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State training grants

You probably don’t need an approved provider.

Most employers assume state training money comes with a state-approved vendor list, so they never look. For training the people you already employ, federal regulation says otherwise — and that one fact is worth a few thousand dollars per person to a lot of companies.

This is a reference for all fifty states and the District of Columbia: what each program pays, and whether you can hire the trainer you want. In 31 of them you can. Every figure is read off the agency’s own materials, and every entry carries the date we checked it.

The rule that changes the answer

20 CFR 680.530(a)

Providers of incumbent worker training “are not subject to the requirements applicable to entities listed on the eligible training provider list.”

The eligible training provider list is the state-approved vendor roster most people have in mind when they assume they cannot use their own trainer. It governs training for jobseekers. It does not govern training for the staff you already have.

So in most states the mechanics are simple: you pick the trainer, you pay the invoice, you submit it, you get reimbursed. No catalog, no registration, no waiting for a vendor to be listed.

The exceptions matter and are marked below. Twenty of the fifty-one entries here carry some restriction, and almost every one traces to the same cause: the state is spending its own money rather than federal money, so the exemption above never applies. Massachusetts requires the trainer to be registered. New Jersey requires third-party trainers to be physically located in the state. Texas sends the money to a public college that has to be the grantee. Louisiana funds its program from an unemployment insurance surcharge and bars out-of-state providers outright.

The pattern underneath all of them is worth learning, because it tells you what to ask: the gatekeeper is rarely a rule about vendors. It is about who receives the check. Where the state reimburses the employer, you hire whoever you like. Where it pays a college, an outside trainer is a subcontractor at best. And the rules move — Ohio ran the most consultant-friendly program in the country until July 2026, when it halved the award and added a closed provider list that only Ohio institutions can join.

State by state

What each state pays.

All fifty states and the District of Columbia. 31 are worth pursuing today, and in 31 of them you can hire whoever you like. Where a figure is blank it is because the state does not publish one, not because we did not look.

StateProgramReimbursesPer employeeYour trainer?Status
ArizonaIncumbent Worker Training, via the local boardsUp to 90%—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
ArkansasOffice of Skills Development training grantsUp to 75%, or 50% for professional development—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
DelawareIncumbent Worker Training90% under 50 staff, then 75% and 50% by size$6,000, or $4,000 depending on sizeHire anyoneWorth pursuing
FloridaIncumbent Worker Training Grant50%, rising to 75% for priority applicants—RestrictedWorth pursuing
GeorgiaGeorgia Retraining Tax Credit50% of direct cost, as a tax credit$500 per program, $1,250 a yearHire anyoneWorth pursuing
IdahoIndustry-Driven Skills Training Fund80%$25,000Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
IndianaPower Up IndianaEffectively 100% to the cap, no match$5,000Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
IowaIowa Jobs Training Program, 260FMatch required—State college deliversWorth pursuing
KansasKansas Industrial RetrainingDollar-for-dollar matchTypically $1,200 to $2,000 per traineeHire anyoneWorth pursuing
LouisianaIncumbent Worker Training ProgramInvoices in full to 90% of the award$3,000 on the small business trackRestrictedWorth pursuing
MarylandPartnership for Workforce QualityUp to 50%—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
MassachusettsWorkforce Training Fund — Express Program100%$3,000 per courseApproved catalogWorth pursuing
MississippiWorkforce Enhancement Training FundNot published—State college deliversWorth pursuing
MissouriCredential Training Program, Missouri One StartEffectively 100% to the cap$2,000 per fiscal yearHire anyoneWorth pursuing
New JerseyUPSKILL: NJ Incumbent Worker Training GrantUp to 50%$2,000 per workerRestrictedWorth pursuing
New MexicoStep UpUp to 75%$6,000Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
North CarolinaIncumbent Worker Training90% under 50 staff, 75% to 100, then 50%—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
North DakotaTechnical Skills Training Grant, Track BDollar-for-dollar match—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
OhioTechCred100% to the cap$1,000 per credentialApproved catalogWorth pursuing
OklahomaIncumbent Worker Training, via the local boards90%, 75% or 50% by employer size$5,000 per participantHire anyoneWorth pursuing
OregonIncumbent Worker Training, via the local boards90%, 75% or 50% by employer sizeSet locallyHire anyoneWorth pursuing
PennsylvaniaWEDnetPA100% of eligible cost, no match required$2,000Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
Rhode IslandIncumbent Worker Training Grant75% under 25 staff, 50% at 25+$5,000 per yearHire anyoneWorth pursuing
South DakotaWorkforce Development ProgramUp to 50%, matched dollar for dollarTypically $1,000 per traineeUnconfirmedWorth pursuing
TennesseeIncumbent Worker Training Grant90% under 50 staff, 75% to 100, then 50%—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
UtahCustom Fit40–60%, varying by college—Hire anyoneWorth pursuing
VermontVermont Training Program50%None in statuteHire anyoneWorth pursuing
VirginiaIncumbent Worker Training, via the local boards90%, 75% or 50% by employer sizeSet locallyHire anyoneWorth pursuing
West VirginiaGovernor's Guaranteed Work Force ProgramNot published$2,000 per traineeUnconfirmedWorth pursuing
WisconsinWisconsin Fast Forward, Industry Sectors Worker Training GrantsGrant against actual cost, 50% cash or in-kind matchNo per-trainee capHire anyoneWorth pursuing
WyomingBusiness Training GrantEffectively 100% up to the cap$3,000–$4,000 per traineeHire anyoneWorth pursuing
AlabamaIncumbent Worker Training Program75% under 50 staff, 50% at 51 to 100$3,300 per employeeHire anyoneLimited
AlaskaState Training and Employment ProgramVaries—Hire anyoneLimited
CaliforniaEmployment Training PanelFixed per-trainee rates—RestrictedLimited
ColoradoSkill Advance (Colorado FIRST and Existing Industry)60%, employer contributes 40%—State college deliversLimited
ConnecticutIndustry-Driven Skills Training Fund, via the regional boardsUp to 80% under 500 employees$10,000Hire anyoneLimited
HawaiiEmployment and Training Fund, Micro grants50%$1,000 per courseApproved catalogLimited
IllinoisIncumbent Worker Training, via the local workforce areasVaries by area—Hire anyoneLimited
KentuckyBluegrass State Skills Corporation Grant-in-Aid50% of approved cost$2,000 per traineeHire anyoneLimited
MaineMaine Career CompactGrant, not a percentageAbout $1,200 per frontline workerHire anyoneLimited
MichiganGoing PRO Talent Fund100% of eligible cost, no stated match$2,000 classroom, $3,500 registered apprenticeshipHire anyoneLimited
MinnesotaJob Skills Partnership, Dual Training Grant and ATIPP1:1 match on the larger programs$6,000 a year on the Dual Training Grant, $5,000 under ATIPPRestrictedLimited
MontanaIncumbent Worker Training80%$2,500 full time, $1,000 part timeRestrictedLimited
NevadaIncumbent Worker Training, via Workforce ConnectionsVaries by board—RestrictedLimited
New YorkIncumbent Worker Training, via the county boardsVaries by board, up to 90% at some—Hire anyoneLimited
South CarolinaIncumbent Worker Training90% under 50 staff, 75% to 100, then 50%—Hire anyoneLimited
TexasSkills Development Fund and Skills for Small BusinessGrant, not a percentage$1,000 per existing employee under Skills for Small BusinessState college deliversLimited
WashingtonJob Skills Program50%, dollar-for-dollar match—State college deliversLimited
New HampshireUnder verification50% (unconfirmed)—UnconfirmedVerifying
District of ColumbiaNo employer training program publishedNone—UnconfirmedNo program
NebraskaWorker Training Program, repealedNone—UnconfirmedNo program

“Hire anyone” means no approved-provider list stands between you and the trainer you choose. Last verification pass: 2026-09-22.

The detail

Every state has its own page.

The caps, the deadline, who may deliver the training, whether AI training qualifies, and the phone number to call. Grouped by region, because an employer comparing options almost always compares against a neighbor.

New England

the Mid-Atlantic

the Southeast

the Midwest

the Plains

the Mountain West

the West Coast

The thing that sinks applications

Training, not consulting.

Every one of these programs funds training. None of them fund someone building you a system. Several states say so explicitly — Connecticut bars consulting services, Massachusetts bars consulting and one-to-one training under its larger program, and Vermont will not fund consulting, coaching, or course development.

In practice that means the reimbursable version of the work has defined instructional hours, more than one person in the room, W-2 employees rather than contractors, and something at the end that shows who completed it. The implementation work alongside it is a normal business expense. We would rather you know that before you apply than after.

Questions we get

Before you apply.

Do I need to use a state-approved training provider?
Usually not. Federal regulation 20 CFR 680.530(a) exempts providers of incumbent worker training from the eligible training provider list. That means for most state programs funded through the federal workforce system, the employer hires whoever they want, pays the invoice, and is reimbursed. A handful of states run their own separately funded programs that do require a registered provider — Massachusetts is the clearest example — and those are marked on this page.
What is incumbent worker training?
Training for people you already employ, as opposed to training someone you are about to hire. The distinction matters because the two are funded differently and carry different rules. Almost everything on this page is incumbent worker training, because that is what an employer adopting AI actually needs.
Does AI training qualify?
In most states the eligible-training language is written broadly enough to cover it — phrases like "new technologies" or "skills that respond to changing industry practices" are common, and several states now name AI explicitly. Where we have confirmed the language, it is quoted in the state entry. Where we have not, the entry says so rather than assuming.
Can these grants pay for consulting or implementation work?
No, and this is the most common way an application gets rejected. These are training programs. Several states explicitly exclude consulting, coaching, and course development. If the work is building you a system, it is not reimbursable; if it is instructor-led training for your W-2 staff with defined hours and a completion record, it generally is.
How current is this page?
Every figure is read off the administering agency’s own page or PDF, and each state shows the date it was last checked. Programs change funding levels, open and close, and occasionally get repealed without the website being updated, so we re-verify on a schedule and mark anything we cannot confirm rather than repeating it.

Tell us your state.

We will tell you what your team qualifies for, including when the answer is nothing. We deliver AI training across New England and are a registered provider under the Massachusetts program. Outside the region we will read your state’s rules with you and say plainly whether we are the right trainer for it or whether you want someone local — the reference above is useful either way.

If your state’s row says something is unconfirmed, that is a real gap and worth a phone call. Tell us which one and we will make it.

Ask about your stateMassachusetts and New England in detail
Which States Pay for Employee AI Training | Support Forge