,,ii  #aadth ,,congress  #b;d ,session  
,s4 #cagd  ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of     
,,the ,,united ,,states  ,july #ac1     
#bjaf,mr4 ,king introduced the following
 bill2 which was read twice and referred
 to the ,committee on ,health1          
,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions  ,a   
,,bill  ,to establish an ,interagency   
,council on ,workforce ,attachment to   
promote effective and coordinated       
workforce attachment strategies1 and for
 other purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this
 ,act may be cited as the ,leveling     
,access to ,demonstrated ,drivers of    
,employment ,results ,act or the        
,,ladder ,act4  #b4 ,definitions ,in    
this ,act3 7#a7 ,council ,the term      
,council means the ,interagency ,council
 on ,workforce ,attachment established  
in section #c4  7#b7 ,discouraged worker
  7,a7 ,in general ,the term discouraged
 worker means an individual who is      
available for and interested in         
employment1 but who is not in the labor 
force and is not looking for employment 

because that individual believes there  
are no jobs available or no jobs        
available for which that individual     
would qualify4  7,b7 ,determination ,the
 determination whether an individual is 
a discouraged worker1 for purposes of   
this paragraph1 shall be made in        
accordance with the criteria used by the
 ,bureau of ,labor ,statistics of the   
,department of ,labor in defining       
individuals as discouraged workers4     
7#c7 ,eligible entity ,the term eligible
 entity means an entity that provides   
services to promote workforce attachment
 among one or more populations with an  
employment barrier and that is one or   
more of the following entities3  7,a7 ,a
 ,federal agency4  7,b7 ,a ,state       
agency4  7,c7 ,a local agency4  7,d7 ,a 
nonprofit foundation1 corporation1      
institution1 or association4  7,e7 ,a   
business4  7,f7 ,a partnership          
consisting of two or more entities      
described in any of subparagraphs 7,a7  
through 7,e74  7#d7 ,federal agency ,the

 term ,federal agency has the meaning   
given the term agency in section #eea7a7
 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4    
7#e7 ,individual with a barrier to      
employment ,the term individual with a  
barrier to employment has the meaning   
given the term in section #c of the     
,workforce ,innovation and ,opportunity 
,act 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #cajb74  7#f7       
,population with an employment barrier  
7,a7 ,in general ,the term population   
with an employment barrier means a      
collection of working-age individuals   
who face a challenge in consistently    
maintaining full-time employment and who
 reside in the ,united ,states4  7,b7   
,individual who faces a challenge in    
consistently maintaining full-time      
employment ,the term individual who     
faces a challenge in consistently       
maintaining full-time employment means  
an individual who has been unemployed   
for at least #d weeks during the past   
year and who is a member of one or more 
of the following populations3  7i7      

,individuals with a barrier to          
employment4  7ii7 ,individuals served   
under any of the core programs1 as      
defined in section #c of the ,workforce 
,innovation and ,opportunity ,act 7#bi  
,u4,s4,c4 #cajb74  7iii7 ,veterans4     
7iv7 ,individuals who are receiving     
assistance through the low-income home  
energy assistance program established   
under the ,low-,income ,home ,energy    
,assistance ,act of #aiha 7#db ,u4,s4,c4
 #hfba et seq474  7v7 ,individuals who  
are receiving ,social ,security         
,disability ,insurance benefits under   
title ,,ii of the ,social ,security ,act
 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #dja et seq474  7vi7    
,individuals who are receiving trade    
adjustment assistance under the ,trade  
,act of #aigd 7#ai ,u4,s4,c4 #baja et   
seq474  7vii7 ,individuals who are      
receiving benefits through any ,state   
program funded with qualified ,state    
expenditures as defined in section      
#dji7;a77#g77;,b77i7 of the ,social     
,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4           

#fji7;a77#g77;,b77i774  7viii7          
,individuals who are receiving workers' 
compensation4  7ix7 ,discouraged        
workers4  7x7 ,individuals who are      
enrolled in a ,medicaid ,buy-,in program
 established under subclause 7,,xiii71  
7,,xv71 or 7,,xvi7 of section           
#aijb7;a77#aj77;,a77ii7 of the ,social  
,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4           
#acif;a7a77#aj77;,a77ii77 or under a    
,medicaid waiver approved under section 
#aaae of the ,social ,security ,act 7#db
 ,u4,s4,c4 #acae74  7xi7 ,individuals   
who are enrolled in ,medicaid under     
section #aijb7;a77#aj77;,a77i77,,ii77bb7
 of the ,social ,security ,act 7#db     
,u4,s4,c4                               
#acif;a7a77#aj77;,a77i77,,ii77bb77 in   
accordance with sections #afai7;b7 and  
#aije7q7 of the ,social ,security ,act  
7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #achb;h7b71 #acif;d7q774 
7xii7 ,any other group that faces a     
challenge in consistently maintaining   
full-time employment1 as determined by  
the ,council4  7#g7 ,workforce          

attachment ,the term workforce          
attachment means placement and retention
 in employment that substantially       
improves the financial security and     
self-sufficiency of a household4  #c4   
,establishment ,there is established in 
the executive branch an independent     
establishment to be known as the        
,interagency ,council on ,workforce     
,attachment4  #d4 ,membership  7a7      
,members ,the ,council shall be composed
 of the following members3 7#a7 ,the    
,secretary of ,agriculture1 or the      
designee of the ,secretary4  7#b7 ,the  
,secretary of ,education1 or the        
designee of the ,secretary4  7#c7 ,the  
,secretary of ,health and ,human        
,services1 or the designee of the       
,secretary4  7#d7 ,the ,secretary of    
,housing and ,urban ,development1 or the
 designee of the ,secretary4  7#e7 ,the 
,secretary of ,labor1 or the designee of
 the ,secretary4  7#f7 ,the ,secretary  
of ,transportation1 or the designee of  
the ,secretary4  7#g7 ,the ,secretary of

 the ,treasury1 or the designee of the  
,secretary4  7#h7 ,the ,secretary of    
,veterans ,affairs1 or the designee of  
the ,secretary4  7#i7 ,the ,commissioner
 of ,social ,security1 or the designee  
of the ,commissioner4  7#aj7 ,the       
,attorney ,general1 or the designee of  
the ,attorney ,general4  7#aa7 ,the     
,director of the ,office of ,management 
and ,budget1 or the designee of the     
,director4  7#ab7 ,the ,chair of the    
,equal ,employment ,opportunity         
,commission1 or the designee of the     
,chair4  7#ac7 ,the heads of such other 
,federal agencies as the ,council       
considers appropriate1 or their         
designees4  7b7 ,chairperson ,the       
,council shall elect a ,chairperson and 
a ,vice ,chairperson from among the     
members of the ,council4 ,the positions 
of ,chairperson and ,vice ,chairperson  
shall rotate among ,council members on  
an annual basis4  7c7 ,meetings ,the    
,council shall meet at the call of the  
,chairperson or a majority of ,council  

members1 but not less often than #d     
times each year1 and the rotation of the
 positions of ,chairperson and ,vice    
,chairperson required under subsection  
7b7 shall occur at the first meeting of 
each year4  7d7 ,prohibition of         
additional pay ,members of the ,council 
shall receive no additional pay1        
allowances1 or benefits by reason of    
their service on the ,council4  7e7     
,administration ,the ,executive         
,director of the ,council shall report  
to the ,chairperson of the ,council4    
#e4 ,functions  7a7 ,general authority  
,the ,council shall--  7#a7 facilitate  
the coordination of ,federal programs   
and activities to promote workforce     
attachment among populations with       
employment barriers2  7#b7 collect      
evidence of effective strategies to     
promote workforce attachment among      
populations with employment barriers at 
every level of government and within the
 private sector2  7#c7 ensure the       
evaluation of the effectiveness of      

strategies to promote workforce         
attachment among populations with       
employment barriers by funding          
demonstration projects2  7#d7 encourage 
the implementation of those strategies  
that the ,council identifies as         
effective--  7,a7 in the course of the  
review required under subsection        
7b77#a72  7,b7 under subsection 7c72 or 
7,c7 based on review of the final       
reports received under subsection       
7e77#e77;,a77ii72 and  7#e7 ensure the  
authorities described in paragraphs 7#a7
 through 7#d7 are implemented in a      
manner that--  7,a7 utilizes available  
information supplied by any prior or    
ongoing review1 evaluation1 or          
demonstration regarding strategies to   
promote workforce attachment among      
populations with employment barriers2   
7,b7 avoids duplicating any prior or    
ongoing review1 evaluation1 or          
demonstration regarding strategies to   
promote workforce attachment among      
populations with employment barriers2   

7,c7 supports individuals with an       
impairment that is a disability under   
section #g7i77;,a7 of the               
,rehabilitation ,act of #aigc 7#bi      
,u4,s4,c4 #gje7i77;,a772 and  7,d7      
addresses discrimination that           
individuals described in subparagraph   
7,c7 may experience in the course of    
pursuing workforce attachment4  7b7     
,coordination of ,federal programs and  
activities ,the ,council shall-- 7#a7   
review all ,federal programs and        
activities designed to promote workforce
 attachment among populations with      
employment barriers2  7#b7 recommend to 
,federal and ,state agencies such action
 as may be necessary to increase        
coordination and reduce duplication     
among such programs and activities2 and 
7#c7 ensure the authorities described in
 paragraphs 7#a7 and 7#b7 are           
implemented in a manner that includes a 
review of1 and issuance of              
recommendations related to1 ,medicaid   
,buy-,in programs described in section  

#b7f77;,b77x74  7c7 ,review of          
non-,federal programs and activities    
,the ,council shall1 in coordination    
with the review of ,federal programs and
 activities required under subsection   
7b77#a71 review regional1 ,state1 and   
local programs and activities1 whether  
public or private1 designed to promote  
workforce attachment among populations  
with employment barriers1 including     
identifying the effective programs and  
activities4  7d7 ,dissemination and     
implementation of findings  7#a7        
,strategic plans  7,a7 ,in general ,not 
later than #ah months after the date of 
enactment of this ,act1 the ,council    
shall develop1 make available for public
 comment1 and submit to the ,president  
and to ,congress a ,national ,strategic 
,plan to ,promote ,workforce            
,attachment4  7,b7 ,annual updates ,the 
,council shall update annually the      
strategic plan described in subparagraph
 7,a74 ,such updates shall include      
information relating to--  7i7 ,federal 

programs and activities that the        
,council identifies as effective in the 
course of the review required under     
subsection 7b77#a72  7ii7 regional1     
,state1 or local programs and activities
 that the ,council identifies as        
effective under subsection 7c72  7iii7  
the strategies described in subsection  
7e77#a7 that the ,council identifies as 
effective based on review of the final  
reports received under subsection       
7e77#e77;,a77ii72 and  7iv7             
recommendations for appropriate and     
necessary legislative and administrative
 actions to improve the coordination and
 effectiveness of ,federal programs and 
activities to promote workforce         
attachment among populations with       
employment barriers4  7#b7 ,annual      
reports ,the ,council shall prepare and 
submit to the ,president and to         
,congress an annual report that         
describes the accomplishments and       
activities of the ,council in working   
with ,federal1 ,state1 and local        

agencies and public and private         
organizations to promote workforce      
attachment among populations with       
employment barriers4  7#c7 ,other       
responsibilities ,the ,council shall    
develop joint ,federal agency and other 
initiatives to fulfill the goals of this
 ,act4  7e7 ,demonstration projects     
7#a7 ,in general ,not earlier than the  
date of submission of the strategic plan
 under subsection 7d77#a77;,a71 the     
,council shall award grants to eligible 
entities to conduct demonstration       
projects designed to develop1 implement1
 and evaluate strategies to promote     
workforce attachment among populations  
with employment barriers4  7#b7 ,grant  
amount and project duration  7,a7 ,grant
 ,amounts ,the amount of a grant        
described in paragraph 7#a7-- 7i7 shall 
not be less than #ajj1jjj2 and  7ii7    
shall not be more than #ajj1jjj1jjj4    
7,b7 ,project duration ,the duration of 
a demonstration project described in    
paragraph 7#a7--  7i7 shall not be less 

than #d years2 and  7ii7 shall not be   
more than #aj years4  7#c7 ,application 
requirements ,the ,council shall require
 each eligible entity that seeks a grant
 under this subsection to submit an     
application to the ,council that        
contains each of the following3  7,a7 ,a
 description of how1 using the funds    
provided under this subsection1 the     
entity will implement a strategy to     
promote workforce attachment among one  
or more populations with employment     
barriers1 which shall include--  7i7 the
 goals of the project involved2  7ii7   
the metrics to be used to assess        
progress towards the goals of the       
project2  7iii7 the strategy to be used 
in the project2  7iv7 evidence that the 
proposed strategy can be expected to be 
effective at achieving the goals of the 
project2  7v7 the one or more target    
populations to be served by the project2
  7vi7 the roles and responsibilities of
 each entity involved in the project2   
7vii7 the project budget2 and  7viii7   

the project timeline4  7,b7 ,a          
description of how the entity will      
coordinate the development and          
implementation of the project with any  
other programs and activities promoting 
workforce attachment among the one or   
more target populations4  7,c7 ,a       
description of how1 using the funds     
provided under this subsection1 the     
entity will enter into a contract with  
an independent third-party evaluator    
that will conduct a statistically valid 
evaluation of the strategy that allows  
for strong causal inferences regarding  
the effect of the strategy on the       
workforce attachment outcomes of        
participants4  7,d7 ,a description of   
how the entity will obtain the informed 
consent of the participants4  7,e7 ,a   
description of any ,federal regulatory  
or statutory provision that would need  
to be waived in order for the entity to 
implement the project4  7#d7            
,considerations in awarding funding ,in 
awarding funding for a demonstration    

project 7for which an application was   
submitted under paragraph 7#c771 the    
,council shall consider each of the     
following3  7,a7 ,the value of the      
project in promoting the purposes       
described in subsection 7a74  7,b7 ,the 
expected quality of the evaluation to be
 conducted4  7,c7 ,the likelihood1 based
 on evidence provided in the            
application1 evaluations of prior       
demonstration projects conducted by     
,federal or ,state agencies1 including a
 project carried out under this         
subsection1 and other evidence1 that the
 applicant entity1 in collaboration with
 any other participating entities1 will 
achieve the goals of the project4  7,d7 
,whether the project builds upon        
effective regional1 ,state1 or local    
programs and activities identified by   
the ,council under subsection 7c74  7,e7
 ,the length of time required to        
complete the project1 including the     
evaluation of the strategy used in the  
project4  7,f7 ,whether the project     

avoids duplicating a prior or ongoing   
demonstration project conducted by a    
,federal or ,state agency4  7#e7        
,reports  7,a7 ,interim and final       
reports ,an entity that receives a grant
 to conduct a demonstration project     
under this subsection shall contract    
with an independent third-party         
evaluator that will submit to the       
,council--  7i7 not later than #a year  
after the grant for the project has been
 approved1 and annually thereafter until
 the project is concluded1 a written    
report summarizing the progress that has
 been made in developing1 implementing1 
and evaluating the project1 including an
 interim assessment of whether the      
strategy used in the project is enabling
 the eligible entity to make progress   
towards achieving the goals of the      
project2 and  7ii7 not later than #b    
months following the completion of the  
evaluation of the strategy used in the  
project1 a written report that includes 
an assessment of the outcomes of the    

project1 an analysis of factors that    
contributed to the success or failure of
 the strategy of the project1 an        
analysis of the statistical validity of 
the results of the evaluation1 and      
suggestions for improving the future    
implementation of similar workforce     
attachment strategies4  7,b7            
,availability through website ,the      
,council shall1 not later than #cj days 
after receipt of a written report       
pursuant to subparagraph 7,a71 make the 
report publicly available on a website  
of the ,council4  7f7 ,powers  7#a7     
,meetings ,the ,council may hold such   
meetings1 and sit and act at such times 
and places1 as the ,council considers   
advisable to carry out this ,act4  7#b7 
,conferences ,the ,council may arrange  
such national1 regional1 ,state1 and    
local conferences as the ,council       
considers advisable to carry out this   
,act4  7#c7 ,delegation ,any member or  
employee of the ,council may1 if        
authorized by the ,council1 take any    

action that the ,council is authorized  
to take under this ,act4  7#d7          
,information ,the ,council is authorized
 to secure directly from any ,federal   
agency such information as may be       
necessary to carry out this ,act4 ,the  
head of each agency shall1 to the extent
 authorized by law1 furnish such        
information directly to the ,council    
upon request made by the ,chairperson4  
7#e7 ,postal services ,the ,council may 
use the ,united ,states mails in the    
same manner and under the same          
conditions as other ,federal agencies4  
7#f7 ,space for use of council ,not     
later than #fj days after the date of   
enactment of this ,act1 the             
,administrator of ,general ,services    
shall support on a reimbursable basis   
the operations of the ,council1         
including by identifying and making     
available suitable space to house the   
,council4 ,if the ,administrator is not 
able to make such suitable space        
available within the #fj-;day period1   

the ,council shall lease space to the   
extent that funds are available4  7#g7  
,waiver recommendations ,the ,council   
may offer recommendations to ,federal   
agencies regarding regulatory and       
statutory requirements that should be   
waived under agency waiver authorities1 
under provisions other than this ,act1  
in order to facilitate the conduct of   
particular demonstration projects under 
subsection 7e74  7g7 ,personnel matters 
7#a7 ,director ,the ,council shall      
appoint an ,executive ,director at the  
first meeting of the ,council held under
 subsection 7f77#a74 ,the position of   
,executive ,director shall be a ,senior 
,executive ,service position1 as defined
 under section #cacb7;a77#b7 of title   
#e1 ,united ,states ,code4  7#b7        
,additional personnel ,with the approval
 of the ,council1 the ,executive        
,director of the ,council may appoint   
and fix the compensation of such        
additional personnel as the ,executive  
,director considers necessary to carry  

out the duties of the ,council4         
,additional personnel shall include--   
7,a7 not fewer than #d1 but in no case  
more than #h1 regional coordinators1    
each having responsibility for          
conducting reviews of non-,federal      
programs and activities under section   
#e7;c7 and coordinating the activities  
of the ,council within the #d regions of
 the ,bureau of the ,census2 and  7,b7  
not less than #a demonstration project  
application evaluator1 for applications 
submitted under subsection 7e71 who     
shall have expertise in evaluating      
social science research design4  7#c7   
,details from other agencies ,upon      
request of the ,council1 the head of any
 ,federal agency may detail1 on a       
reimbursable basis1 an employee of the  
agency to the ,council to assist the    
,council in carrying out this ,act1 and 
such detail shall be without            
interruption or loss of civil service   
status or privilege4  7#d7 ,experts and 
consultants ,with the approval of the   

,council1 the ,executive ,director of   
the ,council may procure temporary and  
intermittent services under section     
#caji7;b7 of title #e1 ,united ,states  
,code4  7#e7 ,administrative support    
,upon request of the ,council1 the      
,administrator of ,general ,services    
shall provide to the ,council1 on a     
reimbursable basis1 the administrative  
support services necessary for the      
,council to carry out its               
responsibilities under this ,act4  7h7  
,authorization of appropriations  7#a7  
,in general ,there are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this ,act such
 sums as may be necessary for each of   
fiscal years #bjag through #bjbf4  7#b7 
,availability ,any sums appropriated    
under paragraph 7#a7 shall remain       
available1 without fiscal year          
limitation1 until expended4