LINCOLN- A workforce development proposal that would direct an annual $4 million in state funds to a new apprenticeship initiative received mostly positive feedback during a Monday legislative hearing. State Sen. Teresa Ibach of Sumner introduced Legislative Bill 993 to create the Apprenticeship Grant Act.

Under the program, a business would apply to the Department of Economic Development for reimbursement of wages or tuition for apprentices, who also must be in a public assistance program such as SNAP Next. Ibach said the participating business, in turn, is to have a full-time job waiting for the apprentice that offers wages high enough to reduce the worker’s reliance on government economic aid.

Grants are limited to $37,000 per apprentice and 100 apprentices per business. The business must certify that the apprenticeship is part of a registered program. The initiative is modeled after the Ignite Nebraska program launched at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska in 2022. A few who spoke during the legislative hearing before the Business and Labor Committee suggested tweaks to the bill, including raising the state’s annual contribution and providing more flexibility in the post-training hiring process.

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