A bill to amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to extend authorizations of appropriations for programs under the Act, to modernize programs and services for older individuals, and for other purposes.
Title II: Amendments to Title II of the Older Americans Act of 1965 and the Older Americans Act Amendments of 1987 - Subtitle A: Amendments to Title II of the Older Americans Act of 1965 - Requires the Administration on Aging to: (1) establish information and assistance services as priority services for older individuals and develop a National Eldercare Locator Service; (2) establish pension counseling and information programs; and (3) develop a set of performance outcome measures to be used for planning, managing, and evaluating activities performed and services provided under the Act.
(Sec. 202) Directs the Assistant Secretary of the Administration to award grants to eligible entities to establish pension counseling and information programs. Provides for a national telephone hotline to provide information regarding pension and other retirement benefits and rights.
Requires the Assistant Secretary to report to specified congressional committees on such programs and to make recommendations on services that can be incorporated into ongoing State and area agencies, senior centers, and other similar entities.
(Sec. 204) Provides that a service or benefit provided under the Act is not a Federal public benefit within the meaning of that term under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
(Sec. 205) Reauthorizes appropriations for the Administration on Aging for FY 2001 through 2005. Authorizes appropriations for the National Eldercare Locator Service and the pension counseling and information programs.
Subtitle B: Amendments to the Older Americans Act Amendments of 1987 - Amends the Older Americans Act Amendments of 1987 to require the President to convene the White House Conference on Aging not later than December 31, 2005. Authorizes appropriations.
Title III: Amendments to Title III of the Older Americans Act of 1965 - Amends the Act to authorize appropriations for FY 2001 through 2005 for: (1) supportive services; (2) congregate nutrition services; (3) home delivered nutrition services; (4) disease prevention and health promotion services; and (5) family caregiver support. Revises the allotment formula for such funds.
(Sec. 304) Revises requirements for plans of area agencies on aging and States.
(Sec. 306) Authorizes States to transfer up to 30 percent of allotments for any fiscal year between supportive and nutrition services programs.
(Sec. 307) Makes tribal organizations receiving grants under title VI of the Act eligible for disaster relief reimbursements.
(Sec. 308) Authorizes appropriations for a nutrition services incentive program.
(Sec. 309) Authorizes a State to implement cost sharing by recipients for all services, with specified exceptions, provided for in the Act. Requires cost sharing to be on a sliding scale based solely on individual income and the cost of delivering services.
Provides for waivers of cost sharing requirements upon demonstrations by area agencies that: (1) a significant proportion of recipients in the area have incomes below the threshold established in State policy; or (2) cost sharing would be an unreasonable administrative or financial burden.
Allows solicitations of voluntary contributions for services provided under the Act.
Requires States and area agencies to develop plans to ensure that the participation of low-income older individuals receiving services will not decrease with the implementation of cost sharing.
Directs the Assistant Secretary to take corrective action to assure that services are provided to all older individuals without regard to cost sharing criteria if there is a disparate impact upon low-income or minority older individuals in any State or region regarding provision of services.
Authorizes the Assistant Secretary, subject to certain requirements, to waive any of the following provisions of the Act with respect to a State: (1) specified Statewide uniformity requirements under title III; (2) area or State plan requirements; (3) restrictions on the amount that may be transferred between supportive and nutrition services programs; and (4) a requirement that certain amounts of a State allotment be used for the provision of services with respect to States that reduce expenditures under a State plan.
(Sec. 310) Expands the list of supportive services for which grants to States are provided.
(Sec. 313) Repeals provisions of the Act regarding: (1) in-home services for frail older individuals; (2) additional assistance for special needs of older individuals; and (3) supportive activities for caretakers who provide in-home services to frail older individuals.
(Sec. 315) Establishes grant programs for support services for family caregivers and for fostering the development and testing of new approaches to sustaining the efforts of families and other informal caregivers of older individuals.
Requires the Assistant Secretary to carry out activities of national significance to promote quality and continuous improvement in the support provided to family and other informal caregivers of older individuals through program evaluation, training, technical assistance, and research.
Title IV: Training, Research, and Discretionary Projects and Programs - Revises provisions regarding training, research, and discretionary projects, including the elimination of certain programs.
Authorizes the Assistant Secretary to make grants to and enter into contracts with States, public agencies, private nonprofit agencies, institutions of higher education, and organizations for specified education and training, social research, evaluation, and development of methods to improve programs related to older individuals. Authorizes appropriations.
Requires the Assistant Secretary to make grants to States, area agencies on aging, nonprofit organizations, or tribal organizations for specified activities relating to intervention in, and prevention of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
Directs the Assistant Secretary to make grants to eligible public agencies and nonprofit private organizations to pay costs of developing or operating model health care service projects through multipurpose senior centers located in rural areas to meet the health care needs of medically underserved older individuals residing in such areas.
Authorizes the Assistant Secretary to award grants or contracts to: (1) entities to provide computer training and enhanced Internet access for older individuals; and (2) nonprofit organizations to improve transportation services for older individuals.
Requires the Assistant Secretary to make grants and enter into contracts to provide in-service training opportunities and courses of instruction on aging to Indian tribes through public or nonprofit Indian aging organizations and to provide an annual national meeting to train directors of programs under title IV of the Act.
Title V: Amendment to Title V of the Older Americans Act of 1965 - Revises requirements for projects for community service employment for older Americans.
Requires State Governors to submit annual State Senior Employment Services Coordination Plans to the Secretary of Labor.
Revises the formula for the distribution of assistance under this title.
Requires grantees under title V of the Act to be one-stop partners as described in the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 in the one-stop delivery system for the appropriate local workforce investment areas and to carry out the responsibilities relating to such partners.
Directs the Secretary to establish performance measures for grantees for projects and services carried out under title V of the Act.
Authorizes appropriations to carry out title V of the Act for FY 2001 through 2005 as well as additional sums as necessary to provide for at least 70,000 part-time employment positions for eligible individuals.
Title VI: Amendments to Title VI of the Older Americans Act of 1965 - Authorizes appropriations to carry out title VI of the Act.
Establishes a Native American caregiver support program.
Title VII: Amendments to Title VII of the Older Americans Act of 1965 - Authorizes appropriations to carry out the ombudsman and legal assistance development programs as well as a program to prevent elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
Revises provisions regarding the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program.
Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to study and report to Congress on the nature and extent of financial exploitation of older individuals.
Repeals provisions regarding State outreach, counseling, and assistance programs. Revises provisions regarding a State legal assistance development program.
Authorizes appropriations for a Native American elder rights and protection program.
Title VIII: Technical and Conforming Amendments - Makes technical and conforming amendments.
Became Public Law No: 106-501.
Introduced in Senate
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S10441-10442)
Read twice and referred to the Committee on HELP.
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Reported by Senator Jeffords with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 106-399.
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Reported by Senator Jeffords with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 106-399.
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 789.
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S11028-11030)
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