I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2358 

To authorize the President to reestablish the Civilian Conservation Corps 

as a means of providing gainful employment to unemployed and underemployed citizens of the United States through the performance of useful 

public work, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 25, 2019 

Ms. KAPTUR (for herself, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. POCAN, Ms. NORTON, 

Ms. MOORE, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. PAYNE, and Ms. SCHAKOWSKY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor 

A BILL 

To authorize the President to reestablish the Civilian Conservation Corps as a means of providing gainful employment to unemployed and underemployed citizens of the 

United States through the performance of useful public 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘21st Century Civilian 

5 Conservation Corps Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF CIVILIAN 

2 CONSERVATION CORPS. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT AND PURPOSE.—In order to re4 lieve the acute condition of widespread distress and unem5 ployment existing in the United States and to provide for 

6 the restoration of depleted natural resources in the United 

7 States and the advancement of an orderly program of use8 ful public works, the President may establish and operate 

9 a Civilian Conservation Corps to employ citizens of the 

10 United States, who are otherwise unemployed or under11 employed, in the construction, maintenance, and carrying 

12 on of works of a public nature in connection with— 

13 (1) the forestation of lands belonging to the 

14 United States or a State; 

15 (2) the prevention of forest fires, floods, and 

16 soil erosion; 

17 (3) plant pest and disease control; 

18 (4) the construction, maintenance, or repair of 

19 paths, trails, and fire-lanes in units of the National 

20 Park System, public lands, and other lands under 

21 the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the Interior and 

22 units of the National Forest System; and 

23 (5) such other work on Federal or State land 

24 incidental to or necessary in connection with any 

25 projects of the character enumerated in paragraphs 


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1 (1) through (4) that the President determines to be 

2 desirable. 

3 (b) ROLE OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—To operate the 

4 Civilian Conservation Corps, the President may utilize ex5 isting Federal departments and agencies, including the 

6 Department of Labor, the Department of Defense, the 

7 National Guard Bureau, the Department of the Interior, 

8 the Department of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engi9 neers, the Department of Transportation, the Department 

10 of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and 

11 Federal governmental corporations. 

12 (c) INCLUSION OF OTHER LANDS.—The President 

13 may extend the activities of the Civilian Conservation 

14 Corps to lands owned by a political subdivision of a State 

15 and lands in private ownership, but only for the purpose 

16 of conducting such kinds of cooperation work as are other17 wise authorized by law in preventing and controlling forest 

18 fires and the attacks of forest tree pests and diseases and 

19 such work as is necessary and in the public interest to 

20 control floods. 

21 (d) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—For the purpose of car22 rying out this Act, the President may enter into such con23 tracts or agreements with States as may be necessary, in24 cluding provisions for utilization of existing State adminis25 trative agencies. 


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1 (e) ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY.—The Presi2 dent, or the head of any department or agency authorized 

3 by the President to construct any project or to carry on 

4 any public works under this Act, may acquire real prop5 erty for such project or public work by purchase, donation, 

6 condemnation, or otherwise. 

7 SEC. 3. ADMINISTRATION OF CIVILIAN CONSERVATION 

8 CORPS. 

9 (a) EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCE.—If the President 

10 determines that amounts appropriated to carry out a Civil11 ian Conservation Corps under this Act for a fiscal year 

12 will be insufficient to employ all of the citizens of the 

13 United States described in section 2(a) who are seeking 

14 or likely to seek employment in the Civilian Conservation 

15 Corps and continue the employment of current employees 

16 who desire to remain in the Civilian Conservation Corps, 

17 the President shall employ additional persons in the Civil18 ian Conservation Corps in the following order of pref19 erence: 

20 (1) Unemployed veterans of the Armed Forces 

21 and unemployed members of the reserve components 

22 of the Armed Forces. 

23 (2) Unemployed citizens who have exhausted 

24 their entitlement to unemployment compensation. 


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1 (3) Unemployed citizens, who immediately be2 fore employment in the Civilian Conservation Corps, 

3 are eligible for unemployment compensation payable 

4 under any State law or Federal unemployment com5 pensation law, including any additional compensa6 tion or extended compensation under such laws. 

7 (4) Other citizens described in section 2(a). 

8 (b) HOUSING AND CARE OF EMPLOYEES.—The 

9 President may provide housing for persons employed in 

10 the Civilian Conservation Corps and furnish them with 

11 such subsistence, clothing, medical attendance and hos12 pitalization, and cash allowance, as may be necessary, dur13 ing the period they are so employed. 

14 (c) TRANSPORTATION.—The President may provide 

15 for the transportation of persons employed in the Civilian 

16 Conservation Corps to and from the places of employment. 

17 (d) NON-DISCRIMINATION.—In employing citizens 

18 for the Civilian Conservation Corps, no discrimination 

19 shall occur in accordance with Federal employment law; 

20 except that no individual under conviction for crime and 

21 serving sentence therefore shall be employed under the 

22 provisions of this Act. 

23 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

25 are authorized to be appropriated to the President 


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1 $16,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 

2 2022 to establish and operate a Civilian Conservation 

3 Corps under this Act. 

4 (b) USE OF UNOBLIGATED FUNDS APPROPRIATED

5 FOR PUBLIC WORKS.— 

6 (1) USE OF EXISTING FUNDS.—The President 

7 may use any moneys previously appropriated for 

8 public works and unobligated as of the date of the 

9 enactment of this Act to establish and operate a Ci10 vilian Conservation Corps under this Act. 

11 (2) USE TO RELIEVE UNEMPLOYMENT.—Not 

12 less than 80 percent of the funds utilized pursuant 

13 to paragraph (1) must be used to provide for the 

14 employment of individuals under this Act. 

15 (3) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) does not 

16 apply to— 

17 (A) unobligated moneys appropriated for 

18 public works on which actual construction has 

19 been commenced as of the date of the enact20 ment of this Act or may be commenced within 

21 90 days after that date; and 

22 (B) maintenance funds for river and har23 bor improvements already allocated as of the 

24 date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 (c) DURATION OF AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appro2 priated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations in 

3 subsection (a) or made available under subsection (b) shall 

4 remain available until expended. 

5 SEC. 5. TERMINATION. 

6 The authority of the President to establish and oper7 ate a Civilian Conservation Corps under this Act expires 

8 on September 30, 2022. 

Æ 


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