Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grants (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised July 10, 2014 |
| Report Number |
R42661 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Benjamin Collins, Analyst in Labor Policy |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) grants are competitive grants to institutions of higher education to support the development, offering, and improvement of career training programs that can be completed in two years or less. The program targets workers who have been adversely affected by international trade, though non-trade-affected workers may also participate in TAACCCT-funded programs.
TAACCCT is administered by the Department of Labor (DOL). It was created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA; P.L. 111-5) and is authorized under the Trade Act of 1974, as amended. The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (HCERA, P.L. 111-152) provided $500 million per fiscal year in mandatory appropriations for TAACCCT for FY2011 through FY2014. In FY2013 and FY2014, the funding for the program was reduced to $474.5 million and $464 million, respectively, due to sequestration. Funds equal to at least 0.5% of the total annual funding for grants must be awarded to institutions in each state.
TAACCCT grantees may use funds to design, develop, and offer career training programs. Allowable uses of funds include personnel as well as materials and other expenses related to content development and delivery. Under the most recent solicitation for grant applications (SGA), TAACCCT grants provide a 48-month period of performance. This period includes 36 months for the design, development, and delivery of a training program and 12 months for data gathering and evaluation.
Statute requires that grant applications include a description of the proposed project and how it will serve trade-affected workers. Statute further specifies that grants will be judged on the merit of the proposed project and the local employment prospects for individuals who would complete the proposed program. SGAs have specified an expanded set of criteria for program grants to operationalize the aims of the TAACCCT program.
The first SGA was issued in January 2011 and grantees were announced in September 2011. The second SGA was issued in February 2012 and grantees were announced in September 2012. The third SGA was issued in April 2013 and grantees were announced in September 2013. The fourth SGA, representing the final round of grants under the HCERA funding, was issued in April 2014.
