S. 1211 — AID Youth Employment Act

This section establishes a new subtitle E, titled "Youth Employment Opportunities," in Title I of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA; 29 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.)—inserting it after subtitle D and redesignating current subtitle E as subtitle F—and defines key terms including "eligible youth" (individuals ages 14-24 who are in-school youth, out-of-school youth, or unemployed), "subsidized employment," "marginalized" (e.g., homeless, foster youth, justice-involved, at-risk dropouts in underserved communities), "tribal area," and "tribal college or university." New section 176A directs the Secretary of Labor to allocate funds appropriated under new section 176E as follows: (1) up to $1.8 billion for subsidized summer employment grants under new section 176B; and (2) up to $2.4 billion for subsidized year-round employment grants under new section 176C; after reserving up to 10% for technical assistance and oversight. New section 176B establishes a competitive grant program using funds under section 176A(a)(1), awarding: (1) planning grants for 1-year periods in amounts up to $250,000 to plan subsidized summer employment programs; and (2) implementation grants for 3-year periods in amounts up to $6 million to implement such programs. Eligible entities include states, local governments, Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or community-based organizations that partner with entities such as local educational agencies, workforce development boards, juvenile/criminal justice agencies, child welfare agencies, and trauma-service providers with records of serving low-income or out-of-school youth.

This section makes conforming amendments to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Specifically, it (1) revises a cross-reference in WIOA section 121(b)(1)(C)(ii)(II) to include subtitles C through F (from C through E); (2) modifies WIOA section 503(b) to specify that referenced subtitles are as in effect the day before enactment; and (3) updates the table of contents to designate subtitle E as "Youth Employment Opportunities" (secs. 176-176E) and to add subtitle F—Administration.