RENEW Conservation Corps Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4538 To establish a Restore Employment in Natural and Environmental Work Conservation Corps in the Department of the Interior and the Depart- ment of Agriculture, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES SEPTEMBER 8, 2020 Mr. DURBIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works A BILL To establish a Restore Employment in Natural and Environ- mental Work Conservation Corps in the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture, 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 ‘‘Restore Employment 4 in Natural and Environmental Work Conservation Corps 5 Act’’ or the ‘‘RENEW Conservation Corps Act’’. 6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:51 Sep 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4538 IS (1) as a result of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 1 (COVID–19) pandemic, more than 40,000,000 peo- 2 ple in the United States have filed claims for unem- 3 ployment benefits since March 2020, which is a level 4 of unemployment not seen since the Great Depres- 5 sion; 6 (2) investments in fish, wildlife, and habitat 7 restoration and outdoor recreation infrastructure 8 generate as many as 33 jobs per $1,000,000 in- 9 vested, as demonstrated by the American Recovery 10 and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–5; 11 123 Stat. 115); 12 (3) the outdoor recreation economy— 13 (A) generates $887,000,000,000 in eco- 14 nomic activity each year, which is 2.2 percent 15 of the gross domestic product of the United 16 States, according to the Bureau of Economic 17 Analysis; and 18 (B) was 1 of the fastest growing sectors of 19 the United States economy before the 20 Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19) pan- 21 demic; 22 (4) the Federal Government and State and local 23 governments and agencies have many ‘‘shovel-ready’’ 24 projects and green infrastructure maintenance back- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4538 IS log projects that would improve the quality of life, 1 outdoor experiences, and access to outdoor recre- 2 ation opportunities of people of the United States on 3 completion of the projects; 4 (5) many facilities and natural resources lo- 5 cated on dedicated conservation land are in disrepair 6 or degraded and in need of labor-intensive rehabili- 7 tation, restoration, and enhancement work that can- 8 not be carried out at existing staffing levels; 9 (6) enhancing and maintaining environmentally 10 and recreationally important land and waters 11 through the participation of unemployed individuals 12 in the United States in a conservation corps could— 13 (A) provide critical employment, education, 14 and skill development opportunities to the indi- 15 viduals; 16 (B) prepare the individuals for permanent 17 jobs in the conservation field; and 18 (C) benefit the economy and environment 19 of the United States; and 20 (7) existing networks of conservation corps are 21 in place but need additional resources in order to 22 scale up the activities of the conservation corps to 23 meet growing deferred maintenance needs on public 24 land. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4538 IS (b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this Act are— 1 (1) to employ, during the 5-year period begin- 2 ning on the date of enactment of this Act, a total 3 of 1,000,000 people in the United States in dedi- 4 cated conservation land projects to support the 5 growing backlog of deferred conservation land 6 projects; 7 (2) to expose Participants to public service 8 while furthering the understanding and appreciation 9 of the Participants of the natural and cultural re- 10 sources of the United States; 11 (3) to stimulate interest among Participants in 12 conservation careers by exposing the Participants to 13 conservation professionals in land management 14 agencies; and 15 (4) to build on the existing network of con- 16 servation corps organizations working across the 17 United States while providing for expanded partici- 18 pation in urban centers. 19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 20 In this Act: 21 (1) CORPS.—The term ‘‘Corps’’ means the Re- 22 store Employment in Natural and Environmental 23 Work Conservation Corps established by section 24 4(a). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4538 IS (2) COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Council’’ means the 1 National Council on the Restore Employment in 2 Natural and Environmental Work Conservation 3 Corps established under section 6(a). 4 (3) ELIGIBLE LOCAL AGENCY.—The term ‘‘eli- 5 gible local agency’’ means a unit of local govern- 6 ment, land trust, or similar conservation nonprofit 7 organization. 8 (4) ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANT.—The term ‘‘eligi- 9 ble participant’’ means an individual who— 10 (A) is 16 years of age or older at the time 11 the individual begins the term of service as a 12 Participant; and 13 (B) is a citizen or national of the United 14 States or lawful permanent resident alien of the 15 United States. 16 (5) ELIGIBLE PROJECT.—The term ‘‘eligible 17 project’’ means any of the following: 18 (A) A project to plant trees. 19 (B) A project for the restoration and man- 20 agement of wildlife habitat. 21 (C) A project to control invasive species. 22 (D) A project for the conduct of prescribed 23 burns. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 4538 IS (E) A project for the restoration of 1 streams, wetlands, and other aquatic eco- 2 systems. 3 (F) A project to monitor water quality in 4 streams and lakes. 5 (G) A project to assist with the conduct of 6 fish and wildlife surveys. 7 (H) A project for the construction or main- 8 tenance of trails, bridges, campgrounds, picnic 9 shelters, or other recreational amenities for use 10 by the public. 11 (I) A project for the construction or main- 12 tenance of parks and playgrounds. 13 (J) A project to restore brownfield sites 14 (as defined in section 101 of the Comprehensive 15 Environmental Response, Compensation, and 16 Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601)) in 17 urban areas. 18 (K) A project to construct rain gardens, 19 grass waterways, pollinator gardens, or green 20 schoolyards. 21 (L) A project for the development of urban 22 gardens and farms. 23 (M) A project to plant native grasslands. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 4538 IS (N) A project to provide environmental in- 1 terpretation or outdoor education. 2 (O) Any other project determined to be ap- 3 propriate by the Secretaries. 4 (6) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 5 has the meaning given the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ in 6 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu- 7 cation Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 8 (7) PARTICIPANT.—The term ‘‘Participant’’ 9 means an eligible participant enrolled in the Corps. 10 (8) PROGRAM PARTNER.—The term ‘‘Program 11 partner’’ means— 12 (A) a State or Indian Tribe administering 13 a program for eligible projects or a grant pro- 14 gram under subsection (a) or (b) of section 5, 15 as applicable; and 16 (B) an eligible local agency carrying out el- 17 igible projects under section 5(a)(3)(B). 18 (9) SECRETARIES.—The term ‘‘Secretaries’’ 19 means the Secretary of Agriculture and the Sec- 20 retary of the Interior, acting jointly. 21 (10) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of 22 the several States, the District of Columbia, the 23 Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any other terri- 24 tory or possession of the United States. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 4538 IS SEC. 4. RESTORE EMPLOYMENT IN NATURAL AND ENVI- 1 RONMENTAL WORK CONSERVATION CORPS. 2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 3 Department of the Interior and the Department of Agri- 4 culture the Restore Employment in Natural and Environ- 5 mental Work Conservation Corps program under which 6 Participants shall carry out— 7 (1) eligible projects administered by the Secre- 8 taries under this section; and 9 (2) eligible projects administered by Program 10 partners under subsection (a) or (b) of section 5. 11 (b) PARTICIPANTS.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corps shall consist of— 13 (A) eligible participants who are enrolled 14 in the Corps by the Secretaries; and 15 (B) eligible participants who are enrolled 16 in the Corps by Program partners. 17 (2) REQUIREMENT.—In enrolling eligible par- 18 ticipants in the Corps under paragraph (1), the Sec- 19 retaries and Program partners shall ensure that 20 Participants reflect the demographics of the area in 21 which the Participants are carrying out an eligible 22 project. 23 (c) TERMS AND COMPENSATION.— 24 (1) TERM.—Participants shall serve for a term 25 of at least 12 weeks, but not more than 1 year. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 4538 IS (2) COMPENSATION.— 1 (A) WAGES.—Participants shall be com- 2 pensated at a wage rate that is appropriate for 3 the type of work performed by the Participant, 4 but not less than $15 per hour (to be increased 5 each year based on increases in the Consumer 6 Price Index for the year). 7 (B) EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.—If a Par- 8 ticipant completes at least 1 year of service in 9 the Corps, Participants shall be eligible for— 10 (i) an educational credit that may be 11 applied toward a program of postsecondary 12 education at an institution of higher edu- 13 cation that agrees to award the credit for 14 participation in the Corps; and 15 (ii) not more than $5,500 in tuition 16 assistance to the Participant for purposes 17 of continuing education. 18 (d) TRAINING; APPRENTICESHIPS.—The Secretaries 19 and Program partners shall— 20 (1) ensure that Participants are provided at 21 least 2 weeks of training during each term of the ap- 22 plicable Participant; and 23 (2) provide curricula to Participants that im- 24 prove the future job prospects of Participants, in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 4538 IS cluding through making available to Participants 1 registered apprenticeships and other professional li- 2 censes or certifications. 3 SEC. 5. STATE, TRIBAL, AND LOCAL FUNDING PROGRAM 4 FOR ELIGIBLE PROJECTS. 5 (a) APPORTIONMENT TO STATES.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each fiscal year, subject 7 to paragraphs (2) and (3), of the amounts made 8 available for apportionment to the States for that 9 fiscal year under section 7(2), the Secretaries shall 10 apportion— 11 (A) 662⁄3 percent among States based on 12 the proportion that— 13 (i) the number of unemployed individ- 14 uals in each State, as determined based on 15 the most recent data available; bears to 16 (ii) the total number of unemployed 17 individuals in all States as so determined; 18 and 19 (B) 331⁄3 percent among States based on 20 the proportion that— 21 (i) the population of each State; bears 22 to 23 (ii) the population of all States. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 4538 IS (2) MINIMUM APPORTIONMENT.—No State 1 shall receive an apportionment under paragraph (1) 2 for a fiscal year in an amount less than 3 $42,000,000. 4 (3) USE OF FUNDS.—Of the amounts appor- 5 tioned to a State under this subsection for a fiscal 6 year— 7 (A) 50 percent shall be used by the State 8 to administer a program for the conduct of eli- 9 gible projects by Participants enrolled in the 10 program by the States; and 11 (B) 50 percent shall be used by the State 12 to administer a grant program in the State 13 under which the State provides grants to eligi- 14 ble local agencies in the State for the conduct 15 of eligible projects by Participants enrolled by 16 the eligible local agencies. 17 (b) TRIBAL PROGRAM.—For each fiscal year, the 18 Secretaries shall apportion, in accordance with a formula 19 established by the Secretaries, amounts made available 20 under section 7(3) to Indian Tribes to administer a pro- 21 gram for the conduct of eligible projects by Participants 22 enrolled in the program by the Indian Tribe. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 4538 IS (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Of the amounts provided to a 1 Program partner for the conduct of eligible projects under 2 this section, the Program partner— 3 (1) may use not more than 20 percent for ad- 4 ministrative costs of administering and carrying out 5 eligible projects (including costs of recruiting and 6 hiring individuals to carry out eligible projects); 7 (2) may use not more than 14 percent to pro- 8 vide continuing education to individuals admin- 9 istering or carrying out eligible projects; 10 (3) may use not more than 8 percent for the 11 cost of equipment and supplies for eligible projects; 12 and 13 (4) shall use the remainder of the amounts for 14 the costs of salaries of individuals administering or 15 carrying out eligible projects. 16 (d) REALLOCATION.—Any funds made available to a 17 State or Indian Tribe under subsection (a) or (b) that are 18 not obligated by the State or Indian Tribe at the end of 19 the third fiscal year beginning after the fiscal year during 20 which the funds were made available shall be withdrawn 21 from the State or Indian Tribe and reallocated by the Sec- 22 retaries to other States and Indian Tribes on the basis 23 of need, as determined by the Secretaries, and in amounts 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:03 Sep 09, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4538.IS S4538 khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 4538 IS that the Secretaries determine would best accomplish the 1 purposes described in section 2(b). 2 SEC. 6. 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