[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 142 (Saturday, October 10, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2039]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     THE HOUSEPARENT PROTECTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSEPH R. PITTS

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 9, 1998

  Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing legislation to provide 
an exemption from Department of Labor (DOL) wage and hour regulations 
to employees of private, nonprofit institutions who serve as 
houseparents.
  Houseparents are men and women who work and live in certain 
institutions and care for and supervise residents of the institution. 
Usually in compensation for their services, houseparents receive a 
fixed annual salary, food, lodging, and transportation.
  Mr. Speaker, there are several wonderful homes in my district that 
use the houseparent model. They are: a home for teenage mothers with 
small children, a home for pregnant young women, a home for disabled 
adults, as well as several homes for troubled and abused children. 
These homes have been very effective in caring and ministering to these 
needy individuals. Because of the care and support of their 
houseparents, most of these individuals are able to leave the group 
home and become productive members of society.
  Mr. Speaker, the Department of Labor's recent interpretation of the 
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) as it applies to houseparents has 
resulted in lawsuits and large legal fees for a small non-profit group 
home in my district, and several other homes across the nation. 
Houseparents serve a much different purpose than other caretakers of 
institutions. Houseparents volunteer to permanently reside at the group 
home in which they work. Caring for the individuals in their home is 
more of a calling to them than an occupation.
  The DOL, however, has decided that these houseparents should be paid 
minimum wage and overtime pay for the time they are at the home. This 
means that many houseparents would need to be paid 24 hours a day, even 
for the time they are sleeping, or not directly caring for the 
residents of the home. This ridiculous interpretation by the DOL has 
driven up the cost of operating these homes to the point that many of 
them can no longer provide services and have been shut down. Other 
homes are being forced to use a type of employment model whereby 
``teams'' of houseparents would be required to work in eight-hour 
shifts to care for the residents. Not only does this shift model also 
drive up costs, but also destroys the family-like arrangement of the 
home.
  Mr. Speaker, houseparents serve a very important role in these 
institutions. They create a family atmosphere for individuals who do 
not have parents or whose parents are unable to care for them. 
Individuals who work in these homes do so out of a selfless calling, 
and provide structure and care for a vulnerable group of people in our 
country. My bill will end the Department of Labor's policy of stopping 
houseparents from caring for people who need their loving support.

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