BIL will invest $10,000,000 to nonprofit partnerships to establish training programs, under which students concurrently receive classroom instruction and on-the-job training for the purpose of obtaining an industry-related certification to install energy efficient buildings technologies. DOE intends to make competitive grant awards under this program in February 2024. The activities to be funded under the BIL Section 40513 FOA will address workforce gaps, such as accessing training, addressing employers hiring challenges, and diversifying the workforce. These activities support the administration’s broader effort to:

1. Train students and workers and place them into high quality energy efficiency jobs;
2. Create a diverse pipeline of workers and businesses in the energy efficiency sector;
3. Build on and replicate existing successful programs & resources; and
4. Deliver high quality energy upgrades to homes, businesses, and institutions.

This broader, government-wide approach will enhance and expand both new and established nonprofit and locally driven efforts to scale a well-trained, diverse workforce through partnerships between industry and labor organizations. This will include, revitalizing the appeal of building energy jobs, expanding training program offerings, and creating more diverse and inclusive pipelines of talent, including those from disadvantaged communities to maximize the benefits of the clean energy transition as the nation works to curb the climate crisis, empower workers, and advance environmental justice.

Program Purpose: The Career Skills Training Program authorized under BIL section 40513 is designed to provide grants to eligible entities to pay the Federal share of Career Skills Training Programs under which students simultaneously receive classroom instruction and on-the-job training for the purpose of obtaining an industry-related certification to install energy efficient building technologies. Relatedly, the long-term goals of the program are to evolve the collaboration of industry and labor organization to address the gap between the available skilled workers and the demand for a skilled workforce. Meeting this goal will require that nonprofit partnerships identify best practices for industry and labor partnerships, Career Skills Training Programs that lead to industry credentials, and recruiting individuals from disadvantaged communities to pursue careers in the energy industry.

This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) supports the administration goals because it is designed to promote the collaboration between labor organizations and industry to attract, train, and employ workers; enhances existing programs for replication; and creates a diverse, skilled, and credentialed workforce that is positioned to install energy efficient technologies to buildings.

Program Overview and Strategic Goals: Through this funding action, the BIL will invest $10,000,000 to be distributed to nonprofit partnerships for the development of the Career Skills Training Programs focused on occupations to install energy efficient buildings technologies. The energy efficiency industry is opening up an array of exciting, well-paying jobs with long-term professional development opportunities and high levels of career satisfaction. Employment in the energy efficiency industry covers both the production, distribution, and installation of energy-saving products. The research, design, manufacturing, wholesale distribution, and installation of ENERGY STAR appliances, employed over 826,500 Americans in 2019 according to the 2020 U.S. Energy & Employment Report.

Installation or repair positions occupy the largest occupation group in the Energy Efficiency sector. USEER identifies that 32.8% of all EE jobs are found in the installation and repair positions. While this BIL provision does not mandate that DOE targets specific occupations, the Career Skills Training (CST) program will prioritize training for “new-collar jobs”, the 32 Energy Efficiency Industry jobs that do not require a college degree. While prioritizing these jobs, SCEP will be open to funding training programs from applicants for a variety of jobs based on demonstrated local needs. This will increase access by nontraditional students and workers to energy efficiency jobs at entry, mid-level, and advanced positions.

The Career Skills Training Program will build a pipeline of workers that positions local areas and regions in meeting current and future workforce challenges and expand partnerships between industry and labor organizations. Successful applicants will design their grant projects from both (1) a strategic level, such as describing their planned activities for convening partnerships, assessing the needs in order to devise a comprehensive workforce strategy; and (2) an operational level, such as incorporating in their plans how they would implement their comprehensive workforce strategy and deploy the training activities.

Strategic Goals: This FOA seeks applications to address the skills and labor shortage by focusing on:

1. increasing enrollment in energy efficiency career training programs;
2. improving access to classroom instruction and on-the-job training opportunities for underserved, underrepresented, and disadvantaged communities;
3. providing students with the necessary skills and industry-recognized certifications required to pursue a career in the energy efficiency industry;
4. placing students to ensure economic self-sufficiency and career success; and
5. evolving the collaboration of industry and labor organizations to address the gap between available skilled workers and the demand for a skilled workforce.

Eligible Applicants: In accordance with the BIL Section 40513, eligible entities are nonprofit partnerships that—

1. includes the equal participation of industry, including public or private employers, and labor organizations, including joint labor-management training programs;
2. may include workforce investment boards, community-based organizations, qualified service and conservation corps, educational institutions, small businesses, cooperatives, State and local veterans’ agencies, and veterans service organizations.