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S. 1932
Deficit Reduction Act of 2005
(Enrolled as Agreed to or Passed by Both House and Senate)
SEC. 7103. GRANTS FOR HEALTHY MARRIAGE PROMOTION
AND RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD.
(a) Healthy Marriage and Family Funds Section 403(a)(2) (42 U.S.C.
603(a)(2)) is amended to read as follows:
'(2) HEALTHY MARRIAGE PROMOTION AND RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD GRANTS
'(i) USE OF FUNDS Subject to subparagraphs (B) and (C), the
Secretary may use the funds made available under subparagraph (D) for
the purpose of conducting and supporting research and demonstration
projects by public or private entities, and providing technical
assistance to States, Indian tribes and tribal organizations, and such
other entities as the Secretary may specify that are receiving a grant
under another provision of this part.
'(ii) LIMITATIONS The Secretary may not award funds made
available under this paragraph on a noncompetitive basis, and may not
provide any such funds to an entity for the purpose of carrying out
healthy marriage promotion activities or for the purpose of carrying out
activities promoting responsible fatherhood unless the entity has
submitted to the Secretary an application which
'(I) describes
'(aa) how the programs or activities proposed in the application
will address, as appropriate, issues of domestic violence; and
'(bb) what the applicant will do, to the extent relevant, to
ensure that participation in the programs or activities is voluntary, and to
inform potential participants that their participation is voluntary; and
'(II) contains a commitment by the entity
'(aa) to not use the funds for any other purpose; and
'(bb) to consult with experts in domestic violence or relevant
community domestic violence coalitions in developing the programs and
activities.
'(iii) HEALTHY MARRIAGE PROMOTION ACTIVITIES In clause (ii),
the term 'healthy marriage promotion activities' means the following:
'(I) Public advertising campaigns on the value of marriage and
the skills needed to increase marital stability and health.
'(II) Education in high schools on the value of marriage,
relationship skills, and budgeting.
'(III) Marriage education, marriage skills, and relationship
skills programs, that may include parenting skills, financial
management, conflict resolution, and job and career advancement, for
non-married pregnant women and non-married expectant fathers.
'(IV) Pre-marital education and marriage skills training for
engaged couples and for couples or individuals interested in marriage.
'(V) Marriage enhancement and marriage skills training
programs for married couples.
'(VI) Divorce reduction programs that teach relationship skills.
'(VII) Marriage mentoring programs which use married couples
as role models and mentors in at-risk communities.
'(VIII) Programs to reduce the disincentives to marriage in
means-tested aid programs, if offered in conjunction with any activity
described in this subparagraph.
'(B) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS FOR
COORDINATION OF PROVISION OF CHILD WELFARE AND TANF SERVICES TO TRIBAL
FAMILIES AT RISK OF CHILD ABUSE OR NEGLECT
'(i) IN GENERAL Of the amounts made available under
subparagraph (D) for a fiscal year, the Secretary may not award more
than $2,000,000 on a competitive basis to fund demonstration projects
designed to test the effectiveness of tribal governments or tribal
consortia in coordinating the provision to tribal families at risk of
child abuse or neglect of child welfare services and services under
tribal programs funded under this part.
'(ii) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS A grant made pursuant to
clause (i) to such a project shall not be used for any purpose other than
'(I) to improve case management for families eligible for
assistance from such a tribal program;
'(II) for supportive services and assistance to tribal
children in out-of-home placements and the tribal families caring for
such children, including families who adopt such children; and
'(III) for prevention services and assistance to tribal
families at risk of child abuse and neglect.
'(iii) REPORTS The Secretary may require a recipient of funds
awarded under this subparagraph to provide the Secretary with such
information as the Secretary deems relevant to enable the Secretary to
facilitate and oversee the administration of any project for which funds
are provided under this subparagraph.
'(C) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS FOR ACTIVITIES PROMOTING
RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD
'(i) IN GENERAL Of the amounts made available under
subparagraph (D) for a fiscal year, the Secretary may not award more
than $50,000,000 on a competitive basis to States, territories, Indian
tribes and tribal organizations, and public and nonprofit community
entities, including religious organizations, for activities promoting
responsible fatherhood.
'(ii) ACTIVITIES PROMOTING RESPONSIBLE FATHERHOOD In this
paragraph, the term 'activities promoting responsible fatherhood' means
the following:
'(I) Activities to promote marriage or sustain marriage
through activities such as counseling, mentoring, disseminating
information about the benefits of marriage and 2-parent involvement
for children, enhancing relationship skills, education regarding how
to control aggressive behavior, disseminating information on the
causes of domestic violence and child abuse, marriage preparation
programs, premarital counseling, marital inventories, skills-based
marriage education, financial planning seminars, including improving a
family's ability to effectively manage family business affairs by
means such as education, counseling, or mentoring on matters related
to family finances, including household management, budgeting,
banking, and handling of financial transactions and home maintenance,
and divorce education and reduction programs, including mediation and
counseling.
'(II) Activities to promote responsible parenting through
activities such as counseling, mentoring, and mediation, disseminating
information about good parenting practices, skills-based parenting
education, encouraging child support payments, and other
methods.
'(III) Activities to foster economic stability by helping
fathers improve their economic status by providing activities such as
work first services, job search, job training, subsidized employment,
job retention, job enhancement, and encouraging education, including
career-advancing education, dissemination of employment materials,
coordination with existing employment services such as welfare-to-work
programs, referrals to local employment training initiatives, and
other methods.
'(IV) Activities to promote responsible fatherhood that are
conducted through a contract with a nationally recognized, nonprofit
fatherhood promotion organization, such as the development, promotion,
and distribution of a media campaign to encourage the appropriate
involvement of parents in the life of any child and specifically the
issue of responsible fatherhood, and the development of a national
clearinghouse to assist States and communities in efforts to promote
and support marriage and responsible fatherhood.
'(D) APPROPRIATION Out of any money in the Treasury of the United
States not otherwise appropriated, there are appropriated $150,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010, for expenditure in accordance with
this paragraph.
(b) Counting of Spending on Certain Pro-Family Activities Section
409(a)(7)(B)(i) (42 U.S.C. 609(a)(7)(B)(i)) is amended by adding at the end
the following:
'(V) COUNTING OF SPENDING ON CERTAIN PRO-FAMILY ACTIVITIES
The term 'qualified State expenditures' includes the total
expenditures by the State during the fiscal year under all State
programs for a purpose described in paragraph (3) or (4) of section
401(a).
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