[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 41 (Tuesday, March 11, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H1468-H1498]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        GENERATIONS INVIGORATING VOLUNTEERISM AND EDUCATION ACT

  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the 
rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5563) to reauthorize and reform the 
national service laws.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5563

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the 
     ``Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act'' 
     or the ``GIVE Act''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

   TITLE I--AMENDMENTS TO NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE ACT OF 1990

Sec. 1001. References.

       Subtitle A--Amendments to Subtitle A (General Provisions)

Sec. 1101. Purposes; sense of Congress.
Sec. 1102. Definitions.

        Subtitle B--Amendments to Subtitle B (Service-Learning)

Sec. 1201. School-based allotments.
Sec. 1202. Higher education provisions.
Sec. 1203. Innovative programs and research.

 Subtitle C--Amendments to Subtitle C (National Service Trust Program)

Sec. 1301. Prohibition on grants to Federal agencies; limits on 
              Corporation costs.
Sec. 1302. E-Corps and technical amendments to types of programs.
Sec. 1303. Types of positions.
Sec. 1304. Conforming repeal relating to training and technical 
              assistance.
Sec. 1305. Assistance to State Commissions; challenge grants.
Sec. 1306. Allocation of assistance to States and other eligible 
              entities.
Sec. 1307. Additional authority.
Sec. 1308. State selection of programs.
Sec. 1308A. National service program assistance requirements.
Sec. 1309. Consideration of applications.
Sec. 1310. Description of participants.
Sec. 1311. Selection of national service participants.
Sec. 1312. Terms of service.
Sec. 1313. Adjustments to living allowance.

   Subtitle D--Amendments to Subtitle D (National Service Trust and 
           Provision of National Service Educational Awards)

Sec. 1401. Availability of funds in the National Service Trust.
Sec. 1402. Individuals eligible to receive a national service 
              educational award from the Trust.
Sec. 1403. Determination of the amount of national service educational 
              awards.
Sec. 1404. Disbursement of educational awards.
Sec. 1405. Process of approval of national service positions.
Sec. 1406. Report on veterans serving in approved national service 
              positions.

   Subtitle E--Amendments to Subtitle E (National Civilian Community 
                                 Corps)

Sec. 1501. Purpose.
Sec. 1502. Program components.
Sec. 1503. Eligible participants.
Sec. 1504. Summer national service program.
Sec. 1505. Team leaders.
Sec. 1506. Training.
Sec. 1507. Consultation with State Commissions.
Sec. 1508. Authorized benefits for Corps members.
Sec. 1509. Permanent cadre.
Sec. 1510. Contract and grant authority.
Sec. 1511. Other departments.
Sec. 1512. Advisory Board.
Sec. 1513. Annual evaluation.
Sec. 1514. Repeal of funding limitation.
Sec. 1515. Definitions.
Sec. 1516. Terminology.

    Subtitle F--Amendments to Subtitle F (Administrative Provisions)

Sec. 1601. Family and medical leave.
Sec. 1602. Additional prohibitions on use of funds.
Sec. 1603. Notice, hearing, and grievance procedures.
Sec. 1604. Resolution of displacement complaints.
Sec. 1605. State Commissions on National and Community Service.
Sec. 1606. Evaluation and accountability.
Sec. 1607. Technical amendment.
Sec. 1608. Partnerships with schools.
Sec. 1609. Rights of access, examination, and copying.
Sec. 1610. Additional administrative provisions.

  Subtitle G--Amendments to Subtitle G (Corporation for National and 
                           Community Service)

Sec. 1701. Terms of office.
Sec. 1702. Board of Directors authorities and duties.
Sec. 1703. Authorities and duties of the Chief Executive Officer.
Sec. 1704. Nonvoting members; personal services contracts.
Sec. 1705. Donated services.
Sec. 1706. Office of Outreach and Recruitment.
Sec. 1707. Study to examine and increase service programs for veterans 
              and veterans participation in programs under the national 
              service laws and to develop pilot program.
Sec. 1708. Coordination with veterans organizations serving veterans 
              with disabilities.
Sec. 1709. Study to examine and increase service programs for displaced 
              workers in services corps and community service and to 
              develop pilot program planning study.

                  Subtitle H--Amendments to Subtitle H

Sec. 1801. Technical amendments to subtitle H.
Sec. 1802. Repeals.
Sec. 1803. Innovative and model program support.
Sec. 1804. Clearinghouses.

                 Subtitle I--Energy Conservation Corps

Sec. 1811. General authority.
Sec. 1812. Application.
Sec. 1813. Focus of programs.
Sec. 1814. Training and education services.
Sec. 1815. Preference for certain projects.
Sec. 1816. Participants.
Sec. 1817. Use of volunteers.
Sec. 1818. Cooperation among States for emergency response.
Sec. 1819. Federal share.
Sec. 1820. Best practices.
Sec. 1820A. Authorization of appropriations.
Sec. 1820B. Learn and Serve America.
Sec. 1820C. National Senior Service Corps.

             Subtitle J--Training and Technical Assistance

Sec. 1821. Training and technical assistance.

[[Page H1469]]

      Subtitle K--Repeal of Title III (Points of Light Foundation)

Sec. 1831. Repeal.

  Subtitle L--Amendments to Title V (Authorization of Appropriations)

Sec. 1841. Authorization of appropriations.

   TITLE II--AMENDMENTS TO THE DOMESTIC VOLUNTEER SERVICE ACT OF 1973

Sec. 2001. References.

   Subtitle A--Amendments to Title I (National Volunteer Antipoverty 
                               Programs)

Sec. 2101. Purpose.
Sec. 2102. Purpose of the VISTA program.
Sec. 2103. Applications.
Sec. 2104. VISTA programs of national significance.
Sec. 2105. Terms and periods of service.
Sec. 2106. Support Service.
Sec. 2107. Sections repealed.
Sec. 2108. Conforming amendment.
Sec. 2109. Financial assistance.

  Subtitle B--Amendments to Title II (National Senior Volunteer Corps)

Sec. 2201. Change in name.
Sec. 2202. Purpose.
Sec. 2203. Grants and contracts for volunteer service projects.
Sec. 2204. Foster Grandparent Program grants.
Sec. 2205. Senior Companion Program grants.
Sec. 2206. Promotion of National Senior Service Corps.
Sec. 2207. Technical amendments.
Sec. 2208. Programs of national significance.
Sec. 2209. Additional provisions.
Sec. 2210. Authority of Director.

  Subtitle C--Amendments to Title IV (Administration and Coordination)

Sec. 2301. Nondisplacement.
Sec. 2302. Notice and hearing procedures.
Sec. 2303. Definitions.
Sec. 2304. Protection against improper use.

  Subtitle D--Amendments to Title V (Authorization of Appropriations)

Sec. 2401. Authorization of appropriations for VISTA and other 
              purposes.
Sec. 2402. Authorization of appropriations for National Senior Service 
              Corps.
Sec. 2403. Administration and coordination.

                  TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO OTHER LAWS

Sec. 3101. Inspector General Act of 1978.

          TITLE IV--TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO TABLES OF CONTENTS

Sec. 4101. Table of contents for the National and Community Service Act 
              of 1990.
Sec. 4102. Table of contents for the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 
              1973.

                        TITLE V--EFFECTIVE DATE

Sec. 5101. Effective date.
Sec. 5102. Service assignments and agreements.

          TITLE VI--CONGRESSIONAL COMMISSION ON CIVIC SERVICE

Sec. 6101. Short title.
Sec. 6102. Findings.
Sec. 6103. Establishment.
Sec. 6104. Duties.
Sec. 6105. Membership.
Sec. 6106. Director and Staff of Commission; Experts and Consultants.
Sec. 6107. Powers of Commission.
Sec. 6108. Reports.
Sec. 6109. Termination.

                      TITLE VII--SENSE OF CONGRESS

Sec. 7101. Sense of Congress.

                     TITLE VIII--SENSE OF CONGRESS

Sec. 8101. Sense of Congress.

   TITLE I--AMENDMENTS TO NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE ACT OF 1990

     SEC. 1001. REFERENCES.

       Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in this 
     title an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an 
     amendment to, or repeal of, a provision, the reference shall 
     be considered to be made to a provision of the National and 
     Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.).

       Subtitle A--Amendments to Subtitle A (General Provisions)

     SEC. 1101. PURPOSES; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       (a) Purposes.--Section 2(b) (42 U.S.C. 12501(b)) is 
     amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``community throughout'' 
     and inserting ``community and service throughout the varied 
     and diverse communities of'';
       (2) in paragraph (4), by inserting after ``income,'' the 
     following: ``geographic location,'';
       (3) in paragraph (6), by inserting after ``existing'' the 
     following: ``national'';
       (4) in paragraph (7)--
       (A) by striking ``programs and agencies'' and inserting 
     ``programs, agencies, and communities''; and
       (B) by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (5) in paragraph (8), by striking the period and inserting 
     a semicolon; and
       (6) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(9) expand and strengthen service-learning programs 
     through year-round opportunities, including during the summer 
     months, to improve the education of children and youth and to 
     maximize the benefits of national and community service, in 
     order to renew the ethic of civic responsibility and the 
     spirit of community to children and youth throughout the 
     United States;
       ``(10) assist in coordinating and strengthening Federal and 
     other citizen service opportunities, including opportunities 
     for participation in emergency and disaster preparedness, 
     relief, and recovery;
       ``(11) increase service opportunities for our Nation's 
     retiring professionals, including such opportunities for 
     those retiring from the science, technical, engineering, and 
     mathematics professions to improve the education of our 
     Nation's youth and keep America competitive in the global 
     knowledge economy, and to further utilize the experience, 
     knowledge, and skills of older Americans;
       ``(12) encourage the continued service of the alumni of the 
     national service programs, including service in times of 
     national need; and
       ``(13) encourage members of the Baby Boom generation to 
     partake in service opportunities.''.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--The Act is amended by inserting 
     after section 2 the following:

     ``SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       ``It is the sense of Congress that the number of 
     participants in the AmeriCorps programs, including the 
     Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) and the National 
     Civilian Community Corps (NCCC), should grow to reach 100,000 
     participants by 2012.''.

     SEC. 1102. DEFINITIONS.

       Section 101 (42 U.S.C. 12511) is amended--
       (1) by redesignating--
       (A) paragraphs (21) through (29) as paragraphs (28) through 
     (36), respectively;
       (B) paragraphs (9) through (20) as paragraphs (15) through 
     (26), respectively;
       (C) paragraphs (7) and (8) as paragraphs (10) and (11), 
     respectively; and
       (D) paragraphs (3) through (6) as paragraphs (5) through 
     (8), respectively;
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
       ``(3) Approved summer of service position.--The term 
     `approved summer of service position' means a position in a 
     program described under section 118(c)(8) for which the 
     Corporation has approved the provision of a summer of service 
     educational award as one of the benefits to be provided for 
     successful service in the position.
       ``(4) Baby boom generation.--The term `Baby Boom 
     generation' means the generation that consists of individuals 
     born during the period beginning with 1946 and ending with 
     1964.'';
       (3) in paragraph (5) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``described in section 122'';
       (4) in paragraph (7) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``church or other'';
       (5) by inserting after paragraph (8) (as so redesignated) 
     the following:
       ``(9) Disadvantaged youth.--The term `disadvantaged youth' 
     includes those youth who are economically disadvantaged and 
     one or more of the following:
       ``(A) Who are out-of-school youth, including out-of-school 
     youth who are unemployed.
       ``(B) Who are in or aging out of foster care.
       ``(C) Who have limited English proficiency.
       ``(D) Who are homeless or who have run away from home.
       ``(E) Who are at-risk to leave school without a diploma.
       ``(F) Who are former juvenile offenders or at risk of 
     delinquency.'';
       (6) by inserting after paragraph (11) (as so redesignated) 
     the following:
       ``(12) Grantmaking entity.--The term `grantmaking entity' 
     means a public or private nonprofit organization that--
       ``(A) has experience with service-learning or with meeting 
     unmet human, educational, environmental, or public safety 
     needs;
       ``(B) was in existence at least one year before the date on 
     which the organization submitted an application under the 
     national service laws; and
       ``(C) meets other such criteria as the Chief Executive 
     Officer may establish.
       ``(13) Hispanic-serving institution.--The term `Hispanic-
     serving institution' has the meaning given the term in 
     section 502(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     1101a(a)).
       ``(14) Historically black college or university.--The term 
     `historically black college or university' means a part B 
     institution, as defined in section 322 of the Higher 
     Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1101a(a)).'';
       (7) in paragraph (19) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965'' and 
     inserting ``sections 101(a) and 102(a)(1) of the Higher 
     Education Act of 1965'';
       (8) in paragraph (23)(B) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``program in which the participant is enrolled'' and 
     inserting ``organization receiving assistance under the 
     national service laws through which the participant is 
     enrolled in an approved national service position'';
       (9) by inserting after paragraph (26) (as so redesignated) 
     the following:
       ``(27) Qualified organization.--The term `qualified 
     organization' means a public or private nonprofit 
     organization with experience working with school-age youth 
     that meets such criteria as the Chief Executive Officer may 
     establish.'';
       (10) in paragraph (28)(B) (as so redesignated)--
       (A) by striking ``602'' and inserting ``602(3)''; and
       (B) by striking ``1401'' and inserting ``1401(3)''; and
       (11) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(37) Tribally controlled college or university.--The term 
     `tribally controlled college or university' has the meaning 
     given in section 2 of the Tribally Controlled College or 
     University Assistance Act of 1978 (25 U.S.C. 1801).''.

[[Page H1470]]

        Subtitle B--Amendments to Subtitle B (Service-Learning)

     SEC. 1201. SCHOOL-BASED ALLOTMENTS.

       Part I of subtitle B of title I (42 U.S.C. 12521 et seq.) 
     is amended to read as follows:

        ``PART I--PROGRAMS FOR ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY STUDENTS

     ``SEC. 111. ASSISTANCE TO STATES, TERRITORIES, AND INDIAN 
                   TRIBES.

       ``(a) Allotments to States, Territories, and Indian 
     Tribes.--The Corporation, in consultation with the Secretary 
     of Education, may make allotments to State educational 
     agencies, Territories, and Indian tribes to pay for the 
     Federal share of--
       ``(1) planning and building the capacity within the State, 
     Territory, or Indian tribe to implement service-learning 
     programs that are based principally in elementary and 
     secondary schools, including--
       ``(A) providing training for teachers, supervisors, 
     personnel from community-based agencies (particularly with 
     regard to the recruitment, utilization, and management of 
     participants), and trainers, to be conducted by qualified 
     individuals or organizations that have experience with 
     service-learning;
       ``(B) developing service-learning curricula, consistent 
     with State or local academic content standards, to be 
     integrated into academic programs, including an age-
     appropriate learning component that provides participants an 
     opportunity to analyze and apply their service experiences;
       ``(C) forming local partnerships described in paragraph (2) 
     or (4) to develop school-based service-learning programs in 
     accordance with this part;
       ``(D) devising appropriate methods for research and 
     evaluation of the educational value of service-learning and 
     the effect of service-learning activities on communities;
       ``(E) establishing effective outreach and dissemination of 
     information to ensure the broadest possible involvement of 
     community-based agencies with demonstrated effectiveness in 
     working with school-age youth in their communities; and
       ``(F) establishing effective outreach and dissemination of 
     information to ensure the broadest possible participation of 
     schools throughout the State, with particular attention to 
     schools identified for school improvement under title I of 
     the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     6301 et seq.);
       ``(2) implementing, operating, or expanding school-based 
     service-learning programs, which may include paying for the 
     cost of the recruitment, training, supervision, placement, 
     salaries, and benefits of service-learning coordinators, 
     through distribution of Federal funds by State educational 
     agencies, Territories, and Indian tribes made available under 
     this part to projects operated by local partnerships among--
       ``(A) local educational agencies; and
       ``(B) 1 or more community partners that--
       ``(i) shall include a public or private nonprofit 
     organization that--

       ``(I) has a demonstrated expertise in the provision of 
     services to meet unmet human, education, environmental, or 
     public safety needs;
       ``(II) will make projects available for participants, who 
     shall be students; and
       ``(III) was in existence at least 1 year before the date on 
     which the organization submitted an application under section 
     113; and

       ``(ii) may include a private for-profit business, private 
     elementary or secondary school, or Indian tribe (except that 
     an Indian tribe distributing funds to a project under this 
     paragraph is not eligible to be part of the partnership 
     operating that project);
       ``(3) planning of school-based service-learning programs, 
     through distribution by State educational agencies, 
     Territories, and Indian tribes of Federal funds made 
     available under this part to local educational agencies and 
     Indian tribes, which planning may include paying for the cost 
     of--
       ``(A) the salaries and benefits of service-learning 
     coordinators; or
       ``(B) the recruitment, training, supervision, and placement 
     of service-learning coordinators who may be participants in a 
     program under subtitle C or receive a national service 
     educational award under subtitle D, who may be participants 
     in a project under section 201 of the Domestic Volunteer 
     Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 5001), or who may participate 
     in a Youthbuild program under section 173A of the Workforce 
     Investment Act of 1998 (29 U.S.C. 2918a),

     who will identify the community partners described in 
     paragraph (2)(B) and assist in the design and implementation 
     of a program described in paragraph (2); and
       ``(4) implementing, operating, or expanding school-based 
     service-learning programs to utilize adult volunteers in 
     service-learning to improve the education of students, 
     through distribution by State educational agencies, 
     Territories, and Indian tribes of Federal funds made 
     available under this part to--
       ``(A) local educational agencies;
       ``(B) Indian tribes (except that an Indian tribe 
     distributing funds under this paragraph is not eligible to be 
     a recipient of those funds);
       ``(C) public or private nonprofit organizations; or
       ``(D) partnerships or combinations of local educational 
     agencies and entities described in subparagraph (B) or (C).
       ``(b) Programs To Encourage Civic Engagement in Service 
     Learning.--
       ``(1) In general.--From funds appropriated under section 
     501(a)(1), and without regard to section 112(b), the 
     Corporation shall reserve up to 3 percent for competitive 
     grants to partnerships described in subsection (a)(2) for the 
     development of service-learning programs that promote greater 
     civic engagement among elementary and secondary school 
     students.
       ``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
     this subsection, a partnership shall submit an application at 
     such time, in such manner, and containing such information as 
     the Corporation may require.
       ``(3) Activities.--Partnerships receiving grants under this 
     subsection shall use funds to develop service-learning 
     curricula that--
       ``(A) promote a better understanding of the principles of 
     the Constitution of the United States, the heroes of American 
     history (including military heroes), and the meaning of the 
     Oath of Allegiance;
       ``(B) promote a better understanding of how the Nation's 
     government functions; and
       ``(C) promote a better understanding of the importance of 
     service in the Nation's character.
       ``(c) Duties of Service-Learning Coordinator.--A service-
     learning coordinator referred to in paragraph (2), (3), or 
     (5) of subsection (a) shall provide services that may 
     include--
       ``(1) providing technical assistance and information to, 
     and facilitating the training of, teachers and assisting in 
     the planning, development, execution, and evaluation of 
     service-learning in their classrooms;
       ``(2) assisting local partnerships described in subsection 
     (a) in the planning, development, and execution of service-
     learning projects, including summer of service programs; and
       ``(3) carrying out such other duties as the recipient of 
     assistance under this part may determine to be appropriate.
       ``(d) Related Expenses.--An entity that receives financial 
     assistance under this part may, in carrying out the 
     activities described in subsection (a), use such assistance 
     to pay for the Federal share of reasonable costs related to 
     the supervision of participants, program administration, 
     transportation, insurance, and evaluations and for other 
     reasonable expenses related to the activities.

     ``SEC. 112. ALLOTMENTS.

       ``(a) Indian Tribes and Territories.--Of the amounts 
     appropriated to carry out this part for any fiscal year, the 
     Corporation shall reserve an amount of not less than 2 
     percent and not more than 3 percent for payments to Indian 
     tribes, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American 
     Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
     to be allotted in accordance with their respective needs.
       ``(b) Allotments Through States.--After reserving the 
     amount under subsection (a), the Corporation shall use the 
     remainder of the funds appropriated to carry out this part 
     for any fiscal year as follows:
       ``(1) Allotments.--
       ``(A) School-age youth.--From 50 percent of such remainder, 
     the Corporation shall allot to each State an amount that 
     bears the same ratio to 50 percent of such remainder as the 
     number of school-age youth in the State bears to the total 
     number of school-age youth of all States.
       ``(B) Allocation under elementary and secondary education 
     act of 1965.--From 50 percent of such remainder, the 
     Corporation shall allot to each State an amount that bears 
     the same ratio to 50 percent of such remainder as the 
     allocation to the State for the previous fiscal year under 
     title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
     (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) or its successor authority bears to 
     such allocations to all States.
       ``(2) Definition.--Notwithstanding section 101, for 
     purposes of this subsection, the term `State' means each of 
     the several States, the District of Columbia, and the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
       ``(c) Reallotment.--If the Corporation determines that the 
     allotment of a State, Territory, or Indian tribe under this 
     section will not be required for a fiscal year because the 
     State, Territory, or Indian tribe did not submit and receive 
     approval of an application for the allotment under section 
     113, the Corporation shall make the allotment for such State, 
     Territory, or Indian tribe available for grants to 
     grantmaking entities to carry out service-learning programs 
     as described in section 111(a) in such State, Territory, or 
     Indian tribe. After grantmaking entities apply for the 
     allotment with an application at such time and in such manner 
     as the Corporation requires and receive approval, the 
     remainder of such allotment shall be available for 
     reallotment to such other States, Territories, or Indian 
     tribes with approved applications submitted under section 113 
     as the Corporation may determine to be appropriate.
       ``(d) Minimum Amount.--For any fiscal year for which 
     amounts appropriated for this part exceed $43,000,000, the 
     minimum allotment to each State (as defined in section 
     112(b)(2)) under this section shall be $65,000.

     ``SEC. 113. APPLICATIONS.

       ``(a) In General.--To be eligible to receive an allotment 
     under section 112, a State, acting through the State 
     educational agency, Territory, or Indian tribe shall prepare, 
     submit to the Corporation, and obtain approval of, an 
     application at such time and in such manner as the Chief 
     Executive Officer may reasonably require.
       ``(b) Contents.--An application for an allotment under this 
     part shall include--
       ``(1) a proposal for a 3-year plan promoting service-
     learning, which shall contain such

[[Page H1471]]

     information as the Chief Executive Officer may reasonably 
     require, including how the applicant will integrate service 
     opportunities into the academic program of the participants;
       ``(2) information about the criteria the State educational 
     agency, Territory, or Indian tribe will use to evaluate and 
     grant approval to applications submitted under subsection 
     (c), including an assurance that the State educational 
     agency, Territory, or Indian tribe will comply with the 
     requirement in section 114(a);
       ``(3) information about the applicant's efforts to--
       ``(A) ensure that students of different ages, races, sexes, 
     ethnic groups, disabilities, and economic backgrounds have 
     opportunities to serve together;
       ``(B) include any opportunities for students enrolled in 
     schools or other programs of education providing elementary 
     or secondary education to participate in service-learning 
     programs and ensure that such service-learning programs 
     include opportunities for such students to serve together;
       ``(C) involve participants in the design and operation of 
     the program;
       ``(D) promote service-learning in areas of greatest need, 
     including low-income or rural areas; and
       ``(E) otherwise integrate service opportunities into the 
     academic program of the participants; and
       ``(4) assurances that the applicant will comply with the 
     nonduplication and nondisplacement requirements of section 
     177 and the grievance procedures required by section 176.
       ``(c) Application to State, Territory, or Indian Tribe To 
     Receive Assistance To Carry Out School-Based Service-Learning 
     Programs.--
       ``(1) In general.--Any--
       ``(A) qualified organization, Indian tribe, Territory, 
     local educational agency, for-profit business, private 
     elementary, middle, or secondary school, or institution of 
     higher education that desires to receive financial assistance 
     under this subpart from a State, Territory, or Indian tribe 
     for an activity described in section 111(a)(1);
       ``(B) partnership described in section 111(a)(2) that 
     desires to receive such assistance from a State, Territory, 
     or Indian tribe or grantmaking entity described in section 
     111(a)(2);
       ``(C) entity described in section 111(a)(3) that desires to 
     receive such assistance from a State, Territory, or Indian 
     tribe for an activity described in such section;
       ``(D) partnership described in section 111(a)(4) that 
     desires to receive such assistance from a State, Territory, 
     or Indian tribe for an activity described in such section; 
     and
       ``(E) agency or partnership described in section 118(c)(8) 
     that desires to receive such assistance, or approved summer 
     of service positions, from a State, Territory, or Indian 
     tribe for an activity described in such section to be carried 
     out through a service-learning program described in section 
     111,

     shall prepare, submit to the State educational agency, 
     Territory, grantmaking entity, or Indian tribe, and obtain 
     approval of, an application for the program.
       ``(2) Submission.--Such application shall be submitted at 
     such time and in such manner, and shall contain such 
     information, as the agency, Territory, Indian tribe, or 
     entity may reasonably require.

     ``SEC. 114. CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATIONS.

       ``(a) Priority.--In considering competitive applications 
     under this part, the Corporation shall give priority to 
     innovation, sustainability, capacity building, involvement of 
     disadvantaged youth, and quality of programs, as well as 
     other criteria approved by the Chief Executive Officer.
       ``(b) Rejection of Applications.--If the Corporation 
     rejects an application submitted by a State, Territory, or 
     Indian tribe under section 113 for an allotment, the 
     Corporation shall promptly notify the State, Territory, or 
     Indian tribe of the reasons for the rejection of the 
     application. The Corporation shall provide the State, 
     Territory, or Indian tribe with a reasonable opportunity to 
     revise and resubmit the application and shall provide 
     technical assistance, if needed, to the State, Territory, or 
     Indian tribe as part of the resubmission process. The 
     Corporation shall promptly reconsider such resubmitted 
     application.

     ``SEC. 115. PARTICIPATION OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS FROM 
                   PRIVATE SCHOOLS.

       ``(a) In General.--To the extent consistent with the number 
     of students in the State, Territory, or Indian tribe or in 
     the school district of the local educational agency involved 
     who are enrolled in private nonprofit elementary and 
     secondary schools, such State, Territory, Indian tribe, or 
     agency shall (after consultation with appropriate private 
     school representatives) make provision--
       ``(1) for the inclusion of services and arrangements for 
     the benefit of such students so as to allow for the equitable 
     participation of such students in the programs implemented to 
     carry out the objectives and provide the benefits described 
     in this part; and
       ``(2) for the training of the teachers of such students so 
     as to allow for the equitable participation of such teachers 
     in the programs implemented to carry out the objectives and 
     provide the benefits described in this part.
       ``(b) Waiver.--If a State, Territory, Indian tribe, or 
     local educational agency is prohibited by law from providing 
     for the participation of students or teachers from private 
     nonprofit schools as required by subsection (a), or if the 
     Corporation determines that a State, Territory, Indian tribe, 
     or local educational agency substantially fails or is 
     unwilling to provide for such participation on an equitable 
     basis, the Chief Executive Officer shall waive such 
     requirements and shall arrange for the provision of services 
     to such students and teachers. Such waivers shall be subject 
     to the requirements of sections 9503 and 9504 of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7883 and 7884).

     ``SEC. 116. FEDERAL, STATE, AND LOCAL CONTRIBUTIONS.

       ``(a) Federal Share.--
       ``(1) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of 
     carrying out a program for which assistance is provided under 
     this part--
       ``(A) for new grants, may not exceed 80 percent of the 
     total cost for the first year of the grant, 65 percent for 
     the second year, and 50 percent for each remaining year; and
       ``(B) for continuing grants, may not exceed 50 percent of 
     the total cost of the program.
       ``(2) Non-federal contribution.--In providing for the 
     remaining share of the cost of carrying out such a program, 
     each recipient of assistance under this part--
       ``(A) shall provide for such share through a payment in 
     cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, including facilities, 
     equipment, or services; and
       ``(B) may provide for such share through State sources or 
     local sources, including private funds or donated services.
       ``(b) Waiver.--The Chief Executive Officer may waive the 
     requirements of subsection (a) in whole or in part with 
     respect to any such program for any fiscal year if the 
     Corporation determines that such a waiver would be equitable 
     due to a lack of available financial resources at the local 
     level.

     ``SEC. 117. LIMITATIONS ON USES OF FUNDS.

       ``Not more than 6 percent of the amount of assistance 
     received by an applicant in a fiscal year may be used to pay, 
     in accordance with such standards as the Corporation may 
     issue, for administrative costs, incurred by--
       ``(1) the original recipient; or
       ``(2) the entity carrying out the service-learning program 
     supported with the assistance.''.

     SEC. 1202. HIGHER EDUCATION PROVISIONS.

       Section 119 (42 U.S.C. 12561) is redesignated as section 
     117 and amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by inserting after ``community 
     service programs'' the following: ``through service-
     learning'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``combination'' and inserting ``consortia'';
       (B) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (ii) in subparagraph (B), by adding ``and'' at the end; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) may coordinate with service-learning curricula being 
     offered in the academic curricula at the institution of 
     higher education or at one or more members of the 
     consortia;'';
       (3) in subsection (b)(3)--
       (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``teachers at the elementary, secondary, and postsecondary 
     levels'' and inserting ``institutions of higher education and 
     their faculty'';
       (B) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``education of the 
     institution; and'' and inserting ``curricula of the 
     institution to strengthen the instructional capacity of 
     service-learning at the elementary and secondary levels;'';
       (C) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (E); 
     and
       (D) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
       ``(B) including service-learning as a key component of the 
     health professionals curricula, including nursing, pre-
     medicine, medicine, and dentistry curricula of the 
     institution;
       ``(C) including service-learning as a key component of the 
     criminal justice professionals curricula of the institution;
       ``(D) including service-learning as a key component of the 
     public policy and public administration curricula of the 
     institution; and'';
       (4) by striking subsections (c), (d), (e), and (g);
       (5) by redesignating subsection (f) as (i); and
       (6) by inserting after subsection (b) the following:
       ``(c) Special Consideration.--To the extent practicable, 
     the Corporation shall give special consideration to 
     applications submitted by predominantly Black institutions, 
     Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-
     serving institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and 
     community colleges serving predominantly minority 
     populations.
       ``(d) Federal, State, and Local Contributions.--
       ``(1) Federal share.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of 
     carrying out a program for which assistance is provided under 
     this part may not exceed 50 percent of the total cost of the 
     program.
       ``(B) Non-federal contribution.--In providing for the 
     remaining share of the cost of carrying out such a program, 
     each recipient of a grant under this part--
       ``(i) shall provide for such share through a payment in 
     cash or in kind, fairly evaluated,

[[Page H1472]]

     including facilities, equipment, or services; and
       ``(ii) may provide for such share through State sources or 
     local sources, including private funds or donated services.
       ``(2) Waiver.--The Chief Executive Officer may waive the 
     requirements of paragraph (1) in whole or in part with 
     respect to any such program for any fiscal year if the 
     Corporation determines that such a waiver would be equitable 
     due to a lack of available financial resources at the local 
     level.
       ``(e) Application for Grant.--
       ``(1) Submission.--To receive a grant or enter into a 
     contract under this part, an applicant shall prepare, submit 
     to the Corporation, and obtain approval of, an application at 
     such time, in such manner, and containing such information 
     and assurances as the Corporation may reasonably require. In 
     requesting applications for assistance under this part, the 
     Corporation shall specify such required information and 
     assurances.
       ``(2) Contents.--An application submitted under paragraph 
     (1) shall contain, at a minimum--
       ``(A) assurances that--
       ``(i) prior to the placement of a participant, the 
     applicant will consult with the appropriate local labor 
     organization, if any, representing employees in the area who 
     are engaged in the same or similar work as that proposed to 
     be carried out by such program, to prevent the displacement 
     and protect the rights of such employees; and
       ``(ii) the applicant will comply with the nonduplication 
     and nondisplacement provisions of section 177 and the 
     grievance procedures required by section 176; and
       ``(B) such other assurances as the Chief Executive Officer 
     may reasonably require.
       ``(f) Priority.--In making grants and entering into 
     contracts under subsection (b), the Corporation shall give 
     priority to applicants or institutions that submit 
     applications containing proposals that--
       ``(1) demonstrate the commitment of the institution of 
     higher education, other than by demonstrating the commitment 
     of the students, to supporting the community service projects 
     carried out under the program;
       ``(2) specify the manner in which the institution will 
     promote faculty, administration, and staff participation in 
     the community service projects;
       ``(3) specify the manner in which the institution will 
     provide service to the community through organized programs, 
     including, where appropriate, clinical programs for students 
     in professional schools and colleges;
       ``(4) describe any partnership that will participate in the 
     community service projects, such as a partnership comprised 
     of--
       ``(A) the institution;
       ``(B)(i) a community-based agency;
       ``(ii) a local government agency; or
       ``(iii) a non-profit entity that serves or involves school-
     age youth, older adults, or low-income communities; and
       ``(C)(i) a student organization;
       ``(ii) a department of the institution; or
       ``(iii) a group of faculty comprised of different 
     departments, schools, or colleges at the institution;
       ``(5) demonstrate community involvement in the development 
     of the proposal;
       ``(6) describe research on effective strategies and methods 
     to improve service utilized in the design of the project;
       ``(7) specify that the institution will use such assistance 
     to strengthen the service infrastructure in institutions of 
     higher education; or
       ``(8) with respect to projects involving delivery of 
     services, specify projects that involve leadership 
     development of school aged youth.
       ``(g) Definition.--Notwithstanding section 101, as used in 
     this part, the term `student' means an individual who is 
     enrolled in an institution of higher education on a full- or 
     part-time basis.
       ``(h) Federal Work-Study.--To be eligible for assistance 
     under this part, an institution of higher education must 
     demonstrate that it meets the minimum requirements under 
     section 443(b)(2)(B) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (42 
     U.S.C. 2753(b)(2)(B)) relating to the participation of 
     Federal Work-Study students in community service activities, 
     or has received a waiver of those requirements from the 
     Secretary of Education.''.

     SEC. 1203. INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS AND RESEARCH.

       Subtitle B of title I (42 U.S.C. 12521 et seq.) is further 
     amended by adding after part II the following new part:

     ``PART III--INNOVATIVE SERVICE-LEARNING PROGRAMS AND RESEARCH

     ``SEC. 118. INNOVATIVE DEMONSTRATION SERVICE-LEARNING 
                   PROGRAMS AND RESEARCH.

       ``(a) In General.--From the amounts appropriated to carry 
     out this part for a fiscal year, the Corporation may make 
     grants and fixed amount grants under subsection (f) with 
     eligible entities for activities described in subsection (c).
       ``(b) Eligible Entities Defined.--For purposes of this 
     part, the term `eligible entity' means a State education 
     agency, a State commission, a Territory, an Indian tribe, an 
     institution of higher education, or a public or private 
     nonprofit organization (including grant-making entities), a 
     public or private elementary or secondary school, a local 
     educational agency, or a consortia of such entities, where a 
     consortia of two or more such entities may also include a 
     for-profit organization.
       ``(c) Authorized Activities.--Funds under this part may be 
     used to--
       ``(1) integrate service-learning programs into the science, 
     technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) curricula at 
     the elementary, secondary, or post-secondary, and post-
     baccalaureate levels in coordination with practicing or 
     retired STEM professionals;
       ``(2) involve students in service-learning programs 
     focusing on energy conservation in their community, including 
     conducting educational outreach on energy conservation and 
     working to improve energy efficiency in low income housing 
     and in public spaces;
       ``(3) involve students in service-learning projects in 
     emergency and disaster preparedness;
       ``(4) involve students in service-learning projects aimed 
     at improving access to and obtaining the benefits from 
     computers and other emerging technologies, including in low 
     income or rural communities, in senior centers and 
     communities, in schools, in libraries, and in other public 
     spaces;
       ``(5) involve high school age youth in the mentoring of 
     middle school youth while involving all participants in 
     service-learning to seek to meet unmet human, educational, 
     environmental, public safety, or emergency disaster 
     preparedness needs in their community;
       ``(6) conduct research and evaluations on service-learning, 
     including service-learning in middle schools, and disseminate 
     such research and evaluations widely;
       ``(7) conduct innovative and creative activities as 
     described in section 111(a);
       ``(8) establish or implement summer of service programs 
     during the summer months, including the cost of recruitment, 
     training, and placement of service-learning coordinators--
       ``(A) for youth who will be enrolled in any grade from 
     grade 6 through grade 12 at the end of the summer concerned;
       ``(B) for community-based service-learning projects that--
       ``(i) shall--

       ``(I) meet unmet human, educational, environmental 
     (including energy conservation and stewardship), emergency 
     and disaster preparedness, and public service needs; and
       ``(II) be intensive, structured, supervised, and designed 
     to produce identifiable improvements to the community; and

       ``(ii) may include the extension of academic year service-
     learning programs into the summer months;
       ``(C) under which any student who completes 100 hours of 
     service in an approved summer of service position, as 
     certified through a process determined by the Corporation 
     through regulations consistent with section 138(f), shall be 
     eligible for a summer of service educational award of not 
     more than $500 (or, at the discretion of the Chief Executive 
     Officer, not more than $1,000 in the case of a participant 
     who is economically disadvantaged) from funds deposited in 
     the National Service Trust and distributed by the Corporation 
     as described in section 148; and
       ``(D) subject to the limitation that a student may not 
     receive more than 2 summer of service educational awards from 
     funds deposited in the National Service Trust; and
       ``(9) carry out any other innovative service-learning 
     programs or research that the Corporation considers 
     appropriate.
       ``(d) Priority.--Priority shall be given to programs that--
       ``(1) involve students and community stakeholders in the 
     design and implementation of the service-learning program;
       ``(2) implement service-learning programs in low-income or 
     rural communities; and
       ``(3) utilize adult volunteers, including tapping the 
     resource of retired and retiring adults, in the planning and 
     implementation of the service-learning programs.
       ``(e) Requirements.--
       ``(1) Three-year term.--Each program funded under this part 
     shall be carried out over a period of three years, including 
     one planning year and two additional grant years, with a 1-
     year extension possible, if the program meets performance 
     measures developed in accordance with section 179(a) and any 
     other criteria determined by the Corporation.
       ``(2) Collaboration encouraged.--Each program funded under 
     this part is encouraged to collaborate with other Learn and 
     Serve programs, AmeriCorps, VISTA, and the National Senior 
     Service Corps.
       ``(3) Evaluation.--Upon completion of the program, the 
     Corporation shall conduct an independent evaluation of the 
     program and widely disseminate the results to the service 
     community through multiple channels, including the 
     Corporation's Resource Center or a clearinghouse of effective 
     strategies and recommendations for improvement.
       ``(f) Fixed Amount Grants.--
       ``(1) General.--For purposes of subsection (a), and subject 
     to the limitations in this subsection, the Corporation may, 
     upon making a determination described in paragraph (2), 
     approve a fixed amount grant that is not subject to the 
     Office of Management and Budget cost principles and related 
     financial recordkeeping requirements.
       ``(2) Determination.--Before approving a fixed amount 
     grant, the Corporation must determine that--
       ``(A) the reasonable and necessary costs of carrying out 
     the terms of the grant significantly exceed the amount of 
     assistance provided by the Corporation; or

[[Page H1473]]

       ``(B) based on the nature or design of the grant, any 
     assistance provided by the Corporation can be reasonably 
     presumed to be expended on reasonable and necessary costs.
       ``(3) Matching funds.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of 
     carrying out a program for which a grant is made under this 
     part may not exceed 75 percent of the total cost of the 
     program in the first year of the grant and 50 percent of the 
     total cost of the program in the remaining years of the 
     grant, including if the grant is extended for a fourth year.
       ``(B) Non-federal contribution.--In providing for the 
     remaining share of the cost of carrying out such a program, 
     each recipient of a grant under this part--
       ``(i) shall provide for such share through a payment in 
     cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, including facilities, 
     equipment, or services; and
       ``(ii) may provide for such share through State sources or 
     local sources, including private funds or donated services.
       ``(g) Applications.--To be eligible to carry out a program 
     under this part, an entity shall prepare, submit to the 
     Corporation, and obtain approval of, an application at such 
     time and in such manner as the Chief Executive Officer may 
     reasonably require.''.

 Subtitle C--Amendments to Subtitle C (National Service Trust Program)

     SEC. 1301. PROHIBITION ON GRANTS TO FEDERAL AGENCIES; LIMITS 
                   ON CORPORATION COSTS.

       Section 121 (42 U.S.C. 12571) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding paragraph 
     (1), by inserting after ``subdivisions of States,'' the 
     following: ``Territories,'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in the heading, by striking ``Agreements With Federal 
     Agencies'' and inserting ``Restrictions on Agreements With 
     Federal Agencies'';
       (B) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) in the first sentence by striking ``by the agency.'' 
     and inserting ``by the agency, including programs under the 
     Public Lands Corps and Urban Youth Corps as described in 
     section 122(a)(2).''; and
       (ii) by striking the second sentence;
       (C) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
       ``(2) Prohibition on grants.--The Corporation may not 
     provide a grant under this section to a Federal agency.''; 
     and
       (D) in paragraph (3)--
       (i) by striking ``receiving assistance under this 
     subsection'' and inserting ``operating a national service 
     program''; and
       (ii) by striking ``using such assistance'';
       (3) in subsection (c)(2)(B), by striking ``to be provided'' 
     and inserting ``to be provided or otherwise approved'';
       (4) in subsection (d)--
       (A) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Five'' and 
     inserting ``Six''; and
       (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ``5 percent'' and 
     inserting ``6 percent''; and
       (5) in subsection (e)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by striking ``section 140'' and inserting ``paragraph 
     (2)'';
       (ii) by striking ``Federal share of the cost'' and 
     inserting ``Corporation share of the cost, including member 
     living allowances, employment-related taxes, health care 
     coverage, and worker's compensation and other necessary 
     operation costs,'';
       (iii) by striking ``may not exceed 75 percent of such 
     cost.'' and inserting ``may not exceed--''; and
       (iv) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(A) for the first three years in which the recipient 
     receives such assistance, 76 percent of such cost;
       ``(B) for the fourth through ninth years in which the 
     recipient receives such assistance, a decreasing share of 
     such cost between 76 percent and 50 percent, as established 
     by the Corporation in regulation; and
       ``(C) for the tenth year (and each year thereafter) in 
     which the recipient receives such assistance, 50 percent of 
     such cost.'';
       (B) by striking paragraph (3);
       (C) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
       (D) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) Alternative corporation share for programs in rural 
     or severely economically distressed communities.--Upon 
     approval by the Corporation, the Corporation share of the 
     cost, including member living allowances, employment-related 
     taxes, health care coverage, and worker's compensation, of 
     carrying out a national service program that receives 
     assistance under subsection (a) and that is located in a 
     rural or severely economically distressed community may not 
     exceed--
       ``(A) for the first six years in which the recipient 
     receives such assistance, 76 percent of such cost;
       ``(B) for the seventh through ninth years in which the 
     recipient receives such assistance, a decreasing share of 
     such cost between 76 and 65 percent as established by the 
     Corporation in regulation; and
       ``(C) for the tenth year (and each year thereafter) in 
     which the recipient receives such assistance, 65 percent of 
     such cost.'';
       (E) in paragraph (3) (as so redesignated), in subparagraph 
     (B), by inserting after ``other Federal sources'' the 
     following: ``including funds authorized under Youthbuild 
     (section 173A of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (29 
     U.S.C. 2918a))''; and
       (F) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(5) Other federal funds.--
       ``(A) Recipient report.--A recipient of assistance under 
     section 121 shall report to the Corporation the amount and 
     source of any Federal funds used to carry out the program 
     other than those provided by the Corporation.
       ``(B) Corporation report.--The Corporation shall report to 
     the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate on an annual basis 
     information regarding each recipient that uses Federal funds 
     other than those provided by the Corporation to carry out the 
     program, including amounts and sources of other Federal 
     funds.''.

     SEC. 1302. E-CORPS AND TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO TYPES OF 
                   PROGRAMS.

       Section 122 (42 U.S.C. 12572) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``subsection (b)(1)'' and inserting ``subsection (c)(1)'';
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``including'' and all 
     that follows through the semicolon at the end and inserting 
     ``including projects involving urban renewal, sustaining 
     natural resources, or improving human services;'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``including'' and 
     inserting ``and at least 50 percent of whom are''; and
       (iii) in subparagraph (C)(i), by inserting ``, including 
     mentoring'' before the semicolon;
       (C) in paragraph (6)--
       (i) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``; or'' and inserting 
     a semicolon;
       (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period and 
     inserting ``; or''; and
       (iii) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(D) students participating in service-learning programs 
     at an institution of higher education.'';
       (D) in paragraph (7)(A), by inserting ``, including 
     elementary and secondary education, and other professions 
     such as those in health care, criminal justice, environmental 
     stewardship and conservation, or public safety'' before the 
     semicolon;
       (E) in paragraph (8)(C), by striking ``nonprofit'';
       (F) in paragraph (9), by striking ``between the ages of 16 
     and 24'' and inserting ``between the ages of 16 and 25'';
       (G) in paragraph (10), by striking ``gifted young adults'' 
     and all that follows through the period at the end and 
     inserting ``school-age youth and young adults of all 
     backgrounds, including gifted youth, along with established 
     successful entrepreneurs of all backgrounds and professions 
     from the community in which the program exists to--
       ``(A) train the participants in utilizing problem-solving, 
     entrepreneurship, and communication skills to design 
     solutions to community problems; and
       ``(B) collaborate with stakeholders in the communities to 
     implement the solutions devised by the participants in 
     subparagraph (A).'';
       (H) in paragraph (12)(A), by striking ``learning and 
     recreation'' and inserting ``learning, recreation, and 
     mentoring'';
       (I) in paragraph (13), by striking ``and to combat rural 
     poverty, including'' and inserting ``, including the issues 
     of rural poverty,'';
       (J) by redesignating paragraph (15) as paragraph (19); and
       (K) by inserting after paragraph (14) the following:
       ``(15) An E-Corps program that involves participants who 
     provide services in a community by developing and assisting 
     in carrying out technology programs which seek to increase 
     access to technology and the benefits thereof in such 
     community.
       ``(16) A program that engages citizens in public safety, 
     public health, and emergency and disaster preparedness, and 
     may include the recruitment and placing of qualified 
     participants in positions to be trainees as law enforcement 
     officers, firefighters, search and rescue personnel, and 
     emergency medical service workers, and may engage Federal, 
     State, and local stakeholders in collaboration to organize 
     more effective responses to issues of public safety and 
     public health, emergencies, and disasters.
       ``(17) A program, initiative, or partnership that seeks to 
     expand the number of mentors for youths (including by 
     recruiting high-school and college-aged individuals to enter 
     into mentoring relationships), including mentors for 
     disadvantaged youths, either through provision of direct 
     mentoring services, provision of supportive services to 
     direct mentoring service organizations (in the case of a 
     partnership), or through the creative utilization of current 
     and emerging technologies to connect youth with mentors.
       ``(18) A program that has the primary purpose of re-
     engaging court-involved youth and adults with the goal of 
     reducing recidivism.'';
       (2) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as (c) and 
     (d), respectively;
       (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
       ``(b) Innovative Programs To Meet the Needs of Veterans.--
       ``(1) In general.--From funds appropriated under section 
     501(a)(2), the Corporation shall reserve up to 3 percent for 
     competitive grants to eligible recipients under subsection 
     (a) for the development, either directly or through subgrants 
     to other entities, of innovative initiatives to address the 
     unique needs of veterans.

[[Page H1474]]

       ``(2) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
     this subsection, an entity described in paragraph (1) shall 
     submit an application at such time, in such manner, and 
     containing such information as the Corporation may require.
       ``(3) Activities.--Entities receiving grants under this 
     subsection shall use funds to develop initiatives that--
       ``(A) recruit veterans, particularly returning veterans, 
     into service opportunities;
       ``(B) promote community-based efforts to meet the unique 
     needs of military families while a member of the family is 
     deployed; and
       ``(C) promote community-based efforts to meet the unique 
     needs of military families when a member of the family 
     returns from a deployment.'';
       (4) in subsection (c) (as so redesignated), in paragraph 
     (4), by inserting after ``out-of-school youths,'' the 
     following: ``disadvantaged youths,'';
       (5) in subsection (d) (as so redesignated), in paragraph 
     (1)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``subsection (b) or 
     (d) of''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(C) Priority for veterans.--Priorities established under 
     subparagraphs (A) and (B) shall include priorities for 
     programs that--
       ``(i) recruit veterans, particularly returning veterans, 
     into service opportunities;
       ``(ii) promote community-based efforts to meet the unique 
     needs of military families while a member of the family is 
     deployed; and
       ``(iii) promote community-based efforts to meet the unique 
     needs of military families when a member of the family 
     returns from a deployment.''; and
       (6) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) Requirements for Tutors.--
       ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
     Corporation shall require that each recipient of assistance 
     under the national service laws that operates a tutoring 
     program involving elementary or secondary school students 
     certifies that individuals serving in approved national 
     service positions as tutors in such program have--
       ``(A) either--
       ``(i) obtained their high school diploma; or
       ``(ii) passed a proficiency test demonstrating that such 
     individuals have the skills necessary to achieve program 
     goals; and
       ``(B) have successfully completed pre- and in-service 
     training for tutors.
       ``(2) Exception.--The requirements in paragraph (1) do not 
     apply to an individual serving in an approved national 
     service position who is enrolled in an elementary or 
     secondary school and is providing tutoring services through a 
     structured, school-managed cross-grade tutoring program.
       ``(f) Requirements for Tutoring Programs.--Each tutoring 
     program that receives assistance under the national service 
     laws shall--
       ``(1) offer a curriculum that is high quality, research-
     based, and consistent with the State academic content 
     standards required by section 1111 of the Elementary and 
     Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311) and the 
     instructional program of the local educational agency; and
       ``(2) offer high quality, research-based pre- and in-
     service training for tutors.
       ``(g) Citizenship Training.--The Corporation shall 
     establish requirements for recipients of assistance under the 
     national service laws relating to the promotion of 
     citizenship and civic engagement, that are consistent with 
     the principles on which citizenship programs administered by 
     U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services are based, among 
     individuals enrolled in approved national service positions 
     and approved summer of service positions.''.

     SEC. 1303. TYPES OF POSITIONS.

       Section 123 (42 U.S.C. 12573) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2)(A) by inserting after ``subdivision of 
     a State,'' the following: ``a Territory,''; and
       (2) in paragraph (5) by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps''.

     SEC. 1304. CONFORMING REPEAL RELATING TO TRAINING AND 
                   TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

       Section 125 (42 U.S.C. 1257) is repealed.

     SEC. 1305. ASSISTANCE TO STATE COMMISSIONS; CHALLENGE GRANTS.

       Section 126 (42 U.S.C. 12576) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``$125,000 and $750,000'' 
     and inserting ``$200,000 and $825,000''; and
       (B) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the following:
       ``(2) Matching requirement.--In making grants to a State 
     under this subsection, the Corporation shall require the 
     State to provide matching funds of $1 from non-Federal 
     sources for every $1 provided by the Corporation.
       ``(3) Alternative.--Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the 
     Chief Executive Officer may permit a State that demonstrates 
     hardship or a new State Commission to use an alternative 
     match as follows:
       ``(A) First $100,000.--For the first $100,000 of grant 
     amounts provided by the Corporation, a State shall not be 
     required to provide matching funds.
       ``(B) Amounts greater than $100,000.--For grant amounts of 
     more than $100,000 and not exceeding $200,000 provided by the 
     Corporation, a State shall provide $1 from non-Federal 
     sources for every $2 provided by the Corporation.
       ``(C) Amounts greater than $200,000.--For grant amounts of 
     more than $200,000 provided by the Corporation, a State shall 
     provide $1 from non-Federal sources for every $1 provided by 
     the Corporation.''; and
       (2) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``to national service 
     programs that receive assistance under section 121'' and 
     inserting ``to programs supported under the national service 
     laws''; and
       (B) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
       ``(3) Amount of assistance.--A challenge grant under this 
     subsection may provide, for an initial 3-year grant period, 
     not more than $1 of assistance under this subsection for each 
     $1 in cash raised from private sources by the program 
     supported under the national service laws in excess of 
     amounts required to be provided by the program to satisfy 
     matching funds requirements. After an initial 3-year grant 
     period, grants under this subsection may provide not more 
     than $1 of assistance for each $2 in cash raised from private 
     sources by the program in excess of amounts required to be 
     provided by the program to satisfy matching funds 
     requirements. The Corporation may permit the use of local or 
     State funds as matching funds if the Corporation determines 
     that such use would be equitable due to a lack of available 
     private funds at the local level. The Corporation shall 
     establish a ceiling on the amount of assistance that may be 
     provided to a national service program under this 
     subsection.''.

     SEC. 1306. ALLOCATION OF ASSISTANCE TO STATES AND OTHER 
                   ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.

       Section 129 (42 U.S.C. 12581) is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``SEC. 129. PROVISION OF ASSISTANCE AND APPROVED NATIONAL 
                   SERVICE POSITIONS.

       ``(a) 1-Percent Allotment for Certain Territories.--Of the 
     funds allocated by the Corporation for provision of 
     assistance under section 121(a) for a fiscal year, the 
     Corporation shall reserve 1 percent for grants to the United 
     States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands upon approval by 
     the Corporation of an application submitted under section 
     130. The amount allotted as a grant to each such Territory 
     under this subsection for a fiscal year shall be equal to the 
     amount that bears the same ratio to 1 percent of the 
     allocated funds for that fiscal year as the population of the 
     Territory bears to the total population of such Territories.
       ``(b) Allotment for Indian Tribes.--Of the funds allocated 
     by the Corporation for provision of assistance under section 
     121(a) for a fiscal year, the Corporation shall reserve at 
     least 1 percent for grants to Indian tribes, to be allotted 
     by the Corporation on a competitive basis.
       ``(c) Allotment for Competitive Grants.--Of the funds 
     allocated by the Corporation for provision of assistance 
     under section 121(a) for a fiscal year and subject to section 
     133(d)(3), the Corporation shall reserve up to 62.7 percent 
     for grants awarded on a competitive basis to States for 
     national service programs and to nonprofit organizations 
     seeking to operate a national service program in 2 or more 
     States.
       ``(d) Allotment to Certain States on Formula Basis.--
       ``(1) Grants.--Of the funds allocated by the Corporation 
     for provision of assistance under subsection (a) of section 
     121 for a fiscal year, the Corporation shall make a grant to 
     each of the several States, the District of Columbia, and the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico that submits an application under 
     section 130 that is approved by the Corporation.
       ``(2) Allotments.--The amount allotted as a grant to each 
     such State under this subsection for a fiscal year shall be 
     equal to the amount that bears the same ratio to 35.3 percent 
     of the allocated funds for that fiscal year as the population 
     of the State bears to the total population of the several 
     States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of 
     Puerto Rico, in compliance with paragraph (3).
       ``(3) Minimum amount.--Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the 
     minimum grant made available to each State approved by the 
     Corporation under paragraph (1) for each fiscal year must be 
     at least $600,000, or 0.5 percent of the amount allocated for 
     the State formula under this section, whichever is greater.
       ``(e) Effect of Failure To Apply.--If a State or Territory 
     fails to apply for, or fails to give notice to the 
     Corporation of its intent to apply for an allotment under 
     this section, or the Corporation does not approve the 
     application consistent with section 133, the Corporation may 
     use the amount that would have been allotted under this 
     section to the State or Territory to--
       ``(1) make grants (and provide approved national service 
     positions in connection with such grants) to other 
     grantmaking entities under section 121 that propose to carry 
     out national service programs in such State or Territory; and
       ``(2) make a reallotment to other States or Territories 
     with approved applications submitted under section 130, to 
     the extent grant-making entities do not apply as described in 
     paragraph (1).
       ``(f) Application Required.--The allotment of assistance 
     and approved national service positions to a recipient under 
     this section shall be made by the Corporation

[[Page H1475]]

     only pursuant to an application submitted by a State or other 
     applicant under section 130.
       ``(g) Approval of Positions Subject to Available Funds.--
     The Corporation may not approve positions as approved 
     national service positions under this subtitle for a fiscal 
     year in excess of the number of such positions for which the 
     Corporation has sufficient available funds in the National 
     Service Trust for that fiscal year, taking into consideration 
     funding needs for national service educational awards under 
     subtitle D based on completed service. If appropriations are 
     insufficient to provide the maximum allowable national 
     service educational awards under subtitle D for all eligible 
     participants, the Corporation is authorized to make necessary 
     and reasonable adjustments to program rules.
       ``(h) Sponsorship of Approved National Service Positions.--
       ``(1) Sponsorship authorized.--The Corporation may enter 
     into agreements with persons or entities who offer to sponsor 
     national service positions for which the person or entity 
     will be responsible for supplying the funds necessary to 
     provide a national service educational award. The 
     distribution of these approved national service positions 
     shall be made pursuant to the agreement, and the creation of 
     these positions shall not be taken into consideration in 
     determining the number of approved national service positions 
     to be available for distribution under this section.
       ``(2) Deposit of contribution.--Funds provided pursuant to 
     an agreement under paragraph (1) shall be deposited in the 
     National Service Trust established in section 145 until such 
     time as the funds are needed.
       ``(i) Reservation of Funds for Special Assistance.--From 
     amounts appropriated for a fiscal year pursuant to the 
     authorization of appropriations in section 501(a)(2) and 
     subject to the limitation in such section, the Corporation 
     may reserve such amount as the Corporation considers to be 
     appropriate for the purpose of making assistance available 
     under section 126.
       ``(j) Reservation of Funds To Increase the Participation of 
     Individuals With Disabilities.--From amounts appropriated for 
     a fiscal year pursuant to the authorization of appropriations 
     in section 501(a)(2) and subject to the limitation in such 
     section, the Chief Executive Officer shall reserve an amount 
     that is not less than 1 percent of such amount (except that 
     the amount reserved may not exceed $10,000,000), in order to 
     make grants to public or private nonprofit organizations to 
     increase the participation of individuals with disabilities 
     in national service and for demonstration activities in 
     furtherance of this purpose.''.

     SEC. 1307. ADDITIONAL AUTHORITY.

       Part II of subtitle C of title I is amended by inserting 
     after section 129 (42 U.S.C. 12581) the following:

     ``SEC. 129A. EDUCATION AWARDS ONLY PROGRAM.

       ``(a) In General.--From amounts appropriated for a fiscal 
     year to provide financial assistance under this subtitle and 
     consistent with the restriction in subsection (b), the 
     Corporation may, through fixed amount grants under subsection 
     (d), provide operational assistance to programs that receive 
     approved national service positions but do not receive funds 
     under section 121(a).
       ``(b) Limit on Corporation Grant Funds.--Operational 
     support under this section may not exceed $600 per individual 
     enrolled in an approved national service position and may 
     reach $800 per individual if the program supports at least 50 
     percent disadvantaged youth.
       ``(c) Inapplicable Provisions.--The following provisions 
     shall not apply to programs funded under this section:
       ``(1) The limitation on administrative costs under section 
     121(d).
       ``(2) The matching funds requirements under section 121(e).
       ``(3) The living allowance and other benefits under 
     sections 131(e) and section 140 (other than individualized 
     support services for disabled members under section 140(f)).
       ``(d) Fixed Amount Grants.--
       ``(1) General.--For purposes of subsection (a), and subject 
     to the limitations in this subsection, the Corporation may, 
     upon making a determination described in paragraph (2), 
     approve a fixed amount grant that is not subject to the 
     Office of Management and Budget cost principles and related 
     financial recordkeeping requirements.
       ``(2) Determination.--Before approving a fixed amount 
     grant, the Corporation must determine that--
       ``(A) the reasonable and necessary costs of carrying out 
     the terms of the grant significantly exceed the amount of 
     assistance provided by the Corporation; or
       ``(B) based on the nature or design of the grant, any 
     assistance provided by the Corporation can be reasonably 
     presumed to be expended on reasonable and necessary costs.

     ``SEC. 129B. PILOT AUTHORITY FOR MEMBER-SELECTED NATIONAL 
                   SERVICE POSITIONS.

       ``(a) Authority.--
       ``(1) In general.--From the amounts appropriated for a 
     fiscal year under this subtitle and consistent with the 
     restriction in subsection (b), the Corporation may provide 
     fixed amount grants on a competitive basis to up to 10 State 
     Commissions to support member-selected approved national 
     service positions.
       ``(2) Limitation.--The Corporation shall award grants under 
     paragraph (1) to support not more than 500 approved national 
     service positions among the participating States.
       ``(b) Limits on Corporation Grant Funds.--
       ``(1) In general.--Grants awarded under subsection (a)(1) 
     shall not exceed $600 per individual enrolled in an approved 
     national service position under this section.
       ``(2) Use of grant funds.--Grants received by State 
     Commissions under subsection (a)(1)--
       ``(A) shall not be distributed to organizations receiving 
     participants with approved national service positions under 
     this section; and
       ``(B) may--
       ``(i) be used for oversight activities and mechanisms for 
     the service sites as determined by the State Commission or 
     the Corporation, which may include site visits;
       ``(ii) be used for activities to augment the experience of 
     AmeriCorps participants in approved national service 
     positions under this section, including activities to engage 
     such participants in networking opportunities with other 
     AmeriCorps participants; and
       ``(iii) be used for recruitment or training activities for 
     participants in approved national service positions under 
     this section.
       ``(c) State Commission Application.--
       ``(1) In general.--A State Commission desiring to receive a 
     grant under subsection (a)(1) shall submit an application to 
     the Corporation at such time, in such manner, and containing 
     such information as the Corporation shall determine 
     appropriate.
       ``(2) Approval.--The Corporation shall approve each 
     application under paragraph (1) in accordance with section 
     130(d).
       ``(d) Selection of Participants.--
       ``(1) Applicants.--Participants desiring to receive an 
     approved national service position under this section shall 
     submit an application to the State Commission at such time 
     and in such manner as the State Commission determines 
     appropriate. The application shall contain--
       ``(A) a position description that includes--
       ``(i) the unmet human, educational, public safety, or 
     environmental need or needs that will be met by the 
     participant; and
       ``(ii) a description of the activities and responsibilities 
     that will be carried out by the participant;
       ``(B) a description of the organization operating the 
     service site where the applicant intends to complete the 
     service described in subparagraph (A);
       ``(C) a description of the support that will be provided by 
     the organization to the participant to complete the 
     activities described in subparagraph (A);
       ``(D) the evidence of community support for the activities 
     described in subparagraph (A);
       ``(E) a certification from the organization operating the 
     service site that the organization is accepting the 
     participant to perform the service outlined in subparagraph 
     (A);
       ``(F) a certification from the organization operating the 
     service site that the organization satisfies qualification 
     criteria established by the Corporation or the State 
     Commission, including standards relating to organizational 
     capacity, financial management, and programmatic oversight; 
     and
       ``(G) any other information that the Corporation and the 
     State Commission deems necessary.
       ``(2) Residency.--A participant may apply for approved 
     national service positions under this section in States other 
     than the State in which the participant resides.
       ``(e) Organization Requirements.--The Corporation and the 
     State Commissions shall ensure that the organizations 
     receiving participants with approved national service 
     positions under this section--
       ``(1) maintain not more than 5 full-time staff and not more 
     than 5 part-time staff;
       ``(2) are not duplicating service provided by an existing 
     AmeriCorps grantee in the same community;
       ``(3) are located in a community where no Intermediary 
     AmeriCorps grants recipient is operating; and
       ``(4) have not applied to receive assistance under this 
     subtitle.
       ``(f) Failure To Comply.--If an organization receiving a 
     participant with an approved national service position under 
     this section fails to comply with terms and conditions 
     established by the State Commission and the Corporation--
       ``(1) the organization shall not be eligible to receive 
     such a participant, or receive an AmeriCorps grant under 
     section 121, for not less than 5 years; and
       ``(2) the State Commission shall have the right to remove 
     such a participant from the organization and relocate that 
     individual to another site.
       ``(g) Receipt of Financial Assistance.--An organization 
     that receives participants with approved national service 
     positions under this section shall not be considered a 
     recipient of Federal financial assistance based on receiving 
     such participants.
       ``(h) Definition.--For the purpose of this section, the 
     term `Intermediary AmeriCorps grants recipient' means any 
     organization that serves as a conduit between the Corporation 
     and other unaffiliated organizations operating service 
     sites.''.

     SEC. 1308. STATE SELECTION OF PROGRAMS.

       Section 130 (42 U.S.C. 12582) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by inserting after ``State,'' the following: 
     ``Territory,''; and

[[Page H1476]]

       (B) by striking ``institution of higher education, or 
     Federal agency'' and inserting ``or institution of higher 
     education'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(9) by striking ``section 122(c)'' and 
     inserting ``section 122(d)'';
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by striking ``jobs or positions'' and inserting 
     ``proposed positions''; and
       (ii) by striking ``, including'' and all that follows 
     through the period at the end and inserting a period;
       (B) in paragraph (2) by inserting ``proposed'' before 
     ``minimum''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) In the case of a nonprofit organization operating 
     programs in 2 or more States, a description of the manner and 
     extent to which the State Commissions of each State in which 
     the nonprofit organization intends to operate were consulted 
     and the nature of the consultation.'';
       (4) in subsection (e)(2) by striking ``were selected'' and 
     inserting ``were or will be selected'';
       (5) in subsection (f)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``a program applicant'' 
     and inserting ``an applicant''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in the heading, by striking ``Program applicant'' and 
     inserting ``Applicant'';
       (ii) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``program applicant'' and inserting ``applicant'';
       (iii) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) by inserting after ``subdivision of a State,'' the 
     following: ``Territory,''; and
       (II) by striking ``institution of higher education, or 
     Federal agency'' and inserting ``or institution of higher 
     education''; and

       (iv) in subparagraph (B)--

       (I) by inserting after ``subdivision of a State,'' the 
     following: ``Territory,''; and
       (II) by striking ``institution of higher education, or 
     Federal agency'' and inserting ``or institution of higher 
     education''; and

       (6) in subsection (g), by striking the period and inserting 
     ``or is already receiving financial assistance from the 
     Corporation.''.

     SEC. 1308A. NATIONAL SERVICE PROGRAM ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS.

       Section 131(c)(3) (42 U.S.C. 12583(c)(3)) is amended to 
     read as follows:
       ``(3) in the case of a program that is not funded through a 
     State, including programs operated by nonprofit organizations 
     seeking to operate a national service program in 2 or more 
     States--
       ``(A) consult with and coordinate with the State Commission 
     for the State in which the program operates; and
       ``(B) obtain written confirmation from the State Commission 
     that the applicant seeking assistance under this Act has 
     consulted with and coordinated with the State Commission when 
     seeking to operate a program in that State.''.

     SEC. 1309. CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATIONS.

       Section 133 (42 U.S.C. 12585) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (c)(6), insert after subparagraph (E) the 
     following:
       ``(F) Areas that have a mortgage foreclosure rate greater 
     than the national average mortgage foreclosure rate for the 
     most recent 12 months for which satisfactory data are 
     available.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(2)(B), by striking ``jobs or'';
       (3) in subsection (c), by redesignating paragraph (8) as 
     paragraph (9) and inserting after paragraph (7) the 
     following:
       ``(8) The extent to which the program generates the 
     involvement of volunteers.'';
       (4) in subsection (d), in paragraph (2)--
       (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), strike ``the 
     Corporation may include--'' and insert ``the Corporation--''; 
     and
       (B) by striking subparagraphs (A) through (G) and inserting 
     the following:
       ``(A) shall include national service programs that--
       ``(i) recruit veterans, particularly returning veterans, 
     into service opportunities;
       ``(ii) promote community-based efforts to meet the unique 
     needs of military families while a member of the family is 
     deployed; and
       ``(iii) promote community-based efforts to meet the unique 
     needs of military families when a member of the family 
     returns from a deployment; and
       ``(B) may include--
       ``(i) national service programs that conform to the 
     national service priorities in effect under section 122(d);
       ``(ii) innovative national service programs;
       ``(iii) national service programs that are well established 
     in one or more States at the time of the application and are 
     proposed to be expanded to additional States using assistance 
     provided under section 121;
       ``(iv) grant programs in support of other national service 
     programs if the grant programs are to be conducted by 
     nonprofit organizations with a demonstrated and extensive 
     expertise in the provision of services to meet human, 
     educational, environmental, or public safety needs; and
       ``(v) professional corps programs described in section 
     122(a)(8).''; and
       (5) by amending subsection (d)(3) to read as follows:
       ``(3) Additional priority.--In making a competitive 
     distribution under section 129(c), the Corporation--
       ``(A) shall solicit and consider the view of a State 
     Commission regarding any application for assistance to 
     operate a national service program within the State; and
       ``(B) may give priority to a national service program that 
     is--
       ``(i) proposed in an application submitted by a State 
     Commission; and
       ``(ii) not one of the types proposed in paragraph (2),

     if the State Commission provides an adequate explanation of 
     the reasons why it should not be a priority of such State to 
     carry out any of such types of programs in the State.''.

     SEC. 1310. DESCRIPTION OF PARTICIPANTS.

       Section 137 (42 U.S.C. 12591) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking paragraph (3); and
       (B) by redesignating paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) as 
     paragraphs (3), (4), and (5), respectively;
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``paragraph (4)'' and 
     inserting ``paragraph (3)''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``between the ages of 16 
     and 25'' and inserting ``a 16-year-old out of school youth or 
     an individual between the ages of 17 and 25''; and
       (3) in subsection (c), by striking ``(a)(5)'' and inserting 
     ``(a)(4)''.

     SEC. 1311. SELECTION OF NATIONAL SERVICE PARTICIPANTS.

       Section 138 (42 U.S.C. 12592) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a) by striking ``conducted by the 
     State'' and all that follows through ``or other entity'' and 
     inserting ``conducted by the entity''; and
       (2) in subsection (e)(2)(C) by inserting before the 
     semicolon at the end the following: ``, particularly those 
     who were considered at the time of their service 
     disadvantaged youth''.

     SEC. 1312. TERMS OF SERVICE.

       Section 139 (42 U.S.C. 12593) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``not less than 9 
     months and'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``during a period 
     of--'' and all that follows through the period at the end and 
     inserting ``during a period of not more than 2 years.''; and
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``as demonstrated by 
     the participant'' and inserting ``as determined by the 
     organization responsible for granting a release, if the 
     participant has otherwise performed satisfactorily and has 
     completed at least 15 percent of the original term of 
     service'';
       (B) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ``provide to the 
     participant that portion of the national service educational 
     award'' and inserting ``certify the participant's eligibility 
     for that portion of the national service educational award''; 
     and
       (C) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``to allow return to 
     the program with which the individual was serving in order''.

     SEC. 1313. ADJUSTMENTS TO LIVING ALLOWANCE.

       Section 140 (42 U.S.C. 12594) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``paragraph (3)'' and 
     inserting ``paragraphs (2) and (3)'';
       (B) by striking paragraph (2);
       (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as (2);
       (D) by inserting after paragraph (2) (as so redesignated) 
     the following:
       ``(3) Federal work-study students.--The living allowance 
     that may be provided to an individual whose term of service 
     includes hours for which the individual receives Federal work 
     study wages shall be reduced by the amount of the 
     individual's Federal work study award.''; and
       (E) in paragraph (4), by striking ``a reduced term of 
     service under section 139(b)(3)'' and inserting ``a term of 
     service that is less than 12 months'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``shall include an 
     amount sufficient to cover 85 percent of such taxes'' and all 
     that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
     ``may be used to pay such taxes.'';
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1) by adding ``and'' at the end;
       (B) by striking paragraph (2); and
       (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as (2);
       (4) in subsection (d)(1), by striking the second sentence; 
     and
       (5) by striking subsections (g) and (h).

   Subtitle D--Amendments to Subtitle D (National Service Trust and 
           Provision of National Service Educational Awards)

     SEC. 1401. AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS IN THE NATIONAL SERVICE 
                   TRUST.

       Section 145 (42 U.S.C. 12601) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``section 148(e)'' and 
     inserting ``section 148(f)''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``pursuant to section 
     196(a)(2)'' and inserting ``pursuant to section 196(a)(2), if 
     the terms of such donations direct that they be deposited in 
     the National Service Trust''; and
       (2) in subsection (c), by striking ``for payments of 
     national service educational awards in accordance with 
     section 148.'' and inserting ``for--
       ``(1) payments of summer of service educational awards and 
     national service educational awards in accordance with 
     section 148; and
       ``(2) payments of interest in accordance with section 
     148(f).''.

     SEC. 1402. INDIVIDUALS ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE A NATIONAL SERVICE 
                   EDUCATIONAL AWARD FROM THE TRUST.

       Section 146 (42 U.S.C. 12602) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``if 
     the individual'' and inserting

[[Page H1477]]

     ``if the organization responsible for an individual's 
     supervision certifies that the individual'';
       (B) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and inserting 
     the following:
       ``(1) met the applicable eligibility requirements for the 
     position; and
       ``(2)(A) successfully completed the required term of 
     service described in subsection (b) in an approved national 
     service position; or
       ``(B)(i) satisfactorily performed prior to being granted a 
     release for compelling personal circumstances under section 
     139(c); and
       ``(ii) served at least 15 percent of the required term of 
     service described in subsection (b); and''; and
       (C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (3);
       (2) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
       ``(c) Limitation on Receipt of National Service Educational 
     Awards.--An individual may not receive, in national service 
     educational awards, more than an amount equal to the 
     aggregate value of 2 such awards for full-time service. The 
     aggregate value of summer of service educational awards that 
     an individual receives shall have no effect on the aggregate 
     value of national service educational awards the individual 
     may receive.'';
       (3) in subsection (d)--
       (A) in paragraph (1) by inserting after ``national service 
     educational award'' the following: ``or a summer of service 
     educational award''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), and in 
     subparagraph (A), by inserting after ``national service 
     educational award'' the following: ``or a summer of service 
     educational award'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (A) by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (iii) in subparagraph (B) by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; or''; and
       (iv) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) in the case of a summer of service educational award, 
     is enrolled at an eligible institution of higher education 
     under section 148(c) or an educational institution described 
     under section 148(a)(4) and failed to expend the full amount 
     of that award during the original 7-year period.''; and
       (4) in subsection (e)(1)--
       (A) by inserting after ``qualifying under this section'' 
     the following: ``or under section 118(c)(8)''; and
       (B) by inserting after ``to receive a national service 
     educational award'' the following: ``or a summer of service 
     educational award''.

     SEC. 1403. DETERMINATION OF THE AMOUNT OF NATIONAL SERVICE 
                   EDUCATIONAL AWARDS.

       Section 147 (42 U.S.C. 12603) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking ``a value, for each of not more than 2 of 
     such terms of service, equal to 90 percent of--'' and 
     inserting ``a value of--'' ; and
       (B) by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(1) $4,825, for fiscal year 2008;
       ``(2) $4,925, for fiscal year 2009;
       ``(3) $5,025, for fiscal year 2010;
       ``(4) $5,125, for fiscal year 2011; and
       ``(5) $5,225, for fiscal year 2012 and each fiscal year 
     thereafter.''; and
       (2) in subsection (b), by inserting after ``for each of not 
     more than 2 of such terms of service'' the following: ``in 
     the period of one year''.

     SEC. 1404. DISBURSEMENT OF EDUCATIONAL AWARDS.

       Section 148 (42 U.S.C. 12604) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``cost of attendance'' 
     and inserting ``cost of attendance or other educational 
     expenses'';
       (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ``and'';
       (C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (6);
       (D) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
       ``(4) to pay expenses incurred in enrolling in an 
     educational institution or training establishment that meets 
     the requirements of chapter 36 of title 38, United States 
     Code (38 U.S.C. 3451 et seq.);
       ``(5) for a recipient of a summer of service educational 
     award under section 118(c)(8)(C), to pay expenses incurred in 
     enrolling in a college preparatory program in accordance with 
     subsection (e); and''; and
       (E) in paragraph (6) (as so redesignated) by striking 
     ``subsection (e)'' and inserting ``subsection (f)'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(1) by inserting after ``the national 
     service educational award of the individual'' the following: 
     ``, or an eligible individual under section 118(c)(8) who 
     received a summer of service educational award for a project 
     that began after the individual completed grade 10 and 
     desires to apply that summer of service educational award,'';
       (3) in subsection (b)(2) by inserting after ``the national 
     service educational award'' the following: ``or the summer of 
     service educational award, as applicable,'';
       (4) in subsection (b)(5) by inserting after ``the national 
     service educational award'' the following: ``or the summer of 
     service educational award, as applicable'';
       (5) in subsection (b)(7)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``, other than a loan 
     to a parent of a student pursuant to section 428B of such Act 
     (20 U.S.C. 1078-2); and'' and inserting a semicolon;
       (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) any loan (other than a loan described in subparagraph 
     (A) or (B)) determined by an institution of higher education 
     to be necessary to cover a student's educational expenses and 
     made, insured, or guaranteed by--
       ``(i) an eligible lender, as defined in section 435 of the 
     Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1085);
       ``(ii) the direct student loan program under part D of 
     title IV of such Act;
       ``(iii) a State agency; or
       ``(iv) a lender otherwise determined by the Corporation to 
     be eligible to receive disbursements from the National 
     Service Trust.'';
       (6) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting after ``national 
     service educational award'' the following: ``, or an eligible 
     individual under section 118(c)(8) who desires to apply the 
     individual's summer of service educational award,'';
       (7) in subsection (c)(2)(A), by inserting after ``national 
     service educational award'' the following: ``or summer of 
     service educational award, as applicable,'';
       (8) in subsection (c)(2)(C)(iii), by inserting after 
     ``national service educational awards received under this 
     subtitle'' the following: ``or summer of service educational 
     awards received under section 118(c)(8)'';
       (9) in subsection (c)(3), by inserting after ``national 
     service educational awards'' the following: ``and summer of 
     service educational awards'';
       (10) in subsection (c)(5)--
       (A) by inserting after ``national service educational 
     award'' the following: ``, or summer of service educational 
     award, as applicable,''; and
       (B) by inserting after ``additional'' the following: 
     ``summer of service educational awards and additional'';
       (11) in subsection (c)(6), by inserting after ``national 
     service educational award'' the following: ``and summer of 
     service educational award'';
       (12) in subsection (d), by inserting after ``national 
     service educational awards'' the following: ``and summer of 
     service educational awards'';
       (13) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), and (g) as (f), 
     (g), and (h), respectively;
       (14) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
       ``(e) Use of Summer of Service Educational Award To Pay 
     College Preparatory Expenses.--
       ``(1) Application of eligible individuals.--An eligible 
     individual under section 118(c)(8), or the parents or legal 
     guardian of such an individual, who desires to apply the 
     summer of service educational award of the individual to the 
     payment of expenses incurred in enrolling in a college 
     preparatory program shall, on a form prescribed by the 
     Corporation, submit an application to the college preparatory 
     program in which the individual will be enrolled that 
     contains such information as the Corporation may require to 
     verify the individual's eligibility.
       ``(2) Submission of requests for payment by program.--A 
     college preparatory program that receives one or more 
     applications under paragraph (1) shall submit to the 
     Corporation a statement, in a manner prescribed by the 
     Corporation, that--
       ``(A) identifies each eligible individual filing an 
     application under paragraph (1) for a disbursement of the 
     individual's summer of service educational award under this 
     subsection;
       ``(B) specifies the amounts for which such eligible 
     individuals are qualified for disbursement; and
       ``(C) certifies that--
       ``(i) the college preparatory program is operated by a for-
     profit or non-profit organization with a track record of 
     success in implementing college preparatory programs that 
     collaborate with local educational agencies and adequately 
     prepare secondary school students for admission to an 
     institution of higher education without need for remediation;
       ``(ii) the college preparatory program has been in 
     existence for at least one year prior to an eligible 
     individual's submission of the application under paragraph 
     (1); and
       ``(iii) individuals using summer of service educational 
     awards received under section 118(c)(8) to pay the cost of 
     enrolling in the college preparatory program do not comprise 
     more than 15 percent of the total number of individuals 
     enrolled in the program; and
       ``(D) contains such provisions concerning financial 
     compliance and program quality as the Corporation may 
     require.
       ``(3) Disbursement of payments.--Upon receipt of a 
     statement from a college preparatory program that complies 
     with paragraph (2), the Corporation shall, subject to 
     paragraph (4), disburse the total amount of the summer of 
     service educational awards for which eligible individuals who 
     have submitted applications to that program under paragraph 
     (1) are scheduled to receive. Such disbursement shall be made 
     by check or other means that is payable to the program and 
     requires the endorsement or other certification by the 
     eligible individual.
       ``(4) Multiple disbursements.--The total amount required to 
     be disbursed to a college preparatory program under paragraph 
     (3) for any period of enrollment may be disbursed by the 
     Corporation in two or more installments consistent with 
     appropriate divisions of such period of enrollment.

[[Page H1478]]

       ``(5) Refund rules.--The Corporation shall, by regulation, 
     provide for the refund to the Corporation (and the crediting 
     to the summer of service educational award of an eligible 
     individual) of amounts disbursed to programs for the benefit 
     of eligible individuals who withdraw or otherwise fail to 
     complete the period of enrollment for which the assistance 
     was provided. Amounts refunded to the Trust pursuant to this 
     paragraph may be used by the Corporation to fund additional 
     approved summer of service positions under section 118(c)(8).
       ``(6) Maximum award.--The portion of an eligible 
     individual's total available summer of service educational 
     award that may be disbursed under this subsection for any 
     period of enrollment shall not exceed the cost of 
     attendance.'';
       (15) in subsection (f) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``subsection (b)(6)'' and inserting ``subsection (b)(7)''; 
     and
       (16) in subsection (g) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``Director'' and inserting ``Chief Executive Officer''.

     SEC. 1405. PROCESS OF APPROVAL OF NATIONAL SERVICE POSITIONS.

       (a) In General.--Subtitle D of title I (42 U.S.C. 12601 et 
     seq.) is further amended by adding at the end the following 
     new section:

     ``SEC. 149. PROCESS OF APPROVAL OF NATIONAL SERVICE 
                   POSITIONS.

       ``(a) Timing and Recording Requirements.--
       ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding subtitles C and D, and 
     any other provision of law, in approving a position as an 
     approved national service position, the Corporation--
       ``(A) shall approve the position at the time the 
     Corporation--
       ``(i) enters into an enforceable agreement with an 
     individual participant to serve in a program carried out 
     under subtitle E of title I of this Act or under title I of 
     the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4951 et 
     seq.), or a summer of service educational award; or
       ``(ii) except as provided in clause (i), awards a grant to 
     (or enters into a contract or cooperative agreement with) an 
     entity to carry out a program for which such a position is 
     approved under section 123; and
       ``(B) shall record as an obligation an estimate of the net 
     present value of the national service educational award 
     associated with the position, based on a formula that takes 
     into consideration historical rates of enrollment in such a 
     program, and of earning and using national service 
     educational awards for such a program and remain available.
       ``(2) Formula.--In determining the formula described in 
     paragraph (1)(B), the Corporation shall consult with the 
     Director of the Congressional Budget Office.
       ``(3) Certification report.--The Chief Executive Officer of 
     the Corporation shall annually prepare and submit to the 
     Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate a report that contains a 
     certification that the Corporation is in compliance with the 
     requirements of paragraph (1).
       ``(4) Approval.--The requirements of this subsection shall 
     apply to each approved national service position that the 
     Corporation approves--
       ``(A) during fiscal year 2008; and
       ``(B) during any subsequent fiscal year.
       ``(b) Reserve Account.--
       ``(1) Establishment and contents.--
       ``(A) Establishment.--Notwithstanding subtitles C and D, 
     and any other provision of law, within the National Service 
     Trust established under section 145, the Corporation shall 
     establish a reserve account.
       ``(B) Contents.--To ensure the availability of adequate 
     funds to support the awards of approved national service 
     positions for each fiscal year, the Corporation shall place 
     in the account--
       ``(i) during fiscal year 2008, a portion of the funds that 
     were appropriated for fiscal year 2008 or a previous fiscal 
     year under section 501(a)(2), were made available to carry 
     out subtitle C, D, or E of this title, subtitle A of title I 
     of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973, or summer of 
     service under section 118(c)(8), and remain available; and
       ``(ii) during fiscal year 2009 or a subsequent fiscal year, 
     a portion of the funds that were appropriated for that fiscal 
     year under section 501(a)(2) and were made available to carry 
     out subtitle C, D, or E of this title, subtitle A of title I 
     of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973, or summer of 
     service under section 111(a)(5), and remain available.
       ``(2) Obligation.--The Corporation shall not obligate the 
     funds in the reserve account until the Corporation--
       ``(A) determines that the funds will not be needed for the 
     payment of national service educational awards associated 
     with previously approved national service positions and 
     summer of service educational awards; or
       ``(B) obligates the funds for the payment of national 
     service educational awards for such previously approved 
     national service positions or summer of service educational 
     awards, as applicable.
       ``(c) Audits.--The accounts of the Corporation relating to 
     the appropriated funds for approved national service 
     positions, and the records demonstrating the manner in which 
     the Corporation has recorded estimates described in 
     subsection (a)(1)(B) as obligations, shall be audited 
     annually by independent certified public accountants or 
     independent licensed public accountants certified or licensed 
     by a regulatory authority of a State or other political 
     subdivision of the United States in accordance with generally 
     accepted auditing standards. A report containing the results 
     of each such independent audit shall be included in the 
     annual report required by subsection (a)(3).
       ``(d) Availability of Amounts.--Except as provided in 
     subsection (b), all amounts included in the National Service 
     Trust under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 145(a) 
     shall be available for payments of national service 
     educational awards or summer of service educational awards 
     under section 148.''.
       (b) Conforming Repeal.--Section 2 of the Strengthen 
     AmeriCorps Program Act (Public Law 108-145; 117 Stat. 844; 42 
     U.S.C. 12605) is repealed.

     SEC. 1406. REPORT ON VETERANS SERVING IN APPROVED NATIONAL 
                   SERVICE POSITIONS.

       Subtitle D of title I (42 U.S.C. 12601 et seq.) is further 
     amended by adding at the end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 150. REPORT ON VETERANS SERVING IN APPROVED NATIONAL 
                   SERVICE POSITIONS.

       ``(a) In General.--The Corporation shall report annually to 
     the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate the number and percentage 
     of veterans serving in approved national service positions.
       ``(b) Annual Goals.--In the report described in subsection 
     (a), the Corporation shall outline strategies and goals for 
     increasing the number and percentage of veterans serving in 
     approved national service positions each year, including 
     strategies being undertaken to recruit veterans to serve in 
     such positions, and include an evaluation of progress in 
     meeting such goals.''.

   Subtitle E--Amendments to Subtitle E (National Civilian Community 
                                 Corps)

     SEC. 1501. PURPOSE.

       Section 151 (42 U.S.C. 12611) is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``SEC. 151. PURPOSE.

       ``It is the purpose of this subtitle to authorize the 
     operation of, and support for, residential and other service 
     programs that combine the best practices of civilian service 
     with the best aspects of military service, including 
     leadership and team building, to meet national and community 
     needs. Such needs to be met under such programs include those 
     related to--
       ``(1) natural and other disasters;
       ``(2) infrastructure improvement;
       ``(3) environmental stewardship and conservation;
       ``(4) energy conservation; and
       ``(5) urban and rural development.''.

     SEC. 1502. PROGRAM COMPONENTS.

       Section 152 (42 U.S.C. 12612) is amended--
       (1) by amending the section heading to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 152. ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL CIVILIAN COMMUNITY 
                   CORPS PROGRAM.''.

       (2) in subsection (a), by striking ``Civilian Community 
     Corps Demonstration Program'' and inserting ``National 
     Civilian Community Corps Program'';
       (3) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by striking ``Civilian Community Corps Demonstration 
     Program'' and inserting ``National Civilian Community Corps 
     Program''; and
       (B) by striking ``a Civilian Community Corps'' and 
     inserting ``a National Civilian Community Corps'';
       (4) in the heading of subsection (c), by striking 
     ``Programs'' and inserting ``Components''; and
       (5) in subsection (c), by striking ``program components are 
     residential programs'' and all that follows and inserting 
     ``programs referred to in subsection (b) may include a 
     residential component.''.

     SEC. 1503. ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS.

       Section 153 (42 U.S.C. 12613) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking ``Civilian Community Corps Demonstration 
     Program'' and inserting ``National Civilian Community Corps 
     Program''; and
       (B) by striking ``on Civilian Community Corps'' and 
     inserting ``on National Civilian Community Corps'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``if the person'' and 
     all that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
     ``if the person will be at least 18 years of age on or before 
     December 31 in the calendar year in which the individual 
     enrolls in the program.'';
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) by striking ``Backrounds'' and inserting 
     ``Backgrounds''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following: ``The Director 
     shall take appropriate steps, including through collaboration 
     with the Office of Outreach and Recruitment, to increase the 
     percentage of participants in the program who are 
     disadvantaged youth toward 50 percent of all participants by 
     year 2010. The Director shall report to the Committee on 
     Education and Labor of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the 
     Senate annually on such efforts, any challenges faced, and 
     the annual participation rates of disadvantaged youth in the 
     program.''; and
       (4) by striking subsection (e).

     SEC. 1504. SUMMER NATIONAL SERVICE PROGRAM.

       Section 154 (42 U.S.C. 12614) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--

[[Page H1479]]

       (A) by striking ``Civilian Community Corps Demonstration 
     Program'' and inserting ``National Civilian Community Corps 
     Program''; and
       (B) by striking ``on Civilian Community Corps'' and 
     inserting ``on National Civilian Community Corps''; and
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``shall be'' and all 
     that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
     ``shall be from economically and ethnically diverse 
     backgrounds, including youth who are in foster care.''.

     SEC. 1505. TEAM LEADERS.

       Section 155 (42 U.S.C. 12615) is amended--
       (1) by amending the section heading to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 155. NATIONAL CIVILIAN COMMUNITY CORPS.'';

       (2) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking ``Civilian Community Corps Demonstration 
     Program'' and inserting ``National Civilian Community Corps 
     Program''; and
       (B) by striking ``the Civilian Community Corps shall'' and 
     inserting ``the National Civilian Community Corps shall'';
       (3) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by amending the subsection heading to read as follows:
       ``(b) Membership in National Civilian Community Corps.--'';
       (B) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps'';
       (C) in paragraph (3)--
       (i) by striking ``superintendent'' and inserting ``campus 
     director''; and
       (ii) by striking ``camp'' and inserting ``campus''; and
       (D) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4) Team leaders.--The Director may select from Corps 
     members individuals with prior supervisory or service 
     experience to be team leaders within units in the National 
     Civilian Community Corps to perform service that includes 
     leading and supervising teams of Corps members. Team leaders 
     shall--
       ``(A) be selected without regard to the age limitation 
     under section 153(b);
       ``(B) be members of the National Civilian Community Corps; 
     and
       ``(C) be provided the rights and benefits applicable to 
     Corps members, except that the limitation on the amount of 
     living allowance shall not exceed 10 percent more than the 
     amount established under section 158(b).'';
       (4) in subsection (d)--
       (A) by amending the subsection heading to read as follows:
       ``(d) Campuses.--'';
       (B) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by amending the paragraph heading to read as follows:
       ``(1) Units to be assigned to
     campuses.--'';
       (ii) by striking ``in camps'' and inserting ``in 
     campuses'';
       (iii) by striking ``camp'' and inserting ``campus''; and
       (iv) by striking ``in the camps'' and inserting ``in the 
     campuses'';
       (C) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
       ``(2) Campus director.--There shall be a campus director 
     for each campus. The campus director is the head of the 
     campus.'';
       (D) in paragraph (3)--
       (i) by amending the paragraph heading to read as follows:
       ``(3) Eligible site for campus.--'';
       (ii) by striking ``A camp may be located'' and inserting 
     ``A campus must be cost-effective and may, upon the 
     completion of a feasibility study, be located'';
       (5) in subsection (e)--
       (A) by amending the paragraph heading to read as follows:
       ``(e) Distribution of Units and Campuses.--'';
       (B) by striking ``camps are distributed'' and inserting 
     ``campuses are cost-effective and are distributed''; and
       (C) by striking ``rural areas'' and all that follows 
     through the period at the end and inserting ``rural areas 
     such that each Corps unit in a region can be easily deployed 
     for disaster and emergency response to such region.''; and
       (6) in subsection (f)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by striking ``superintendent'' and inserting ``campus 
     director''; and
       (ii) by striking ``camp'' both places such term appears and 
     inserting ``campus'';
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``superintendent of a camp'' and inserting ``campus director 
     of a campus'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) by striking ``superintendent'' and inserting ``campus 
     director'';
       (II) by striking ``superintendent's'' and inserting 
     ``campus director's''; and
       (III) by striking ``camp'' each place such term appears and 
     inserting ``campus''; and

       (iii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``superintendent'' 
     and inserting ``campus director''; and
       (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``camp superintendent'' 
     and inserting ``campus director''.

     SEC. 1506. TRAINING.

       Section 156 (42 U.S.C. 12616) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by inserting ``National'' before ``Civilian Community 
     Corps''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following: ``The Director 
     shall ensure that to the extent practicable, each member of 
     the Corps is trained in CPR, first aid, and other skills 
     related to disaster preparedness and response.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting before the period at 
     the end the following: ``, including a focus on energy 
     conservation, environmental stewardship or conservation, 
     infrastructure improvement, urban and rural development, or 
     disaster preparedness needs''; and
       (3) by amending subsection (c)(2) to read as follows:
       ``(2) Coordination with other entities.--Members of the 
     cadre may provide, either directly or through grants, 
     contracts, or cooperative agreements, the advanced service 
     training referred to in subsection (b)(1) in coordination 
     with vocational or technical schools, other employment and 
     training providers, existing youth service programs, other 
     qualified individuals, or organizations with expertise in 
     training youth, including disadvantaged youth, in the skill 
     areas described in such subsection.''.

     SEC. 1507. CONSULTATION WITH STATE COMMISSIONS.

       Section 157 (42 U.S.C. 12617) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting 
     ``National'' before ``Civilian Community Corps'';
       (B) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the semicolon the 
     following: ``with specific emphasis on projects in support of 
     infrastructure improvement, disaster relief and recovery, the 
     environment, energy conservation, and urban and rural 
     development''; and
       (C) in paragraph (2) by striking ``service learning'' and 
     inserting ``service-learning'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``and the Secretary of 
     Housing and Urban Development'' and inserting ``the Secretary 
     of Housing and Urban Development, the Administrator of the 
     Environmental Protection Agency, the Administrator of the 
     Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Secretary of Energy, 
     the Secretary of Transportation, and the Chief of the United 
     States Forest Service'';
       (B) in paragraph (1)(B)--
       (i) by inserting ``community-based organizations and'' 
     before ``representatives of local communities''; and
       (ii) by striking ``camp'' both places such term appears and 
     inserting ``campus''; and
       (C) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``State Commissions,'' 
     before ``and persons involved in other youth service 
     programs.''; and
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by striking ``superintendent'' both places such term 
     appears and inserting ``campus director''; and
       (ii) by striking ``camp'' both places such term appears and 
     inserting ``campus''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``camp superintendents'' 
     and inserting ``campus directors''.

     SEC. 1508. AUTHORIZED BENEFITS FOR CORPS MEMBERS.

       Section 158 (42 U.S.C. 12618) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a) by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps''; and
       (2) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
       (i) by inserting ``National'' before ``Civilian Community 
     Corps''; and
       (ii) by inserting before the colon the following: ``, as 
     the Director determines appropriate'';
       (B) in paragraph (6), by striking ``Clothing'' and 
     inserting ``Uniforms''; and
       (C) in paragraph (7), by striking ``Recreational services 
     and supplies'' and inserting ``Supplies''.

     SEC. 1509. PERMANENT CADRE.

       Section 159 (42 U.S.C. 12619) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``Civilian Community Corps Demonstration Program'' and 
     inserting ``National Civilian Community Corps Program''; and
       (B) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by inserting ``including those'' before 
     ``recommended''; and
       (ii) by inserting ``National'' before ``Civilian Community 
     Corps'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps'';
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by inserting ``National'' 
     before ``Civilian Community Corps''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) by striking ``The Director shall establish a permanent 
     cadre of'' and inserting ``The Chief Executive Officer shall 
     establish a permanent cadre that includes the Director and 
     other appointed''; and
       (II) by inserting ``National'' before ``Civilian Community 
     Corps'';

       (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``The Director shall 
     appoint the members'' and inserting ``The Chief Executive 
     Officer shall consider the recommendations of the Director in 
     appointing the other members'';
       (iii) in subparagraph (C)--

       (I) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ``the 
     Director'' and inserting ``the Chief Executive Officer'';
       (II) in clause (iii) by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (III) by redesignating clause (iv) as (v); and
       (IV) by inserting after clause (iii) the following:

       ``(iv) give consideration to retired and other former law 
     enforcement, fire, rescue,

[[Page H1480]]

     and emergency personnel, and other individuals with 
     backgrounds in disaster preparedness, relief, and recovery; 
     and''; and
       (iv) in subparagraph (E)--

       (I) by inserting after ``techniques'' the following: ``, 
     including techniques for working with and enhancing the 
     development of disadvantaged youth,''; and
       (II) by striking ``service learning'' and inserting 
     ``service-learning''; and

       (C) in the first sentence of paragraph (3), by striking 
     ``the members'' and inserting ``other members''.

     SEC. 1510. CONTRACT AND GRANT AUTHORITY.

       Section 161 (42 U.S.C. 12621) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``perform any program 
     function under this subtitle'' and inserting ``carry out the 
     National Civilian Community Corps program''; and
       (2) in subsection (b)(2), by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps''.

     SEC. 1511. OTHER DEPARTMENTS.

       Section 162 (42 U.S.C. 12622) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking ``the registry 
     established by'' and all that follows through the semicolon 
     and inserting ``the registry established by section 1143a of 
     title 10, United States Code;'';
       (B) in paragraph (2)(A), by striking ``to be recommended 
     for appointment'' and inserting ``from which individuals may 
     be selected for appointment by the Director''; and
       (C) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``National'' before 
     ``Civilian Community Corps''; and
       (2) by striking subsection (b).

     SEC. 1512. ADVISORY BOARD.

       Section 163 (42 U.S.C. 12623) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by striking ``Upon the establishment of the Program, 
     there shall also be'' and inserting ``There shall be'';
       (B) by inserting ``National'' before ``Civilian Community 
     Corps Advisory Board''; and
       (C) by striking ``to assist'' and all that follows through 
     the period at the end and inserting ``to assist the Corps in 
     responding rapidly and efficiently in times of natural and 
     other disasters. Consistent with the needs outlined in 
     section 151, the Advisory Board members shall help coordinate 
     activities with the Corps as appropriate, including the 
     mobilization of volunteers and coordination of volunteer 
     centers to help local communities recover from the effects of 
     natural and other disasters.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by redesignating paragraphs (8) and (9) as paragraphs 
     (13) and (14), respectively;
       (B) by inserting after paragraph (7) the following:
       ``(8) The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management 
     Agency.
       ``(9) The Secretary of Transportation.
       ``(10) The Chief of the United States Forest Service.
       ``(11) The Administrator of the Environmental Protection 
     Agency.
       ``(12) The Secretary of Energy.''; and
       (C) in paragraph (13), as so redesignated, by striking 
     ``industry,'' and inserting ``public and private 
     organizations,''.

     SEC. 1513. ANNUAL EVALUATION.

       Section 164 (42 U.S.C. 12624) is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``National'' before ``Civilian Community 
     Corps''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following: ``Upon completing 
     each such evaluation, the Corporation shall submit to the 
     Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the 
     Senate and the Committee on Education and Labor of the House 
     of Representatives a report on the evaluation.''.

     SEC. 1514. REPEAL OF FUNDING LIMITATION.

       Section 165 (42 U.S.C. 12625) is repealed.

     SEC. 1515. DEFINITIONS.

       Section 166 (42 U.S.C. 12626) is amended--
       (1) by striking paragraphs (2), (3), and (9);
       (2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through (8) as 
     paragraphs (5) through (9), respectively;
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) Campus director.--The term `campus director', with 
     respect to a Corps campus, means the head of the campus under 
     section 155(d).
       ``(3) Corps.--The term `Corps' means the National Civilian 
     Community Corps required under section 155 as part of the 
     Civilian Community Corps Program.
       ``(4) Corps campus.--The term `Corps campus' means the 
     facility or central location established as the operational 
     headquarters and boarding place for particular Corps 
     units.'';
       (4) in paragraph (5) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``Civilian Community Corps Demonstration Program'' and 
     inserting ``National Civilian Community Corps Program'';
       (5) in paragraph (6) (as so redesignated), by inserting 
     ``National'' before ``Civilian Community Corps'';
       (6) in paragraph (8) (as so redesignated), by striking 
     ``The terms'' and all that follows through ``Demonstration 
     Program'' and inserting ``The term `Program' means the 
     National Civilian Community Corps Program''; and
       (7) in paragraph (9) (as so redesignated)--
       (A) in the heading by striking ``Service learning'' and 
     inserting ``Service-learning''; and
       (B) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by striking 
     ``service learning'' and inserting ``service-learning''.

     SEC. 1516. TERMINOLOGY.

       Subtitle E of title I (42 U.S.C. 12611 et seq.) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking the subtitle heading and inserting the 
     following:

           ``Subtitle E--National Civilian Community Corps'';

     and
       (2) in section 160(a) (42 U.S.C. 12620(a)) by inserting 
     ``National'' before ``Civilian Community Corps''.

    Subtitle F--Amendments to Subtitle F (Administrative Provisions)

     SEC. 1601. FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE.

       Section 171(a)(1) (42 U.S.C. 12631(a)(1)) is amended by 
     striking ``with respect to a project'' and inserting ``with 
     respect to a project authorized under the national service 
     laws''.

     SEC. 1602. ADDITIONAL PROHIBITIONS ON USE OF FUNDS.

       Section 174 (42 U.S.C. 12634) is amended by adding at the 
     end the following:
       ``(d) Referrals for Federal Assistance.--A program may not 
     receive assistance under the national service laws for the 
     sole purpose of referring individuals to Federal assistance 
     programs or State assistance programs funded in part by the 
     Federal government.''.

     SEC. 1603. NOTICE, HEARING, AND GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES.

       Section 176 (42 U.S.C. 12636) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2)(A), by striking ``30 days'' and 
     inserting ``1 or more periods of 30 days not to exceed 90 
     days in total''; and
       (2) in subsection (f)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``A State or local 
     applicant'' and inserting ``An entity''; and
       (B) in paragraph (6)--
       (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'';
       (ii) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as subparagraph (E); 
     and
       (iii) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the following:
       ``(D) in a grievance filed by an individual applicant or 
     participant--
       ``(i) the applicant's selection or the participant's 
     reinstatement, as the case may be; and
       ``(ii) other changes in the terms and conditions of 
     service; and''.

     SEC. 1604. RESOLUTION OF DISPLACEMENT COMPLAINTS.

       Section 177 (42 U.S.C. 12637) is amended--
       (1) in subsections (a) and (b), by striking ``under this 
     title'' each place it appears and inserting ``under the 
     national service laws'';
       (2) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ``employee or 
     position'' and inserting ``employee, position, or volunteer 
     (other than a participant under the national service laws)''; 
     and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(f) Parental Involvement.--
       ``(1) In general.--Programs that receive assistance under 
     the national service laws shall consult with the parents or 
     legal guardians of children in developing and operating 
     programs that include and serve children.
       ``(2) Parental permission.--Programs that receive 
     assistance under the national service laws shall, consistent 
     with State law, before transporting minor children, provide 
     the reason for and obtain written permission of the 
     children's parents.''.

     SEC. 1605. STATE COMMISSIONS ON NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY 
                   SERVICE.

       Section 178 (42 U.S.C. 12638) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (c)(1), by adding at the end the 
     following:
       ``(J) A representative of the volunteer sector.'';
       (2) in subsection (c)(3), by striking ``, unless the State 
     permits the representative to serve as a voting member of the 
     State Commission or alternative administrative entity'';
       (3) by striking subsection (e)(1) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(1) Preparation of a national service plan for the State 
     that--
       ``(A) is developed through an open and public process (such 
     as through regional forums, hearings, and other means) that 
     provides for maximum participation and input from companies, 
     organizations, and public agencies using service and 
     volunteerism as a strategy to meet critical community needs, 
     including programs funded under the national service laws;
       ``(B) covers a 3-year period, the beginning of which may be 
     set by the State;
       ``(C) is subject to approval by the chief executive officer 
     of the State;
       ``(D) includes measurable goals and outcomes for the State 
     consistent with those for national service programs as 
     described in section 179(a)(1)(A);
       ``(E) ensures outreach to diverse community-based agencies 
     that serve underrepresented populations, by--
       ``(i) using established networks and registries at the 
     State level, or establishing such networks and registries; 
     and
       ``(ii) coordinating with the Corporation's Office of 
     Outreach and Recruitment;
       ``(F) provides for effective coordination of funding 
     applications submitted by the State and others within the 
     State under the national service laws;
       ``(G) is updated annually, reflecting changes in practices 
     and policies that will improve the coordination and 
     effectiveness of Federal, State, and local resources for 
     service and volunteerism within the State; and
       ``(H) contains such information as the State Commission 
     considers to be appropriate or as the Corporation may 
     require.'';

[[Page H1481]]

       (4) by redesignating subsections (f) through (j) as 
     subsections (h) through (l), respectively;
       (5) by inserting after subsection (e) the following:
       ``(f) Relief From Administrative Requirements.--Upon 
     approval of a State plan submitted under subsection (e)(1), 
     the Chief Executive Officer may waive, or specify 
     alternatives to, administrative requirements (other than 
     statutory provisions) otherwise applicable to grants made to 
     States under the national service laws, including those 
     requirements identified by a State as impeding the 
     coordination and effectiveness of Federal, State, and local 
     resources for service and volunteerism within a State.
       ``(g) State Plan for Baby Boomer and Older Adult Volunteer 
     and Paid Service.--
       ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     this section, to be eligible to receive a grant or allotment 
     under subtitle B or C or to receive a distribution of 
     approved national service positions under subtitle C, a State 
     must work with appropriate State agencies and private 
     entities to develop a comprehensive State plan for volunteer 
     and paid service by members of the Baby Boom generation and 
     older adults.
       ``(2) Matters included.--The State plan shall include--
       ``(A) recommendations for public policy initiatives, 
     including how to best tap the population of members of the 
     Baby Boom generation and older adults as sources of social 
     capital and as ways to address community needs;
       ``(B) recommendations to the State unit on aging on--
       ``(i) a marketing outreach plan to businesses;
       ``(ii) outreach to non-profit organizations;
       ``(iii) the State's Department of Education; and
       ``(iv) other State agencies; and
       ``(C) recommendations for civic engagement and 
     multigenerational activities, such as--
       ``(i) early childhood education, family literacy, and after 
     school programs;
       ``(ii) respite services for older adults and caregivers; 
     and
       ``(iii) transitions for members of the Baby Boom generation 
     and older adults to purposeful work in their post career 
     lives.
       ``(3) Knowledge incorporated.--The State plan shall 
     incorporate the current knowledge base regarding--
       ``(A) the economic impact of older workers' roles in the 
     economy;
       ``(B) the social impact of older workers' roles in the 
     community; and
       ``(C) the health and social benefits of active engagement 
     for members of the Baby Boom generation and older adults.
       ``(4) Publication.--The State plan must be made public and 
     be transmitted to the Chief Executive Officer.''; and
       (6) in subsection (k)(1) (as redesignated by this section), 
     by striking the period at the end and inserting ``, 
     consistent with section 174(d).''.

     SEC. 1606. EVALUATION AND ACCOUNTABILITY.

       Section 179 (42 U.S.C. 12639) is amended--
       (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
       ``(a) In General.--The Corporation shall provide, directly 
     or through grants or contracts, for the continuing evaluation 
     of programs that receive assistance under the national 
     service laws, including evaluations that measure the impact 
     of such programs, to determine--
       ``(1) the effectiveness of programs receiving assistance 
     under the national service laws in achieving stated goals and 
     the costs associated with such, including--
       ``(A) an evaluation of performance measures, as established 
     by the Corporation in consultation with each grantee 
     receiving assistance under the national service laws, which 
     may include--
       ``(i) number of participants enrolled and completing terms 
     of service compared to the stated goals of the program;
       ``(ii) number of volunteers recruited from the community in 
     which the program was implemented;
       ``(iii) if applicable based on the program design, the 
     number of individuals receiving or benefitting from the 
     service conducted;
       ``(iv) number of disadvantaged and underrepresented youth 
     participants;
       ``(v) sustainability of project or program, including 
     measures to ascertain the level of community support for the 
     project or program;
       ``(vi) measures to ascertain the change in attitude toward 
     civic engagement among the participants and the beneficiaries 
     of the service; and
       ``(vii) other quantitative and qualitative measures as 
     determined to be appropriate by the recipient of assistance; 
     and
       ``(B) review of the implementation plan for reaching such 
     measures described in subparagraph (A); and
       ``(2) the effectiveness of the structure and mechanisms for 
     delivery of services, such as the effective utilization of 
     the participants' time, the management of the participants, 
     and the ease with which recipients were able to receive 
     services, to maximize the cost-effectiveness and the impact 
     of such programs.'';
       (2) in subsection (g)--
       (A) in paragraph (3), by striking ``National Senior 
     Volunteer Corps'' and inserting ``National Senior Service 
     Corps''; and
       (B) in paragraph (9), by striking ``to public service'' and 
     all that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
     ``to engage in service that benefits the community.''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(j) Reserved Program Funds for Accountability.--In 
     addition to amounts appropriated to carry out this section, 
     the Corporation may reserve up to 1 percent of total program 
     funds appropriated for a fiscal year under the national 
     service laws to support program accountability activities 
     under this section.
       ``(k) Corrective Plans.--
       ``(1) In general.--A grantee that fails to reach the 
     performance measures in subsection (a)(1)(A) as determined by 
     the Corporation, shall reach an agreement with the 
     Corporation on a corrective action plan to achieve the agreed 
     upon performance measures.
       ``(2) Assistance.--
       ``(A) New program.--For a program that has received 
     assistance for less than 3 years and is failing to achieve 
     the performance measures agreed upon under subsection 
     (a)(1)(A), the Corporation shall--
       ``(i) provide technical assistance to the grantee to 
     address targeted performance problems relating to the 
     performance measures in subsection (a)(1)(A); and
       ``(ii) require quarterly reports from the grantee on the 
     program's progress toward achieving the performance measures 
     in subsection (a)(1)(A) to the appropriate State, Territory, 
     or Indian tribe and the Corporation.
       ``(B) Established programs.--For a program that has 
     received assistance for 3 years or more and is failing to 
     achieve the performance measures agreed upon under subsection 
     (a)(1)(A), the Corporation shall require quarterly reports 
     from the grantee on the program's progress towards achieving 
     performance measures in subsection (a)(1)(A) to the 
     appropriate State, Territory, or Indian tribe and the 
     Corporation.
       ``(l) Failure To Meet Performance Levels.--If, after a 
     period for correction as approved by the Corporation, a 
     grantee or subgrantee fails to achieve the established levels 
     of performance, the Corporation shall--
       ``(1) reduce the annual amount of the grant award 
     attributable to the underperforming grantee or subgrantee by 
     at least 25 percent; or
       ``(2) terminate assistance to the underperforming grantee 
     or subgrantee, consistent with section 176(a).
       ``(m) Reports.--The Corporation shall submit to the 
     Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate not later than two years 
     after the date of the enactment of this subsection, and 
     annually thereafter, a report containing information on the 
     number of--
       ``(1) grantees implementing corrective action plans;
       ``(2) grantees for which the Corporation offers technical 
     assistance under subsection (k);
       ``(3) grantees for which the Corporation terminates 
     assistance for a program under subsection (l); and
       ``(4) grantees meeting or exceeding their performance 
     measures in subsection (a).''.

     SEC. 1607. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.

       Section 181 (42 U.S.C. 12641) is amended by striking 
     ``Section 414'' and inserting ``Section 422''.

     SEC. 1608. PARTNERSHIPS WITH SCHOOLS.

       Section 182(b) (42 U.S.C. 12642(b)) is amended to read as 
     follows:
       ``(b) Annual Report.--On an annual basis, the head of each 
     Federal agency and department shall prepare and submit, to 
     the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report concerning the 
     implementation of this section, including an evaluation of 
     the performance goals and benchmarks of the partnership 
     programs.''.

     SEC. 1609. RIGHTS OF ACCESS, EXAMINATION, AND COPYING.

       Section 183 (42 U.S.C. 12643) is amended--
       (1) in each of subsections (a)(1) and (b)(1) by inserting 
     after ``local government,'' the following: ``Territory,''; 
     and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(c) Inspector General.--The Inspector General of the 
     Corporation shall have access to, and the right to examine 
     and copy, any books, documents, papers, records, and other 
     recorded information in any form--
       ``(1) within the possession or control of the Corporation 
     or any State or local government, Territory, Indian tribe, or 
     public or private nonprofit organization receiving assistance 
     directly or indirectly under this Act; and
       ``(2) that relates to the duties of the Inspector General 
     under the Inspector General Act of 1978.''.

     SEC. 1610. ADDITIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

       Subtitle F of title I (42 U.S.C. 12631 et seq.) is amended 
     by adding at the end the following:

     ``SEC. 185. CONSOLIDATED APPLICATION AND REPORTING 
                   REQUIREMENTS.

       ``(a) In General.--To promote efficiency and eliminate 
     duplicative requirements, the Corporation shall consolidate 
     or modify application procedures and reporting requirements 
     for programs and activities funded under the national service 
     laws.
       ``(b) Reports to Congress.--Not later than 1 year after the 
     date of the enactment of this section, and annually 
     thereafter, the Corporation shall submit to the Committee on

[[Page H1482]]

     Education and Labor of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the 
     Senate a report containing information on the actions taken 
     to modify the application procedures and reporting 
     requirements for programs and activities funded under the 
     national service laws, including a description of the 
     consultation procedures with grantees, entities that 
     expressed interest in applying for assistance under a 
     national service law but did not apply, those entities whose 
     application was rejected, and applications whose assistance 
     was terminated due to failure to meet performance measures 
     for the year covered by the report.

     ``SEC. 186. SUSTAINABILITY.

       ``(a) Goals.--To ensure that recipients of assistance under 
     the national service laws are carrying out sustainable 
     projects or programs, the Corporation, after collaboration 
     with State Commissions and consultation with recipients of 
     assistance under the national service laws, may set 
     sustainability goals supported by policies and procedures 
     to--
       ``(1) build the capacity of the projects that receive 
     assistance under the national service laws to meet community 
     needs and lessen the dependence on Federal dollars to do so, 
     taking into consideration challenges that programs in 
     underserved rural or urban areas may face;
       ``(2) provide technical assistance to aid the recipients of 
     assistance under the national service laws in acquiring and 
     leveraging non-Federal funds for the projects; and
       ``(3) implement measures to ascertain whether the projects 
     are generating sufficient community support.
       ``(b) Enforcement.--If a recipient does not meet the 
     sustainability goals in subsection (a) for a project, the 
     Corporation may take action as described in sections 176 and 
     179.

     ``SEC. 187. USE OF RECOVERED FUNDS.

       ``(a) Factors Considered in Approving Repayment.--After the 
     date of enactment of this section, whenever the Corporation 
     recovers funds paid to a recipient under a grant or 
     cooperative agreement made under the national service laws 
     because the recipient made an expenditure of funds that was 
     not allowable, or otherwise failed to discharge its 
     responsibility to account properly for funds, the Corporation 
     may consider those funds to be additional funds available and 
     may arrange to repay to the recipient affected by that action 
     an amount not to exceed 75 percent of the recovered funds if 
     the Corporation determines that--
       ``(1) the practices or procedures of the recipient that 
     resulted in the recovery of funds have been corrected, and 
     that the recipient is in all other respects in compliance 
     with the requirements of the grant or cooperative agreement, 
     if the recipient was notified of any noncompliance with such 
     requirements and given a reasonable period of time to remedy 
     such noncompliance;
       ``(2) the recipient has submitted to the Corporation a plan 
     for the use of those funds consistent with the national 
     service laws and, to the extent possible, for the benefit of 
     the community affected by the recovery of funds; and
       ``(3) the use of those funds in accordance with that plan 
     would serve to achieve the objectives of the grant or 
     cooperative agreement under which the funds were originally 
     paid.
       ``(b) Terms and Conditions of Repayment.--Any payments by 
     the Corporation under this section shall be subject to other 
     terms and conditions as the Corporation considers necessary 
     to accomplish the purposes of the grant or cooperative 
     agreement, including--
       ``(1) the submission of periodic reports on the use of 
     funds provided under this section; and
       ``(2) consultation by the recipient with members of the 
     community that will benefit from the payments.
       ``(c) Availability of Funds.--Notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, the funds made available under this section 
     shall remain available for expenditure for a period of time 
     considered reasonable by the Corporation, but in no case to 
     exceed more than 3 fiscal years following the later of--
       ``(1) the fiscal year in which final agency action 
     regarding the disallowance of funds is taken; or
       ``(2) if such recipient files a petition for judicial 
     review regarding the disallowance of funds, the fiscal year 
     in which final judicial action is taken on such a petition.
       ``(d) Publication in Federal Register.--At least 60 days 
     prior to entering into an arrangement under this section, the 
     Corporation shall publish in the Federal Register a notice of 
     intent to enter into such an arrangement and the terms and 
     conditions under which payments will be made. Interested 
     persons shall have an opportunity for at least 30 days to 
     submit comments to the Corporation regarding the proposed 
     arrangement.

     ``SEC. 188. EXPENSES OF ATTENDING MEETINGS.

       ``Notwithstanding section 1345 of title 31, United States 
     Code, funds authorized under the national service laws shall 
     be available for expenses of attendance of meetings that are 
     concerned with the functions or activities for which the 
     funds are appropriated or which will contribute to improved 
     conduct, supervision, or management of those functions or 
     activities.

     ``SEC. 189. GRANT PERIODS.

       ``Unless otherwise specifically provided, the Corporation 
     has authority to make a grant under the national service laws 
     for a period of 3 years.

     ``SEC. 189A. GENERATION OF VOLUNTEERS.

       ``In making decisions on applications for assistance or 
     approved national service positions under the national 
     service laws, the Corporation shall take into consideration 
     the extent to which the applicant's proposal will increase 
     the involvement of volunteers in meeting community needs.

     ``SEC. 189B. LIMITATION ON PROGRAM GRANT COSTS.

       ``(a) Limitation on Grant Amounts.--Except as otherwise 
     provided by this section, the amount of funds approved by the 
     Corporation in a grant to operate a program authorized under 
     the national service laws supporting individuals serving in 
     approved national service positions may not exceed $16,000 
     per full-time equivalent position.
       ``(b) Costs Subject to Limitation.--The limitation in 
     subsection (a) applies to the Corporation's share of member 
     support costs, staff costs, and other costs borne by the 
     grantee or subgrantee to operate a program.
       ``(c) Costs Not Subject to Limitation.--The limitation in 
     subsection (a) and (e)(1) shall not apply to expenses that 
     are not included in the program operating grant award.
       ``(d) Adjustments for Inflation.--The amount specified in 
     subsections (a) and (e)(1) shall be adjusted each year after 
     2008 for inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index 
     for All Urban Consumers published by the Secretary of Labor.
       ``(e) Waiver Authority and Reporting Requirement.--
       ``(1) Waiver.--The Chief Executive Officer may waive the 
     requirements of this section, up to a maximum of $18,000, if 
     necessary to meet the compelling needs of a particular 
     program, such as exceptional training needs for a program 
     serving disadvantaged youth, increased costs relating to the 
     participation of individuals with disabilities, and start-up 
     costs associated with a first-time grantee.
       ``(2) Reports.--The Chief Executive Officer shall report to 
     the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate annually on all waivers 
     granted under this section, with an explanation of the 
     compelling needs justifying such waivers.

     ``SEC. 189C. AUDITS AND REPORTS.

       ``The Corporation shall comply with applicable audit and 
     reporting requirements as provided in the Chief Financial 
     Officers Act of 1990 (31 U.S.C. 501 et seq.) and the 
     Government Corporation Control Act of 1945 (31 U.S.C. 9101 et 
     seq.). The Corporation shall report to the Congress any 
     failure to comply with the requirements of such audits.

     ``SEC. 189D. CRIMINAL HISTORY CHECKS.

       ``(a) In General.--Entities selecting individuals to serve 
     in a position in which the individual receives a Corporation 
     grant-funded living allowance, stipend, education award, 
     salary, or other remuneration in a program receiving 
     assistance under the national service laws, shall, subject to 
     regulations and requirements established by the Corporation, 
     conduct criminal history checks for such individuals.
       ``(b) Requirements.--A criminal history check shall, except 
     in cases approved for good cause by the Corporation, include 
     a name-based search of the National Sex Offender Registry 
     established under the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety 
     Act of 2006 (42 U.S.C. 16901 et seq.) and--
       ``(1) a search of the State criminal registry or repository 
     in the State in which the program is operating and the State 
     in which the individual resides at the time of application; 
     or
       ``(2) a Federal Bureau of Investigation fingerprint check.
       ``(c) Eligibility Prohibition.--An individual shall be 
     ineligible to serve in a position described under subsection 
     (a) if such individual--
       ``(1) refuses to consent to the criminal history check 
     described in subsection (b);
       ``(2) makes a false statement in connection with such 
     criminal history check;
       ``(3) is registered, or is required to be registered, on a 
     State sex offender registry or the National Sex Offender 
     Registry established under the Adam Walsh Child Protection 
     and Safety Act of 2006 (42 U.S.C. 16901 et seq.); or
       ``(4) has been convicted of murder, as described in section 
     1111 of title 18, United States Code.''.

  Subtitle G--Amendments to Subtitle G (Corporation for National and 
                           Community Service)

     SEC. 1701. TERMS OF OFFICE.

       Section 192 (42 U.S.C. 12651a) is amended--
       (1) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
       ``(c) Terms.--Subject to subsection (e), each appointed 
     member shall serve for a term of 5 years.'';
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) Service Until Appointment of Successor.--A voting 
     member of the Board whose term has expired may continue to 
     serve for one year beyond expiration of the term if no 
     successor is appointed or until the date on which a successor 
     has taken office.''.

     SEC. 1702. BOARD OF DIRECTORS AUTHORITIES AND DUTIES.

       Section 192A(g) (42 U.S.C. 12651b(g)) is amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by striking 
     ``shall--'' and inserting ``shall

[[Page H1483]]

     have responsibility for setting overall policy for the 
     Corporation and shall--'';
       (2) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the semicolon at 
     the end the following: ``, and review the budget proposal in 
     advance of submission to the Office of Management and Budget 
     and to Congress'';
       (3) in paragraph (5)--
       (A) in subparagraph (A) by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (B) in subparagraph (B) by inserting ``and'' at the end; 
     and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(C) review the performance of the Chief Executive Officer 
     annually and forward a report on that review to the 
     President;'';
       (4) in paragraph (9), by inserting ``and'' after 
     ``Corporation;'';
       (5) in paragraph (10), by striking ``program; and'' and 
     inserting ``program under a cost share agreement, as 
     determined by the Corporation, in which the funds advanced or 
     received as reimbursement shall be credited directly to a 
     current appropriation; and''; and
       (6) in paragraph (11), by striking ``September 30, 1995'' 
     and inserting ``January 1, 2011''.

     SEC. 1703. AUTHORITIES AND DUTIES OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE 
                   OFFICER.

       Section 193A (42 U.S.C. 12651d) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``a strategic 
     plan'' the following: ``, including a plan for achieving 50 
     percent full-time approved national service positions by 
     2010,'';
       (B) by redesignating paragraphs (7) through (11) as 
     paragraphs (8) through (12), respectively;
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (6) the following:
       ``(7) prepare and submit to the Committee on Education and 
     Labor in the United States House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions in the 
     United States Senate, and the Board an annual report on 
     actions taken to achieve the goal of 50 percent full-time 
     approved national service positions as described in paragraph 
     (1), including an assessment of the progress made toward 
     achieving that goal and the actions to be taken in the coming 
     year toward achieving that goal;''; and
       (D) in paragraph (11) (as so redesignated)--
       (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``June 30, 1995,'' and inserting ``June 30 of each even-
     numbered year,''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (A)(i), by striking ``section 
     122(c)(1)'' and inserting ``section 122(d)(1)'';
       (2) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (9), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (B) by redesignating paragraph (10) as paragraph (11); and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (9) the following:
       ``(10) obtain the opinions of peer reviewers in evaluating 
     applications to the Corporation for assistance under this 
     title; and''; and
       (3) by amending subsection (g) to read as follows:
       ``(g) Recruitment and Public Awareness Functions.--The 
     Chief Executive Officer shall assign or hire, as necessary, 
     such additional national, regional, and State personnel to 
     carry out such recruiting and public awareness functions of 
     the Office of Outreach and Recruitment to ensure that such 
     functions are carried out in a timely and effective manner. 
     The Chief Executive Officer shall give priority in the hiring 
     of such additional personnel to individuals who have formerly 
     served as volunteers in the programs carried out under the 
     national service laws or similar programs, and to individuals 
     who have specialized experience in the recruitment of 
     volunteers.''.

     SEC. 1704. NONVOTING MEMBERS; PERSONAL SERVICES CONTRACTS.

       Section 195 (42 U.S.C. 12651f) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (2)(B), by inserting after ``subdivision 
     of a State,'' the following: ``Territory,''; and
       (B) in paragraph (3)--
       (i) in the heading, by striking ``Member'' and inserting 
     ``Non-voting member''; and
       (ii) by inserting ``non-voting'' before ``member''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(g) Personal Services Contracts.--The Corporation may 
     enter into personal services contracts to carry out research, 
     evaluation, and public awareness related to the national 
     service laws.''.

     SEC. 1705. DONATED SERVICES.

       Section 196(a) (42 U.S.C. 12651g(a)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(A) Organizations and individuals.--Notwithstanding 
     section 1342 of title 31, United States Code, the Corporation 
     may solicit and accept the services of organizations and 
     individuals (other than participants) to assist the 
     Corporation in carrying out the duties of the Corporation 
     under the national service laws, and may provide to such 
     individuals the travel expenses described in section 
     192A(d).'';
       (B) in subparagraph (B)--
       (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ``Such 
     a volunteer'' and inserting ``A person who is a member of an 
     organization or is an individual covered by subparagraph 
     (A)'';
       (ii) in clause (i), by striking ``a volunteer'' and 
     inserting ``such a person'';
       (iii) in clause (ii), by striking ``volunteers'' and 
     inserting ``such a person''; and
       (iv) in clause (iii), by striking ``such a volunteer'' and 
     inserting ``such a person''; and
       (C) in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking ``Such a 
     volunteer'' and inserting ``Such a person''; and
       (2) by striking paragraph (3).

     SEC. 1706. OFFICE OF OUTREACH AND RECRUITMENT.

       Subtitle G of title I is further amended by adding at the 
     end the following:

     ``SEC. 196B. OFFICE OF OUTREACH AND RECRUITMENT.

       ``(a) Establishment.--There is established in the 
     Corporation an office to be known as the Office of Outreach 
     and Recruitment (in this section referred to as the 
     `Office'), headed by a Director.
       ``(b) Duties.--The duties of the Office, carried out 
     directly or through grants, contracts, or cooperative 
     agreements, shall be--
       ``(1) to increase the public awareness of the wide range of 
     service opportunities for citizens of all ages, regardless of 
     socioeconomic status or geographic location, through a 
     variety of methods, including--
       ``(A) print media;
       ``(B) the Internet and related emerging technologies;
       ``(C) television;
       ``(D) radio;
       ``(E) presentations at public or private forums;
       ``(F) other innovative methods of communication; and
       ``(G) outreach to offices of economic development, State 
     employment security agencies, labor unions and trade 
     associations, local education agencies, institutions of 
     higher education, agencies and organizations serving veterans 
     and people with disabilities, and other institutions or 
     organizations from which participants for programs receiving 
     assistance from the national service laws can be recruited;
       ``(2) to identify and implement methods of recruitment to 
     increase the diversity of participants in the programs 
     receiving assistance under the national service laws;
       ``(3) to collaborate with organizations with demonstrated 
     expertise in supporting and accommodating individuals with 
     disabilities, including institutions of higher education, to 
     identify and implement methods of recruitment to increase the 
     number of participants with disabilities in the programs 
     receiving assistance under the national service laws;
       ``(4) to identify and implement recruitment strategies and 
     training programs for bilingual volunteers in the National 
     Senior Service Corps under title II of the Domestic Volunteer 
     Service Act of 1973;
       ``(5) to identify and implement methods of recruitment to 
     increase the diversity of service sponsors of programs 
     desiring to receive assistance under the national service 
     laws;
       ``(6) to collaborate with organizations which have 
     established volunteer recruitment programs, including those 
     on the Internet, to increase the recruitment capacity of the 
     Corporation;
       ``(7) where practicable, to provide application materials 
     in languages other than English for those with limited 
     English proficiency who wish to participate in a national 
     service program;
       ``(8) to coordinate with organizations of former 
     participants of national service programs for service 
     opportunities that may include capacity building, outreach, 
     and recruitment for programs receiving assistance under the 
     national service laws;
       ``(9) to collaborate with the training and technical 
     assistance programs described in subtitle J and in 
     appropriate paragraphs of section 198E(b);
       ``(10) to coordinate the clearinghouses described in 
     section 198E; and
       ``(11) to coordinate with entities receiving funds under 
     section 198E(b)(11) in establishing the Reserve Corps for 
     alumni of the national service programs to serve in 
     emergencies, disasters, and other times of national need.
       ``(c) Collaboration.--The duties described in subsection 
     (b) shall be carried out in collaboration with the State 
     Commissions.
       ``(d) Authority To Contract With a Business.--The 
     Corporation may, through contracts or cooperative agreements, 
     carry out the marketing duties described in subsection 
     (b)(1), with priority given to those entities who have 
     established expertise in the recruitment of disadvantaged 
     youth, members of Indian tribes, and members of the Baby Boom 
     generation.
       ``(e) Campaign To Solicit Funds.--The Corporation, through 
     the Director of the Office, may conduct a campaign to solicit 
     funds for itself to conduct outreach and recruitment 
     campaigns to recruit a diverse population of service sponsors 
     of and participants in programs and projects receiving 
     assistance under the national service laws.
       ``(f) Reporting.--The Director of the Office shall complete 
     a report annually to the Chief Executive Officer and the 
     Board of Directors on its activities and results.''.

     SEC. 1707. STUDY TO EXAMINE AND INCREASE SERVICE PROGRAMS FOR 
                   VETERANS AND VETERANS PARTICIPATION IN PROGRAMS 
                   UNDER THE NATIONAL SERVICE LAWS AND TO DEVELOP 
                   PILOT PROGRAM.

       Subtitle G of title I is further amended by adding at the 
     end the following:

[[Page H1484]]

     ``SEC. 196C. STUDY TO EXAMINE AND INCREASE SERVICE PROGRAMS 
                   FOR VETERANS AND VETERANS PARTICIPATION IN 
                   PROGRAMS UNDER THE NATIONAL SERVICE LAWS AND TO 
                   DEVELOP PILOT PROGRAM.

       ``(a) Planning Study.--The Corporation for National and 
     Community Service shall conduct a study to identify--
       ``(1) specific areas of need for veterans;
       ``(2) how existing programs and activities carried out 
     under the national service laws could better serve veterans 
     and veterans service organizations;
       ``(3) gaps in service to veterans;
       ``(4) prospects for better coordination of services;
       ``(5) prospects for better utilization of veterans as 
     resources and volunteers; and
       ``(6) methods for ensuring the efficient financial 
     organization of services directed towards veterans.
       ``(b) Consultation.--The study shall be carried out in 
     consultation with veterans' service organizations, the 
     Department of Veterans Affairs, State veterans agencies, the 
     Department of Defense, and other individuals and entities the 
     Corporation considers appropriate.
       ``(c) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
     enactment of this section, the Corporation shall submit to 
     the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate a report on the results of 
     the planning study required by subsection (a), together with 
     a plan for implementation of a pilot program using promising 
     strategies and approaches for better targeting and serving 
     veterans.
       ``(d) Pilot Program.--From amounts made available to carry 
     out this section, the Corporation shall develop and carry out 
     a pilot program based on the findings in the report submitted 
     under subsection (c).
       ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are 
     authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section such 
     sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2008 
     through 2012.''.

     SEC. 1708. COORDINATION WITH VETERANS ORGANIZATIONS SERVING 
                   VETERANS WITH DISABILITIES.

       The Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and 
     Community Service shall coordinate with veterans 
     organizations serving veterans with disabilities to provide 
     opportunities for young people enrolled in existing NACS 
     programs to provide transportation services on a full-time, 
     part-time, or as-needed basis.

     SEC. 1709. STUDY TO EXAMINE AND INCREASE SERVICE PROGRAMS FOR 
                   DISPLACED WORKERS IN SERVICES CORPS AND 
                   COMMUNITY SERVICE AND TO DEVELOP PILOT PROGRAM 
                   PLANNING STUDY.

       (a) Planning Study.--The Corporation for National and 
     Community Service shall conduct a study to identify--
       (1) specific areas of need for displaced workers;
       (2) how existing programs and activities carried out under 
     the national service laws could better serve displaced 
     workers and communities that have been adversely affected by 
     plant closings and job losses;
       (3) prospects for better utilization of skilled workers as 
     resources and volunteers; and
       (4) methods for ensuring the efficient financial 
     organization of services directed towards displaced workers.
       (b) Consultation.--The study shall be carried out in 
     consultation with the Department of Labor, State labor 
     agencies, and other individuals and entities the Corporation 
     considers appropriate.
       (c) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Corporation shall submit to the 
     Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate a report on the results of 
     the planning study required by subsection (a), together with 
     a plan for implementation of a pilot program using promising 
     strategies and approaches for better targeting and serving 
     displaced workers.
       (d) Pilot Program.--From amounts made available to carry 
     out this section, the Corporation shall develop and carry out 
     a pilot program based on the findings in the report submitted 
     under subsection (c).
       (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may 
     be necessary for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2012.

                  Subtitle H--Amendments to Subtitle H

     SEC. 1801. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO SUBTITLE H.

       (a) Additional Corporation Activities To Support National 
     Service.--Subtitle H is amended by inserting after the 
     subtitle heading and before section 198 the following:

    ``PART I--ADDITIONAL CORPORATION ACTIVITIES TO SUPPORT NATIONAL 
                               SERVICE''.

       (b) Technical Amendments.--Section 198 (42 U.S.C. 12653) is 
     amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``subsection (r)'' and 
     inserting ``subsection (g)'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``national service 
     programs, including service-learning programs, and to support 
     innovative and model programs, including'' and inserting 
     ``service-learning programs and national service programs, 
     including'';
       (3) by striking subsections (c), (d), (e), and (f);
       (4) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (c);
       (5) by striking subsections (h), (i), and (j);
       (6) by redesignating subsection (k) as subsection (d);
       (7) by striking subsections (l) and (m);
       (8) by redesignating subsections (n) and (o) as subsections 
     (e) and (f), respectively;
       (9) by striking subsection (p); and
       (10) by redesignating subsections (q), (r), and (s) as (g), 
     (h), and (i), respectively.

     SEC. 1802. REPEALS.

       The following provisions are repealed:
       (1) Clearinghouses.--Section 198A (42 U.S.C. 12653a).
       (2) Military installation conversion demonstration 
     programs.--Section 198C (42 U.S.C. 12653c).
       (3) Special demonstration project.--Section 198D (42 U.S.C. 
     12653d).

     SEC. 1803. INNOVATIVE AND MODEL PROGRAM SUPPORT.

       Subtitle H is further amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

            ``PART II--INNOVATIVE AND MODEL PROGRAM SUPPORT

     ``SEC. 198D. INNOVATIVE AND MODEL PROGRAM SUPPORT.

       ``(a) Methods of Conducting Activities.--The Corporation 
     may, through grants and fixed amount grants under subsection 
     (c), carry out the following programs:
       ``(1) Programs for disadvantaged youth.--A program selected 
     from among those listed in 122(a) where no less than 75 
     percent of the participants are disadvantaged youth.
       ``(A) Components of programs.--Such programs may include 
     life skills training, employment training, educational 
     counseling, program to complete a high-school diploma or GED, 
     counseling, or a mentoring relationship with an adult 
     volunteer.
       ``(B) Priority.--Priority shall be given to programs that 
     engage retirees to serve as mentors.
       ``(2) Programs focused on learning and thinking skills.--
     Service programs to solve community problems while engaging 
     or developing 21st century learning and thinking skills 
     (critical-thinking and problem solving, communication skills, 
     creativity and innovation skills, collaboration skills, 
     contextual learning skills, information and media literacy 
     skills, and information and communications literacy) and life 
     skills (leadership, ethics, accountability, adaptability, 
     personal productivity, personal responsibility, people 
     skills, self-direction, and social responsibility) for 
     school-age youth and low income adults. This may be a summer 
     of service program or a year-round service program. Priority 
     shall be given to programs that collaborate with the RSVP 
     program, the AmeriCorps programs, or the Learn and Serve 
     programs.
       ``(3) Programs that engage youth under the age of 17.--
     Programs that engage youth under the age of 17 in service to 
     the community to meet unmet human, educational, 
     environmental, emergency and disaster preparedness, or public 
     safety needs and may be a summer program or a year-round 
     program. Priority shall be given to programs that collaborate 
     with the RSVP Program and the AmeriCorps programs.
       ``(4) Programs that focus on health and wellness.--Service 
     programs that focus on the health and wellness of the members 
     of a low-income or rural community. Priority shall be given 
     to service programs that work to--
       ``(A) involve the community in service to those who are at-
     risk to not receive or pursue health care through such 
     activities as health and wellness education, prevention, and 
     care;
       ``(B) include in the service program employment training, 
     where applicable, for participants in the program and may 
     extend this opportunity to members of the community; and
       ``(C) collaborate with local institutions of higher 
     education to include, as a portion of the pre-professional 
     training of health care professionals including nurses, 
     doctors, physician assistants, dentists, and emergency 
     medical technicians, a service component to meet unmet 
     healthcare and wellness needs in the community in which the 
     service program is being carried out.
       ``(5) Silver scholarship programs.--A Silver Scholarship 
     program for citizens age 55 and older to complete no less 
     than 600 hours of service in a year meeting unmet human, 
     educational, public safety, or environmental needs and 
     receive a $1000 education award, provided that--
       ``(A) the Corporation establishes criteria for the types of 
     the service required to be performed to receive such award; 
     and
       ``(B) the citizen uses such award in accordance with 
     sections 146(c), 146(d), and 148(c).
       ``(6) Programs that reduce recidivism.--Programs that re-
     engage court-involved youth and adults with the goal of 
     reducing recidivism. Priority shall be given to such programs 
     that create support systems beginning in corrections 
     facilities, and programs that have life skills training, 
     employment training, an education program, including a 
     program to complete a high-school diploma or GED, educational 
     and career counseling, post program placement, and support 
     services, which could begin in corrections facilities. The 
     program may include health and wellness programs, including 
     but not limited to drug and alcohol treatment, mental health 
     counseling, and smoking cessation.

[[Page H1485]]

       ``(7) Programs that recruit certain individuals.--
     Demonstration projects for programs that have as one of their 
     primary purposes the recruitment and acceptance of court-
     involved youth and adults as participants, volunteers, or 
     members. Such a program may serve any purpose otherwise 
     permitted under this Act.
       ``(8) Other innovative and model programs.--Any other 
     innovative and model programs that the Corporation considers 
     appropriate.
       ``(b) Requirements.--
       ``(1) Three-year term.--Each program funded under this part 
     shall be carried out over a period of three years, including 
     one planning year and two additional grant years, with a 1-
     year extension possible, if the program meets performance 
     measures developed in accordance with section 179(a) and any 
     other criteria determined by the Corporation.
       ``(2) Matching funds.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of 
     carrying out a program for which a grant is made under this 
     part may not exceed 76 percent of the total cost of the 
     program in the first year and may not exceed 50 percent of 
     the total cost of the program for the remaining years of the 
     grant, including if the grant is extended for 1 year.
       ``(B) Non-federal contribution.--In providing for the 
     remaining share of the cost of carrying out such a program, 
     each recipient of a grant under this part--
       ``(i) shall provide for such share through a payment in 
     cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, including facilities, 
     equipment, or services; and
       ``(ii) may provide for such share through State sources or 
     local sources, including private funds or donated services.
       ``(3) Collaboration encouraged.--Each program funded under 
     this part is encouraged to collaborate with Learn and Serve, 
     AmeriCorps, VISTA, and the National Senior Service Corps.
       ``(4) Evaluation.--Upon completion of the program, the 
     Corporation shall conduct an independent evaluation of the 
     program and widely disseminate the results to the service 
     community through multiple channels, including the 
     Corporation's Resource Center or a clearinghouse of effective 
     strategies, and recommendations for improvement.
       ``(c) Fixed Amount Grants.--
       ``(1) General.--For purposes of subsection (a), and subject 
     to the limitations in this subsection, the Corporation may, 
     upon making a determination described in paragraph (2), 
     approve a fixed amount grant that is not subject to the 
     Office of Management and Budget cost principles and related 
     financial recordkeeping requirements.
       ``(2) Determination.--Before approving a fixed amount 
     grant, the Corporation must determine that--
       ``(A) the reasonable and necessary costs of carrying out 
     the terms of the grant significantly exceed the amount of 
     assistance provided by the Corporation; or
       ``(B) based on the nature or design of the grant, any 
     assistance provided by the Corporation can be reasonably 
     presumed to be expended on reasonable and necessary costs.
       ``(d) Applications.--To be eligible to carry out a program 
     under this part, an entity shall prepare, submit to the 
     Corporation, and obtain approval of, an application at such 
     time and in such manner as the Chief Executive Officer may 
     reasonably require.''.

     SEC. 1804. CLEARINGHOUSES.

       Subtitle H is further amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

          ``PART III--NATIONAL SERVICE PROGRAMS CLEARINGHOUSE

     ``SEC. 198E. NATIONAL SERVICE PROGRAMS CLEARINGHOUSE.

       ``(a) In General.--The Corporation shall provide 
     assistance, either by grant, contract, or cooperative 
     agreement, to entities with expertise in the dissemination of 
     information through clearinghouses to establish one or more 
     clearinghouses for the national service laws.
       ``(b) Function of Clearinghouse.--Such a clearinghouse 
     may--
       ``(1) assist entities carrying out State or local service-
     learning and national service programs with needs assessments 
     and planning;
       ``(2) conduct research and evaluations concerning service-
     learning or programs receiving assistance under the national 
     service laws unless the recipient is receiving funds for such 
     purpose under part III of subtitle B and under subtitle H;
       ``(3)(A) provide leadership development and training to 
     State and local service-learning program administrators, 
     supervisors, service sponsors, and participants; and
       ``(B) provide training to persons who can provide the 
     leadership development and training described in subparagraph 
     (A);
       ``(4) facilitate communication among entities carrying out 
     service-learning programs and programs offered under the 
     national service laws and participants in such programs;
       ``(5) provide and disseminate information and curriculum 
     materials relating to planning and operating service-learning 
     programs and programs offered under the national service 
     laws, to States, Territories, Indian tribes, and local 
     entities eligible to receive financial assistance under the 
     national service laws;
       ``(6) provide and disseminate information regarding methods 
     to make service-learning programs and programs offered under 
     the national service laws accessible to individuals with 
     disabilities;
       ``(7) disseminate applications in languages other than 
     English;
       ``(8)(A) gather and disseminate information on successful 
     service-learning programs and programs offered under the 
     national service laws, components of such successful 
     programs, innovative curricula related to service-learning, 
     and service-learning projects; and
       ``(B) coordinate the activities of the Clearinghouse with 
     appropriate entities to avoid duplication of effort;
       ``(9) make recommendations to State and local entities on 
     quality controls to improve the quality of service-learning 
     programs and programs offered under the national service 
     laws;
       ``(10) assist organizations in recruiting, screening, and 
     placing a diverse population of service-learning coordinators 
     and program sponsors;
       ``(11) collaborate with the Office of Outreach and 
     Recruitment on an alumni network for those former 
     participants in an approved national service position, to 
     facilitate communication and collaboration between alumni and 
     to leverage their skills, knowledge, and experiences to 
     improve service across our Nation and also serve in a Reserve 
     Corps, who are ready to serve in times of national need;
       ``(12) disseminate effective strategies for working with 
     disadvantaged youth in national service programs as 
     determined by organizations with an established expertise 
     working with such youth; and
       ``(13) carry out such other activities as the Chief 
     Executive Officer determines to be appropriate.''.

                 Subtitle I--Energy Conservation Corps

     SEC. 1811. GENERAL AUTHORITY.

       The Corporation for National and Community Service (in this 
     subtitle referred to as the ``Corporation'') shall make 
     grants to States for the creation or expansion of full-time 
     or part-time Energy Conservation Corps programs. 
     Notwithstanding provisions identified in this subtitle, the 
     Corporation shall apply the provisions of subtitle C of this 
     subchapter in making grants under this section as necessary.

     SEC. 1812. APPLICATION.

       (a) In General.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
     this subtitle, a State shall invite applications from within 
     the State to receive an Energy Conservation Corps grant.
       (b) Process.--The State shall then prepare and submit a 
     State application to the Corporation at such time, in such 
     manner, and containing such information as the Corporation 
     may reasonably require. The Corporation shall consult with 
     state and local Conservation Corps in the development of the 
     application guidelines.
       (c) Disadvantaged Youth.--To acknowledge the focused 
     enrollment of disadvantaged youth and young adults in the 
     Energy Conservation Corps, the Corporation shall--
       (1) allow a higher cost-per-member to enable Energy 
     Conservation Corps programs to provide the necessary 
     supportive services to ensure the success of the 
     participants; and
       (2) allow for greater flexibility in retention rates.
       (d) Consideration of Residential Corps.--The Corporation 
     shall allow for equal consideration of residential Corps 
     program opportunities since residential Corps thrive in rural 
     areas that commonly lack opportunities for young adults, 
     enable the participation for emancipated foster youth, gang 
     involved youth, and others lacking a safe and stable home 
     environment, allow for more structured time for work, 
     training, education and counseling, and provide disaster 
     response-ready crews immediately upon request.
       (e) Equitable Treatment.--In the consideration of 
     applications, the Corporation shall ensure the equitable 
     treatment of both urban and rural areas.

     SEC. 1813. FOCUS OF PROGRAMS.

       (a) In General.--Programs that receive assistance under 
     this subtitle may carry out activities that--
       (1) meet an identifiable public need with specific emphasis 
     on projects in support of energy conservation, infrastructure 
     and transportation improvement, and emergency operations, 
     including--
       (A) improving the energy efficiency of housing for elderly 
     and low-income people;
       (B) building energy-efficient ``green'' housing for elderly 
     and low-income people;
       (C) environmental education and energy conservation 
     education for elementary and secondary school students and 
     the public;
       (D) reusing and recycling including deconstruction;
       (E) the repair, renovation, or rehabilitation of an 
     existing infrastructure facility including, but not limited 
     to, rail, mass transportation, ports, inland navigation, 
     schools and hospitals;
       (F) transportation enhancements;
       (G) recreational trails improvements, including those that 
     enable alternative means of transportation and ensure safe 
     use;
       (H) transformation of military bases affected by the Base 
     Realignment and Closing process (BRAC) to green the space;
       (I) tree planting and reforestation;
       (J) renewable resource enhancement; and
       (K) assisting in emergency operations, such as disaster 
     prevention and relief; and
       (2) provide opportunities for youth and young adults, 
     especially disadvantaged

[[Page H1486]]

     youth, to be trained for careers related to the activities 
     listed in paragraph (1), including those that will be part of 
     the emerging field of ``green collar'' jobs.
       (b) Goals of the Energy Conservation Corps.--The goals of 
     the Energy Conservation Corps are to--
       (1) promote clean energy use and preserve, protect, and 
     sustain the environment;
       (2) provide young adults with opportunities to become 
     better citizens, students and workers through meaningful 
     service to their communities and the nation;
       (3) mobilize youth and young adults, especially 
     disadvantaged youth, to promote energy conservation and 
     mitigate threats to the environment; and
       (4) provide a pathway to responsible adulthood and 
     productive, unsubsidized employment in the private sector.

     SEC. 1814. TRAINING AND EDUCATION SERVICES.

       All applicants must describe how they intend to--
       (1) assess the skills of Corpsmembers;
       (2) provide life skills and work skills training;
       (3) provide training and education;
       (4) develop agreements for academic study with--
       (A) local education agencies;
       (B) community colleges;
       (C) 4-year colleges;
       (D) area charter high schools and vocational-technical 
     schools; and
       (E) community-based organizations;
       (5) provide career and educational guidance; and
       (6) Recruit participants without high school diplomas.

     SEC. 1815. PREFERENCE FOR CERTAIN PROJECTS.

       In the consideration of applications the Corporation shall 
     give preference to programs that are discrete and--
       (1) meet an identifiable public need;
       (2) instill a work ethic and a sense of public service in 
     the participants;
       (3) involve youth operating in crews or a team-based 
     structure; and
       (4) enhance skills development and educational level and 
     opportunities for the participants.

     SEC. 1816. PARTICIPANTS.

       (a) In General.--Age enrollment in programs that receive 
     assistance under this subtitle shall be limited to 
     individuals who, at the time of enrollment, are not less than 
     18 years nor more than 25 years of age, except that summer 
     programs may include individuals not less than 14 years or 
     more than 21 years of age at the time of the enrollment of 
     such individuals.
       (b) Participation of Disadvantaged Youth.--Programs that 
     receive assistance under this subtitle shall ensure that at 
     least 50 percent of the participants are economically 
     disadvantaged youth.
       (c) Special Corpsmembers.--Notwithstanding subsection (a) 
     of this section, program agencies may enroll a limited number 
     of special Corpsmembers over age 25 so that the Energy 
     Conservation Corps may draw on their special skills to 
     fulfill the purposes of this subtitle.

     SEC. 1817. USE OF VOLUNTEERS.

       The use of volunteer services under this section shall be 
     subject to the condition that such use does not result in the 
     displacement of any participant.

     SEC. 1818. COOPERATION AMONG STATES FOR EMERGENCY RESPONSE.

       (a) Agreements Between States.--States operating an Energy 
     Conservation Corps may enter into a compact with 
     participating states to provide for mutual cooperation to 
     manage any emergency or disaster that is duly declared by the 
     affected state.
       (b) Participating State Responsibilities.--
       (1) The authorized representative of a participating state 
     may request assistance of another party by contracting the 
     authorized representative of that state. The provisions of 
     this agreement shall only apply to requests for assistance 
     made by and to authorized representatives.
       (2) There shall be frequent consultation between state 
     officials who have assigned emergency management 
     responsibilities and other appropriate representatives of the 
     party states with affected jurisdictions and the United 
     States Government, with free exchange of information, plans, 
     and resource records relating to emergency capabilities.

     SEC. 1819. FEDERAL SHARE.

       The federal share of the cost of carrying out an Energy 
     Conservation Corps program for which a grant is made under 
     this subtitle is 76 percent of the total cost of the program.

     SEC. 1820. BEST PRACTICES.

       (a) Training and Technical Assistance.--The Corporation 
     shall provide technical assistance to grantees that request 
     assistance and shall disseminate best practices that emerge 
     from the Energy Conservation Corps.
       (b) Contract.--In providing training and technical 
     assistance, the Corporation shall contract with a national 
     organization with a proven track record of developing and 
     sustaining Corps, working with the Conservation Corps model, 
     and engaging young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

     SEC. 1820A. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       (a) In General.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     such sums as may be necessary for fiscal years 2008 through 
     2010 to achieve the purposes of this subtitle.
       (b) Allocation.--Of the amounts appropriated to carry out 
     this subtitle for each fiscal year--
       (1) 90 percent shall be for grants to eligible entities;
       (2) 5 percent shall be technical assistance, and 
     dissemination of best practices; and
       (3) 5 percent shall be for evaluation.

     SEC. 1820B. LEARN AND SERVE AMERICA.

       (a) In General.--To promote Learn and Serve programs that 
     have the potential to reach every student in our public 
     education network and private schools through school-based 
     green service-learning, the Corporation shall establish a 
     competitive grant program for the creation or expansion of 
     such service learning programs.
       (b) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
     this section, a State Education Agency, Local education 
     Agency, or nonprofit organization shall submit an application 
     with such information and in such time as the Corporation may 
     require.
       (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--For this purpose, 
     there are authorized to be appropriated $10,000,000 for 
     fiscal year 2009 and such sums as may be necessary 
     thereafter.

     SEC. 1820C. NATIONAL SENIOR SERVICE CORPS.

       (a) In General.--To promote National Senior Service Corps 
     programs that have the potential to both involve seniors in 
     providing meaningful volunteer opportunities the Corporation 
     shall establish a competitive grant program for the creation 
     or expansion of National Senior Service Corps programs that--
       (1) make effective use of the talents and experience of 
     seniors, particularly baby boomers, in programs and projects 
     involving seniors in the improvement of the energy efficiency 
     of housing for elderly and low-income people;
       (2) building or helping to supervise energy-efficient 
     ``green'' housing for elderly and low-income people; the 
     repair, renovation, or rehabilitation of an existing 
     infrastructure facility including, but not limited to, rail, 
     mass transportation, ports, inland navigation, schools and 
     hospitals; transportation enhancements; recreational trails 
     improvements, including those that enable alternative means 
     of transportation and ensure safe use;
       (3) volunteering in schools to teach or other support 
     environmental education and energy conservation education for 
     elementary and secondary school students and the public; and
       (4) assisting in such other activities as the National 
     Senior Service Corps may identify.
       (b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
     this section, a program in the National Senior Service Corps 
     shall submit an application with such information and in such 
     time as the Corporation may require.
       (c) Authorization.--For this purpose, there is authorized 
     to be appropriated $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2009 and such 
     sums as may be necessary thereafter.

             Subtitle II--Training and Technical Assistance

     SEC. 1821. TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

       Title I is further amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subtitle:

            ``Subtitle J--Training and Technical Assistance

     ``SEC. 199N. TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

       ``(a) In General.--The Corporation shall conduct, either 
     directly or through grants, contracts, or cooperative 
     agreements, including through State Commissions on National 
     and Community Service, appropriate training and technical 
     assistance to--
       ``(1) programs receiving assistance under the national 
     service laws; and
       ``(2) entities (particularly those in rural areas and 
     underserved communities)--
       ``(A) that desire to carry out or establish national 
     service programs;
       ``(B) that desire to apply for assistance under the 
     national service laws; or
       ``(C) that desire to apply for a subgrant under the 
     national service laws.
       ``(b) Activities Included.--Such training and technical 
     assistance activities may include--
       ``(1) providing technical assistance to those applying to 
     carry out national service programs or those carrying out 
     national service programs;
       ``(2) promoting leadership development in national service 
     programs;
       ``(3) improving the instructional and programmatic quality 
     of national service programs;
       ``(4) developing the management and budgetary skills of 
     those operating or overseeing national service programs, 
     including to increase the cost effectiveness of the programs 
     under the national service laws;
       ``(5) providing for or improving the training provided to 
     the participants in programs under the national service laws;
       ``(6) facilitating the education of national service 
     programs in risk management procedures, including the 
     training of participants in appropriate risk management 
     practices;
       ``(7) training of those operating or overseeing national 
     service programs in volunteer recruitment, management, and 
     retention to improve the abilities of such individuals to use 
     participants and other volunteers in an effective manner 
     which results in high quality service and the desire of 
     participants or volunteers to continue to serve in other 
     capacities after the program is completed;
       ``(8) training of those operating or overseeing national 
     service programs in program evaluation and performance 
     measures to inform practices to augment the capacity and 
     sustainability of the program;

[[Page H1487]]

       ``(9) training of those operating or overseeing national 
     service programs to effectively accommodate people with 
     disabilities to increase the participation of people with 
     disabilities in national service programs. Such activities 
     may utilize funding from the reservation of funds to increase 
     the participation of individuals with disabilities as 
     described in section 129(k);
       ``(10) establishing networks and collaboration among 
     employers, educators, and other key stakeholders in the 
     community to further leverage resources to increase local 
     participation and to coordinate community-wide planning and 
     service;
       ``(11) providing training and technical assistance for the 
     National Senior Service Corps, including providing such 
     training and technical assistance to programs receiving 
     assistance under section 201 of the Domestic Volunteer 
     Service Act of 1973; and
       ``(12) carrying out such other activities as the Chief 
     Executive Officer determines to be appropriate.
       ``(c) Priority.--The Corporation shall give priority to 
     programs under the national service laws and those entities 
     wishing to establish programs under the national service laws 
     seeking training or technical assistance that--
       ``(1) seek to carry out (as defined in section 101) high 
     quality programs where the services are needed most;
       ``(2) seek to carry out (as defined in section 101) high 
     quality programs where national service programs do not 
     currently exist or where the programs are too limited to meet 
     community needs;
       ``(3) seek to carry out (as defined in section 101) high 
     quality programs that focus on and provide service 
     opportunities for underserved rural and urban areas and 
     populations; and
       ``(4) assist programs in developing a service component 
     that combines students, out-of-school youths, and older 
     adults as participants to provide needed community 
     services.''.

     Subtitle III--Repeal of Title III (Points of Light Foundation)

     SEC. 1831. REPEAL.

       Title III (42 U.S.C. 12661 et seq.) is repealed.

  Subtitle IV--Amendments to Title V (Authorization of Appropriations)

     SEC. 1841. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       Section 501 (42 U.S.C. 12681) is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``SEC. 501. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       ``(a) Title I.--
       ``(1) Subtitle b.--
       ``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     to provide financial assistance under subtitle B of title I--
       ``(i) $65,000,000 for fiscal year 2008; and
       ``(ii) such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal 
     years 2009 through 2012.
       ``(B) Programs.--Of the amount appropriated under 
     subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year--
       ``(i) not more than 60 percent shall be available to 
     provide financial assistance under part I of subtitle B of 
     title I;
       ``(ii) not more than 25 percent shall be available to 
     provide financial assistance under part II of such subtitle; 
     and
       ``(iii) not less than 15 percent shall be available to 
     provide financial assistance under part III of such subtitle.
       ``(C) Summer of service.--Of the amount appropriated under 
     subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year, up to $10,000,000 shall 
     be for summer of service grants and up to $10,000,000 shall 
     be deposited in the National Service Trust to support summer 
     of service educational awards, consistent with section 
     118(c)(8).
       ``(2) Subtitles c, d, and h.--
       ``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     to provide financial assistance under subtitles C and H of 
     title I, to administer the National Service Trust and 
     disburse national service educational awards and scholarships 
     under subtitle D of title I, and to carry out such audits and 
     evaluations as the Chief Executive Officer or the Inspector 
     General of the Corporation may determine to be necessary, 
     $485,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, and such sums as may be 
     necessary for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.
       ``(B) Programs.--Of the amount appropriated under 
     subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year, up to 15 percent shall be 
     made available to provide financial assistance under 
     subsections (b) and (c) of section 126, and under subtitle H 
     of title I.
       ``(C) Subtitle c.--Of the amount appropriated under 
     subparagraph (A), the following amounts shall be made 
     available to provide financial assistance under section 121 
     of subtitle C of title I:
       ``(i) For fiscal year 2008, not more than $324,000,000.
       ``(ii) For fiscal year 2009, not more than $357,000,000.
       ``(iii) For fiscal year 2010, not more than $397,000,000.
       ``(iv) For each of fiscal years 2011 through 2012, such 
     sums as may be necessary.
       ``(D) Priority.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     this Act, in obligating the amounts made available pursuant 
     to the authorization of appropriations in subparagraph (C), 
     priority shall be given to programs carried out in areas for 
     which the President has declared the existence of a major 
     disaster, in accordance with section 401 of the Robert T. 
     Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 
     U.S.C. 5170), as a consequence of Hurricanes Katrina and 
     Rita.
       ``(3) Subtitle e.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     to operate the National Civilian Community Corps and provide 
     financial assistance under subtitle E of title I, $25,000,000 
     for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for 
     each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.
       ``(4) Administration.--
       ``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     for the administration of this Act, including financial 
     assistance under sections 126(a) and 196B, $51,000,000 for 
     fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each 
     of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.
       ``(B) Corporation.--Of the amounts appropriated under 
     subparagraph (A) for a fiscal year--
       ``(i) up to 69 percent shall be made available to the 
     Corporation for the administration of this Act, including to 
     provide financial assistance under section 196B; and
       ``(ii) the remainder shall be available to provide 
     financial assistance under section 126(a).
       ``(5) Training and technical assistance.--Of the amounts 
     appropriated for a fiscal year under subtitles B, C, and H of 
     title I of this Act and under titles I and II of the Domestic 
     Volunteer Service Act of 1973, the Corporation shall reserve 
     up to 2.5 percent to carry out subtitle J of this Act. 
     Notwithstanding subsection (b), amounts so reserved shall be 
     available only for the fiscal year for which they are 
     reserved.
       ``(b) Availability of Appropriations.--Funds appropriated 
     under this section shall remain available until expended.''.

   TITLE II--AMENDMENTS TO THE DOMESTIC VOLUNTEER SERVICE ACT OF 1973

     SEC. 2001. REFERENCES.

       Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in this 
     title an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an 
     amendment to, or repeal of a provision, the reference shall 
     be considered to be made to a provision of the Domestic 
     Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4950 et seq.).

   Subtitle A--Amendments to Title I (National Volunteer Antipoverty 
                               Programs)

     SEC. 2101. PURPOSE.

       Section 2 (42 U.S.C. 4950) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``both young and older 
     citizens'' and inserting ``citizens of all ages and 
     backgrounds''; and
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``local agencies'' and 
     all that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
     ``local agencies, expand relationships with, and support for, 
     the efforts of civic, community, and educational 
     organizations, and utilize the energy, innovative spirit, 
     experience, and skills of all Americans.''.

     SEC. 2102. PURPOSE OF THE VISTA PROGRAM.

       Section 101 (42 U.S.C. 4951) is amended--
       (1) in the second sentence, by striking ``afflicted with'' 
     and inserting ``affected by''; and
       (2) in the third sentence, by striking ``local level'' and 
     all that follows through the period at the end and inserting 
     ``local level, to support efforts by local agencies and 
     organizations to achieve long-term sustainability of 
     projects, consistent with section 186 of the National and 
     Community Service Act of 1990, initiated or expanded under 
     the VISTA program activities, and to strengthen local 
     agencies and community organizations to carry out the purpose 
     of this part.''.

     SEC. 2103. APPLICATIONS.

       Section 103 (42 U.S.C. 4953) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands,'' after ``American Samoa,''; 
     and
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) by striking ``handicapped'' and inserting ``disabled''; 
     and
       (ii) by striking ``handicaps'' and inserting 
     ``disabilities'';
       (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``jobless, the hungry, 
     and low-income'' and inserting ``unemployed, the hungry, and 
     low-income'';
       (D) in paragraph (4), by striking ``prevention, 
     education,'' and inserting ``through prevention, education, 
     rehabilitation, and treatment,'';
       (E) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``, mental illness,'' 
     after ``including'';
       (F) in paragraph (6), by striking ``; and'' and inserting a 
     semicolon;
       (G) in paragraph (7), by striking the period and inserting 
     a semicolon; and
       (H) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
       ``(8) in the re-entry and re-integration of formerly 
     incarcerated youth and adults into society, including life 
     skills training, employment training, counseling, educational 
     training, and educational counseling;
       ``(9) in developing and carrying out financial literacy, 
     financial planning, budgeting, savings, and reputable credit 
     accessibility programs in low-income communities, including 
     those programs which educate on financing home ownership and 
     higher education;
       ``(10) in initiating and supporting before-school and 
     after-school programs servicing children in low-income 
     communities that may engage participants in mentoring 
     relationships, tutoring, life skills, or study skills 
     programs, service-learning, physical, nutrition, and health 
     education programs, including programs aimed at fighting 
     childhood obesity, and other activities addressing the needs 
     of the community's children;
       ``(11) in establishing and supporting community economic 
     development initiatives, including micro-enterprises, with a 
     priority

[[Page H1488]]

     on such programs in rural areas and other areas where such 
     programs are needed most;
       ``(12) in assisting veterans and their families through 
     establishing or augmenting programs which assist such persons 
     with access to legal assistance, health care (including 
     mental health), employment counseling or training, education 
     counseling or training, affordable housing, and other support 
     services; and
       ``(13) in addressing the health and wellness of low-income 
     and underserved communities, including programs to increase 
     access to preventive services, insurance, and health care.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``recruitment and 
     placement procedures'' and inserting ``placement procedures 
     that involve sponsoring organizations and'';
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)--

       (I) strike ``related to the recruitment and'' and insert 
     ``related to the'';
       (II) strike ``in conjunction with the recruitment and'' and 
     insert ``in conjunction with the''; and
       (III) strike ``1993. Upon'' and all that follows through 
     the period at the end and insert ``1993.'';

       (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``central information 
     system that shall, on request, promptly provide'' and 
     inserting ``database that provides''; and
       (iii) in subparagraph (C)--

       (I) by striking ``timely and effective'' and inserting 
     ``timely and cost-effective''; and
       (II) by striking ``the recruitment of volunteers'' and 
     inserting ``recruitment and management of volunteers''; and

       (C) in paragraph (3), by adding at the end the following: 
     ``The Director shall give priority to--
       ``(A) disadvantaged youth (as defined in section 101 of the 
     National and Community Service Act of 1990) and low-income 
     adults; and
       ``(B) retired adults of any profession, but with an 
     emphasis on those professions whose services and training are 
     most needed in a community, such as the health care 
     professions, teaching, counseling, and engineering and other 
     professions requiring a high level of technical and project 
     management skills, to utilize their experience, including 
     professional skills, in the VISTA program.'';
       (D) in paragraph (5)(B), by striking ``information system'' 
     and inserting ``database'';
       (3) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``personnel described in subsection (b)(2)(C)'' and inserting 
     ``personnel described in subsection (b)(2)(C), sponsoring 
     organizations, and the Office of Outreach and Recruitment'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``the Internet and 
     related technologies,'' after ``television,'';
       (iii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``Internet and 
     related technologies,'' after ``through the'';
       (iv) in subparagraph (C), by inserting after ``senior 
     citizens organizations,'' the following: ``offices of 
     economic development, State employment security agencies, 
     employment offices,'';
       (v) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``National and 
     Community Service Trust Act of 1993'' and inserting 
     ``National and Community Service Act of 1990''; and
       (vi) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``, on request,'';
       (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ``this subsection'' and 
     inserting ``this subsection and related public awareness and 
     recruitment activities under the national service laws and 
     through the Office of Outreach and Recruitment''; and
       (C) in paragraph (4)--
       (i) by striking ``Beginning'' and all that follows through 
     ``for the purpose'' and inserting ``For the purpose''; and
       (ii) by striking ``1.5 percent'' and inserting ``2 
     percent'';
       (4) by amending the second sentence of subsection (d) to 
     read as follows: ``Whenever feasible, such efforts shall be 
     coordinated with an appropriate local workforce investment 
     board established under section 117 of the Workforce 
     Investment Act of 1998.'';
       (5) in subsection (g) by striking ``and has been submitted 
     to the Governor'' and all that follows and inserting a 
     period; and
       (6) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(i) The Director may enter into agreements under which 
     public and private nonprofit organizations, with sufficient 
     financial capacity and size, pay for all or a portion of the 
     costs of supporting the service of volunteers under this 
     title, consistent with the provisions of section 186 of the 
     National and Community Service Act of 1990.''.

     SEC. 2104. VISTA PROGRAMS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.

       Part A of title I is amended by inserting after section 103 
     (42 U.S.C. 4953) the following:

     ``SEC. 103A. VISTA PROGRAMS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.

       ``(a) In General.--With not less than one-third of the 
     funds made available under subsection (d) in each fiscal 
     year, the Director shall make grants for VISTA positions to 
     support programs of national significance. Each program for 
     which a grant is received under this subsection shall be 
     carried out in accordance with the requirements applicable to 
     that program.
       ``(b) Activities Supported.--The Director shall make grants 
     under subsection (a) to support one or more of the following 
     programs to address problems that concern low-income and 
     rural communities in the Nation:
       ``(1) In the re-entry and re-integration of formerly 
     incarcerated youth and adults into society, including life 
     skills training, employment training, counseling, educational 
     training, and educational counseling.
       ``(2) In developing and carrying-out financial literacy, 
     financial planning, budgeting, savings, and reputable credit 
     accessibility programs in low-income communities, including 
     those programs which educate on financing home ownership and 
     higher education.
       ``(3) In initiating and supporting before-school and after-
     school programs in low-income communities that may include 
     such activities as establishing mentoring relationships, 
     physical education, tutoring, instruction in 21st century 
     thinking skills, life skills, and study skills, community 
     service, service-learning, nutrition and health education, 
     and other activities aimed at keeping children, safe, 
     educated, and healthy, which serve the children in such 
     community.
       ``(4) In establishing and supporting community economic 
     development initiatives, including micro-enterprises, with a 
     priority on such programs in rural areas and areas where such 
     programs are needed most.
       ``(5) In assisting veterans and their families through 
     establishing or augmenting programs which assist such persons 
     with access to legal assistance, health care (including 
     mental health), employment counseling or training, education 
     counseling or training, affordable housing, and other support 
     services.
       ``(6) In addressing the health and wellness of low-income 
     and underserved communities across our Nation, including 
     programs to fight childhood obesity through nutrition, 
     physical fitness, and other associated life skills education 
     programs and programs to increase access to preventive 
     services, insurance, and health care.
       ``(c) Requirements.--
       ``(1) Eligibility.--In order to receive a grant under 
     subsection (a), an applicant shall submit an application to 
     the Director at such time and in such manner as the Director 
     requires and receive approval of the application. Such 
     application shall, at a minimum, demonstrate to the Director 
     a level of expertise in carrying out such a program.
       ``(2) Supplement not supplant.--Funds made available under 
     subsection (d) shall be used to supplement and not supplant 
     the number of VISTA volunteers engaged in programs addressing 
     the problem for which such funds are awarded unless such sums 
     are an extension of funds previously provided under this 
     title.
       ``(d) Funding.--
       ``(1) In general.--From the amounts appropriate under 
     section 501 for each fiscal year there shall be available to 
     the Director such sums as may be necessary to make grants 
     under subsection (a).
       ``(2) Limitation.--No funds shall be made available to the 
     Director to make grants under subsection (a) unless the 
     amounts appropriated under section 501 available for such 
     fiscal year to carry out part A are sufficient to maintain 
     the number of projects and volunteers funded under part A in 
     the preceding fiscal year.
       ``(e) Information.--The Director shall widely disseminate 
     information on grants that may be made under this section, 
     including through the Office of Outreach and Recruitment and 
     other volunteer recruitment programs being carried out by 
     public or private non-profit organizations.''.

     SEC. 2105. TERMS AND PERIODS OF SERVICE.

       Section 104(d) (42 U.S.C. 4954(d)) is amended--
       (1) in the first sentence, by striking ``with the terms and 
     conditions of their service.'' and inserting ``with the terms 
     and conditions of their service or any adverse action, such 
     as termination, proposed by the sponsoring organization. The 
     procedure shall provide for an appeal to the Director of any 
     proposed termination.''; and
       (2) in the third sentence (as amended by this section), by 
     striking ``and the terms and conditions of their service''.

     SEC. 2106. SUPPORT SERVICE.

       Section 105(a)(1)(B) (42 U.S.C. 4955(a)(1)(B)) is amended 
     by striking ``Such stipend'' and all that follows through 
     ``in the case of persons'' and inserting ``Such stipend shall 
     be set at a minimum of $125 per month and a maximum of $150 
     per month, subject to the availability of funds to accomplish 
     such a maximum. The Director may provide a stipend of $250 
     per month in the case of persons''.

     SEC. 2107. SECTIONS REPEALED.

       The following provisions are repealed:
       (1) VISTA literacy corps.--Section 109 (42 U.S.C. 4959).
       (2) University year for vista.--Part B of title I (42 
     U.S.C. 4971 et seq.).
       (3) Literacy challenge grants.--Section 124 (42 U.S.C. 
     4995).

     SEC. 2108. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

       Section 121 (42 U.S.C. 4991) is amended in the second 
     sentence by striking ``situations'' and inserting 
     ``organizations''.

     SEC. 2109. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

       Section 123 (42 U.S.C. 4993) is amended--
       (1) in the section heading by striking ``technical and''; 
     and
       (2) by striking ``technical and''.

[[Page H1489]]

  Subtitle B--Amendments to Title II (National Senior Volunteer Corps)

     SEC. 2201. CHANGE IN NAME.

       Title II (42 U.S.C. 5000 et seq.) is amended in the title 
     heading by striking ``NATIONAL SENIOR VOLUNTEER CORPS'' and 
     inserting ``NATIONAL SENIOR SERVICE CORPS''.

     SEC. 2202. PURPOSE.

       Section 200 (42 U.S.C. 5000) is amended to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 200. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

       ``It is the purpose of this title to provide--
       ``(1) opportunities for senior service to meet unmet local, 
     State, and national needs in the areas of education, public 
     safety, emergency and disaster preparedness, relief, and 
     recovery, health and human needs, and the environment;
       ``(2) for the National Senior Service Corps, comprised of 
     the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, the Foster 
     Grandparent Program, and the Senior Companion Program, and 
     demonstration and other programs to empower people 55 years 
     of age or older to contribute to their communities through 
     service, enhance the lives of those who serve and those whom 
     they serve, and provide communities with valuable services;
       ``(3) opportunities for people 55 years of age or older, 
     through the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, to share 
     their knowledge, experiences, abilities, and skills for the 
     betterment of their communities and themselves;
       ``(4) opportunities for low-income people 55 years of age 
     or older, through the Foster Grandparents Program, to have a 
     positive impact on the lives of children in need;
       ``(5) opportunities for low-income people 55 years of age 
     or older, through the Senior Companion Program, to provide 
     critical support services and companionship to adults at risk 
     of institutionalization and who are struggling to maintain a 
     dignified independent life; and
       ``(6) for research, training, demonstration, and other 
     program activities to increase and improve opportunities for 
     people 55 years of age or older to meet unmet needs, 
     including those related to public safety, public health, and 
     emergency and disaster preparedness, relief, and recovery, in 
     their communities.''.

     SEC. 2203. GRANTS AND CONTRACTS FOR VOLUNTEER SERVICE 
                   PROJECTS.

       Section 201 (42 U.S.C. 5001) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``avail themselves of opportunities for volunteer service in 
     their community'' and inserting ``share their experiences, 
     abilities, and skills for the betterment of their communities 
     and themselves through service'';
       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``, and individuals 60 
     years of age or older will be given priority for 
     enrollment,'';
       (C) in paragraph (3) by inserting ``either prior to or 
     during the volunteer service'' after ``may be necessary''; 
     and--
       (D) by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the following:
       ``(4) the project is being designed and implemented with 
     the advice of experts in the field of service to be delivered 
     as well as with those who have expertise in the recruitment 
     and management of volunteers, particularly those of the Baby 
     Boom generation.'';
       (2) by amending subsection (c) to read as follows:
       ``(c) The Director shall give priority to projects--
       ``(1) utilizing retired scientists, technicians, engineers, 
     and mathematicians (the STEM professionals) to improve 
     Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) 
     education through activities such as assisting teachers in 
     classroom demonstrations or laboratory experiences, running 
     after-school, weekend, or summer programs designed to engage 
     disadvantaged youth (as defined in section 101 of the 
     National and Community Service Act of 1990) or low-income, 
     minority youth in the STEM fields and to improve mastery of 
     the STEM content, providing field trips to businesses, 
     institutions of higher education, museums, and other 
     locations where the STEM professions are practiced or 
     illuminated;
       ``(2) utilizing retired health care professionals to 
     improve the health and wellness of low income or rural 
     communities;
       ``(3) utilizing retired criminal justice professionals for 
     programs designed to prevent disadvantaged youth (as defined 
     in section 101 of the National and Community Service Act of 
     1990) from joining gangs or committing crimes;
       ``(4) utilizing retired military and emergency 
     professionals for programs to improve public safety, 
     emergency and disaster preparedness, relief, and recovery, 
     search and rescue, and homeland security efforts; and
       ``(5) utilizing retired computer science professionals, 
     technicians of related technologies, business professionals, 
     and others with relevant knowledge to increase, for low 
     income individuals and families, access to and obtaining the 
     benefits from computers and other existing and emerging 
     technologies.''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(e) Competitive Grant Awards Required.--
       ``(1) In general.--Effective for fiscal year 2013 and each 
     fiscal year thereafter, each grant or contract awarded under 
     this section in such a year shall be--
       ``(A) awarded for a period of 3 years; and
       ``(B) awarded through a competitive process.
       ``(2) Elements of competitive process.--The competitive 
     process required by paragraph (1)(B)--
       ``(A) shall include the use of a peer review panel, 
     including members with expertise in senior service and aging;
       ``(B) shall ensure that--
       ``(i) the resulting grants (or contracts) support no less 
     than the volunteer service years of the previous grant (or 
     contract) cycle in a given geographic service area;
       ``(ii) the resulting grants (or contracts) maintain a 
     similar program distribution; and
       ``(iii) every effort is made to minimize the disruption to 
     volunteers; and
       ``(C) shall include the performance measures, outcomes, and 
     other criteria established under subsection (f).
       ``(3) Establishment of competitive process.--The 
     Corporation shall establish and make available the 
     competitive process required by paragraph (1)(B) no later 
     than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this 
     subsection. The Corporation shall consult with the program 
     directors of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program during 
     development and implementation of the competitive process.
       ``(f) Evaluation Process Required.--
       ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding section 412, and 
     effective beginning 180 days after the date of the enactment 
     of this subsection, each grant or contract under this section 
     that expires in fiscal year 2010, 2011, and 2012 shall be 
     subject to an evaluation process. The evaluation process 
     shall be carried out, to the maximum extent practicable, in 
     fiscal year 2009, 2010, and 2011, respectively.
       ``(2) Elements of evaluation process.--The evaluation 
     process required by paragraph (1)--
       ``(A) shall include performance measures, outcomes, and 
     other criteria; and
       ``(B) shall evaluate the extent to which the recipient of 
     the grant or contract meets or exceeds such performance 
     measures, outcomes, and other criteria.
       ``(3) Establishment of evaluation process.--The Corporation 
     shall, in collaboration and consultation with program 
     directors of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program, establish 
     and make available the evaluation process required by 
     paragraph (1), including the performance measures, outcomes, 
     and other criteria required by paragraph (2)(A), with 
     particular attention to the different needs of rural and 
     urban programs. The processes shall be established and made 
     available, including notification of the available training 
     and technical assistance, no later than 180 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this subsection.
       ``(4) Effect of failing to meet performance measures.--If 
     the evaluation process determines that the recipient has 
     failed to meet or exceed the performance measures, outcomes, 
     and other criteria established under this subsection, the 
     grant or contract shall not be renewed. Any successor grant 
     or contract shall be awarded through the competitive process 
     described in subsection (e)(1).
       ``(5) Special rule.--The Corporation may continue to fund a 
     program which has failed to meet or exceed the performance 
     measures, outcomes, and other criteria established under this 
     subsection for up to 12 months if competition does not result 
     in a successor grant or contract for such program, in order 
     to minimize the disruption to volunteers and disruption of 
     services. In such a case, outreach shall be conducted and a 
     new competition shall be established. The previous recipient 
     shall remain eligible for the new competition.
       ``(6) Performance measures.--
       ``(A) In general.--The performance measures, outcomes, and 
     other criteria established under this subsection may be 
     updated or modified as necessary, in consultation with 
     program directors for the Retired Senior Volunteer Program, 
     but no earlier than fiscal year 2013.
       ``(B) Operational problems.--Effective for fiscal years 
     before fiscal year 2013, the Corporation may, after 
     consulting with program directors of the Retired Senior 
     Volunteer Program, determine that a performance measure, 
     outcome, or criterion established under this subsection is 
     operationally problematic, and may, in consultation with 
     program directors of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program and 
     after notifying the Committee on Education and Labor of the 
     House of Representatives and the Committee on Health, 
     Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate--
       ``(i) eliminate the use of that performance measure, 
     outcome, or criterion; or
       ``(ii) modify that performance measure, outcome, or 
     criterion as necessary to render it no longer operationally 
     problematic.
       ``(g) Online Resource Guide.--The Corporation shall develop 
     and disseminate an online resource guide for the Retired 
     Senior Volunteer Program within 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this subsection, which shall include, but 
     not be limited to--
       ``(1) examples of high performing programs;
       ``(2) corrective actions for underperforming programs; and
       ``(3) examples of meaningful outcome-based performance 
     measures that capture a program's mission and priorities.
       ``(h) Report to Congress.--The Corporation shall submit, by 
     2012, to the Committee on Education and Labor of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, 
     Labor, and Pensions of the Senate a report on--
       ``(1) the number of programs that did not meet or exceed 
     the established performance

[[Page H1490]]

     measures, outcomes, and other criteria established under 
     subsection (f);
       ``(2) the number of new grants awarded;
       ``(3) the challenges to the implementation of evaluation 
     and competition, including but not limited to geographic 
     distribution and the minimization of disruption to 
     volunteers; and
       ``(4) how the current program geographic distribution 
     affects recruitment for the Retired Senior Volunteer 
     Program.''.

     SEC. 2204. FOSTER GRANDPARENT PROGRAM GRANTS.

       Section 211 (42 U.S.C. 5011) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``low-income persons 
     aged sixty or over'' and inserting ``low-income and other 
     persons aged 55 or over'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
     ``shall have the exclusive authority to determine, pursuant 
     to the provisions of paragraph (2) of this subsection--'' and 
     inserting ``may determine--'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'';
       (iii) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (iv) by adding after subparagraph (B) the following:
       ``(C) whether it is in the best interests of a child 
     receiving, and of a particular foster grandparent providing, 
     services in such a project, to continue such relationship 
     after the child reaches the age of 21, if such child was 
     receiving such services prior to attaining the age of 21.'';
       (B) by striking paragraph (2); and
       (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2);
       (3) in paragraph (2) (as redesignated by this section), by 
     striking ``paragraphs (1) and (2)'' and inserting ``paragraph 
     (1)'';
       (4) by adding after paragraph (2) (as redesignated by this 
     section) the following:
       ``(3) If an assignment of a foster grandparent is suspended 
     or discontinued, the replacement of that foster grandparent 
     shall be determined through the mutual agreement of all 
     parties involved in the provision of services to the 
     child.'';
       (5) in subsection (d), in the second sentence, by striking 
     ``Any stipend'' and all that follows through ``inflation,'' 
     and inserting ``Any stipend or allowance provided under this 
     part shall not exceed 75 percent of the minimum wage under 
     section 6 the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 
     206), and the Federal share shall not be less than $2.65 per 
     hour, provided that the Director shall adjust the Federal 
     share once prior to December 31, 2012, to account for 
     inflation,'';
       (6) in subsection (e)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``125'' and inserting 
     ``200''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``, as so adjusted'' and 
     all that follows through ``local situations'';
       (7) by striking subsection (f) and inserting:
       ``(f)(1) Subject to the restrictions in paragraph (3), 
     individuals who are not low-income persons may serve as 
     volunteers under this part. The regulations issued by the 
     Director to carry out this part (other than regulations 
     relating to stipends or allowances to individuals authorized 
     by subsection (d)) shall apply to all volunteers under this 
     part, without regard to whether such volunteers are eligible 
     to receive a stipend or allowance under subsection (d).
       ``(2) Except as provided under paragraph (1), each 
     recipient of a grant or contract to carry out a project under 
     this part shall give equal treatment to all volunteers who 
     participate in such project, without regard to whether such 
     volunteers are eligible to receive a stipend or allowance 
     under subsection (d).
       ``(3) An individual who is not a low-income person may not 
     become a volunteer under this part if allowing that 
     individual to become a volunteer under this part would 
     prevent a low-income person from becoming a volunteer under 
     this part or would displace a low-income person from being a 
     volunteer under this part.
       ``(4) The Office of Outreach and Recruitment shall conduct 
     outreach to ensure the inclusion of low-income persons in 
     programs and activities authorized under this title.''; and
       (8) by adding at the end the following new subsections:
       ``(g) The Director may also provide a stipend or allowance 
     in an amount not to exceed 10 percent more than the amount 
     established under subsection (d) to leaders who, on the basis 
     of past experience as volunteers, special skills, and 
     demonstrated leadership abilities, may coordinate activities, 
     including training, and otherwise support the service of 
     volunteers under this part.
       ``(h) The program may accept up to 15 percent of volunteers 
     serving in a project under this part for a fiscal year who do 
     not meet the definition of `low-income' under subsection (e), 
     upon certification by the recipient of a grant or contract 
     that it is unable to effectively recruit and place low-income 
     volunteers in the number of placements approved for the 
     project.''.

     SEC. 2205. SENIOR COMPANION PROGRAM GRANTS.

       Section 213 (42 U.S.C. 5013) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``low-income persons 
     aged 60 or over'' and inserting ``low-income and other 
     persons aged 55 or over'';
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``Subsections (d), (e), 
     and (f)'' and inserting ``Subsections (d) through (h)''; and
       (3) by striking subsection (c)(2)(B) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(B) Senior companion volunteer trainers and leaders may 
     receive a stipend or allowance consistent with subsection (g) 
     authorized under subsection (d) of section 211, as approved 
     by the Director.''.

     SEC. 2206. PROMOTION OF NATIONAL SENIOR SERVICE CORPS.

       Section 221 (42 U.S.C. 5021) is amended--
       (1) in the section heading, by striking ``volunteer'' and 
     inserting ``service''; and
       (2) in subsection (b)(2), by inserting ``of all ages and 
     backgrounds living in rural, suburban, and urban localities'' 
     after ``greater participation of volunteers''.

     SEC. 2207. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

       (a) Change in Age Eligibility.--Section 223 (42 U.S.C. 
     5023) is amended by striking ``sixty years and older from 
     minority groups'' and inserting ``55 years and older from 
     minority and underserved populations''.
       (b) Name Change.--Section 224 (42 U.S.C. 5024) is amended 
     in the heading by striking ``volunteer'' and inserting 
     ``service''.

     SEC. 2208. PROGRAMS OF NATIONAL SIGNIFICANCE.

       Section 225 (42 U.S.C. 5025) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
       ``(2) Applicants for grants under paragraph (1) shall 
     determine which program under part A, B, or C the program 
     shall be carried out and submit an application as required 
     for programs under part A, B, or C.''; and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(4) The Director shall ensure that at least 50 percent of 
     the grants made under this section are from applicants 
     currently not receiving assistance from the Corporation and 
     when possible in locations where there are no current 
     programs under part A, B, C in existence.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting before the period at the 
     end the following: ``or Alzheimer's disease, with an intent 
     of allowing those served to age in place'';
       (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting before the period at the 
     end the following: ``through education, prevention, 
     treatment, and rehabilitation'';
       (C) in paragraph (3), by inserting before the period at the 
     end the following: ``, including programs that teach 
     parenting skills, life skills, and family management 
     skills'';
       (D) by amending paragraph (4) to read as follows:
       ``(4) Programs that establish and support mentoring 
     programs for disadvantaged youth (as defined in section 101 
     of the National and Community Service Act of 1990), including 
     those mentoring programs that match youth with volunteer 
     mentors leading to apprenticeship programs and employment 
     training.'';
       (E) in paragraph (5), by inserting before the period at the 
     end the following: ``, including those programs that serve 
     youth and adults with limited English proficiency'';
       (F) in paragraph (6), by striking ``and'' and all that 
     follows through the period and insert ``and for individuals 
     and children with disabilities or chronic illnesses living at 
     home.'';
       (G) in paragraph (7), by striking ``after-school 
     activities'' and all that follows through the period at the 
     end and inserting ``after-school programs serving children in 
     low-income communities that may engage participants in 
     mentoring relationships, tutoring, life skills or study 
     skills programs, service-learning, physical, nutrition, and 
     health education programs, including programs aimed at 
     fighting childhood obesity, and other activities addressing 
     the needs of the community's children, including those of 
     working parents.'';
       (H) by striking paragraphs (8), (9), (12), (13), (14), 
     (15), (16), and (18);
       (I) by redesignating paragraphs (10) and (11) as paragraphs 
     (8) and (9), respectively;
       (J) by inserting after paragraph (9) (as so redesignated) 
     the following:
       ``(10) Programs that engage older adults with children and 
     youth to complete service in energy conservation, 
     environmental stewardship, or other environmental needs of a 
     community.
       ``(11) Programs that collaborate with criminal justice 
     professionals and organizations in prevention programs aimed 
     at disadvantaged youth (as defined in section 101 of the 
     National and Community Service Act of 1990) or youth re-
     entering society after incarceration and their families, 
     which may include mentoring and counseling, which many 
     include employment counseling.'';
       (K) by redesignating paragraph (17) as paragraph (12); and
       (L) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(13) Programs that strengthen community efforts in 
     support of homeland security.'';
       (3) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ``shall demonstrate 
     to the Director'' and all that follows through the period at 
     the end and inserting ``shall demonstrate to the Director a 
     level of expertise in carrying out such a program.''; and
       (4) in subsection (e)--
       (A) by inserting ``widely'' before ``disseminate''; and
       (B) by striking ``to field personnel'' and all that follows 
     through the period at the end and inserting ``, including 
     through the Office of Outreach and Recruitment and other 
     volunteer recruitment programs being carried out by public or 
     private non-profit organizations.''.

[[Page H1491]]

     SEC. 2209. ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS.

       Part D of title II (42 U.S.C. 5000 et seq.) is amended by 
     adding after section 227 the following:

     ``SEC. 228. CONTINUITY OF SERVICE.

       ``To ensure the continued service of individuals in 
     communities served by the Retired and Senior Volunteer 
     Program prior to enactment of this section, in making grants 
     under this title the Corporation shall take actions it 
     considers necessary to maintain service assignments for such 
     seniors and to ensure continuity of service for communities.

     ``SEC. 229. ACCEPTANCE OF DONATIONS.

       ``(a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), a 
     program receiving assistance under this title may accept 
     donations, including donations in cash or in kind.
       ``(b) Exception.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), a program 
     receiving assistance under this title shall not accept 
     donations from the beneficiaries of the program.''.

     SEC. 2210. AUTHORITY OF DIRECTOR.

       Section 231 (42 U.S.C. 5028) is amended--
       (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
       ``(a) In General.--
       ``(1) Activities authorized.--The Director is authorized 
     to--
       ``(A) make grants to or enter into contracts with public or 
     nonprofit organizations, including organizations funded under 
     part A, B, or C, for the purposes of demonstrating innovative 
     activities involving older Americans as volunteers; and
       ``(B) make incentive grants under subsection (d).
       ``(2) Support of volunteers.--The Director may support 
     under this part both volunteers receiving stipends and 
     volunteers not receiving stipends.'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``subsection (a)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(1)(A)'';
       (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ``activities;'' and 
     inserting ``activities described in section 225(b) and 
     carried out through programs described in parts A, B, and 
     C;''; and
       (C) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(2) programs that support older Americans in aging in 
     place while augmenting the capacity of members of a community 
     to serve each other through reciprocal service centers, 
     service credit banking, community economic scripts, barter 
     services, timebanking, and other similar programs where 
     services are exchanged and not paid for; or
       ``(3) grants to non-profit organizations to establish sites 
     or programs to--
       ``(A) assist retiring or retired individuals in locating 
     opportunities for--
       ``(i) public service roles, including through paid or 
     volunteer service;
       ``(ii) participating in life-planning programs, including 
     financial planning and issues revolving around health and 
     wellness; and
       ``(iii) continuing education, including leadership 
     development, health and wellness, and technological literacy; 
     and
       ``(B) connect retiring or retired individuals with members 
     of the community to serve as leaders and mentors in life 
     planning, relationships, employment counseling, education 
     counseling, and other areas of expertise as developed by the 
     retiring or retired adults.''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(c) Priority.--For purposes of subsection (b)(2), 
     priority shall be given to--
       ``(1) programs with established experience in carrying out 
     such a program and engaging the entire community in service 
     exchange;
       ``(2) programs with the capacity to connect to similar 
     programs throughout a city or region to augment the available 
     services to older Americans and for members of the community 
     to serve each other;
       ``(3) programs seeking to establish in an area where needs 
     of older Americans are left unmet and older Americans are 
     unable to consider aging in place without such service 
     exchange in place; and
       ``(4) programs that integrate participants in or 
     collaborate with service-learning programs, AmeriCorps State 
     and National programs, the VISTA program, the Retired and 
     Senior Volunteer Program, Foster Grandparents program, and 
     the Senior Companion programs, and programs described in 
     section 411 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 
     3032).
       ``(d) Incentive Grants.--The incentive grants referred to 
     in subsection (a)(1)(B) are incentive grants to programs 
     receiving assistance under this title, subject to the 
     following:
       ``(1) Such grants (which may be fixed-amount grants) shall 
     be grants in an amount equal to $300 per volunteer enrolled 
     in the program, except that such amount shall be reduced as 
     necessary to meet the goals of this section.
       ``(2) Such a grant shall be awarded to a program only if 
     the program--
       ``(A) exceeds performance measures established under 
     section 179 of the National and Community Service Act of 
     1990;
       ``(B) provides non-Federal matching funds in an amount that 
     is not less than 50 percent of the amount received by the 
     program under this title;
       ``(C) enrolls more than 50 percent of the volunteers in 
     outcome-based service programs with measurable objectives 
     meeting community needs, as determined by the Corporation; 
     and
       ``(D) enrolls more volunteers from among members of the 
     Baby Boom generation, as defined in section 101 of the 
     National and Community Service Act of 1990, than were 
     enrolled in the program during the previous fiscal year.
       ``(3) For each such grant, the Corporation shall require 
     the recipient to provide matching funds of 70 cents from non-
     Federal sources for every $1 provided under the grant.
       ``(4) Such a grant shall be awarded to a program only if 
     the program submits, at such time and in such manner as the 
     Corporation may reasonably require, an application that 
     contains--
       ``(A) a demonstration that the program has met the 
     requirements of paragraph (2);
       ``(B) if applicable, a plan for innovative programs as 
     described in paragraph (6)(B)(ii);
       ``(C) a sustainability plan that describes how the program 
     will maintain the activities described in paragraph (6) when 
     the grant terminates; and
       ``(D) other information that the Corporation may require.
       ``(5) Such grants shall be awarded for a period of 3 years, 
     except that the grant shall be reviewed by the Corporation at 
     the end of the first and second fiscal years and revoked if 
     the Corporation finds that the program has failed to continue 
     to meet the requirements of paragraph (2) for those fiscal 
     years.
       ``(6) Such grants--
       ``(A) shall be used to increase the number of volunteers in 
     outcome-based service with measurable objectives meeting 
     community needs as determined by the Corporation; and
       ``(B) may be used--
       ``(i) for activities for which the program is authorized to 
     receive assistance under this title; and
       ``(ii) for innovative programs focused on the Baby Boom 
     generation, as defined in section 101 of the National and 
     Community Service Act of 1990, that have been accepted by the 
     Corporation through the application process in paragraph (4) 
     and are outcome-based programs with measurable objectives 
     meeting community needs as determined by the Corporation.
       ``(7) The Director shall, in making such grants, give high 
     priority to programs receiving assistance under section 
     201.''.

  Subtitle C--Amendments to Title IV (Administration and Coordination)

     SEC. 2301. NONDISPLACEMENT.

       Section 404(a) (42 U.S.C. 5044(a)) is amended by striking 
     ``displacement of employed workers'' and inserting 
     ``displacement of employed workers or volunteers (other than 
     participants under the national service laws)''.

     SEC. 2302. NOTICE AND HEARING PROCEDURES.

       Section 412(a) (42 U.S.C. 5052(a)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2)--
       (A) by striking ``75'' and inserting ``60''; and
       (B) by adding ``and'' at the end;
       (2) by striking paragraph (3); and
       (3) by redesignating paragraph (4) as (3).

     SEC. 2303. DEFINITIONS.

       Section 421 (42 U.S.C. 5061) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``, the Commonwealth of 
     the Northern Mariana Islands,'' after ``American Samoa,'';
       (2) in paragraph (13), by striking ``National Senior 
     Volunteer Corps'' and inserting ``National Senior Service 
     Corps''; and
       (3) in paragraph (14)--
       (A) by striking ``National Senior Volunteer Corps'' and 
     inserting ``National Senior Service Corps''; and
       (B) by striking ``parts A, B, C, and E of'';

     SEC. 2304. PROTECTION AGAINST IMPROPER USE.

       Section 425 (42 U.S.C. 5065) is amended by striking 
     ``National Senior Volunteer Corps'' and inserting ``National 
     Senior Service Corps''.

  Subtitle D--Amendments to Title V (Authorization of Appropriations)

     SEC. 2401. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR VISTA AND 
                   OTHER PURPOSES.

       Section 501 (42 U.S.C. 5081) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``, excluding section 
     109'' and all that follows and inserting ``$100,000,000 for 
     fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each 
     of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.'';
       (B) by striking paragraphs (2) and (4) and redesignating 
     paragraphs (3) and (5) as paragraphs (2) and (3); and
       (C) in paragraph (2) (as redesignated by this section), by 
     striking ``, excluding section 125'' and all that follows and 
     inserting ``such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal 
     years 2008 through 2012.''; and
       (2) by striking subsection (e).

     SEC. 2402. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR NATIONAL 
                   SENIOR SERVICE CORPS.

       Section 502 (42 U.S.C. 5082) is amended to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 502. NATIONAL SENIOR SERVICE CORPS.

       ``(a) Retired and Senior Volunteer Program.--There are 
     authorized to be appropriated to carry out part A of title 
     II, $67,500,000 for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be 
     necessary for each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.
       ``(b) Foster Grandparent Program.--There are authorized to 
     be appropriated to carry out part B of title II, $115,000,000 
     for fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for 
     each of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.
       ``(c) Senior Companion Program.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated to carry

[[Page H1492]]

     out part C of title II, $52,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 and 
     such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2009 
     through 2012.
       ``(d) Demonstration Programs.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated to carry out part E of title II, $500,000 for 
     fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each 
     of fiscal years 2009 through 2012.''.

     SEC. 2403. ADMINISTRATION AND COORDINATION.

       Section 504 (42 U.S.C. 5084) is amended to read as follows:

     ``SEC. 504. ADMINISTRATION AND COORDINATION.

       ``There are authorized to be appropriated for the 
     administration of this Act $35,000,000 for fiscal year 2008 
     and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 
     2009 through 2012.''.

                  TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO OTHER LAWS

     SEC. 3101. INSPECTOR GENERAL ACT OF 1978.

       Section 8F(a)(1) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 
     U.S.C. App.) is amended by striking ``National and Community 
     Service Trust Act of 1993'' and inserting ``National and 
     Community Service Act of 1990''.

          TITLE IV--TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS TO TABLES OF CONTENTS

     SEC. 4101. TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY 
                   SERVICE ACT OF 1990.

       Section 1(b) of the National and Community Service Act of 
     1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 note) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this 
     Act is as follows:

``Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
``Sec. 2. Findings and purpose.
``Sec. 3. Sense of Congress.

     ``TITLE I--NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE STATE GRANT PROGRAM

                    ``Subtitle A--General Provisions

``Sec. 101. Definitions.

    ``Subtitle B--School-Based and Community-Based Service-Learning 
                                Programs

        ``Part I--Programs for Elementary and Secondary Students

``Sec. 111. Assistance to States, Territories, and Indian tribes.
``Sec. 112. Allotments.
``Sec. 113. Applications.
``Sec. 114. Consideration of applications.
``Sec. 115. Participation of students and teachers from private 
              schools.
``Sec. 116. Federal, State, and local contributions.
``Sec. 116A. Limitations on uses of funds.

 ``Part II--Higher Education Innovative Programs for Community Service

``Sec. 117. Higher education innovative programs for community service.

     ``Part III--Innovative Service-Learning Programs and Research

``Sec. 118. Innovative demonstration service-learning programs and 
              research.

              ``Subtitle C--National Service Trust Program

                ``Part I--Investment in National Service

``Sec. 121. Authority to provide assistance and approved national 
              service positions.
``Sec. 122. Types of national service programs eligible for program 
              assistance.
``Sec. 123. Types of national service positions eligible for approval 
              for national service educational awards.
``Sec. 124. Types of program assistance.
``Sec. 126. Other special assistance.

              ``Part II--Application and Approval Process

``Sec. 129. Provision of assistance and approved national service 
              positions.
``Sec. 129A. Education awards only research.
``Sec. 130. Application for assistance and approved national service 
              positions.
``Sec. 131. National service program assistance requirements.
``Sec. 132. Ineligible service categories.
``Sec. 133. Consideration of applications.

               ``Part III--National Service Participants

``Sec. 137. Description of participants.
``Sec. 138. Selection of national service participants.
``Sec. 139. Terms of service.
``Sec. 140. Living allowances for national service participants.
``Sec. 141. National service educational awards.

``Subtitle D--National Service Trust and Provision of National Service 
                           Educational Awards

``Sec. 145. Establishment of the National Service Trust.
``Sec. 146. Individuals eligible to receive a national service 
              educational award from the Trust.
``Sec. 147. Determination of the amount of the national service 
              educational award.
``Sec. 148. Disbursement of national service educational awards.
``Sec. 149. Process of approval of national service positions.

            ``Subtitle E--National Civilian Community Corps

``Sec. 151. Purpose.
``Sec. 152. Establishment of National Civilian Community Corps Program.
``Sec. 153. National service program.
``Sec. 154. Summer national service program.
``Sec. 155. National Civilian Community Corps.
``Sec. 156. Training.
``Sec. 157. Service projects.
``Sec. 158. Authorized benefits for Corps members.
``Sec. 159. Administrative provisions.
``Sec. 160. Status of Corps members and Corps personnel under Federal 
              law.
``Sec. 161. Contract and grant authority.
``Sec. 162. Responsibilities of other departments.
``Sec. 163. Advisory board.
``Sec. 164. Annual evaluation.
``Sec. 166. Definitions.

                ``Subtitle F--Administrative Provisions

``Sec. 171. Family and medical leave.
``Sec. 172. Reports.
``Sec. 173. Supplementation.
``Sec. 174. Prohibition on use of funds.
``Sec. 175. Nondiscrimination.
``Sec. 176. Notice, hearing, and grievance procedures.
``Sec. 177. Nonduplication and nondisplacement.
``Sec. 178. State Commissions on National and Community Service.
``Sec. 179. Evaluation.
``Sec. 180. Engagement of participants.
``Sec. 181. Contingent extension.
``Sec. 182. Partnerships with schools.
``Sec. 183. Rights of access, examination, and copying.
``Sec. 184. Drug-free workplace requirements.
``Sec. 185. Consolidated application and reporting requirements.
``Sec. 186. Sustainability.
``Sec. 187. Use of recovered funds.
``Sec. 188. Expenses of attending meetings.
``Sec. 189. Grant periods.
``Sec. 189A. Generation of volunteers.
``Sec. 189B. Limitation on program grant costs.
``Sec. 189C. Audits and reports.

      ``Subtitle G--Corporation for National and Community Service

``Sec. 191. Corporation for National and Community Service.
``Sec. 192. Board of Directors.
``Sec. 192A. Authorities and duties of the Board of Directors.
``Sec. 193. Chief Executive Officer.
``Sec. 193A. Authorities and duties of the Chief Executive Officer.
``Sec. 194. Officers.
``Sec. 195. Employees, consultants, and other personnel.
``Sec. 196. Administration.
``Sec. 196A. Corporation State offices.
``Sec. 196B. Office of Outreach and Recruitment.

          ``Subtitle H--Investment for Quality and Innovation

``Part I--Additional Corporation Activities To Support National Service

``Sec. 198. Additional corporation activities to support national 
              service.
``Sec. 198B. Presidential awards for service.

            ``Part II--Innovative and Model Program Support

``Sec. 198D. Innovative and model program support.

          ``Part III--National Service Programs Clearinghouse

``Sec. 198E. National service programs clearinghouse.

          ``Subtitle I--American Conservation and Youth Corps

``Sec. 199. Short title.
``Sec. 199A. General authority.
``Sec. 199B. Limitation on purchase of capital equipment.
``Sec. 199C. State application.
``Sec. 199D. Focus of programs.
``Sec. 199E. Related programs.
``Sec. 199F. Public lands or Indian lands.
``Sec. 199G. Training and education services.
``Sec. 199H. Preference for certain projects.
``Sec. 199I. Age and citizenship criteria for enrollment.
``Sec. 199J. Use of volunteers.
``Sec. 199K. Living allowance.
``Sec. 199L. Joint programs.
``Sec. 199M. Federal and State employee status.

            ``Subtitle J--Training and Technical Assistance

``Sec. 199N. Training and technical assistance.

             ``TITLE II--MODIFICATIONS OF EXISTING PROGRAMS

                       ``Subtitle A--Publication

``Sec. 201. Information for students.
``Sec. 202. Exit counseling for borrowers.
``Sec. 203. Department information on deferments and cancellations.
``Sec. 204. Data on deferments and cancellations.

                   ``Subtitle B--Youthbuild Projects

``Sec. 211. Youthbuild projects.

           ``Subtitle C--Amendments to Student Literacy Corps

``Sec. 221. Amendments to Student Literacy Corps.

       ``TITLE IV--PROJECTS HONORING VICTIMS OF TERRORIST ATTACKS

``Sec. 401. Projects.

               ``TITLE V--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

``Sec. 501. Authorization of appropriations.

                  ``TITLE VI--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

``Sec. 601. Amtrak waste disposal.
``Sec. 602. Exchange program with countries in transition from 
              totalitarianism to Democracy.''.

[[Page H1493]]

     SEC. 4102. TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE DOMESTIC VOLUNTEER 
                   SERVICE ACT OF 1973.

       Section 1(b) of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 
     (42 U.S.C. 4950 note) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this 
     Act is as follows:

``Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
``Sec. 2. Volunteerism policy.

           ``TITLE I--NATIONAL VOLUNTEER ANTIPOVERTY PROGRAMS

               ``Part A--Volunteers in Service to America

``Sec. 101. Statement of purpose.
``Sec. 102. Authority to operate VISTA program.
``Sec. 103. Selection and assignment of volunteers.
``Sec. 103A. VISTA programs of national significance.
``Sec. 104. Terms and periods of service.
``Sec. 105. Support service.
``Sec. 106. Participation of beneficiaries.
``Sec. 107. Participation of younger and older persons.
``Sec. 108. Limitation.
``Sec. 110. Applications for assistance.

                  ``Part C--Special Volunteer Programs

``Sec. 121. Statement of purpose.
``Sec. 122. Authority to establish and operate special volunteer and 
              demonstration programs.
``Sec. 123. Financial assistance.

               ``TITLE II--NATIONAL SENIOR SERVICE CORPS

``Sec. 200. Statement of purpose.

             ``Part A--Retired and Senior Volunteer Program

``Sec. 201. Grants and contracts for volunteer service projects.

                  ``Part B--Foster Grandparent Program

``Sec. 211. Grants and contracts for volunteer service projects.

                   ``Part C--Senior Companion Program

``Sec. 213. Grants and contracts for volunteer service projects.

                      ``Part D--General Provisions

``Sec. 221. Promotion of National Senior Service Corps.
``Sec. 222. Payments.
``Sec. 223. Minority group participation.
``Sec. 224. Use of locally generated contributions in National Senior 
              Service Corps.
``Sec. 225. Programs of national significance.
``Sec. 226. Adjustments to Federal financial assistance.
``Sec. 227. Multiyear grants or contracts.
``Sec. 228. Continuity of service.
``Sec. 229. Acceptance of donations.

                    ``Part E--Demonstration Programs

``Sec. 231. Authority of Director.

              ``TITLE IV--ADMINISTRATION AND COORDINATION

``Sec. 403. Political activities.
``Sec. 404. Special limitations.
``Sec. 406. Labor standards.
``Sec. 408. Joint funding.
``Sec. 409. Prohibition of Federal control.
``Sec. 410. Coordination with other programs.
``Sec. 411. Prohibition.
``Sec. 414. Distribution of benefits between rural and urban areas.
``Sec. 415. Application of Federal law.
``Sec. 416. Evaluation.
``Sec. 417. Nondiscrimination provisions.
``Sec. 418. Eligibility for other benefits.
``Sec. 419. Legal expenses.
``Sec. 421. Definitions.
``Sec. 422. Audit.
``Sec. 423. Reduction of paperwork.
``Sec. 424. Review of project renewals.
``Sec. 425. Protection against improper use.
``Sec. 426. Center for Research and Training.

               ``TITLE V--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

``Sec. 501. National volunteer antipoverty programs.
``Sec. 502. National Senior Service Corps.
``Sec. 504. Administration and coordination.
``Sec. 505. Availability of appropriations.

           ``TITLE VI--AMENDMENTS TO OTHER LAWS AND REPEALERS

``Sec. 601. Supersedence of Reorganization Plan No. 1 of July 1, 1971.
``Sec. 602. Creditable service for civil service retirement.
``Sec. 603. Repeal of title VIII of the Economic Opportunity Act.
``Sec. 604. Repeal of title VI of the Older Americans Act.''.

                        TITLE V--EFFECTIVE DATE

     SEC. 5101. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       Unless specifically provided otherwise, the amendments made 
     by this Act shall take effect on the date of the enactment of 
     this Act.

     SEC. 5102. SERVICE ASSIGNMENTS AND AGREEMENTS.

       (a) Service Assignments.--Changes pursuant to this Act in 
     the terms and conditions of terms of service and other 
     service assignments under the national service laws 
     (including the amount of the education award) shall apply 
     only to individuals who enroll or otherwise begin service 
     assignments after 90 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, except when agreed upon by all interested parties.
       (b) Agreements.--Changes pursuant to this Act in the terms 
     and conditions of grants, contracts, or other agreements 
     under the national service laws shall apply only to such 
     agreements entered into after 90 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, except when agreed upon by the parties 
     to such agreements.
       (c) Exception.--Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply to the 
     amendments made by this Act to section 201 of the Domestic 
     Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 5001). Any changes 
     pursuant to those amendments apply as specified in those 
     amendments.

          TITLE VI--CONGRESSIONAL COMMISSION ON CIVIC SERVICE

     SEC. 6101. SHORT TITLE.

       This title may be cited as the ``Congressional Commission 
     on Civic Service Act''.

     SEC. 6102. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) The social fabric of the United States is stronger if 
     individuals in the United States are committed to protecting 
     and serving our Nation by utilizing national service and 
     volunteerism to overcome our civic challenges.
       (2) A more engaged civic society will strengthen the Nation 
     by bringing together people from diverse backgrounds and 
     experiences to work on solutions to some of our Nation's 
     major challenges.
       (3) Despite declines in civic health in the past 30 years, 
     national service and volunteerism among the Nation's youth 
     are increasing, and existing national service and volunteer 
     programs greatly enhance opportunities for youth to engage in 
     civic activity.
       (4) In addition to the benefits received by nonprofit 
     organizations and society as a whole, volunteering and 
     national service provide a variety of personal benefits and 
     satisfaction and can lead to new paths of civic engagement, 
     responsibility, and upward mobility.

     SEC. 6103. ESTABLISHMENT.

       There is established in the legislative branch a commission 
     to be known as the ``Congressional Commission on Civic 
     Service'' (in this title referred to as the ``Commission'').

     SEC. 6104. DUTIES.

       (a) General Purpose.--The purpose of the Commission is to 
     gather and analyze information in order to make 
     recommendations to Congress to--
       (1) improve the ability of individuals in the United States 
     to serve others and, by doing so, to enhance our Nation and 
     the global community;
       (2) train leaders in public service organizations to better 
     utilize individuals committed to national service and 
     volunteerism as they manage human and fiscal resources;
       (3) identify and offer solutions to the barriers that make 
     it difficult for some individuals in the United States to 
     volunteer or perform national service; and
       (4) build on the foundation of service and volunteer 
     opportunities that are currently available.
       (b) Specific Topics.--In carrying out its general purpose 
     under subsection (a), the Commission shall address and 
     analyze the following specific topics:
       (1) The level of understanding about the current Federal, 
     State, and local volunteer programs and opportunities for 
     service among individuals in the United States.
       (2) The issues that deter volunteerism and national 
     service, particularly among young people, and how the 
     identified issues can be overcome.
       (3) Whether there is an appropriate role for Federal, 
     State, and local governments in overcoming the issues that 
     deter volunteerism and national service and, if appropriate, 
     how to expand the relationships and partnerships between 
     different levels of government in promoting volunteerism and 
     national service.
       (4) Whether existing databases are effective in matching 
     community needs to would-be volunteers and service providers.
       (5) The effect on the Nation, on those who serve, and on 
     the families of those who serve, if all individuals in the 
     United States were expected to perform national service or 
     were required to perform a certain amount of national 
     service.
       (6) Whether a workable, fair, and reasonable mandatory 
     service requirement for all able young people could be 
     developed, and how such a requirement could be implemented in 
     a manner that would strengthen the social fabric of the 
     Nation and overcome civic challenges by bringing together 
     people from diverse economic, ethnic, and educational 
     backgrounds.
       (7) The need for a public service academy, a 4-year 
     institution that offers a federally funded undergraduate 
     education with a focus on training future public sector 
     leaders.
       (8) The means to develop awareness of national service and 
     volunteer opportunities at a young age by creating, 
     expanding, and promoting service options for primary and 
     secondary school students and by raising awareness of 
     existing incentives.
       (9) The effectiveness of establishing a training program on 
     college campuses to recruit and educate college students for 
     national service.
       (10) The effect on United States diplomacy and foreign 
     policy interests of expanding service opportunities abroad, 
     such as the Peace Corps, and the degree of need and capacity 
     abroad for an expansion.
       (11) The constraints that service providers, nonprofit 
     organizations, and State and local agencies face in utilizing 
     federally funded volunteer programs, and how these 
     constraints can be overcome.
       (12) Whether current Federal volunteer programs are suited 
     to address the special

[[Page H1494]]

     skills and needs of senior volunteers, and if not, how these 
     programs can be improved such that the Federal Government can 
     effectively promote service among the ``baby boomer'' 
     generation.
       (c) Methodology.--
       (1) Public hearings.--The Commission shall conduct public 
     hearings in various locations around the United States.
       (2) Regular and frequent consultation.--The Commission 
     shall regularly and frequently consult with an advisory panel 
     of Members of Congress appointed for such purpose by the 
     Speaker of the House of Representatives and the majority 
     leader of the Senate.

     SEC. 6105. MEMBERSHIP.

       (a) Number and Appointment.--
       (1) In general.--The Commission shall be composed of 8 
     members appointed as follows:
       (A) 2 members appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives.
       (B) 2 members appointed by the minority leader of the House 
     of Representatives.
       (C) 2 members appointed by the majority leader of the 
     Senate.
       (D) 2 members appointed by the minority leader of the 
     Senate.
       (2) Qualifications.--The members of the Commission shall 
     consist of individuals who are of recognized standing and 
     distinction in the areas of international public service, 
     national public service, service-learning, local service, 
     business, or academia.
       (3) Deadline for appointment.--The members of the 
     Commission shall be appointed not later than 90 days after 
     the date of the enactment of this title.
       (4) Chairperson.--The Chairperson of the Commission shall 
     be designated by the Speaker of the House of Representatives 
     at the time of the appointment.
       (b) Terms.--
       (1) In general.--The members of the Commission shall serve 
     for the life of the Commission.
       (2) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall not 
     affect the power of the remaining members to execute the 
     duties of the Commission but any such vacancy shall be filled 
     in the same manner in which the original appointment was 
     made.
       (c) Compensation.--
       (1) Rates of pay; travel expenses.--Each member shall serve 
     without pay, except that each member shall receive travel 
     expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in 
     accordance with applicable provisions under subchapter I of 
     chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code.
       (2) Prohibition of compensation of federal employees.--
     Notwithstanding paragraph (1), any member of the Commission 
     who is a full-time officer or employee of the United States 
     may not receive additional pay, allowances, or benefits 
     because of service on the Commission.
       (d) Meeting Requirements.--
       (1) Frequency.--
       (A) Quarterly meetings.--The Commission shall meet at least 
     quarterly.
       (B) Additional meetings.--In addition to quarterly 
     meetings, the Commission shall meet at the call of the 
     Chairperson or a majority of its members.
       (2) Quorum.--5 members of the Commission shall constitute a 
     quorum but a lesser number may hold hearings.
       (3) Meeting by telephone or other appropriate technology.--
     Members of the Commission are permitted to meet using 
     telephones or other suitable telecommunications technologies 
     provided that all members of the Commission can fully 
     communicate with all other members simultaneously.

     SEC. 6106. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF COMMISSION; EXPERTS AND 
                   CONSULTANTS.

       (a) Director.--
       (1) Appointment.--The Commission shall have a Director who 
     shall be appointed by the Chairperson with the approval of 
     the Commission.
       (2) Credentials.--The Director shall have credentials 
     related to international public service, national public 
     service, service-learning, or local service.
       (3) Salary.--The Director shall be paid at a rate 
     determined by the Chairperson with the approval of the 
     Commission, except that the rate may not exceed the rate of 
     basic pay for GS-15 of the General Schedule.
       (b) Staff.--With the approval of the Chairperson, the 
     Director may appoint and fix the pay of additional qualified 
     personnel as the Director considers appropriate.
       (c) Experts and Consultants.--With the approval of the 
     Commission, the Director may procure temporary and 
     intermittent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, 
     United States Code, but at rates for individuals not to 
     exceed the daily equivalent of the maximum annual rate of 
     basic pay for GS-15 of the General Schedule.
       (d) Staff of Federal Agencies.--Upon request of the 
     Commission, Chairperson, or Director, the head of any Federal 
     department or agency may detail, on a reimbursable basis, any 
     of the personnel of that department or agency to the 
     Commission to assist it in carrying out its duties under this 
     title.

     SEC. 6107. POWERS OF COMMISSION.

       (a) Hearings and Sessions.--The Commission may, for the 
     purpose of carrying out this title, hold public hearings, sit 
     and act at times and places, take testimony, and receive 
     evidence as the Commission considers appropriate.
       (b) Powers of Members and Agents.--Any member or agent of 
     the Commission may, if authorized by the Commission, take any 
     action which the Commission is authorized to take by this 
     section.
       (c) Obtaining Official Data.--Upon request of the 
     Chairperson, the head of any department or agency shall 
     furnish information to the Commission that the Commission 
     deems necessary to enable it to carry out this title.
       (d) Physical Facilities and Equipment.--The Architect of 
     the Capitol, in consultation with the appropriate entities in 
     the legislative branch, shall locate and provide suitable 
     facilities and equipment for the operation of the Commission 
     on a nonreimbursable basis.
       (e) Administrative Support Services.--Upon the request of 
     the Commission, the Architect of the Capitol and the 
     Administrator of General Services shall provide to the 
     Commission on a nonreimbursable basis such administrative 
     support services as the Commission may request in order for 
     the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under this 
     title.

     SEC. 6108. REPORTS.

       (a) Interim Report.--The Commission shall submit an interim 
     report on its activities to Congress not later than 20 months 
     after the date of the enactment of this title.
       (b) Final Report.--
       (1) Deadline.--The Commission shall submit a final report 
     on its activities to Congress not later than 120 days after 
     the submission of the interim report under subsection (a).
       (2) Contents.--The final report shall contain a detailed 
     statement of the findings and conclusions of the Commission, 
     together with its recommendations for proposed legislation.

     SEC. 6109. TERMINATION.

       The Commission shall terminate not later than 30 days after 
     submitting its final report under section 6108(b)(1).

                      TITLE VII--SENSE OF CONGRESS

     SEC. 7101. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the Sense of Congress that the Corporation for 
     National and Community Service should make the maximum effort 
     possible to coordinate the recruiting and assignment 
     procedures of their various programs to allow senior citizens 
     and their grandchildren to share volunteer opportunities and/
     or be assigned to the same geographic areas during their 
     period of service.

                     TITLE VIII--SENSE OF CONGRESS

     SEC. 8101. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the Sense of Congress that the Corporation for 
     National and Community Service should make the maximum effort 
     possible to coordinate with the National Endowment for the 
     Humanities to provide opportunities for young people enrolled 
     in NACS programs to collect oral histories form senior 
     citizens in the communities where they serve.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. George Miller) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. 
Platts) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong 
support of H.R. 5563, the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and 
Education Act, the first reauthorization of the national and community 
service laws and program since 1993.
  The legislation we are considering today includes all of the 
amendments approved last week by voice vote. It also includes the 
provision on background checks from the Republican motion to recommit. 
This bill is a bipartisan product.
  Through volunteer and community service programs, tens of millions of 
Americans of different generations have become inspired to build 
stronger, more vibrant communities to help children succeed in school 
and rebuild cities in times of disaster.
  In 2006, more than 61 million Americans gave back to their 
communities through service. The GIVE Act recognizes this growing 
service movement that is taking place across the Nation. It builds upon 
the successful work being done by members of AmeriCorps, of Vista, of 
Senior Corps, and Learn and Serve America.
  The GIVE Act would put us on a path to increasing the number of 
AmeriCorps members from 75,000 to 100,000 by 2012, with a focus on 
engaging low-income, disadvantaged, and at-risk young people.
  The GIVE Act would also help AmeriCorps members pay for college by 
increasing the scholarship they earn in exchange for their service from 
$4,725 to $5,255 by 2012.
  This bill would introduce young people to community service by 
creating a new Summer of Service initiative that will offer middle 
school and high school students the opportunity to spend a summer 
working to improve the communities while earning $500 toward college or 
college preparation.
  Alumni of service programs remain a valuable resource to our 
communities. After Hurricane Katrina devastated the gulf coast 
communities, AmeriCorps alumni played a key role in relief, recovery, 
and rebuilding efforts on the gulf coast.

[[Page H1495]]

  To help tap into these resources in times of emergency, this bill 
would create an Alumni Reserve Corps to service alumni with previous 
disaster relief experience.
  Each year, nearly a half a million older Americans participate in the 
Senior Corps programs, mentoring children of prisoners, providing 
independent living services to seniors, assisting victims of natural 
disaster, and mobilizing other volunteers.
  The GIVE Act would expand the purpose of the Senior Corps programs by 
adding an emphasis on recruiting retired science, technology, health 
care, law enforcement, and military professionals to help with 
education, after-school, public safety, and technology needs.
  I want to thank the many Members on both sides of the aisle who have 
worked on this bill, in particular, Representative McCarthy on our side 
of the aisle, Representative McKeon and Mr. Platts on the other side, 
who is handling the bill today for their leadership, as well as the 
Service Caucus for its support.
  Let me also thank the Voices of Service and its member organizations 
which have been invaluable in helping us develop this legislation.
  Service and volunteerism have played an important role in our 
Nation's history and will continue to help us meet the challenges and 
the needs of our communities. This legislation reflects the important 
role and builds upon it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5563, the Generations 
Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act, the GIVE Act, which will 
strengthen our Nation's national and community service programs. As you 
know, we debated this legislation for hours last week and adopted some 
very positive amendments. I'm pleased that the majority has included 
these amendments in the bill, as well as the Republican motion to 
recommit, which will ensure that adequate criminal history checks will 
be performed on anyone seeking a federally funded national service 
position, and that individuals who are registered sex offenders or 
convicted murderers will not be selected for such positions.
  While it was my hope that the duplicative Energy Conservation Corps 
is struck from the bill during the conference because the bill already 
addresses that through other sections of this legislation, I'm proud to 
be part of this effort to provide more flexibility for existing 
community service programs to ensure that the most innovative and 
effective grantees continue to receive funding and to increase the 
accountability within the corporation.
  Programs such as Foster Grandparents and Learn and Serve truly impact 
the lives of America's most needy. AmeriCorps and NCCC participants 
engage often disadvantaged youth and provide them with a sense of pride 
and civic responsibility. These programs are truly win/win and provide 
a tremendous return on the Federal investment.
  Again, I want to thank Chairman Miller, Ranking Member McKeon, and 
Chairwoman McCarthy for working with me, and for all the staff who have 
made this effort a success.
  I urge a ``yes'' vote and hope that my colleagues will support these 
commonsense reforms to our national service programs and to support the 
GIVE Act.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to 
the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy), a major champion of this 
legislation.
  Mrs. McCARTHY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I thank my chairman, George 
Miller, for the great work that he has done.
  This is a great day for national service. It's been 15 years since we 
have reauthorized our national service laws.
  As chairwoman of the Healthy Families and Communities Subcommittee, I 
am pleased to speak in support of H.R. 5563, the Generations 
Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act, the GIVE Act. 
Unfortunately, this legislation hit a procedural hurdle last week, but 
I am glad the House will today have a chance once again to pass this 
important piece of legislation.
  The bill before us today incorporates the amendments that were 
accepted on the floor last week, including my manager's amendment, and 
amendments offered by Representative McKeon, Matsui and Shays, Inslee, 
Sarbanes, McDermott, three amendments from Representative English and 
two amendments from Representative Sutton. It also includes the 
language from the Republican motion to recommit.
  The administration and the service community support the GIVE Act.
  I would like to thank Chairman Miller again for his continued support 
and work on this reauthorization. I would also like to extend my thanks 
to the ranking member of our committee, Mr. McKeon, for his hard work. 
And finally, I would like to thank the ranking member of my 
subcommittee, Mr. Platts, for his work on the reauthorization.
  I would also like to thank again the staff on both sides of the aisle 
for their work on this important piece of legislation.
  National service has a distinguished and strong history in our 
Nation. The benefits of service cannot be duplicated. Evidence shows 
that service and volunteering lowers school dropouts and crime rates, 
lowers costs associated with the aging population, and improves the 
health among the elderly.
  Volunteering is a cost effective way of working to solve the 
challenges facing our Nation. That is why the passage of the GIVE Act 
is necessary.
  One of the most effective volunteer organizations in this Nation is 
AmeriCorps. AmeriCorps volunteers offer a range of services focused on 
low-income and disadvantaged communities. Our legislation recognizes 
their invaluable work and increases the number of participants to 
100,000.
  The GIVE Act also encourages programs to recruit underrepresented 
populations to serve, including scientists and engineers, young people 
in and/or aging out of foster care, children at risk for delinquency, 
and other disadvantaged young people. I truly believe that expanding 
national service, particularly to disadvantaged youth, is an effective 
way to combat things like gangs and violence, and the evidence bears 
that out.
  If we are serious about reducing gang violence in this Nation, we 
must take the first step and offer our children an alternative. This 
legislation creates the Summer of Service program which gives middle 
school and high school students an opportunity to become engaged in a 
positive way within their community. Through the Summer of Service 
program, our Nation's young people will have a chance to serve with 
others of their own age while improving their community.
  Research shows that if students are engaged in service at an early 
age, they will continue to serve throughout their lifetime.
  We are strengthening the mission of the first responder volunteer 
program, the National Civilian Community Corps, by requiring more 
intense disaster and emergency relief training during down periods in 
order to be better prepared for the future.

                              {time}  1530

  We are all aware of what our Nation faced in the wake of Hurricane 
Katrina, and the NCCC was there to respond and continues to recover 
today.
  The GIVE Act will help our Nation become better prepared for future 
disasters by training and preparing more emergency volunteers. The GIVE 
Act creates cooperation and an Office of Outreach in recruitment. This 
new office, among other duties, will establish a reserve corps made of 
those who have gone through the program and are alumni. The reserve 
corps alumni will be called upon during emergencies and disasters or 
other times of national needs.
  We heard people asking over and over again during our hearings why 
aren't we using our former members. The new outreach office will work 
to connect the over-500,000 former volunteers who can be a resource for 
the recruitment. The GIVE Act lowers the age of participation in the 
national senior service to 55 years of age. By lowering the age, we are 
encouraging retiring Americans to participate in national service and 
giving older Americans the opportunity to lead us into the future.
  Our Nation's retiring and retired adults are a rich resource that no 
one

[[Page H1496]]

can duplicate, nor should they be overlooked. Every American, old and 
young, has skills that can improve the day-to-day functions of our 
society. The GIVE Act encourages individuals to get involved, creates a 
deeper commitment to service, and makes our Nation more like what it 
should be.
  I, again, want to thank Chairman Miller for his deep commitment to 
national service and Ranking Member McKeon and Congressman Platts for 
their work with us on this bipartisan activity. I do urge all of my 
colleagues to support this much-needed legislation.
  Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield the distinguished gentleman from 
Arizona (Mr. Flake) as much time as he may consume.
  Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Speaker, I stand in opposition to the GIVE Act. I 
think that it has as its premise that we won't have volunteerism in 
America unless we pay for it somehow or unless this body comes up with 
it. The volunteerism represented by AmeriCorps and the other programs 
here represent, I would venture, about one hundredth of 1 percent of 
all of the voluntary activity that goes on out there. But here we act 
as if it won't happen unless we create it and pay for it.
  Paid volunteerism is not a very good principle, in my view. We have 
to remember we are running a deficit. Our Federal Government is running 
a deficit. So any money we pay here, any increase in any programs, any 
new authorization, which I think over the 5-year reauthorization is 
about $4.1 billion more than we were paying before, that's money that 
has to be borrowed from the Treasury and, in effect, borrowed from our 
kids.
  And I think it's prudent to ask what this is going to be used for. I 
think that most people would be surprised to learn that this 
legislation would expand and reauthorize programs that the Office of 
Management and Budget has rated as inefficient and ineffective. For 
example, the Learn and Serve Program was rated as not performing and 
results not demonstrated by the OMB. The AmeriCorps National Civilian 
Community Corps was rated as not performing and ineffective.
  It's bad enough that we are continuing funding, but under the Learn 
and Serve Program, that was rated again by the OMB as not performing 
and results not demonstrated, we are actually creating a new program 
within that and funding it with 20 million more dollars. That simply is 
not a prudent use of taxpayer dollars.
  We have to remember we are taking money from people who are working 
and giving it to others who are supposedly volunteering to work. When 
you are providing a financial incentive, be it defrayment of tuition 
costs or anything else, you are paying people to volunteer.
  I would urge my colleagues to reject this legislation and return to 
fiscal sanity and a little more fiscal discipline in this House.
  Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve my time.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. I yield myself 30 seconds.
  Mr. Speaker, I would just say in the two programs the gentleman from 
Arizona raised, it's exactly why we have the reauthorization so we can 
go back through those programs and, in fact, as a result of those 
reviews, the administration has insisted upon substantial changes in 
those programs which have been carried out and that is why the 
administration now supports this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. 
Sarbanes), a member of the committee.
  Mr. SARBANES. Mr. Speaker, I want to commend Chairman Miller, 
Chairwoman McCarthy, and others for putting together the GIVE Act, 
which reauthorizes the National Community Service Act of 1990 and the 
Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973. This act supports the Nation's 
priorities in a number of important areas.
  Mr. Speaker, Americans are hungry to serve. Last year, 62 million 
Americans contributed 8.2 billion hours of volunteer service. And the 
question is, are we ready to absorb that energy? Do we have a way of 
capturing it and channeling it?
  What the GIVE Act does is it creates that infrastructure; and that's 
why we need it, because if we don't have an infrastructure to respond 
to that volunteer energy, then people will go away even more 
disillusioned. So the GIVE Act steps up and does exactly the right 
thing.
  And here are some of the things that it does: it sets a goal of 
100,000 AmeriCorps volunteers by 2012 putting 25,000 additional 
volunteers into our communities; it engages youth through a summer of 
service; and it creates a new energy conservation corps. That corps 
will focus our service corps apparatus on some of the Nation's most 
pressing problems: energy efficiency and conservation training for 
green jobs and rehabilitation of our Nation's critical infrastructure. 
It will enlist both seniors and young people in that enterprise.
  The act will also do right by our veterans. I was pleased to work 
with Mr. Miller and Mrs. McCarthy to include language in this bill that 
would require the Corporation for National and Community Service to 
initiate a national conversation by commissioning a study to develop 
and test a service corps program that both targets veterans as 
recipients of community service and utilizes their service as 
participants and volunteers. This national conversation would provide a 
framework for better targeting the needs of veterans in the community.
  Mr. Speaker, I commend the committee on its work on these important 
issues. It is said that the pulse and time of a Nation are best 
reflected in its service to others. The GIVE Act launches a new era of 
service and, in so doing, will showcase the best of what America has to 
offer.
  Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. Kuhl).
  Mr. KUHL of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 
5563 and to thank Chairman Miller and Chairwoman McCarthy for their 
efforts, including a motion to recommit that I offered to H.R. 2857, 
the Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act.
  Last week on March 6, I offered the motion to recommit to strengthen 
H.R. 2857 and the national service laws. Recently, the corporation for 
national community service completed a rule-making process to institute 
background checks for any individual seeking Federal-funded national 
service positions within the Senior Companion and Foster Grandparents 
program and within AmeriCorps programs in which individuals have 
recurring access to children, the elderly or, individuals with 
disabilities. That rule-making process also prohibited individuals from 
serving in those positions if they were and are registered sex 
offenders.
  While the motion to recommit will codify the corporation's 
regulations, it will also expand on the corporation's effort by 
requiring criminal history checks for any individual seeking a 
federally funded national service position and not just those within 
the foster grandparents and senior companion programs or just those 
AmeriCorps programs dealing with specific populations.
  Further, in addition to prohibiting registered sex offenders from 
serving in federally funded national service positions, the motion to 
recommit includes those individuals convicted of murder as well.
  Again, I applaud Chairman Miller and appreciate his courtesies last 
week on the floor and Chairwoman McCarthy for including the motion to 
recommit which expresses a loud and clear message, that this House of 
Representatives believes that those in need who are served by programs 
supported with assistance under these laws should be assured that they 
will not be placed in harm's way when approaching these programs for 
help.
  Although I am pleased that the motion to recommit was included in the 
bill, I'm disappointed that the House majority has chosen not to take 
up the FISA amendments. The FISA amendments, which we've been hearing 
about all day, act to provide our intelligence community with the 
critical tools it needs to conduct surveillance on foreign terrorists 
without getting tied up in court.
  The Senate, as we all know, passed this bipartisan legislation almost 
a month ago. So I urge the majority to bring this crucial bill up for a 
vote; and, again, I urge my colleagues to support this bill today 
before this House.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to 
the

[[Page H1497]]

gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Holt).
  Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman, and I rise in support 
of this legislation. I'm pleased to have been a co-sponsor of this 
bill, because the service programs and the new initiatives will help to 
address some of our Nation's toughest problems about poverty to natural 
disasters and will help improve the lives of millions of our most 
valuable citizens. The bill will increase the number of AmeriCorps 
volunteers by a third and will significantly increase the stipends for 
those volunteers.
  I particularly want to highlight a section that I am proud of. It is 
a section that will create opportunities for professionals in the 
sciences and technical fields to keep America competitive. It engages 
scientists and engineers in volunteerism and encourages their efforts 
to address unmet education and human needs. It will use scientists, 
technicians, engineers and mathematicians, for example, to close the 
digital divide that creates such a chasm between low-income communities 
and the more privileged communities.
  The bill also creates a national civilian conservation corps that, as 
a residential program, will be deployed in times of national need, such 
as emergencies and disasters. When not deployed in such circumstance, 
they will build infrastructure, protect the environment, conserve our 
resources, and help with urban and rural development.
  Mr. Speaker, this is outstanding legislation. We really should 
commend Mrs. McCarthy as well as Chairman Miller, Mr. McKeon, and Mr. 
Platts for their work on this legislation.
  I urge passage.
  Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Manzullo) as much time as he may consume.
  Mr. MANZULLO. Mr. Speaker, I am really just distressed over the 
manner in which this bill has come to the floor. When the Republicans 
were in the majority, any bill that was in excess of $100 million had 
to go through the regular process, was subject to amendments on the 
floor, et cetera; and now we are bringing on the Suspension Calendar, 
which is for naming post offices and minor things like that, a bill 
that would spend $6.2 billion over the next 5 years.
  According to the Congressional Budget Office, the estimated current 
outlay in fiscal year 2008 for existing Federal community service and 
volunteer programs is already $607 million a year. Spending under this 
bill would go up $884 million in fiscal year 2008, $942 million in 
2009, $1.058 billion in fiscal year 2010, $1.154 billion in fiscal year 
2011, and $1.235 billion in fiscal year 2012 for a total new spending 
for volunteers of $4.1 billion over 5 years.
  That's outrageous to pay for volunteer programs to have the bill not 
subject to any amendment on the floor such as an amendment to pare down 
the size of the spending.
  And I think in a time when we have a fiscal crisis on our hands, 
where the stock market is tanking and people are losing their homes and 
people are not sure of having a job, for this Congress to come in and 
use this extraordinary procedure to waive all the rules, including a 
way to amend the bill and spend an additional $4.1 billion over 5 
years, that really cracks the back of fiscal responsibility.

                              {time}  1545

  The majority has shown unequivocally here that it is not the party of 
fiscal responsibility, and I would therefore encourage my colleagues to 
vote ``no'' on this bill.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 
minutes.
  Mr. Speaker, it is a little hard to sit here and be lectured to by 
somebody from the other party that ran up an $8 trillion deficit in a 
matter of 8 years, about $1 trillion a year they succeeded in running 
up the deficit. But more importantly, I don't know if the gentleman 
from Illinois was absent last week or he doesn't remember, I don't know 
which, but we were here last Thursday considering this bill under the 
rules of the House, under essentially an open rule where every 
Republican amendment and every Democratic amendment that was requested, 
I believe, was offered.
  The new programs were subjected to a vote of the House because we 
thought that was fair. They prevailed. We finished the business of this 
bill last week, and then people decided they wanted to play some games 
on the motions to recommit, and so that forced us to bring the bill up 
again this week.
  We cannot go back to committee; that would be even more expensive, 
more time-consuming, and bring back the bill, so we have chosen to do 
it under suspension. But that's after all of the amendments have been 
given full consideration. That's why the administration supported the 
legislation. That's why it has bipartisan support, because it was 
bipartisan in the committee. I think it was 44-0 that it came out of 
the committee. It was bipartisan in the Rules Committee. It was 
bipartisan on the floor until the gentleman's party decided at the last 
minute that they wanted to try to somehow incorporate the FISA 
discussion into national service. That was out of order. That was not 
allowed.
  And then Mr. Kuhl decided to offer an amendment, which we asked 
unanimous consent to accept at that time and we were not allowed to 
accept it. So, we're back here today. And we're trying to do it in the 
most expeditious fashion because it costs something to run the House. 
We shouldn't be back here today. But that's the history, in case the 
gentleman was absent last week.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. PLATTS. Mr. Speaker, I would just, again, urge a ``yes'' vote in 
support of the GIVE Act.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such 
time as I may consume.
  I just want to, before we close debate, thank Mr. Platts and Mrs. 
McCarthy for all of their hard work. They were really the engines 
behind this legislation and getting it through the subcommittees and 
the committees for our consideration here on the floor. I want to thank 
them very much for that effort.
  A couple of speakers suggested that somehow Americans volunteer, so 
we don't need this act. The fact of the matter is this act builds much 
more than just volunteers. I volunteer for the Habitat for Humanity. I 
volunteer in the schools in my district. I volunteer in Coastal 
Cleanup. I volunteer in community Weed and Seed programs. I volunteer 
in a lot of efforts. This is also about taking people who would never 
think of volunteering, young people who come from neighborhoods where 
that's not an opportunity that they may have necessarily. And it not 
only gets them into volunteering, but also builds skills. What people 
really like to have volunteer are people with skills come and 
volunteer.
  It also builds leadership skills, so that those young people can 
either incorporate their skills in additional volunteering or organize 
other people to volunteer as they leave these programs. Many of these 
young people graduate and go into public service. In California, we 
will find people who will go from one of these programs to the 
California Conservation Corps to maybe the national parks program, 
where they end up working and rebuilding the infrastructure of our 
national parks or public lands or coastal areas of these States.
  And when you ask the young people, when you run across them, where 
did they get their start, they got their start in AmeriCorps or the 
VISTA program or something like that. They end up maybe later, after 
they go to school, they come back and they work in the community. 
That's why one of the things that this legislation does is try to reach 
out to the alumni of this program, because we now realize how valuable 
they are to our communities and we want them to continue to participate 
and continue to organize people who have been the beneficiaries of this 
program and those who have participated in it as leaders and as 
participants so that we can build that core.
  It's very interesting now, there's a number of people discussing the 
national defense level of this country, that one of the things we 
failed to do after 9/11 was build in a resiliency of this country in 
the event of other another attack. Tragically, after 9/11 the President 
told the country they didn't have to do anything, if they would just go 
shopping.

[[Page H1498]]

  But now what we see is we still don't have the basic infrastructure 
in our communities to deal with natural disasters, to deal with 
possible terrorist attacks, to deal with regional-wide problems, 
whether they be fires, earthquakes, terrorist attacks, or any of that. 
In fact, what we need is we need volunteers and people with volunteer 
experience, people with organizing volunteers to start to come together 
to think about how a community would respond, whether it's a chemical 
spill, whether it's a chemical plant explosion, whether it's an 
earthquake or a fire, to respond to help those people, to help those 
first responders. We've never organized that. But we would like to 
start thinking about organizing that, and I'm sure when we do, we will 
be calling upon the professionals that were in VISTA, that were in 
AmeriCorps, that were in the Senior Corps, that have connections 
through their business connections, through their community 
involvement.
  So, this program pays many dividends way beyond the idea that this is 
just about volunteering on a Saturday morning or a Sunday morning with 
your church. We all do that. But there has to be more. And there has to 
be avenues for people who aren't encouraged to volunteer, that we can 
provide that encouragement and we can encourage people to participate 
with populations that need that kind of assistance. That's the 
importance of this legislation.
  It's unfortunate it has taken so long for us to reauthorize this 
bill. But what we know is Americans all across this country in every 
region of this country want to see a greater sense of people giving 
back to their communities, people volunteering in their communities, 
organizing people to volunteer, to provide services to their 
communities. That's what this legislation responds to.
  It's been incredibly successful, when you meet the graduates of these 
programs, when you meet the alumni of these programs. They don't stop 
there. It becomes part of the ethic of their life. And they continue it 
in their business, in their professions. They continue that kind of 
activity because they see the value of it, they've participated in it. 
And I would hope that my colleagues would give this legislation 
overwhelming bipartisan support.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support 
of H.R. 5563, the ``Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education 
Act' or the `GIVE Act'.'' I would like to thank my colleague, 
Congresswoman McCarthy, for introducing this important legislation, as 
well as the Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, 
Congressman George Miller, for his leadership in bringing the bill to 
the floor today.
  Mr. Speaker, this legislation came to the floor last week as H.R. 
2857. It was a good bill then but now it is an even better piece of 
legislation.
  The ten amendments that were incorporated into the current bill 
before this chamber provide:
  (1) greater integration of funding, (2) strengthens the Retired 
Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), and (3) more support for our military 
families and veterans.
  This legislation will make vital strides toward expanding and 
improving key community service programs, including AmeriCorps, VISTA, 
Senior Corps, and Learn and Serve America. The GIVE Act works to ensure 
that volunteers, and the organizations that support them, will receive 
the resources that they need to continue their vital work in our 
communities.
  Today's legislation embodies the altruistic spirit that has made our 
nation great. Great numbers of Americans donate their time and their 
unique skills and gifts to our cities and communities, without any 
expectation of compensation or material reward. According to a 2005 
study, 29 percent of the American public, or about 65.4 million people, 
had volunteered in the past year.
  This legislation engages our youth and fosters a sense of civic duty. 
Which is why I was so pleased to see Section 1202 of this legislation, 
which gives special consideration to Historically Black Colleges and 
Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, and Tribal Colleges and 
Universities. I want to thank Representative McCarthy and 
Representative Miller for allowing me to add to this great bill. By 
adding predominately minority community colleges to the list of those 
to receive special consideration, we help so many more students who 
have a commitment to service.
  Our community colleges are growing as many of our returning veterans, 
single parents, and senior desire to make a change in their live 
circumstances and simply cannot afford traditional higher education. A 
sense of civic engagement is not fostered only among students at 
Harvard and Berkeley; it is also found among students at community 
colleges like Houston Community College and North Harris College. I 
thank the Chairman for recognizing this needed addition and 
incorporating it into the Manager's Amendment.
  The GIVE Act would:
  (1) increase the number of AmeriCorps volunteers from 75,000 to 
100,000 by 2012; (2) increase stipends for AmeriCorps volunteers from 
$4,725 to $5,225 by 2012; and (3) promote recruitment of disadvantaged 
youth, baby-boomers, and veterans into national and community service 
opportunities; (4) create an AmeriCorps Alumni Reserves Network aimed 
at tapping into the skills and experience of alumni volunteers, with a 
particular focus on assisting during emergencies or natural disasters; 
and (5) constructs an Energy Conservation Corps, which will address our 
nation's energy and transportation infrastructure needs while providing 
work and service opportunities.
  I am disappointed that our colleagues on the other side of the aisle 
have chosen to be obstructionists to legislation that engages our 
youth, strengthens disaster and emergency preparedness, and invests in 
our volunteer and service organizations with appropriate funding. This 
Bipartisan effort needs to be supported.
  I am proud to cosponsor legislation that will add service before self 
to our leaders of tomorrow. I urge my colleagues to join me in 
supporting this legislation.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Altmire). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller) that the 
House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5563.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the 
yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

                          ____________________