President Trump Signs Career and Technical Education Act Reauthorization into Law

President Trump recently signed into law the bipartisan reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act. During the next few months, the Department of Education will release guidance for states on how to draft their transition and four-year plans, as required by the law, which will go into effect July 1, 2019.

Following his signing of the bill, President Trump released a statement in which he noted, “The White House, led by Ivanka Trump, was strongly engaged every step of the way to ensure passage of this critical legislation to provide students and workers the training necessary to succeed in a 21st century economy.  By enacting it into law, we will continue to prepare students for today’s constantly shifting job market, and we will help employers find the workers they need to compete.”

ASME Capitol Update has followed the path of this legislation, noting back in May that despite the uncontroversial nature of the bill, it appeared to have stalled in Congress after being unanimously approved by the House in 2018. However, last month the Senate voted to pass the legislation to applause from many in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education community. A further indication of the support for this legislation on Capitol Hill was the House Appropriations Committee’s FY19  Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) bill in which it gave the Department of Education a $115 million increase for career, technical, and adult education programs. This bump brought funding for career and technical education programs (CTE) up to $1.9 billion for FY19.

To view the bill in its entirety, click here: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/2353

To view Capitol Update’s previous reporting on the status of the CTE bill, click here:
Career Training Legislation Remains Stalled in Congress a Year After Being Introduced
Senate Passes House Career and Technical Education Bill to Applause from House Committee