To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to authorize a study to review specific outcomes of entrepreneurial skills development programs, and for other purposes.
HB2099 would amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to more explicitly include entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial skills development within the federal workforce system. It would direct state workforce development boards, eligible training providers, and local workforce programs to recognize entrepreneurship and microenterprise services as part of workforce planning, training, referrals, and labor market information. The bill also expands the kinds of activities and services that may be considered under WIOA to include information on entrepreneurship, referrals to microenterprise services, and support for self-employment and business creation.
A central feature of the bill is a required three-year, multistate study by the Secretary of Labor on entrepreneurial skills development programs. The study would examine best practices, provider qualifications, employer and private-sector engagement, participant readiness, program outcomes, credential attainment, economic impact, business development, job creation, and participants’ earnings three years after completion. It would also produce recommendations for states and local communities on expanding access to these programs. In addition, the bill clarifies that WIOA research and demonstration projects may include efforts related to self-employment, entrepreneurship, job creation, and related workforce development strategies.
The bill would amend several sections of WIOA, including provisions governing state workforce development boards, eligible training providers, local employment and training activities, and federal evaluations and research. Its practical effect would be to require workforce systems to treat entrepreneurship and microenterprise support as recognized components of workforce development policy and service delivery, while also authorizing a new federal study on the effectiveness and outcomes of entrepreneurial skills programs. The bill would affect the Department of Labor, state and local workforce boards, training providers, and program participants seeking self-employment or business-startup pathways.
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes, the measure appears to be framed as a bipartisan-style workforce modernization proposal rather than a controversial policy change. Its tone is generally supportive of entrepreneurship, small business formation, and expanded workforce options. Because there are no transcripts or votes available, there is no documented public sentiment in the provided materials beyond the bill’s affirmative, program-expanding approach.
No specific points of contention are documented in the provided record, since there are no committee transcripts and no votes. Potential areas of debate, if the bill advances, could include whether WIOA should be broadened to cover entrepreneurship and microenterprise services, whether the proposed study is sufficiently targeted and useful, and whether federal workforce funds should be used for self-employment-oriented programming instead of traditional job placement and training. Any opposition would likely come from those who prefer a narrower interpretation of workforce development or who question the evidence base for entrepreneurship programs.