U.S. Rep. Rick Nolan on Wednesday, July 25, praised the bipartisan passage of his Strengthening Career and Technical Education Act for the 21st Century Act.
According to a news release by Nolan's office, the legislation reauthorizes and reforms the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, helping more Americans enter the workforce with the skills they need to compete for high-skilled, in-demand jobs.
Nolan was one of six original authors of this legislation, which was first introduced in the 114th Congress. The Perkins CTE Act is the main source of federal funding to states to improve secondary and postsecondary career and technical education programs across the nation.
The release noted these funds in Minnesota alone support 107,835 high school students and 59,169 postsecondary students enrolled in one or more of the 9,019 CTE classes across the state.
The U.S. Senate passed the reauthorization of the Career and Technical Education Act by unanimous consent Monday, July 23. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a largely identical bill in September 2016 by a vote of 405 to 5 and again in July 2017, but each time the legislation stalled in the Senate.
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Nolan is joined in introducing this legislation by U.S. Reps. Glenn Thompson, R-Pa.; Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill.; Bradley Byrne, R-Ala.; Lloyd Smucker, R-Pa.; Drew Ferguson, R-Ga.; James Langevin, D-R.I.; and Katherine Clark, D-Mass.
