Maryland officials back RAISE Act to expand registered apprenticeships statewide

Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller urged the House Economic Matters Committee on HB 501, the Registered Apprenticeship Investment for a Stronger Economy (RAISE) Act, to give the bill a favorable report, saying the legislation would broaden access to registered apprenticeships and help Maryland retain and grow talent.

Miller told the committee the Moore‑Miller administration made the bill a priority to ‘‘invest in both today’s workforce and the talent pipeline that will drive our future,’’ citing Maryland’s federal research labs, military installations and higher‑education institutions as assets that require a stronger alignment of workforce skills with job opportunities. “Apprenticeships work. They offer real world experience, a paycheck from day one and a direct route into stable careers without crushing student debt,” Miller said.

Why it matters: Supporters said the bill would expand apprenticeship beyond traditional building trades into fast‑growing sectors such as information technology and cybersecurity, create a Maryland Office of Registered Apprenticeship Development to market and scale programs, create a qualified intermediary grant program to help employers and intermediaries recruit and operate apprenticeships, and restore an apprenticeship incentive to help small and new employers offset startup training costs.

Maryland Department of Labor Secretary Portia Wu told the committee the bill would codify a 1:1 journeyperson‑to‑apprentice ratio as the default for hazardous occupations while allowing an expedited, flexible pathway to expand ratios in nonhazardous fields. “These intermediaries can be that sort of nexus to help bring everyone together,” Wu said, describing the qualified intermediary grants and the apprenticeship incentive program that would reimburse sponsors and employers for portions of start‑up costs when apprenticeship milestones are met.

Chris McLaren, director of the Maryland Apprenticeship Training Program, said HB 501 would add tools and bandwidth to the department, including establishing the Maryland Office for Registered Apprenticeship Development and repealing a duplicative youth advisory committee. He emphasized the bill’s goal to maintain safety and program quality while allowing flexibility for nonhazardous occupations such as technology and cyber roles.

Industry and labor responses were broadly supportive but included conditions. Bruce Spector of Baltimore Cyber Range and Joanne Fiore of the AICPA said the measure would help scale apprenticeships into cybersecurity and accounting respectively, citing challenges such as the lack of standardized training models in tech and the need for intermediary support. Building‑trade witnesses emphasized preserving the 1:1 ratio for hazardous occupations and asked for clear definitions of ‘‘hazardous’’ versus ‘‘nonhazardous.’’ The Washington, D.C. Joint Plumbing Apprenticeship Committee, United Association Local 486 and other trades groups stressed that plumbing, gas fitting and similar trades require close journeyperson supervision for safety.

Several union and labor leaders — including Donna Edwards of the Maryland State and D.C. AFL‑CIO and Ray Baker of the Baltimore‑DC Building Trades — urged robust transparency and tracking of outcomes to ensure apprenticeships lead to middle‑class careers and progressive wage steps after graduation. Labor representatives also flagged concerns about leaving ratio expansions to the secretary of labor without additional statutory guardrails.

Program details and administration: Testimony described an incentive reimbursement modeled on prior federal grants, with example reimbursements up to $2,500 per new apprentice paid after milestones are met, not as an upfront lump sum. Witnesses said those amounts were relatively small compared with total employer training costs and intended to offset startup expenses rather than fully fund training. The bill also includes a provision (to be withdrawn by proponents) that would have allowed apprenticeships to substitute for certain licensure exam requirements; proponents said that language would be revised after stakeholder feedback.

Outcome at hearing: Proponents requested a favorable report from the committee; no formal committee vote was recorded during the hearing.

Looking ahead: Committee members asked for clarification on funding interactions with the State Apprenticeship Training Fund, definitions of covered occupations, oversight of intermediaries and confidentiality/transparency metrics. Supporters said they would continue working with labor, industry and the committee on amendments to define hazardous work, refine ratio authority and ensure program safeguards and data reporting.

Ending note: The RAISE Act received broad industry and government backing at the hearing but faces outstanding questions from unions and some committee members about ratio authority, licensure substitutions, and the mechanics of incentive payments and oversight.