III 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 253 

Designating June 16, 2023, as National Service and Conservation Corps 

Day. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 14, 2023 

Mr. HEINRICH (for himself and Mr. CASSIDY) submitted the following 

resolution; which was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Designating June 16, 2023, as National Service and 

Conservation Corps Day. 

Whereas there exists a network of more than 150 Service and 

Conservation Corps across the United States that provides education, workforce development, and support 

services to approximately 22,000 young adults and post9/11 veterans annually; 

Whereas the Service and Conservation Corps are locally-based 

organizations that engage young adults between 18 and 

30 years of age and veterans younger than 35 years of 

age in service projects that address recreation, conservation, disaster response, and community needs; 

Whereas the Service and Conservation Corps are direct descendants of the Civilian Conservation Corps, a Great 


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•SRES 253 ATS 

Depression-era Federal work relief program in existence 

from 1933 to 1942 that— 

(1) mobilized 3,000,000 young men to dramatically 

improve the public lands of the United States; 

(2) provided participants with food, shelter, education, and a $30 per month stipend; and 

(3) planted 3,000,000,000 trees and helped build 

trails, roads, campgrounds, and other park infrastructure 

still in use today; 

Whereas April 5, 2023, was the 90th anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt establishing the Civilian Conservation Corps with a presidential Executive order (Executive Order 6101 (relating to relief of unemployment 

through the performance of useful public work)); 

Whereas, unlike the Civilian Conservation Corps, which was 

a large, Federal program that was only open to young 

men, while Black and Native American participants faced 

discrimination, modern Service and Conservation Corps 

are equitable, diverse, and inclusive; 

Whereas most modern Service and Conservation Corps are 

nonprofit organizations or are operated by units of State 

or local government; 

Whereas, through public-private partnerships, Service and 

Conservation Corps work with a range of organizations, 

government agencies, and institutions to engage Corps 

participants in meaningful projects that address local and 

national issues; 

Whereas, throughout a term of service that could last from 

a few months to a year, Corps participants experience the 

‘‘Corps Model’’ by— 


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•SRES 253 ATS 

(1) gaining work experience and developing in-demand skills; 

(2) serving on crews alongside other young adults, 

or in ‘‘individual placement’’ or internship positions, that 

provide additional capacity to Federal, State, and local 

resource management agencies; 

(3) receiving a stipend or living allowance and often 

an education award or scholarship upon completion of 

service; and 

(4) receiving educational programming, mentoring, 

and access to career and personal counseling; 

Whereas some Service and Conservation Corps operate or 

partner with charter schools to help Corps participants 

earn their high school diploma or GED certificate; 

Whereas Corps participants complete thousands of community improvement, resilience, and resource conservation 

projects every year; 

Whereas Service and Conservation Corps have longstanding 

partnerships with Federal, State, and local community 

development and resource management agencies to engage Corps participants in meaningful and necessary 

projects across the United States; 

Whereas Corps projects include— 

(1) enhancing neighborhoods and community public 

spaces, including urban gardens; 

(2) preserving and protecting public lands, shorelines, waterways, habitats, and wildlife; 

(3) preserving historic structures; 

(4) providing access to and enhancing recreation on 

public lands and waters; 

(5) enhancing resilience to climate change and natural disasters; 


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•SRES 253 ATS 

(6) mitigating, responding to, and recovering from 

natural disasters, including hurricanes and wildfires; 

(7) improving energy efficiency and resource conservation; and 

(8) building and maintaining alternative transportation and sustainable infrastructure; 

Whereas the United States urgently needs to transition to 

more sustainable infrastructure, respond to decades of 

deferred maintenance on public lands and waters, restore 

critical ecosystems, and make communities more resilient 

to climate change; 

Whereas unemployment and barriers to opportunity affect 

millions of young people in the United States and disproportionately affect young people of color; and 

Whereas the existing network of more than 150 Service and 

Conservation Corps is ready to meet the needs of young 

people in the United States: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates June 16, 2023, as National 

3 Service and Conservation Corps Day; 

4 (2) congratulates the existing network of more 

5 than 150 Service and Conservation Corps on their 

6 contributions to the United States; 

7 (3) urges the people of the United States to 

8 recognize the importance of national service; and 


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1 (4) supports the continuation and expansion of 

2 the national network of Service and Conservation 

3 Corps. 

Æ 


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