I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 211 

To facilitate nationwide availability of 2–1–1 telephone service for information 

and referral on health and human services, including volunteer services, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 6, 2009 

Ms. ESHOO introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To facilitate nationwide availability of 2–1–1 telephone service for information and referral on health and human 

services, including volunteer services, 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 ‘‘Calling for 2–1–1 Act 

5 of 2009’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 


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1 (1) The Federal Communications Commission 

2 has assigned 2–1–1 as the national telephone num3 ber for telephone service for information and referral 

4 on human services, declaring that 2–1–1 best satis5 fies the public interest in allotting the limited re6 source of this abbreviated number. 

7 (2) The number ‘‘2–1–1’’ is an easy-to-remem8 ber telephone number that facilitates critical connec9 tions between individuals and families seeking serv10 ices, volunteer opportunities, or both and appro11 priate human service agencies, including community12 based and faith-based organizations and government 

13 agencies. 

14 (3) There are approximately 1,500,000 non15 profit organizations in the United States. Individuals 

16 and families often find it difficult to navigate 

17 through a complex and ever-growing maze of human 

18 service agencies and programs, spending inordinate 

19 amounts of time trying to identify an agency or pro20 gram that provides a service that may be imme21 diately or urgently required and often abandoning 

22 the search from frustration or a lack of quality in23 formation. 

24 (4) At the Federal, State, and local levels, gov25 ernment funding supports well-intentioned programs 


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1 that are not fully utilized because of a lack of access 

2 to and information on such programs by the public. 

3 Program administrators have indicated that there is 

4 a need for a simple way to connect those eligible for 

5 programs with available program resources. 2–1–1 

6 telephone service will reduce the number of inappro7 priate calls to government offices by directing con8 sumers to the appropriate human services agency, 

9 resulting in a more effective use of government serv10 ices. 

11 (5) A national cost benefit analysis conducted 

12 by the University of Texas estimates a net value to 

13 society of a national 2–1–1 system approaching 

14 $130,000,000 in the first year alone and a conserv15 ative estimate of nearly $1,100,000,000 over 10 

16 years. 

17 (6) Many families need information on govern18 ment and not-for-profit services that provide high 

19 quality health care, public health information related 

20 to bioterrorism threats, mental health services, drug 

21 treatment, elder care, help for victims of domestic vi22 olence, disaster recovery, and volunteer opportuni23 ties. 

24 (7) Individuals often need support, services, or 

25 both when suffering emotional distress, having suiciVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:10 Jan 12, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H211.IH H211

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1 dal thoughts or behavior, contemplating violence, or 

2 using drugs or alcohol. 

3 (8) Americans desire to volunteer and become 

4 involved in their communities. This desire, together 

5 with a desire to donate to organizations which pro6 vide human services, are among the reasons to con7 tact a center which provides information and referral 

8 on volunteer opportunities and human services. A 

9 simple call to 2–1–1 will help a citizen find the vol10 unteer opportunity they seek. 

11 (9) Following the September 11, 2001, terrorist 

12 attacks, an estimated 400 telephone hotlines were 

13 established in New York, New York, for various 

14 funds and services, creating a confusing network for 

15 victims and volunteers to navigate. A Comptroller 

16 General report on charitable aid following the ter17 rorist attacks found that ‘‘families of victims gen18 erally believed they had to navigate a maze of service 

19 providers in the early months’’ and that ‘‘good infor20 mation about and easy access to available assistance 

21 could help survivors in the recovery process’’. 

22 (10) During the Hurricane Katrina disaster in 

23 2005, 2–1–1 served as a crucial backup in areas of 

24 the Gulf Coast where 9–1–1 centers went down, pro25 viding access to emergency responders as well as 


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1 serving as a source for information about loved ones, 

2 food, shelter, and other vital services. 

3 (11) The 107th Congress recognized the impor4 tance of 2–1–1 telephone service in community pre5 paredness and response by including use of that tele6 phone number for public information as an allowable 

7 use of funds under grants for preparedness and re8 sponse to bioterrorism and other public health emer9 gencies under section 319C–1 of the Public Health 

10 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–3a), as added by sec11 tion 131 of the Public Health Security and Bioter12 rorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 

13 (Public Law 107–188). 

14 (12) While 69 percent of the population has ac15 cess to 2–1–1 telephone service in 41 States, inad16 equate funding prevents access to that telephone 

17 service throughout each of the States. 2–1–1 tele18 phone service is currently available statewide in only 

19 17 States. 

20 (13) Rapid deployment nationwide of 2–1–1 

21 telephone service as a means of access to informa22 tion about and referral on human services requires 

23 collaboration among State governments, comprehen24 sive and specialized information and referral centers, 

25 including Child Care Resource and Referral AgenVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:10 Jan 12, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H211.IH H211

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1 cies, human service organizations and service pro2 viders, emergency management and homeland secu3 rity officials, telephone companies, and other rel4 evant entities. 

5 (14) 2–1–1 telephone service facilitates the 

6 availability of a single repository where comprehen7 sive data on all community services is collected, 

8 maintained, and updated regularly, reducing costs 

9 and duplication of efforts. The reliable data provided 

10 through 2–1–1 telephone service helps to better as11 sess the needs of our communities and to imme12 diately mobilize resources toward those needs. 

13 SEC. 3. GRANTS TO FACILITATE NATIONWIDE AVAIL14 ABILITY OF 2–1–1 SERVICE FOR INFORMA15 TION AND REFERRAL ON HUMAN SERVICES. 

16 (a) GRANTS REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Health 

17 and Human Services shall award a grant to each State 

18 to carry out a program for the purpose of making 2–1– 

19 1 telephone service available to all citizens in the State 

20 for information and referral on health and human services, 

21 including volunteer services. These grant dollars shall not 

22 supplant existing funding streams or services. 

23 (b) GRANT TO BE AVAILABLE FOR EACH STATE.— 

24 In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall 

25 develop a formula for allocating grant amounts among the 


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1 States so that a grant may be awarded to each State seek2 ing a grant. 

3 (c) REQUIREMENT ON SHARE OF ACTIVITIES.— 

4 (1) REQUIREMENT.—A State may not be 

5 awarded a grant under this section unless the State 

6 ensures that at least 50 percent of the resources of 

7 the program funded by the grant will be derived 

8 from other sources. 

9 (2) IN-KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.—The require10 ment in paragraph (1) may be satisfied by in-kind 

11 contributions of goods or services. 

12 (d) LEAD ENTITY.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State seeking a grant 

14 under this section shall carry out this section 

15 through a lead entity meeting the requirements of 

16 this subsection. 

17 (2) 2–1–1 COLLABORATIVE.—An entity shall be 

18 treated as the 2–1–1 Collaborative for a State under 

19 this subsection if the entity— 

20 (A) exists for such purpose under State 

21 law; 

22 (B) exists for such purpose by order of the 

23 State public utility commission; or 


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1 (C) is a collaborative entity established by 

2 the State for such purpose from among rep3 resentatives of— 

4 (i) an informal existing 2–1–1 state5 wide collaborative, if any, in the State; 

6 (ii) State agencies; 

7 (iii) community-based organizations; 

8 (iv) faith-based organizations; 

9 (v) not-for-profit organizations; 

10 (vi) comprehensive and specialized in11 formation and referral providers, including 

12 current 2–1–1 call centers; 

13 (vii) foundations; and 

14 (viii) businesses. 

15 (3) REQUIREMENTS FOR PREEXISTING LEAD

16 ENTITIES.—An entity described by subparagraph 

17 (A) or (B) of paragraph (2) may be treated as a 

18 lead entity under this subsection only if such entity 

19 collaborates, to the extent practicable, with the orga20 nizations and entities listed in subparagraph (C) of 

21 that paragraph. 

22 (e) APPLICATION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The lead entity on behalf of 

24 each State seeking a grant under this section shall 


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1 submit to the Secretary an application therefore in 

2 such form as the Secretary shall require. 

3 (2) INFORMATION.—An application on behalf of 

4 a State under this subsection shall contain informa5 tion as follows: 

6 (A) Information on the program to be car7 ried out by the lead entity of the State so that 

8 every citizen with phone service may dial the 2– 

9 1–1 telephone service in order to plan to make 

10 available throughout the State 2–1–1 telephone 

11 service for information and referral on human 

12 services, including information on the manner 

13 in which the lead entity will develop, sustain, 

14 and evaluate the program. 

15 (B) Information on the sources of re16 sources for the program for purposes of meet17 ing the requirement in subsection (c). 

18 (C) There should be a statewide database 

19 available to all citizens as well as all human 

20 service programs, through the Internet, that 

21 will allow them to search for programs or serv22 ices that are available according to the data 

23 gathered by the 2–1–1 programs in the State. 


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1 (D) Any additional information that the 

2 Secretary may require for purposes of this sec3 tion. 

4 (f) SUBGRANTS.— 

5 (1) AUTHORITY.—In carrying out a program to 

6 make 2–1–1 telephone service available throughout a 

7 State at no charge to the caller, the lead entity of 

8 the State may make subgrants to such persons or 

9 entities as the lead entity considers appropriate for 

10 purposes of the program, including subgrants to pro11 vide funds— 

12 (A) for the provision of 2–1–1 telephone 

13 service; 

14 (B) for the operation and maintenance of 

15 2–1–1 call centers; and 

16 (C) for the collection and display of infor17 mation for the statewide database. 

18 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In awarding a subgrant 

19 under this subsection, a lead entity shall consider— 

20 (A) the ability of the person or entity seek21 ing the subgrant to carry out activities or pro22 vide services consistent with the program; 

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

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1 sure that rural communities have access to 2– 

2 1–1 telephone service; and 

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

4 subgrant will establish and maintain cooperative 

5 relationships with specialized information and 

6 referral centers, including Child Care Resource 

7 Referral Agencies, crisis centers, 9–1–1 call 

8 centers, and 3–1–1 call centers, if applicable. 

9 (g) USE OF GRANT AND SUBGRANT AMOUNTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts awarded as grants 

11 or subgrants under this section shall be used solely 

12 to make available 2–1–1 telephone service for com13 munity information and referral on human services 

14 to all citizens of the State with phone access, includ15 ing telephone connections between families and indi16 viduals seeking such services and the providers of 

17 such services. 

18 (2) PARTICULAR MATTERS.—In making 2–1–1 

19 telephone service available, the recipient of a grant 

20 or subgrant shall, to the maximum extent prac21 ticable— 

22 (A) abide by the Key Standards for 2–1– 

23 1 Centers as specified in the Standards for Pro24 fessional Information and Referral Require25 ments for Alliance of Information Referral SysVerDate Nov 24 2008 21:10 Jan 12, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H211.IH H211

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1 tems (AIRS) Accreditation and Operating 2–1– 

2 1 Systems; and 

3 (B) collaborate with human service organi4 zations, whether public or private, to provide an 

5 exhaustive database of services with which to 

6 provide information or referral to individuals 

7 utilizing 2–1–1 telephone service. 

8 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts of a subgrant 

9 under subsection (f) may be used by grantees for 

10 Statewide and regional planning, start-up costs (in11 cluding costs of software and hardware upgrades 

12 and telecommunications costs), training, accredita13 tion, public awareness, evaluation of activities, Inter14 net hosting and site development and maintenance 

15 for a statewide database, database integration 

16 projects that incorporate data from different 2–1–1 

17 programs to a single statewide database, and the 

18 provision of 2–1–1 telephone service. 

19 (h) REQUIREMENT ON ALLOCATION OF GRANT

20 AMOUNTS.—Of the amounts awarded under this section, 

21 an aggregate of not more than 15 percent shall be allo22 cated for evaluation, training, and technical assistance, 

23 and for management and administration of subgrants 

24 awarded under this section. 


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1 (i) REPORTS.—The lead entity of each State awarded 

2 a grant under this section for a fiscal year shall submit 

3 to the Secretary, not later than 60 days after the end of 

4 such fiscal year, a report on the program funded by the 

5 grant. Each report shall— 

6 (1) describe the program funding by the grant; 

7 (2) assess the effectiveness of the program in 

8 making available to all citizens with phone service 

9 State 2–1–1 telephone service for information and 

10 referral on human services in accordance with the 

11 provisions of this section; and 

12 (3) assess the effectiveness of collaboration with 

13 human service resource and referral entitles and 

14 service providers. 

15 (j) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 (1) HUMAN SERVICES.—The term ‘‘human 

17 services’’ means services as follows: 

18 (A) Services that assist individuals in be19 coming more self-sufficient, in preventing de20 pendency, and in strengthening family relation21 ships. 

22 (B) Services that support personal and so23 cial development. 


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1 (C) Services that help ensure the health 

2 and well-being of individuals, families, and com3 munities. 

4 (2) INFORMATION AND REFERRAL CENTER.— 

5 The term ‘‘information and referral center’’ means 

6 a center that— 

7 (A) maintains a database of providers of 

8 human services in a State or locality; 

9 (B) assists individuals, families, and com10 munities in identifying, understanding, and ac11 cessing the providers of human services and the 

12 human services offered by the providers of such 

13 services; and 

14 (C) tracks types of calls referred and re15 ceived to document the demands for services. 

16 (3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the sev17 eral States, the District of Columbia, the Common18 wealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, 

19 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the 

20 Northern Mariana Islands. 

21 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro23 priated to carry out this Act, for each of fiscal years 2009 

24 and 2010, $150,000,000, and for each of fiscal years 2011 

25 through 2014, $100,000,000. 


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1 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pursuant 

2 to the authorization of appropriations in subsection (a) 

3 shall remain available until expended. 

Æ 


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