# What This Bill Does

This bill creates a new federal grant program to help colleges and technical schools train students for jobs in agriculture. The government would give money to eligible schools so they can partner with farms, agricultural companies, and industry groups to teach students practical skills they'll actually need to work in farming and related businesses.

The types of training covered include internships where students work directly with companies, apprenticeships that combine classroom learning with on-the-job experience, hands-on coursework, and workshops focused on technical skills like equipment operation or modern farming techniques. Schools that receive grants must spend at least 5 percent of the money on recruiting students to join these programs and training teachers to prepare them for real agricultural jobs.

# Who This Affects

The bill targets a wide range of educational institutions, from major universities with agriculture programs to community colleges and career and technical schools in rural areas. Any school that teaches agriculture could potentially apply for these grants. Students interested in farming, agricultural technology, food production, and related fields would benefit by getting better training and more direct connections to actual employers. Agricultural businesses and industry groups would also benefit because they'd have access to a better-trained workforce ready to fill open positions.

# Why It Matters

Agriculture faces a real workforce shortage. Many young people don't know about career opportunities in farming and agriculture, and schools often lack the resources to connect students with industry professionals. This bill aims to bridge that gap by funding programs that give students real experience working with actual farms and agricultural companies before they graduate, making them more employable and helping the agriculture industry find the workers it needs.

To amend the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 to authorize grants for eligible institutions to carry out agriculture workforce training programs, and for other purposes.

Finstad, Brad

This bill directs the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to establish a grant program within its Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program for eligible institutions to develop and carry out agriculture workforce training programs. Eligible institutions include U.S. land-grant universities, non-land-grant colleges of agriculture, junior or community colleges with agriculture programs, and area career and technical education schools with agriculture programs.The grants must be used to develop and carry out programs to (1) promote the growth of the agriculture industry, (2) foster competitiveness within the industry, and (3) improve the training and retention of workers in the industry.An agriculture workforce training program is a program developed by an eligible institution in collaboration with a targeted industry partner through which the industry partner provides training to enrolled students. This may include training through internships, apprenticeships, experience-based curricula, and educational programs and workshops.&nbsp;The program must be implemented by January 31, 2024.&nbsp;