[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 10 (Friday, January 16, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S652-S654]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. HATCH (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Gregg, and Mr. 
        Cochran):
  S. 278. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide 
for a tax credit for qualified donations of employees services; to the 
Committee on Finance.
  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise today to speak on the reintroduction 
of the Serve America Act. I, along with my good friend, the senior 
Senator from Massachusetts first introduced this legislation in the 
waning days of the 110th Congress, and I am proud to lend my support to 
the bill during this session. We are currently joined by 20 cosponsors, 
both Republican and Democrat.
  I have long been a supporter and advocate for volunteer service. I 
believe that, when private citizens offer their time and talents to 
serve in their communities, they benefit along with those they have 
helped. Furthermore, I believe that, if we can encourage people to 
volunteer their services in their towns and neighborhoods, we can 
better address our Nation's most pressing problems.
  The Serve America Act does many things. Most apparently, it creates 
new national service corps that will enlist the help of our people to 
address specific areas of national need, including education, energy 
efficiency, access to health care, economic opportunity for the 
disadvantaged, and disaster relief. It also encourages individuals and 
non-profit groups to come up with new and innovative ways to encourage 
volunteerism and to use the help of volunteers effectively. In 
addition, it enlists the help of the private sector in addressing 
important needs in our nation and community.
  As in the 110th Congress, Senator Kennedy and I have agreed that, 
when this bill goes through the HELP Committee, we will work together 
to ensure that the spending authorized in the bill will be offset. In 
this way, the bill will be budget-neutral, providing much needed 
assistance to the non-profit sector without adding to the Federal 
deficit. Indeed, the American people have made it clear time and again 
that they desire fiscal responsibility in Congress. Due to this 
agreement, the Serve America Act meets those demands.

[[Page S654]]

  Senator Kennedy and I are also reintroducing the Incentive to Serve 
Tax Act as a companion piece to the Serve America Act. This bill would 
provide tax incentives to encourage companies to allow their employees 
to volunteer their services on company time. Specifically, the bill 
would provide companies a tax credit equal to 25 percent of the 
compensation paid to an employee who performs at least 160 hours of a 
specified charitable service.
  As you might know, a handful of large corporations presently have 
programs to provide managerial and educational workers to schools and 
community organizations. This tax incentive would encourage these 
companies to do even more as well as encourage other companies that, up 
to now, may not have been able to afford to provide such service. This 
will allow businesses to utilize their employees with various skills 
and knowledge to target specific areas that need to be addressed in the 
communities where those workers live and work. In the end, everyone 
will benefit.
  Mr. President, these two bills represent a bipartisan effort to 
harness the talents, generosity, and ingenuity of the American people. 
I believe that this is an effort that Members from both parties can and 
should support. I urge all my colleagues--Republicans and Democrats 
alike--to support this important legislation.
  I yield the floor.
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