II 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 997 

To establish the Social Work Reinvestment Commission to provide independent counsel to Congress and the Secretary of Health and Human 

Services on policy issues associated with recruitment, retention, research, 

and reinvestment in the profession of social work, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 21, 2013 

Ms. MIKULSKI (for herself, Mr. CARDIN, and Ms. STABENOW) introduced the 

following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To establish the Social Work Reinvestment Commission to 

provide independent counsel to Congress and the Secretary of Health and Human Services on policy issues 

associated with recruitment, retention, research, and reinvestment in the profession of social work, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. Social 

6 Work Reinvestment Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.— 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

TITLE I—SOCIAL WORK REINVESTMENT COMMISSION 

Sec. 101. Establishment of Commission. 

Sec. 102. Appointment of Commission members. 

Sec. 103. Purposes and duties of Commission. 

Sec. 104. Powers of the Commission. 

Sec. 105. Compensation for Commission members. 

Sec. 106. Termination of the Commission. 

Sec. 107. Authorization of appropriations. 

TITLE II—REINVESTMENT GRANT PROGRAMS TO SUPPORT 

SOCIAL WORK PROFESSION 

Sec. 201. Workplace improvement grants. 

Sec. 202. Research grants. 

Sec. 203. Education and training grants. 

Sec. 204. Community-based programs of excellence grants. 

Sec. 205. National coordinating center. 

Sec. 206. Multimedia outreach campaign. 

2 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

3 Congress finds the following: 

4 (1) The United States economy has faced for5 midable obstacles since the country entered an eco6 nomic recession in 2008. Homeowners face chal7 lenges with high mortgage delinquency and fore8 closure, unemployment is high, particularly for the 

9 most vulnerable in society, and poverty continues to 

10 rise, as the rate stood at 15 percent in 2011, the 

11 highest rate since 1994. Joblessness and economic 

12 insecurity contribute to the incidence of mental ill13 ness, family violence, suicide, substance abuse, 

14 crime, and diminished capacity for health, family, 

15 and community functioning. Social workers form soVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:43 May 28, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S997.IS S997

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1 ciety’s social safety net. They provide assistance, 

2 guidance, and resources to individuals, families, and 

3 communities in poverty. They understand the dev4 astating costs and consequences of poverty and un5 employment and provide direct services in order to 

6 prevent and abate economic inequality. 

7 (2) The Bureau of Labor Statistics states that 

8 employment for social workers is expected to in9 crease faster than the average for all occupations 

10 through the year 2018, demonstrating a substantial 

11 need for social workers. 

12 (3) Social work salaries are among the lowest 

13 for professionals in general and for those with mas14 ter’s level education in particular. According to the 

15 National Association of Social Workers Center for 

16 Workforce Studies, 60 percent of full-time social 

17 workers earn between $35,000 and $59,999 per 

18 year. Social workers who earn lower salaries are 

19 more likely to work in challenging agency environ20 ments, serve more vulnerable clients, and leave the 

21 profession. 

22 (4) The Department of Education stated that 

23 72 percent of students graduating from Master of 

24 Social Work programs incurred debt to earn their 


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1 graduate degree. The average debt was approxi2 mately $35,500. 

3 (5) Social workers often deal with the most vul4 nerable clients in emotional or traumatic situations, 

5 and face possible danger as a result. The National 

6 Association of Social Workers Center for Workforce 

7 Studies found that 44 percent of survey respondents 

8 faced personal safety issues on the job. The Occupa9 tional Safety and Health Administration states that 

10 48 percent of assaults occur in the health care and 

11 social services industry. 

12 (6) The Alzheimer’s Association of America 

13 states that 5,300,000 Americans, or 1 in every 8 in14 dividuals over the age of 65, have Alzheimer’s dis15 ease. Social workers in gerontology settings work 

16 with older adults, including those with dementia, to 

17 support their physiological, psychological, and social 

18 needs through mental health therapy, caregiver and 

19 family counseling, health education, program coordi20 nation, and case management. 

21 (7) The Children’s Defense Fund states that 

22 every 41 seconds a child is confirmed as abused or 

23 neglected and every 6 hours a child is killed from 

24 abuse or neglect. The Administration for Children 

25 and Families of the Department of Health and 


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1 Human Services states that 423,000 children were 

2 in the United States foster care system in 2009. 

3 Most children placed in foster care are placed due to 

4 parental abuse or neglect. Research shows that pro5 fessional social workers employed in child welfare 

6 agencies are more likely to find permanent homes 

7 for children who were in foster care for 2 or more 

8 years. Unfortunately, fewer than 40 percent of child 

9 welfare workers are professional social workers. 

10 (8) The Department of Health and Human 

11 Services estimates that 26.2 percent of (or 1 in 4) 

12 individuals in the United States age 18 or older ex13 periences a diagnosable mental health disorder. Ad14 ditionally, 1 in 5 children and adolescents experi15 ences a mental health disorder. At least 1 in 10, or 

16 about 6,000,000, young people have a serious emo17 tional disturbance. Social workers provide the major18 ity of mental health counseling services in the 

19 United States, and are often the only providers of 

20 such services in rural areas. 

21 (9) Social workers working with veterans and 

22 their families provide case management, crisis inter23 ventions, mental health interventions, housing and 

24 financial counseling, high-risk screening, and advo25 cacy, among other services. The Department of VetVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:43 May 28, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S997.IS S997

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1 erans Affairs, which is the largest employer of social 

2 workers (over 10,000 of whom are Master’s pre3 pared) in the Nation, estimates that there are 

4 22,658,000 veterans in the United States. A once5 declining veteran population is now surging and is in 

6 dire need of mental health treatment to address 

7 issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder, de8 pression, drug and alcohol addiction, and suicidal 

9 tendencies. 

10 (10) The American Cancer Society estimates 

11 that there were 1,529,560 new cases of cancer and 

12 569,490 deaths, or 1,500 deaths a day, in 2010 

13 alone. The Centers for Disease Control and Preven14 tion report that there are over 1,000,000 people liv15 ing with HIV or AIDS in the United States, with 

16 approximately 56,300 new cases diagnosed each 

17 year. In 2009, 1,560,000 people received care from 

18 the Nation’s hospice providers. Health care and 

19 medical social workers practice in areas related to all 

20 of these circumstances and provide outreach for pre21 vention and health promotion, help individuals and 

22 their families adapt to their health conditions, con23 nect patients and family caregivers with community 

24 services and supports, provide grief counseling, and 

25 act as a liaison between individuals and their medVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:43 May 28, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S997.IS S997

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1 ical team, helping patients make informed decisions 

2 about their care. 

3 (11) The Children’s Defense Fund notes that 

4 every second a public school student is suspended 

5 and that every 11 seconds a high school student 

6 drops out. The National Center for Education Sta7 tistics states that in 2008 the national dropout rate 

8 for high school students was 8 percent. Some vulner9 able communities have dropout rates of 50 percent 

10 or higher. Social workers in school settings help stu11 dents avoid dropping out through early identifica12 tion, prevention, intervention, counseling, and sup13 port services. 

14 (12) According to the Department of Justice, 

15 every year more than 650,000 ex-offenders are re16 leased from Federal and State prisons. Social work17 ers employed in the corrections system address dis18 proportionate minority incarceration rates, provide 

19 treatment for mental health problems and drug and 

20 alcohol addiction, and work within as well as outside 

21 of the prison to reduce recidivism and increase posi22 tive community reentry. 

23 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

24 In this Act: 


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1 (1) CLINICAL SOCIAL WORKER.—The term 

2 ‘‘clinical social worker’’ has the meaning given the 

3 term in section 1861(hh)(1) of the Social Security 

4 Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(hh)(1)). 

5 (2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

6 means the Social Work Reinvestment Commission 

7 established under section 101. 

8 (3) COMMUNITY-BASED PROGRAM.—The term 

9 ‘‘community-based program’’ means an agency, or10 ganization, or other entity, carrying out a program 

11 that provides direct social work services, or commu12 nity development services, at a neighborhood, local13 ity, or regional level, to address human service, 

14 health care, or psychosocial needs. 

15 (4) HIGH NEED AND HIGH DEMAND POPU16 LATION.—The term ‘‘high need and high demand 

17 population’’ means a group that lacks sufficient re18 sources and, as a result, has a greater probability of 

19 being harmed by specific social, environmental, or 

20 health problems than the population as a whole. The 

21 group at issue may be a group residing in an area 

22 defined by the Health Resources and Services Ad23 ministration as a ‘‘health professional shortage 

24 area’’, which has a shortage of primary medical care, 

25 dental, or mental health providers. 


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1 (5) HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE OR UNI2 VERSITY.—The term ‘‘historically black college or 

3 university’’ means a part B institution, as defined in 

4 section 322 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 

5 (20 U.S.C. 1061). 

6 (6) MINORITY-SERVING INSTITUTION.—The 

7 term ‘‘minority-serving institution’’ means an edu8 cational institution that serves a large percentage of 

9 minority students (as determined by the Secretary of 

10 Education), including Alaska Native-serving institu11 tions, Native Hawaiian-serving institutions, Asian12 American and Native American Pacific Islander13 serving institutions, Predominantly Black Institu14 tions, historically black colleges and universities, 

15 Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribal Colleges and 

16 Universities, and Native American-serving, nontribal 

17 institutions (which shall have the meanings given the 

18 terms in section 241(1) of the Higher Education Act 

19 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1033(1))). 

20 (7) RELATED PROFESSIONAL RESEARCHER.— 

21 The term ‘‘related professional researcher’’ means a 

22 person who is professionally engaged in research in 

23 a social, political, economic, health, or mental health 

24 field. The research referred to in this paragraph is 

25 primarily conducted by doctoral level researchers 


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1 under university, government, research institute, or 

2 community agency auspices. 

3 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

4 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 

5 (9) SOCIAL WORK.—The term ‘‘social work’’ 

6 means— 

7 (A) the professional activity of helping in8 dividuals, groups, or communities enhance or 

9 restore capacity for social and psychosocial 

10 functioning and creating societal conditions fa11 vorable to that enhancement or restoration; 

12 (B) an activity, the practice of which con13 sists of the professional application of values, 

14 principles, and techniques related to the profes15 sional activity described in subparagraph (A), 

16 including— 

17 (i) diagnosis and treatment of mental 

18 and emotional disorders with individuals, 

19 families, and groups; 

20 (ii) helping communities or groups 

21 provide or improve social and health serv22 ices and participating in relevant legislative 

23 processes; and 

24 (iii) helping people obtain tangible 

25 services; and 


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1 (C) an activity, the practice of which re2 quires knowledge of— 

3 (i) human development; 

4 (ii) behavior of social, economic, and 

5 cultural institutions; and 

6 (iii) the interaction of the factors de7 scribed in clauses (i) and (ii). 

8 (10) SOCIAL WORK RESEARCHER.—The term 

9 ‘‘social work researcher’’ means a person who stud10 ies social work at the individual, family, group, com11 munity, policy, or organizational level, focusing 

12 across the human life span on prevention of, inter13 vention in, treatment of, aftercare of, and rehabilita14 tion from acute and chronic social and psychosocial 

15 conditions, and includes a person examining the ef16 fect of policies on social work practice. The study re17 ferred to in this paragraph is primarily conducted by 

18 researchers with doctoral degrees who are social 

19 workers or faculty under university, government, re20 search institute, or community agency auspices. 

21 (11) SOCIAL WORKER.—The term ‘‘social work22 er’’ means a graduate of a school of social work with 

23 a baccalaureate, master’s, or doctoral degree, who 

24 uses knowledge and skills to provide social work 

25 services for clients who may be individuals, families, 


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1 groups, communities, organizations, or society in 

2 general. 

3 TITLE I—SOCIAL WORK 

4 REINVESTMENT COMMISSION 

5 SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION. 

6 Not later than 3 months after the date of enactment 

7 of this Act, the Secretary shall establish the Social Work 

8 Reinvestment Commission to provide independent counsel 

9 to Congress and the Secretary on policy issues associated 

10 with recruitment for, and retention, research, and rein11 vestment in, the profession of social work. 

12 SEC. 102. APPOINTMENT OF COMMISSION MEMBERS. 

13 (a) APPOINTMENT BY THE SECRETARY.—Not later 

14 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

15 Secretary shall appoint members to the Commission. The 

16 members shall include representatives of social workers 

17 and other members, including the following: 

18 (1) 2 deans of schools of social work. 

19 (2) 1 social work researcher. 

20 (3) 1 related professional researcher. 

21 (4) 1 Governor. 

22 (5) 2 leaders of national social work organiza23 tions. 

24 (6) 1 senior social work State official. 

25 (7) 1 senior related State official. 


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1 (8) 2 directors of community-based organiza2 tions or nonprofit organizations. 

3 (9) 1 labor economist. 

4 (10) 1 social work consumer. 

5 (11) 1 licensed clinical social worker. 

6 (b) APPOINTMENT BY OTHER OFFICERS.—Four ad7 ditional members shall be appointed to the Commission, 

8 with one member appointed by each of the following offi9 cers: 

10 (1) The Speaker of the House of Representa11 tives. 

12 (2) The minority leader of the House of Rep13 resentatives. 

14 (3) The majority leader of the Senate. 

15 (4) The minority leader of the Senate. 

16 (c) ORGANIZATIONAL REPRESENTATION.—Members 

17 of the Commission shall, to the extent practicable, be ap18 pointed— 

19 (1) in a manner that assures participation of 

20 individuals and representatives of groups from dif21 ferent racial, ethnic, cultural, geographic, religious, 

22 linguistic, and class backgrounds and different gen23 ders and sexual orientations; and 


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1 (2) from among persons who demonstrate 

2 knowledge and understanding of the concerns of the 

3 individuals and groups described in paragraph (1). 

4 (d) SELECTION OF CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIR5 PERSON.—The Secretary shall select a chairperson and 

6 vice chairperson for the Commission from among the 

7 members of the Commission. 

8 (e) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.—Mem9 bers shall be appointed for the life of the Commission, and 

10 any vacancy in the Commission shall not affect the powers 

11 of the Commission. Any such vacancy shall be filled in the 

12 same manner as the original appointment, and shall be 

13 filled not later than 60 days after the date of vacancy. 

14 (f) SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS.—The Commission 

15 shall hold its first meeting not later than 6 weeks after 

16 the date on which the final member of the Commission 

17 is appointed, and subsequent meetings at the call of the 

18 chair. 

19 SEC. 103. PURPOSES AND DUTIES OF COMMISSION. 

20 (a) STUDY.—The Commission shall conduct a com21 prehensive study to examine and assess— 

22 (1) the professional capacity of the social work 

23 workforce to successfully serve and respond to the 

24 increasing biopsychosocial needs of individuals, 

25 groups, and communities, in— 


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1 (A) areas related to— 

2 (i) aging; 

3 (ii) child welfare; 

4 (iii) military and veterans affairs; 

5 (iv) mental and behavioral health and 

6 disability; 

7 (v) criminal justice and correctional 

8 systems; and 

9 (vi) health and issues affecting women 

10 and families; and 

11 (B) other areas identified by the Commis12 sion; 

13 (2)(A) the workforce challenges facing the pro14 fession of social work, such as high social work edu15 cational debt, lack of fair market compensation, the 

16 need to address social work workforce trends, trans17 late social work research to practice, promote social 

18 work safety, or develop State-level social work licen19 sure policies and reciprocity agreements for pro20 viding services across State lines, or the lack of di21 versity in the social work profession, or the need to 

22 address any other area determined by the Secretary 

23 to be appropriate; and 

24 (B) the effect that such challenges have on the 

25 recruitment and retention of social workers; 


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1 (3) current workforce challenges and shortages 

2 relevant to the needs of clients served by social 

3 workers; 

4 (4) the social work workforce challenges de5 scribed in paragraph (2) and the effects that the 

6 challenges will have on the provision of social work 

7 related to the areas described in paragraph (1); and 

8 (5) the advisability of establishing a social work 

9 enhancement account, to provide direct grant assist10 ance to local governments to encourage the engage11 ment of social workers in social service programs. 

12 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

13 date of its first meeting, the Commission shall submit a 

14 report to the Secretary and Congress containing specific 

15 findings and conclusions regarding the need for recruit16 ment for, and retention, research, and reinvestment in, the 

17 profession of social work. The report shall include rec18 ommendations and strategies for corrective actions to en19 sure a robust social work workforce capable of keeping up 

20 with the demand for needed services. The Commission 

21 may provide to Congress any additional findings or rec22 ommendations considered by the Commission to be impor23 tant. 


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1 SEC. 104. POWERS OF THE COMMISSION. 

2 (a) POWERS.—The Commission shall have the power 

3 to— 

4 (1) hold such hearings, sit and act at such 

5 times and places, take such testimony, receive such 

6 evidence, and administer such oaths as the Commis7 sion considers advisable to carry out the objectives 

8 of this title; 

9 (2) delegate the Commission powers described 

10 in paragraph (1) to any Commission subcommittee 

11 or member of the Commission for the purpose of 

12 carrying out this Act; 

13 (3) enter into contracts to enable the Commis14 sion to perform the Commission’s work under this 

15 Act; and 

16 (4) consult, to the extent that the Commission 

17 determines that such consultation is necessary or 

18 useful, with other agencies and organizations, in19 cluding— 

20 (A) agencies within the Department of 

21 Health and Human Services, including the Ad22 ministration for Children and Families, the Ad23 ministration on Aging, the Agency for 

24 Healthcare Research and Quality, the Centers 

25 for Disease Control and Prevention, the Centers 

26 for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Health 


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1 Resources and Service Administration, the In2 dian Health Service, the National Institutes of 

3 Health, and the Substance Abuse and Mental 

4 Health Services Administration; 

5 (B) the Social Security Administration; 

6 (C) the Departments of Agriculture, De7 fense, Education, Homeland Security, Labor, 

8 Justice, State, and Veterans Affairs; and 

9 (D) any other agency of the Federal Gov10 ernment, as determined by the Commission. 

11 (b) COOPERATION WITH THE COMMISSION.—The 

12 agencies described in subsection (a)(4) shall cooperate 

13 with and provide counsel to the Commission to the great14 est extent practicable. 

15 SEC. 105. COMPENSATION FOR COMMISSION MEMBERS. 

16 (a) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the Com17 mission shall not receive compensation for the perform18 ance of services for the Commission, but shall be allowed 

19 travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, 

20 at rates authorized for employees of agencies under sub21 chapter 1 of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, 

22 while away from their homes or regular places of business 

23 in the performance of services for the Commission. Not24 withstanding section 1342 of title 31, United States Code, 


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1 the Secretary may accept the voluntary and uncompen2 sated services of members of the Commission. 

3 (b) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.—Any 

4 Federal Government employee may be detailed to the 

5 Commission without reimbursement, and such detail shall 

6 be without interruption or loss of civil service status or 

7 privilege. 

8 SEC. 106. TERMINATION OF THE COMMISSION. 

9 The Commission shall terminate 30 days after the 

10 date on which the Commission submits its report under 

11 section 103. 

12 SEC. 107. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

13 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec14 retary such sums as may be necessary for use by the ac15 tivities of the Commission. 

16 TITLE II—REINVESTMENT 

17 GRANT PROGRAMS TO SUP18 PORT SOCIAL WORK PROFES19 SION 

20 SEC. 201. WORKPLACE IMPROVEMENT GRANTS. 

21 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 

22 award grants to 4 eligible entities described in subsection 

23 (d) to address workplace concerns for the social work pro24 fession, including caseloads, compensation, social work 

25 safety, supervision, and working conditions. 


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1 (b) EQUAL AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall award 

2 grants under this section in equal amounts to the 4 eligible 

3 entities. The Secretary shall award the grants annually 

4 over a 4-year period. 

5 (c) LOCAL OR STATE GOVERNMENT ENTITIES RE6 QUIREMENT.—At least 2 of the grant recipients shall be 

7 State or local government agencies. 

8 (d) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for 

9 a grant under this section, an entity shall— 

10 (1) work in a social work capacity that dem11 onstrates a need regarding a workplace concern area 

12 described in subsection (a); 

13 (2) demonstrate— 

14 (A) participation in the entities’ programs 

15 of individuals and groups from different racial, 

16 ethnic, cultural, geographic, religious, linguistic, 

17 and class backgrounds, and different genders 

18 and sexual orientations; and 

19 (B) knowledge and understanding of the 

20 concerns of the individuals and groups de21 scribed in subparagraph (A); 

22 (3) demonstrate a record of active participation 

23 of social workers in the entities’ programs; and 

24 (4) provide services and represent the individ25 uals employed by the entities as competent only 


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1 within the boundaries of their education, training, li2 censes, certification, consultation received, super3 vised experience, or other relevant professional expe4 rience. 

5 (e) PRIORITY.—In selecting the grant recipients 

6 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to eligi7 ble entities that— 

8 (1) are equipped with the capacity to oversee 

9 and monitor a workplace improvement program car10 ried out under this section, including proven fiscal 

11 responsibility and administrative capability; and 

12 (2) are knowledgeable about relevant workforce 

13 trends and have at least 2 years of experience rel14 evant to the workplace improvement program. 

15 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

16 authorized to be appropriated $16,000,000 to the Sec17 retary to award grants under this section. 

18 SEC. 202. RESEARCH GRANTS. 

19 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 

20 award grants to not less than 25 social workers who hold 

21 a doctoral degree in social work, for post-doctoral research 

22 in social work— 

23 (1) to further the knowledge base about effec24 tive social work interventions; and 


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1 (2) to promote usable strategies to translate re2 search into practice across diverse community set3 tings and service systems. 

4 (b) AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall award the grants 

5 annually over a 4-year period. 

6 (c) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for 

7 a grant under this section, a social worker shall— 

8 (1) demonstrate knowledge and understanding 

9 of the concerns of individuals and groups from dif10 ferent racial, ethnic, cultural, geographic, religious, 

11 linguistic, and class backgrounds, and different gen12 ders and sexual orientations; and 

13 (2) provide services and represent themselves as 

14 competent only within the boundaries of their edu15 cation, training, licenses, certification, consultation 

16 received, supervised experience, or other relevant 

17 professional experience. 

18 (d) MINORITY REPRESENTATION.—At least 10 of the 

19 social workers awarded grants under subsection (a) shall 

20 be employed by a historically black college or university 

21 or minority-serving institution. 

22 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

23 authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 to the Secretary 

24 to award grants under this section. 


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1 SEC. 203. EDUCATION AND TRAINING GRANTS. 

2 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 

3 award 20 grants to eligible institutions of higher education 

4 to support the recruitment of social work students for, and 

5 education of the students in, baccalaureate, master’s, and 

6 doctoral degree programs, as well as the development of 

7 faculty in social work. 

8 (b) EQUAL AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall award 

9 grants under this section in equal amounts of not more 

10 than $100,000 to the 20 eligible institutions. The Sec11 retary shall award the grants annually over a 4-year pe12 riod. 

13 (c) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for 

14 a grant under this section, an institution shall dem15 onstrate— 

16 (1) participation in the institutions’ programs 

17 of individuals and groups from different racial, eth18 nic, cultural, geographic, religious, linguistic, and 

19 class backgrounds, and different genders and sexual 

20 orientations; and 

21 (2) knowledge and understanding of the con22 cerns of the individuals and groups described in 

23 paragraph (1). 

24 (d) INSTITUTIONAL REQUIREMENT.—At least 4 of 

25 the grant recipients shall be historically black colleges or 

26 universities or other minority-serving institutions. 


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1 (e) PRIORITY.—In selecting the grant recipients 

2 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to in3 stitutions of higher education that— 

4 (1) are accredited by the Council on Social 

5 Work Education; 

6 (2) have a graduation rate of not less than 80 

7 percent for social work students; and 

8 (3) exhibit an ability to recruit social workers 

9 from and place social workers in areas with a high 

10 need and high demand population. 

11 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

12 authorized to be appropriated $8,000,000 to the Secretary 

13 to award grants under this section. 

14 SEC. 204. COMMUNITY-BASED PROGRAMS OF EXCELLENCE 

15 GRANTS. 

16 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary may 

17 award grants to 6 eligible covered entities, to further test 

18 and replicate effective social work interventions. 

19 (b) COVERED ENTITY.—For purposes of this section, 

20 the term ‘‘covered entity’’ means— 

21 (1) a public entity that is carrying out a com22 munity-based program of excellence; and 

23 (2) a nonprofit organization that is carrying out 

24 a program of excellence. 


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1 (c) EQUAL AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall award 

2 grants under this section in equal amounts of not more 

3 than $500,000 to eligible covered entities. The Secretary 

4 shall award the grants annually over a 3-year period. 

5 (d) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—To be eligible for 

6 a grant under this section, a covered entity shall— 

7 (1) carry out programs in the areas of aging, 

8 child welfare, military and veteran’s issues, mental 

9 and behavioral health and disability, criminal justice 

10 and correction systems, and health and issues affect11 ing women and families; 

12 (2) demonstrate— 

13 (A) participation in the covered entities’ 

14 programs of individuals and groups from dif15 ferent racial, ethnic, cultural, geographic, reli16 gious, linguistic, and class backgrounds, and 

17 different genders and sexual orientations; and 

18 (B) knowledge and understanding of the 

19 concerns of the individuals and groups de20 scribed in subparagraph (A); 

21 (3) demonstrate a record of active participation 

22 of social workers in the covered entities’ programs; 

23 and 

24 (4) provide services and represent the individ25 uals employed by the covered entities as competent 


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1 only within the boundaries of their education, train2 ing, licenses, certification, consultation received, su3 pervised experience, or other relevant professional 

4 experience. 

5 (e) PRIORITY.—In selecting the grant recipients 

6 under this section, the Secretary shall give priority to eligi7 ble covered entities that— 

8 (1) have demonstrated successful and measur9 able outcomes that are worthy of replication; 

10 (2) have been in operation for at least 2 years; 

11 and 

12 (3) work with high need and high demand pop13 ulations. 

14 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

15 authorized to be appropriated $9,000,000 to the Secretary 

16 to award grants under this section. 

17 SEC. 205. NATIONAL COORDINATING CENTER. 

18 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall enter into 

19 a contract with a national social work entity that— 

20 (1) has experience in coordinating the transfer 

21 of information and ideas among entities engaged in 

22 social work research, practice, education, and policy23 making; and 

24 (2) maintains relationships with Federal enti25 ties, social work degree-granting institutions of highVerDate Mar 15 2010 20:43 May 28, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S997.IS S997

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1 er education and departments of social work within 

2 such institutions, and organizations and agencies 

3 that employ social workers. 

4 (b) GENERAL DUTIES.—The contract recipient (re5 ferred to in this section as the ‘‘coordinating center’’) shall 

6 serve as a coordinating center and shall organize informa7 tion and other data, collect and report data, serve as a 

8 clearinghouse, and coordinate activities with the entities, 

9 institutions, departments, organizations, and agencies de10 scribed in subsection (a)(2). 

11 (c) COLLABORATION.—The coordinating center shall 

12 work with institutions of higher education, research enti13 ties, and entities with social work practice settings to iden14 tify key research areas to be pursued, identify qualified 

15 research fellows, and organize appropriate mentorship and 

16 professional development efforts. 

17 (d) SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES OF THE COORDINATING

18 CENTER.—The coordinating center shall— 

19 (1) build on the efforts of the National Associa20 tion of Social Workers National Center for Work21 force Studies; 

22 (2) collect, coordinate, monitor, and distribute 

23 data, information on best practices and findings re24 garding the activities funded under grants made to 


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1 eligible entities and individuals under the grant pro2 grams described in sections 201 though 204; 

3 (3) prepare and submit to the Secretary a re4 port that includes recommendations regarding the 

5 need to recruit new social workers, retain current so6 cial workers, conduct social work research, and rein7 vest in the profession of social work; and 

8 (4) demonstrate cultural competency and pro9 mote the participation of diverse groups. 

10 (e) SELECTION.—The Secretary, in collaboration 

11 with the coordinating center, shall— 

12 (1) select topics to be researched under this sec13 tion; 

14 (2) select candidates and finalists for research 

15 fellow positions; and 

16 (3) determine other activities to be carried out 

17 under this section. 

18 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

19 authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000 to carry out this 

20 section for each of fiscal years 2013 to 2017. 

21 SEC. 206. MULTIMEDIA OUTREACH CAMPAIGN. 

22 (a) DEVELOPMENT AND ISSUANCE OF PUBLIC SERV23 ICE ANNOUNCEMENTS.—The Secretary shall develop and 

24 issue public service announcements that advertise and pro25 mote the social work profession, highlight the advantages 


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1 and rewards of social work, and encourage individuals to 

2 enter the social work profession. 

3 (b) METHOD.—The public service announcements de4 scribed in subsection (a) shall be broadcast through appro5 priate media outlets, including television or radio, in a 

6 manner intended to reach as wide and diverse an audience 

7 as possible. 

8 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

9 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

10 necessary to carry out this section for each of fiscal years 

11 2013 through 2016. 

Æ 


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