NEW FELLOWSHIPS.

SEC. 1805. NEW FELLOWSHIPS. Part I of subtitle H of title I (42 U.S.C. 12653 et seq.) is further amended by adding at the end the following new sections:“SEC. 198B. SERVEAMERICA FELLOWSHIPS.“(a) Definitions.—In this section:“(1) Area of national need.—The term ‘area of national need’ means an area involved in efforts to—“(A) improve education in schools for economically disadvantaged students;“(B) expand and improve access to health care;“(C) improve energy efficiency and conserve natural resources;“(D) improve economic opportunities for economically disadvantaged individuals; or“(E) improve disaster preparedness and response.“(2) Eligible fellowship recipient.—The term ‘eligible fellowship recipient’ means an individual who is selected by a State Commission under subsection (c) and, as a result of such selection, is eligible for a ServeAmerica Fellowship.“(3) Fellow.—The term ‘fellow’ means an eligible fellowship recipient who is awarded a ServeAmerica Fellowship and is designated a fellow under subsection (e)(2).“(4) Small service sponsor organization.—The term ‘small service sponsor organization’ means a service sponsor organization described in subsection (d)(1) that has not more than 10 full-time employees and 10 part-time employees.“(b) Grants.—“(1) In general.—From the amounts appropriated under section 501(a)(4)(B) and allotted under paragraph (2)(A), the Corporation shall make grants (including financial assistance and a corresponding allotment of approved national service positions), to the State Commission of each of the several States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico with an application approved under this section, to enable such State Commissions to award ServeAmerica Fellowships under subsection (e).“(2) Allotment; administrative costs.—“(A) Allotment.—The amount allotted to a State Commission for a fiscal year shall be equal to an amount that bears the same ratio to the amount appropriated under section 501(a)(4)(B), as the population of the State bears 123 STAT. 1555 to the total population of the several States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.“(B) Reallotment.—If a State Commission does not apply for an allotment under this subsection for any fiscal year, or if the State Commission’s application is not approved, the Corporation shall reallot the amount of the State Commission’s allotment to the remaining State Commissions in accordance with subparagraph (A).“(C) Administrative costs.—Of the amount allotted to a State Commission under subparagraph (A), not more than 1.5 percent of such amount may be used for administrative costs.“(3) Number of positions.—The Corporation shall—“(A) establish or increase the number of approved national service positions under this subsection during each of fiscal years 2010 through 2014;“(B) establish the number of approved positions at 500 for fiscal year 2010; and“(C) increase the number of the approved positions to—“(i) 750 for fiscal year 2011;“(ii) 1,000 for fiscal year 2012;“(iii) 1,250 for fiscal year 2013; and“(iv) 1,500 for fiscal year 2014.“(4) Uses of grant funds.—“(A) Required uses.—A grant awarded under this subsection shall be used to enable fellows to carry out service projects in areas of national need.“(B) Permitted uses.—A grant awarded under this subsection may be used for—“(i) oversight activities and mechanisms for the service sites of the fellows, as determined necessary by the State Commission or the Corporation, which may include site visits;“(ii) activities to augment the experience of fellows, including activities to engage the fellows in networking opportunities with other national service participants; and“(iii) recruitment or training activities for fellows.“(5) Applications.—To be eligible to receive a grant under this subsection, a State Commission shall submit an application to the Corporation at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Corporation may require, including information on the criteria and procedures that the State Commission will use for overseeing ServeAmerica Fellowship placements for service projects, under subsection (e).“(c) Eligible Fellowship Recipients.—“(1) Application.—“(A) In general.—An applicant desiring to become an eligible fellowship recipient shall submit an application to a State Commission that has elected to participate in the program authorized under this section, at such time and in such manner as the Commission may require, and containing the information described in subparagraph (B) and such additional information as the Commission may require. An applicant may submit such application to only 1 State Commission for a fiscal year.123 STAT. 1556“(B) Contents.—The Corporation shall specify information to be provided in an application submitted under this subsection, which—“(i) shall include—“(I) a description of the area of national need that the applicant intends to address in the service project;“(II) a description of the skills and experience the applicant has to address the area of national need;“(III) a description of the type of service the applicant plans to provide as a fellow; and“(IV) information identifying the local area within the State served by the Commission in which the applicant plans to serve for the service project; and“(ii) may include, if the applicant chooses, the size of the registered service sponsor organization with which the applicant hopes to serve.“(2) Selection.—Each State Commission shall—“(A) select, from the applications received by the State Commission for a fiscal year, the number of eligible fellowship recipients that may be supported for that fiscal year based on the amount of the grant received by the State Commission under subsection (b); and“(B) make an effort to award one-third of the fellowships available to the State Commission for a fiscal year, based on the amount of the grant received under subsection (b), to applicants who propose to serve the fellowship with small service sponsor organizations registered under subsection (d).“(d) Service Sponsor Organizations.—“(1) In general.—Each service sponsor organization shall—“(A) be a nonprofit organization;“(B) satisfy qualification criteria established by the Corporation or the State Commission, including standards relating to organizational capacity, financial management, and programmatic oversight;“(C) not be a recipient of other assistance, approved national service positions, or approved summer of service positions under the national service laws; and“(D) at the time of registration with a State Commission, enter into an agreement providing that the service sponsor organization shall—“(i) abide by all program requirements;“(ii) provide an amount described in subsection (e)(3)(b) for each fellow serving with the organization through the ServeAmerica Fellowship;“(iii) be responsible for certifying whether each fellow serving with the organization successfully completed the ServeAmerica Fellowship, and record and certify in a manner specified by the Corporation the number of hours served by a fellow for purposes of determining the fellow’s eligibility for benefits; and“(iv) provide timely access to records relating to the ServeAmerica Fellowship to the State Commission, 123 STAT. 1557 the Corporation, and the Inspector General of the Corporation.“(2) Registration.—“(A) Requirement.—No service sponsor organization may receive a fellow under this section until the organization registers with the State Commission.“(B) Clearinghouse.—The State Commission shall maintain a list of registered service sponsor organizations on a public website.“(C) Revocation.—If a State Commission determines that a service sponsor organization is in violation of any of the applicable provisions of this section—“(i) the State Commission shall revoke the registration of the organization;“(ii) the organization shall not be eligible to receive assistance, approved national service positions, or approved summer of service positions under this title for not less than 5 years; and“(iii) the State Commission shall have the right to remove a fellow from the organization and relocate the fellow to another site.“(e) Fellows.—“(1) In general.—To be eligible to participate in a service project as a fellow and receive a ServeAmerica Fellowship, an eligible fellowship recipient shall—“(A) within 3 months after being selected as an eligible fellowship recipient by a State Commission, select a registered service sponsor organization described in subsection (d)—“(i) with which the recipient is interested in serving under this section; and“(ii) that is located in the State served by the State Commission;“(B) enter into an agreement with the organization—“(i) that specifies the service the recipient will provide if the placement is approved; and“(ii) in which the recipient agrees to serve for 1 year on a full-time or part-time basis (as determined by the Corporation); and“(C) submit such agreement to the State Commission.“(2) Award.—Upon receiving the eligible fellowship recipient’s agreement under paragraph (1), the State Commission shall award a ServeAmerica Fellowship to the recipient and designate the recipient as a fellow.“(3) Fellowship amount.—“(A) In general.—From amounts received under subsection (b), each State Commission shall award each of the State’s fellows a ServeAmerica Fellowship amount that is equal to 50 percent of the amount of the average annual VISTA subsistence allowance.“(B) Amount from service sponsor organization.—“(i) In general.—Except as provided in clause (ii) and subparagraph (E), the service sponsor organization shall award to the fellow serving such organization an amount that will ensure that the total award received by the fellow for service in the service project (consisting of such amount and the ServeAmerica 123 STAT. 1558 Fellowship amount the fellow receives under subparagraph (A)) is equal to or greater than 70 percent of the average annual VISTA subsistence allowance.“(ii) Small service sponsor organizations.—In the case of a small service sponsor organization, the small service sponsor organization may decrease the amount of the service sponsor organization award required under clause (i) to not less than an amount that will ensure that the total award received by the fellow for service in the service project (as calculated in clause (i)) is equal to or greater than 60 percent of the average annual VISTA subsistence allowance.“(C) Maximum living allowance.—The total amount that may be provided to a fellow under this subparagraph shall not exceed 100 percent of the average annual VISTA subsistence allowance.“(D) Proration of amount.—In the case of a fellow who is authorized to serve a part-time term of service under the agreement described in paragraph (1)(B)(ii), the amount provided to a fellow under this paragraph shall be prorated accordingly.“(E) Waiver.—The Corporation may allow a State Commission to waive the amount required under subparagraph (B) from the service sponsor organization for a fellow serving the organization if—“(i) such requirement is inconsistent with the objectives of the ServeAmerica Fellowship program; and“(ii) the amount provided to the fellow under subparagraph (A) is sufficient to meet the necessary costs of living (including food, housing, and transportation) in the area in which the ServeAmerica Fellowship program is located.“(F) Definition.—In this paragraph, the term ‘average annual VISTA subsistence allowance’ means the total average annual subsistence allowance provided to VISTA volunteers under section 105 of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4955).“(f) Compliance With Ineligible Service Categories.—Service under a ServeAmerica Fellowship shall comply with section 132(a). For purposes of applying that section to this subsection, a reference to assistance shall be considered to be a reference to assistance provided under this section.“(g) Reports.—Each service sponsor organization that receives a fellow under this section shall, on a biweekly basis, report to the Corporation on the number of hours served and the services provided by that fellow. The Corporation shall establish a web portal for the organizations to use in reporting the information.“(h) Educational Awards.—A fellow who serves in a service project under this section shall be considered to have served in an approved national service position and, upon meeting the requirements of section 147 for full-time or part-time national service, shall be eligible for a national service educational award described in such section. The Corporation shall transfer an appropriate amount of funds to the National Service Trust to provide for the national service educational award for such fellow.123 STAT. 1559 “SEC. 198C. SILVER SCHOLARSHIPS AND ENCORE FELLOWSHIPS.“(a) Silver Scholarship Grant Program.—“(1) Establishment.—The Corporation may award fixed-amount grants (in accordance with section 129(l)) to community-based entities to carry out a Silver Scholarship Grant Program for individuals age 55 or older, in which such individuals complete not less than 350 hours of service in a year carrying out projects of national need and receive a Silver Scholarship in the form of a $1,000 national service educational award. Under such a program, the Corporation shall establish criteria for the types of the service required to be performed to receive such award.“(2) Term.—Each program funded under this subsection shall be carried out over a period of 3 years (which may include 1 planning year), with a 1-year extension possible, if the program meets performance levels developed in accordance with section 179(k) and any other criteria determined by the Corporation.“(3) Applications.—To be eligible for a grant under this subsection, a community-based entity shall—“(A) submit to the Corporation an application at such time and in such manner as the Chief Executive Officer may reasonably require; and“(B) be a listed organization as described in subsection (b)(4).“(4) Collaboration encouraged.—A community-based entity awarded a grant under this subsection is encouraged to collaborate with programs funded under title II of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 in carrying out this program.“(5) Eligibility for fellowship.—An individual is eligible to receive a Silver Scholarship if the community-based entity certifies to the Corporation that the individual has completed not less than 350 hours of service under this section in a 1-year period.“(6) Transfer to trust.—The Corporation shall transfer an appropriate amount of funds to the National Service Trust to provide for the national service educational award for each silver scholar under this subsection.“(7) Support services.—A community-based entity receiving a fixed-amount grant under this subsection may use a portion of the grant to provide transportation services to an eligible individual to allow such individual to participate in a service project.“(b) Encore Fellowships.—“(1) Establishment.—The Corporation may award 1-year Encore Fellowships to enable individuals age 55 or older to—“(A) carry out service projects in areas of national need; and“(B) receive training and development in order to transition to full- or part-time public service in the nonprofit sector or government.“(2) Program.—In carrying out the program, the Corporation shall—“(A) maintain a list of eligible organizations for which Encore Fellows may be placed to carry out service projects 123 STAT. 1560 through the program and shall provide the list to all Fellowship recipients; and“(B) at the request of a Fellowship recipient—“(i) determine whether the requesting recipient is able to meet the service needs of a listed organization, or another organization that the recipient requests in accordance with paragraph (5)(B), for a service project; and“(ii) upon making a favorable determination under clause (i), award the recipient with an Encore Fellowship, and place the recipient with the organization as an Encore Fellow under paragraph (5)(C).“(3) Eligible recipients.—“(A) In general.—An individual desiring to be selected as a Fellowship recipient shall—“(i) be an individual who—“(I) is age 55 or older as of the time the individual applies for the program; and“(II) is not engaged in, but who wishes to engage in, full- or part-time public service in the nonprofit sector or government; and“(ii) submit an application to the Corporation, at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Corporation may require, including—“(I) a description of the area of national need that the applicant hopes to address through the service project;“(II) a description of the skills and experience the applicant has to address an area of national need; and“(III) information identifying the region of the United States in which the applicant wishes to serve.“(B) Selection basis.—In determining which individuals to select as Fellowship recipients, the Corporation shall—“(i) select not more than 10 individuals from each State; and“(ii) give priority to individuals with skills and experience for which there is an ongoing high demand in the nonprofit sector and government.“(4) Listed organizations.—To be listed under paragraph (2)(A), an organization shall—“(A) be a nonprofit organization; and“(B) submit an application to the Corporation at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Corporation may require, including—“(i) a description of—“(I) the services and activities the organization carries out generally;“(II) the area of national need that the organization seeks to address through a service project; and“(III) the services and activities the organization seeks to carry out through the proposed service project;123 STAT. 1561“(ii) a description of the skills and experience that an eligible Encore Fellowship recipient needs to be placed with the organization as an Encore Fellow for the service project;“(iii) a description of the training and leadership development the organization shall provide an Encore Fellow placed with the organization to assist the Encore Fellow in obtaining a public service job in the nonprofit sector or government after the period of the Encore Fellowship; and“(iv) evidence of the organization’s financial stability.“(5) Placement.—“(A) Request for placement with listed organizations.—To be placed with a listed organization in accordance with paragraph (2)(B) for a service project, an eligible Encore Fellowship recipient shall submit an application for such placement to the Corporation at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Corporation may require.“(B) Request for placement with other organization.—An eligible Encore Fellowship recipient may apply to the Corporation to serve the recipient’s Encore Fellowship year with a nonprofit organization that is not a listed organization. Such application shall be submitted to the Corporation at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Corporation shall require, and shall include—“(i) an identification and description of—“(I) the organization;“(II) the area of national need the organization seeks to address; and“(III) the services or activities the organization carries out to address such area of national need;“(ii) a description of the services the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient shall provide for the organization as an Encore Fellow; and“(iii) a letter of support from the leader of the organization, including—“(I) a description of the organization’s need for the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient’s services;“(II) evidence that the organization is financially sound;“(III) an assurance that the organization will provide training and leadership development to the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient if placed with the organization as an Encore Fellow, to assist the Encore Fellow in obtaining a public service job in the nonprofit sector or government after the period of the Encore Fellowship; and“(IV) a description of the training and leadership development to be provided to the Encore Fellowship recipient if so placed.“(C) Placement and award of fellowship.—If the Corporation determines that the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient is able to meet the service needs (including skills 123 STAT. 1562 and experience to address an area of national need) of the organization that the eligible fellowship recipient requests under subparagraph (A) or (B), the Corporation shall—“(i) approve the placement of the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient with the organization;“(ii) award the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient an Encore Fellowship for a period of 1 year and designate the eligible Encore Fellowship recipient as an Encore Fellow; and“(iii) in awarding the Encore Fellowship, make a payment, in the amount of $11,000, to the organization to enable the organization to provide living expenses to the Encore Fellow for the year in which the Encore Fellow agrees to serve.“(6) Matching funds.—An organization that receives an Encore Fellow under this subsection shall agree to provide, for the living expenses of the Encore Fellow during the year of service, non-Federal contributions in an amount equal to not less than $1 for every $1 of Federal funds provided to the organization for the Encore Fellow through the Encore Fellowship.“(7) Training and assistance.—Each organization that receives an Encore Fellow under this subsection shall provide training, leadership development, and assistance to the Encore Fellow, and conduct oversight of the service provided by the Encore Fellow.“(8) Leadership development.—Each year, the Corporation shall convene current and former Encore Fellows to discuss the Encore Fellows’ experiences related to service under this subsection and discuss strategies for increasing leadership and careers in public service in the nonprofit sector or government.“(c) Evaluations.—The Corporation shall conduct an independent evaluation of the programs authorized under subsections (a) and (b) and widely disseminate the results, including recommendations for improvement, to the service community through multiple channels, including the Corporation’s Resource Center or a clearinghouse of effective strategies.” .