More important than ever

As you know, demographic trends and ongoing supply chain challenges make finding qualified job candidates difficult. As you face increasingly difficult workforce development challenges, NRCA continues working to expand opportunities for career and technical education. CTE is vitally important to building a strong workforce.

Ongoing advocacy

NRCA’s efforts to expand opportunities for employers to engage with CTE have been ongoing. During the inaugural Roofing Day in D.C. advocacy event in 2018, the roofing industry made it a priority to support passage of the Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act, legislation to improve and expand CTE under the federal Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006. The bipartisan legislation expanded incentives for work-based training and programs that enable students to earn industry-recognized credentials such as NRCA ProCertification.® A few months after the event, the bill was approved by Congress and signed into law by the president. Since passage of this legislation, more NRCA members have been able to take advantage of CTE opportunities in their states.

State education departments now are implementing the law’s provisions to enable more effective collaboration among employers and educational institutions to develop CTE programs. Most critically, the law authorizes funding for Perkins Basic State Grants, and these funds are distributed among states according to population and other factors for CTE programs.

Push for funding

Securing continuing government funding for CTE programs plays a critical role in workforce development. Congress allocates funding for Perkins Basic State Grants annually in appropriations legislation. NRCA has made increased funding for Perkins Basic State Grants a top advocacy priority to maximize CTE opportunities for roofing industry employers. Developing more support for increased funding is important because, as budgetary pressures continue to increase, funding has not kept pace with demand or inflation.

In 2022, NRCA advocated for Congress to provide increased funding for Perkins Basic State Grants for fiscal year 2023, and Congress provided an increase of $50 million over the previous fiscal year’s amount, bringing total funding for the grants to more than $1.4 billion. NRCA is pleased with the funding increase given current federal budgetary restraints. However, Congress must place a higher priority on funding for Perkins Basic State Grants in the future to ensure young workers can develop skills needed in the current workforce.

Given the importance of this issue, Roofing Day in D.C. 2023 participants again advocated for robust funding for Perkins Basic State Grants. As the federal appropriations process continues in Washington, D.C., throughout the summer, Congress needs to continue hearing from NRCA members.

Looking ahead

Strong investments in Perkins Basic State Grants are critical to the success of the CTE reform law passed in 2018. Sufficient funding assists high school and community college students who need training to succeed in the workforce and employers that benefit from hiring skilled workers. NRCA will continue advocating for increased funding for Perkins Basic State Grants to help roofing industry employers address workforce needs in increasingly competitive markets.

DUANE L. MUSSER is NRCA’s vice president of government relations in Washington, D.C.