[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2224 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2224

  To establish in the Administration for Children and Families of the 
Department of Health and Human Services the Federal Interagency Working 
   Group on Reducing Child Poverty to develop a national strategy to 
 eliminate child poverty in the United States, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            October 29, 2015

  Mr. Casey (for himself, Ms. Baldwin, and Mr. Brown) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To establish in the Administration for Children and Families of the 
Department of Health and Human Services the Federal Interagency Working 
   Group on Reducing Child Poverty to develop a national strategy to 
 eliminate child poverty in the United States, 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 ``Child Poverty Reduction Act of 
2015''.

SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
  TITLE I--FEDERAL INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON REDUCING CHILD POVERTY

Sec. 101. Establishment of Working Group.
Sec. 102. National plan to reduce child poverty.
Sec. 103. Other duties.
Sec. 104. Membership.
Sec. 105. Director and staff.
Sec. 106. Reporting requirements.
          TITLE II--WORKSHOPS BY NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Sec. 201. Requirement to enter into agreement with National Academy of 
                            Sciences.
Sec. 202. Workshop topics.
Sec. 203. Reporting requirement.
Sec. 204. Authorization of appropriations.
                         TITLE III--DEFINITIONS

Sec. 301. Definitions.

  TITLE I--FEDERAL INTERAGENCY WORKING GROUP ON REDUCING CHILD POVERTY

SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF WORKING GROUP.

    There is established in the Administration for Children and 
Families of the Department of Health and Human Services a group which 
shall be known as the Federal Interagency Working Group on Reducing 
Child Poverty (in this Act referred to as the ``Working Group'').

SEC. 102. NATIONAL PLAN TO REDUCE CHILD POVERTY.

    (a) Primary Goal.--
            (1) Development of national plan.--The primary goal of the 
        Working Group is to develop a national plan--
                    (A) to reduce, within 10 years after the date on 
                which funding is made available to carry out this Act--
                            (i) the number of children living in 
                        poverty in the United States to half of the 
                        number of such children as reported in the 
                        report of the United States Census Bureau on 
                        Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage 
                        in the United States: 2014 (issued in September 
                        2015); and
                            (ii) the number of children living in 
                        extreme poverty in the United States to zero; 
                        and
                    (B) to reduce, within 20 years after the date on 
                which funds are made available to carry out this Act, 
                the number of children living in poverty in the United 
                States to zero.
            (2) Consultation with national academy of sciences.--In 
        developing the national plan under paragraph (1), the Working 
        Group shall consider all recommendations, research papers, and 
        reports published by the National Academy of Sciences as a 
        result of the workshops conducted pursuant to title II.
            (3) Deadline.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Working Group shall make 
        substantial progress toward the development of the national 
        plan.
    (b) Additional Goals.--The national plan under subsection (a) shall 
include recommendations for achieving the following goals:
            (1) Understanding the root causes of child poverty, 
        including persistent intergenerational poverty, taking into 
        account social, economic, and cultural factors.
            (2) Improving the accessibility of anti-poverty programs 
        and increasing the rate of enrollment in such programs among 
        eligible children and families by reducing the complexity and 
        difficulty of enrolling in such programs.
            (3) Eliminating disparate rates of child poverty based on 
        race, ethnicity, gender, and age.
            (4) Improving the ability of individuals living in poverty, 
        low-income individuals, and unemployed individuals to access 
        quality jobs that help children and their families rise above 
        poverty.
            (5) Connecting low-income children, disconnected youth, and 
        their families to education, job training, work, and their 
        communities.
            (6) Shifting the measures and policies of Federal anti-
        poverty programs from the goal of helping individuals and 
        families living in poverty to achieve freedom from deprivation 
        toward the goal of helping such individuals and families rise 
        above poverty and achieve long-term economic stability.
    (c) Methods.--In developing the national plan under subsection (a), 
the Working Group shall employ methods for achieving the goals 
described in subsections (a) and (b) that include--
            (1) entering into an agreement with the National Academy of 
        Sciences for a workshop series on the economic and social costs 
        of child poverty, as described in title II;
            (2) studying the effect of child poverty on the health and 
        welfare of children, including the access of children living in 
        poverty to health care, housing, proper nutrition, and 
        education;
            (3) measuring the effect of child poverty on the ability of 
        individuals to achieve economic stability, including such 
        effect on educational attainment, rates of incarceration, 
        lifetime earnings, access to healthcare, and access to housing;
            (4) updating and applying improved measures of poverty that 
        can meaningfully account for other aspects relating to the 
        measure of poverty, such as the Supplemental Poverty Measure 
        used by the United States Census Bureau; and
            (5) using and applying fact-based measures to evaluate the 
        long-term effectiveness of anti-poverty programs, taking into 
        account the long-term savings and value to the Federal 
        Government and to State, local, and tribal governments of 
        practices and policies designed to prevent poverty.

SEC. 103. OTHER DUTIES.

    In addition to developing the national plan under section 102(a), 
the Working Group shall--
            (1) monitor, in consultation with the Domestic Policy 
        Council and the National Economic Council, all Federal 
        activities, programs, and services related to child welfare and 
        child poverty;
            (2) establish guidelines, policies, goals, and directives 
        related to the achievement of the goals of the national plan, 
        in consultation with nongovernmental entities providing social 
        services to low-income children and families, advocacy groups 
        that directly represent low-income children and families, 
        policy experts, and officials of State, local, and tribal 
        governments who administer or direct policy for anti-poverty 
        programs;
            (3) advise all relevant Federal agencies regarding how to 
        effectively administer and coordinate programs, activities, and 
        services related to child welfare and child poverty and how to 
        resolve any disputes that arise between or among such agencies 
        as a result of such administration or coordination;
            (4) provide recommendations to the Congress regarding how 
        to ensure that Federal agencies administering programs, 
        activities, and services related to child welfare and child 
        poverty have adequate resources to increase public awareness of 
        such programs, activities, and services and how to maximize 
        enrollment of eligible individuals;
            (5) identify methods for improving communication and 
        collaboration among and between State and Federal governmental 
        entities regarding the implementation of State programs related 
        to child welfare and child poverty, such as State programs 
        funded under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act 
        (relating to block grants to States for temporary assistance 
        for needy families), and submit recommendations regarding such 
        methods to relevant Federal agencies and congressional 
        committees; and
            (6) hold hearings in different geographic regions of the 
        United States to collect information and feedback from the 
        public regarding personal experiences related to child poverty 
        and anti-poverty programs, and make such information and 
        feedback publicly available.

SEC. 104. MEMBERSHIP.

    (a) Number of Members.--The Working Group shall be composed of no 
less than 6 members.
    (b) Executive Pay Rate.--Each member shall be an official of an 
Executive department who occupies a position for which the rate of pay 
is equal to or greater than the rate of pay for level IV of the 
Executive Schedule under section 5313 of title 5, United States Code.
    (c) Required Participation of Certain Executive Departments.--The 
Working Group shall include at least one member who is an official of 
each of the following Executive departments:
            (1) The Department of Justice.
            (2) The Department of Agriculture.
            (3) The Department of Labor.
            (4) The Department of Health and Human Services.
            (5) The Department of Housing and Urban Development.
            (6) The Department of Education.
    (d) Appointment.--Each member shall be appointed by the head of the 
Executive department that employs such member.
    (e) Obtaining Official Data.--On request of the Chairperson, any 
head of a Federal agency shall furnish directly to the Working Group 
any information necessary to enable the Working Group to carry out this 
Act.
    (f) Terms.--Each member shall be appointed for the life of the 
Working Group.
    (g) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled in the 
manner in which the original appointment was made.
    (h) Quorum.--A majority of members shall constitute a quorum.
    (i) Chairperson.--The Chairperson of the Working Group shall be 
appointed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
    (j) Meetings.--
            (1) Initial meeting period.--The Working Group shall meet 
        on a monthly basis during the 180-day period beginning with the 
        date on which funds are made available to carry out this Act.
            (2) Subsequent meetings.--After such 180-day period, the 
        Working Group shall meet not less than once every 6 months and 
        at the call of the Chairperson or a majority of members.

SEC. 105. DIRECTOR AND STAFF.

    (a) Director.--The Working Group shall have a Director who shall be 
appointed by the Chairperson.
    (b) Staff.--The Director may appoint and fix the pay of additional 
personnel as the Director considers appropriate.
    (c) Duties.--The duties of the Director and staff shall be to 
achieve the goals and carry out the duties of the Working Group.

SEC. 106. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Annual Report.--Not later than September 30, 2017, and annually 
thereafter, the Chairperson shall submit to the Congress a report 
describing the activities, projects, and plans of the Federal 
Government to carry out the goals of the Working Group, which shall 
include--
            (1) an accounting of--
                    (A) any increase in efficiency in the delivery of 
                Federal, State, local, and tribal social services and 
                benefits related to child welfare and child poverty;
                    (B) any reduction in the number of children living 
                in poverty;
                    (C) any reduction in the demand for such social 
                services and benefits for which children living in 
                poverty and near poverty are eligible; and
                    (D) any savings to the Federal Government as a 
                result of such increases or reductions;
            (2) an accounting of any increase in the national rate of 
        employment due to the efforts of the Working Group;
            (3) a summary of the efforts of each State to reduce child 
        poverty within such State, including the administration of 
        State programs funded under part A of title IV of the Social 
        Security Act (relating to block grants to States for temporary 
        assistance for needy families); and
            (4) legislative language and recommendations regarding 
        reducing child poverty and achieving the other goals and duties 
        of the Working Group.
    (b) Public Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) Annual report available to public.--A version of the 
        annual report required by subsection (a) shall be made publicly 
        available.
            (2) Annual update from federal agencies.--The head of each 
        relevant Federal agency shall post on the public Internet Web 
        site of such agency an annual summary of any plans, activities, 
        and results of the agency related to the goals and duties of 
        the Working Group.

          TITLE II--WORKSHOPS BY NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

SEC. 201. REQUIREMENT TO ENTER INTO AGREEMENT WITH NATIONAL ACADEMY OF 
              SCIENCES.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date on which 
funds are made available to carry out this Act, the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services shall enter into an agreement with the National 
Academy of Sciences for 2 public workshops to provide the Working Group 
with information to assist in the development of the national plan 
under section 102(a).
    (b) Steering Committee.--The agreement under subsection (a) shall 
include the creation of a steering committee to plan and conduct such 
workshops.
    (c) Experts.--The agreement under subsection (a) shall include the 
commission of experts to prepare research papers that summarize and 
critique literature on the economic and social costs of child poverty.

SEC. 202. WORKSHOP TOPICS.

    The purpose of the workshops required by section 201(a) shall be to 
collect information and input from the public on the economic and 
social costs of child poverty, addressing topics that include--
            (1) the macroeconomic costs of child poverty, including the 
        effects of child poverty on productivity and economic output;
            (2) the health-related costs of child poverty, including 
        the costs incurred by the Federal Government and State, local, 
        and tribal governments due to child illnesses, other child 
        medical problems, and other child health-related expenditures;
            (3) the effect of child poverty on crime rates;
            (4) the short-term and long-term effects of child poverty 
        on the Federal budget, including outlays for anti-poverty 
        programs;
            (5) poverty metrics such as income poverty, food 
        insecurity, and other measures of deprivation, and the role of 
        such metrics in assessing the effects of poverty and the 
        performance of anti-poverty programs;
            (6) the effect of child poverty on certain population 
        groups, including immigrants, single parent families, 
        individuals who have attained the age of 16 but have not 
        attained the age of 25 with large student loans, individuals 
        living in areas of concentrated poverty, and individuals living 
        on Indian reservations; and
            (7) the effect of child poverty on individuals and families 
        living in extreme poverty, as compared with such effect on 
        individuals and families living in poverty or near poverty.

SEC. 203. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

    (a) Research Papers.--The agreement under section 201(a) shall 
include the publication of the research papers required under such 
section on the public Web site of the National Academy of Sciences.
    (b) Workshop Summary.--The agreement under section 201(a) shall 
include the publication of a summary of each workshop required under 
such section on the public Web site of the National Academy of 
Sciences.

SEC. 204. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000 to carry out this 
title.

                         TITLE III--DEFINITIONS

SEC. 301. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Anti-poverty program.--The term ``anti-poverty 
        program'' means a program or institution with the primary goal 
        of lifting children or families out of poverty and improving 
        economic opportunities for children or families that operates 
        in whole or in part using Federal, State, local, or tribal 
        government funds.
            (2) Child.--The term ``child'' means an individual who has 
        not attained the age of 18.
            (3) Deprivation.--The term ``deprivation'' means, with 
        respect to an individual, that such individual lacks adequate 
        nutrition, health care, housing, or other resources to provide 
        for basic human needs.
            (4) Disconnected youth.--The term ``disconnected youth'' 
        means individuals who have attained the age of 16 but have not 
        attained the age of 25 who are unemployed and not enrolled in 
        school.
            (5) Economic stability.--The term ``economic stability'' 
        means, with respect to an individual or family, that such 
        individual or family has access to the means and support 
        necessary to effectively cope with adverse or costly life 
        events and to effectively recover from the consequences of such 
        events while maintaining a decent standard of living.
            (6) Extreme poverty.--The term ``extreme poverty'' means, 
        with respect to an individual or family, that such individual 
        or family has a total annual income that is less than the 
        amount that is 50 percent of the official poverty threshold for 
        such individual or family, as provided in the report of the 
        United States Census Bureau on Income, Poverty, and Health 
        Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2014 (issued in 
        September 2015).
            (7) Federal agency.--The term ``Federal agency'' means an 
        Executive department, a Government corporation, and an 
        independent establishment.
            (8) Near poverty.--The term ``near poverty'' means, with 
        respect to an individual or family, that such individual or 
        family has a total annual income that is less than the amount 
        that is 200 percent of the official poverty threshold for such 
        individual or family, as provided in the report of the United 
        States Census Bureau on Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance 
        Coverage in the United States: 2014 (issued in September 2015).
            (9) Poverty.--The term ``poverty'' means, with respect to 
        an individual or family, that such individual or family has a 
        total annual income that is less than the amount that is the 
        official poverty threshold for such individual or family, as 
        provided in the report of the United States Census Bureau on 
        Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United 
        States: 2014 (issued in September 2015).
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