[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 982 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 982
Recognizing the contributions of AmeriCorps members and alumni and
AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers to the lives of the people of the United
States.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 15, 2022
Ms. Matsui (for herself, Mr. Price of North Carolina, Mr. Cartwright,
Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Bass, Mr. Kilmer, Mr. Gomez, Mr. Suozzi, Mrs. Lee
of Nevada, Mrs. Trahan, Mr. Doggett, Ms. Williams of Georgia, Ms.
McCollum, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Evans, Ms.
Houlahan, Mr. Larson of Connecticut, Ms. DeGette, Mr. Neal, and Ms.
Norton) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the contributions of AmeriCorps members and alumni and
AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers to the lives of the people of the United
States.
Whereas, since their inceptions, each of the AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors
national service programs have proven to be a highly effective way--
(1) to engage the people of the United States in meeting a wide range
of local and national needs; and
(2) to promote the ethics of service and volunteerism;
Whereas, each year, more than 250,000 individuals serve in AmeriCorps and
AmeriCorps Seniors at more than 40,000 locations across the United
States to give back in an intensive way to communities, States, Tribal
nations, and the United States;
Whereas AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors funds have been invested in nonprofit,
community, educational, and faith-based groups, and those funds leverage
hundreds of millions of dollars in outside funding and in-kind donations
each year;
Whereas AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers have provided
millions of hours of service nationwide, helping--
(1) to improve the lives of the most vulnerable people of the United
States;
(2) to protect the environment;
(3) to contribute to public safety;
(4) to respond to disasters and public health emergencies;
(5) to strengthen the educational system of the United States; and
(6) to expand economic opportunity;
Whereas AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers recruit and
supervise millions of community volunteers, demonstrating the value of
AmeriCorps as a powerful force for encouraging people to become involved
in volunteering and community service;
Whereas, for more than 5 decades, millions of AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers in
the RSVP, Foster Grandparent, and Senior Companion programs have played
an important role in strengthening communities by sharing their
experience, knowledge, and accomplishments with the individuals they
serve;
Whereas, since 1994, more than 1,200,000 individuals have taken the AmeriCorps
pledge to ``get things done for America'' by becoming AmeriCorps members
through the AmeriCorps State and National, AmeriCorps VISTA, and
AmeriCorps NCCC programs;
Whereas AmeriCorps members nationwide, in return for the service of those
members, have earned more than $4,000,000,000 to use to further their
own educational advancement at colleges and universities across the
United States;
Whereas AmeriCorps is a proven pathway to employment, providing members with
valuable career skills, experience, and contacts to prepare them for the
21st century workforce and to help close the skills gap in the United
States;
Whereas, in 2009, Congress passed the bipartisan Serve America Act (Public Law
111-13; 123 Stat. 1460), which authorized the expansion of national
service, expanded opportunities to serve, increased efficiency and
accountability, and strengthened the capacity of organizations and
communities to solve problems;
Whereas national service programs have engaged millions of people in the United
States in results-driven service in the most vulnerable communities of
the United States, providing hope and help to individuals with economic
and social needs;
Whereas national service and volunteerism demonstrate the best of the spirit of
the United States, bringing people together to address the most pressing
challenges in their communities; and
Whereas AmeriCorps Week, observed in 2022 from March 13 through March 19, is an
appropriate time for the people of the United States--
(1) to salute current and former AmeriCorps members and AmeriCorps
Seniors volunteers for their positive impact on the lives of people in the
United States;
(2) to thank the community partners of AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps
Seniors for making the programs possible; and
(3) to encourage more people in the United States to become involved in
service and volunteering: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) encourages the people of the United States to join in a
national effort--
(A) to salute AmeriCorps members and alumni and
AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers; and
(B) to raise awareness about the importance of
national and community service;
(2) acknowledges the significant accomplishments of the
volunteers, members, alumni, and community partners of
AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors;
(3) recognizes the important contributions made by
AmeriCorps members and alumni and AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers
to the lives of the people of the United States; and
(4) encourages individuals of all ages to consider
opportunities to serve in AmeriCorps and AmeriCorps Seniors.
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