Fund a major expansion of AmeriCorps

Obama passes Serve America Act

Updated: Thursday, April 23rd, 2009 | By Robert Farley

In what has been called the most sweeping expansion of national service programs since the creation of AmeriCorps, President Barack Obama on April 21, 2009, signed legislation that promises to pour nearly $6 billion over five years into efforts to expand volunteerism in the United States.

Named in honor of Sen. Ted Kennedy, who helped shepherd the bill through Congress, the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act establishes a framework to expand AmeriCorps from 75,000 positions to 250,000 by 2017.

Obama had pressed Congress to move quickly and in a bipartisan manner to pass the legislation. And it did. The Senate passed it 79-19 and the House of Representatives approved it 275-149.

In keeping Obama's promise, the AmeriCorps expansion puts out the call to young and old and will focus on service that includes education, health care, clean energy, energy efficiency, veterans and military families and economic opportunity.

"What this legislation does, then, is to help harness this patriotism and connect deeds to needs," Obama said at the signing on April 21, 2009. "It creates opportunities to serve for students, seniors, and everyone in between. It supports innovation and strengthens the nonprofit sector. And it is just the beginning of a sustained, collaborative and focused effort to involve our greatest resource — our citizens — in the work of remaking this nation."

More money is on its way to AmeriCorps. The economic stimulus bill passed in February included another $200 million for AmeriCorps, and the White House's proposed 2010 budget includes $1.1 billion toward the effort, a 25 percent increase over this year. Although Congress still must appropriate the 2010 money, the economic stimulus money will be getting to the program this year.

We should note that Congress must still appropriate the money, not only this year, but in subsequent years, if the program is to meet the expansion goals promised by Obama. We may revisit this one in the future, but we think the passage of the Kennedy bill and the money from the economic stimulus qualifies this one as a Promise Kept.

Sources: Corporation for National and Community Service, Highlights of the Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act , March 30, 2009 WhiteHouse.gov, Remarks of President Barack Obama, Address to Joint Session of Congress , Feb. 24, 2009 Committee on Education and Labor, The Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act CQ.com, Full text: Edward M. Kennedy Serve America Act