Title 42, The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-110
§12594 Living Allowances for National Service Participants
Title 42 › CHAPTER 129 — NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE › SUBCHAPTER I — NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE STATE GRANT PROGRAM › Part III — National Service Participants › § 12594
Summary
Federal help for national service programs must pay every full-time participant a yearly living allowance at least as large as the average yearly subsistence payment given to VISTA volunteers. That allowance can’t be more than 200 percent of that VISTA average, except in special cases. If a participant also gets a Federal work-study award, the living allowance is cut by the work-study amount. If the service is for less than 12 months, the allowance is reduced proportionally. The federal agency running the program can waive or lower the required allowance if that rule would hurt the program’s goals and the amount paid still covers basic local living costs like food, housing, and transportation. Programs that existed on September 21, 1993, are not required to follow the minimum rule. A certain professional corps may pay more than the 200 percent cap, but federal grant money can’t be used for the extra amount, and the program must be run directly by the applicant and meet urgent unmet community needs as the agency decides. Grant funds may be used to pay employer payroll and workers’ compensation taxes if the program is subject to them. Full-time participants who lack other coverage must be offered a basic health plan that meets minimum rules set by the agency; the agency can allow a different plan if it has equal or greater fair market value. Programs must either provide child care or give a child care allowance to full-time participants who need it, under guidelines the agency sets. Programs must also give reasonable accommodations, including auxiliary aids and services, to participants who are qualified individuals with a disability.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §12594
The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Provision of living allowance
(1)Living allowance required
Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), a national service program carried out using assistance provided under section 12571 of this title shall provide to each participant who participates on a full-time basis in the program a living allowance in an amount equal to or greater than the average annual subsistence allowance provided to VISTA volunteers under section 4955 of this title.
(2)Maximum living allowance
Except as provided in subsection (c), the total amount of an annual living allowance that may be provided to a participant in a national service program shall not exceed 200 percent of the average annual subsistence allowance provided to VISTA volunteers under section 4955 of this title.
(3)Federal work-study students
The living allowance that may be provided under paragraph (1) to an individual whose term of service includes hours for which the individual receives a Federal work-study award under part C of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.) shall be reduced by the amount of the individual’s Federal work study award.
(4)Proration of living allowance
The amount provided as a living allowance under this subsection shall be prorated in the case of a participant who is authorized to serve a term of service that is less than 12 months.
(5)Waiver or reduction of living allowance
The Corporation may waive or reduce the requirement of paragraph (1) with respect to such national service program if such program demonstrates that—
(A)such requirement is inconsistent with the objectives of the program; and
(B)the amount of the living allowance that will be provided to each full-time participant is sufficient to meet the necessary costs of living (including food, housing, and transportation) in the area in which the program is located.
(6)Exemption
The requirement of paragraph (1) shall not apply to any program that was in existence on September 21, 1993.
(b)Coverage of certain employment-related taxes
To the extent a national service program that receives assistance under section 12571 of this title is subject, with respect to the participants in the program, to the taxes imposed on an employer under section 3111 and 3301 of title 26 and taxes imposed on an employer under a workmen’s compensation act, the assistance provided to the program under section 12571 of this title may be used to pay the taxes described in this subsection.
(c)Exception from maximum living allowance for certain assistance
A professional corps program described in section 12572(c)(1)(D) of this title that desires to provide a living allowance in excess of the maximum allowance authorized in subsection (a)(2) may still apply for such assistance, except that—
(1)any assistance provided to the applicant under section 12571 of this title may not be used to pay for any portion of the allowance; and
(2)the national service program shall be operated directly by the applicant and shall meet urgent, unmet human, educational, environmental, or public safety needs, as determined by the Corporation.
(d)Health insurance
(1)In general
A State or other recipient of assistance under section 12571 of this title shall provide or make available a basic health care policy for each full-time participant in a national service program carried out or supported using the assistance, if the participant is not otherwise covered by a health care policy. The Corporation shall establish minimum standards that all plans must meet in order to qualify for payment under this part, any circumstances in which an alternative health care policy may be substituted for the basic health care policy, and mechanisms to prohibit participants from dropping existing coverage.
(2)Option
A State or other recipient of assistance under section 12571 of this title may elect to provide from its own funds or make available a health care policy for participants that does not meet all of the standards established by the Corporation if the fair market value of such policy is equal to or greater than the fair market value of a plan that meets the minimum standards established by the Corporation, and is consistent with other applicable laws.
(e)Child care
(1)Availability
A State or other recipient of assistance under section 12571 of this title shall—
(A)make child care available for children of each full-time participant who needs child care in order to participate in a national service program carried out or supported by the recipient using the assistance; or
(B)provide a child care allowance to each full-time participant in a national service program who needs such assistance in order to participate in the program.
(2)Guidelines
The Corporation shall establish guidelines regarding the circumstances under which child care shall be made available under this subsection and the value of any allowance to be provided.
(f)Individualized support services
A State or other recipient of assistance under section 12571 of this title shall provide reasonable accommodation, including auxiliary aids and services (as defined in section 12102(1) 1 of this title), based on the individualized need of a participant who is a qualified individual with a disability (as defined in section 12111(8) of this title).
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Higher Education Act of 1965, referred to in subsec. (a)(3), is Pub. L. 89–329, Nov. 8, 1965, 79 Stat. 1219. Part C of title IV of the Act was formerly classified generally to part C (§ 2751 et seq.) of subchapter I of chapter 34 of this title prior to transfer to part C (§ 1087–51 et seq.) of subchapter IV of chapter 28 of Title 20, Education. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title
note set out under section 1001 of Title 20 and Tables. section 12102 of this title, referred to in subsec. (f), was amended generally by Pub. L. 110–325, § 4(a), Sept. 25, 2008, 122 Stat. 3555, and, as so amended, no longer defines “auxiliary aids and services”. However, such term is defined in section 12103(1) of this title.
Prior Provisions
A prior section 140 of Pub. L. 101–610 was set out as a note under section 12501 of this title, prior to the general amendment of subtitle D of title I of Pub. L. 101–610 [former part D of this subchapter] by Pub. L. 103–82, § 102(a).
Amendments
2009—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(1)(A), substituted “paragraphs (2) and (3)” for “paragraph (3)”. Subsec. (a)(2), (3). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(1)(B)–(D), added par. (3), redesignated former par. (3) as (2), and struck out former par. (2). Text of former par. (2) read as follows: “The amount of the annual living allowance provided under paragraph (1) that may be paid using assistance provided under section 12571 of this title and using any other Federal funds shall not exceed 85 percent of the total average annual provided to VISTA volunteers under section 4955 of this title.” Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(1)(E), substituted “a term of service that is less than 12 months” for “a reduced term of service under section 12593(b)(3) of this title”. Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(2), substituted “may be used to pay the taxes described in this subsection.” for “shall include an amount sufficient to cover 85 percent of such taxes based upon the lesser of— “(1) the total average annual subsistence allowance provided to VISTA volunteers under section 4955 of this title; and “(2) the annual living allowance established by the program.” Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(3), substituted “section 12572(c)(1)(D)” for “section 12572(a)(8)” and “subsection (a)(2)” for “subsection (a)(3) of this section” in introductory provisions, redesignated par. (3) as (2), and struck out former par. (2) which read as follows: “the applicant shall apply for such assistance only by submitting an application to the Corporation for assistance on a competitive basis; and”. Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(4)(A), substituted “shall provide or make available” for “shall provide” and struck out second sentence which read as follows: “Not more than 85 percent of the cost of a premium shall be provided by the Corporation, with the remaining cost paid by the entity receiving assistance under section 12571 of this title.” Subsec. (d)(2). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(4)(B), substituted “provide from its own funds or make available” for “provide from its own funds”. Subsecs. (g), (h). Pub. L. 111–13, § 1315(5), struck out subsecs. (g) and (h) which allowed waiver in whole or in part of limitation on Federal share and limited number of terms of service for federally subsidized living allowance, respectively.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2009 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 111–13 effective Oct. 1, 2009, see section 6101(a) of Pub. L. 111–13, set out as a note under section 4950 of this title.
Effective Date
Section effective Oct. 1, 1993, see section 123 of Pub. L. 103–82, set out as an
Effective Date
of 1993 Amendment note under section 1701 of Title 16, Conservation.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 12594
Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Sep 23, 2026
Release point: 119-110