Sponsors (3)
The bill expands SBDCs' role to help connect employers and jobseekers to apprenticeships and centralized federal guidance—improving training access and employer support—but risks straining SBDC resources and delivering uneven guidance unless matched with adequate funding and expertise.
Workers and jobseekers (including young adults) gain more local training and apprenticeship pathways through Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), increasing employment and career opportunities.
Small-business owners receive free, centralized federal guidance on creating apprenticeships and work-based learning, helping them recruit and train skilled workers and lower hiring/training barriers.
Coordination with the Department of Labor and other agencies centralizes up-to-date federal resources through SBDCs, improving program quality, consistency, and compliance support for employers.
Expanding SBDC responsibilities could require additional staff or funding at the SBA or local centers, potentially straining resources and reducing capacity for other small business services.
If SBDCs lack sufficient expertise or funding, businesses may receive uneven or low-quality guidance on apprenticeship compliance and program setup, undermining intended benefits.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Directs SBDCs to provide information and assistance to small businesses on work-based learning, apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships, and job training using DOL and federal resources.
Official title: To amend the Small Business Act to include requirements relating to apprenticeship program assistance for small business development centers, and for other purposes.
Introduced May 29, 2026 by Jason Crow · Last progress May 29, 2026
Requires Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) to provide information and assistance to small businesses on creating and improving work-based learning, registered apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships, and job training programs, using relevant Department of Labor and other federal resources. The change is a short amendment to the Small Business Act that adds this responsibility and adjusts a minor cross-reference for an existing intellectual property training item.