I 112th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3749 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES December 20, 2011 Ms. Richardson introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce A BILL To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to expand the Senior Community Service Employment Program.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Expanding Opportunities for Older Americans Act of 2011.

2.

Findings

Congress finds the following: (1)The downturn in the national economy has adversely affected millions of workers in all age groups, but it has disproportionately burdened workers age 55 and older. (2)During the period from 2005 through 2007, more than 900,000 workers age 55 and older lost jobs they had held for the preceding 3 years or longer. Such older workers constitute a quarter of long-tenured workers who lost their jobs during this period. (3)Older workers experience substantially longer periods of unemployment than younger workers and are more likely to exhaust their unemployment insurance benefits. (4)Older workers are comparatively less successful than younger workers in finding new jobs. Only 55 percent of workers age 55 and over who had been long-tenured before losing their jobs during the period from 2005 through 2007 were reemployed in January 2008, compared to 72.6 percent of workers ages 25 to 54. (5)Unemployed older workers who succeed in obtaining new employment are more likely than younger workers to be underemployed, holding part-time jobs that pay lower wages.

3.

Expansion of Senior Community Service Employment Program

(a)

Reduction of age of eligibility to age 52

Title V of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3056 et seq.) is amended by striking age 55 each place it appears and inserting age 52. (b)

Elimination of requirement that eligible individual be unemployed

(1)

Establishment of program

Section 502(a)(1) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056(a)(1)) is amended by striking unemployed. (2)

Recommendations

Section 503(a)(2)(C) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056a(a)(2)(C)) is amended by striking unemployed. (3)

Conforming amendment

Section 518(a) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056p(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (8). (c)

Increase in income limitation for eligible individuals

Section 518(a)(3)(A) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056p(a)(3)(A)) is amended by striking 125 percent of the poverty line and inserting 200 percent of the poverty line. (d)

Income defined

Section 518(a)(4) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056p(a)(4)) is amended— (1)by inserting by an eligible individual after received; (2)by striking an eligible individual submits and inserting such eligible individual submits; and (3)by adding at the end the following: Such term does not include income received by a member of such eligible individual’s household other than such eligible individual.. (e)

Hours per week grantee may permit participant To work

(1)

In general

Section 502(b) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (4)

Hours per week grantee may permit participant to work

No limit of fewer than 40 hours per week may be placed on the number of hours per week a recipient of a grant under this title may permit a participant to work in a job assisted by this title. . (2)

Conforming amendment

Section 518(a)(2) of such title (42 U.S.C. 3056p(a)(2)) is amended by striking part-time,. (f)

Authorization of appropriations

(1)

In general

Section 517(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3056o(a)) is amended by striking 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 and inserting 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. (2)

Sense of Congress

Section 517 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 3056o) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (d)

Sense of Congress

It is the sense of Congress that such sums as may be necessary should be appropriated to carry out this title in each of fiscal years 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. .