REO Act of 2020

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4387 To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to authorize the Reentry Employment Opportunities Program, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 30, 2020 Mr. PETERS (for himself and Mr. PORTMAN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to authorize the Reentry Employment Opportunities Pro- gram, 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 ‘‘REO Act of 2020’’. 4 SEC. 2. REENTRY EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES PRO- 5 GRAM. 6 Subtitle D of title I of the Workforce Innovation and 7 Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3221 et seq.) is amended— 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4387 IS (1) by redesignating section 172 (29 U.S.C. 1 3227) as section 173; and 2 (2) by inserting after section 171 (29 U.S.C. 3 3226) the following: 4 ‘‘SEC. 172. REENTRY EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES PRO- 5 GRAM. 6 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 7 ‘‘(1) CORRECTIONAL INSTITUTION.—The term 8 ‘correctional institution’ has the meaning given the 9 term in section 225(e). 10 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ADULT.—The term ‘eligible 11 adult’ means an individual who— 12 ‘‘(A) on the date of the individual’s enroll- 13 ment— 14 ‘‘(i) is not younger than age 25; and 15 ‘‘(ii) is residing in or returning to the 16 geographic area served; and 17 ‘‘(B)(i) before that date of enrollment— 18 ‘‘(I) was released from incarceration 19 in a correctional institution (including 20 being enrolled in a work release center at 21 the institution); or 22 ‘‘(II) served an alternative sentence, 23 or a sentence to a diversion program, or- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4387 IS dered through the adult criminal justice 1 system; or 2 ‘‘(ii) on that date, is subject to the adult 3 criminal justice system, including an individual 4 who— 5 ‘‘(I) is incarcerated in a correctional 6 institution (including being enrolled in a 7 work release center at the institution), but 8 is scheduled to be released within 6 9 months; 10 ‘‘(II) is residing in a residential re- 11 entry center; 12 ‘‘(III) is subject to electronic or home- 13 based monitoring; 14 ‘‘(IV) is in the community on proba- 15 tion or parole; or 16 ‘‘(V) is serving an alternative sen- 17 tence, or a sentence to a diversion pro- 18 gram, ordered through that system. 19 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE YOUNG ADULT.—The term ‘eli- 20 gible young adult’ means an individual who, on the 21 date of the individual’s enrollment— 22 ‘‘(A) is not younger than age 18 and not 23 older than age 24; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4387 IS ‘‘(B) is residing in or returning to the geo- 1 graphic area served; and 2 ‘‘(C)(i) is a school dropout (within the 3 meaning of section 129(a)(1)(B)(iii)(I)) from a 4 high school, except that not more than 10 per- 5 cent of the individuals accepted to participate in 6 a program under subsection (b) may be found 7 eligible under this subparagraph solely on the 8 basis of meeting the requirements of this 9 clause; or 10 ‘‘(ii) is an individual who is, or has been, 11 subject to the juvenile or adult criminal justice 12 system, including an individual who— 13 ‘‘(I) is or has been incarcerated in a 14 correctional institution (including being en- 15 rolled in a work release center at the insti- 16 tution or in a detention facility for juve- 17 niles); 18 ‘‘(II) is or has been subject to that 19 system due to having an out-of-home place- 20 ment, or being on probation or parole; or 21 ‘‘(III) is serving or has served an al- 22 ternative sentence, or a sentence to a di- 23 version program, ordered through that sys- 24 tem. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4387 IS ‘‘(4) ELIGIBLE YOUTH.—The term ‘eligible 1 youth’ means an individual who, on the date of the 2 individual’s enrollment— 3 ‘‘(A) is not younger than age 16 and not 4 older than age 17; 5 ‘‘(B) is residing in or returning to the geo- 6 graphic area served; and 7 ‘‘(C)(i) is a school dropout (within the 8 meaning of section 129(a)(1)(B)(iii)(I)) from a 9 high school, except that not more than 10 per- 10 cent of the individuals accepted to participate in 11 a program under subsection (c) may be found 12 eligible under this subparagraph solely on the 13 basis of meeting the requirements of this 14 clause; or 15 ‘‘(ii) is an individual who is, or has been, 16 subject to the juvenile justice system, including 17 an individual who— 18 ‘‘(I) is or has been incarcerated in a 19 correctional institution (including being en- 20 rolled in a work release center at the insti- 21 tution or in a detention facility for juve- 22 niles); 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4387 IS ‘‘(II) is or has been subject to that 1 system due to having an out-of-home place- 2 ment, or being on probation or parole; or 3 ‘‘(III) is serving or has served an al- 4 ternative sentence, or a sentence to a di- 5 version program, ordered through that sys- 6 tem. 7 ‘‘(5) ENROLL.—The term ‘enroll’ means receive 8 confirmation that an individual, having applied to 9 participate in a program under this section, has 10 been accepted to the program. 11 ‘‘(6) REGISTERED APPRENTICESHIP.—The term 12 ‘registered apprenticeship’ means an apprenticeship 13 registered under the Act of August 16, 1937 (com- 14 monly known as the ‘National Apprenticeship Act’; 15 50 Stat. 664, chapter 663; 29 U.S.C. 50 et seq.). 16 ‘‘(b) ADULT REENTRY EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNI- 17 TIES PROGRAM.— 18 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es- 19 tablish and carry out an adult Reentry Employment 20 Opportunities Program. 21 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.— 22 ‘‘(A) DIRECT GRANTS.—In carrying out 23 the program, the Secretary may make direct 24 grants to eligible entities to carry out projects 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 4387 IS described in paragraph (6), in geographic areas, 1 for eligible adults and eligible young adults. 2 ‘‘(B) GRANTS THROUGH INTER- 3 MEDIARIES.—In any year for which the Sec- 4 retary makes grants under subparagraph (A), 5 the Secretary shall make intermediary grants 6 on a competitive basis to eligible entities who 7 are national or regional intermediaries, who 8 shall use the grant funds to make direct grants 9 to eligible entities or to carry out projects de- 10 scribed in subparagraph (A) in accordance with 11 the provisions of this subsection. For purposes 12 of this subsection, a reference to the Secretary 13 shall include a reference to an intermediary who 14 receives funds under this subparagraph to the 15 extent that the intermediary uses the funds to 16 make direct grants to eligible entities. 17 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to re- 18 ceive a direct or intermediary grant under this sub- 19 section, an entity— 20 ‘‘(A) shall be an organization described in 21 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code 22 of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under sec- 23 tion 501(a) of such Code; 24 ‘‘(B) may be— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 4387 IS ‘‘(i) an organization that serves 1 women or a minority population; 2 ‘‘(ii) a State or local government; or 3 ‘‘(iii) an entity (including an Indian 4 tribe or an Alaska Native-controlled or Na- 5 tive Hawaiian-controlled organization) that 6 is eligible for a grant under section 166 7 (including the regulations issued under 8 that section); and 9 ‘‘(C) may be an organization that serves— 10 ‘‘(i) an urban county, meaning a 11 county that is a Metropolitan Area, as des- 12 ignated by the Office of Management and 13 Budget; or 14 ‘‘(ii) a rural county, meaning a county 15 that is a Micropolitan Area, or neither a 16 Metropolitan Area nor a Micropolitan 17 Area, as so designated. 18 ‘‘(4) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to receive a 19 direct grant or an intermediary grant under this 20 subsection, an entity shall submit an application to 21 the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and 22 containing such information as the Secretary may 23 require, including, for a program that includes an 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 4387 IS industry-recognized credential, a description of the 1 program leading to the credential. 2 ‘‘(5) USE OF FUNDS.—An entity that receives, 3 under this subsection, a direct grant to carry out a 4 project described in paragraph (2) shall use the 5 grant funds to carry out a project that provides op- 6 portunities in a pre-apprenticeship program, a reg- 7 istered apprenticeship program, an industry-recog- 8 nized apprenticeship program, occupational skills 9 education, on-the-job training, work experience, job 10 referrals, basic skills remediation, educational serv- 11 ices, or work readiness activities, to eligible adults or 12 eligible young adults. 13 ‘‘(6) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 14 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 15 as may be necessary to carry out this subsection for 16 fiscal year 2021 and each subsequent fiscal year. 17 ‘‘(c) YOUTH REENTRY EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNI- 18 TIES PROGRAM.— 19 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall es- 20 tablish and carry out a youth Reentry Employment 21 Opportunities Program. 22 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.— 23 ‘‘(A) DIRECT GRANTS.—In carrying out 24 the program, the Secretary may make direct 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 4387 IS grants to eligible entities to carry out projects 1 described in subsection (b)(6), in geographic 2 areas, for eligible youth. 3 ‘‘(B) GRANTS THROUGH INTER- 4 MEDIARIES.—In any year for which the Sec- 5 retary makes grants under subparagraph (A), 6 the Secretary shall make intermediary grants as 7 described in subsection (b)(2)(A), except that 8 references in that subsection to eligible entities 9 shall be treated as references to entities de- 10 scribed in paragraph (3). 11 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to re- 12 ceive a direct or intermediary grant under this sub- 13 section, an entity may be an organization described 14 in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 15 1986 that is exempt from taxation under section 16 501(a) of such Code or a State juvenile justice agen- 17 cy. 18 ‘‘(4) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to receive a 19 direct grant or an intermediary grant under this 20 subsection, an entity shall submit an application as 21 described in subsection (b)(4). 22 ‘‘(5) USE OF FUNDS.—An entity that receives, 23 under this subsection, a direct grant to carry out a 24 project described in paragraph (2) shall use the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 4387 IS grant funds as described in subsection (b)(6), for eli- 1 gible youth. 2 ‘‘(6) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 3 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 4 as may be necessary to carry out this subsection for 5 fiscal year 2021 and each subsequent fiscal year. 6 ‘‘(d) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall 7 reserve and use not more than— 8 ‘‘(1) 2 percent of the funds appropriated under 9 subsection (b)(7) for a fiscal year to provide tech- 10 nical assistance to recipients of grants under sub- 11 section (b); and 12 ‘‘(2) 2 percent of the funds appropriated under 13 subsection (c)(7) for a fiscal year to provide tech- 14 nical assistance to recipients of grants under sub- 15 section (c).’’. 16 SEC. 3. EVALUATION OF THE REENTRY PROJECTS. 17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 years after the 18 date of enactment of this Act, the Chief Evaluation Officer 19 shall evaluate the effectiveness of direct grants and inter- 20 mediary grants used by the Department of Labor to sup- 21 port offender reentry and recidivism reduction through re- 22 entry projects at the Federal, State, local, and tribal lev- 23 els. The Chief Evaluation Officer shall evaluate each of 24 the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 4387 IS (1) The effectiveness of such projects in rela- 1 tion to their cost, including the extent to which the 2 projects improve reentry outcomes, including em- 3 ployment, education, housing, and reductions in re- 4 cidivism, of participants in comparison to com- 5 parably situated individuals who did not participate 6 in such projects. 7 (2) The effectiveness of project structures and 8 mechanisms for delivery of services. 9 (3) The impact of such projects on the commu- 10 nities and participants involved. 11 (4) The impact of such projects on related pro- 12 grams and activities. 13 (5) The extent to which such projects meet the 14 needs of various demographic groups. 15 (6) The quality and effectiveness of technical 16 assistance provided by the Department of Labor to 17 grantees for implementing such projects. 18 (7) Such other factors as may be appropriate. 19 (b) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS FOR EVALUATION.— 20 Not more than 2.5 percent of any amounts appropriated 21 for a fiscal year to carry out the reentry projects shall 22 be reserved and made available to the Chief Evaluation 23 Officer for such evaluation, including evaluating the proc- 24 esses, implementation, outcomes, costs, and effectiveness 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:15 Aug 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4387.IS S4387 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 4387 IS of the reentry projects in improving reentry and reducing 1 recidivism. Such reserved funding may be used to provide 2 support to recipients of direct grants and intermediary 3 grants for ree [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]