[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1258 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1258

       To improve academic and social outcomes for teenage youth.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 27, 2001

  Mr. Dorgan (for himself, Mr. DeWine, Mr. Conrad, and Ms. Landrieu) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                       Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
       To improve academic and social outcomes for teenage youth.

    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 ``YMCA Teen Action Agenda Enhancement 
Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) one in 10 teens, 2,400,000 teens across the Nation, are 
        currently involved in a program offered by a local YMCA;
            (2) recognizing the unique obstacles faced by teenagers, 
        the YMCA has launched the Teen Action Agenda, a nationwide 
        campaign to double this number and serve 1 in 5 teens by 2005;
            (3) in more than 1,900 YMCAs across the United States in 
        cities large and small, in neighborhoods rich and poor, teen 
        groups meet regularly and engage one another in safe, 
        wholesome, educational, and creative activities;
            (4) it is well-documented that teens who participate in 
        structured activities after school are less likely to drink 
        alcohol, carry or use weapons, smoke cigarettes, engage in 
        early sexual activity, or skip school;
            (5) YMCAs serve people of all faiths, races, abilities, 
        ages, and incomes;
            (6) approximately 400 YMCAs partner with juvenile courts, 
        300 partner with public housing developments, 1550 partner with 
        elementary schools, and 1033 partner with high schools;
            (7) the YMCA is volunteer-founded and volunteer-led and 
        depends on more than 600,000 volunteers to meet the unique 
        needs of their communities;
            (8) the YMCA is especially committed to reaching teens that 
        are most at-risk for school failure or delinquency; and
            (9) the prosperity of our Nation depends upon maximizing 
        and fulfilling the potential of its young people.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Local ymca.--The term ``local YMCA'' means one of the 
        approximately 2,400 locally incorporated and governed YMCAs in 
        the United States.
            (2) Teen program.--The term ``teen program'' means any 
        program primarily attended by individuals between the ages of 
        11 and 19.
            (3) YMCA of the usa.--The term ``YMCA of the USA'' means 
        the private, nonprofit, national membership and service 
        organization of approximately 2,400 local YMCAs.

SEC. 4. GRANTS TO THE YMCA OF THE USA.

    (a) Purposes.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, the 
Attorney General shall award a grant to the YMCA of the USA for the 
purpose of carrying out YMCA programs for at-risk teens in accordance 
with the provisions of this Act.
    (b) Subgrants.--From amounts awarded under subsection (a), the YMCA 
of the USA shall make subgrants to local YMCAs authorizing expenditures 
associated with providing programs, including the hiring of teachers 
and other personnel, procurement of goods and services (including 
computer equipment), or such other expenditures as are approved by the 
Attorney General.

SEC. 5. USE OF FUNDS.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Programs for at-risk teens.--Amounts granted under this 
        Act shall be used by the YMCA of the USA to provide funding to 
        carry out YMCA programs that have a primary purpose of serving 
        teens who are determined to be at-risk for school failure or 
        delinquency.
            (2) Program requirements.--Each program for which 
        assistance is provided under this Act shall include at least 3 
        of the following different activities:
                    (A) Mentoring assistance.
                    (B) Academic assistance.
                    (C) Recreational, fitness, and athletic activities.
                    (D) Technology training.
                    (E) Drug, alcohol, and gang prevention.
                    (F) Job and life skills.
                    (G) Character development and values education.
                    (H) Leadership development.
                    (I) Truancy and dropout prevention.
                    (J) Civic education.
                    (K) Volunteerism and service learning.
                    (L) Parenting skills.
                    (M) Literary, performing, and visual arts.
                    (N) Mental health services.
                    (O) Alternative education.
                    (P) Any research-based activity shown to have a 
                positive impact on the academic and social outcomes of 
                teens.
    (b) Additional Requirements.--In carrying out the programs under 
subsection (a), a local YMCA shall, to the maximum extent practicable--
            (1) use volunteers from businesses, academic communities, 
        social organizations, and law enforcement organizations to 
        serve as mentors or to assist in other ways;
            (2) develop creative methods of conducting outreach to 
        teens in the community;
            (3) request donations of computer equipment and other 
        materials and equipment; and
            (4) work with State and local educational and recreation 
        agencies so that activities funded with amounts made available 
        under a grant under this Act will not duplicate activities 
        funded from other sources in the community served.
    (c) Funding for Program Administration.--Of the amounts granted to 
the YMCA of the USA under this Act in each fiscal year, the YMCA of the 
USA shall use--
            (1) not less than 2 percent for research and evaluation of 
        the subgrants made under this Act;
            (2) not less than 1 percent for technical assistance 
        related to the subgrants awarded under this Act; and
            (3) not more than 6 percent for the management and 
        administration of the subgrants made under this Act.

SEC. 6. APPLICATIONS FOR SUBGRANTS.

    (a) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a subgrant under this 
Act, an applicant shall submit an application to the YMCA of the USA.
    (b) Contents.--Each application submitted shall include--
            (1) a request for a subgrant to be used for the purposes of 
        this Act;
            (2) a description of the population to be served by the 
        subgrant and information demonstrating that this population is 
        at-risk for school failure or delinquency;
            (3) a description of the program to be expanded or 
        established by the subgrant;
            (4) information demonstrating the manner in which the local 
        YMCA will carry out the planning, establishment, 
        implementation, sustainability, and evaluation of the program 
        funded by the subgrant;
            (5) information demonstrating that there are non-Federal 
        contributions (which may be in the form of an in-kind 
        contribution of goods or services) available to cover at least 
        50 percent of the total cost of the project; and
            (6) any additional statistical or financial information 
        that the YMCA of the USA may reasonably require.
    (c) Consideration of Subgrants.--In awarding subgrants under this 
Act, the YMCA of the USA shall consider--
            (1) the ability of the applicant to provide the intended 
        services;
            (2) the history and establishment of the applicant in 
        providing teen activities; and
            (3) efforts to achieve an equitable geographic distribution 
        of subgrant awards.

SEC. 7. REPORT.

    For each fiscal year for which a grant is awarded under this Act, 
the YMCA of the USA shall submit to the Attorney General a report that 
details the progress and effectiveness of the YMCA programs in reaching 
measurable outcomes.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry 
out this Act $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2002 through 2006.
    (b) Continued Availability.--Amounts made available to carry out 
this Act shall remain available until expended.
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