Coronavirus Service Corps Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7459 To authorize the President to establish the Coronavirus Service Corps as a means of providing gainful employment to unemployed and under- employed citizens of the United States through the performance of useful public work, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JULY 1, 2020 Mr. HARDER of California (for himself, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. SOTO, Ms. NORTON, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Ms. JACKSON LEE, and Mr. SAN NICOLAS) introduced the following bill; which was re- ferred to the Committee on Education and Labor A BILL To authorize the President to establish the Coronavirus Serv- ice Corps as a means of providing gainful employment to unemployed and underemployed citizens of the United States through the performance of useful public work, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Coronavirus Service 4 Corps Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:30 Jul 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459 2 •HR 7459 IH SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT AND OPERATION OF CORONAVI- 1 RUS SERVICE CORPS. 2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT AND PURPOSE.—In order to re- 3 lieve the acute condition of widespread distress and unem- 4 ployment existing in the United States and to provide for 5 the mitigation of the health and economic impacts of the 6 coronavirus crisis, the President shall establish and oper- 7 ate a Coronavirus Service Corps to employ citizens of the 8 United States, who are otherwise unemployed or under- 9 employed, in the carrying on of works of a public nature 10 in connection with— 11 (1) health care, including contact tracing, ad- 12 ministering COVID–19 tests, and peer mental 13 health counseling; 14 (2) assisting essential services and the reopen- 15 ing process, including taking temperatures for busi- 16 nesses, childcare, and training teachers and parents 17 to use distance learning technology; and 18 (3) social services, assisting food banks, food 19 assistance, and hunger relief programs, including de- 20 livery, building homeless shelters, senior care. 21 (b) LEADERSHIP.—The Coronavirus Service Corps 22 shall be administered by a board for which the Director 23 of the Corporation for National and Community Service 24 shall serve as the chairperson and appoint to such board 25 5 members, including— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Jul 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459 3 •HR 7459 IH (1) at least one member who is an expert in 1 nonprofit work; and 2 (2) at least two members who are leaders of a 3 major national or international union. 4 (c) ROLE OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—To operate the 5 Coronavirus Service Corps, the President may utilize ex- 6 isting Federal departments and agencies, including the 7 Department of Labor, the Department of Defense, the 8 National Guard Bureau, the Department of the Interior, 9 the Department of Agriculture, the Army Corps of Engi- 10 neers, the Department of Transportation, the Department 11 of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and 12 Federal governmental corporations. 13 (d) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—For the purpose of car- 14 rying out this Act, the President may enter into such con- 15 tracts or agreements with States as may be necessary, in- 16 cluding provisions for utilization of existing State adminis- 17 trative agencies. 18 (e) PARTICIPATION.— 19 (1) PLACEMENT.—The chairperson of the 20 Coronavirus Service Corps shall, in coordination 21 with the Secretary of Health and Human Services 22 and State and local governments, determine employ- 23 ment placement under subsection (a) based on the 24 areas of most need. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Jul 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459 4 •HR 7459 IH (2) EMPLOYMENT PERIOD.—A term of employ- 1 ment under subsection (a) shall be for a period of 2 less than or equal to 1 year. Nothing in this para- 3 graph shall be construed to limit the number of 4 terms of employment a citizen may be employed 5 under such subsection. 6 (3) CURRICULUM.— 7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Citizens employed 8 under subsection (a) shall receive training 9 under the Coronavirus Service Corps in areas 10 relevant to the employment of such citizens. 11 (B) DEVELOPMENT OF CURRICULUM.— 12 The training described in subparagraph (A) 13 shall be developed through partnerships with— 14 (i) apprenticeship programs registered 15 under the National Apprenticeship Act (29 16 U.S.C. 50 et seq.); and 17 (ii) institutions of higher education. 18 (C) TREATMENT OF TRAINING.—The 19 training described in subparagraph (A) may be 20 credited towards a registered apprenticeship 21 program or program of study, as determined by 22 such apprenticeship program or institution of 23 higher education, as applicable. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Jul 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459 5 •HR 7459 IH (f) PAYMENT.—Any person who is employed under 1 subsection (a) shall receive compensation in an amount 2 equal to the greater of the following: 3 (1) An hourly wage equal to 150 percent of the 4 minimum hourly wage in the locality in which such 5 person is employed. 6 (2) An hourly wage equal to $15 an hour. 7 (g) ACQUISITION OF REAL PROPERTY.—The Presi- 8 dent, or the head of any department or agency authorized 9 by the President to construct any project or to carry on 10 any public works under this Act, may acquire real prop- 11 erty for such project or public work by purchase, donation, 12 condemnation, or otherwise. 13 SEC. 3. ADMINISTRATION OF CORONAVIRUS SERVICE 14 CORPS. 15 (a) EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCE.—If the President 16 determines that amounts appropriated to carry out a 17 Coronavirus Service Corps under this Act for a fiscal year 18 will be insufficient to employ all of the citizens of the 19 United States described in section 2(a) who are seeking 20 or likely to seek employment in the Coronavirus Service 21 Corps and continue the employment of current employees 22 who desire to remain in the Coronavirus Service Corps, 23 the President shall employ additional persons in the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Jul 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459 6 •HR 7459 IH Coronavirus Service Corps in the following order of pref- 1 erence: 2 (1) Unemployed veterans of the Armed Forces 3 and unemployed members of the reserve components 4 of the Armed Forces. 5 (2) Unemployed citizens who have exhausted 6 their entitlement to unemployment compensation. 7 (3) Unemployed citizens, who immediately be- 8 fore employment in the Coronavirus Service Corps, 9 are eligible for unemployment compensation payable 10 under any State law or Federal unemployment com- 11 pensation law, including any additional compensa- 12 tion or extended compensation under such laws. 13 (4) Other citizens described in section 2(a). 14 (b) HOUSING AND CARE OF EMPLOYEES.—The 15 President may provide housing for persons employed in 16 the Coronavirus Service Corps and furnish them with such 17 subsistence, clothing, medical attendance and hospitaliza- 18 tion, and cash allowance, as may be necessary, during the 19 period they are so employed. 20 (c) TRANSPORTATION.—The President may provide 21 for the transportation of persons employed in the 22 Coronavirus Service Corps to and from the places of em- 23 ployment. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Jul 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459 7 •HR 7459 IH (d) NON-DISCRIMINATION.—In employing citizens 1 for the Coronavirus Service Corps, no discrimination shall 2 occur in accordance with Federal employment law; except 3 that no individual under conviction for crime and serving 4 sentence therefore shall be employed under the provisions 5 of this Act. 6 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 7 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 8 are authorized to be appropriated to the President to es- 9 tablish and operate a Coronavirus Service Corps under 10 this Act $60,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2021, to be avail- 11 able through September 30, 2022. 12 (b) DURATION OF AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appro- 13 priated pursuant to the authorization of appropriations in 14 subsection (a) shall remain available until expended. 15 SEC. 5. TERMINATION. 16 The authority of the President to establish and oper- 17 ate a Coronavirus Service Corps under this Act shall ex- 18 pire on September 30, 2022. 19 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:27 Jul 25, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H7459.IH H7459