP GRANT. 
Subtitle D of title I of the Workforce Investment Act 
of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2911 et seq.) is amended by inserting 
after section 174 the following: 
‘‘SEC. 174A. INDUSTRY OR SECTOR PARTNERSHIP GRANT 
PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this section to 
create designated capacity to promote industry or sector 
partnerships that lead collaborative planning, resource 
alignment, and training efforts across multiple firms for 
a range of workers employed or potentially employed by 
a targeted industry cluster, in order to encourage industry 
growth and competitiveness and to improve worker train-
ing, retention, and advancement in targeted industry clus-
ters, including by developing— 
‘‘(1) immediate strategies for regions and com-
munities to fulfill pressing skilled workforce needs; 
‘‘(2) long-term plans to grow targeted industry 
clusters with better training and a more productive 
workforce; 
‘‘(3) core competencies and competitive advan-
tages for regions and communities undergoing struc-
tural economic redevelopment; and 
‘‘(4) cross-firm skill standards, career ladders, 
job redefinitions, employer practices, and shared 
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training and support capacities that facilitate the 
advancement of workers at all skill levels. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) CAREER LADDER.—The term ‘career lad-
der’ means an identified series of positions, work ex-
periences, and educational benchmarks or credentials 
that offer occupational and financial advancement 
within a specified career field or related fields over 
time. 
‘‘(2) ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY.—The term 
‘economic self-sufficiency’ means, with respect to a 
worker, earning a wage sufficient to support a fam-
ily adequately over time, based on factors such as— 
‘‘(A) family size; 
‘‘(B) the number and ages of children in 
the family; 
‘‘(C) the cost of living in the worker’s com-
munity; and 
‘‘(D) other factors that may vary by re-
gion. 
‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligible en-
tity’ means— 
‘‘(A) an industry or sector partnership; or 
‘‘(B) an eligible State agency. 
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‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE STATE AGENCY.—The term ‘eli-
gible State agency’ means a State agency designated 
by the Governor of the State for the purposes of the 
grant program under this section. 
‘‘(5) HIGH-PRIORITY OCCUPATION.—The term 
‘high-priority occupation’ means an occupation 
that— 
‘‘(A) has a significant presence in an in-
dustry cluster; 
‘‘(B) is in demand by employers; 
‘‘(C) pays family-sustaining wages that en-
able workers to achieve economic self-suffi-
ciency, or can reasonably be expected to lead to 
such wages; 
‘‘(D) has a documented career ladder; and 
‘‘(E) has a significant impact on a region’s 
economic development strategy. 
‘‘(6) INDUSTRY CLUSTER.—The term ‘industry 
cluster’ means a concentration of interconnected 
businesses, suppliers, research and development, 
service providers, and associated institutions in a 
particular field that are linked by common workforce 
needs. 
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‘‘(7) INDUSTRY
OR
SECTOR
PARTNERSHIP.— 
The term ‘industry or sector partnership’ means a 
workforce collaborative that— 
‘‘(A) organizes key stakeholders in a tar-
geted industry cluster into a working group 
that focuses on the human capital needs of a 
targeted industry cluster and that includes, at 
the appropriate stage of development of the 
partnership— 
‘‘(i) representatives of multiple firms 
or employers, including workers, in a tar-
geted industry cluster, including small- and 
medium-sized employers when practicable; 
‘‘(ii) 1 or more representatives of 
State labor organizations, central labor 
coalitions, or other labor organizations; 
‘‘(iii) 1 or more representatives of 
local boards; 
‘‘(iv) 1 or more representatives of 
postsecondary educational institutions or 
other training providers; and 
‘‘(v) 1 or more representatives of 
State workforce agencies or other entities 
providing employment services; and 
‘‘(B) may include representatives of— 
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‘‘(i) State or local government; 
‘‘(ii) State or local economic develop-
ment agencies; 
‘‘(iii) other State or local agencies; 
‘‘(iv) chambers of commerce; 
‘‘(v) nonprofit organizations; 
‘‘(vi) philanthropic organizations; 
‘‘(vii) economic development organiza-
tions; 
‘‘(viii) industry associations; and 
‘‘(ix) other organizations, as deter-
mined necessary by the members com-
prising the industry or sector partnership. 
‘‘(8) TARGETED
INDUSTRY
CLUSTER.—The 
term ‘targeted industry cluster’ means an industry 
cluster that has— 
‘‘(A) economic impact in a local or regional 
area; 
‘‘(B) immediate workforce development 
needs; and 
‘‘(C) documented career opportunities. 
‘‘(c) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—From amounts appro-
priated under subsection (i), the Secretary shall 
award, on a competitive basis, planning grants de-
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scribed in paragraph (3) and implementation grants 
described in paragraph (4) to eligible entities, to en-
able the eligible entities to plan and implement, re-
spectively, the eligible entities’ strategic objectives in 
accordance with subsection (f). 
‘‘(2) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.— 
‘‘(A) PLANNING
GRANTS.—A planning 
grant awarded under paragraph (3) shall not 
exceed $250,000. 
‘‘(B) IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.—An im-
plementation grant awarded under paragraph 
(4)(A) shall not exceed a total of $2,500,000 
for a 3-year period. 
‘‘(C) RENEWAL GRANTS.—A renewal grant 
awarded under paragraph (4)(C) shall not ex-
ceed a total of $1,500,000 for a 3-year period. 
‘‘(3) PLANNING GRANTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary may 
award a planning grant under this section to an 
eligible entity that— 
‘‘(i) is a newly formed industry or sec-
tor partnership; and 
‘‘(ii) has not received a grant under 
this section. 
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‘‘(ii) as a condition of renewing the 
grant, and notwithstanding subsection (d), 
decrease the amount of the Federal share 
and increase the amount of the non-Fed-
eral share required for the grant, which 
must include at least a 25 percent cash 
match from the State, the industry cluster, 
or some combination thereof; and 
‘‘(iii) require assurances that the eligi-
ble entity will leverage, each year, addi-
tional funding sources in accordance with 
subparagraph (D)(ii) than the eligible enti-
ty provided for the preceding year of the 
grant. 
‘‘(D) 
FEDERAL
AND
NON-FEDERAL 
SHARE.— 
‘‘(i) FEDERAL
SHARE.—Except as 
provided in subparagraph (C)(ii) and 
(D)(iii), the Federal share of an implemen-
tation grant under this section shall be— 
‘‘(I) 90 percent of the costs of 
the activities described in subsection 
(g), in the first year of the grant; 
‘‘(II) 80 percent of such costs in 
the second year of the grant; and 
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‘‘(III) 70 percent of such costs in 
the third year of the grant. 
‘‘(ii) NON-FEDERAL.—The non-Fed-
eral share of an implementation grant 
under this section may be in cash or in- 
kind, and may come from State, local, phil-
anthropic, private, or other sources. 
‘‘(iii) 
EXCEPTION.—The 
Secretary 
may require the Federal share of an imple-
mentation grant under this section to be 
100 percent if an eligible entity receiving 
such grant is located in a State or local 
area that is receiving a national emergency 
grant under section 173. 
‘‘(5) FISCAL AGENT.—Each eligible entity re-
ceiving a grant under this section that is an industry 
or sector partnership shall designate an entity in the 
partnership as the fiscal agent for purposes of this 
grant. 
‘‘(6) USE OF GRANT FUNDS DURING GRANT PE-
RIODS.—An eligible entity receiving grant funds 
under a planning grant, implementation grant, or a 
renewal grant under this section shall expend grant 
funds or obligate grant funds to be expended by the 
last day of the grant period. 
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‘‘(d) APPLICATION PROCESS.— 
‘‘(1) IDENTIFICATION OF A TARGETED INDUS-
TRY
CLUSTER.—In order to qualify for a grant 
under this section, an eligible entity shall identify a 
targeted industry cluster that could benefit from 
such grant by— 
‘‘(A) working with businesses, industry as-
sociations and organizations, labor organiza-
tions, State boards, local boards, economic de-
velopment agencies, and other organizations 
that the eligible entity determines necessary, to 
identify an appropriate targeted industry clus-
ter based on criteria that include, at a min-
imum— 
‘‘(i) data showing the competitiveness 
of the industry cluster; 
‘‘(ii) the importance of the industry 
cluster to the economic development of the 
area served by the eligible entity; 
‘‘(iii) the identification of supply and 
distribution chains within the industry 
cluster; and 
‘‘(iv) research studies on industry 
clusters; and 
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‘‘(B) working with appropriate employment 
agencies, workforce investment boards, eco-
nomic development agencies, community organi-
zations, and other organizations that the eligi-
ble entity determines necessary to ensure that 
the targeted industry cluster identified under 
subparagraph (A) should be targeted for invest-
ment, based primarily on the following criteria: 
‘‘(i) Demonstrated demand for job 
growth potential. 
‘‘(ii) Measurable evidence of competi-
tiveness. 
‘‘(iii) Employment base. 
‘‘(iv) Wages and benefits. 
‘‘(v) Demonstrated importance of the 
targeted industry cluster to the area’s 
economy. 
‘‘(vi) Workforce development needs. 
‘‘(2) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity desiring 
to receive a grant under this section shall submit an 
application to the Secretary at such time, in such 
manner, and containing such information as the Sec-
retary may require. An application submitted under 
this paragraph shall contain, at a minimum, the fol-
lowing: 
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‘‘(A) A description of the eligible entity, 
evidence of the eligible entity’s capacity to carry 
out activities in support of the strategic objec-
tives identified in the application under sub-
paragraph (D), and, if the eligible entity is an 
industry or sector partnership, a description of 
the expected participation and responsibilities of 
each of the mandatory partners described in 
subsection (b)(8)(A). 
‘‘(B) A description of the targeted industry 
cluster for which the eligible entity intends to 
carry out activities through a grant under this 
section, and a description of how such targeted 
industry cluster was identified in accordance 
with paragraph (1). 
‘‘(C) A description of the workers that will 
be targeted or recruited by the partnership, in-
cluding an analysis of the existing labor market, 
a description of potential barriers to employ-
ment for targeted workers, and a description of 
strategies that will be employed to help workers 
overcome such barriers. 
‘‘(D) A description of the strategic objec-
tives that the eligible entity intends to carry out 
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for the targeted industry cluster, which objec-
tives shall include— 
‘‘(i) recruiting key stakeholders in the 
targeted industry cluster, such as busi-
nesses and employers, labor organizations, 
industry associations, local boards, State 
boards, and education and training pro-
viders, and regularly convening the stake-
holders in a collaborative structure that 
supports the sharing of information, ideas, 
and challenges common to the targeted in-
dustry cluster; 
‘‘(ii) identifying the training needs of 
multiple businesses, especially skill gaps 
critical to competitiveness and innovation 
to the targeted industry cluster; 
‘‘(iii) facilitating economies of scale by 
aggregating training and education needs 
of multiple employers; 
‘‘(iv) 
helping 
postsecondary 
edu-
cational institutions, training institutions, 
and registered apprenticeship programs 
align curricula entrance requirements and 
programs to industry demand, particularly 
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