Bill: Sen. Joe Biden Amendment to S 2045 IS, 3/9/00.

Sen. Joe Biden Amendment to S 2045 IS.
Re: adding a crime prevention and computer education initiative to the H1B bill.
Date: March 9, 2000.
Status. Approved by voice vote.

Editor's Notes:
• The Senate Judiciary Committee provided a paper copy.
• Tech Law Journal scanned this copy and converted it to HTML.
• Copyright Tech Law Journal. All rights reserved.

AMENDMENT NO. ___

Calendar No. ___

Purpose: To establish a crime prevention and computer education initiative.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES---106th Cong., 2d Sess.

S.2045

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to H-1B nonimmigrant aliens.

Referred to the Committee on ______________ and ordered to be printed

Ordered to lie on the table and to be printed

AMENDMENTS intended to be proposed by Mr. BIDEN

Viz:

On page 9, after line 14, insert the following:

SEC. 10. KIDS 2000 CRIME PREVENTION AND COMPUTER EDUCATION INITIATIVE.

(a) SHORT TITLE.---This section shall be cited as the "Kids 2000 Act".

(b) FINDINGS.---Congress makes the following findings:

(1) There is an increasing epidemic of juvenile crime throughout the United States.

(2) It is well documented that the majority of juvenile crimes take place during after-school hours.

(3) Knowledge of technology is becoming increasingly necessary for children in school and out of school.

(4) The Boys and Girls Clubs of America have 2,700 clubs throughout all 50 States, serving over 3,000,000 boys and girls primarily from at-risk communities

(5) The Boys and Girls Clubs of America have the physical structures in place for immediate implementation of an after-school technology program.

(6) Building technology centers and providing integrated content and full-time staffing at those centers in the Boys and Girls Clubs of America nationwide will help foster education, job training, and an alternative to crime for at-risk youth.

(7) Partnerships between the public sector and the private sector are an effective way of providing after-school technology programs in the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

(8) PowerUp: Bridging the Digital Divide is an entity comprised of more than a dozen nonprofit organizations, major corporations, and Federal agencies that have joined together to launch a major new initiative to help ensure that America's underserved young people acquire the skills, experiences, and resources they need to succeed in the digital age.

(9) Bringing PowerUp into the Boys and Girls Clubs of America will be an effective way to ensure that our youth have a safe, crime-free environment in which to learn the technological skills they need to close the divide between young people who have access to computer-based information and technology-related skills and those who do not.

(1) PURPOSES.---The Attorney General shall make grants to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America for the purpose of funding effective after-school technology programs, such as PowerUp, in order to provide---

(A) constructive technology-focused activities that are part of a comprehensive program to provide access to technology and technology training to youth during after-school hours, weekends, and school vacations;

(B) supervised activities in safe environments for youth; and

(2) SUBAWARDS.---The Boys and Girls Clubs of America shall make subawards to local boys and girls clubs authorizing expenditures associated with providing technology programs such as PowerUp, including the hiring of teachers and other personnel, procurement of goods and services, including computer equipment, or such other purposes as are approved by the Attorney General.

(d) APPLICATIONS.

(1) ELIGIBILITY.---In order to be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an applicant for a subaward (specified in subsection (c)(2)) shall submit an application to the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, in such form and containing such information as the Attorney General may reasonably require.

(2) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.---Each application submitted in accordance with paragraph (1) shall include---

(A) a request for a subgrant to be used for the purposes of this section;

(B) a description of the communities to be served by the grant, including the nature of juvenile crime, violence, and drug use in the communities;

(C) written assurances that Federal funds received under this section will be used to supplement and not supplant, non-Federal funds that would otherwise be available for activities funded under this section;

(D) written assurances that all activities funded under this section will be supervised by qualified adults;

(E) a plan for assuring that program activities will take place in a secure environment that is free of crime and drugs;

(F) a plan outlining the utilization of content-based programs such as PowerUp, and the provision of trained adult personnel to supervise the after-school technology training; and

(G) any additional statistical or financial information that the Boys and Girls Clubs of America may reasonably require.

(e) GRANT AWARDS.---In awarding subgrants under this section, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America shall consider---

(1) the ability of the applicant to provide the intended services;

(2) the history and establishment of the applicant in providing youth activities; and

(3) the extent to which services will be provided in crime-prone areas and technologically underserved populations, and efforts to achieve an equitable geographic distribution of the grant awards.

(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

(1) IN GENERAL.--- There are authorized to be appropriated $20,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2001 through 2006 to carry out this section.

(2) SOURCE OF FUNDS.---Funds to carry out this section may be derived from the Violent Crime Reduction Trust Fund.

(3) CONTINUED AVAILABILITY LAB .---Amounts made available under this subsection shall remain available until expended.

Amend the title of the bill to read as follows: "To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act and to establish a crime prevention and computer education initiative.".