Protect National Service Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Protect National Service Act is aimed at preserving the Corporation for National and Community Service, the government corporation that administers AmeriCorps and related national-service programs. Congress cites findings that AmeriCorps and Senior Corps have produced large social returns and more than 1.2 billion service hours. The operative section prohibits federal funds from the American Relief Act, 2025 or any other prior appropriations act from being used to eliminate CNCS's government-corporation status. It also says the provision should not be read to imply that dismantling or subsuming CNCS is otherwise lawful, and it requires the CNCS chief executive officer to certify compliance to House and Senate committees within 30 days and annually for five years.
Who Benefits and How
AmeriCorps members benefit because the bill protects the institutional home that supports national-service placements and education awards. Senior Corps volunteers benefit because the national-service infrastructure is protected from elimination through appropriations implementation. National Service Trust participants benefit because Congress specifically emphasizes preserving trust obligations to participants. Communities served by national-service programs benefit if AmeriCorps capacity remains available for human, educational, environmental, and public-safety needs.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Executive branch reorganization officials cannot use covered federal funds to eliminate CNCS as a government corporation. The CNCS Chief Executive Officer must produce compliance certifications within 30 days and annually for five years. House and Senate oversight committees must receive and review the annual compliance certifications. Federal budget officials must screen funding decisions against the prohibition on eliminating CNCS status.
Key Provisions
- Prohibits use of covered federal funds to eliminate CNCS's government-corporation status.
- Protects AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, and National Service Trust obligations from administrative elimination.
- Requires CNCS compliance certification within 30 days after enactment.
- Extends annual compliance certification to congressional committees for five years.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Bars use of federal funds to eliminate the Corporation for National and Community Service and requires annual compliance certifications for five years.
Key Policy Areas
National Service, Appropriations, Federal Agencies
Primary Purpose
Bars use of federal funds to eliminate the Corporation for National and Community Service and requires annual compliance certifications for five years.
Policy Domains
Resolution provisions
Identified Gains
- AmeriCorps members
- Senior Corps volunteers
- National Service Trust participants
- Communities served by national-service programs
Identified Costs
- Executive branch reorganization officials
- CNCS Chief Executive Officer
- House oversight committees
- Senate oversight committees
- Federal budget officials
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMs. Houlahan introduced the following bill; which was referred to …
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
AmeriCorps members, Senior Corps volunteers
CNCS Chief Executive Officer, Corporation for National and Community Service
Positive-direction: Corporation for National and Community Service
Negative-direction: CNCS Chief Executive Officer
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology