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S. 1683Senate119th Congress (2025-2027)In Committee

PELL Act of 2025

Sponsored by Ted BuddSen. Ted Budd (R-NC)
Introduced May 8, 2025

AI-Generated Summary

Updated November 24, 2025 at 12:42 AM UTC

The PELL Act of 2025 amends the Higher Education Act to create a new "Workforce Pell Grant" program. It provides Pell‑style federal aid to students who enroll in short‑term, high‑skill workforce training programs rather than traditional degree programs. The grants are aimed at helping students gain credentials that lead to well‑paying jobs and count toward the same aid limits as regular Pell Grants.

Key Provisions

  • Creates a Workforce Pell Grant program starting award year 2026‑27, awarded by the Education Secretary using the same rules as regular Pell Grants.
  • Students must be eligible for a regular Pell Grant and be enrolled (or accepted) in an eligible workforce program; they cannot be in a graduate‑level program or already hold a graduate credential.
  • Grants are prorated for programs shorter than an academic year and cannot be received together with other Pell‑type awards.
  • Program eligibility requires 150‑600 clock hours of instruction (8‑15 weeks), not offered as correspondence, and must be approved by the state governor as meeting high‑skill, high‑wage industry needs.
  • Eligible programs must have at least a 70% completion rate and a 70% job‑placement rate within 180 days of graduation, and tuition/fees must not exceed the calculated value‑added earnings of past students.
  • New programs can receive provisional eligibility for up to three years while they demonstrate compliance.
  • Defines "eligible institution" to include higher‑education schools or other entities without recent sanctions or loss of accreditation.
  • Amends student eligibility language to include entities that meet the new program requirements and sets the effective date as July 1, 2026.

Legislative Activity

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SenateIntro Referral Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee

May 8, 2025

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SenateIntro Referral

Introduced in Senate

May 8, 2025

SenateIntro Referral

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee

May 8, 2025

Bill Text

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Introduced in SenateIssued May 8, 2025

II

119th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 1683

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

May 8, 2025

Mr. Budd (for himself, Mr. Grassley, Mr. Ricketts, Mr. McCormick, and Mr. Justice) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

A BILL

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for Workforce Pell Grants.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Promoting Employment and Lifelong Learning Act of 2025 or the PELL Act of 2025.

2.

Workforce pell grants

(a)

In general

Section 401 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070a) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(k)

Workforce pell grant program

(1)

In general

For the award year beginning on July 1, 2026, and each subsequent award year, the Secretary shall award grants (to be known as Workforce Pell Grants) to eligible students under paragraph (2) in accordance with this subsection.

(2)

Eligible students

To be eligible to receive a Workforce Pell Grant under this subsection for any period of enrollment, a student shall meet the eligibility requirements for a Federal Pell Grant under this section, except that the student—

(A)

shall be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment, in an eligible program under section 481(b)(3) (hereinafter referred to as an eligible workforce program); and

(B)

may not—

(i)

be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment, in a program of study that leads to a graduate credential; or

(ii)

have attained such a credential.

(3)

Terms and conditions of awards

The Secretary shall award Workforce Pell Grants under this subsection in the same manner and with the same terms and conditions as the Secretary awards Federal Pell Grants under this section, except that—

(A)

each use of the term eligible program (except in subsections (b)(9)(A) and (d)(2)) shall be substituted by eligible workforce program under section 481(b)(3); and

(B)

a student who is eligible for a grant equal to less than the amount of the minimum Federal Pell Grant because the eligible workforce program in which the student is enrolled or accepted for enrollment is less than an academic year (in hours of instruction or weeks of duration) may still be eligible for a Workforce Pell Grant in an amount that is prorated based on the length of the program.

(4)

Prevention of double benefits

No eligible student described in paragraph (2) may concurrently receive a grant under both this subsection and—

(A)

subsection (b); or

(B)

subsection (c).

(5)

Duration limit

Any period of study covered by a Workforce Pell Grant awarded under this subsection shall be included in determining a student’s duration limit under subsection (d)(5).

.

(b)

Program eligibility for workforce pell grants

Section 481(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1088(b)) is amended—

(1)

by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively;

(2)

by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:

(3)
(A)

A program is an eligible program for purposes of the Workforce Pell Grant program under section 401(k) only if—

(i)

it is a program of at least 150 clock hours of instruction, but less than 600 clock hours of instruction, or an equivalent number of credit hours, offered by an eligible institution during a minimum of 8 weeks, but less than 15 weeks;

(ii)

it is not offered as a correspondence course, as defined in 600.2 of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on September 20, 2020);

(iii)

the Governor of a State, after consultation with the State board, makes a determination that the program—

(I)

provides an education aligned with the requirements of high-skill, high-wage (as identified by the State pursuant to section 122 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (20 U.S.C. 2342)), or in-demand industry sectors or occupations;

(II)

meets the hiring requirements of potential employers in the sectors or occupations described in subclause (I);

(III)

either—

(aa)

leads to a recognized postsecondary credential that is stackable and portable across more than one employer; or

(bb)

with respect to students enrolled in the program—

(AA)

prepares such students for employment in an occupation for which there is only one recognized postsecondary credential; and

(BB)

provides such students with such a credential upon completion of such program; and

(IV)

prepares students to pursue 1 or more certificate or degree programs at 1 or more institutions of higher education (which may include the eligible institution providing the program), including by ensuring—

(aa)

that a student, upon completion of the program and enrollment in such a related certificate or degree program, will receive academic credit for the program that will be accepted toward meeting such certificate or degree program requirements; and

(bb)

the acceptability of such credit toward meeting such certificate or degree program requirements;

(iv)

after the Governor of such State makes the determination that the program meets the requirements under clause (iii), the Secretary determines that—

(I)

the program has been offered by the eligible institution for not less than 1 year prior to the date on which the Secretary makes a determination under this clause;

(II)

for each award year, the program has a verified completion rate of at least 70 percent, within 150 percent of the normal time for completion; and

(III)

for each award year, the program has a verified job placement rate of at least 70 percent, measured 180 days after completion; and

(v)

for each award year, the total amount of the published tuition and fees of the program for such year is an amount that does not exceed the value-added earnings of students who received Federal financial aid under this title and who completed the program 3 years prior to the award year, as such earnings are determined by calculating the difference between—

(I)

the median earnings of such students, as adjusted by the State and metropolitan area regional price parities of the Bureau of Economic Analysis based on the location of such program; and

(II)

150 percent of the poverty line applicable to a single individual as determined under section 673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) for such year.

(B)

In the case of a program that has not previously participated in programs under this title and is being determined eligible for the first time under this paragraph, the Secretary may consider such program to be an eligible program for purposes of the Workforce Pell Grants program under section 401(k) for a provisional eligibility period that may not exceed 3 years, if such program—

(i)

subject to clause (ii), meets the requirements of subparagraph (A); and

(ii)

in lieu of the determination of median earnings under subclause (I) of subparagraph (A)(v), provides to the Secretary for purposes of meeting the requirements of subparagraph (A)(v), alternate earnings of students who complete the program, which are statistically rigorous, accurate, comparable, and representative of students who complete such program.

(C)

In this paragraph:

(i)

The term eligible institution means an institution of higher education (as defined in section 102), or any other entity that has entered into a program participation agreement with the Secretary under section 487(a) (without regard to whether that entity is accredited by a national recognized accrediting agency or association), which has not been subject, during any of the preceding 3 years, to—

(I)

any suspension, emergency action, or termination under this title;

(II)

in the case of an institution of higher education, any adverse action by the institution’s accrediting agency or association that revokes or denies accreditation for the institution of higher education; or

(III)

any final action by the State in which the institution or other entity holds its legal domicile, authorization, or accreditation that revokes the institution’s or entity’s license or other authority to operate in such State.

(ii)

The term Governor means the chief executive of a State.

(iii)

The terms industry or sector partnership, in-demand industry sector or occupation, recognized postsecondary credential, and State board have the meanings given such terms in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

.

(3)

Student eligibility

Section 484(a)(1) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1091(a)(1)) is amended by inserting or, for purposes of section 401(k), at an entity (other than an institution of higher education) that meets the requirements of section 481(b)(3)(B)(i), after section 487.

(4)

Effective date; applicability

The amendments made by this section shall take effect on July 1, 2026, and shall apply with respect to award year 2026–2027 and each succeeding award year.