Kaine & Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Help More Americans Access High-Quality Job Training, Get Good-Paying Jobs

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), co-chair of the Senate Career and Technical Education (CTE) Caucus and a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, Susan Collins (R-ME), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Roger Marshall (R-KS) introduced the Jumpstarting Our Businesses by Supporting Students (JOBS) Act, bipartisan legislation to help more Americans get good-paying jobs by allowing students to use federal Pell Grants—need-based education grants for lower-income individuals—to pay for shorter-term job training programs for the first time. Currently, students can only use Pell Grants for two- and four-year colleges and universities. By expanding Pell Grant eligibility, the JOBS Act would help close the skills gap by allowing people to access job training they might otherwise be unable to afford but need for careers in high-demand fields.

“No one should be priced out of an education—including a technical education—but I hear from many Virginians that access to high-quality job training programs that align with their goals is out of reach because of financial barriers,” said Kaine. “Simultaneously, I hear from employers throughout the Commonwealth about their struggles to fill skilled labor positions. With these Virginians in mind, I wrote the JOBS Act to help remedy these issues and provide more workers with the skills they need to get good-paying jobs and provide for their families. This bill is good for workers, good for employers, and good for our economy as a whole.”

Thanks to historic investments like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the job market has boomed in recent years. From January 2021–January 2025, the U.S. economy added 14.8 million jobs. But there’s also a skilled labor shortage that is expected to intensify in the coming years, in part because unemployed Americans lack access to the job training needed to fill vacant jobs.

“Job training programs are proven, successful tools that help people gain the skills they need to prepare for rewarding careers,” said Collins.  “By helping students in Maine and across the country access this career pathway, this bipartisan legislation would assist young people with obtaining good-paying jobs and make it easier for businesses to find qualified workers.”

“Some of the most in-demand jobs don’t require a four-year college degree — they require shorter-term training. People like welders, machine operators and medical technicians. We need to make it easier to get people into these career fields, and letting students use Pell Grants to make it happen just makes sense,” said Smith. “This bill will open up more career opportunities for people and will help boost our economy.”

“The JOBS Act will provide an incredible opportunity for students that increasingly don’t find the value of a four-year degree,” said Marshall. “With a changing job market, our legislation will give Americans the chance to learn critical skills for a successful career. I look forward to getting the JOBS Act across the finish line with my colleagues.”

“We’re so grateful that Senator Kaine has reintroduced the JOBS Act, and is willing to continue advocating for this important legislation which will re-skill and upskill our citizens who want to improve their income and the lives of themselves and their families,” said Virginia Community College System Chancellor David Doré. “Thousands of Virginians are eager to learn new skills to advance their careers and would benefit from being able to use Pell Grants to pay for high quality workforce training for in-demand jobs. We urge Congress to support Senator Kaine’s JOBS Act.”

The JOBS Act would allow Pell Grants to be used for high-quality job training programs that are at least eight weeks in length and lead to industry-recognized credentials or certificates. Under current law, Pell Grants can only be applied toward programs that are over 600 clock hours or at least 15 weeks in length, rendering students in shorter-term high-quality job training programs ineligible for crucial assistance.

Specifically, the JOBS Act would amend the Higher Education Act by:

• Expanding Pell Grant eligibility to students enrolled in rigorous and high-quality, short-term skills and job training programs that lead to industry-recognized credentials and certificates and ultimately employment in high-wage, high-skill industry sectors or careers.
• Ensuring students who receive Pell Grants are earning high-quality postsecondary credentials by requiring that the credentials:
  • Meet the standards under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), such as meaningful career counseling and aligning programs to in-demand career pathways or registered apprenticeship programs
  • Are recognized by employers, industry, or sector partnerships
  • Align with the skill needs of industries in the state or local economy
  • Are approved by the state workforce board in addition to the U.S. Department of Education
• Defining eligible job training programs as those providing career and technical education instruction at an institution of higher education, such as a community or technical college that provides:
  • At least 150 clock hours of instruction time over a period of at least 8 weeks
  • Training that meets the needs of the local or regional workforce and industry partnerships
  • Streamlined ability to transfer credits so students can continue to pursue further education in their careers
  • Students with licenses, certifications, or credentials that meet the hiring requirements of multiple employers in the field for which the job training is offered

The legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE), Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Boozman (R-AR), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Steve Daines (R-MT), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), John Hoeven (R-ND), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Angus King (I-ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Dan Sullivan (D-AK), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark R. Warner (D-VA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).

The JOBS Act is supported by Advance CTE, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE), the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT), the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM), Business Roundtable, the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), the Exhibitions and Conferences Alliance (ECA), Higher Learning Advocates (HLA), HP Inc., the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), Jobs for the Future (JFF), the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, NAF, the National Association of Workforce Boards (NAWB), the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals (NAWDP), the National Skills Coalition (NSC), the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI), Rebuilding America’s Middle Class (RAMC), and the Virginia Community College System.

Full text of the bill is available here, and a summary of the bill is available here.

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