49–010 

Calendar No. 248 

109TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 109–156 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR VOLUNTEER 

RECRUITMENT ACT OF 2005 

OCTOBER 19, 2005.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. DOMENICI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 584] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the Act (H.R. 584) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to recruit volunteers to assist with, or facilitate, the activities 

of various agencies and offices of the Department of the Interior, 

having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without 

amendment and recommends that the Act do pass. 

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of H.R 584 is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to recruit volunteers to assist with or facilitate the programs 

of various agencies and offices of the Department of the Interior 

that presently lack such authority. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Department of the Interior has bureaus with vibrant volunteer programs, such as the National Park Service, the United 

States Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. Currently, the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Office of the 

Secretary do not have authority to provide for volunteers. Existing 

authority is lacking in certain respects for the Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Geological Survey. H.R. 584 will provide these 

agencies and offices with volunteer program authority which will 

allow them to develop volunteer programs like those that exist at 

other Department of the Interior agencies. 

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LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

Representative Pombo introduced H.R. 584 on February 2, 2005. 

On March 14, 2005 the House of Representative passed H.R. 584, 

without amendment, by a voice vote. On March 15, 2005, H.R. 584 

was received in the Senate and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. 

An identical bill, S. 305 was introduced by Senator Craig on February 7, 2005. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests held 

a hearing on S. 305 on March 8, 2005 (S. Hrg. 109–19). At the business meeting on September 28, 2005, the Committee on Energy 

and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 584 favorably reported, without amendment, by a unanimous voice vote. During the 108th Congress, the House of Representatives passed a similar bill, H.R. 

4170. The Senate Public Lands and Forests Subcommittee held a 

hearing on H.R. 4170 on September 29, 2004, but no further action 

was taken. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in 

open business session on September 28, 2005, by a unanimous 

voice vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass 

H.R. 584. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 provides the short title of the Act. 

Section 2 states that the purpose of the Act is to authorize the 

Secretary of the Interior to recruit and use volunteers to assist 

with and facilitate the programs in the specified departmental 

agencies and offices. 

Section 3(a) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to recruit, 

train, and accept the services of volunteers for aiding in or facilitating the activities administered by Bureau of Indian Affairs, the 

United States Geological Survey, the Bureau of Reclamation, and 

the Office of the Secretary. 

Subsection (b) prescribes limitations on where the volunteers 

may work and the types of activities they may perform, stipulating 

that all volunteers under this authority must be supervised by an 

appropriate officer or employee of the United States. 

Subsection (c) authorizes the Secretary to provide for the costs 

incidental to the utilization of volunteers, including transportation, 

supplies, uniforms, lodging, subsistence (without regard to place of 

residence), recruiting, training, supervision, and awards and recognition (including nominal cash awards). 

Subsection (d) provides and describes the Federal employment 

status of the volunteers authorized under the Act. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 584—Department of the Interior Volunteer Recruitment Act of 

2005 

CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 584 would not significantly affect the federal budget. The legislation could increase direct spendVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:26 Oct 21, 2005 Jkt 049010 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR156.XXX SR156
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ing, but we estimate that any such effects would be negligible. Enacting H.R. 584 would not affect revenues. H.R. 584 contains no 

intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would not affect the budgets of 

state, local, or tribal governments. 

This legislation would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to 

recruit and use volunteers to assist with programs carried out by 

the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. 

Geological Survey, and the Office of Office of the Secretary. It 

would authorize the Secretary to provide for services and expenses 

incidental to the use of those volunteers as well as coverage for tort 

claim liability and workers’ compensation. 

Under current law, other agencies within the Department of the 

Interior (DOI) already have authority to recruit and use volunteers. 

Based on information from DOI about the cost of operating those 

agencies’ volunteer programs, CBO estimates that extending that 

authority to other agencies under H.R. 584 would cost less than 

$500,000 a year, assuming the availability of appropriated funds. 

In some cases, payments to or on behalf of volunteers resulting 

from tort claims could be made from the U.S. Treasury’s Judgment 

Fund; hence, H.R. 584 could result in an increase in direct spending. Based on the amount of such claims paid under DOI’s existing 

volunteer programs, however, CBO estimates that any increase in 

direct spending under H.R. 584 would be negligible. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Megan Carroll. This 

estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

H.R. 584. 

The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing 

Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of H.R. 584. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The Administration’s views on H.R. 584 are not known at this 

time. However, the Department of the Interior did provide testimony on S. 305 (an identical bill) at the Public Lands and Forests 

Subcommittee hearing on March 8, 2005, as follows: 

STATEMENT OF CHRIS KEARNEY DEPUTY ASSISTANT SEC- RETARY FOR POLICY AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS U.S. 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

S. 305, the Department of the Interior Volunteer Recruitment Act of 2005, would allow the Secretary of the Interior to recruit volunteers to assist with the activities of 

various agencies and offices of the Department of the InteVerDate Aug 31 2005 23:26 Oct 21, 2005 Jkt 049010 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6969 E:\HR\OC\SR156.XXX SR156
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rior. The Department of the Interior strongly supports this 

bill and urges that it be enacted. It is consistent with the 

Administration’s program. Through our Take Pride in 

America program, the Department of the Interior recruits, 

supports, and recognizes volunteers who work to improve 

our public lands and cultural and historic sites. Volunteers 

across America help public land managers fix fences and 

trails, stabilize soils, replant stream banks devastated by 

forest fires, restore historic buildings, teach kids to fish, 

collect data and monitor bird populations. They direct 

their energy to serving the American public and building 

a culture of responsibility. 

Currently, just five of the Interior Department’s eight 

bureaus have authority to accept volunteers, and two of 

these have only limited authority to use volunteers. Statutory provisions regarding the proper limitations on using 

volunteers are inconsistent or nonexistent. S. 305 would 

provide clear authority to pay for incidental services or 

costs associated with volunteers, such as providing supplies or transportation to a work site, and for training and 

supervision of volunteers. This bill would fill many statutory gaps, providing authority for the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Office of the Secretary to work with volunteers to support the renewal of the Take Pride in America 

program, and perfecting the existing volunteer authority of 

the United States Geological Survey and the Bureau of 

Reclamation. The Department of the Interior is therefore 

pleased to support the passage of this legislation. 

The bill is entirely consistent with existing authorities. 

It does not disturb the current statutory volunteer authority of the three bureaus that presently have sufficient authority and avoids disruption of existing programs to the 

maximum extent possible. This bill would not displace employees. 

The Department of the Interior is a leader in the federal 

government in providing opportunities for volunteer service. Because of our unique mission in support of the Nation’s natural and cultural heritage, we believe that expanding volunteer authority makes eminent good sense 

and that this bill is suitably drafted for that purpose. If 

this bill is enacted, Americans will have opportunities, for 

example, to volunteer as tutors in BIA schools. Nineteenth 

century French writer Alexis de Tocqueville observed that 

the United States was a nation of voluntary associations. 

S. 305 will help to make sure our 21st century laws keep 

this spirit of volunteerism alive. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the Act H.R. 584 as ordered reported. 

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