The "Building U.S. Infrastructure by Leveraging Demands for Skills" or BUILDS Act mandates the Secretary of Labor to award competitive grants to eligible partnerships. These grants are designed to foster industry or sector partnerships that engage in collaborative planning, resource alignment, and training efforts. The primary goal is to encourage industry growth and competitiveness and to improve worker training, retention, and advancement within targeted infrastructure industries such as energy, construction, information technology, utilities, and transportation. Grants are available as either implementation grants , up to $2,500,000, or renewal grants , up to $1,500,000, each for a period not exceeding three years. Applicants must describe their partnership, the targeted infrastructure industry, the workers to be recruited, and the strategic objectives they aim to achieve. A key requirement is the use or development of nationally portable, recognized postsecondary credentials , which may include registered apprenticeship programs, to measure progress. Strategic objectives for grant recipients include recruiting key stakeholders, identifying critical training needs for businesses, and facilitating economies of scale for aggregated training. Partnerships must also help align curricula of educational and training institutions with industry demands and attract a diverse jobseeker base, including individuals with barriers to employment . The bill emphasizes providing comprehensive support services for these individuals, covering pre-employment, early employment, and ongoing assistance for at least 12 months in work-based learning programs. Eligible partnerships must designate a fiscal agent and carry out activities that integrate services and funding efficiently. These activities include business engagement, such as assisting with apprenticeship registration, curriculum design for work-based learning programs, and providing training for mentors. Grant recipients are required to submit annual reports evaluating their progress and performance. The Act authorizes an appropriation of $500,000,000 annually for fiscal year 2026 and the subsequent four fiscal years to fund these grants and associated administrative costs.