[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1683 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1683
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for Workforce Pell
Grants.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 8, 2025
Mr. Budd (for himself, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Ricketts, Mr. McCormick, and
Mr. Justice) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for Workforce Pell
Grants.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Promoting Employment and Lifelong
Learning Act of 2025'' or the ``PELL Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. WORKFORCE PELL GRANTS.
(a) In General.--Section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 1070a) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(k) Workforce Pell Grant Program.--
``(1) In general.--For the award year beginning on July 1,
2026, and each subsequent award year, the Secretary shall award
grants (to be known as `Workforce Pell Grants') to eligible
students under paragraph (2) in accordance with this
subsection.
``(2) Eligible students.--To be eligible to receive a
Workforce Pell Grant under this subsection for any period of
enrollment, a student shall meet the eligibility requirements
for a Federal Pell Grant under this section, except that the
student--
``(A) shall be enrolled, or accepted for
enrollment, in an eligible program under section
481(b)(3) (hereinafter referred to as an `eligible
workforce program'); and
``(B) may not--
``(i) be enrolled, or accepted for
enrollment, in a program of study that leads to
a graduate credential; or
``(ii) have attained such a credential.
``(3) Terms and conditions of awards.--The Secretary shall
award Workforce Pell Grants under this subsection in the same
manner and with the same terms and conditions as the Secretary
awards Federal Pell Grants under this section, except that--
``(A) each use of the term `eligible program'
(except in subsections (b)(9)(A) and (d)(2)) shall be
substituted by `eligible workforce program under
section 481(b)(3)'; and
``(B) a student who is eligible for a grant equal
to less than the amount of the minimum Federal Pell
Grant because the eligible workforce program in which
the student is enrolled or accepted for enrollment is
less than an academic year (in hours of instruction or
weeks of duration) may still be eligible for a
Workforce Pell Grant in an amount that is prorated
based on the length of the program.
``(4) Prevention of double benefits.--No eligible student
described in paragraph (2) may concurrently receive a grant
under both this subsection and--
``(A) subsection (b); or
``(B) subsection (c).
``(5) Duration limit.--Any period of study covered by a
Workforce Pell Grant awarded under this subsection shall be
included in determining a student's duration limit under
subsection (d)(5).''.
(b) Program Eligibility for Workforce Pell Grants.--Section 481(b)
of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088(b)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs
(4) and (5), respectively;
(2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
``(3)(A) A program is an eligible program for purposes of
the Workforce Pell Grant program under section 401(k) only if--
``(i) it is a program of at least 150 clock hours
of instruction, but less than 600 clock hours of
instruction, or an equivalent number of credit hours,
offered by an eligible institution during a minimum of
8 weeks, but less than 15 weeks;
``(ii) it is not offered as a correspondence
course, as defined in 600.2 of title 34, Code of
Federal Regulations (as in effect on September 20,
2020);
``(iii) the Governor of a State, after consultation
with the State board, makes a determination that the
program--
``(I) provides an education aligned with
the requirements of high-skill, high-wage (as
identified by the State pursuant to section 122
of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical
Education Act (20 U.S.C. 2342)), or in-demand
industry sectors or occupations;
``(II) meets the hiring requirements of
potential employers in the sectors or
occupations described in subclause (I);
``(III) either--
``(aa) leads to a recognized
postsecondary credential that is
stackable and portable across more than
one employer; or
``(bb) with respect to students
enrolled in the program--
``(AA) prepares such
students for employment in an
occupation for which there is
only one recognized
postsecondary credential; and
``(BB) provides such
students with such a credential
upon completion of such
program; and
``(IV) prepares students to pursue 1 or
more certificate or degree programs at 1 or
more institutions of higher education (which
may include the eligible institution providing
the program), including by ensuring--
``(aa) that a student, upon
completion of the program and
enrollment in such a related
certificate or degree program, will
receive academic credit for the program
that will be accepted toward meeting
such certificate or degree program
requirements; and
``(bb) the acceptability of such
credit toward meeting such certificate
or degree program requirements;
``(iv) after the Governor of such State makes the
determination that the program meets the requirements
under clause (iii), the Secretary determines that--
``(I) the program has been offered by the
eligible institution for not less than 1 year
prior to the date on which the Secretary makes
a determination under this clause;
``(II) for each award year, the program has
a verified completion rate of at least 70
percent, within 150 percent of the normal time
for completion; and
``(III) for each award year, the program
has a verified job placement rate of at least
70 percent, measured 180 days after completion;
and
``(v) for each award year, the total amount of the
published tuition and fees of the program for such year
is an amount that does not exceed the value-added
earnings of students who received Federal financial aid
under this title and who completed the program 3 years
prior to the award year, as such earnings are
determined by calculating the difference between--
``(I) the median earnings of such students,
as adjusted by the State and metropolitan area
regional price parities of the Bureau of
Economic Analysis based on the location of such
program; and
``(II) 150 percent of the poverty line
applicable to a single individual as determined
under section 673(2) of the Community Services
Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) for such
year.
``(B) In the case of a program that has not
previously participated in programs under this title
and is being determined eligible for the first time
under this paragraph, the Secretary may consider such
program to be an eligible program for purposes of the
Workforce Pell Grants program under section 401(k) for
a provisional eligibility period that may not exceed 3
years, if such program--
``(i) subject to clause (ii), meets the
requirements of subparagraph (A); and
``(ii) in lieu of the determination of
median earnings under subclause (I) of
subparagraph (A)(v), provides to the Secretary
for purposes of meeting the requirements of
subparagraph (A)(v), alternate earnings of
students who complete the program, which are
statistically rigorous, accurate, comparable,
and representative of students who complete
such program.
``(C) In this paragraph:
``(i) The term `eligible institution' means an
institution of higher education (as defined in section
102), or any other entity that has entered into a
program participation agreement with the Secretary
under section 487(a) (without regard to whether that
entity is accredited by a national recognized
accrediting agency or association), which has not been
subject, during any of the preceding 3 years, to--
``(I) any suspension, emergency action, or
termination under this title;
``(II) in the case of an institution of
higher education, any adverse action by the
institution's accrediting agency or association
that revokes or denies accreditation for the
institution of higher education; or
``(III) any final action by the State in
which the institution or other entity holds its
legal domicile, authorization, or accreditation
that revokes the institution's or entity's
license or other authority to operate in such
State.
``(ii) The term `Governor' means the chief
executive of a State.
``(iii) The terms `industry or sector partnership',
`in-demand industry sector or occupation', `recognized
postsecondary credential', and `State board' have the
meanings given such terms in section 3 of the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act.''.
(3) Student eligibility.--Section 484(a)(1) of the Higher
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091(a)(1)) is amended by
inserting ``or, for purposes of section 401(k), at an entity
(other than an institution of higher education) that meets the
requirements of section 481(b)(3)(B)(i),'' after ``section
487''.
(4) Effective date; applicability.--The amendments made by
this section shall take effect on July 1, 2026, and shall apply
with respect to award year 2026-2027 and each succeeding award
year.
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