Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act
Sponsored By: Senator Chris Van Hollen
Introduced
Summary
Phase out 14(c) special certificates and shift employers toward competitive integrated employment. This bill would fund State and employer grants, set a staged wage progression, and build reporting and evaluation systems to help people with disabilities move into community jobs and integrated services.
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- People with disabilities and families: Creates transformation grants and integrated community participation supports to help workers find and keep competitive integrated employment or receive home and community services. Grants must prioritize people with the most significant disabilities and align non-employment services with Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services rules.
- Employers and current 14(c) certificate holders: Establishes a Certificate Holder Grant Program with grants capped at $750,000 and minimum awards of $200,000 for 3 years to fund operational shifts. Title II requires a five-year staged wage progression and stops issuance of new special certificates after five years.
- States and workforce systems: Creates a State Grant Program with awards of $3 million to $15 million per State over 5 years, advisory councils with at least 25% representation by people with disabilities, and a Treasury-held Competitive Integrated Employment Fund.
*Would authorize $200 million per year for fiscal 2026–2030, increasing federal spending and creating a Treasury-held fund for grants.*
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
7 provisions identified: 7 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Phased pay increases and phaseout
If enacted, workers paid under special 14(c) certificates would get at least the higher of two amounts. One is their pre-enactment hourly wage. The other is a phased share of the federal minimum wage: 60% after 90 days, 70% at 2 years, 80% at 3 years, 90% at 4 years, and 100% at 5 years. The Secretary could not issue any new 14(c) certificates after enactment. The legal authority for all existing special certificates would end the day after five years post-enactment. Employers who get Title I grants must pay all employees at least the higher of applicable minimum wage or the customary rate for similar non-disabled employees.
Competitive grants to transform employers
If enacted, the Secretary of Labor could award competitive Title I grants to States and eligible entities. Grants would help employers with special certificates shift to competitive integrated employment. Funded activities must ensure required wages, help workers find and keep integrated jobs, and provide community participation and wraparound services. Grants would also require services to meet Medicaid HCBS requirements or any successor rule.
Small employer transformation grants
If enacted, eligible employers in States that did not receive a State Grant could get one 3-year grant. Grants would be between $200,000 and $750,000 for the 3-year period and may not be renewed. Applicants must partner with at least two experienced organizations and include business, accounting, and transformation plans. The Secretary must distribute funds equitably across regions and program sizes.
Wage reporting and employer audits
If enacted, the Wage and Hour Division must publish yearly reports during the 5-year wage schedule. Reports must show counts of employees paid below comparators, wages and hours by employer and State, and transitions to integrated jobs. The Department must audit at least 10% of employers using special certificates and deliver an audit report within one year of enactment.
Federal funding and national technical help
If enacted, Congress would be authorized to appropriate $200 million each year for fiscal years 2026–2030 to run the Act. Each year, 1% of those amounts would be set aside for Title III technical assistance. The Secretary could use Title III money to award one nonrenewable 6-year national technical assistance grant to a nonprofit. That grant would fund tools, training, and national sharing of models to help employers shift away from special-certificate jobs.
State transformation grants and fund
If enacted, each State could apply for one 5-year transformation grant between $3 million and $15 million. Grants must include an advisory council with at least 25% people with disabilities and a phase-out timeline that ends by the certificates' legal end date. States that complete a section 102 grant could also be eligible for annual Rehabilitation Act grants equal to 25% of the State's prior-year section 603(a) allotment. The bill would create a Competitive Integrated Employment Fund in the Treasury and authorize appropriations for 2031–2035 as needed.
Independent evaluation of the Act
If enacted, the Secretary must contract within 180 days with a nonprofit evaluator to study the Act's effects. The contractor must give an interim report within three years and a final report 18 months after special certificates lose legal effect. The study must track wages, employment, and actions taken by employers and States.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Chris Van Hollen
MD • D
Cosponsors
Steve Daines
MT • R
Sponsored 7/24/2025
Kirsten Gillibrand
NY • D
Sponsored 7/24/2025
Marsha Blackburn
TN • R
Sponsored 7/24/2025
Lisa Murkowski
AK • R
Sponsored 9/16/2025
Ron Wyden
OR • D
Sponsored 9/16/2025
Elizabeth Warren
MA • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Thomas Tillis
NC • R
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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