AGC and Progressive Policy Institute released the report during an event at the U.S. Capitol complex that featured comments from congressional officials, the report’s authors, a construction general contractor and a community college administrator. The panelists talked about the challenges posed by the current federal funding levels and urged policy makers to help.
The report, titled Building a Stronger Workforce: Federal Spending on Postsecondary Education and Training, notes that of the $139.5 billion the federal government spends annually on postsecondary education, only $28.2 billion goes to workforce education and training programs. The other $111.3 billion supports “traditional” degree programs that only 38 percent of Americans complete.