I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4648
To provide for grants to establish the Bill Emerson and Mickey Leland
memorial fellowship programs.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 13, 2000
Mr. HALL of Ohio introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Agriculture, and in addition to the Committee on Inter-
national Relations, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within
the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To provide for grants to establish the Bill Emerson and
Mickey Leland memorial fellowship programs.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; PURPOSES.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Congressional Hunger Fellows Act of 2000’’.
(b) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds as follows:
(1) There is a critical need for compassionate
individuals who are committed to assisting people
who suffer from hunger as well as a need for such
individuals to initiate and administer solutions to the
hunger problem.
(2) Bill Emerson, the distinguished late Rep-
resentative from the 8th District of Missouri, dem-
onstrated his commitment to solving the problem of
hunger in a bipartisan manner, his commitment to
public service, and his great affection for the institu-
tion and the ideals of the United States Congress.
(3) George T. (Mickey) Leland, the distin-
guished late Representative from the 18th District
of Texas, demonstrated his compassion for those in
need, his high regard for public service, and his live-
ly exercise of political talents.
(4) The special concern that Mr. Emerson and
Mr. Leland demonstrated during their lives for the
hungry and poor was an inspiration for others to
work toward the goals of equality and justice for all.
(5) These two outstanding leaders maintained a
special bond of friendship regardless of political af-
filiation and worked together to encourage future
leaders to recognize and provide service to others,
and therefore it is especially appropriate to honor
the memory of Mr. Emerson and Mr. Leland by cre-
ating a fellowship program to develop and train the
future leaders of the United States to pursue careers
in humanitarian service.
(c) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are—
(1) to encourage future leaders of the United
States to pursue careers in humanitarian service, to
recognize the needs of people who are hungry and
poor, and to provide assistance and compassion for
those in need;
(2) to increase awareness of the importance of
public service; and
(3) to provide training and development oppor-
tunities for such leaders.
SEC. 2. GRANTS FOR HUNGER FELLOWSHIPS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to amounts appropriated
under section 7 for such purpose, the Secretary shall
award a grant to the Center to enable the Center to estab-
lish and conduct Bill Emerson and Mickey Leland Hunger
Fellowships.
(b) PROVISION
FOR DIRECT PAYMENT
TO CEN-
TER.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
amounts appropriated under section 7 may be paid di-
rectly to the Center.
SEC. 3. DESCRIPTION OF HUNGER FELLOWSHIPS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Amounts received by the Center
under section 2 shall be used to carry out the Bill Emer-
son Hunger Fellowship and the Mickey Leland Hunger
Fellowship.
(b) CURRICULUM.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The fellowships shall provide
education and training to develop the skills and un-
derstanding necessary to improve the humanitarian
conditions and the lives of individuals who suffer
from hunger, including—
(A) training in direct service to the hungry
in conjunction with community-based organiza-
tions through a program of field placement; and
(B) experience in policy development
through placement in a governmental entity or
nonprofit organization.
(2) FOCUS OF BILL EMERSON HUNGER FEL-
LOWSHIP.—The Bill Emerson Hunger Fellowship
shall address hunger and other humanitarian needs
in the United States.
(3) FOCUS OF MICKEY LELAND HUNGER FEL-
LOWSHIP.—The Mickey Leland Hunger Fellowship
shall address international hunger and other human-
itarian needs.
(c) PERIOD OF FELLOWSHIP.—A fellowship awarded
under this section shall be for a period of not less than
12 months and not more than 24 months.
(d) SELECTION OF FELLOWS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A fellowship shall be award-
ed pursuant to a nationwide competition established
by the Center.
(2) QUALIFICATION.—A successful applicant
shall be an individual who has demonstrated both a
desire to pursue a career in humanitarian service
and outstanding potential for such a career.
(3) AMOUNT
OF
AWARD.—Each individual
awarded a fellowship under this section shall receive
an educational award and living allowance as deter-
mined by the Center.
(4) RECOGNITION OF FELLOWSHIP AWARD.—
(A) EMERSON
FELLOW.—An individual
awarded a fellowship from the Bill Emerson
Hunger Fellowship shall be known as an
‘‘Emerson Fellow’’.
(B) 
LELAND
FELLOW.—An 
individual
awarded a fellowship from the Mickey Leland
Hunger Fellowship shall be known as a ‘‘Le-
land Fellow’’.
(e) EVALUATION.—The Center shall conduct periodic
evaluations of the Bill Emerson and Mickey Leland Hun-
ger Fellowships.
SEC. 4. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.
(a) AUTHORITY
TO
INVEST
FUNDS.—Notwith-
standing any other provision of law, the Center may hold
funds granted to it under section 2 in interest-bearing ac-
counts, prior to the disbursement of such funds for the
uses specified in section 3(a), and may retain for such pur-
poses any interest earned on such deposits without return-
ing such interest to the Treasury of the United States and
without further appropriation by the Congress.
(b) COMPENSATION.—No part of the grant amount
available to the Center shall inure to the benefit of any
board member, officer, or employee of the Center, except
as salary or reasonable compensation for services or ex-
penses associated with carrying out the fellowships under
section 3. Compensation for board members shall be lim-
ited to reimbursement for reasonable costs of travel and
expenses.
(c) AUDITS.—For each fiscal year in which the Cen-
ter receives a grant under section 2, the accounts of the
Center may be audited at any time by the Secretary. The
Center shall keep such records as will facilitate effective
audits.
(d) CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT.—For each fiscal
year in which the Center receives a grant under section
2, the Center shall be subject to appropriate oversight pro-
cedures of Congress.
SEC. 5. REPORT.
Not later than December 31 of each year, the Center
shall submit to the Secretary and to Congress a report
on the activities of the Bill Emerson and Mickey Leland
Hunger Fellowships carried out during the previous fiscal
year.
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) CENTER.—The term ‘‘Center’’ means the
Congressional Hunger Center (which is an organiza-
tion described in subsection (c)(3) of section 501 of
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and is exempt
from taxation under subsection (a) of such section).
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Agriculture.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary such sums as are necessary to make grants under
section 2 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2009.
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