ESTABLISHMENT OF THE YOUTH FAIR CHANCE PROGRAM.

SEC. 406. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE YOUTH FAIR CHANCE PROGRAM. Title IV of the Act (29 U.S.C. 1671 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new part: “Part H— Youth Fair Chance Program “SEC. 491. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. “It is the purpose of the Youth Fair Chance program under this part to— “(1) ensure access to education and job training assistance for youth residing in high poverty areas of urban and rural communities; “(2) provide a comprehensive range of education, training, and employment services to disadvantaged youth who are not currently served or are underserved by Federal education and job training programs; “(3) enable communities with high concentrations of poverty to establish and meet goals for improving the opportunities available to youth within the community; and “(4) facilitate the coordination of comprehensive services to serve youth in such communities. “SEC. 492. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. “(a) Establishment of Program.— The Secretary is authorized to establish a national program of Youth Fair Chance grants to pay the Federal share attributable to this part of providing comprehensive services to youth living in high poverty areas in the cities and rural areas of the Nation. “(b) Eligibility for Grants.— “(1) Recipients.— The Secretary may only award grants under this part to— “(A) the service delivery area (on behalf of the participating community) in which a target area is located; “(B) in the case of a grant involving a target area located in an Indian reservation or Alaska Native village, the grantee designated under subsection (c) or (d) of section 401, or a consortium of such grantees and the State; or “(C) in the case of a grant involving a target area located in a migrant or seasonal farmworker community, the grantee designated under section 402(c), or a consortium of such grantees and the State. “(2) Number of grants.— 106 STAT. 1087 “(A) In General.— The Secretary may award not more than 25 grants during the first fiscal year that the program is authorized. “(B) Indian reservations and alaska native villages.— In awarding grants under this part during the first 5 fiscal years that the program is assisted, the Secretary shall award— “(i) at least 1 grant to a grantee or consortium described in paragraph (1)(B); and “(ii) at least 1 grant to a grantee or consortium described in paragraph (1)(C). “(c) Renewability of Grants.— “(1) In general.— Grants awarded under this part shall be for a 1-year period. Such a grant shall be renewable for each of the 2 succeeding fiscal years if the Secretary determines the grant recipient complied with conditions of the grant during the previous fiscal year. “(2) Extension.— The Secretary may extend the renewal period set forth in paragraph (1) for an additional 2 fiscal years on reapplication. “(d) Factors for Awards.— In awarding grants under this part, the Secretary shall consider the quality of the proposed project, the goals to be achieved, the likelihood of successful implementation, the extent of community support, other Federal and non-Federal funds available for similar purposes, and additional State, local, or private resources that will be provided. The Secretary shall give priority to participating communities with the highest poverty rates. “SEC. 493. APPLICATION. “(a) Eligibility To Apply.— Participating communities that have the highest concentrations of poverty, as determined by the Secretary based on the latest Bureau of the Census estimates, shall be eligible to apply for a Youth Fair Chance grant. “(b) Contents of Application.— “(1) In general.— Each participating community desiring a grant under this part shall, through the individuals set forth in subsection (c), submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary may reasonably require. “(2) Contents.— Each such application shall— “(A) include a comprehensive plan for the Youth Fair Chance initiative designed to achieve identifiable goals for youth in the target area; “(B) set forth measurable program goals and outcomes, which may include increasing the proportion of— “(i) youth completing high school or its equivalent; “(ii) youth entering into postsecondary institutions, apprenticeships, or other advanced training programs; “(iii) youth placed in jobs; or “(iv) youth participating in education, training, and employment services; “(C) include supporting goals for the target area such as increasing security and safety, or reducing the number of drug-related arrests; “(D) provide assurances that the applicant will comply with the terms of the agreement described in section 494; 106 STAT. 1088 “(E) demonstrate how the participating community will make use of the resources, expertise, and commitment of institutions of higher education, educational agencies, and vocational and technical schools and institutes; “(F) provide an assurance that all youth in the target areas will have access to a coordinated and comprehensive range of education and training opportunities that serve the broadest range of youth interests and needs and simultaneously mobilizes the diverse range of education and training providers in the participating community; “(G) provide assurances that the youth in the target area will have access to supportive services necessary for successful participation, including such services as child care, transportation, and assistance in resolving personal or family crises, such as crises related to substance abuse, homelessness, migration, and family violence; “(H) include a description of a system of common intake procedures or sites, individualized assessment, and case management to be used by the program; “(I) demonstrate how the participating community will make use of the resources, expertise, and commitment of such programs and service providers as— “(i) community-based organizations providing vocational skills, literacy skills, remedial education, and general equivalency preparation, including community-based organizations serving youth with limited-English proficiency; “(ii) youth corps programs, including youth conservation and human service corps; “(iii) Job Corps centers; “(iv) apprenticeship programs; and “(v) other projects and programs funded under this Act; “(J) include an estimate of the expected number of youth in the target area to be served; “(K) include a description of the resources available in the participating community from private, local government, State, and Federal sources that will be used to achieve the goals of the program; “(L) include an estimate of funds required to ensure access to appropriate education, training, and support services for all youth in the target area who seek such opportunities; and “(M) provide evidence of support for accomplishing the stated goals of the participating community from— “(i) local elected officials; “(ii) the local school system; “(iii) appropriate postsecondary education and training institutions; “(iv) the applicable private industry council; “(v) local community leaders; “(vi) business; “(vii) labor organizations; and “(viii) other appropriate organizations. “(c) Submission of Application.— The application for funds described in subsection (b) may only be submitted to the Secretary on behalf of a participating community by— 106 STAT. 1089 “(1) the mayor of a city or the chief elected official in a metropolitan statistical area, after the Governor of the State has had an opportunity to comment on the application; “(2) the chief elected official of a nonmetropolitan county or the designated chief elected official of contiguous nonmetropolitan counties, after the Governor of the State has had an opportunity to comment on the application; or “(3) a grantee or consortium described in subparagraph (B) or (C) of section 492(b)(1) in applications for Native American or migrant or seasonal farmworker communities, respectively. “SEC. 494. GRANT AGREEMENT. “(a) In General.— Each grant recipient receiving a grant under this part on behalf of a participating community shall enter into an agreement with the Secretary. “(b) Contents.— Each such agreement shall— “(1) designate a target area that— “(A) will be the focus of the demonstration project; and “(B) shall have a population of— “(i) not more than 25,000; or “(ii) in an appropriate case, not more than 50,000, except that in the event that the population of an area from which a high school draws a substantial portion of its enrollment exceeds either limit, the target area may encompass such boundary; “(2) contain assurances that funds provided under this part will be used to support education, training, and supportive activities selected from a set of youth program models designated by the Secretary or from alternative models described in the application and approved by the Secretary, such as— “(A) nonresidential learning centers; “(B) alternative schools; “(C) combined activities including summer remediation, work experience and work readiness training, and school-to-work, apprenticeship, or postsecondary education programs; “(D) teen parent programs; “(E) special programs administered by community colleges; “(F) youth centers; “(G) initiatives aimed at increased rural student enrollment in postsecondary institutions; “(H) public-private collaborations to assure private sector employment and continued learning opportunities for youth; and “(I) initiatives, such as youth corps programs, that combine community and youth service opportunities with education and training activities; “(3) provide that funds received under this part will be used for services to youth ages 14 through 21 at the time of enrollment; “(4) contain assurances that the local educational agency and any other educational agency that operates secondary schools in the target area shall provide such activities and resources as are necessary to achieve the educational goals specified in the application; 106 STAT. 1090 “(5) contain assurances that the participating community will provide such activities and local resources as are necessary to achieve the goals specified in the application; “(6) contain assurances that the participating community will undertake outreach and recruitment efforts in the target area to encourage, to the maximum extent possible, participation by the disadvantaged youth who are currently unserved, or underserved, by education and training programs, including targeted measures specifically designed to enlist the participation of youth, particularly males, under the jurisdiction of the child welfare, juvenile justice, and criminal justice systems; “(7) provide that the participating community will carry out special efforts to establish coordination with Federal, State, or local programs that serve the target population; “(8) provide assurances that funds provided under this part for a fiscal year will be used only to pay the Federal share attributable to this part of the cost of programs and services not otherwise available in the target area and will supplement, and not supplant, funding from other local, State, and Federal sources available to youth in the target area during the previous year; and “(9) permit funds provided under this part to be used to support paid work experience programs if such programs are combined with other education and training activities. “SEC. 495. JOB GUARANTEES. “(a) Program Authority.— The Secretary shall permit a reasonable number of the grant recipients under this part to enter into an agreement to provide, in accordance with this section, a job guarantee program to youths meeting prior school attendance and performance standards. “(b) Guarantee Agreements.— A grant recipient providing such a job guarantee program shall enter into an agreement with the Secretary, which agreement shall— “(1) provide that the program be available to youth age 16 to 19 who undertake a commitment to continue and complete their high school education; “(2) require the grant recipient to guarantee employment to each youth undertaking the commitment if such youth meets school attendance and performance standards for the previous school semester, as established by the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of Education; “(3) provide that the grant recipient will make additional services available to support the undertaking of any such youth, which shall include counseling, job development and placement, and supportive services (including child care and transportation); “(4) specify the conditions under which funds provided under this part may be used to provide wage subsidies of up to 50 percent through employers, which conditions shall— “(A) encourage subsidies to employers who provide advanced or specialized training, or who provide a structured and integrated learning experience involving the school and employer; and “(B) limit the duration of such subsidies to not more than 1 year; 106 STAT. 1091 “(5) require that the employment provided to any such youth shall not exceed 15 hours per week during the school year, “(6) permit employment to continue through the summer following high school graduation, or until the youth reaches age 19, whichever is later; and “(7) contain such other terms and conditions as the Secretary requires by regulation. “(c) Selection of Grant Recipients.— In determining which grant recipients to permit to enter an agreement under this section, the Secretary shall seek to target funds to areas with the highest poverty rates. “(d) Youth Eligibility.— All youth, regardless of income, residing in an eligible high poverty area shall be eligible to participate in the job guarantee program. “(e) Private Funds.— Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the grant recipient from raising funds to augment such grant if such funds are utilized under the conditions of the grant, except that such funds shall not be used for administration. “SEC. 496. PAYMENTS; FEDERAL SHARE. “(a) Payments Required.— In any fiscal year, the amount of a grant awarded under this part shall be based on the size of the target area and the extent of the poverty in such area, and shall be of sufficient size and scope to carry out an effective program under this part. “(b) Federal Share.— The Federal share attributable to this part of the cost of providing comprehensive services as provided in section 492(a) shall be not less than 70 percent for each fiscal year a grant recipient receives assistance under this Act. “(c) Other Federal Sources.— In providing for the remaining share of such cost, each grant recipient may provide not more than 20 percent of such cost from Federal sources other than funds received pursuant to this part. “(d) Non-Federal Share.— A grant recipient shall provide non-Federal funds in an amount not less than 10 percent of such cost, an in-kind contribution equivalent to such percent (as determined by the Secretary), or a combination thereof. “SEC. 497. REPORTING. “The Secretary is authorized to establish such reporting procedures as are necessary to carry out the purposes of this part. “SEC. 498. FEDERAL RESPONSIBILITIES. “(a) In General.— The Secretary shall provide assistance to participating communities in implementing the projects assisted under this part. “(b) Independent Evaluation.— “(1) In General.— The Secretary shall provide for a thorough, independent evaluation of the Youth Fair Chance program to assess the outcomes of youth participating in programs assisted under this part. “(2) Evaluation measures.— In conducting the evaluation described in paragraph (1) the Secretary shall include an assessment of— “(A) the impact on youth residing in target areas, including the rates of school completion, enrollment in advanced education or training, and employment of the youth; 106 STAT. 1092 “(B) the extent to which participating communities fulfilled the goal of guaranteed access to appropriate education, training, and supportive services to all eligible youth residing in target areas who seek to participate; “(C) the effectiveness of guaranteed access to comprehensive services combined with outreach and recruitment efforts in enlisting the participation of previously unserved or underserved youth residing in target areas; “(D) the effectiveness of efforts to integrate service delivery in target areas, including systems of common intake, assessment, and case management; and “(E) the feasibility of extending guaranteed access to comprehensive education, training and support services for youth in all areas of the United States, including possible approaches to incremental extension of such access over time. “(c) Report.— The Secretary shall prepare a report detailing the results of the independent evaluation described in subsection (b) and shall submit such report to the Congress not later than December 31, 1996, along with an analysis of expenditures made, results achieved, and problems in the operations and coordination of programs assisted under this part. “(d) Reservation of Funds.— The Secretary may reserve not more than 5 percent of the amount appropriated under this part in each fiscal year to carry out the provisions of this section. “SEC. 498A. DEFINITIONS. “For the purposes of this part— “(1) Participating community.— The term ‘participating community’— “(A) in the case of a community conducting a project in an urban area, means a city in a metropolitan statistical area; “(B) in the case of a community conducting a project in a rural area, means a nonmetropolitan county or contiguous nonmetropolitan counties; “(C) in the case of a community conducting a project in an Indian reservation or Alaska Native village, the grantee designated under subsection (c) or (d) of section 401, or a consortium of such grantees and the State; or “(D) in the case of a community conducting a project in a migrant or seasonal farmworker community, the grantee designated under section 402(c), or a consortium of such grantees and the State. “(2) High poverty area.— The term ‘high poverty area’ means an urban census tract, a nonmetropolitan county, a Native American Indian reservation, or an Alaska Native village, with a poverty rate of 30 percent or more, as determined by the Bureau of the Census, or a migrant or seasoned farm-worker community. “(3) Target area.— The term ‘target area’ means a high poverty area or set of contiguous high poverty areas that will be the focus of the program in each participating community”.