Title 42, The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-110
§5044 Special Limitations
Title 42 › CHAPTER 66 — DOMESTIC VOLUNTEER SERVICES › SUBCHAPTER IV — ADMINISTRATION AND COORDINATION › § 5044
Summary
Keep volunteer work from taking jobs away from paid workers or other volunteers (except participants in this program and those under the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.)). The Director must write and enforce rules so volunteers only do tasks that paid staff or other volunteers would not otherwise do. Volunteer work must not lead to hiring cuts, displace workers or other volunteers, or break existing service contracts. Support for volunteers, like travel, must be provided at the lowest cost that still lets the program work well. Agencies that run volunteer programs cannot charge volunteers or the people who benefit from the volunteers. No money from this program may be used for labor or anti-labor organization activities. Volunteers must give information about their skills and honesty and follow selection rules the Director sets. The Director can make special rules to recruit, train, and place low-income local residents. Payments to volunteers must not reduce or end any government help they get, unless the volunteer pay, when adjusted for hours served, is equal to or more than the higher of the federal minimum wage under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) or the state minimum wage where they serve. A person doing full-time volunteer service who already got government help before joining must not lose that help because they refuse or fail to look for or accept work or training while serving.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §5044
The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Volunteer activities; limitation
The Director shall prescribe regulations and shall carry out the provisions of this chapter so as to assure that the service of volunteers assigned, referred, or serving pursuant to grants, contracts, or agreements made under this chapter is limited to activities which would not otherwise be performed by employed workers or other volunteers (not including participants under this chapter and the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.)), and which will not supplant the hiring of or result in the displacement of employed workers or other volunteers (not including participants under this chapter and the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.)),, or impair existing contracts for service.
(b)Support costs
All support, including transportation provided to volunteers under this chapter, shall be furnished at the lowest possible costs consistent with the effective operation of volunteer programs.
(c)Compensation of supervising agencies or organizations
No agency or organization to which volunteers are assigned hereunder, or which operates or supervises any volunteer program hereunder, shall request or receive any compensation from such volunteers or from beneficiaries for services of volunteers supervised by such agency or organization.
(d)Labor or antilabor organization activities; funds use prohibition
No funds authorized to be appropriated herein shall be directly or indirectly utilized to finance labor or antilabor organization or related activity.
(e)Selection procedure
Persons serving as volunteers under this chapter shall provide such information concerning their qualifications, including their ability to perform their assigned tasks, and their integrity, as the Director shall prescribe and shall be subject to such procedures for selection and approval as the Director determines are necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter. The Director may establish such special procedures for the recruitment, selection, training, and assignment of low-income residents of the area to be served by a program under this chapter who wish to become volunteers as the Director determines will further the purposes of this chapter.
(f)Government assistance; eligibility; special limitations
(1)Notwithstanding any other provision of law except as may be provided expressly in limitation of this subsection, payments to volunteers under this chapter shall not in any way reduce or eliminate the level of or eligibility for assistance or services any such volunteers may be receiving under any governmental program, except that this paragraph shall not apply in the case of such payments when the Director determines that the value of all such payments, adjusted to reflect the number of hours such volunteers are serving, is equivalent to or greater than the minimum wage then in effect under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201 et seq.) or the minimum wage, under the laws of the State where such volunteers are serving, whichever is the greater.
(2)Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a person enrolled for full-time service as a volunteer under subchapter I of this chapter who was otherwise entitled to receive assistance or services under any governmental program prior to such volunteer’s enrollment shall not be denied such assistance or services because of such volunteer’s failure or refusal to register for, seek, or accept employment or training during the period of such service.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
This chapter, referred to in subsecs. (a), (b), (e), and (f), was in the original “this Act”, meaning Pub. L. 93–113, Oct. 1, 1973, 87 Stat. 394, known as the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title
note set out under section 4950 of this title and Tables. The National and Community Service Act of 1990, referred to in subsec. (a), is Pub. L. 101–610, Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3127, which is classified principally to chapter 129 (§ 12501 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see
Short Title
note set out under section 12501 of this title and Tables. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, referred to in subsec. (f)(1), is act June 25, 1938, ch. 676, 52 Stat. 1060, which is classified generally to chapter 8 (§ 201 et seq.) of Title 29, Labor. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 201 of Title 29 and Tables.
Amendments
2009—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 111–13 inserted “or other volunteers (not including participants under this chapter and the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.)),” after “employed workers” in two places. 1993—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103–82, § 364(1), inserted “from such volunteers or from beneficiaries” after “compensation”. Subsecs. (f), (g). Pub. L. 103–82, § 364(2), (3), redesignated subsec. (g) as (f) and struck out former subsec. (f) which read as follows: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Director shall assign or delegate any substantial responsibility for carrying out programs under this chapter only to persons appointed or employed pursuant to clauses (1) and (2) of section 5042 of this title, and persons assigned or delegated such substantial responsibilities on
October 1, 1973, and who are receiving compensation in accordance with provisions of law other than the applicable provisions of title 5 on such date shall, by operation of law on such date, be assigned a grade level pursuant to such latter provisions so as to fix the compensation of such persons under such authority at no less than their compensation rate on the day preceding such date.” 1986—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 99–551 substituted “the Director” for “he” before “determines will”. 1984—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 98–288 struck out “and except as provided in the second sentence of this subsection” after “Notwithstanding any other provision of law” and struck out “The Director may personally make exceptions to the requirements set forth in the first sentence of this subsection for persons he finds will be assigned to carrying out functions under the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.) within six months after
October 1, 1973.” 1979—Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 96–143 designated existing provisions as par. (1), inserted “, except that this paragraph shall not apply in the case of such payments when the Director determines that the value of all such payments, adjusted to reflect the number of hours such volunteers are serving, is equivalent to or greater than the minimum wage then in effect under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 or the minimum wage, under the laws of the State where such volunteers are serving, whichever is the greater” after “governmental program”, and added par. (2).
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
of 1993 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 103–82 effective Oct. 1, 1993, see section 392 of Pub. L. 103–82, set out as a note under section 4951 of this title.
Effective Date
of 1986 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 99–551 effective Oct. 1, 1986, except as otherwise provided, see section 11 of Pub. L. 99–551, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 4950 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 5044
Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Sep 23, 2026
Release point: 119-110