II 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 475 

To reauthorize the Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act of 2004, 

to provide assistance to Best Buddies to support the expansion and 

development of mentoring programs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 6, 2013 

Mr. HARKIN (for himself and Mr. BLUNT) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To reauthorize the Special Olympics Sport and Empowerment Act of 2004, to provide assistance to Best Buddies 

to support the expansion and development of mentoring 

programs, 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 ‘‘Eunice Kennedy Shriver Act’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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TITLE I—REAUTHORIZATION OF SPECIAL OLYMPICS ACT 

Sec. 101. Reauthorization. 

TITLE II—BEST BUDDIES 

Sec. 201. Findings and purpose. 

Sec. 202. Assistance for Best Buddies. 

Sec. 203. Application and annual report. 

Sec. 204. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 TITLE I—REAUTHORIZATION OF 

2 SPECIAL OLYMPICS ACT 

3 SEC. 101. REAUTHORIZATION. 

4 Sections 2 through 5 of the Special Olympics Sport 

5 and Empowerment Act of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 15001 note) 

6 are amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

8 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

9 ‘‘(1) Special Olympics creates the possibilities 

10 of a world where everybody matters, everybody 

11 counts, and every person contributes. 

12 ‘‘(2) The Government and the people of the 

13 United States recognize the dignity and value the 

14 giftedness of children and adults with intellectual 

15 disabilities. 

16 ‘‘(3) The Government and the people of the 

17 United States recognize that children and adults 

18 with intellectual disabilities experience significant 

19 health disparities, including lack of access to pri20 mary care services and difficulties in accessing comVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:36 Mar 08, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475

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1 munity-based prevention and treatment programs 

2 for chronic diseases. 

3 ‘‘(4) The Government and the people of the 

4 United States are determined to end the isolation 

5 and stigmatization of people with intellectual disabil6 ities, and to ensure that such people are assured of 

7 equal opportunities for community participation, ac8 cess to appropriate health care, and inclusive edu9 cation, and to experience life in a nondiscriminatory 

10 manner. 

11 ‘‘(5) For more than 40 years, Special Olympics 

12 has encouraged skill development, sharing, courage, 

13 and confidence through year-round sports training 

14 and athletic competition for children and adults with 

15 intellectual disabilities. 

16 ‘‘(6) Special Olympics provides year-round 

17 sports training and competitive opportunities to 

18 more than 4,200,000 athletes with intellectual dis19 abilities in 30 individual and team sports and plans 

20 to expand the benefits of participation through sport 

21 to more than a million additional people with intel22 lectual disabilities within the United States and 

23 worldwide over the next 5 years. 

24 ‘‘(7) Research shows that participation in ac25 tivities involving both people with intellectual disabilVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:36 Mar 08, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475

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1 ities and people without disabilities results in more 

2 positive support for inclusion in society, including in 

3 schools. 

4 ‘‘(8) Special Olympics has demonstrated its 

5 ability to provide a major positive effect on the qual6 ity of life of people with intellectual disabilities, im7 proving their health and physical well-being, building 

8 their confidence and self-esteem, and giving them a 

9 voice to become active and productive members of 

10 their communities. In the United States, for exam11 ple, adults with intellectual disabilities who have par12 ticipated in Special Olympics have a 100 percent 

13 greater chance of being employed than adults with 

14 intellectual disabilities who have not. 

15 ‘‘(9) In society as a whole, Special Olympics 

16 has become a vehicle and platform for reducing prej17 udice, improving public health, promoting inclusion 

18 efforts in schools and communities, and encouraging 

19 society to value the contributions of all members. 

20 ‘‘(10) The Government of the United States en21 thusiastically supports the Special Olympics move22 ment, recognizes its importance in improving the 

23 lives of people with intellectual disabilities and their 

24 families, and recognizes Special Olympics as a valVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:36 Mar 08, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475

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1 ued and important component of the global commu2 nity. 

3 ‘‘(b) PURPOSE.—The purposes of this Act are to— 

4 ‘‘(1) provide support to Special Olympics to in5 crease athlete participation in, and public awareness 

6 about, the Special Olympics movement, including ef7 forts to promote broader community inclusion; 

8 ‘‘(2) dispel negative stereotypes and establish 

9 positive attitudes about people with intellectual dis10 abilities; 

11 ‘‘(3) build community engagement through 

12 sports and related activities; and 

13 ‘‘(4) promote the extraordinary gifts and con14 tributions of people with intellectual disabilities. 

15 ‘‘SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE FOR SPECIAL OLYMPICS. 

16 ‘‘(a) EDUCATION ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary of 

17 Education may award grants to, or enter into contracts 

18 or cooperative agreements with, Special Olympics to carry 

19 out each of the following: 

20 ‘‘(1) Activities to promote the expansion of Spe21 cial Olympics, including activities to increase the full 

22 participation of people with intellectual disabilities in 

23 athletics, sports and recreation, and other inclusive 

24 school and community activities with people without 

25 disabilities. 


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1 ‘‘(2) The design and implementation of Special 

2 Olympics education programs, including character 

3 education and volunteer programs that support the 

4 purposes of this Act, that can be integrated into 

5 classroom instruction and community settings, and 

6 are consistent with academic content standards. 

7 ‘‘(b) INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary of 

8 State, acting through the Assistant Secretary of State for 

9 Educational and Cultural Affairs, may award grants to, 

10 or enter into contracts or cooperative agreements with, 

11 Special Olympics to carry out each of the following: 

12 ‘‘(1) Activities to increase the participation of 

13 people with intellectual disabilities in Special Olym14 pics outside of the United States. 

15 ‘‘(2) Activities to improve the awareness outside 

16 of the United States of the abilities of people with 

17 intellectual disabilities and the unique contributions 

18 that people with intellectual disabilities can make to 

19 society, and to promote active support for sports 

20 programs for people with intellectual disabilities. 

21 ‘‘(c) HEALTHY ATHLETES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health 

23 and Human Services may award grants to, or enter 

24 into contracts or cooperative agreements with, Spe25 cial Olympics for the implementation of on-site 


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1 health assessments, screening for health problems, 

2 health education, community-based prevention, data 

3 collection, and referrals to direct health care serv4 ices. 

5 ‘‘(2) COORDINATION.—Activities under para6 graph (1) shall be coordinated with appropriate 

7 health care entities, including private health care 

8 providers, entities carrying out local, State, Federal, 

9 or international programs, and the Department of 

10 Health and Human Services, as applicable. 

11 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION.—Amounts appropriated to carry 

12 out this section shall not be used for direct treatment of 

13 diseases, medical conditions, or mental health conditions. 

14 Nothing in the preceding sentence shall be construed to 

15 limit the use of non-Federal funds by Special Olympics. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 4. APPLICATION AND ANNUAL REPORT. 

17 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for a grant, 

19 contract, or cooperative agreement under subsection 

20 (a), (b), or (c) of section 3, Special Olympics shall 

21 submit an application at such time, in such manner, 

22 and containing such information as the Secretary of 

23 Education, Secretary of State, or Secretary of 

24 Health and Human Services, as applicable, may re25 quire. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—At a minimum, an application 

2 under this subsection shall contain each of the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘(A) ACTIVITIES.—A description of activi5 ties to be carried out with the grant, contract, 

6 or cooperative agreement. 

7 ‘‘(B) MEASURABLE GOALS.—A description 

8 of specific measurable annual benchmarks and 

9 long-term goals and objectives to be achieved 

10 through specified activities carried out with the 

11 grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, 

12 which specified activities shall include, at a 

13 minimum, each of the following activities: 

14 ‘‘(i) Activities to increase the full par15 ticipation of people with intellectual dis16 abilities in athletics, sports and recreation, 

17 and other inclusive school and community 

18 activities with people without disabilities. 

19 ‘‘(ii) Education programs that dispel 

20 negative stereotypes about people with in21 tellectual disabilities. 

22 ‘‘(iii) Activities to increase the partici23 pation of people with intellectual disabil24 ities in Special Olympics outside of the 


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1 United States and promote volunteerism 

2 on behalf of such activities. 

3 ‘‘(iv) Health-related activities as de4 scribed in section 3(c). 

5 ‘‘(b) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—As a condition on receipt of 

7 any funds for a program under subsection (a), (b), 

8 or (c) of section 3, Special Olympics shall agree to 

9 submit an annual report at such time, in such man10 ner, and containing such information as the Sec11 retary of Education, Secretary of State, or Secretary 

12 of Health and Human Services, as applicable, may 

13 require. 

14 ‘‘(2) CONTENT.—At a minimum, each annual 

15 report under this subsection shall describe— 

16 ‘‘(A) the degree to which progress has been 

17 made toward meeting the annual benchmarks 

18 and long-term goals and objectives described in 

19 the applications submitted under subsection (a); 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(B) demographic data about Special 

22 Olympics participants, including the number of 

23 people with intellectual disabilities served in 

24 each program referred to in paragraph (1). 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated— 

3 ‘‘(1) for grants, contracts, or cooperative agree4 ments under section 3(a), $9,500,000 for fiscal year 

5 2014, and such sums as may be necessary for each 

6 of the 4 succeeding fiscal years; 

7 ‘‘(2) for grants, contracts, or cooperative agree8 ments under section 3(b), $4,500,000 for fiscal year 

9 2014, and such sums as may be necessary for each 

10 of the 4 succeeding fiscal years; and 

11 ‘‘(3) for grants, contracts, or cooperative agree12 ments under section 3(c), $8,500,000 for fiscal year 

13 2014, and such sums as may be necessary for each 

14 of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

15 TITLE II—BEST BUDDIES 

16 SEC. 201. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

17 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

18 (1) Best Buddies operates the first national so19 cial and recreational program in the United States 

20 for people with intellectual disabilities. 

21 (2) Best Buddies is dedicated to helping people 

22 with intellectual disabilities become part of main23 stream society. 

24 (3) Best Buddies is determined to end social 

25 isolation for people with intellectual disabilities by 

26 promoting meaningful friendships between them and 


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1 their typical peers in order to help increase the self2 esteem, confidence, and abilities of people with and 

3 without intellectual disabilities. 

4 (4) Since 1989, Best Buddies has enhanced the 

5 lives of people with intellectual disabilities by pro6 viding opportunities for 1-to-1 friendships and inte7 grated employment. 

8 (5) Best Buddies is an international organiza9 tion spanning 1,500 middle school, high school, and 

10 college campuses. 

11 (6) Best Buddies implements programs that 

12 will positively impact more than 700,000 individuals 

13 in 2013. 

14 (7) The Best Buddies Middle Schools program 

15 matches middle school students with intellectual dis16 abilities with other middle school students and sup17 ports 1-to-1 friendships between them. 

18 (8) The Best Buddies High Schools program 

19 matches high school students with intellectual dis20 abilities with other high school students and sup21 ports 1-to-1 friendships between them. 

22 (9) The Best Buddies Colleges program 

23 matches adults with intellectual disabilities with col24 lege students and creates 1-to-1 friendships between 

25 them. 


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1 (10) The Best Buddies e-Buddies program sup2 ports e-mail friendships between people with and 

3 without intellectual disabilities. 

4 (11) The Best Buddies Citizens program pairs 

5 adults with intellectual disabilities in 1-to-1 friend6 ships with other people in the corporate and civic 

7 communities. 

8 (12) The Best Buddies Jobs program promotes 

9 the integration of people with intellectual disabilities 

10 into the community through supported employment. 

11 (13) The Best Buddies Ambassadors program 

12 educates and empowers people with intellectual dis13 abilities to be leaders and public speakers in their 

14 schools, communities, and workplaces. Best Buddies 

15 Ambassadors prepares people with intellectual dis16 abilities to become active agents of change. 

17 (14) Best Buddies Promoters empowers youth 

18 to become advocates for people with intellectual dis19 abilities. Students who take part in Best Buddies 

20 Promoters are introduced to the disability rights 

21 movement and the importance of inclusion through 

22 local awareness events. 

23 (b) PURPOSE.—The purposes of this title are to— 

24 (1) provide support to Best Buddies to increase 

25 participation in and public awareness about Best 


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1 Buddies programs that serve people with intellectual 

2 disabilities; 

3 (2) dispel negative stereotypes about people 

4 with intellectual disabilities; and 

5 (3) promote the extraordinary contributions of 

6 people with intellectual disabilities. 

7 SEC. 202. ASSISTANCE FOR BEST BUDDIES. 

8 (a) EDUCATION ACTIVITIES.—The Secretary of Edu9 cation may award grants to, or enter into contracts or co10 operative agreements with, Best Buddies to carry out ac11 tivities to promote the expansion of Best Buddies, includ12 ing activities to increase the participation of people with 

13 intellectual disabilities in social relationships and other as14 pects of community life, including education and employ15 ment, within the United States. 

16 (b) LIMITATIONS.—Amounts appropriated to carry 

17 out this title may not be used for direct treatment of dis18 eases, medical conditions, or mental health conditions. 

19 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this title 

20 shall be construed to limit the use of non-Federal funds 

21 by Best Buddies. 

22 SEC. 203. APPLICATION AND ANNUAL REPORT. 

23 (a) APPLICATION.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for a grant, 

25 contract, or cooperative agreement under section 


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1 202(a), Best Buddies shall submit an application at 

2 such time, in such manner, and containing such in3 formation as the Secretary of Education may re4 quire. 

5 (2) CONTENT.—At a minimum, an application 

6 under this subsection shall contain the following: 

7 (A) A description of activities to be carried 

8 out under the grant, contract, or cooperative 

9 agreement. 

10 (B) Information on specific measurable 

11 goals and objectives to be achieved through ac12 tivities carried out under the grant, contract, or 

13 cooperative agreement. 

14 (b) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of receipt of 

16 any funds under section 202(a), Best Buddies shall 

17 agree to submit an annual report at such time, in 

18 such manner, and containing such information as 

19 the Secretary of Education may require. 

20 (2) CONTENT.—At a minimum, each annual re21 port under this subsection shall describe the degree 

22 to which progress has been made toward meeting the 

23 specific measurable goals and objectives described in 

24 the applications submitted under subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 204. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec3 retary of Education for grants, contracts, or cooperative 

4 agreements under section 202(a), $4,000,000 for fiscal 

5 year 2014 and such sums as may be necessary for each 

6 of the 4 succeeding fiscal years. 

Æ 


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