Administration aims to expand apprenticeships to over one million active registered apprentices

Timeline

1. Scheduled follow-up · Dec 31, 2026
2. Completion due · Dec 31, 2026
3. Update · Feb 14, 2026, 06:26 AMin_progress
   Restatement of the claim: The administration has implemented a bold plan to expand apprenticeships with the ambitious goal of reaching and surpassing one million active registered apprentices. Progress evidence: The White House February 2026 presidential message asserts that a bold plan has been implemented to expand apprenticeships toward the one-million-active-apprentice target. In parallel, the Department of Labor in mid-2025 announced nearly $84 million in grants (state and competitive) to expand Registered Apprenticeships, explicitly linking the funding to President Trump’s goal of 1 million active apprentices and noting over 134,000 new apprentices registered since the start of his administration. Current status: As of February 13, 2026, public records show sustained efforts and funding to grow the program, but there is no publicly verifiable evidence that the nationwide count of active registered apprentices has reached or surpassed one million. The administration’s approach centers on expanding capacity, broadening industry coverage, and improving retention, rather than reporting a completed milestone. Milestones and dates: Key actions include the 2024–2025 policy/operational moves around expanding pathways and the June 30, 2025 DOL grants announcement to accelerate capacity in 50 states and territories. These steps are presented as moves toward the goal, not as a completed count. Source reliability and incentives: The primary sources are a White House presidential message (official executive-branch communication) and a DOL press release (official federal agency). Both sources explicitly tie to the administration’s goal, and the DOL release frames progress in terms of expanded capacity and new registrations, reflecting policy and funding incentives aimed at rapid growth of the program.
   • https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2026/02/presidential-message-on-career-and-technical-education-month/
   • https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/eta/eta20250630
   • https://www.apprenticeship.gov/data-and-statistics
4. Update · Feb 14, 2026, 04:14 AMin_progress
   Restatement of the claim: The administration has implemented a bold plan to expand apprenticeships with the ambitious goal of reaching and surpassing one million active registered apprentices nationwide. Evidence of progress: White House statements from February 2026 cite an executive- and policy-driven push to expand apprenticeships, including previous actions such as the Workforce Pell program and America’s Talent Strategy, and an Executive Order signed last year to realign federal priorities toward skilled labor. Independent reporting confirms ongoing funding and program expansions intended to grow the Registered Apprenticeship system, including a substantial 2025 funding round to states totaling roughly $84 million aimed at increasing capacity (DOL ETA release, 2025-06-30). Current status of the goal: As of late 2024–2025, the Registered Apprenticeship system housed roughly 680,000 active apprentices, with year-to-year counts showing only modest increases and occasional declines depending on data source (RAPID data cited by industry reporting). A formal public milestone of 1,000,000 active apprentices had not been achieved by early 2026, and multiple sources describe the target as an ongoing policy objective rather than a completed metric. The available data indicate continued growth is planned but the headline target remains unmet. Milestones and dates: The White House documents reference a multi-year plan built on executive actions (April–August 2024 actions) and a 2025 funding push to expand capacity across states and sectors, including tech, manufacturing, and construction. DOL’s 2025 grants were described as the third round of expansion funding to accelerate capacity and align with the 1 million goal, with state-by-state awards released in mid-2025. Independent data in early 2026 continues to show the program expanding, but no public source confirms a nationwide total exceeding one million active apprentices. Source reliability and incentives: Primary materials from the White House and the U.S. Department of Labor are high-quality official sources, though the 1,000,000 target is a policy objective rather than a completed, independently verified milestone. Trade and education outlets corroborate ongoing funding and expansion efforts, while independent counts of active apprentices suggest the total remains well below the million mark. Taken together, the evidence supports a continued expansion trajectory rather than a finished fulfillment of the stated goal.
   • https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2026/02/presidential-message-on-career-and-technical-education-month/
   • https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/eta/eta20250630
   • https://www.apprenticeship.gov/data-and-statistics
5. Update · Feb 14, 2026, 02:49 AMin_progress
   Restatement of claim: The administration has implemented a bold plan to expand apprenticeships with the ambitious goal of reaching and surpassing one million active registered apprentices nationwide. Progress evidence: The U.S. Department of Labor publicly announced nearly $84 million in grants (50 states and territories) in 2025 to expand Registered Apprenticeship programs, explicitly to help reach the goal of 1 million active apprentices (DOL ETA, 2025-06-30). The White House and federal data portals frame this as part of a multi-year effort to grow the registered apprenticeship system across industries, with ongoing investments and expansion efforts (Apprenticeship.gov data and statistics page; White House action documents). Milestones and status: Public materials indicate continued funding cycles and program expansions are in place, including base and competitive State Apprenticeship Expansion grants in 2025, intended to accelerate growth and participation across traditional and emerging sectors (DOL ETA press release, 2025-06-30). The administration has not publicly announced a final tally reaching one million active apprentices as of February 2026; the grants and policy levers are described as enabling progress toward that target rather than declaring completion. Reliability and context: The principal sources confirming progress are U.S. Department of Labor press releases and the Apprenticeship.gov data portal, both official federal sources. These rely on policy and funding actions that are consistent with the administration’s stated objective but do not by themselves confirm completion of the one-million mark by February 2026. Follow-up assessment note: Given the ongoing nature of funding cycles and program expansions, a concrete update on total active registered apprentices and whether the one-million threshold has been surpassed should be revisited after the next major funding round or a formal program milestone is reached (target date: 2026-12-31).
   • https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/eta/eta20250630
   • https://www.apprenticeship.gov/data-and-statistics
   • https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/04/preparing-americans-for-high-paying-skilled-trade-jobs-of-the-future/
6. Original article · Feb 13, 2026
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