Jobs to Fight COVID–19 Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 352 To establish an initiative for national testing, contact tracing, and pandemic response, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 19, 2021 Mr. MORELLE (for himself and Mr. TAKANO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee con- cerned A BILL To establish an initiative for national testing, contact tracing, and pandemic response, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Jobs to Fight COVID– 4 19 Act of 2021’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 Except as otherwise explicitly provided, in this Act: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 352 IH (1) COVID–19.—The term ‘‘COVID–19’’ 1 means the novel coronavirus disease of 2019 2 (COVID–19). 3 (2) HEALTH PROFESSIONAL SHORTAGE 4 AREA.—The term ‘‘health professional shortage 5 area’’ has the meaning given the term in section 6 332(a) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 7 254e(a)). 8 (3) MEDICALLY UNDERSERVED POPU- 9 LATIONS.—The term ‘‘medically underserved popu- 10 lation’’ has the meaning given the term in section 11 330(b)(3) of the Public Health Service Act (42 12 U.S.C. 254b(b)(3)). 13 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 14 the Secretary of Labor. 15 (5) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ refers to each 16 of the 50 States and the District of Columbia. 17 (6) TERRITORY.—The term ‘‘territory’’ means 18 the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American 19 Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern 20 Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Is- 21 lands. 22 (7) TRIBAL.—The term ‘‘Tribal’’, with respect 23 to a health department, includes— 24 (A) Indian Tribes that— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 352 IH (i) are operating one or more health 1 facilities pursuant to an agreement under 2 the Indian Self-Determination and Edu- 3 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et 4 seq.); or 5 (ii) receive services from a facility op- 6 erated by the Indian Health Services; and 7 (B) Tribal organizations and Native Ha- 8 waiian organizations, as such terms are defined 9 in section 166 of the Workforce Innovation and 10 Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3221), and urban 11 Indian organizations. 12 SEC. 3. GRANTS TO SUPPORT PANDEMIC PUBLIC WORKS. 13 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro- 15 vided in this section or section 2, the terms in this 16 section have the meanings given the terms in section 17 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act 18 (29 U.S.C. 3102). 19 (2) APPRENTICESHIP; APPRENTICESHIP PRO- 20 GRAM.—The term ‘‘apprenticeship’’ or ‘‘apprentice- 21 ship program’’ means an apprenticeship program 22 registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 (com- 23 monly known as the ‘‘National Apprenticeship Act’’) 24 (50 Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.), 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 352 IH including any requirement, standard, or rule promul- 1 gated under such Act, as such requirement, stand- 2 ard, or rule was in effect on December 30, 2019. 3 (3) CONTACT TRACING AND PANDEMIC RE- 4 SPONSE POSITIONS.—The term ‘‘contact tracing and 5 pandemic response positions’’ means employment re- 6 lated to— 7 (A) contact tracing, surveillance, contain- 8 ment, and mitigation activities needed to imple- 9 ment the national system under section 6; 10 (B) other activities necessary for pandemic 11 response, including cleaning and mitigation ac- 12 tivities; and 13 (C) activities necessary to respond to the 14 economic impacts of COVID–19. 15 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti- 16 ty’’ means— 17 (A) a State or territory; 18 (B)(i) an Indian Tribe, Tribal organiza- 19 tion, Alaska Native entity, or Native Hawaiian 20 organization as such terms are defined in sec- 21 tion 166 of the Workforce Innovation and Op- 22 portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3221); or 23 (ii) an Indian-controlled organization serv- 24 ing Indians as defined in such section 166; or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 352 IH (C) a unit of local government, if an entity 1 described in subparagraph (A) has not applied 2 with respect to the area over which the unit has 3 jurisdiction by the deadline required under sub- 4 section (b)(2)(B). 5 (5) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘eligible 6 individual’’ means an individual seeking or securing 7 employment in a contact tracing or pandemic re- 8 sponse position and who is served by an eligible enti- 9 ty or community-based organization receiving fund- 10 ing under this section. 11 (6) UNIT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT.—The term 12 ‘‘unit of local government’’ means any city, county, 13 township, town, borough, parish, village, or other 14 general purpose political subdivision of a State. 15 (b) GRANTS.— 16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of 17 appropriations under subsection (l), the Secretary 18 shall award a grant to each eligible entity that sub- 19 mits a complete application under subsection (c), to 20 enable the eligible entity to— 21 (A) as applicable, support the recruitment, 22 placement, and training of, and provide employ- 23 ment to, eligible individuals seeking employment 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 352 IH in contact tracing and pandemic response posi- 1 tions; and 2 (B) assist with the employment transition 3 to new employment or education and training of 4 individuals employed under this section in prep- 5 aration for and upon termination of such em- 6 ployment. 7 (2) TIMELINE.— 8 (A) DEADLINE FOR SECRETARY APPLICA- 9 TION REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary shall 10 issue application requirements under subsection 11 (c) not later than 10 days after the date of en- 12 actment of this Act. 13 (B) STATE AND TRIBAL APPLICATIONS.— 14 The deadline for applications from eligible enti- 15 ties described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of 16 subsection (a)(4) shall be the date that is 30 17 days after the date the Secretary issues applica- 18 tion requirements under subparagraph (A). 19 (C) APPLICATIONS FOR LOCAL GOVERN- 20 MENTS SERVING AS ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—The 21 deadline for applications for grants from eligible 22 entities described in subsection (a)(4)(C) shall 23 be the date that is 10 days after the date that 24 applications are due under subparagraph (B). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 352 IH (D) GRANT AWARDS.—The Secretary shall 1 award a grant to an eligible entity under para- 2 graph (1) not later than 15 days after the date 3 on which applications are due under subpara- 4 graph (C). 5 (c) GRANT APPLICATION.—An eligible entity apply- 6 ing for a grant under this section shall submit an applica- 7 tion to the Secretary, at such time and in such form and 8 manner as the Secretary may reasonably require, which 9 shall include a description of— 10 (1) how the eligible entity will, as applicable, 11 support the recruitment, placement, and training of, 12 and provide employment to, of eligible individuals 13 seeking employment in contact tracing and pandemic 14 response positions; 15 (2) how the activities described in paragraph 16 (1) will support State efforts to address the demand 17 for contact tracing and pandemic response positions 18 with respect to— 19 (A) the State plans referred to in the head- 20 ing ‘‘Public Health and Social Services Emer- 21 gency Fund’’ in title I of division B of the Pay- 22 check Protection Program and Health Care En- 23 hancement Act (Public Law 116–139); and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 352 IH (B) the number of eligible individuals that 1 the State plans to recruit, train, and employ 2 under the plans described in subparagraph (A); 3 (3) the specific strategies for recruiting, place- 4 ment, and employment of eligible individuals from or 5 residing within the communities in which they will 6 work, including— 7 (A) plans for the recruitment of eligible in- 8 dividuals to serve in contact tracing or pan- 9 demic response positions, including dislocated 10 workers, individuals with barriers to employ- 11 ment, veterans, new entrants in the workforce, 12 self-employed individuals who are unemployed 13 as a result of COVID–19, or underemployed or 14 furloughed workers, who are from or reside in 15 or near the locality in which they will serve, and 16 who, to the extent practicable— 17 (i) have experience or a background in 18 industry sectors and occupations such as 19 public health, social services, customer 20 service, case management, or occupations 21 that require related qualifications, skills, or 22 competencies, such as strong interpersonal 23 and communication skills, needed for con- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 352 IH tact tracing or pandemic response posi- 1 tions; or 2 (ii) seek to transition to public health 3 and public health related occupations upon 4 the conclusion of employment in contact 5 tracing or pandemic response positions; 6 and 7 (B) how such strategies will take into ac- 8 count the diversity of such community, includ- 9 ing racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, linguistic, or 10 geographic diversity; 11 (4) the amount, timing, and mechanisms for 12 distribution of funds provided to local units of gov- 13 ernment or through subgrants as described in sub- 14 section (d)(2)(A) or (e); 15 (5) for eligible entities described in subpara- 16 graph (A) or (B) of subsection (a)(4), a description 17 of how the eligible entity will ensure the equitable 18 distribution of funds with respect to— 19 (A) geography (such as urban and rural 20 distribution); 21 (B) medically underserved populations; 22 (C) health professional shortage areas; and 23 (D) the racial and ethnic diversity of the 24 area; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 352 IH (6) for eligible entities described in subsection 1 (a)(4)(C), a description of how a grant to such eligi- 2 ble entity would serve the equitable distribution of 3 funds as described in paragraph (5); and 4 (7) how the eligible entity will collaborate with 5 State boards and local boards, the unemployment 6 compensation system of the State, and the employ- 7 ment service offices (providing services under the 8 Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.)) of the 9 State regarding the State reemployment services and 10 eligibility assessment activities and the activities pro- 11 vided under this section. 12 (d) GRANT DISTRIBUTION.— 13 (1) FEDERAL DISTRIBUTION.— 14 (A) USE OF FUNDS.—The Secretary shall 15 use the funds appropriated to carry out this 16 section as follows: 17 (i) Subject to clause (ii), the Secretary 18 shall distribute funds among eligible enti- 19 ties that submit a complete application 20 under subsection (c) in accordance with a 21 formula to be established by the Secretary 22 that— 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 352 IH (I) provides a minimum level of 1 funding to each eligible entity that 2 submits a complete application; and 3 (II) allocates additional funding 4 as follows: 5 (aa) The formula shall give 6 first priority based on the num- 7 ber and proportion of contact 8 tracing or pandemic response po- 9 sitions for which the eligible enti- 10 ty plans to recruit, place, train, 11 and employ individuals as a part 12 of the State strategy described in 13 subsection (c)(2)(A). 14 (bb) The formula shall give 15 second highest priority to appli- 16 cations that will serve States, ter- 17 ritories, Indian Tribes, or Native 18 Hawaiian populations that have 19 the highest unemployment rates, 20 as determined based on the most 21 recent data available. 22 (cc) The formula shall give 23 third highest priority to appli- 24 cants proposing to serve popu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 352 IH lations in one or more geographic 1 regions with a high burden of 2 COVID–19 based on data pro- 3 vided by the Centers for Disease 4 Control and Prevention, or other 5 sources as determined by the 6 Secretary. 7 (dd) The formula shall give 8 fourth highest priority to appli- 9 cants preparing for, or currently 10 working to mitigate, a COVID– 11 19 surge in a geographic region 12 that does not yet have a high 13 number of reported cases of 14 COVID–19 based on data pro- 15 vided by the Centers for Disease 16 Control and Prevention, or other 17 sources as determined by the 18 Secretary. 19 (ee) The formula shall give 20 fifth highest priority to appli- 21 cants proposing to serve high 22 numbers of low-income and unin- 23 sured populations, including 24 medically underserved popu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:13 Feb 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H352.IH H352 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 352 IH lations, health professional short- 1 age areas, racial and ethnic mi- 2 norities, or geographically diverse 3 areas, as determined by the Sec- 4 retary. 5 (ii) Not more than 2 percent of the 6 funding for administration of the grants 7 and for providing technical assistance to 8 recipients of funds under this section. 9 (B) EQUITABLE DISTRIBUTION.—If the ge- 10 ographic region served by one or more eligible 11 entities overlaps, the Secretary shall distribute 12 funds among such entities in such a manner 13 that ensures equitable distribution with res [Text truncated for display. 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