Congress expands volunteer service

WASHINGTON — Tens of thousands of Americans, from teenagers to baby boomers, soon will get a fresh chance to lend a helping hand in a time of need.

The House voted 275-149 Tuesday for a $5.7 billion bill that triples positions in the Clinton-era AmeriCorps program, its largest expansion since the agency's creation in 1993, and establishes a fund to help nonprofit organizations recruit and manage more volunteers. AmeriCorps offers a range of volunteer opportunities including housing construction, youth outreach, disaster response and caring for the elderly.

The bill is named for Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., who with Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, has been its champion. Kennedy is being treated for brain cancer but returned to Washington last week to vote for the legislation.

Utah's two Republican congressmen, Reps. Rob Bishop and Jason Chaffetz, voted against the measure. Democratic Rep. Jim Matheson voted for it.

Congress was sending the bill to President Barack Obama, who often cites his years as a Chicago community organizer for giving him his political start. Obama has made national service programs a high priority. His budget proposal calls for more than $1.1 billion for the programs, an increase of more than $210 million.

The president, who began an eight-day European trip Tuesday, plans to sign the measure when he returns to Washington.

"I call on all Americans to stand up and do what they can to serve their communities, shape our history and enrich both their own lives and the lives of others across this country," Obama said in a statement.

With the nation plunging deeper into a recession, Obama and backers of the effort see it as a way to channel a rising desire among Americans to help their neighbors.

Applications to AmeriCorps have exploded with the plunging employment market. Last month, there were 9,731 applications submitted to the AmeriCorps online system, more than triple the 3,159 submitted in February 2008. In the AmeriCorps program, 75,000 people spend 10 months to a year helping build affordable homes or responding to disasters. Most receive an annual stipend of slightly less than $12,000.

Last year, more than 500 AmeriCorps members helped coordinate more than 200,000 Habitat for Humanity volunteers to build 1,700 new homes. Some AmeriCorps participants also helped families get ready for homeownership.

The bill provides for gradually increasing the size of AmeriCorps to 250,000 enrollees over eight years.