1. Short title This Act may be cited as the America Realizing the Informational Skills and Initiative of New Graduates Act of 2017 or America RISING Act of 2017 . 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2012 the national unemployment rate for individuals ages 25 years and older with a bachelor’s degree was 4.5 percent and 6.2 percent for individuals with an associate’s degree. For college graduates ages 18 to 25 the national unemployment rate in 2012 was higher at 7.7 percent. Because the typical college graduates leaves college owing an average of $29,400 in student loan debt, a rate that has increased 6 percent every year since 2008, the current job market offers exceedingly few opportunities for such graduates to obtain employment at a salary adequate to service their college loan debt. (2) There are more than 26 million small businesses in the United States. In the current economic climate, these small businesses are experiencing difficulty in finding the resources needed to increase sales, modernize operations, and hire new employees. (3) Recent college graduates need the experience that can be obtained only in the workplace to refine their skills and develop the entrepreneurial qualities that can lead to the creation of new businesses and jobs. (4) Existing small businesses and companies will benefit from the information and technology skills possessed by many of the Nation’s recent college graduates. (5) Enabling recent college graduates to obtain employment with small businesses benefits the national economy by providing such businesses the human capital and technical expertise needed to compete and win in the global economy of the 21st century. 3. Establishment of America RISING program (a) Establishment The Secretary of Labor and the Secretary of Education shall, jointly, establish a program under which— (1) grants are paid to eligible employers to defray the cost of compensation paid by such employers to recent college graduates