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Issue #274
March 23, 2009

Action Needed Today in Support of Serve America Act!
We need as many people as possible to call our Senators today and ask them to Vote "YES" on the Serve America Act!

Today, the Senate is beginning debate on S. 277, the Serve America Act. The bill, authored by Senators Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT), will expand national service and volunteer programs to tackle America's most pressing challenges and create a new era of civic responsibility. President Obama specifically asked congressional leaders to pass the Serve America Act in his address to Congress last month.

With additional leadership from Senators Michael Enzi (R-WY) and Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), the bill has been expanded to include reforms to the existing national service infrastructure to ensure accountability, efficiency and results. The Act provides necessary administrative simplification to help faith and community-based organizations - particularly small nonprofits operating in rural and economically disadvantaged communities - more effectively meet community needs. The Serve America Act was approved unanimously by the HELP Committee this past week.

Click here to Read a Summary of the Serve America Act.

Click here to Read the Release from Senators Mikulski, Kennedy, Hatch, and Enzi.

Your calls are extremely important. Please let your elected officials know that there is a high level of interest in this bill and we need their support. The goal is to have as many calls as possible reaching the Senate offices today. Please take ten minutes to call your U.S. Senators and urge their support of the Serve America Act.

Suggested talking points and instructions are listed below.

HOW TO CALL YOUR SENATORS

• The contact information for Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow can be found online at www.senate.gov; or
• Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 225-3121 and ask to be connected to the office your senator.
• Once connected, identify yourself as a constituent and ask to speak to the Legislative Assistant in charge of national service and education issues.

 A MESSAGE TO DELIVER BY PHONE

I am calling to ask Senator _______ to vote "YES" for the Serve America Act (S. 277). 

Due to the economic downturn, our communities are struggling and the demand for services is expanding exponentially. Nonprofit organizations need human capital to help them provide critical assistance to citizens in need.

According to "Quiet Crisis," a report recently issued by Bruce Reed and John Bridgeland, the human need for nonprofit help is skyrocketing as nonprofit resources shrink.

• United Way saw a 68% increase during the last year in the number of calls for basic needs such as securing food, shelter and warm clothing, and is receiving 10,000 to 15,000 more calls every month compared to 2007.
• The State of Arizona reports an increase of more than 100 percent in the number of people who sought social services from 2007 to 2008.
• Goodwill of Central Arizona reported nearly twice the number of visits to its centers in December 2008 compared to 2007.
• Over the last year, more than 70 percent of Michigan nonprofits have seen increasing demand for their services, while 50 percent say their financial support has dropped.

The Serve America Act addresses this dilemma, using citizen service to place more human capital in the nonprofit sector.

As Americans are stepping forward in record numbers to serve, the Serve America Act reinvests in service and volunteering. The bill creates more opportunities for a greater number of Americans of all ages to serve, helping to address local and national challenges education, health, clean energy, and poverty.

The Serve America Act will reauthorize the federally-supported national service programs like AmeriCorps, Learn and Serve America, and Senior Corps, which have not been reauthorized in 16 years. The bill includes new approaches for expanding the capacity of the nonprofit sector to tap the ingenuity and innovation of citizens working together to address the problems our nation faces.

This is a bipartisan bill approved unanimously by the Senate HELP Committee. It is not controversial and the White House supports the legislation. I hope that Senator ______ will vote YES on the Serve America Act.