(a) In this section, "ACTION Program" means the Apprenticeship Career Training in Our Neighborhoods Program established under this section. (b) There is an Apprenticeship Career Training in Our Neighborhoods Program in the Department. (c) The purposes of the ACTION Program are: (1) to develop a well-trained, productive construction workforce which meets the needs of the State's economy; (2) to encourage employers to hire apprentices in the construction industry; and (3) to help employers offset additional costs, if any, associated with hiring apprentices. (d) (1) The Department shall administer the ACTION Program and provide grants on a competitive basis to employers that meet the requirements under paragraph (2) of this subsection. (2) An employer is eligible to receive a grant if the employer employs one or more apprentices who: (i) have been employed by the employer for at least 7 months; (ii) are engaged in a building or construction trade; (iii) are enrolled in the first year of an apprenticeship program registered with the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council under § 11- 405(b) of this title; and (iv) live in a zip code in which the percentage of poverty is at least 20% as established by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, in the most recently released data. (e) (1) As provided in the State budget, the ACTION Program shall award grants to eligible employers. (2) It is the intent of the General Assembly that, for fiscal year 2017 and each fiscal year thereafter, the State budget include an appropriation of at least $100,000 for the ACTION Program to: (i) provide grants to eligible employers; and (ii) cover administrative costs. (f) The Department shall adopt regulations necessary to carry out this section, including regulations to: (1) develop requirements for grant applications; (2) develop a process for reviewing grant applications and awarding grants to eligible employers; and (3) determine a cap for the maximum amount of a grant that an eligible employer may receive each year. (g) The amount of a grant awarded by the ACTION Program under subsection (e) of this section shall be based on the number of apprentices that an eligible employer employs who satisfy the criteria in subsection (d)(2) of this section. (h) A grant shall consist of a maximum of $1,000 for each apprentice that an eligible employer employs who satisfies the criteria in subsection (d)(2) of this section.
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