Establishes five-year youth workforce readiness grant pilot program; appropriates $5 million.

S4255

SENATE, No. 4255

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED MAY 14, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� BENJIE E. WIMBERLY

District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)

Senator� ANGELA V. MCKNIGHT

District 31 (Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes five-year youth workforce readiness grant
pilot program; appropriates $5 million.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
establishing the �Youth Workforce Readiness Act� and
supplementing Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� This act shall be known
and may be cited as the �Youth Workforce Readiness Act.�

���� 2.��� The purpose of this act
is to establish or expand activities to:

���� a.���� Increase access and
opportunities for youth to obtain education and training necessary to succeed
in the labor market;

���� b.��� Support engagement in
and the integration of programs and activities offered during out-of-school
time hours through the workforce investment, education, and economic
development systems;

���� c.���� Improve the quality of
the workforce and meet the skill requirements of employers;

���� d.��� Engage employers in
addressing the training, skill, and employment needs of youth and youth
jobseekers, and fostering opportunities for connection and economic mobility;
and

���� e.���� Include younger youth
in the education and workforce investment activities in an age and
developmentally appropriate manner.

���� 3.��� As used in this act:

���� �Commissioner� means the
Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development.

���� �Community-based organization�
means a youth-serving private nonprofit organization, which may include a
faith-based organization, that:

���� (1)�� is representative of a
community or a significant segment of a community;

���� (2)�� has demonstrated
expertise and effectiveness in workforce development; and

���� (3)�� has demonstrated
expertise:

���� (a) in the planning and
delivery of education, training, and related activities that are included in a
career pathway;

���� (b)�� in forging coordination
and cooperation between educators and other members of the community; and

���� (c) in the development and
implementation of data systems that measure the progress of students and
outcomes of career pathways.

���� �Covered partnership� means a
partnership between:

���� (1)�� a community-based
organization; and

���� (2)�� an industry or sector
partnership, a local educational agency, and another public entity or private
employer, as appropriate.

���� �Eligible youth� means the
same as that term is defined under section 3102 of the �Workforce Innovation
and Opportunity Act,� (29 U.S.C. s.3102) except that the individual involved
shall be:

���� (1)�� not younger than age 12,
except that career awareness programming may be provided to youth not younger
than age 10; and

���� (2)�� not older than age 18,
or age 19 if enrolled in secondary school.

���� �Industry or sector
partnership� means:

���� (1)�� the same as that term is
defined under section 3102 of the �Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act,�
(29 U.S.C. s.3102); and

���� (2)�� a collaborative that
meets the requirements of paragraph (26) under section 3102 of the �Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act,� (29 U.S.C. s.3102) but also includes:

���� (a)�� an Indian tribe or
tribal organization; or

���� (b)�� a community-based
organization.

���� �Out-of-school time� means,
with respect to a program described in section 6 of this act, a supervised
program regularly attended by eligible youth, that fosters learning and
development during out-of-school time hours, which includes hours before school,
after school, during summer vacation or another school holiday, or on a
Saturday or Sunday.

���� �Workforce readiness program�
means an out-of-school time program that:

���� (1)�� meets the requirements
of section 6 of this act;

���� (2)�� is offered by a
community-based organization of an eligible entity or a related covered
partnership; and

���� (3)�� is intended to help
prepare eligible youth for the workforce.

���� For the purposes of this act,
the terms �career pathway,� �customized training,� �in-demand industry sector
or occupation,� �local area,� �local board,� �local educational agency,� and
�recognized postsecondary credential� mean the same as those terms are defined
under section 3102 of the �Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act,� (29
U.S.C. s.3102).

���� 4.��� a.� Subject to funds
made available under section 8 of this act, the Commissioner of Labor and
Workforce Development shall award grants on a competitive basis to entities
eligible pursuant to section 5 of this act.

���� b.��� The commissioner shall
award the grants established pursuant to subsection a. of this section to
assist eligible entities in planning, developing, and implementing
comprehensive workforce readiness programs, that are:

���� (1) in out-of-school time
programs;

���� (2) carried out by
community-based organizations of the eligible entity or related covered
partnerships; and

���� (3) for eligible youth.

���� c.���� Priority in awarding
grants shall be given to eligible entities proposing workforce readiness
programs that serve youth from low-income households, justice-involved youth,
youth at risk of disconnection from school or work, youth in communities with
high unemployment rates, and youth in or from underserved communities.

���� d.��� Subject to funds made
available under section 8 of this act, the commissioner shall award grants over
the course of at least three years but not more than five years, provided that
no grant shall extend beyond the conclusion of the five-year pilot program
established pursuant to this act.

���� e.���� Grants awarded pursuant
to this section may be renewed pursuant to paragraph (2) of subsection c. of
section 7 of this act in a process as determined by the commissioner.

���� 5.��� a.� To be eligible to
receive a grant under section 4 of this act, an entity shall:

���� (1)�� be a youth-serving
organization that provides youth workforce readiness programming through
out-of-school time programs that are community-based organizations; and

���� (2) obtain approval of an
application pursuant to subsection b. of this section.

���� b.��� To be eligible to
receive a grant under section 4 of this act, an entity shall submit an
application to the commissioner at a time, in a manner, and containing
information as the commissioner may require, including:

���� (1) a description of how the
entity will implement a youth workforce readiness program in a manner that
ensures an equitable geographic distribution of program activities, including
an equitable distribution between urban and rural communities;

���� (2) a description of the
proposed program activities to be funded and their locations;

���� (3) a description of
populations of eligible youth to be served, including if the eligible youth
live in or are from underserved communities or communities with employment
disparities;

���� (4) a description of the
effective strategies, best practices, or evidence-based practices the workforce
readiness program will use;

���� (5)� an assurance that the
program will take place in safe and easily accessible facilities;

���� (6) a demonstration of how, in
implementing the proposed program activities, the entity will coordinate
activities with federal, State, and local programs and make the most effective
use of public resources;

���� (7) a description of:

���� (a)�� the community-based
organizations or the covered partnerships through which the entity will
implement the program; and

���� (b)�� if a covered partnership
will assist in implementing the program, the collaboration and coordination
activities that the community-based organization in the partnership has carried
out or will carry out with other entities in the partnership, related to that
implementation;

���� (8) if the program includes an
opportunity to earn a recognized postsecondary credential, a description of the
activities leading to the credential;

���� (9) an assurance that funds
provided under this act will be used to supplement, and not supplant, other
federal, State, or local funds expended to provide youth programs or workforce
readiness programs; and

���� (10) a budget detailing
program activities and administrative costs.

���� 6.��� a.� An eligible entity
that receives a grant under section 4 of this act shall use the grant funds, if
the entity seeks to implement the workforce readiness program through a covered
partnership, to establish the partnership and to carry out the development and
implementation of a youth workforce readiness program that:

���� (1)�� includes services to
help prepare eligible youth who are not younger than age 15 for the workforce,
which services shall include:

���� (a)�� support for the use of
career pathways;

���� (b)�� paid and unpaid work
experiences that have as a component academic and occupational education, which
may include:

���� (i)��� summer employment
opportunities and other employment opportunities available throughout the
school year;

���� (ii)�� pre-apprenticeship and
apprenticeship programs registered under the �National Apprenticeship Act of
1937� (29 U.S.C. s.50);

���� (iii) internships and job
shadowing; and

���� (iv) on-the-job training
opportunities;

���� (c)�� work-based learning, as
that term is defined in section 2302 of the �Carl D. Perkins Career and
Technical Education Act of 2006,� (20 U.S.C. s.2302) that provides
opportunities for the application of employability skills, and hands-on work
experiences through covered partnerships;

���� (d)�� occupational skill
training, which shall include priority consideration for training programs that
lead to recognized postsecondary credentials that are aligned with in-demand
industry sectors or occupations in the local area involved, if the local board
determines that the programs meet the quality criteria described in section
3153 of the �Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act,� (29 U.S.C. s.3153);

���� (e)�� the provision of
customized training;

���� (f)�� education offered
concurrently with and in the same context as workforce readiness activities and
training for a specific occupation or occupational cluster; and

���� (g)�� activities that help
youth prepare for and transition to postsecondary education and training;

���� (2)�� includes services to
help prepare eligible youth for the workforce, which services shall include:

���� (a)�� leadership development
opportunities, which may include community service and peer-centered activities
encouraging responsibility and other positive social and civic behaviors, as
appropriate;

���� (b)�� workforce or workforce
readiness opportunities;

���� (c)�� supportive services;

���� (d)�� adult mentoring for the
period of participation and a subsequent period, for a total of not less than
12 months;

���� (e)�� comprehensive guidance
and counseling, which may include drug and alcohol abuse, prevention services,
counseling and referral, as appropriate;

���� (f)�� financial literacy
education;

���� (g)�� entrepreneurial skills
training;

���� (h)�� services that provide
labor market and employment information about in-demand industry sectors or
occupations available in the local area, such as career awareness, career
counseling, and career exploration services;

���� (i)��� activities to develop
fundamental workforce readiness skills, or to develop employability skills,
such as communication, creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking, that
support social-emotional development through every developmental stage, in both
formal and informal learning experiences;

���� (j)��� academic counseling to
support workforce readiness; and

���� (k)�� career exposure, through
mentoring and targeted programming, offered by local industry or sector
partnerships, to provide career assessments and education and career planning;
and

���� (3)�� may also include:

���� (a)�� the provision of
professional development, as defined in section 2302 of the �Carl D. Perkins
Career and Technical Education Act of 2006,� (20 U.S.C. s.2302) for training
educators and other providers of educational services who participate in the
workforce readiness program; and

���� (b)�� developing assets and
resources that assist an employer or groups of employers or sectors in working
with eligible youth.

���� b.��� An eligible entity may
use the grant funds, with the approval of the commissioner, to award subgrants
to eligible organizations to carry out activities through a youth workforce
readiness program.

���� c.���� An eligible entity
shall, to the extent practicable, coordinate with local school districts and
other relevant educational entities to avoid the duplication of services.

���� d.��� Not more than 10 percent
of the grant funds awarded pursuant to section 4 of this act shall be used by
an eligible entity for administrative costs.

���� 7.��� a.� An eligible entity
that implements a youth workforce readiness program under this act shall ensure
that the program:

���� (1)�� is based upon an
assessment of objective data regarding the need for such a program in the
communities served;

���� (2)�� is evaluated on an
established set of performance measures aimed at ensuring the availability of
high-quality opportunities by measuring eligible youth success; and

���� (3)�� collects the data
necessary for the measures of eligible youth success described in paragraph (2)
of this subsection.

���� b.��� The performance
measures, including indicators, used to evaluate the youth workforce readiness
programs shall:

���� (1)�� align with the regular
academic program of the school and the academic needs of participating eligible
youth;

���� (2)�� include performance
measures that:

���� (a)�� are able to track the
success, such as improvement over time, of eligible youth; and

���� (b)�� include assessment
results and other indicators of eligible youth success, such as improved
attendance during the school day, better classroom grades, regular or
consistent program attendance, and on-time advancement to the next grade level;

���� (3)�� for high school
students, include indicators such as achievement of career competencies, or
successful completion of internships, apprenticeships, or work-based learning
opportunities, or high school graduation; and

���� (4)�� include, where
applicable, measures of job placement rates, internship completion rates,
credential attainment, and post-program earnings.

���� c.���� The commissioner shall
conduct a periodic evaluation of the eligible entity, to assess the progress of
the entity's youth workforce readiness program toward ensuring high-quality
opportunities by measuring eligible youth success.� The results of evaluations
under this subsection shall be:

���� (1)�� used to refine, improve,
and strengthen the program, and to refine the performance measures; and

���� (2)�� used by the commissioner
to determine whether a grant for a program is eligible to be renewed under
section 4 of this act.

���� d.��� The commissioner shall,
no later than six months following the conclusion of the five-year pilot
program established pursuant to this act, submit a report to the Governor and
the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), evaluating
the effectiveness of the program and providing recommendations regarding the
continuation, expansion, or modification of the program, and make the report
available to the public.�

���� 8.��� a.� There is
appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Labor and Workforce
Development the sum of $5,000,000 to effectuate the provisions of this act.

���� b.��� The funds appropriated pursuant
to this section shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, other federal,
State, or local funds expended to provide youth programs or workforce readiness
programs.

���� 9.��� This act shall take
effect immediately except that the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce
Development may take any anticipatory administrative action in advance as shall
be necessary for the implementation of this act.

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes a five-year
youth workforce readiness grant pilot program.

���� Under the bill, the
Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development is to award grants on a
competitive basis to support out-of-school time youth workforce readiness
programs, providing employability skills development, career exploration,
employment readiness training, mentoring, work-based learning, and workforce
opportunities for eligible youth.

���� The bill defines �eligible
youth� as the same as that term is defined under the �Workforce Innovation and
Opportunity Act,� except that the individual involved may not be younger than
age 12, except that career awareness programming may be provided to youth not
younger than age 10, and not older than age 18, or age 19 if enrolled in
secondary school.

���� To be eligible to receive a
grant under the bill, an entity is required to be a youth-serving organization
that provides youth workforce readiness programming through out-of-school time
programs that are community-based organizations and to obtain approval of an
application submitted to the commissioner.

���� Further, this bill requires an
eligible entity implementing a youth workforce readiness program to include
certain project activities, and establishes evaluation and reporting
requirements to assess individual program effectiveness.

���� The bill requires the
commissioner to submit a report no later than six months following the
conclusion of the five-year pilot program evaluating the effectiveness of the
program and providing recommendations regarding the continuation, expansion, or
modification of the program, and make the report available to the public.�

���� This bill appropriates $5
million from the General Fund to the Department of Labor and Workforce
Development.� Funds appropriated under the bill are to be used to supplement,
and not supplant, other federal, State, or local funds expended to provide
youth programs or workforce readiness programs.