Senior Corps Distance Volunteering Act
Bill: S.235 | Sponsor: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy (D-MN)
Policy area: Labor and Employment

Summary:
Senior Corps Distance Volunteering Act
This bill directs the Corporation for National and Community Service to establish an online service platform to connect volunteers in the National Senior Service Corps with service projects, and enable the volunteers to carry out distance volunteering on an online network.
The corporation shall provide outreach services to promote the platform, including outreach to institutions of higher education, the Department of Veterans Affairs for mentorship projects, and state and local governments for community engagement projects.

To amend the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 to establish an 
 online service platform for volunteers in the National Senior Service 
                                 Corps.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Senior Corps Distance Volunteering 
Act''.

SEC. 2. ONLINE SERVICE PLATFORM.

    Title IV of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 421 (42 U.S.C. 5061) as 
        section 401;
            (2) by moving that section 401 so as to follow the title 
        heading for title IV; and
            (3) by inserting after section 420 (42 U.S.C. 5059) the 
        following:

``SEC. 421. ONLINE SERVICE PLATFORM.

    ``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `COVID-19 public 
health emergency period' means the period of the public health 
emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under 
section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d) on 
January 31, 2020, with respect to COVID-19.
    ``(b) Establishment.--Not later than 30 days after the date of 
enactment of the Senior Corps Distance Volunteering Act, the Chief 
Executive Officer of the Corporation shall establish an online service 
platform to connect volunteers in the National Senior Service Corps 
with service projects, and enable the volunteers to carry out distance 
volunteering on an online network. The platform shall be linked to and 
placed prominently on the website of the Corporation. The Corporation 
may enter into a contract with a public entity to create the platform.
    ``(c) Information and Guidance.--
            ``(1) Information.--The Corporation shall provide 
        information to regional offices of the Corporation about how to 
        get volunteers in the National Senior Service Corps connected 
        to the platform.
            ``(2) Guidance.--The Corporation shall issue guidance for 
        the regional offices about how to transfer the programs of the 
        National Senior Service Corps to the platform.
    ``(d) Outreach.--The Corporation shall provide outreach services to 
promote the platform, including outreach to institutions of higher 
education, the Department of Veterans Affairs for mentorship projects, 
and State and local governments for community engagement projects.
    ``(e) Report on Impact of Online Service Platform.--
            ``(1) Definition.--In this subsection, the term 
        `appropriate committees of Congress' means--
                    ``(A) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
                House of Representatives;
                    ``(B) the Special Committee on Aging of the Senate;
                    ``(C) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
                and Pensions of the Senate; and
                    ``(D) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                Transportation of the Senate.
            ``(2) Report.--
                    ``(A) Preparation.--The Corporation shall prepare a 
                report that--
                            ``(i) describes the use of funds 
                        appropriated to carry out this section, 
                        concerning the online service platform 
                        described in subsection (b);
                            ``(ii) describes the ways in which the 
                        platform has enabled volunteers in the National 
                        Senior Service Corps, many of whom are at 
                        higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19, 
                        to apply their skills, knowledge, and expertise 
                        to directly serve the community through 
                        distance volunteering by providing assistance 
                        during the COVID-19 public health emergency 
                        period;
                            ``(iii) measures the number of volunteers 
                        in the National Senior Service Corps volunteers 
                        who do, and the number of such volunteers who 
                        do not, serve through the online service 
                        platform, during the COVID-19 public health 
                        emergency period; and
                            ``(iv) assesses the impact of volunteers in 
                        the National Senior Service Corps who do, and 
                        the number of such volunteers who do not, serve 
                        through the online service platform, during the 
                        COVID-19 public health emergency period.
                    ``(B) Submission.--Not later than 1 year after the 
                end of the COVID-19 public health emergency period, the 
                Corporation shall submit the report to the appropriate 
                committees of Congress.
    ``(f) Recommendation.--Not later than 6 months after the end of the 
COVID-19 public health emergency period, the Chief Executive Officer of 
the Corporation shall submit a recommendation to Congress regarding 
whether the Corporation should continue to use the platform as a main 
resource for connecting volunteers in the National Senior Service Corps 
with service projects and enabling the volunteers to carry out distance 
volunteering.''.

SEC. 3. EMERGENCY APPROPRIATION.

    The following sums are hereby appropriated, out of any money in the 
Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the fiscal year ending 
September 30, 2021, and for other purposes, namely:

             Corporation for National and Community Service

                           operating expenses

    For an additional amount for ``Operating Expenses'', for necessary 
expenses for the Corporation for National and Community Service to 
carry out section 421 of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973, 
$5,000,000:  Provided, That the amount appropriated under this heading 
is designated by Congress as being for an emergency requirement 
pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A)(i) of the Balanced Budget and 
Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 901(b)(2)(A)(i)).
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