1 Billion for National Service

From Kristen Bennett at Service Year Mar 10, 2021, 2:14 PM

We have amazing news to share! The American Rescue Plan — the COVID relief bill that passed in Congress today and awaits the President’s signature — officially includes $1 billion for national service over the next three years. This is the largest investment in national service in decades. (View our press release on this amazing news here.)
 
This is a huge deal for the national service movement. AmeriCorps’ annual budget is currently $1.12B, so this additional funding significantly increases the federal investment in national service, even if over a three year period. The investment also calls for an increase in the living allowance for national service — a key step to making the opportunity to serve more accessible to Americans of all backgrounds and something we at Service Year Alliance prioritized as part of our efforts. 
 
There is no doubt that this amazing success would not have been possible without your support and your tireless efforts on the ground every day. Service Year Alliance worked over the past year to build bipartisan support on Capitol Hill to see national service as a critical component of the pandemic response, including supporting the introduction of bipartisan bills like the CORPS Act and Inspire to Serve Act. Additionally, both publicly through our Serve America Together campaign and behind the scenes, we urged the Administration to prioritize a significant investment in national service as a tool for responding to the needs across the country. 
 
This investment in national service is a testament to the great work you all do on a daily basis to utilize national service to meet community needs. Because of your work, members of Congress feel the impact of national service in their states and districts and recognize that national service transforms lives, strengthens communities, and fuels civic renewal.
 
We’d appreciate your help in sharing this tremendous news on social media and thanking the members of Congress who made this possible, including Senator Chris Coons, Senator Roger Wicker, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Rep. David Price, Rep. Bobby Scott, and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, as well as the cosponsors of the bipartisan CORPS Act.

We teamed up with States for Service to thank members of Congress for including the $1 billion for national service in the American Rescue Plan. Please take five minutes to take action and thank Congress for this historic investment in AmeriCorps:

The $1 billion in the American Rescue Plan is a monumental first step toward making national service an opportunity for every young person who wants to serve. It sets the stage for President Biden who has the opportunity to make service a cornerstone issue of his administration. But our work isn’t done yet.
 
As a lifelong public servant and a huge advocate for service in all its forms, we believe President Biden has the opportunity to be the “Service President” and call young people across the nation into service to support our country’s unmet needs — all while addressing his Administration’s top priorities. 
 
That’s why the Serve America Together campaign is issuing a new call to President Biden to “build back better” as the Service President. We’re kicking off this effort by outlining what it means to prioritize national service in the Biden Administration. We believe President Biden can offer a bold new vision that will put us on a path to making national service part of growing up in America by:elevating national service in the White House;increasing national service positions to 250,000 a year, on a pathway to one million;setting up inter-agency service corps;implementing a fellowship program;increasing the living allowance and wraparound services;intentionally incorporating workforce development into service; and launching an awareness campaign and online portal. This is a pivotal moment for our movement. National service is already making a real difference in communities across the country, and with this investment and our continued efforts, it has the potential to truly transform our nation, our young people, and our democracy. 
 
I hope you’ll join us in celebrating this achievement. Thank you for your time, leadership, and dedication to making national service a common expectation and opportunity for all young Americans. We look forward to working with you to take this investment in national service to the next level.
 
In service, 
 
Kristen Bennett
Chief Strategy Officer