[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1009 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1009

    To authorize the awarding of grants to cities, counties, tribal 
organizations, and certain other entities for the purpose of improving 
           public participation in the 2000 decennial census.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 4, 1999

Mr. Miller of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                 to the Committee on Government Reform

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To authorize the awarding of grants to cities, counties, tribal 
organizations, and certain other entities for the purpose of improving 
           public participation in the 2000 decennial census.

    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 ``2000 Census Community Participation 
Enhancement Act''.

SEC. 2. PROGRAM AUTHORIZATION.

    In order to improve public participation in the 2000 census, the 
Secretary may, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, provide 
for grants to be made to units of general local government, tribal 
organizations, and public or private nonprofit organizations.

SEC. 3. APPLICATIONS.

    (a) Applications Required.--Each entity referred to in section 2 
that wishes to receive a grant under this Act shall submit an 
application at such time, in such form, and complete with such 
information as the Secretary shall by regulation require, except that 
any such application shall include at least--
            (1) a statement of the objectives for which the grant is 
        sought; and
            (2) a description of the types of programs and activities 
        for which the grant is sought.
    (b) Notice of Approval or Disapproval.--Each entity submitting an 
application under subsection (a) shall, not later than 60 days after 
the date of its submission, be notified in writing as to whether such 
application is approved or disapproved.

SEC. 4. MATCHING REQUIREMENT.

    (a) In General.--A grant may not be made to an entity under this 
Act unless such entity agrees, with respect to the costs to be incurred 
by such entity in carrying out the programs and activities for which 
the grant is made, to make available non-Federal contributions in an 
amount equal to not less than 50 percent of the Federal funds provided 
under the grant.
    (b) Non-Federal Contributions.--An entity receiving a grant under 
this Act may meet the requirement under subsection (a) through--
            (1) the use of amounts from non-Federal sources; or
            (2) in-kind contributions, fairly evaluated, but only if 
        and to the extent allowable under section 7.

SEC. 5. ALLOCATION.

    The Secretary shall allocate the amounts appropriated to carry out 
this Act equally among the respective centers and offices referred to 
in section 7.

SEC. 6. USE OF GRANT FUNDS.

    A grant made under this Act may be used only for one or more of the 
following:
            (1) To train volunteers to assist individuals to complete 
        and return census questionnaires.
            (2) To educate the public about the importance of 
        participating in the 2000 census.
            (3) To educate the public about the confidentiality that 
        will be accorded to information collected in the 2000 census.
            (4) To recruit candidates to apply for census office and 
        field enumerator positions.
            (5) To sponsor community events to promote the 2000 census.
            (6) To produce community-tailored promotional materials.
            (7) To rent space to provide any of the training described 
        in this subsection.

SEC. 7. REGULATIONS.

    Any regulations to carry out this Act shall be prescribed not later 
than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act. The regulations 
shall include--
            (1) provisions requiring that any application for a grant 
        under this Act be submitted to the appropriate regional center 
        or area office of the Bureau of the Census, as identified under 
        the regulations; and
            (2) provisions under which the decision to approve or 
        disapprove any such application shall be made by the head of 
        the appropriate center or office (referred to in paragraph 
        (1)), in accordance with guidelines set forth in the 
        regulations.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    For purposes of carrying out this Act, there are authorized to be 
appropriated $26,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act--
            (1) the term ``2000 census'' means the 2000 decennial 
        census of population;
            (2) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Commerce;
            (3) the term ``unit of general local government'' means a 
        city, county, town, township, parish, village, or other general 
        purpose political subdivision of a State, the District of 
        Columbia, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the 
        Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or 
        such other possession or area referred to in section 191 of 
        title 13, United States Code, as the Secretary considers 
        appropriate; and
            (4) the term ``tribal organization'' has the meaning given 
        such term by section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 
        Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).
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