§ 9904. Establishment of block grant program

Legislative history

Reconstructed from this section’s Code source credit and amendment notes, resolved against the local Statutes at Large. Editorial notes are evidence, not the law that made the change.

1. 1998

   Pub. L. 97–35 title VI § 675 · 95 Stat. 357

   Enacted · 42 U.S.C. § 9904

   (Pub. L. 97–35, title VI, § 675, as added Pub. L. 105–285, title II, § 201, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2730.)

   Source evidence

   Code source credit
   (Pub. L. 97–35, title VI, § 675, as added Pub. L. 105–285, title II, § 201, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2730.)

   Enacted provision · exact public law section
   Sec. 675. applications and requirements (a) Each State desiring to receive an allotment for a fiscal 42 USC 9904. year under this subtitle shall submit an application to the Secretary. Each such application shall be in such form as the Secretary shall require. Each such application shall contain assurances by the chief executive officer of the State that the State will comply with subsection (b) and will meet the conditions enumerated in subsection (c). (b) After the expiration of the first fiscal year in which a State received funds under this subtitle, no funds shall be allotted to such State for any fiscal year under this subtitle unless the legislature of the State conducts public hearings on the proposed use and distribution of funds to be provided under this subtitle for such fiscal year. (c) As part of the annual application required by subsection (a), the chief executive officer of each State shall certify that the State agrees to— (1) use the funds available under this subtitle— (A) to provide a range of services and activities having a measurable and potentially major impact on causes of poverty in the community or those areas of the community where poverty is a particularly acute problem; (B) to provide activities designed to assist low-income participants including the elderly poor— (i) to secure and retain meaningful employment; (ii) to attain an adequate education; (iii) to make better use of available income; (iv) to obtain and maintain adequate housing and a suitable living environment; (v) to obtain emergency assistance through loans or grants to meet immediate and urgent individual and family needs, including the need for health services, nutritious food, housing, and employment-related assistance; (vi) to remove obstacles and solve problems which block the achievement of self-sufficiency; (vii) to achieve greater participation in the affairs of the community; and (viii) to make more effective use of other programs related to the purposes of this subtitle; (C) to provide on an emergency basis for the provision of such supplies and services, nutritious foodstuffs, and related services, as may be necessary to counteract conditions of starvation and malnutrition among the poor; (D) to coordinate and establish linkages between governmental and other social services programs to assure the effective delivery of such services to low-income individuals; and (E) to encourage the use of entities in the private sector of the community in efforts to ameliorate poverty in the community; (2) (A) (i) use, for fiscal year 1982 only, not less than 90 percent of the funds allotted to the State under section 674 to make grants to use for the purposes described in clause (1) to eligible entities (as defined in section 673(1)) or to organizations serving seasonal or migrant farmworkers; and (ii) use, for fiscal year 1983 and for each subsequent fiscal year, not less than 90 percent of the funds allotted to the State under section 674 to make grants to political subdivisions of the State for the political subdivisions to use for the purposes described in clause (1) directly or to nonprofit private community organizations which have a board which meets the requirements of clause (3), or to migrant and seasonal farm worker organizations; and (B) provide assurances that the State will not expend more than 5 percent of its allotment under section 674 for administrative expenses at the State level; (3) provide assurances that, in the case of a community action agency or nonprofit private organization, each board will be constituted so as to assure that (A) one-third of the members of the board are elected public officials, currently holding office, or their representatives, except that if the number of elected officials reasonably available and willing to serve is less than one-third of the membership of the board, membership on the board of appointive public officials may be counted in meeting such one-third requirement; (B) at least one-third of the members are persons chosen in accordance with democratic selection procedures adequate to assure that they are representative of the poor in the area served; and (C) the remainder of the members are officials or members of business, industry, labor, religious, welfare, education, or other major groups and interests in the community; (4) give special consideration in the designation of local community action agencies under this subtitle to any community action agency which is receiving funds under any Federal antipoverty program on the date of the enactment of this Act, except that (A) the State shall, before giving such special consideration, determine that the agency involved meets program and fiscal requirements established by the State; and (B) if there is no such agency because of any change in the assistance furnished to programs for economically disadvantaged persons, the State shall give special consideration in the designation of community action agencies to any successor agency which is operated in substantially the same manner as the predecessor agency which did receive funds in the fiscal year preceding the fiscal year for which the determination is made; (5) provide assurances that the State may transfer funds, but not to exceed 5 percent of its allotment under section 674, for the provisions set forth in this subtitle to services under the Older Americans Act of 1965, the Head Start program under subchapter 42 USC 3001 note. Ante, p. 499. Post, p. 893. B of chapter 8 of subtitle A of this title, or the energy crisis intervention program under title XXVI of this Act (relating to low-income home energy assistance); (6) prohibit any political activities in accordance with subsection (e); (7) prohibit any activities to provide voters and prospective voters with transportation to the polls or provide similar assistance in connection with an election or any voter registration activity; (8) provide for coordination between antipoverty programs in each community, where appropriate, with emergency energy crisis intervention programs under title XXVI of this Act (relating to low-income home energy assistance) conducted in such community; (9) provide that fiscal control and fund accounting procedures will be established as may be necessary to assure the proper disbursal of and accounting for Federal funds paid to the State under this subtitle, including procedures for monitoring the assistance provided under this subtitle, and provide that at least every year each State shall prepare, in accordance with subsection (f), an audit of its expenditures of amounts received under this subtitle and amounts transferred to carry out the purposes of this subtitle; and (10) permit and cooperate with Federal investigations undertaken in accordance with section 679. The Secretary may not prescribe the manner in which the States will comply with the provisions of this subsection. (d) (1) In addition to the requirements of subsection (c), the chief executive officer of each State shall prepare and furnish to the Secretary a plan which contains provisions describing how the State will carry out the assurances contained in subsection (c). The chief executive officer of each State may revise any plan prepared under this paragraph and shall furnish the revised plan to the Secretary. (2) Each plan prepared under paragraph (1) shall be made available for public inspection within the State in such a manner as will facilitate review of, and comment on, the plan. (e) For purposes of chapter 15 of title 5, United States Code, any 5 USC 1501 et seq. nonprofit private organization receiving assistance under this subtitle which has responsibility for planning, developing, and coordinating community antipoverty programs shall be deemed to be a State or local agency. For purposes of clauses (1) and (2) of section 1502(a) of such title, any such organization receiving assistance under this 5 USC 1502. subtitle shall be deemed to be a State or local agency. (f) Each audit required by subsection (c)(9) shall be conducted by an entity independent of any agency administering activities or services carried out under this subtitle and shall be conducted in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Within 30 days after the completion of each audit, the chief executive officer of the State shall submit a copy of such audit to the legislature of the State and to the Secretary. (g) The State shall repay to the United States amounts found not to have been expended in accordance with this subtitle or the Secretary may offset such amounts against any other amount to which the State is or may become entitled under this subtitle. (h) The Comptroller General of the United States shall, from time to time, evaluate the expenditures by States of grants under this subtitle in order to assure that expenditures are consistent with the provisions of this subtitle and to determine the effectiveness of the State in accomplishing the purposes of this subtitle.

1 of 1 references resolved to an enrolled provision