U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez and Rep. Albio Sires, both Democrats, introduced legislation Wednesday to expand high-skilled, job-training partnerships between community colleges and businesses looking to hire workers in New Jersey.

The Better Education and Skills Training (BEST) for America’s Workforce Act helps address our national skills gap by creating a competitive, $1 billion tax-credit program to encourage job training partnerships between local colleges and local businesses that equip workers with skills that match communities’ needs, Menendez and Sires said in a press release.

Their legislation would also provide local businesses that train and hire long-term unemployed workers up to $4,000 in tax credits for the tuition costs at a community college for each job filled that requires a specific certificate or other training credential.

The BEST for America’s Workforce Act uses a competitive application process to ensure that the federal tax credit goes to training partnerships that are most likely to secure employment for workers who complete the program; most likely to create a net increase in job training opportunities; designed to equip workers with skills that lead to long-term job and income security; tailored to provide skills that meet the strongest market demand and the needs of local communities; capable of including nontraditional learners in training programs; and able to implement the program in a reasonable period of time.