Title: 21st Century American Service Act
Policy area: Social Welfare

Summary:
21st Century American Service Act
This bill establishes the 21st Century National Service Program Implementing Taskforce, which shall develop a program to ensure that eligible individuals seeking to volunteer with a national service program shall have the opportunity do so. The bill also excludes national service educational awards from gross income for tax purposes.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7286 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7286

  To provide for a more inclusive voluntary civilian national service 
program to promote civic engagement, enhance national unity, and foster 
 a sense of shared sacrifice by helping young Americans participate in 
               national service, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 12, 2018

 Mr. Moulton introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
   Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, 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 a more inclusive voluntary civilian national service 
program to promote civic engagement, enhance national unity, and foster 
 a sense of shared sacrifice by helping young Americans participate in 
               national service, and for other purposes.

    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 ``21st Century American Service Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    Section 2 of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 
U.S.C. 12501) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the following:
            ``(7) The number of Americans applying to participate in 
        national service programs each year significantly exceeds the 
        number of available positions, depriving hundreds of thousands 
        of Americans from participating in national and community 
        service, which unintentionally transforms national service 
        programs into exclusive and selective entities and prevents 
        national service from serving as an inclusive, unifying 
        activity open to all Americans.''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(6), by inserting ``so that all young 
        Americans between ages 18 and 30 are provided a voluntary 
        opportunity to serve in organizations'' after ``national 
        service programs''.

SEC. 3. EXCLUSION FROM GROSS INCOME OF AMERICORPS EDUCATIONAL AWARDS.

    (a) In General.--Section 117 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
(relating to qualified scholarships) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection:
    ``(e) AmeriCorps Educational Awards.--Gross income shall not 
include any national service educational award described in subtitle D 
of title I of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
12601 et seq.).''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply 
to taxable years ending after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE DEFINED.

    In this Act, the terms ``Corporation'' and the ``Corporation for 
National and Community Service'' have the meaning given the term 
``Corporation'' in section 101 of the National and Community Service 
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12511).

SEC. 5. 21ST CENTURY NATIONAL SERVICE PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established within the Federal 
Government an inter-agency task force to be known as the ``21st Century 
National Service Program Implementing Taskforce'' (in this Act referred 
to as the ``Task force'').
    (b) Duties of the Task Force.--
            (1) Program.--
                    (A) In general.--The Task force shall develop the 
                21st Century National Service Program to ensure that 
                each eligible individual who applies to serve in a 
                voluntary national service program will be provided an 
                opportunity to serve in such program.
                    (B) Requirements.--In developing the 21st Century 
                National Service Program described in subparagraph (A), 
                the Task force shall carry out the following:
                            (i) Notification.--Determine how the 
                        Corporation for National and Community Service 
                        will work with Federal or State agencies and 
                        other entities to--
                                    (I) contact each eligible 
                                individual upon such individual's 18th 
                                birthday to notify the individual 
                                about--
                                            (aa) the individual's 
                                        eligibility for national 
                                        service programs;
                                            (bb) such national service 
                                        programs and how to register 
                                        for a specific program;
                                            (cc) other service programs 
                                        for which the individual may be 
                                        eligible, including the Peace 
                                        Corps (as established by the 
                                        Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 
                                        et seq.)) and military service; 
                                        and
                                            (dd) the individual's 
                                        option to opt-out of receiving 
                                        any notifications, or just 
                                        notifications in a paper 
                                        format, under subclause (II); 
                                        and
                                    (II) after contacting an eligible 
                                individual under subclause (I), notify 
                                the eligible individual every 2 years 
                                thereafter of the information described 
                                in items (aa) through (dd) of subclause 
                                (I), unless--
                                            (aa) the individual is 
                                        serving in a national service 
                                        program;
                                            (bb) the individual has 
                                        opted out of receiving such 
                                        notifications under subclause 
                                        (I)(dd); or
                                            (cc) the individual reaches 
                                        30 years of age.
                            (ii) Registration.--Determine how the 
                        Corporation will enable eligible individuals to 
                        register for a specific national service 
                        program for not less than 1 year of service, 
                        and ensure that such registration process is 
                        the most effective process for the purpose of 
                        registering for such a program.
            (2) Strategic plan.--The Task force shall--
                    (A) develop a 10-year strategic implementation plan 
                to fully implement the 21st Century National Service 
                Program described in paragraph (1)(A), including 
                concrete timelines and milestones for an effective and 
                phased implementation (which shall include beginning 
                the notification under paragraph (1)(B)(i) not later 
                than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, to 
                the greatest extent practicable); and
                    (B) publish on the website of the Corporation the 
                information described in subparagraph (A).
            (3) Task forces.--The Task force shall carry out the 
        following sub-task forces to assist in developing the program 
        described in paragraph (1)(A):
                    (A) A sub-task force headed by the Chairperson of 
                the Task force on expanding national service 
                opportunities to ensure that any individual who applies 
                to serve is guaranteed an opportunity to do so.
                    (B) A sub-task force headed by the Director of the 
                Selective Service System on notifying eligible 
                individuals.
                    (C) A sub-task force headed by the Secretary of 
                Education on expanding bridge-year service learning 
                programs.
                    (D) A sub-task force headed by the Secretary of 
                Defense on transitioning servicemembers to civilian 
                life through national service.
                    (E) A sub-task force headed by the Director of the 
                Peace Corps on integrating international service 
                opportunities.
    (c) Membership.--
            (1) In general.--The Task force shall be composed of the 
        following members:
                    (A) The Secretary of Education (or the Secretary's 
                designee).
                    (B) The Director of the Selective Service System 
                (or the Director's designee).
                    (C) The Director of the Peace Corps (or the 
                Director's designee).
                    (D) The Secretary of Defense (or the Secretary's 
                designee).
            (2) Chairperson.--The Chairperson of the Task force shall 
        be the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National 
        and Community Service.
            (3) Staff.--With the approval of the Task force, the 
        Chairperson may appoint additional personnel (who may be from 
        public or private sectors) as the Chairperson considers 
        appropriate.
    (d) Termination.--The Task force shall terminate 10 years after the 
date of enactment of this Act.
    (e) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            (1) Eligible individual.--The term ``eligible individual'' 
        means an individual who--
                    (A) is a citizen, national of the United States, or 
                a lawful permanent resident alien of the United States; 
                and
                    (B) is between the ages of 18 and 30, inclusive.
            (2) National service program.--The term ``national service 
        program'' is a voluntary civilian national service program 
        authorized under the National and Community Service Act of 1990 
        (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.) or the Domestic Volunteer Service Act 
        of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4950 et seq.).

SEC. 6. NATIONAL SERVICE COLLEGE AGREEMENT PILOT PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment.--The Corporation for National and Community 
Service shall establish a national service college agreement--
            (1) with not fewer than 2 States, not later than 2 years 
        after the date of enactment of this Act; and
            (2) with not fewer than 5 States, not later than 5 years 
        after such date of enactment.
    (b) Contents of Agreements.--A national service agreement is an 
agreement between the Corporation and a State under which--
            (1) eligible individuals who desire to attend a public 
        institution of higher education in the State will be able to 
        use an educational award under subsection (d) to attend a 2- or 
        4-year program of instruction, or a career or technical 
        education program, at such a public institution of higher 
        education, at no additional charge to the individuals; and
            (2) the Corporation and the State determine the timeframe 
        by which eligible individuals shall successfully complete the 
        activities under paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (c) in 
        order to qualify to use an educational award in accordance with 
        paragraph (1) of this subsection, and avoid repayment of such 
        educational award or other penalties.
    (c) Eligible Individual.--For purposes of this section, the term 
``eligible individual'' means an individual described in section 146(a) 
of the National and Community Service Act (42 U.S.C. 12602(a)) who, as 
a condition of receiving an educational award under subsection (d)--
            (1) successfully completes, or agrees to complete, two 
        required terms of full-time national service in an approved 
        national service position for purposes of eligibility for 2 
        educational awards under section 147(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
        12603(a)); and
            (2) successfully completes, or agrees to complete, not less 
        than one calendar year of employment with a Federal, State, or 
        local government entity, or a nonprofit organization.
    (d) Increased Educational Awards.--
            (1) In general.--To receive an educational award under this 
        section, an eligible individual shall be selected by the 
        Corporation and a State with which the Corporation has a 
        national service agreement under this section to receive such 
        award for the purpose of attending a public institution of 
        higher education in the State in accordance with the terms of 
        the agreement.
            (2) Calculation.--An eligible individual selected under 
        paragraph (1) shall receive an educational award under this 
        section that is equal to the total value of the educational 
        service awards under section 147(a) of the National and 
        Community Service Act (42 U.S.C. 12603(a)) that the individual 
        is eligible to receive for the two successfully completed (or 
        agreed to be completed) terms of full-time national service, as 
        described in subsection (c)(1) of this section, except that in 
        calculating the value of each such award, such section 147(a) 
        (42 U.S.C. 12603(a)) shall be applied by inserting ``twice'' 
        before ``the maximum amount of a Federal Pell Grant''.
            (3) Limitation.--Not more than a total of 250,000 
        individuals may receive an educational award under this 
        section.
    (e) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Career and technical education.--The term ``career and 
        technical education'' has the meaning given the term in section 
        3 of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 
        2006 (20 U.S.C. 2302).
            (2) Institution of higher education.--The term 
        ``institution of higher education'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1002).
            (3) State.--The term ``State'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 101 of the National and Community Service Act 
        of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12511).
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