Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Chairman, Ronald Reagan once said, ``No matter how big or powerful government gets and the many services it provides, it can never take the place of volunteers.'' I believe that wholeheartedly. But listening to the debate today, you might easily conclude that volunteerism wasn't discovered until Congress discovered it, and that the only meaningful service that anyone can provide is in a program sponsored by government. We all know that that is simply not the case.

In truth, the programs that are being talked about today, the government-sponsored programs, make up probably less than one-hundredth of 1 percent of all the volunteer activity that takes place across this country. But when we have community service and volunteer positions, when we end up financing them or providing incentives from government, it becomes just another government service.

The new Summer of Service grant program created by this legislation gives incentives to community service work in the form of financial benefits at taxpayer expense. The amendment that I am offering today would simply strike all the language in the bill relating to the so-called Summer of Service program and reduce the authorization by $20 million. This is the amount designated to the program.

The new Summer of Service program would award $20 million annually for education awards for volunteer positions in which school-aged participants can earn up to $1,000 for completion of a 100-hour community-based service-learning project.

Now, we are all familiar with volunteer service that goes on: churches, Rotary Clubs, Boy Scout organizations. In fact, this weekend, 2 days from now, my own son will be doing his Eagle project. He will provide up to 30 hours of service himself, and more than 100 hours will be provided by people that he has recruited to help him in his project. This kind of activity goes on every day, every minute of every day, every second of every day. And yet, we feel that we have to have new and more government programs somehow to prompt volunteer service. That, I think, sells people across this country short. People can volunteer on their own and do without benefits provided by government.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. FLAKE. May I inquire as to the time remaining on my side.

The Acting CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Arizona has 2 1/2 minutes remaining.

Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Chairman, this $20 million program is being authorized under the Learn and Serve program. I would be glad to yield 30 seconds to the sponsor of this program or to the committee if I can find out if they actually studied whether this program is working as it is. It doesn't seem they are near the microphone, so I will read something from the Office of Management and Budget.

The Office of Management and Budget audited this program a while ago under the Learn and Serve program. The Learn and Serve program was audited to be not performing, results not demonstrated. The AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps, not performing. Ineffective. This is our own government telling us what our own programs are doing, and yet here we are under the Learn and Serve program authorizing $20 million more for a new program without trying to go in and actually fix the old program or eliminate the old program.

We in Congress sometimes wonder why our authorizing committees are sometimes neglected. This is why. This is why. This program, the whole AmeriCorps program hasn't been reauthorized I think since 1996 or so; and yet, when we do come to reauthorize it, we ignore what our own government, our own agencies are telling us about these programs and we simply pile more money on.

No matter what we do on the overall bill, and I can read the writing on the wall, the bill is going to pass, let's at least give some thought to the taxpayers here who have to fund this, to say that we are not going to increase a program to create a new program under an existing program that has been rated by our own Office of Management and Budget as not performing, results not demonstrated.

I yield back the balance of my time.

The Acting CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Flake).

The question was taken; and the Acting Chairman announced that the noes appeared to have it.

Mr. FLAKE. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

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