Sponsors (2)
The bill expands federal funding, training, supports, and coordination to help workers displaced by automation transition to in-demand tech and advanced-skill jobs, but it raises federal costs, adds administrative requirements, and risks mis-targeting or excluding nontechnical workers and communities.
Unemployed, dislocated, incumbent, and at-risk workers gain expanded access to federally supported training and re‑skilling for automation-affected and technology-oriented jobs, improving prospects for reemployment and career transitions.
Workers and states benefit from increased federal investment and a dedicated $40M/year (FY2026–2030) for national dislocated worker grants and other program funding to support rapid response and reemployment efforts.
Low-income and caregiving workers are better able to participate in training because the bill funds supportive services (transportation stipends, paid leave, childcare) that lower practical barriers to program completion.
Taxpayers and the federal budget face higher costs because the bill authorizes new appropriations (including $40M/year) and expanded federally funded training, increasing fiscal pressure or the need for offsets.
If training is poorly designed or poorly targeted, many dislocated or at-risk workers may not secure stable jobs after programs end, producing weak reemployment outcomes and wasted public funds.
An expansive, technology-focused definition of 'automation' and program emphasis on tech training could steer funds toward technical programs and leave workers in nontechnical sectors—or those needing nontraining supports—behind.
Based on analysis of 5 sections of legislative text.
Creates a DOL grant program and WIOA changes to fund training for workers displaced or at risk from automation; authorizes $40M/yr for FY2026–2030.
Introduced February 12, 2026 by Richard Joseph Durbin · Last progress February 12, 2026
Creates a competitive Labor Department grant program, starting in FY2026, to fund demonstration and pilot projects that train workers who are displaced or at risk of displacement because of automation, and updates the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to explicitly allow automation-related and technology-sector training. The bill defines “automation” broadly, sets membership rules for grant partnerships, requires outcome reporting and nondiscrimination compliance, and authorizes an additional $40 million per year for national dislocated worker grants for FY2026–2030. Grants may last up to four years, fund training services, equipment, employer supports, stipends, and transitional assistance, and give priority to projects in areas with high shares of affected populations or industries at risk from automation. Recipients must report placement and earnings outcomes and disaggregate results by service type, age, gender, and race.