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Serve Michigan Update
A public policy program of Michigan Nonprofit Association
November 1, 2007
National Service Headlines
- Reauthorization of National Service May Move Next Week
- FY08 National Service Budget Details as Passed by Senate
- National Service Opens Door Wider for People with Disabilities
State Headlines
Reauthorization of National Service May Move Next Week
The House Education and Labor Committee has reserved floor time next week to possibly bring the reauthorization bill (The GIVE Act) up for debate.
The Committee staff has had a few conversations with the Learn & Serve community and the RSVP Directors at the national level about their key issues with the proposed GIVE Act. Both groups feel the gap between them and the Committee has narrowed, but they have yet to see any of the proposed changes in their final written form. A manager's amendement (a piece of legislation added to existing bills to clarify, detail, and implement existing agreements) will likely be offered as part of the process next week.
The Committee staff also continues to express interest in the AmeriCorps funding allocation alternative proposed by a working group of Voices for National Service and the Association of State Service Commissions (ASC). They have requested a letter from the State Service Commissions reiterating their support for the revised formula, and the Committee staff continues to run the concept past their minority members. The final details of this deal will be important and we are anxious to review the manager's amendment which will contain their changes to the introduced GIVE Act.
This is fast moving process and we may be provided very little time to review amendments. Please be on the look out for emails from us, and be aware that a very quick response may be required.
It is our hope that the committee will incorporate most of our requested changes and produce a final bill that we can enthusiastically support.
FY08 National Service Budget Details as Passed by Senate
The Senate completed action last week on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill for Fiscal 2008. The bill recommends $880,909,000 for the Corporation for National and Community Service and its programs, the same level approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on June 21. The numbers break down as follows:
- Senior Corps: $217,586,000
- RSVP: $59,685,000
- Foster Grandparent: $110,937,000
- Senior Companion: $46,964,000
- AmeriCorps VISTA: $95,468,000
- AmeriCorps Grants: $275,775,000
- National Service Trust: $117,720,000
- State Commission Administrative Grants: $12,516,000
- AmeriCorps NCCC: $31,789,000
- Learn and Serve America: $39,125,000
- Partnership Grants: $0
- Innovation, Demonstration, and Assistance: $10,550,000
- Evaluation: $3,960,000
- Salaries & Expenses: $69,520,000
- Inspector General: $6,900,000
Total: $880,909,000
The House recommended $843,381,000 for national service programs in their version of the Labor-HSS-Education bill passed on July 19. The next step is a joint House and Senate conference committee to resolve differences between the two measures. As a reminder, the Corporation and other government programs are currently operating on a Continuing Resolution that keeps programs operating through November 17 at the current fiscal year 2007 levels.
Bill text, committee reports, charts, testimony, and other budget materials are available on the Corporation’s website by clicking on the Budget link at nationalservice.gov.
National Service Opens Door Wider for People with Disabilities
The 50 million Americans who are living with disabilities will have an easier time learning about and participating in national service and volunteer programs thanks to new initiatives announced today by the Corporation for National and Community Service.
The Corporation is the latest partner in DisabilityInfo.gov, a collaborative effort among 22 federal government agencies dedicated to making it the leading, one-stop federal source for disability-related information. The site provides information on benefits, civil rights, community life, education, employment, housing, health, technology and other subjects. The Corporation will be providing content about service and volunteering opportunities, grants, special initiatives, and training resources geared to including people with disabilities in service.
"We hope people with disabilities will come to http://www.disabilityinfo.gov not just to receive services, but to find ways to serve,” said David Eisner, CEO of the Corporation. “We know that service connects people with disabilities to skills, networks, and career paths that can bring added value to their lives.
Eisner announced the agency’s participation at event marking the fifth anniversary of the website this morning at the Department of Labor. The department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy manages the website.
The Corporation has a longstanding commitment to bring more people with disabilities into its Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, VISTA, NCCC, and Learn and Serve America programs. It has committed over $50 million to inclusion of people with disabilities over the last 10 years, and supported more than 144 national and local organizations since 2001. Through the National Service Inclusion Project, it has provided training and technical assistance to over 11,000 participants at 300 regional and state events and developed over 88 training tools.
As part of its inclusion goal, the agency is working with Congress and the Social Security Administration on a legislative change to make AmeriCorps more welcoming to people with disabilities. Under current law, participation in the AmeriCorps VISTA program does not affect an individual’s eligibility for Supplemental Security Income or Social Security Disability Insurance. However, participation in the AmeriCorps State and National and NCCC programs is not currently treated the same way, and some individuals have been directed to repay disability payments because they served in an AmeriCorps program other than VISTA.
One of the provisions of the “Heroes Earnings Assistance and Relief Tax Act of 2007” which was discussed in a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on October 17 takes an important first step in addressing this difference, by excluding AmeriCorps benefits from being counted as income for purposes of SSI eligibility. David Rust, Acting Deputy Commissioner for the Disability and Income Security Programs of the Social Security Administration, expressed the Administration’s support for the AmeriCorps policy change, noting that “Expanding the earning exclusions to participants in the other two programs would provide equity for our beneficiaries, administrative simplification, and presumably enable AmeriCorps to enroll more participants with disabilities.
The Corporation for National and Community Service improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. Providing service opportunities for millions of Americans of all ages and backgrounds, Corporation programs include Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and Learn and Serve America. For more information, visit http://www.nationalservice.gov/.
DeRoche Calls for Elimination of Michigan Community Service Commission
In a press statement released on October 31, House Republican Leader Craig DeRoche (R-Novi) unveiled a GOP plan to find cuts to replace the services tax, including the state matching funds for the Michigan Community Service Commission. The elimination of the $3.9 million in state funding and authority would mean that Michigan would turn back twice the amount in federal funding and cut off support to the community based efforts of AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve, Mentor Michigan, and the Volunteer Investment Grants. For more information on the potential impact of state cuts on national service in Michigan, go to http://www.connectmichiganalliance.org/servemichigan/links.htm and view the documents under "Michigan Community Service Commission National Service Programs."
State Budget Enacted
The Michigan Legislature completed their work on the FY 2007-2008 state budget at about three o'clock yesterday morning. The resolution came just in time as the continuation budget previously authorizing state expenditures expired at midnight. To read more about the FY 2007-2008 state budget and its impact on various state departments, visit www.mnaonline.org/statebudget.asp.