The proposed Youth Workforce Readiness Act establishes a five-year pilot program aimed at enhancing workforce readiness for youth aged 12 to 18 (or 19 if still in secondary school) by providing grants to community-based organizations. The program focuses on increasing access to education and training, supporting out-of-school activities, improving workforce quality, and engaging employers to address the needs of youth jobseekers. The Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development will award grants on a competitive basis, prioritizing programs that serve low-income, justice-involved, or at-risk youth, and those from underserved communities.

The bill appropriates $5 million from the General Fund to support these initiatives, ensuring that the funds supplement existing federal, state, or local resources for youth programs. Eligible entities must be youth-serving organizations that provide out-of-school time workforce readiness programming and must submit an application detailing their proposed activities and strategies. The act also mandates evaluation and reporting requirements to assess program effectiveness, with the Commissioner required to submit a report on the program's outcomes and recommendations for its future within six months of the pilot's conclusion.