[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 884 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 884

To authorize a grant program that strengthens the capacity of community 
  development financial institutions through alignment with national 
                         service participants.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 26, 2019

Mr. Coons (for himself and Mr. Cassidy) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, 
                           and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To authorize a grant program that strengthens the capacity of community 
  development financial institutions through alignment with national 
                         service participants.

    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 ``Economic Mobility Corps Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) There exists a network of over 1,000 Treasury-certified 
        community development financial institutions located in all 50 
        States, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the Commonwealth of 
        Puerto Rico.
            (2) Community development financial institutions are 
        mission-driven financial lenders that provide critical and 
        responsible financial products and services that benefit low-
        income and distressed communities, economically disadvantaged 
        people, and community businesses.
            (3) Community development financial institutions need more 
        talent and human capacity to better meet the needs of the low-
        income and distressed communities, economically disadvantaged 
        populations, and community businesses that they serve.
            (4)(A) National service programs, carried out through the 
        Corporation for National and Community Service, are national, 
        State, and local service programs provided through a network 
        that connects over 70,000 Americans each year in intensive 
        service to improve lives, strengthen communities, and inspire 
        civic engagement.
            (B) Economic opportunity is one of the Corporation's focus 
        areas for national service corps or programs.
            (5)(A) Community development financial institutions and 
        national service programs each engage local residents and 
        community partners to improve community safety, health, 
        housing, and economic opportunities, and to meet community-
        identified needs.
            (B) Residents of low-income communities, especially youth 
        and young adults, can be empowered through their national 
        service, and can help provide future leadership for community 
        development financial institutions and for the communities they 
        serve.
            (6) The Corporation for National and Community Service has 
        engaged in partnerships, similar to the partnership created 
        under this Act, with Federal agencies such as the Department of 
        Transportation, the Department of Education, the Department of 
        Justice, and the Forest Service.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are to--
            (1) create a partnership between the Corporation for 
        National and Community Service and the Department of the 
        Treasury to connect the work of covered community development 
        financial institutions with passionate and dedicated national 
        service participants, including volunteers in the National 
        Senior Service Corps;
            (2) strengthen the capacity of covered community 
        development financial institutions to provide services, which 
        services may include financial counseling, financial services, 
        job placement, small business financing, affordable rental 
        housing financing, commercial facility financing, community 
        facility financing, single family home financing, and 
        foreclosure prevention services;
            (3) expand the direct services provided by covered 
        community development financial institutions; and
            (4) deploy national service participants, including 
        volunteers in the National Senior Service Corps, in impactful 
        national service that aligns with objectives in the 
        Corporation's economic opportunity focus area.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Chief executive officer.--The term ``Chief Executive 
        Officer'' means the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation 
        for National and Community Service appointed under section 193 
        of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
        12651c).
            (2) Covered community development financial institution.--
        The term ``covered community development financial 
        institution'' means any nonprofit entity that meets the 
        definition of a community development financial institution in 
        section 103 of the Community Development Banking and Financial 
        Institutions Act of 1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702) and is certified as a 
        community development financial institution by the Department 
        of the Treasury.
            (3) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
                    (A) a covered community development financial 
                institution with an approved application under section 
                5; or
                    (B) an organization, with an approved application 
                under section 5, that places participants with covered 
                community development financial institutions and 
                provides technical management to those institutions.
            (4) Participant.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``participant'' means an 
                individual in an approved national service position.
                    (B) Rule.--A participant shall not be considered to 
                be an employee of an eligible entity or a covered 
                community development financial institution receiving 
                assistance under this Act.
            (5) Placement site.--The term ``placement site'' means the 
        location of the covered community development financial 
        institution at which a participant shall be placed for service.
            (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Treasury.

SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY AGREEMENT FOR THE ECONOMIC MOBILITY CORPS ACT OF 
              2018.

    (a) Interagency Agreement.--
            (1) In general.--The Chief Executive Officer shall enter 
        into an interagency agreement under section 121(b)(6) of the 
        National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
        12571(b)(6)) with the Secretary that is similar to an 
        interagency agreement described in section 121(b)(1) of such 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 12571(b)(1)), regarding the grant program 
        described in section 5, except that funds appropriated under 
        this Act may be used as if appropriated for the purposes for 
        which funds may be provided through grants under section 121(a) 
        of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
        12571(a)). Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the 
        provisions of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 
        (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.), other than paragraphs (1) through 
        (5) of section 121(b) of that Act (42 U.S.C. 12571(b)), that 
        apply to a national service program supported under that 
        section 121(b) shall apply to the grant program described in 
        section 5.
            (2) Amendment to the ncsa.--Section 121(b) of such Act (42 
        U.S.C. 12571(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) Community development financial institution grant 
        interagency agreement.--Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the 
        Corporation shall enter into an interagency agreement similar 
        to an interagency agreement described in paragraph (1) with the 
        Secretary of the Treasury under this subsection regarding the 
        community development financial institution grant program 
        described in section 5 of the Economic Mobility Corps Act of 
        2019.''.
    (b) Approved National Service Positions.--
            (1) In general.--The Chief Executive Officer shall approve 
        positions for Economic Mobility Corps projects as approved 
        national service positions in accordance with subtitle C of 
        title I of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 
        U.S.C. 12571 et seq.).
            (2) Distribution of assistance and approved positions 
        unaffected.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to affect 
        the distribution of assistance or approved national service 
        positions under section 129 of the National and Community 
        Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12581). Funds appropriated under 
        section 8 shall be used for the costs associated with that 
        assistance or those positions, for the program carried out 
        under section 5.
    (c) Treatment of Funds Appropriated.--
            (1) National service trust.--For purposes of subsection 
        (a)(1) and (b) of section 145 of the National and Community 
        Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12601(a)(1)), a portion of the 
        funds appropriated under this Act, as determined by the Chief 
        Executive Officer based on the number of participants selected 
        for Economic Mobility Corps projects, shall be treated, 
        respectively, as funds appropriated to the Corporation and made 
        available to carry out subtitle D of title I of the National 
        and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12601 et seq.) and 
        as funds appropriated to the Trust established under such 
        section.
            (2) Audits.--For purposes of section 149(c) of the National 
        and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12606(c)), funds 
        appropriated under this Act shall be treated as appropriated 
        funds for approved national service positions.

SEC. 5. ECONOMIC MOBILITY CORPS GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Chief Executive Officer, in consultation with 
the Secretary, shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible 
entities to enable such eligible entities to place participants at 
placement sites for the purpose of engaging them in Economic Mobility 
Corps projects.
    (b) Applications.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this 
Act, an entity shall submit an application regarding an Economic 
Mobility Corps project to the Chief Executive Officer at such time, in 
such manner, and containing such information, as the Chief Executive 
Officer may require, including--
            (1) a description of the long-term goals and objectives for 
        the project involved and the benchmarks that the eligible 
        entity will use to determine whether to place participants with 
        a covered community development financial institution and to 
        evaluate the performance of the covered community development 
        financial institution in carrying out the project; and
            (2) the number of participants intended to be placed with 
        the covered community development financial institution, in 
        accordance with thresholds set by the Chief Executive Officer, 
        with respect to both the minimum and maximum numbers of 
        participants that can be placed with a covered community 
        development financial institution, including such an 
        institution that is an eligible entity.
    (c) Priority.--In making grants under this Act, the Chief Executive 
Officer, in consultation with the Secretary, shall give preferential 
consideration to entities proposing to serve rural communities or 
veterans.
    (d) Use of Funds.--
            (1) Orientation and recruitment.--An eligible entity that 
        receives a grant under this section shall use the funds made 
        available through the grant--
                    (A) to develop a training orientation, in which 
                each selected participant will take part; and
                    (B) to identify and encourage individuals, 
                including those who are residents in the community to 
                be served or otherwise reflect the demographics of the 
                community, to serve as participants in community 
                investment, including the activities described in 
                paragraph (3), in the projects.
            (2) Assistance.--An eligible entity that receives a grant 
        under this section for an Economic Mobility Corps project shall 
        use the grant funds to provide assistance, consistent with 
        subtitle C of title I of the National and Community Service Act 
        of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12571 et seq.), for the project, including 
        assistance for participants selected for the project in 
        carrying out the activities described in paragraph (3).
            (3) Activities.--In carrying out those activities, each 
        selected participant shall--
                    (A) strengthen the capacity of, and expand the 
                direct services provided by, the covered community 
                development financial institution, which services may 
                include financial counseling, financial services, job 
                placement, small business financing, affordable rental 
                housing financing, commercial facility financing, 
                community facility financing, single family home 
                financing, and foreclosure prevention services; and
                    (B) provide such direct services.

SEC. 6. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) In General.--As a condition on receipt of any funds for a 
project under this Act, each eligible entity shall agree to prepare and 
submit a report at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Chief Executive Officer, in consultation with the 
Secretary, may require.
    (b) Content.--In preparing the report the eligible entity shall, at 
a minimum--
            (1) collect and present data on the degree to which the 
        covered community development financial institution has made 
        progress toward meeting the long-term goals and objectives 
        described in the entity's application and the performance of 
        the covered community development financial institution on the 
        benchmarks described in the application;
            (2) collect and present demographic data about the 
        participants; and
            (3) describe the target area and, if appropriate, target 
        population engaged and served by the covered community 
        development financial institution, including whether the 
        covered community development financial institution serves a 
        rural community or veterans.

SEC. 7. ECONOMIC MOBILITY VISTA ACTIVITIES.

    Section 103(a)(9) of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 
U.S.C. 4953(a)(9)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(9) in developing and carrying out--
                    ``(A) financial literacy, financial planning, 
                budgeting, saving, and reputable credit accessibility 
                programs in low-income communities, including those 
                programs that educate individuals about financing home 
                ownership and higher education; and
                    ``(B) foreclosure prevention programs (including 
                programs at community development financial 
                institutions under section 103 of the Community 
                Development Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 
                1994 (12 U.S.C. 4702) and at other nonprofit 
                organizations), which programs are in low-income 
                communities and educate individuals about financing 
                home ownership and higher education;''.

SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Corporation 
$1,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 and each of the 4 succeeding fiscal 
years.
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