I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2786 

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to provide social service agencies 

with the resources to provide services to meet the unique needs of 

Holocaust survivors to age in place with dignity, comfort, security, and 

quality of life. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

AUGUST 1, 2011 

Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (for herself and Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN) introduced 

the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 

the Workforce 

A BILL 

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to provide 

social service agencies with the resources to provide services to meet the unique needs of Holocaust survivors 

to age in place with dignity, comfort, security, and quality of life. 

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 ‘‘Holocaust Survivors 

5 Assistance Act of 2011’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 2786 IH

1 TITLE I—PURPOSES; FINDINGS; 

2 DEFINITIONS; GRANTS 

3 SEC. 101. PURPOSES. 

4 The purposes of this Act are— 

5 (1) to include ‘‘older individuals who are Holo6 caust survivors’’ to the list of groups that receive 

7 preference for services as defined in section 

8 305(a)(2)(E) of the Older Americans Act of 1965, 

9 (2) to designate within the Administration on 

10 Aging an individual to have responsibility for older 

11 individuals who are Holocaust survivors, and 

12 (3) to create a grant program to increase and 

13 improve transportation services for older individuals 

14 with preference to those older individuals who are 

15 Holocaust survivors. 

16 SEC. 102. FINDINGS. 

17 The Congress finds the following: 

18 (1) During the Holocaust, which took place be19 tween 1933 and 1945, an estimated 6,000,000 Jews, 

20 as well as millions from other targeted groups, were 

21 murdered by the Nazis and their collaborators. 

22 (2) Approximately 127,000 Holocaust survivors 

23 remain in the United States, and thousands pass 

24 away each year. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 2786 IH

1 (3) Holocaust survivors are getting older and 

2 frailer, and will be seeking additional support and 

3 assistance from social service providers to enable 

4 them to age in place. Providers face increased levels 

5 of demand from vulnerable individuals without any 

6 additional revenue to cover needed services. 

7 (4) All Holocaust survivors are at least 65 

8 years old with approximately three quarters of them 

9 older than 75 and a majority in their 80s and 90s. 

10 (5) More than half of all Holocaust survivors 

11 who emigrated to the United States from the former 

12 Soviet Union after 1965 fall beneath 200 percent of 

13 the Federal poverty threshold and constitute an ex14 tremely vulnerable at-risk population in the United 

15 States. 

16 (6) Holocaust survivors continue to live with 

17 the mental and physical scars of the unconscionable 

18 trauma caused by the Holocaust. 

19 (7) While institutionalized settings are bene20 ficial for some older people, long-term care facilities 

21 can have an adverse effect on Holocaust survivors. 

22 For many Holocaust survivors, institutionalized set23 tings reintroduce sights, sounds, smells, emotions 

24 and routines which can induce panic, anxiety, and 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 2786 IH

1 re-traumatization as a result of experiences resulting 

2 from the Holocaust. 

3 (8) Approximately two-thirds of Holocaust sur4 vivors live alone and living alone is a risk factor for 

5 institutionalization. 

6 (9) Low income Holocaust survivors are more 

7 reliant on social service programs than most other 

8 older Americans, with proportionally more Holocaust 

9 survivors needing services such as personal care, 

10 home-delivered and congregate meals, transpor11 tation, counseling and mental health support. 

12 SEC. 103. DEFINITION. 

13 Section 102 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 

14 U.S.C. 3002) is amended by adding at the end the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(55) The term ‘Holocaust survivor’ means an 

17 individual who— 

18 ‘‘(A)(i) lived in a country between 1933 

19 and 1945 under a Nazi regime, under Nazi oc20 cupation, or under the control of Nazi collabo21 rators; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) fled from a country between 1933 and 

23 1945 under a Nazi regime; under Nazi occupa24 tion, or under the control of Nazi collaborators; 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 2786 IH

1 ‘‘(B) was persecuted between 1933 and 

2 1945 on the basis of race, religion, physical or 

3 mental disability, sexual orientation, political 

4 affiliation, ethnicity, or other basis; and 

5 ‘‘(C) was a member of a group that was 

6 persecuted by the Nazis.’’. 

7 SEC. 104. ORGANIZATION. 

8 Section 305(a) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 

9 (42 U.S.C. 3025(a)) is amended— 

10 (1) in paragraph (1)(E) by inserting ‘‘older in11 dividuals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after ‘‘pro12 ficiency,’’ each place it appears, and 

13 (2) in paragraph (2)(E) by inserting ‘‘older in14 dividuals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after ‘‘pro15 ficiency,’’. 

16 SEC. 105. AREA PLANS. 

17 Section 306 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 

18 U.S.C. 3025(a)) is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a)— 

20 (A) in paragraph (1) by inserting ‘‘older 

21 individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after 

22 ‘‘proficiency,’’ each place it appears, 

23 (B) in paragraph (4)— 

24 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 2786 IH

1 (I) in clause (i)(I)(bb) by insert2 ing ‘‘older individuals who are Holo3 caust survivors,’’ after ‘‘proficiency,’’ 

4 and 

5 (II) in clause (ii) by inserting 

6 ‘‘older individuals who are Holocaust 

7 survivors,’’ after ‘‘proficiency,’’ each 

8 place it appears, and 

9 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 

10 (I) in subclause (VII) by striking 

11 ‘‘and’’ at the end, 

12 (II) by redesignating subclause 

13 (VIII) as subclause (IX), and 

14 (III) by inserting after subclause 

15 (VIII) the following: 

16 ‘‘(VIII) older individuals who are 

17 Holocaust survivors; and’’, and 

18 (C) in paragraph (7)(B)(iii) by inserting ‘‘, 

19 in particular, older individuals who are Holo20 caust survivors,’’ after ‘‘placement’’, and 

21 (2) by inserting ‘‘older individuals who are Hol22 ocaust survivors,’’ after ‘‘areas,’’. 

23 SEC. 106. STATE PLANS. 

24 Section 307(a) of the Older Americans Act of 1965 

25 (42 U.S.C. 3027(a)) is amended— 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 2786 IH

1 (1) in paragraph (4) by inserting ‘‘older individ2 uals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after ‘‘pro3 ficiency,’’, 

4 (2) in paragraph (16)(A)— 

5 (A) in clause (v) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

6 end, and 

7 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(vii) older individuals who are Holo9 caust survivors; and’’, and 

10 (3) in paragraph (28)(A)(ii) by inserting ‘‘older 

11 individuals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after 

12 ‘‘proficiency,’’. 

13 SEC. 107. CONSUMER CONTRIBUTIONS. 

14 Section 315 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 

15 U.S.C. 3030c–2) is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (c)(2) by inserting ‘‘older indi17 viduals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after ‘‘pro18 ficiency,’’ and 

19 (2) in subsection (d) by inserting ‘‘older individ20 uals who are Holocaust survivors,’’ after ‘‘pro21 ficiency,’’. 

22 SEC. 108. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 

23 Section 372(c)(2)(A) of the Older Americans Act of 

24 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3030s–2(c)(2)(A)) is amended by strikVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:35 Aug 04, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2786.IH H2786

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 2786 IH

1 ing ‘‘individuals)’’ inserting ‘‘individuals and older individ2 uals who are Holocaust survivors)’’. 

3 SEC. 109. PREVENTION OF ELDER ABUSE, NEGLECT, AND 

4 EXPLOITATION. 

5 Section 721(b)(12) of the Older Americans Act of 

6 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3058i(b)(12)) is amended— 

7 (1) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

8 end, 

9 (2) in subparagraph (C) by striking the period 

10 at the end and inserting ‘‘or’’, and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(D) older individuals who are Holocaust 

13 survivors.’’. 

14 TITLE II—FUNCTIONS OF 

15 ASSISTANT SECRETARY 

16 SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADMINISTRATION ON AGING. 

17 Section 201 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 

18 U.S.C. 3012) is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(g)(1) The Assistant Secretary is authorized to des21 ignate within the Administration a person to have respon22 sibility for older individuals who are Holocaust survivors. 

23 ‘‘(h) It shall be the duty of the Assistant Secretary, 

24 acting through the person designated to have responsi25 bility for older individuals who are Holocaust survivors.’’. 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 2786 IH

1 TITLE III—ACTIVITIES FOR 

2 HEALTH, INDEPENDENCE, 

3 AND LONGEVITY 

4 SEC. 301. INNOVATION TO IMPROVE TRANSPORTATION FOR 

5 OLDER INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HOLOCAUST 

6 SURVIVORS. 

7 Part A of title IV of the Older Americans Act of 1965 

8 (42 U.S.C. 3032 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 423. INNOVATION TO IMPROVE TRANSPORTATION 

11 FOR OLDER INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE HOLO12 CAUST SURVIVORS. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Secretary shall 

14 award grants or contracts to nonprofit organizations to 

15 improve and increase transportation services for older in16 dividuals, with preference toward those older individuals 

17 who are Holocaust survivors. The Assistant Secretary 

18 shall make grants or enter into such contracts for period 

19 of not less than 5 years. 

20 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A nonprofit organization 

22 receiving a grant or contract under subsection (a) 

23 shall use the funds received through such grant or 

24 contract to carry out a demonstration project, or to 

25 provide technical assistance to assist local transit 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 2786 IH

1 providers, area agencies on aging, senior centers, 

2 and local senior support groups, to encourage and 

3 facilitate coordination of Federal, State, and local 

4 transportation services and resources for older indi5 viduals who are Holocaust survivors. The organiza6 tion may use the funds to develop and carry out an 

7 innovative transportation demonstration project to 

8 create transportation services for older individuals. 

9 ‘‘(2) SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out a 

10 demonstration project or providing technical assist11 ance under paragraph (1) the organization may 

12 carry out activities that include— 

13 ‘‘(A) developing innovative approaches for 

14 improving access by older individuals to trans15 portation services, including volunteer driver 

16 programs, economically sustainable transpor17 tation programs, and programs that allow older 

18 individuals to transfer their automobiles to a 

19 provider of transportation services in exchange 

20 for the services; 

21 ‘‘(B) preparing information on transpor22 tation options and resources for older individ23 uals and organizations serving such individuals, 

24 and disseminating the information by estabVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:35 Aug 04, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2786.IH H2786

jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 2786 IH

1 lishing and operating a toll-free telephone num2 ber; 

3 ‘‘(C) developing models and best practices 

4 for providing comprehensive integrated trans5 portation services for older individuals, includ6 ing services administered by the Secretary of 

7 Transportation, by providing ongoing technical 

8 assistance to agencies providing services under 

9 title III and by assisting in coordination of pub10 lic and community transportation services; and 

11 ‘‘(D) providing special services to link 

12 older individuals to transportation services not 

13 provided under title III. 

14 ‘‘(c) PREFERENCE.—In awarding grants and enter15 ing into contracts under paragraph (a), the Assistant Sec16 retary shall give preference to organizations and institu17 tions that have previous extensive experience working with 

18 and conducting assessment of the needs of Holocaust sur19 vivors who are older individuals. 

20 ‘‘(d) CONSULTATION.—In determining the type of 

21 programs and activities used to improve and increase 

22 transportation assistance for Holocaust survivors, the As23 sistant Secretary shall consult with the individual des24 ignated by Section 201(h)(1) of the Act and with national 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 2786 IH

1 organizations with special expertise in serving Holocaust 

2 survivors who are older individuals. 

3 ‘‘(e) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to receive 

4 a grant or enter into a contract under paragraph (a), an 

5 entity shall have previous extensive experience working 

6 with and conducting assessment of the needs of older indi7 viduals. 

8 ‘‘(f) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Assistant Sec9 retary with assistance from the individual designated by 

10 Section 201 (h)(1) of the Act, shall prepare and submit 

11 to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 

12 President pro tempore of the Senate an annual report on 

13 the status and needs, including the priority areas of con14 cern, of older individuals who are Holocaust survivors.’’. 

Æ 


jbell on DSKDVH8Z91PROD with BILLS