Forestry Education and Workforce Development Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2621 To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out a forestry education and workforce development grant program, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 16, 2021 Mr. FULCHER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Education and Labor, and in addition to the Committee on Ag- riculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdic- tion of the committee concerned A BILL To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out a forestry education and workforce development grant program, 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 ‘‘Forestry Education 4 and Workforce Development Act of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:44 Jun 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2621.IH H2621 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2621 IH SEC. 2. FORESTRY EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVEL- 1 OPMENT GRANT PROGRAM. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Agriculture shall 3 establish a competitive grant program to make grants to 4 eligible institutions to carry out forestry education and 5 workforce development programs to prepare students for 6 careers in forestry. 7 (b) PROPOSAL.—To be eligible to receive a grant 8 under this section, an eligible institution shall submit to 9 the Secretary of Agriculture a proposal at such time, in 10 such manner, and containing such information as the Sec- 11 retary may require. 12 (c) EQUITABLE AWARDS.—For each fiscal year for 13 which grants are awarded under this section, the amount 14 of grant funds awarded to eligible institutions described 15 in paragraph (1) of subsection (f) shall be equal to the 16 amount of grant funds awarded to eligible institutions de- 17 scribed in paragraphs (2) and (3) of such subsection. 18 (d) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.— 19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Grants made under this sec- 20 tion shall be used to— 21 (A) award scholarships to students enrolled 22 in the eligible institution and pursuing degrees 23 in forestry, including students historically 24 underrepresented in the field of forestry; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:44 Jun 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2621.IH H2621 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2621 IH (B) expand, enhance, or improve forestry 1 educational capacities of the eligible institution, 2 including libraries, curriculum, faculty, and sci- 3 entific instrumentation; 4 (C) recruit and retain— 5 (i) secondary school or undergraduate 6 students to pursue certifications in forestry 7 or acquire training in technical forestry 8 skills, including students historically 9 underrepresented in the field of forestry; or 10 (ii) undergraduate and graduate stu- 11 dents to pursue degrees in forestry, includ- 12 ing students historically underrepresented 13 in the field of forestry; 14 (D) design and develop resources or pro- 15 grams that prepare students enrolled in the eli- 16 gible institution for careers in forestry, includ- 17 ing internship and apprenticeship programs; 18 (E) provide hands-on training and research 19 opportunities for such students; or 20 (F) carry out any other activity the Sec- 21 retary of Agriculture determines appropriate. 22 (2) CLARIFICATION OF FORESTRY EDU- 23 CATION.—For purposes of paragraph (1), the terms 24 ‘‘degrees in forestry’’, ‘‘certifications in forestry’’, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:44 Jun 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2621.IH H2621 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2621 IH and ‘‘training in technical forestry skills’’ include de- 1 grees, certifications, and training in forestry, forest 2 sciences, natural resources management, or other re- 3 lated educational disciplines. 4 (e) PAYMENT OF NON-FEDERAL SHARE.—As a con- 5 dition of receiving a grant under this section, the Sec- 6 retary of Agriculture shall require the recipient of the 7 grant to provide funds or in-kind support from non-Fed- 8 eral sources in an amount that is specified by the Sec- 9 retary and based on assessed institutional needs. 10 (f) ELIGIBLE INSTITUTION DEFINED.—In this sec- 11 tion, the term ‘‘eligible institution’’ means— 12 (1) a land grant college or university, including 13 an institution eligible to receive funding under— 14 (A) the Act of July 2, 1862; 15 (B) the Act of August 30, 1890, including 16 Tuskegee University; 17 (C) Public Law 87–788 (commonly known 18 as the ‘‘McIntire-Stennis Act of 1962’’); or 19 (D) the Equity in Educational Land-Grant 20 Status Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 301 note); 21 (2) a community college or area career and 22 technical education school (as defined in section 3 of 23 the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education 24 Act of 2006 (20 U.S.C. 2302)); or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:44 Jun 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2621.IH H2621 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2621 IH (3) an institution of higher education (as de- 1 fined in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 2 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)). 3 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 5 $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2030 6 to carry out this section. 7 SEC. 3. CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CENTERS REFOREST- 8 ATION ACTIVITIES. 9 Section 147(d) of the Workforce Innovation and Op- 10 portunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3197(d)) is amended by adding 11 at the end the following: 12 ‘‘(4) REFORESTATION ACTIVITIES.—Enrollees 13 in Civilian Conservation Centers may provide assist- 14 ance in carrying out reforestation activities in pri- 15 ority areas, as determined by the Secretary of Agri- 16 culture.’’. 17 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:44 Jun 02, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2621.IH H2621 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS