[Congressional Bills 103th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4034 Introduced in House (IH)]

103d CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4034

    To amend the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 to 
 authorize grants for the expansion of recreation opportunities for at 
  risk youth in urban areas with a high prevalence of crime, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 15, 1994

Mr. Miller of California (for himself, Mr. Vento, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, 
Mr. Martinez, Mr. Hinchey, Mr. Gejdenson, Mr. de Lugo, Mr. Lehman, Mr. 
  Faleomavaega, Ms. Shepherd, Ms. McKinney, and Mr. Johnson of South 
   Dakota) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 to 
 authorize grants for the expansion of recreation opportunities for at 
  risk youth in urban areas with a high prevalence of crime, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Urban Recreation and At-Risk Youth 
Act of 1994''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Section 1002 of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 
is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of subsection (d), by 
striking the period at the end of subsection (e) and inserting ``; 
and'' and by adding the following at the end thereof:
    ``(f) the quality of life in urban areas has suffered because of 
decline in the availability of park and recreation and systems, 
including land, facilities, and services;
    ``(g) the deterioration of urban park and recreation facilities is 
due in part to underfunding of Federal grant programs which assist in 
the revitalization of urban recreation facilities;
    ``(h) the urban neighborhoods eligible for assistance under this 
title have deteriorated, in part, due to the rapid increase in violent 
crime among youth;
    ``(i) accessible, well-maintained recreational facilities and 
services have been shown to significantly decrease the incidence of 
violent crime among youth and can be an effective tool in efforts to 
prevent crime, increase public safety and improve the quality of life 
of urban residents; and
    ``(j) urban sport and recreation programs teach important values 
and life skills including teamwork, individual responsibility, respect, 
leadership, and self-esteem which help prevent young people from 
engaging in criminal behavior.''.

SEC. 3. PURPOSE OF ASSISTANCE.

    Section 1003 of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 
is amended by adding the following at the end thereof: ``It is further 
the purpose of this title to improve recreation facilities and expand 
recreation services in urban areas with a high incidence of crime and 
to help deter crime through the expansion of recreation opportunities 
for at-risk youth. It is the further purpose of this section to 
increase the security of urban parks and to promote collaboration 
between local agencies involved in parks and recreation, law 
enforcement, youth social services, and the juvenile justice system.''.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 1004 of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 
is amended by inserting the following new subsection after subsection 
(c) and by redesignating subsections (d) through (j) as (e) through (k) 
respectively:
    ``(d) `at-risk youth recreation grants' means--
            ``(1) rehabilitation grants,
            ``(2) innovation grants, or
            ``(3) matching grants for continuing program support for 
        programs of demonstrated value or success in providing 
        constructive alternatives to youth at risk for engaging in 
        criminal behavior, including grants for operating, or 
        coordinating recreation programs and services;
in neighborhoods and communities with a high prevalence of crime, 
particularly violent crime or crime committed by youthful offenders; in 
addition to the purposes specified in subsection (b), rehabilitation 
grants referred to in paragraph (1) of this subsection may be used for 
the provision of lighting, emergency phones or other capital 
improvements which will improve the security of urban parks;''.

SEC. 5. CRITERIA FOR SELECTION.

    Section 1005 of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 1978 
is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (6), by striking 
the period at the end of paragraph (7) and inserting ``; and'' and by 
adding the following at the end thereof:
            ``(8) in the case of at risk youth recreation grants, the 
        Secretary shall give a priority to each of the following 
        criteria:
                    ``(A) Programs which are targeted to youth who are 
                at the greatest risk of becoming involved in violence 
                and crime.
                    ``(B) Programs which teach important values and 
                life skills, including teamwork, respect, leadership, 
                and self-esteem.
                    ``(C) Programs which offer tutoring, remedial 
                education, mentoring, and counseling in addition to 
                recreation opportunities.
                    ``(D) Programs which offer services during late 
                night or other nonschool hours.
                    ``(E) Programs which demonstrate collaboration 
                between local park and recreation, juvenile justice, 
                law enforcement, and youth social service agencies and 
                nongovernmental entities, including the private sector 
                and community and nonprofit organizations.
                    ``(F) Programs which leverage public or private 
                recreation investments in the form of services, 
                materials, or cash.
                    ``(G) Programs which show the greatest potential of 
                being continued with non-Federal funds or which can 
                serve as models for other communities.''.

SEC. 6. PARK AND RECREATION ACTION RECOVERY PROGRAMS.

    Section 1007(b) of the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of 
1978 is amended by adding the following at the end thereof: ``In order 
to be eligible to receive `at risk youth recreation grants' a local 
government shall amend its 5-year action program to incorporate the 
goal of reducing crime and juvenile delinquency and to provide a 
description of the implementation strategies to achieve this goal. The 
plan shall also address how the local government is coordinating its 
recreation programs with crime prevention efforts of law enforcement, 
juvenile corrections, and youth social service agencies.''.

SEC. 7. MISCELLANEOUS AND TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Program Support.--Section 1013 of the Urban Park and Recreation 
Recovery Act of 1978 is amended by inserting ``(a) In General.--'' 
after ``1013'' and by adding the following new subsection at the end 
thereof:
    ``(b) Program Support.--Not more than 25 percent of the amounts 
made available under this title to any local government may be used for 
program support.''.
    (b) Extension.--Section 1003 of the Urban Park and Recreation 
Recovery Act of 1978 is amended by striking ``for a period of five 
years'' and by striking ``short-term''.

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