H.R. 8183

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8183 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8183

To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to provide for 
the establishment of talent marketplaces.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 2, 2026

Mr. Owens introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Education and Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to provide for 
the establishment of talent marketplaces.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Modernizing Access to Talents, 
Credentials, and Hiring Act of 2026'' or ``MATCH Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. TALENT MARKETPLACE.

(a) Definitions.--Section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and 
Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
``(72) Talent marketplace.--
``(A) Talent marketplace.--The term `talent 
marketplace' means an array of publicly- and privately-
owned platforms supported by interconnected and, where 
relevant, interoperable and based on open standards, 
technologies (which may include artificial 
intelligence) that--
``(i) is made available to the public;
``(ii) is used to match individuals with 
employment and learning opportunities in a 
State (or a consortium of States) using 
information provided by users, including--
``(I) education and training 
providers;
``(II) employers;
``(III) jobseekers;
``(IV) students; and
``(V) any other individual; and
``(iii) incorporates and allows users 
access to--
``(I) the learning and employment 
records of users of such marketplace;
``(II) a credential registry; and
``(III) a skills profile generator.
``(B) Credential registry.--The term `credential 
registry' means a process through which a digital 
portal or repository may be used by education and 
training providers to make publicly available, and, 
where relevant, interoperable and based on open 
standards, a description, using standardized 
terminology, of the skills, competencies and learning 
outcomes associated with credentials, including 
recognized postsecondary credentials.
``(C) Learning and employment record.--The term 
`learning and employment record' means a digital, 
machine-readable record of an individual's educational 
and employment history that--
``(i) contains information that may be self 
attested and is verified by the employers, 
persons for whom the individual performed 
services, and education and training providers 
of such individual;
``(ii) allows the individual to control 
such information and use any such information 
for the purpose of matching such individual 
with employment and learning opportunities as 
described in subparagraph (A)(ii); and
``(iii) uses standardized terminology.
``(D) Skills profile generator.--The term `skills 
profile generator' means a digital tool that can be 
used to create a skill profile that, using standardized 
terminology, describes skills gained through, or 
necessary for--
``(i) employment;
``(ii) hiring; or
``(iii) education.
``(E) Standardized terminology.--The term 
`standardized terminology' means, in relation to a 
learning employment record, credential registry, or 
skills profile generator made available through a 
talent marketplace, a limited set of terms that is 
provided through a publicly available, and, where 
relevant, interoperable and based on open standards, 
skills framework and used to describe skills, 
competencies, or learning outcomes in a manner that--
``(i) provides a definition of such skill, 
competency, or outcome, and identifies the 
skills framework used for such definition;
``(ii) ensures that identical terms are 
used to describe substantially similar skills, 
competencies, or outcomes across such records, 
registries, and generators in such marketplace; 
and
``(iii) permits such terms to be 
effectively used for the purpose of matching 
individuals with employment and learning 
opportunities as described in subparagraph 
(A)(ii).''.
(b) Workforce Data Quality Initiative.--
(1) In general.--Section 169 of the Workforce Innovation 
and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3224) is further amended by 
adding at the end the following:
``(d) Workforce Data Quality Initiative.--
``(1) Grant program.--Of the amount made available pursuant 
to section 132(a)(2)(A) for any program year, the Secretary 
shall use not less than 5 percent and not more than 10 percent 
of such amount, and may also use funds authorized for purposes 
of carrying out this section, to award grants to eligible 
entities to create workforce longitudinal data systems, talent 
marketplaces, and associated resources for the purposes of 
assisting States to--
``(A) improve program quality;
``(B) produce evidence for decision making;
``(C) meet performance reporting requirements;
``(D) protect the privacy of users; and
``(E) improve transparency in relation to labor 
market trends and changes in job skills needed to 
obtain employment.
``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
this subsection, an eligible entity shall submit an application 
to the Secretary, at such time and in such manner as the 
Secretary may require, which shall include--
``(A) a description of the activities the eligible 
entity is proposing, including a description of the 
need for such activities and a detailed budget;
``(B) a description of the expected outcomes and 
outputs (such as systems or products) that will result 
from the proposed activities and the proposed uses of 
such outputs;
``(C) a description of how the proposed activities 
will support the reporting of performance data for the 
performance accountability requirements under section 
116, including outcomes for eligible training 
providers;
``(D) a description of the methods and procedures 
the eligible entity will use to ensure the security and 
privacy of the collection, storage, and use of all data 
involved in the systems and resources supported through 
the grant, including compliance with State and Federal 
privacy and confidentiality law;
``(E) a plan for how the eligible entity will 
continue the activities or sustain the use of the 
outputs created with the grant funds after the grant 
period ends; and
``(F) a description of how the eligible entity will 
ensure interoperability and portability between the 
talent marketplace maintained by the eligible entity 
and other talent marketplaces through the use of open 
standards.
``(3) Priority.--In awarding grants under the subsection, 
the Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities that--
``(A) are--
``(i) State agencies of States that have 
not previously received a grant from the 
Secretary for the purposes of this subsection 
and demonstrate a substantial need to improve 
its data infrastructure, including for the 
development of a talent marketplace; or
``(ii) consortia of State agencies that are 
comprised of State agencies from multiple 
States and include at least one State agency 
described in clause (i) and have the capacity 
to make significant contributions toward 
building interoperable and portable interstate 
data infrastructure; and
``(B) will use grant funds to--
``(i) expand the adoption and use of 
linked, publicly available, and interoperable 
data on knowledge, skills, and abilities 
represented through credentials, occupational 
job descriptions, and learning assertions, 
including through the development of a talent 
marketplace or other tools and services 
designed to help learners and workers make 
informed decisions;
``(ii) participate in and contribute data 
to a multistate data collaborative, including 
data that provides participating States the 
ability to better understand--
``(I) earnings and employment 
outcomes of individuals who work out-
of-State; and
``(II) interstate earnings and 
employment trends;
``(iii) enhance collaboration with private 
sector workforce and labor market data entities 
and the end-users of workforce and labor market 
data, including individuals, employers, 
economic development agencies, and workforce 
development providers; or
``(iv) leverage the use of non-Federal 
contributions to improve workforce data 
infrastructure, including staff capacity 
building.
``(4) Use of funds.--In addition to the activities 
described in paragraph (3)(B), an eligible entity awarded a 
grant under this subsection may use funds to carry out any of 
the following activities:
``(A) Developing or enhancing a State's workforce 
longitudinal data system, including by participating 
and contributing data to the State's data system, if 
applicable, that links with elementary and secondary 
school and postsecondary data.
``(B) Accelerating the replication and adoption of 
data systems, projects, products, or practices already 
in use in one or more States to other States.
``(C) Research and labor market data improvement 
activities to improve the timeliness, relevance, and 
accessibility of such data through pilot projects that 
are developed locally but designed to scale to other 
regions or States.
``(D) Establishing or enhancing a talent 
marketplace.
``(E) Developing policies, guidelines, and security 
measures for data collection, storing, and sharing to 
ensure compliance with relevant Federal and State 
privacy laws and regulations.
``(F) Increasing local board access to and 
integration with the State's workforce longitudinal 
data system in a secure manner.
``(G) Creating or participating in a data exchange 
for collecting and using standards-based jobs and 
employment data including, at a minimum, job titles or 
occupation codes.
``(H) Improving State and local staff capacity to 
understand, use, and analyze data to improve decision-
making and improve participant outcomes.
``(5) Administration.--
``(A) Duration.--A grant awarded under this 
subsection may be for a period of up to 3 years.
``(B) Supplement, not supplant.--Funds made 
available under this subsection shall be used to 
supplement, and not supplant, other Federal, State, or 
local funds used for development of State data systems.
``(C) Report.--Each eligible entity that receives a 
grant under this subsection shall submit a report to 
the Secretary not later than 180 days after the 
conclusion of the grant period on the activities 
supported through the grant and improvements in the use 
of workforce and labor market information that have 
resulted from such activities.
``(6) Definition.--In this subsection--
``(A) Eligible entity.--The term `eligible entity' 
means a State agency, including a State workforce 
agency or a consortium of State agencies, including a 
multistate data collaborative, that is or includes the 
State agency responsible for--
``(i) State employer wage records used by 
the State's unemployment insurance programs in 
labor market information reporting and analysis 
and for fulfilling the reporting requirements 
under section 116(d);
``(ii) the production of labor market 
information; and
``(iii) the direct administration of one or 
more of the core programs.
``(B) Multistate data collaborative.--The term 
`multistate data collaborative' means a partnership 
among two or more States to coordinate the governance 
and standards for workforce related data maintained by 
such States in order to facilitate interoperability and 
the secure exchange of such data between such 
States.''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--Section 132(a)(2)(A) of the 
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 
3172(a)(2)(A)) is amended by inserting after ``projects),'' the 
following: ``169(d) (relating to workforce data quality 
initiatives),''.
(c) List and Information To Assist Participants in Choosing 
Providers.--Section 122(d) of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity 
Act (29 U.S.C. 12 3152(d)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) as 
paragraphs (3), (4), and (6), respectively;
(2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
``(2) Talent marketplace.--The Governor may establish (or 
develop in partnership with other States) a talent 
marketplace.'';
(3) by amending paragraph (4) (as so redesignated) to read 
as follows:
``(4) Availability.--The list (including the talent 
marketplace if one has been established by the State), and the 
accompanying information shall be made available to such 
participants and to members of the public through the one-stop 
delivery system in the State--
``(A) on a publicly accessible website that--
``(i) is consumer-tested; and
``(ii) is searchable, easily 
understandable, and navigable, and allows for 
the comparison of eligible programs through the 
use of common, linked, open-data descriptive 
language, including interoperable skills and 
competency data; and
``(B) in a manner that does not reveal personally 
identifiable information about an individual 
participant.''; and
(4) by inserting before paragraph (6) (as so redesignated), 
the following:
``(5) Website technical assistance.--The Secretary shall--
``(A) upon request, provide technical assistance to 
a State on establishing a website that meets the 
requirements of paragraph (4); and
``(B) disseminate to each State effective practices 
or resources from States and private sector entities 
related to establishing a website that is consumer-
tested to ensure that the website is easily understood, 
searchable, and navigable.''.
(d) Assistance in Developing Talent Marketplaces.--Section 7(a)(3) 
of the Wagner-Peyser Act (29 U.S.C. 49f(a)(3)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (F), by striking the ``and'' at the 
end;
(2) by moving subparagraph (G) four ems to the right;
(3) in subparagraph (G), by striking the period at the end 
and inserting ``; and''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
``(H) establishing a talent marketplace (as defined 
in section 3 of the Workforce Innovation and 
Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3102)).''.
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