Bill Summary
The National Transit Workforce Training Act of 2020 is a proposed bill to amend the United States Code, specifically title 49, in order to establish a national training center for frontline transit workers. This center would be responsible for developing and implementing training and educational programs for these workers, with a focus on skills related to maintenance and operations of public transportation systems. The bill also requires coordination with other government departments and the collection of human capital data, and makes a small percentage of funds from other transit programs available for this purpose. Finally, the bill includes a definition of "human capital" as the collective knowledge, skills, and abilities of the frontline transit workforce.
Possible Impacts
1. This legislation could affect frontline transit workers by providing them with additional training and educational opportunities to advance their careers and increase their skills, potentially leading to higher salaries and more job security.
2. The establishment of a national transit frontline workforce training center could benefit both rural and urban transit systems by creating standardized training programs and addressing skill gaps, ultimately improving the quality and safety of public transportation for all people.
3. The inclusion of human capital data in the National Transit Database could potentially impact funding for transit systems, as it would provide a more comprehensive understanding of the workforce and their needs, potentially leading to more targeted and effective investments in training and development.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6575 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6575
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a national transit
frontline workforce training center, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 21, 2020
Mr. Brown of Maryland (for himself, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Raskin, Mr.
Trone, Mr. Bacon, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Mr.
McKinley, Mr. Espaillat, and Mr. Bost) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish a national transit
frontline workforce training center, 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 ``National Transit Workforce Training
Act of 2020''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL TRANSIT FRONTLINE WORKFORCE TRAINING CENTER.
Section 5314(b) of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read
as follows:
``(b) National Frontline Workforce Training Center.--
``(1) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a
national transit frontline workforce training center
(hereinafter referred to as the `Center'), targeted to both
rural and urban transit systems, and award grants to a
nonprofit organization with a demonstrated capacity to develop
and provide transit career ladder programs through labor-
management partnerships and apprenticeships on a nationwide
basis to carry out the duties under paragraph (2). The Center
shall be dedicated to the needs of the frontline transit
workforce through standards-based training in the maintenance
and operations occupations.
``(2) Duties.--
``(A) In general.--In cooperation with the
Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration,
public transportation authorities, and national
entities, the Center shall develop and conduct training
and educational programs for frontline local
transportation employees engaged in Government-aid
public transportation work.
``(B) Training and educational programs.--The
training and educational programs developed under
subparagraph (A) may include courses in recent
developments, techniques, and procedures related to--
``(i) developing consensus national
training standards in partnership with industry
stakeholders for key frontline occupations with
demonstrated skill gaps;
``(ii) developing national systems of
qualification and apprenticeship for transit
maintenance and operations occupations;
``(iii) building local, regional, and
Statewide transit training partnerships to
identify and address workforce skill gaps and
develop skills needed for delivering quality
transit service and supporting employee career
advancement;
``(iv) developing programs for training of
frontline workers, instructors, mentors, and
labor-management partnership representatives,
in the form of classroom, hands-on, on-the-job,
as well as web-based training. Training can be
delivered at a national center regionally, or
at individual transit agencies;
``(v) developing training programs for
skills related to existing and emerging transit
technologies, e.g. for zero-emission buses
(ZEBs);
``(vi) developing improved capacity for
safety, security, and emergency preparedness in
local transit systems and in the industry as a
whole through--
``(I) developing the role of the
frontline workforce in building and
sustaining safety culture and safety
systems in the industry and in
individual public transportation
systems; and
``(II) training to address
frontline worker roles in promoting
health and safety for transit workers
and the riding public;
``(vii) developing local transit capacity
for career pathways partnerships with schools
and other community organizations for
recruiting and training under-represented
populations as successful transit employees who
can develop careers in the transit industry;
and
``(viii) in collaboration with the Federal
Transit Administration, conducting and
disseminating research to--
``(I) provide transit workforce job
projections and identify training needs
and gaps;
``(II) determine the most cost-
effective methods for transit workforce
training and development, including
return on investment analysis;
``(III) identify the most effective
methods for implementing successful
safety systems and a positive safety
culture; and
``(IV) promote transit workforce
best practices for achieving cost-
effective, quality, safe, and reliable
public transportation services.
``(3) Coordination.--The Secretary shall coordinate
activities under this section, to the maximum extent
practicable, with the National Office of Apprenticeship of the
Department of Labor and the Office of Career, Technical, and
Adult Education of the Department of Education.
``(4) National transit database.--For the purposes of
carrying out this section, the Secretary shall require that the
National Transit Database collect additional human capital data
on an annual basis. Such human capital data shall be collected
and defined with industry input.
``(5) Availability of amounts.--
``(A) In general.--Not more than 0.5 percent of
amounts made available to a recipient under sections
5307, 5337, and 5339 is available for expenditures by
the recipient, with the approval of the Secretary, to
pay not more than 80 percent of the cost of eligible
activities under this subsection.
``(B) Existing programs.--A recipient may use
amounts made available under subparagraph (A) to carry
out existing local education and training programs for
public transportation employees supported by the
Secretary, the Department of Labor, or the Department
of Education.
``(6) Human capital defined.--In this subsection, the term
`human capital' means the knowledge, talents, skills,
abilities, experience, intelligence, training, judgment, and
wisdom possessed individually and collectively by the frontline
transit workforce, including operations, maintenance, and
administrative personnel.''.
SEC. 3. DATA REQUIRED TO BE REPORTED IN NATIONAL TRANSIT DATABASE.
Section 5335 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (c) by inserting ``, either human capital
or physical capital'' before the period at the end; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(d) Definition of Human Capital.--In this section, the term
`human capital' has the meaning given the term in section 5314(b).''.
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