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119-s-4232119th CongressWALLET

A SMART Act

Sponsored By: Senator Cassidy, Bill [R-LA]

Introduced

Summary

Modernize national service. This bill would change who can serve, how they are paid, and how programs track and reuse funds to support more flexible, accountable national service opportunities.

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  • Members and participants would get bigger and more flexible benefits. The bill would double the maximum national service educational awards from 2 to 4 and let participants elect a stipend instead of an award, with partial-service stipends available. It would also extend allowed uses to career-linked training and set a five-year window to spend awards.
  • Program operators and Corps participants would see shorter and more varied service options. The bill would allow some minimum service terms as short as eight weeks and raise the National Civilian Community Corps maximum age to 26. It would also let the NCCC director extend participant terms for disaster relief and other programs.
  • Oversight, funds, and hiring would change. The bill would create a Treasury Unobligated and Expiring Amounts Fund, cap Volunteer Generation Fund expenses at 75 percent, require five-year retention of time and allowance records, and allow limited noncompetitive federal hiring for certified service alumni.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

4 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.

More options for service participants

If enacted, the bill would expand benefits and career pathways for national service participants. You could serve in AmeriCorps NCCC up to age 26, and some minimum terms could be as short as eight weeks. The maximum number of national service education awards per person would increase from 2 to 4, and you would have five years to use an award. Participants who complete a required full-time term could choose a cash stipend instead of an educational award at the rate used under the Domestic Volunteer Service Act. The bill would also let agency heads noncompetitively appoint qualifying alumni into federal jobs within 1 year after completion, or within 3 years for those who later do military service, higher education, or other qualifying activity.

Changes to national service funding

If enacted, the bill would change how money in the National Service Trust is made available. Some Trust categories would require annual appropriations, while other categories would be available without further appropriation and with no fiscal year limit. The bill would also create an Unobligated and Expiring Amounts Fund to keep Corporation-appropriated amounts that would otherwise expire and let the Corporation use them for extra awards, position deposits, or technology modernization, but transfers to that Fund could start only after the Inspector General issues an unqualified audit opinion. The bill would cap Volunteer Generation Fund reimbursements so administrative expenses cannot exceed 75 percent, and it would require five-year recordkeeping and Corporation certification before Trust payments are made.

Board terms and financial expert

If enacted, the bill would require the Corporation's Board to include a financial expert with experience in controls, auditing, or accounting. It would set Board member service to five-year terms measured from when the member takes office for members appointed on or after enactment. The financial expert rule would start on the earlier of the first Board vacancy after enactment or five years after enactment.

State service flexibility and transparency

If enacted, the bill would give State Commissions and host sites more flexibility and public data. When a Governor declares a natural disaster, a State Commission could redirect up to 25 percent of unobligated section 129(e) funds to recruit disaster-response participants through the end of the next fiscal year. State Commissions could apply to sponsor senior service projects. Organizations that host participants would have to report host names, physical addresses, and URLs within 60 days, and the Corporation would publish a public virtual service site resource updated annually. The Corporation would also have to publish a general evaluation rubric in any Notice of Funding Opportunity and may not duplicate due-diligence reviews already done by primary grant recipients.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Cassidy, Bill [R-LA]

LA • R

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Tuberville, Tommy [R-AL]

    AL • R

    Sponsored 3/26/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

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