Work Act
This bill requires the Department of Labor to establish within the Employment and Training Administration an Employee Ownership and Participation Initiative to promote employee ownership and participation in business decision-making. It also establishes a program, which may include grants for outreach, technical assistance, and training, to encourage new and existing state programs to foster employee ownership and participation in business decision-making.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6024 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6024
To establish an Employee Ownership and Participation Initiative, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 18, 2021
Mr. Courtney (for himself and Mr. Pocan) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish an Employee Ownership and Participation Initiative, and
for other purposes.
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 ``Work Act''.
SEC. 2. WORKER OWNERSHIP, READINESS, AND KNOWLEDGE.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Existing program.--The term ``existing program'' means
a program, designed to promote employee ownership and employee
participation in business decision making, that exists on the
date on which the Secretary is carrying out a responsibility
authorized under this section.
(2) Initiative.--The term ``Initiative'' means the Employee
Ownership and Participation Initiative established under
subsection (b).
(3) New program.--The term ``new program'' means a program,
designed to promote employee ownership and employee
participation in business decision making, that does not exist
on the date on which the Secretary is carrying out a
responsibility authorized under this section.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Labor.
(5) State.--The term ``State'' has the meaning given the
term under section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102).
(b) Employee Ownership and Participation Initiative.--
(1) Establishment.--The Secretary of Labor shall establish
within the Department of Labor an Employee Ownership and
Participation Initiative to promote employee ownership and
employee participation in business decision making.
(2) Functions.--In carrying out the Initiative, the
Secretary shall--
(A) support within the States existing programs
designed to promote employee ownership and employee
participation in business decision making; and
(B) facilitate within the States the formation of
new programs designed to promote employee ownership and
employee participation in business decision making.
(3) Duties.--To carry out the functions enumerated in
paragraph (2), the Secretary shall--
(A) support new programs and existing programs by--
(i) making Federal grants authorized under
subsection (d); and
(ii)(I) acting as a clearinghouse on
techniques employed by new programs and
existing programs within the States, and
disseminating information relating to those
techniques to the programs; or
(II) funding projects for information
gathering on those techniques, and
dissemination of that information to the
programs, by groups outside the Department of
Labor; and
(B) facilitate the formation of new programs, in
ways that include holding or funding an annual
conference of representatives from States with existing
programs, representatives from States developing new
programs, and representatives from States without
existing programs.
(c) Programs Regarding Employee Ownership and Participation.--
(1) Establishment of program.--Not later than 180 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall
establish a program to encourage new programs and existing
programs within the States to foster employee ownership and
employee participation in business decision making throughout
the United States.
(2) Purpose of program.--The purpose of the program
established under paragraph (1) is to encourage new and
existing programs within the States that focus on--
(A) providing education and outreach to inform
employees and employers about the possibilities and
benefits of employee ownership, business ownership
succession planning, and employee participation in
business decision making, including providing
information about financial education, employee teams,
open-book management, and other tools that enable
employees to share ideas and information about how
their businesses can succeed;
(B) providing technical assistance to assist
employee efforts to become business owners, to enable
employers and employees to explore and assess the
feasibility of transferring full or partial ownership
to employees, and to encourage employees and employers
to start new employee-owned businesses;
(C) training employees and employers with respect
to methods of employee participation in open-book
management, work teams, committees, and other
approaches for seeking greater employee input; and
(D) training other entities to apply for funding
under this subsection, to establish new programs, and
to carry out program activities.
(3) Program details.--The Secretary may include, in the
program established under paragraph (1), provisions that--
(A) in the case of activities described in
paragraph (2)(A)--
(i) target key groups, such as retiring
business owners, senior managers, unions, trade
associations, community organizations, and
economic development organizations;
(ii) encourage cooperation in the
organization of workshops and conferences; and
(iii) prepare and distribute materials
concerning employee ownership and
participation, and business ownership
succession planning;
(B) in the case of activities described in
paragraph (2)(B)--
(i) provide preliminary technical
assistance to employee groups, managers, and
retiring owners exploring the possibility of
employee ownership;
(ii) provide for the performance of
preliminary feasibility assessments;
(iii) assist in the funding of objective
third-party feasibility studies and preliminary
business valuations, and in selecting and
monitoring professionals qualified to conduct
such studies; and
(iv) provide a data bank to help employees
find legal, financial, and technical advice in
connection with business ownership;
(C) in the case of activities described in
paragraph (2)(C)--
(i) provide for courses on employee
participation; and
(ii) provide for the development and
fostering of networks of employee-owned
companies to spread the use of successful
participation techniques; and
(D) in the case of training described in paragraph
(2)(D)--
(i) provide for visits to existing programs
by staff from new programs receiving funding
under this section; and
(ii) provide materials to be used for such
training.
(4) Guidance.--The Secretary shall issue formal guidance,
for recipients of grants awarded under subsection (d) and one-
stop partners (as defined in section 3 of the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)) affiliated
with the workforce development systems (as so defined) of the
States, proposing that programs and other activities funded
under this section be--
(A) proactive in encouraging actions and activities
that promote employee ownership of, and participation
in, businesses; and
(B) comprehensive in emphasizing both employee
ownership of, and participation in, businesses so as to
increase productivity and broaden capital ownership.
(d) Grants.--
(1) In general.--In carrying out the program established
under subsection (c), the Secretary may make grants for use in
connection with new programs and existing programs within a
State for any of the following activities:
(A) Education and outreach as provided in
subsection (c)(2)(A).
(B) Technical assistance as provided in subsection
(c)(2)(B).
(C) Training activities for employees and employers
as provided in subsection (c)(2)(C).
(D) Activities facilitating cooperation among
employee-owned firms.
(E) Training as provided in subsection (c)(2)(D)
for new programs provided by participants in existing
programs dedicated to the objectives of this section,
except that, for each fiscal year, the amount of the
grants made for such training shall not exceed 10
percent of the total amount of the grants made under
this section.
(2) Amounts and conditions.--The Secretary shall determine
the amount and any conditions for a grant made under this
subsection. The amount of the grant shall be subject to
paragraph (6), and shall reflect the capacity of the applicant
for the grant.
(3) Applications.--Each entity desiring a grant under this
subsection shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as
the Secretary may reasonably require.
(4) State applications.--Each State may sponsor and submit
an application under paragraph (3) on behalf of any local
entity consisting of a unit of State or local government,
State-supported institution of higher education, or nonprofit
organization, meeting the requirements of this section.
(5) Applications by entities.--
(A) Entity applications.--If a State fails to
support or establish a program pursuant to this section
during any fiscal year, the Secretary shall, in the
subsequent fiscal years, allow local entities described
in paragraph (4) from that State to make applications
for grants under paragraph (3) on their own initiative.
(B) Application screening.--Any State failing to
support or establish a program pursuant to this section
during any fiscal year may submit applications under
paragraph (3) in the subsequent fiscal years but may
not screen applications by local entities described in
paragraph (4) before submitting the applications to the
Secretary.
(6) Limitations.--A recipient of a grant made under this
subsection shall not receive, during a fiscal year, in the
aggregate, more than the following amounts:
(A) For fiscal year 2022, $300,000.
(B) For fiscal year 2023, $330,000.
(C) For fiscal year 2024, $363,000.
(D) For fiscal year 2025, $399,300.
(E) For fiscal year 2026, $439,200.
(7) Annual report.--For each year, each recipient of a
grant under this subsection shall submit to the Secretary a
report describing how grant funds allocated pursuant to this
subsection were expended during the 12-month period preceding
the date of the submission of the report.
(e) Evaluations.--The Secretary is authorized to reserve not more
than 10 percent of the funds appropriated for a fiscal year to carry
out this section, for the purposes of conducting evaluations of the
grant programs identified in subsection (d) and to provide related
technical assistance.
(f) Reporting.--Not later than the expiration of the 36-month
period following the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall
prepare and submit to Congress a report--
(1) on progress related to employee ownership and
participation in businesses in the United States; and
(2) containing an analysis of critical costs and benefits
of activities carried out under this section.
(g) Authorizations of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated
for the purpose of making grants pursuant to subsection (d) the
following:
(A) For fiscal year 2022, $4,000,000.
(B) For fiscal year 2023, $7,000,000.
(C) For fiscal year 2024, $10,000,000.
(D) For fiscal year 2025, $13,000,000.
(E) For fiscal year 2026, $16,000,000.
(2) Administrative expenses.--There are authorized to be
appropriated for the purpose of funding the administrative
expenses related to the Initiative, for each of fiscal years
2022 through 2026, an amount not in excess of the lesser of--
(A) $350,000; or
(B) 5.0 percent of the maximum amount available
under paragraph (1) for that fiscal year.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
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