S. 762. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow a credit against income tax for information technology training expenses and for other purposes; to the Committee on Finance. Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, during the final months of the 106th Congress, the Senate and House completed action on the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act which will respond to the shortage of skilled IT workers and help ensure our nation's continued growth and leadership in the information technology field. Congress increased the cap on the number of H1B visas available for foreign workers with high-tech skills to fill the job vacancies in information technology in the US. As important as action by Congress to permit companies to hire foreign-born skilled IT workers is, this legislation by itself will not address our long-term IT worker needs. Throughout the recent debate on the IT worker shortage, I have urged that we focus our efforts on IT training and partnerships between the business and education communities. Many excellent partnerships between the IT community, state and local government, high schools, and colleges and universities that provide individuals of all ages with education and training opportunities in information technology are already underway. ... I ask unanimous consent that the text of this legislation along with statements of endorsement for the Technology Education and Training Act from the Technology Workforce Coalition, the Information Technology Association of America, and the American Society for Training and Development be printed in the Record. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:

S. 762

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 ``Technology Education and Training Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. CREDIT FOR INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRAINING PROGRAM EXPENSES.

(a) In General.--Subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 30B. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TRAINING PROGRAM EXPENSES.

``(a) General Rule.--In the case of a taxpayer engaged in a trade or business during the taxable year, there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax imposed by this chapter for such taxable year an amount equal to 100 percent of information technology training program expenses of the taxpayer and any employee of the taxpayer paid or incurred by the taxpayer during such taxable year. ``(b) Limitation.-- ``(1) In general.--The amount of information technology training program expenses with respect to any individual which may be taken into account under subsection (a) for the taxable year shall not exceed $1,500. ``(2) Increase in credit amount for participation in certain programs and for certain individuals.--The dollar amount in paragraph (1) shall be increased (but not above $2,000) by the amount of information technology training program expenses paid or incurred by the taxpayer-- ``(A) with respect to a program operated-- ``(i) in an empowerment zone or enterprise community designated under part I of subchapter U or a renewal community designated under part I of subchapter X, ``(ii) in a school district in which at least 50 percent of the students attending schools in such district are eligible for free or reduced-cost lunches under the school lunch program established under the National School Lunch Act, ``(iii) in an area designated as a disaster area by the Secretary of Agriculture or by the President under the Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act in the taxable year or the 4 preceding taxable years, ``(iv) in a rural enterprise community designated under section 766 of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999, ``(v) in an area designated by the Secretary of Agriculture as a Rural Economic Area Partnership Zone, ``(vi) in an area over which an Indian tribal government (as defined in section 7701(a)(40)) has jurisdiction, or ``(vii) by an employer who has 200 or fewer employees for each business day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, or ``(B) in the case of an individual with a disability. ``(c) Information Technology Training Program Expenses.-- For purposes of this section-- ``(1) In general.--The term `information technology training program expenses' means expenses paid or incurred by reason of the participation of the taxpayer (or any employee of the taxpayer) in any information technology training program if such expenses lead to an industry-accepted information technology certification for the participant. Such term shall only include includes expenses paid for in connection with course work and certification testing which is essential to assessing skill acquisition. ``(2) Information technology training program.--The term `information technology training program' means a program for an industry-accepted information technology certification--

[[Page S3858]]

``(A) by any information technology trade association or corporation, and ``(B) which-- ``(i) is provided for the employees of such association or corporation, or ``(ii) involves--

``(I) employers, and ``(II) State training programs, school districts, university systems, higher education institutions (as defined in section 101(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965), or certified commercial information technology training providers.

``(3) Certified commercial information technology training provider.-- ``(A) In general.--The term `certified commercial information technology training provider' means a private sector organization providing an information technology training program which leads to an approved information technology industry certification for the participants. ``(B) Approved industry certification.--For purposes of paragraph (1), an information technology industry certification shall be considered approved if such certification is approved by the Secretary, in consultation with the Information Technology Training Certification Advisory Board. ``(d) Denial of Double Benefit.--No deduction or credit under any other provision of this chapter shall be allowed with respect to information technology training program expenses taken into account for the credit under this section. ``(e) Certain rules made applicable.--For purposes of this section, rules similar to the rules of section 45A(e)(2) and subsections (c), (d), and (e) of section 52 shall apply. ``(f) Application With Other Credits.--The credit allowed by subsection (a) for any taxable year shall not exceed the excess (if any) of-- ``(1) the regular tax for the taxable year reduced by the sum of the credits allowable under the subpart A and the previous sections of this subpart, over ``(2) the tentative minimum tax for the taxable year.''. (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for subpart B of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 30B. Information technology training program expenses.''. (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall apply to amounts paid or incurred in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2001.