An Act to amend the Youth Conservation Corps Act of 1870 (Public Law 9178; 84 Stat. 794) to expand the Youth Conservation Corps pilot program, and for other purposes
PL 92-597 (S.2454), enacted 10/27/1972

86 STAT. ] 
PUBLIC LAW 92-597-OCT. 27, 1972 
1319 
Public Law 92-597 
AN ACT 
To amend the Youth Conservation Corps Act of 1970 (Public Law 91-378, 84 
Stat. 794) to expand the Youth Conservation Corps pilot program and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assemhled^ That the Act of 
August 13, 1970 (84 Stat. 794) is amended to read as follows: 
u 
POLICY AND PURPOSE 
"SECTION 1. The Congress finds that the gainful employment during 
the summer months of American youth, representing all segments of 
society, in the healthful outdoor atmosphere afforded in the national 
park system, the national forest system, the national wildlife refuge 
system, and other public land and water areas of the United States 
creates an opportunity for understanding and appreciation of the 
Nation's natural environment and heritage. Accordingly, it is the 
purpose of this Act to further the development and maintenance of 
the natural resources of the United States b j the j^outh, upon whom 
will fall the ultimate responsibility for maintaining and managing 
these resources for the American people. 
October 27, 1972 
[S.2454] 
Youth Conser"' 
vation Corps Act 
of 1970, amend-
ment. 
42 u s e prec. 
2711 note. 
"YOUTH CONSERVATION CORPS 
"SEC. 2. (a) To carry out the purposes of this Act, there is estab-
lished in the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agri-
culture a Youth Conservation Corps (hereinafter referred to as the 
"Corps'). The Corps shall consist of young men and women who are 
permanent i-esidents of the United States, its territories, possessions, or 
trust territories, who have attained age fifteen but have not attained 
age nineteen, and whom the Secretary of the Interior or the Secretary 
of Agriculture may employ during the summer months, without regard 
to the civil service or classification lawSj rules, or regulations, for the 
purpose of developing, preserving, or maintaining the lands and waters 
of the United States under his jurisdiction. 
"(b) The Corps shall be open to youth of both sexes and youth of 
all social, economic, and racial classifications, with no person being ment" te 
employed as a member of the Corps for a term in excess of ninety days 
during any single year. 
Participants. 
Summer employ-
ment. 
Equal opportu-
nity and employ-
U SECRETARIAL DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS 
"SEC. 3. (a) In carrying out this Act, the Secretary of the Interior 
and the Secretary of Agriculture shall— 
"(1) determine, with other Federal agencies, the areas under 
the administrative jurisdiction of the Secretaries which are 
appropriate for carrying out programs using members of the 
Corps, and determine and select appropriate work and education 
programs and projects for participation by members of the Corps; 
" (2) determine the rates of pay, hours, and other conditions of 
employment in the Corps, except that members of the Corps shall 
not be deemed to be Federal employees other than for the purposes 
of chapter 171 of title 28, United States Code, and chapter 81 of 
title 5, United States Code; 
"(3) provide for such transportation, lodging, subsistence, and 
other services and equipment as they may deem necessary or 
appropriate for the needs of members of the Corps in their duties; 
62 Stat. 982; 
80 Stat. 306. 
28 u s e 2671. 
80 Stat. 531; 
82 Stat. 98. 
5 u s e 8101. 
82-081 O - 73 -
1320 
PUBLIC LAW 92-597-OCT. 27,1972 
[86 STAT. 
Regulations. 
Facilities, 
availability to 
educational in-
stitutions. 
Cost responsi-
bility. 
Unoccupied 
Federal facilities 
and surplus 
equipment, use. 
Contract au-
thority. 
"(4) promulgate regulations to insure the safety, health, and 
welfare of the Corps members; and 
"'(5) provide, to the extent possible, that permanent or semi-
permanent facilities used as Corps camps be made available to 
local schools, school districts. State junior colleges and univer-
sities, and other educational institutions for use as environmental/ 
ecological education camps during periods of nonuse by the Corps 
program. 
Costs for operations, maintenance, and staffing of Corps camp facilities 
during periods of use by non-Corps programs as well as any liability 
for personal injury or property damage stemming from such use 
shall be the responsibility of the entity or organization using the 
facility and shall not be a responsibility of the Secretaries or the 
Corps. 
"(b) Whenever economically feasible, existing but unoccupied Fed-
eral facilities and surplus or unused equipment (or both), of all types, 
including military facilities and equipment, shall be utilized for the 
purposes of the Corps, where appropriate and with the approval of 
the Federal agency involved. To minimize transpoitation costs, Corps 
members shall be employed on conservation projects as near to their 
places of residence as is feasible. 
'' (c) The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 
may contract with any public agency or organization or any private 
nonprofit agency or organization which has been in existence for at 
least five years for the operation of any Youth Conservation Corps 
project. 
'States. 
Application 
requirements. 
Approval, 
"PILOT GRANT PROGRAM FOR STATK PROJEC^TS 
"SEC. 4. (a) The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 
Agriculture shall jointly establish a pilot grant program under which 
grants shall be made to States to assist them in meeting the cost of 
projects for the employment of young men and women to develop, 
preserve, and maintain non-Federal public lands and waters within 
the States. For purposes of this section, the term 'States' includes the 
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin 
Islands, Guam, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and Ameri-
can Samoa. 
"(b) (1) Xo grant may be made under this section unless an appli-
cation therefor has been submitted to, and approved by, the Secretary 
of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture. Such application 
shall be in such form, and submitted in such manner, as the Secretaries 
shall jointly by regulation prescribe, and shall contain— 
" (A) assurances satisfactory to the Secretaries that individuals 
employed under the project for which the application is submitted 
shall (i) have attained the age of fifteen but not attained the age 
of nineteen, (ii) be permanent residents of the Ignited States or 
its territories, possessions, or- the Trust Territory of the Pacific 
Islands, (iii) be employed without regard to the pei*sonnel laws, 
rules, and regulations applicable to full-time employees of the 
applicant, (iv) be employed for a ])ei"iod of not more than ninety 
days in any calendar year, and (v) be emploved without regard to 
their sex or social, economic, or* racial classification; and 
"(B) such other information as the Secretaries may jointly by 
regulation prescribe. 
"(2) The Secretaries may appi'ove applications which they deter-
mine (A) meet the requirements of paragraph (1), and (B) are for 
projects which will further the development, preservation, or mainte-
,nem lo 
• - 'Et •, o 
86 STAT.] 
PUBLIC LAW 92-598-OCT. 27, 1972 
1321 
nance of non-Federal public lands or waters within the jurisdiction of 
the applicant. 
"(c) (1) The amount of any grant under this section shall be deter-
mined jointly by the Secretaries, except that no grant for any project 
may exceed 80 per centum of the cost (as determined by the Secre-
taries) of such project. 
"(2) Payments under grants under this section may be made in 
advance or by way of reimbursement and at such intervals and on such 
conditions as the Secretaries find necessary. 
"(d) Thirty per centum of the sums appropriated under section 6 
for any fiscal year shall be used for making grants under this section 
for such fiscal year. 
"SECRETARIAL REPORTS 
"SEC. 5. The Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Agriculture 
J°i"t '•epo>-t to 
shall annually prepare a joint report detailing the activities carried congrt^s"*. ^"'^ 
out under this Act and providing recommendations. Each report for a 
fiscal year shall be submitted concurrently to the President and the 
Congress not later than one hundred and eighty days following the 
close of that fiscal year. 
Limitation. 
Payments. 
Appropriation 
percentage. 
II 
AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS 
"SEC. 6. There are authorized to be appropriated amounts not to 
exceed $30,000,000 for fiscal year ending June 30, 1973, and 
$60,000,000 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1974, to be made 
available to the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of 
Agriculture to carry out the purposes of this Act. Notwithstanding 
any other provision of law, funds appropriated for any fiscal year to 
carry out this Act shall remain available for obligation and expendi-
ture until the end of the fiscal year following the fiscal year for which 
appropriated." 
Approved October 27, 1972. 
Public Law 92-598 
AN ACT 
To provide for the particiijation of the United States in tlie International Exposi-
tion on the Environment to be held in Spokane, "Washington, in 1974, and for 
other purposes. 
October 27, 1972 
[S. 4022] 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Bepi'esentatlves 
of the 
Ignited States of America in Congress assembled^ That, in accordance 
with Public Law 91-269 (22 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.), the President is 
authorized to provide for United States participation in the Interna-
tional Exposition on the Environment (hereafter in this Act referred 
to as the "exposition"), which is being held at Spokane, Washington, 
in 1974. The purposes of such exposition are to— 
(1) offer to United States citizens and to people throughout the 
world a program for the improvement of man's physical environ-
ment ; demonstrate through improved projects how the resources 
of air, water, and land can be utilized to man's benefit without 
pollution; and broaden public understanding of ecology and 
related sciences; 
(2) encourage tourist travel in and to the United States, stimu-
late foreign trade, and promote cultural exchanges; and 
(3) commemorate the one hundredth anniversary of the found-
ing of the city of Spokane. 
International 
Exposition on the 
Environment. 
U.S. partici-
pation. 
84 Stat. 271. 
Purposes,