II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4989 

To facilitate nationwide accessibility and coordination of 211 services for 

information and referral for mental health emergencies, homelessness 

needs, other human services needs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 9, 2020 

Mr. CASEY (for himself, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. MERKLEY, 

Ms. HIRONO, Mr. BROWN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, and Ms. BALDWIN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To facilitate nationwide accessibility and coordination of 211 

services for information and referral for mental health 

emergencies, homelessness needs, other human services 

needs, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Human-Services Emer5 gency Logistic Program Act of 2020’’ or the ‘‘HELP Act 

6 of 2020’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

2 The purposes of this Act are as follows: 

3 (1) To strengthen the existing 211 services in 

4 States throughout the Nation. 

5 (2) To increase the availability, reliability, and 

6 responsiveness of 211 information and referral 

7 across the country, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 

8 (3) To reduce the use of 911 services for cir9 cumstances not related to law enforcement, fire, or 

10 medical emergencies. 

11 (4) To more efficiently connect individuals with 

12 needed human services. 

13 (5) To reduce the arrests, incarcerations, and 

14 law enforcement violence that occur from inappro15 priate 911 emergency referrals. 

16 SEC. 3. ALLOTMENTS TO STRENGTHEN NATIONWIDE AC17 CESSIBILITY AND COORDINATION OF 211 

18 SERVICE FOR INFORMATION AND REFERRAL 

19 FOR HUMAN SERVICES. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Out of amounts appropriated 

21 under section 4(a) that remain after application of section 

22 4(b), the Secretary of Health and Human Services (re23 ferred to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’), acting through 

24 the 211 National Board, shall make an allotment to each 

25 State, in accordance with the formula developed under 


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1 subsection (b), to carry out a program for the purposes 

2 of— 

3 (1) ensuring 211 services are accessible to all 

4 individuals in each State; and 

5 (2) strengthening the reliability, accessibility, 

6 and responsiveness of methods of communication 

7 through the 211 service, in order to provide informa8 tion and referrals with respect to human services, in9 cluding mental health emergency resources, home10 lessness resources, suicide prevention resources, do11 mestic violence resources, resources to identify and 

12 address child and elder abuse and exploitation, care13 giver and child care resources, and other human 

14 service needs. 

15 (b) ALLOTMENTS TO STATES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of making al17 lotments under this section, the Secretary shall de18 velop a formula for determining the allotment 

19 amounts for each State. Such formula shall be based 

20 on population, population density, poverty rate, and 

21 other evidence-based predictive data related to the 

22 needs of the State for, and access to, human serv23 ices. Allotments made under this section, and the 

24 services provided through such allotments, shall not 

25 supplant funding otherwise made available to the 


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1 State for such purposes, or services otherwise pro2 vided by the State for such purposes. 

3 (2) NON-FEDERAL CONTRIBUTIONS.—A State 

4 may not be eligible for an allotment under this sec5 tion unless the State ensures that at least 25 per6 cent of the resources of the program funded by the 

7 State allotment will be derived from non-Federal 

8 sources, which may include in-kind contributions of 

9 goods or services. 

10 (3) REQUIREMENT REGARDING STATE ALLOT11 MENT AMOUNTS.—Of the amounts allotted to a 

12 State under this section, not more than 15 percent 

13 shall be allocated for evaluation, training, and tech14 nical assistance, and for management and adminis15 tration of subgrants awarded under this section. 

16 (4) ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—From the allot17 ment made to a State under this subsection, the 

State 211 Collaborative may retain the greater of 1 18 ⁄2

19 of 1 percent of such allotment or $50,000, for ad20 ministrative costs. 

21 (c) 211 NATIONAL BOARD.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 

23 a 211 National Board for purposes of— 


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1 (A) managing and allocating funds under 

2 this section, including making allotments to 

3 States; 

4 (B) reviewing State plans for implementing 

5 and maintaining 211 systems; and 

6 (C) evaluating State 211 systems. 

7 (2) MEMBERSHIP.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The 211 National 

9 Board shall be comprised of not fewer than 15 

10 members selected by the Secretary in accord11 ance with subparagraph (B), of which 7 shall 

12 be permanent members, and 8 shall serve 3- 

13 year, rotating terms. 

14 (B) MEMBERS.— 

15 (i) PERMANENT MEMBERS.—The 7 

16 permanent members shall be comprised of 

17 one representative from each of— 

18 (I) the Alliance of Information 

19 and Referral Systems; 

20 (II) United Way Worldwide; 

21 (III) the National Council on 

22 Independent Living; 

23 (IV) the National Association of 

24 Area Agencies on Aging; 


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1 (V) the Bazelon Center for Men2 tal Health Law; 

3 (VI) the Leadership Conference 

4 on Civil and Human Rights; and 

5 (VII) the National Alliance to 

6 End Homelessness. 

7 (ii) ROTATING MEMBERS.—The 8 ro8 tating members shall be selected by the 

9 Secretary, with input from stakeholders 

10 and advocates, and shall include— 

11 (I) 2 representatives of faith12 based organizations dedicated to pro13 viding human services; 

14 (II) 1 representative of an orga15 nization dedicated to ensuring racial 

16 and ethnic equity; 

17 (III) 1 representative of a dis18 ability organization operated by a ma19 jority of people with disabilities; 

20 (IV) 1 representative of an orga21 nization representing older adults; 

22 (V) 1 representative of an organi23 zation representing Tribal and Native 

24 peoples; 


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1 (VI) 1 representative of an orga2 nization representing LGBTQ+ popu3 lations; and 

4 (VII) 1 representative of a sec5 ular organization dedicated to pro6 viding human services. 

7 (iii) ADDITIONAL ROTATING MEM8 BERS.—In addition to the members ap9 pointed under clauses (i) and (ii), the Sec10 retary may appoint to the 211 National 

11 Board up to 4 additional rotating members 

12 to represent specific populations or issues. 

13 Each such member shall serve a 3-year 

14 term. 

15 (iv) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—Ex offi16 cio members of the 211 National Board 

17 shall include 1 representative from each 

18 of— 

19 (I) the Department of Health 

20 and Human Services; 

21 (II) the Department of Edu22 cation; 

23 (III) the Department of Home24 land Security; 


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1 (IV) the Department of Housing 

2 and Urban Development; and 

3 (V) the Department of Com4 merce. 

5 (3) FISCAL AGENT.—The Office of the Sec6 retary of Health and Human Services shall be the 

7 fiscal agent of the 211 National Board. 

8 (4) CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.— 

9 (A) CHAIR SELECTION.—The Chair of the 

10 211 National Board shall be selected by the 

11 211 National Board members, from among the 

12 permanent members described in paragraph 

13 (2)(B)(i), and shall serve a 5-year term. 

14 (B) VICE CHAIR SELECTION.—The Vice 

15 Chair shall be selected by the 211 National 

16 Board members, from among the rotating mem17 bers described in paragraph (2)(B)(ii), and 

18 shall serve a 3-year term. 

19 (d) STATE OVERSIGHT ENTITIES.— 

20 (1) 211 COLLABORATIVES.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State seeking an al22 lotment under this section, not later than 3 

23 months after receiving an allotment, shall ap24 point a lead entity (referred to in this section 


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1 as a ‘‘211 Collaborative’’) for purposes of meet2 ing the requirements of this subsection. 

3 (B) 211 COLLABORATIVE.—A State lead 

4 entity shall be treated as the State 211 Collabo5 rative under this subsection if the entity— 

6 (i)(I) exists for such purpose— 

7 (aa) under State law; or 

8 (bb) by order of the State public 

9 utility commission; and 

10 (II) collaborates, to the extent prac11 ticable, with the entities listed in clause 

12 (ii); or 

13 (ii) is a collaborative entity established 

14 by the State for such purpose from among 

15 representatives of— 

16 (I) an informal, existing 211 

17 statewide collaborative in the State; 

18 (II) State agencies; 

19 (III) community-based organiza20 tions, including— 

21 (aa) organizations rep22 resenting older adults; 

23 (bb) organizations rep24 resenting people with disabilities; 


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1 (cc) where appropriate, or2 ganizations representing Native 

3 peoples and Tribal nations; 

4 (dd) organizations rep5 resenting people with mental 

6 health disabilities; and 

7 (ee) organizations led by 

8 Black people, indigenous people, 

9 or people of color working to end 

10 racism; 

11 (IV) faith-based organizations 

12 dedicated to providing human serv13 ices; 

14 (V) nonprofit organizations pro15 viding human services; 

16 (VI) comprehensive and special17 ized information and referral pro18 viders, including area agencies on 

19 aging, aging and disability resource 

20 centers, and 211 call centers; 

21 (VII) State and regional founda22 tions; and 

23 (VIII) businesses headquartered 

24 in, or with significant presence in, the 

25 State. 


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1 (2) 211 STATE OVERSIGHT COUNCIL.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each State receiving 

3 an allotment under this section shall establish a 

4 211 State Oversight Council (referred to in this 

5 section as a ‘‘Council’’) to provide guidance and 

6 oversight of the 211 system to the State 211 

7 Collaborative. 

8 (B) MEMBERS.— 

9 (i) IN GENERAL.—Each Council shall 

10 be comprised of not more than 25 stake11 holders and service providers appointed by 

12 the governor of the State for staggered 3- 

13 year terms, including— 

14 (I) at least 3 representatives of 

15 human service providers; 

16 (II) at least 2 adults over the age 

17 of 60; 

18 (III) at least 3 people with dis19 abilities; 

20 (IV) at least 3 additional people 

21 with mental health disabilities; 

22 (V) at least 1 individual with a 

23 child under 18 years of age; 

24 (VI) at least 1 individual caring 

25 for an older adult; 


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1 (VII) at least 1 individual pro2 viding support for a relative with a 

3 disability; 

4 (VIII) at least 3 individuals who 

5 are members of a family that receives 

6 means tested Federal benefits, such as 

7 temporary assistance for needy fami8 lies under part A of title IV of the So9 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601 et 

10 seq.), the supplemental nutrition as11 sistance program established under 

12 the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 

13 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), or the supple14 mental security income program es15 tablished under title XVI of the Social 

16 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1381 et seq.); 

17 and 

18 (IX) at least 1 business rep19 resentative. 

20 (ii) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—No 

21 Council member may be an employee of an 

22 entity that receives a subgrant from the 

23 State 211 Collaborative. 

24 (iii) CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.—With 

25 respect to each Council, the Council shall 


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1 select from among its members a Chair, 

2 who shall be a recipient of human services, 

3 and a Vice Chair, who shall be a provider 

4 of human services or a business represent5 ative. 

6 (C) DUTIES.—Each Council shall be re7 sponsible for— 

8 (i) reviewing the annual State 211 ap9 plication to the 211 National Board; 

10 (ii) reviewing the annual 211 Collabo11 rative budget; 

12 (iii) identifying topics for, and ensur13 ing an evaluation of, the State 211 service 

14 consistent with subsection (h)(2); 

15 (iv) monitoring the State 211 service 

16 to ensure that such 211 service is racially 

17 equitable; and 

18 (v) making recommendations to in19 crease the awareness and effectiveness of 

20 211 services in all parts of the State and 

21 all communities. 

22 (e) APPLICATION.—The 211 Collaborative of a State, 

23 on behalf of each State seeking an allocation under this 

24 section, acting under the direction of the State governor, 

25 shall submit an annual application to the 211 National 


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1 Board for such an allocation, at such time, in such man2 ner, and containing such information as the Secretary may 

3 require, including the following: 

4 (1) A description of how the 211 Collaborative 

5 will— 

6 (A) ensure that every resident of the State 

7 with phone or internet service can connect to 

8 the 211 service at no charge; and 

9 (B) make available, throughout the State, 

10 211 service information and referral with re11 spect to human services, including information 

12 on the manner in which the 211 Collaborative 

13 will develop, sustain, and evaluate the 211 serv14 ice program. 

15 (2) Information on the sources of funding and 

16 other resources for the State 211 service for pur17 poses of meeting the requirements under subsection 

18 (b)(2). 

19 (3) Information describing how the 211 Col20 laborative will provide to all individuals in the State, 

21 to the extent practicable, a statewide database avail22 able via the internet, that will allow such individuals 

23 to search for programs or services that are available 

24 from human services programs in the State. 


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1 (4) Assurances that all activities and informa2 tion provided by the 211 service and all entities re3 ceiving subgrants pursuant to this section will be ac4 cessible according to the Americans with Disabilities 

5 Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), section 508 

6 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), 

7 and part 1194 of title 36, Code of Federal Regula8 tions (or any successor regulations). 

9 (5) Any additional information the Secretary 

10 may require. 

11 (f) SUBGRANTS.— 

12 (1) AUTHORITY.—For purposes of carrying out 

13 a program in a State, the State 211 Collaborative 

14 may make subgrants to such entities as the Collabo15 rative determines appropriate, which may include 

16 subgrants to provide funds— 

17 (A) for the provision of 211 service; 

18 (B) for the operation and maintenance of 

19 211 call centers; 

20 (C) for the collection and display of infor21 mation in the statewide database; 

22 (D) for increasing public awareness of 211 

23 service in the State; 

24 (E) for coordination of the State’s 211 

25 service, including the collection, accessibility, 


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1 and display of information through a national 

2 data platform; 

3 (F) to conduct statewide and regional 

4 planning; 

5 (G) for start-up costs of extending 211 

6 service to unserved areas, including costs of 

7 software and hardware upgrades and tele8 communications and internet costs; 

9 (H) to ensure that 211 service is acces10 sible, consistent with the Americans with Dis11 abilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), 

12 section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 

13 (29 U.S.C. 794d), and part 1194 of title 36, 

14 Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor 

15 regulations); 

16 (I) for staffing; 

17 (J) for training; 

18 (K) for activities related to accreditation; 

19 (L) for the evaluation of State 211 activi20 ties; 

21 (M) for internet hosting and site develop22 ment and maintenance for a statewide data23 base; 

24 (N) for cloud-based data and messaging 

25 capacity; 


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1 (O) to integrate or consolidate 211 services 

2 within the State; 

3 (P) to integrate or share resources and 

4 service-level data with national platforms hosted 

5 by the 211 National Board; 

6 (Q) to prepare and submit State and na7 tional reporting requirements and other activi8 ties approved by the 211 State Oversight Coun9 cil; or 

10 (R) to carry out other activities approved 

11 by the 211 National Board. 

12 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In awarding a subgrant 

13 under this subsection, a lead entity shall consider— 

14 (A) the ability of the entity seeking the 

15 subgrant to carry out activities or provide serv16 ices consistent with this Act; 

17 (B) the extent to which the award of the 

18 subgrant will facilitate equitable geographic dis19 tribution of subgrants under this section to en20 sure that rural communities have access to 211 

21 service; and 

22 (C) the extent to which the recipient of the 

23 subgrant will establish and maintain cooperative 

24 relationships with specialized information and 

25 referral centers, including Child Care Resource 


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1 and Referral Agencies, crisis centers, referral 

2 agencies for aging or disability services, 911 

3 call centers, and 311 call centers, if applicable. 

4 (g) USE OF STATE ALLOTMENT AND SUBGRANT

5 AMOUNTS.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts awarded as State 

7 allotments or subgrants under this section shall be 

8 used solely— 

9 (A) to make available 211 service to all in10 dividuals in a State via voice, short message 

11 service or other messaging, internet, or other 

12 telecommunication methods; or 

13 (B) for community information and refer14 ral with respect to human services, among indi15 viduals, families, and agencies seeking such 

16 services and the providers of such services. 

17 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—In making 211 service 

18 available, the recipient of a State allotment or 

19 subgrant shall, to the maximum extent practicable— 

20 (A) abide by the Key Standards for 211 

21 Centers as specified in the Standards and Qual22 ity Indicators for Professional Information and 

23 Referral published by the Alliance of Informa24 tion and Referral Systems; and 


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1 (B) collaborate with public and private 

2 human services organizations and existing na3 tional, regional, and local information and re4 ferral systems to provide an exhaustive and 

5 comprehensive database of services from which 

6 to provide information or referrals to individ7 uals using the 211 service. 

8 (3) USE OF SUBGRANT FUNDS.—Amounts 

9 awarded through a subgrant under subsection (f) 

10 may be used by the subgrant recipient for the pur11 poses described in subsection (f)(1). 

12 (h) REPORTS AND EVALUATIONS.— 

13 (1) ANNUAL REPORTS.—The State 211 collabo14 rative of each State receiving an allotment under 

15 this section shall submit to the 211 National Board, 

16 not later than 60 days after the end of each fiscal 

17 year in which such allotment is made, a report on 

18 the program funded by the State allotment. Each re19 port shall— 

20 (A) describe the activities or services fund21 ed by the State allotment; 

22 (B) assess the effectiveness of such activi23 ties and services in making available, to all resi24 dents of the State with service, 211 service for 

25 information and referrals with respect to 


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1 human services in accordance with the provi2 sions of this section; and 

3 (C) assess the effectiveness of collaboration 

4 with human services resource and referral enti5 ties and service providers. 

6 (2) EVALUATION.—Each State 211 Collabo7 rative shall award a contract to an independent enti8 ty to conduct an evaluation of the State 211 system 

9 biennially. The evaluation shall address— 

10 (A) the effectiveness of the State 211 serv11 ice at connecting residents to needed human 

12 services; 

13 (B) the effectiveness of collaborations 

14 among 211 partners; 

15 (C) the effects of the State 211 service on 

16 911 law enforcement, fire, and medical emer17 gency services; 

18 (D) the comprehensiveness of the informa19 tion in the State 211 database; 

20 (E) public awareness of the State 211 

21 service; 

22 (F) user satisfaction with the State 211 

23 service; and 

24 (G) other topics identified by the 211 

25 State Oversight Councils. 


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1 (i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

2 (1) 211 SERVICE.—The term ‘‘211 service’’ 

3 means providing residents with information and re4 ferrals, via voice telephone, text telephone, short 

5 message service, text, internet phone, or other tele6 communication methods, with respect to health and 

7 human services and other provider agencies. 

8 (2) HUMAN SERVICES.—The term ‘‘human 

9 services’’ means services that— 

10 (A) assist individuals in becoming more 

11 self-sufficient, in preventing dependency, and in 

12 strengthening family relationships; 

13 (B) address social determinants of health; 

14 (C) support personal and social develop15 ment; or 

16 (D) help ensure the health and well-being 

17 of individuals, families, and communities. 

18 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the sev19 eral States, the District of Columbia, the Common20 wealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Is21 lands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Common22 wealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 

23 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro25 priated to carry out this Act $350,000,000 for each of 


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1 fiscal years 2021 and 2022 and $300,000,000 for each 

2 of fiscal years 2023 through 2027. 

3 (b) RESERVATION.—Of the amount appropriated 

4 under this section for a fiscal year, the 211 National 

Board may reserve 1 5 ⁄2 of 1 percent for administrative and 

6 national coordinating activities. 

7 (c) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pursuant 

8 to this section shall remain available until expended. 

Æ 


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