Public Library Innovation Space Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 5967 To amend the Museum and Library Services Act to authorize grants to support the use of public libraries for community economic development. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 25, 2020 Mr. LUJA´N (for himself and Mr. TAKANO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Labor, 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 provi- sions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To amend the Museum and Library Services Act to authorize grants to support the use of public libraries for commu- nity economic development. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Public Library Innova- 4 tion Space Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 6 Subsection (a) of section 214 of the Museum and Li- 7 brary Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9123(a)) is amended— 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:23 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5967.IH H5967 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 5967 IH (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 1 end; 2 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at 3 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 4 (3) by adding at the end the following: 5 ‘‘(3) to carry out chapter 5, $10,000,000 for 6 each of fiscal years 2020 through 2024.’’. 7 SEC. 3. PUBLIC LIBRARY MAKERSPACE GRANTS. 8 Subtitle B of title II of the Museum and Library 9 Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9101 et seq.) is amended by add- 10 ing at the end the following: 11 ‘‘CHAPTER 5—PUBLIC LIBRARY 12 MAKERSPACE GRANT PROGRAM 13 ‘‘SEC. 265. PUBLIC LIBRARY MAKERSPACE GRANT PRO- 14 GRAM. 15 ‘‘(a) PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.—From the amounts 16 provided under section 214(a)(3), the Director shall carry 17 out a program under which the Director makes grants, 18 on a competitive basis, to eligible partnerships to establish 19 makerspaces at public libraries. 20 ‘‘(b) APPLICATIONS.—To be considered for a grant 21 under this section, an eligible partnership shall submit an 22 application to the Director at such time, in such manner, 23 and containing such information and assurances as the 24 Director may require. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:23 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5967.IH H5967 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 5967 IH ‘‘(c) SELECTION OF GRANTEES.—In selecting eligible 1 partnerships to receive grants under this section, the Di- 2 rector shall consider— 3 ‘‘(1) the viability of the partnership making the 4 application; 5 ‘‘(2) the ability of the partnership to meet the 6 matching requirement described in subsection (d); 7 ‘‘(3) the potential of the project to provide so- 8 cial and economic benefits to the local community; 9 ‘‘(4) the support of local communities, govern- 10 ment, and partners for the project; 11 ‘‘(5) the project’s potential for strengthening 12 the involvement of diverse and underserved commu- 13 nities in entrepreneurship and economic develop- 14 ment; and 15 ‘‘(6) the ability of the project to continue after 16 the end of the grant period. 17 ‘‘(d) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible partnership 19 shall contribute, for the activities for which the 20 grant was awarded under this section, non-Federal 21 matching funds in an amount determined appro- 22 priate by the Director. 23 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Director may waive the re- 24 quirement of paragraph (1) for any eligible partner- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:23 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5967.IH H5967 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 5967 IH ship that the Director determines does not have ade- 1 quate resources to meet such requirement. 2 ‘‘(e) REPORTS.—Not less frequently than once annu- 3 ally, the Director shall submit to Congress a report that 4 includes— 5 ‘‘(1) a description of the activities carried out 6 with grants under this section; and 7 ‘‘(2) an assessment of the effect of the grant 8 program on community economic development. 9 ‘‘(f) TREATMENT OF MAKERSPACES.—The use of a 10 makerspace supported by a grant under this section shall 11 not be treated as a private business use under section 12 141(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 13 ‘‘(g) PROHIBITION ON CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITIES.— 14 An eligible partnership that receives a grant under this 15 section may not use grant funds, or matching funds con- 16 tributed by the partnership under subsection (d), for con- 17 struction activities at a public library that would provide 18 extra square footage to house a makerspace. 19 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 20 ‘‘(1) ELIGIBLE PARTNERSHIP.—The term ‘eligi- 21 ble partnership’ means a partnership that includes a 22 public library and— 23 ‘‘(A) an economic development corporation; 24 ‘‘(B) a local government; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:23 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5967.IH H5967 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 5967 IH ‘‘(C) a tribal government; 1 ‘‘(D) a State government; 2 ‘‘(E) an elementary school or secondary 3 school (as such terms are defined in section 4 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Edu- 5 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)); 6 ‘‘(F) a museum; 7 ‘‘(G) an institution of higher education (as 8 such term is defined in section 102 of the High- 9 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)); 10 ‘‘(H) a nonprofit organization; 11 ‘‘(I) a corporation; 12 ‘‘(J) other entities identified by the Direc- 13 tor; or 14 ‘‘(K) a combination of entities described in 15 any of subparagraphs (A) through (I). 16 ‘‘(2) MAKERSPACE.—The term ‘makerspace’ 17 means a facility (which may be a facility at a fixed 18 location or a mobile unit) that is open to the public 19 and provides individuals with access to— 20 ‘‘(A) tools, technology, and educational re- 21 sources that are designed to enable such indi- 22 viduals to create physical goods, including pro- 23 totypes; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:23 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5967.IH H5967 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 5967 IH ‘‘(B) educational opportunities, including 1 vocational training and assistance with early- 2 stage business ventures.’’. 3 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:23 Feb 26, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H5967.IH H5967 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS