Expanding National Service to Address Long-term Unemployment

8/20/2019 Expanding National Service to Address Long-term Unemployment

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Expanding National Service to

Address Long-term UnemploymentBy Harry Stein and Shirley Sagawa January 2016

WWW.AMERICANPROGRESS.O


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Expanding National Serviceto Address Long-termUnemployment

By Harry Stein and Shirley Sagawa January 2016


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1 Introduction and summary

4 The problem of long-term unemployment

7 How national service can respond to

long-term unemployment

10 Implementing a temporary expansion

of national service

15 Parameters for a temporary expansion

of national service

19 Conclusion

22 Endnotes

Contents


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1 Center for American Progress | Expanding National Service to Address Long-term Unemployment

Introduction and summary

As o November 2015, approximaely 2 million Americans were ou o work and

looking or a job or 27 weeks or more.1 While long-erm unemploymen has

allen significanly afer skyrockeing during he Grea ecession, his decline has

been ar oo slow and long-erm unemploymen sill remains unusually high even

hough he recession officially ended in June 2009.2

Tis enormous and ongoing wase o human and economic poenial is by no

means ineviableand policymakers should ake seps now o ensure ha i doesno happen again. As Presiden Franklin Delano oosevel so righly declared in

1934: “No counry, however rich, can afford he wase o is human resources.

Demoralizaion caused by vas unemploymen is our greaes exravagance.”3

During he Grea Depression, policymakers chose o implemen wha were dubbed

work relie programs, such as he Civilian Conservaion Corps, o dramaically

reduce unemploymen. In 1936, hese work relie programs reduced he unemploy-

men rae rom 16.9 percen o 9.9 percen.4 Te New Deal work relie programs

no only pu Americans back o work bu also saw he building o counless public

aciliiesincluding parks, bridges, airpors, and roadsha are sill in use.5

FIGURE 1

Government work relief during the Great Depression

Unemployment rate, with and without work relief jobs

Note: The unemployment rate without work relief counts people with work relief jobs as unemployed.

Source: Michael R. Darby, “Three-and-a-Half Million U.S. Employees Have Been Mislaid: Or, an Explanation of Unemployment, 1934-1941,”

Journal of Political Economy 84 (1) (1976): 1–16, available at http://www.jstor.org/stable/1830168.

19290%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941

Without work relief

With work relief


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Americans coninue o serve heir counry oday in naional service programs

such as AmeriCorpsha provide a modes living allowance and educaion

awards or individuals who provide subsanial service hrough programs ha

address naional needs in fields including educaion, conservaion, and affordable

housing. Tese programs could also pu Americans back o work in imes o high

long-erm unemploymen and provide a lasing legacy or uure generaions.

In 2009, Congress endorsed a significan expansion o naional service by auho-

rizing 250,000 AmeriCorps posiions as par o he Edward M. Kennedy Serve

America Ac.6 Bu Congress never ollowed hrough wih he necessary unding;

consequenly, AmeriCorps could only suppor approximaely 73,600 posiions

in fiscal year 2014.7 Funding all 250,000 posiions remains an imporan policy

ha should be implemened o srenghen naional service regardless o eco-

nomic condiions. Posiions unded hrough AmeriCorps provide a oundaion

upon which high-impac naional programs such as Ciy Year, eading Parners,

and Naional Communiy Healh Corps can grow; creae opporuniies orunemployed youh who are no enrolled in high school or college; and enable

grassroos organizaions in philanhropically underserved areas o offer posiions

direced a solving locally deermined problems.

Naional service should also be expanded even urher when he need is grea-

es. Tis repor lays ou a plan or a new unding sream or naional service ha

auomaically rises when long-erm unemploymen is high and alls when long-

erm unemploymen is low. Unlike he 250,000 posiions auhorized by he

Serve America Ac, new posiions creaed by auomaic unding would be em-

porary and specifically designed o phase ou when hey are no longer needed

as he economy reurns o normal. Tis emporary service would be direced

oward projec-based work ha can be compleed on a shor imerame, such as

projecs argeing conservaion and inrasrucure, as well as effors ha address

he human needs ha increase during recessions. Te ederal governmen would

parner wih naional service organizaions o consisenly mainain and updae

plans o creae new posiions on shor noice o rapidly respond o a uure rise

in long-erm unemploymen.

Under his plan, naional service would uncion as an auomaic sabilizer. Auomaic sabilizers, such as unemploymen insurance and nuriion assisance,

expand during recessions and conrac during imes o economic expansion. Te

need or assisance rom he nonprofi secor is greaes when he economy is

sruggling, meaning ha recessions are he perec ime o boos capaciy wih a

“Everybody can

be great, because

everybody can serve

— Martin Luther King


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surge o naional service. Specifically, he plan would esablish a ormula or an

auomaic unding source ha would suppor 25,000 new and emporary naional

service posiions or every enh o a percenage poin by which he long-erm

unemploymen rae exceeds 1 percen. Te long-erm unemploymen rae has

averaged abou 1 percen rom 1948 o he presen, and no emporary posiions

would be creaed whenever long-erm unemploymen is a or below his hisori-cal average.9 Te plan includes guardrails o ensure ha naional service is no

expanded more rapidly han he sysem can suppor, and also o preven eco-

nomic shocks rom wihdrawing emporary posiions oo rapidly.

In he afermah o he Grea ecession, his policy would have responded

decisively by supporing a peak o 475,000 emporary naional service posiions

a a ime when abou 4.6 million people were long-erm unemployed.10 I his

auomaic policy had been in place rom fiscal years 2000 o 2014, i would have

cos an average o $2.6 billion per yearenabling 1.87 million Americans o serve

heir counry or a year during ough economic imes and delivering a reurn oninvesmen o $3.93 in benefis o sociey or every dollar spen based on an eco-

nomic sudy o naional service.11

Expanding naional service during economic downurns is a win-win-win:

Naional service pus unemployed paricipans back o work, benefis he com-

muniies ha paricipans serve, and helps grow he overall economy. Tis repor

describes he problem o long-erm unemploymen, how naional service can pu

people back o work, and lays ou a plan o mobilize he engine o service when i

will deliver he mos economic benefi.

America needs a subsanial invesmen in naional service. Policymakers should

ge sared as soon as possible by seting and ollowing hrough on a course o

ully und he 250,000 posiions auhorized by he Serve America Ac, while

also building he necessary capaciy o implemen a uure emporary expan-

sion. By esablishing a sysem o auomaically and emporarily expand naional

service o decisively respond o spikes in long-erm unemploymen, lawmakers

can ensure ha oday’s service programs wil l alleviae uure economic hardship

and build a legacy or omorrow.


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The problem of long-term

unemployment

Long-erm unemploymen has been a paricularly vexing challenge or policymak-

ers wih a errible human cos. While he sock marke has ully recovered rom

he Grea ecession and corporae profis are near record highs, long-erm unem-

ploymen remains significanly above is hisorical average.12

Te long-erm unemploymen rae has allen consisenly rom is peak during he

Grea ecession, bu his recovery has been painully slow. Moreover, even he

slow decline o he long-erm unemploymen rae is no necessarily he resul ohese unemployed workers finding jobs. Princeon Universiy economiss Alan

Krueger, Judd Cramer, and David Cho ound ha many long-erm jobless workers

give up on ever finding a job, and once hese workers exi he labor orce hey are

no longer echnically couned as unemployed.13 Workers who are unemployed or

exended periods o ime find i harder o reurn o work as heir skills arophy and

businesses are relucan o hire applicans wih long gaps in heir resume.14

FIGURE 2

The long-term unemployment ratePercentage of civilian labor force unemployed for at least 27 weeks

Source: Authors' calculations are based on Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, “Number of Civilians Unemployed for 27 Weeks and Over,”available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OV (last accessed December 2015); Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis,

“Civilian Labor Force,” available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OV (last accessed December 2015).

1948

0%

1%

2%

3%

4%

5%

1953 1958 1963 1968 1973 1978 1983 1988 1993 1998 2003 2008 2013

Historical average


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Long-erm unemploymen affecs people o al l demographic groups, bu is

impacs are paricularly devasaing or young people rying o ener he job

marke or he firs ime. Young workers who have heir whole career in ron

o hem can have heir lieime earnings reduced by long-erm unemploymen.

Such earnings reducions also increase fiscal pressure on public benefi pro-

grams.15

In January 2010, he unemploymen rae among Americans aged 16 o24 who were no in school peaked a a whopping 21.7 percen.16 I was no unil

2015 ha he unemploymen rae among his group reurned o approximaely

12 percenis hisorical average beore he Grea ecession.17 As a conse-

quence o his persisen lack o opporuniy, in November 2015, here were sill

approximaely 378,000 young Americans aged 16 o 24 ou o work who had

been looking or a job or a leas 27 weeks. Tese young Americans represened

abou 19 percen o all long-erm unemployed workers.18

Failing o address long-erm unemploymen does lasing damage o workers,

heir amilies, and he enire economy. Long-erm unemploymen is lierallydebiliaing19 percen o hose individuals unemployed or more han one

year repor having or being reaed or depression, compared o 5.6 percen

o hose wih ull-ime jobs.19 Longer duraions o unemploymen are associ-

aed wih lower wages when a worker is finally able o find a job; moreover

his pay cu coninues or 15 o 20 years afer he episode o unemploymen.20

Tis damage even exends o he nex generaion, wih longer spells o parenal

unemploymen conneced o lower emoional wellbeing or children.21 Te

nonparisan Congressional Budge Office, or CBO, reduced is esimae or

long-erm economic poenial in he Unied Saes, in par because o he effecs

o persisenly high levels o long-erm unemploymen.22 Clearly, hese unem-

ployed workers can and should be conribuing o sociey.

Ye, even a ull economic recovery migh no be enough o bring he long-erm

unemployed back ino he labor orce. Krueger, Cramer, and Cho find ha, “Even

a imes whenor in regions wherehe economy is relaively srong, he long-

erm unemployed ace long odds o reurning o seady, ull-ime employmen.”23

Long-erm unemploymen has more o do wih bad iming han age, occupa-

ion, educaion, or any oher measurable acor.24

Te bes predicor o wheher a worker will become long-erm unemployed afer losing heir job is he dae o he

job loss; workers who lose heir job during a recession have he wors prospecs.25


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Since long-erm unemploymen makes i harder o ever find a job, hese workers

need a pah back ino he labor marke. A emporary recession should no cause

workers o be permanenly cas aside. As Marin Luher King, Jr. said in a 1961

speech o he Unied Auomobile Workers Union, “[W]hen human values are

subordinaed o blind economic orces, human beings can become human scrap.”26

Naional service can direcly address his problem o long-erm unemploymen

by immediaely puting he unemployed o work, while building skills o help

hem find permanen employmen. No only would naional service provide a

pahway back ino he labor marke or he long-erm unemployed, i would also

address communiy needs ha would oherwise go unme. Tis sor o public

invesmen promoes shor-erm economic recovery by bringing more resources

ino sruggling areas, and suppors long-erm economic growh by expanding

producive labor supply.


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How national service can respond

to long-term unemployment

Naional service presens a soluion o long-erm unemploymen by offering

individuals he opporuniy o gain work experiencesuppored by a modes

living allowancewhile developing skills and conacs ha could lead o a career

in a relaed field. Naional service engages Americans o all income and educaion

levels and in urban, suburban, rural, and wilderness areas across he counry.

I is imporan o noe ha naional service posiions are no inended o ake

he place o a saey ne or long-erm employmen. By definiion, naionalservice posiions are emporary and provide only minimal suppor o hose

who ser ve. Naional ser vice incorporaes elemens o radiional employmen,

voluneering, and workorce developmen and educaion. While he radiional

naional service paricipan is a young adul beween he ages o 18 o 28,

here is no age limi in many programs. Because o is educaion and workorce

benefis o he paricipan, naional service appeals o individuals who are in

ransiionofen rom school o college or work, bu also rom one educaion

experience o anoher or one career o he nex. Alhough litle research has

been produced on his opic, i is likely ha he opporuniy o learn and build

new skills, develop social conacs, and gain work-relaed experience all play a

role. Tis may explain why unemployed individuals who voluneer are 27 per-

cen more likely o find paid employmen han hose who do no.27

In a period o high unemploymen, individuals may ace long periods wihou paid

work. Despie he benefis o voluneering, he lack o compensaion may prove a

deerren. However, because naional service, unlike radiional voluneering, ypi-

cally involves paymen o a modes living allowance as a means o enable individuals

o all economic backgrounds o paricipae, hese experiences are more appropriae

o individuals who are ou o work. I unded by AmeriCorps, addiional benefismay be available, including an educaion award equal o a Pell gran as well as

suden loan orgiveness and deerral, healh insurance, and child care assisance. In

some cases, AmeriCorps benefis do no affec eligibiliy or oher public benefis,

which may be imporan or individuals wih limied savings and oher resources.28


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Beyond he immediae compensaion and benefis provided, an individual serving

in a naional service program ypically benefis in a variey o addiional ways.

Depending on he program and is design, naional service programs may provide

he opporuniy o develop work-relaed skills as well as oher broadly useul skills

such as eamwork and communicaion.29 esearch shows ha people who par-

icipae in naional service are happier and boh physically and menally healhierhan heir peers.30 In addiion, service experiences o all ypes help o develop

social capial, which is direcly relaed o he abiliy o find work and navigae

available inormal and ormal suppor sysems.31

Specialized programs known as youh corps are argeed o youh and young

aduls, ages 16 o 24, who may have limied educaion or work experience. In mos

cases, hese programs provide ormal job raining and educaionincluding GED

preparaionalong wih eam-based service, ypically relaed o he job raining

provided. For example, youh corps o Te Corps Nework are direc descendans

o he depression-era Civilian Conservaion Corps and ocus on environmen-al and energy conservaion projecs along wih inrasrucure. YouhBuild is a

ederally unded youh corps ha iniially ocused on consrucion skills and now

incorporaes raining in oher fields, including healh care and inormaion ech-

nology, while enabling he enrollees o earn a GED or high school diploma while

providing communiy service and gaining leadership raining.32

Trough he experience o serving, individuals ypically develop skills ha

appeal o employers. Employers o Naional Servicea campaign suppored

by he Corporaion or Naional and Communiy Service, or CNCS, he

Peace Corps, he Franklin Projec, and oher parnersidenifies employers

who agree o recrui naional service alumni. Te more han 300 paricipaing

employers recognize he skills and qualiies developed hrough service and

include companies such as Comcas, Disney, and CSX; nonprofi organizaions

such as he Unied Way Worldwide, he American ed Cross, and Naional

Associaion o Communiy Healh Ceners, Inc.; and governmen agencies such

as he U.S. Office o Personnel Managemen, he Ciy o Philadelphia, and he

Miami-Dade Couny Public Schools.33

Increasingly, naional service programs have developed sraegies o enable servicecorps members o build heir skills and credenials, including he abiliy o earn

college credi. In recen years, programs have ormed parnerships wih colleges

and universiies, developed innovaive sraegies o enable paricipans o earn

possecondary credi or college-level learning hrough heir programs, and incor-

poraed opporuniies o earn micro-credenialswhich documen masery o

paricular skillsas well as radiional cerificaions.34


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For hese reasons, naional service has increasingly been recognized as boh a

workorce developmen sraegy and an experienial orm o possecondary educa-

ion. During periods o long-erm high unemploymen, expanding he availabiliy

o hese opporuniies would provide individuals a means o gaining experience,

skills, and connecions.

In addiion, an expansion o naional service would provide valuable resources

o organizaions ha are called upon o expand heir capaciy during ough

economic imes o provide services such as ani-hunger effors; programs or

individuals a risk o homelessness; job search, raining, and oher work-relaed

assisance; English language insrucion; civil legal aid; and benefis navigaion.

During he 2008 recession, nonprofis repored significan increased demand or

services bu decreased abiliy o mee he rise in demand.35

Te 2008 recession also illusraed he poenial or naional service by skilled

employees who lose heir jobs. Some o hese individuals are likely o akeposiions below heir skills levels, hereby displacing oher poenial workers.

However, ohers could insead be drawn o service opporuniies as a way o avoid

having a resume gap and o keep heir neworks and skills resh.

Given he diversiy o poenial opporuniies, naional service could play an

imporan role during periods o high unemploymen. For young aduls enering

he labor marke, naional service provides he opporuniy o ener a field, build

skills, and earn credenials ha can lead o long-erm employmen. For older

workers, including long-erm unemployed individuals, naional service experi-

ences may keep skills up-o-dae or aciliae a career change.

Te nex secion lays ou he policies ha mus be in place in order o make

naional service a sraegy o successully address long-erm unemploymen.


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Implementing a temporary

expansion of national service

Experience from the American Recovery and Recovery Act of 2009

In 2009, naional service was included in ederal legislaion o address he Grea

ecession, he American ecovery and einvesmen Ac, or AR. Tis bill

provided $200 million o he Corporaion or Naional and Communiy Service

o engage 10,000 gran-unded AmeriCorps members and 3,000 AmeriCorps

VISA members, along wih maching und relie o granees and unds or ech-

nology inrasrucure.36 Tese numbers were exceeded in pracice, wih morehan 15,000 individuals able o serve as a resul o he emporary unds.37 AR

also provided an addiional $50 million or YouhBuild o engage approximaely

3,100 members.38

AR ook a ar differen approach o naional service as a sraegy o figh

unemploymen han he approach used during he Grea Depression. Te Civilian

Conservaion Corps was run by he ederal governmen, wih hundreds o hou-

sands o young men perorming physical service o preserve naural resources

supervised by governmen employees and living in camps on governmen lands.39

In conras, he 2009 program engaged a diverse populaion o approximaely

18,000 men and women in a variey o service aciviies wih no limiaion on age.

aher han running programs direcly, he ederal agencies responsible or he

2009 program relied on a nework o nonprofi organizaions and public agencies

ha were already running AmeriCorps, AmeriCorps VISA, or YouhBuild pro-

grams, wih he ederal role ocused on making grans or assigning AmeriCorps

VISA posiions, and ensuring legal compliance.

AR was successul in expanding naional service opporuniies or boh young

workers who were sruggling o land a firs job as well as experienced work-ersincluding veeranssruggling wih unemploymen. Examples o projecs

included he ollowing:


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• YouhBuild provided posiions or youh wihou high school degrees. Hal o

hese jobs were argeed o green consrucion, such as convering oreclosed

properies ino low-income housing, building energy-efficien homes or low-

income amilies, and conducing energy audis and rerofis.• VISA AmeriCorps members buil he capaciy o organizaions o engage vol-

uneers, raise unds, and expand service delivery a a ime o need.• Youh Corps o he Corps Nework provided energy efficiency and weaher-

izaion services o low-income residens along wih wildfire remediaion and

public lands repair and revializaion.• AmeriCorps members suppored wih grans offered job counseling and place-

men services, provided housing oreclosure prevenion and financial counsel-

ing, srenghened ood banks, provided lieracy uoring, and provided financial

planning services and oher assisance o people acing unemploymen, povery,

or oher economic challenges.

As a resul o his service, by December 2010:

• More han 121,000 Americans received uoring and lieracy services• More han 219,000 cliens received financial lieracy services• More han 113,000 people received services relaed o home oreclosure

and housing assisance• More han 181,000 individuals received employmen skills raining

and counseling• More han 15,000 cliens were placed in jobs40

While AR successully expanded naional service opporuniies, i also creaed

challenges or he naional service field in subsequen years. In 2011, due o budge

cus and expiraion o he emporary AR gran program, 121 YouhBuild pro-

grams los ederal unding.41 AmeriCorps programs ared beter, bu only because

passage o he Serve America Ac resuled in a small increase in annual unding.42

Principles

aking lessons rom boh he AR experience and he Presiden oosevel’sNew Deal, a muli-par sraegy is advisable or he use o naional service as an

auomaic sabilizer in uure recessions. Te Cener or American Progress pro-

poses he ollowing principles:


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1. Expand existing programs rather than create of new ones. Because o he

coss and ime associaed wih saring up a new service program and he goal

o supporing qualiy experiences, emporary expansions should be carried ou

hrough exising programs ha have srong rack records. Programs unded by

AmeriCorps grans, AmeriCorps VISA, and YouhBuild should receive prioriy

consideraion, since he overall scale o hese programs can be flexible over ime.

2. Prioritize programs—including youth corps and specialized service corps—

that build skills and education to improve long-term employment prospects.

o maximize he benefi o he service experience, programs ha offer educaion

or skill-building opporuniiessuch as he opporuniy o earn a GED, college

credi, or employer-recognized credenialshould be given prioriy or unding.

Specialized programs can also engage skilled workersas Jusice AmeriCorps

does wih lawyers and paralegals o improve legal represenaion or unaccompa-

nied immigran minorswhich helps hese workers mainain heir skills afer a

job loss while perorming service argeing imporan naional prioriies.43

3. Provide programs appropriate for both younger workers and experienced

workers facing long-term unemployment as a result of the economy. As

discussed earlier, service programs engage individuals wih a wide range o skills

and backgrounds. Some such as youh corps, are specialized and ocus on a par-

icular populaion, while ohers seek a mix o individuals or are open o aduls o

all ages. Te ype o service may vary rom physical labor o office work, and may

ake place in a wide range o setings, rom naional parks or urban los, o non-

profi offices or elemenary schools. Programs should be idenified o ensure ha

posiions are appropriae or everyone rom young aduls lacking work experi-

ence o older workers who need o change fields or develop new skills in order o

gain permanen employmen, including older workers wih physical limiaions

who need o move rom manual labor o less physically demanding work.

4. Support programs that prioritize service opportunities for long-term unem-

ployed workers. While i may be beyond he scope o he Corporaion or

Naional and Communiy Service o enorce a rigid quoa or programs o

make slos available o long-erm unemployed workers, programs ha receive

unding hrough a emporary expansion o naional service should submi aplan o CNCS or how hey will engage he long-erm unemployed populaion.

Tis plan may ocus on paricular ages, skills, or oher characerisics depending

on he naure o he program, and include coordinaion wih oher programs

ha assis workers dealing wih long-erm unemploymen.


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5. Direct service to needs that are temporary in nature or related to needs that

increase during an economic downturn. During a period o economic sress,

needs commonly addressed by public agencies and nonprofi organizaions

serving low-income populaions are likely o increase, such as ani-hunger

effors; programs or individuals a risk o homelessness; job search, raining

and oher work-relaed assisance; English language insrucion; civil legalaid; and benefis navigaion.44 Programs ha engage AmeriCorps members o

address hese needs, or build he capaciy o he organizaions ha do, should

receive prioriy. Similarly, projecs ha are emporary in naure, which are eas-

ily scaled up and back down again upon compleion, should also be argeed.

Ideally, hese projecs would address backlogs and high-prioriy needs such as

physical, ransporaion, and echnology inrasrucure; consrucion, renova-

ion, and preservaion projecs; disabiliy access; land conservaion; disaser

response; and energy conservaion projecs.

6. Utilize service to address public needs through contracting and procurementin addition to direct support of positions. Some naional service programs,

paricularly youh corps, are unded in par by earned income paid o he

program or is work. Tis earned income includes governmen unding rom

various agencies o carry ou public projecs. During a period o economic

downown, eliminaing mainenance backlogs and addressing oher public

inrasrucure needs should be a prioriy, as should addressing oher large-scale

public challenges, rom a shorage o English language learning opporuniies

o improving veerans aciliies. Tese could be addressed cos-effecively by

conracs or cooperaive agreemens wih naional service programs. Te 21s

Cenury Conservaion Service Corps, or example, is a public-privae service

parnership where ederal agencies ener ino cooperaive agreemens wih

youh corps and recreaion businesses o accomplish backlogged conservaion

and inrasrucure projecs or he public’s benefi while engaging youh and

veerans in naional service.

Implementation

Te Corporaion or Naional and Communiy Service, because o is serviceexperise, should serve as he lead agency o implemen a emporary expansion.

CNCS should prepare plans o scale up is saff capaciy by ideniying a dedi-

caed eam o prepare or a emporary expansion and raining individuals across

CNCS and oher agencies ha could be deailed o implemen his expansion.

Oher agencies should be required o designae an official responsible or ensuring

appropriae planning and overseeing implemenaion.


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CNCS should develop an execuive branch-wide plan or implemenaion, well in

advance o he riggering o he auomaic sabilizer. Tis plan should include he

ollowing elemens:

• A process o enable AmeriCorps and YouhBuild programs o apply o be

prequalified and prioriized based on he above principles• An online plaorm o connec paricipans wih high-qualiy naional service

opporuniies, and o connec naional service programs wih projecs idenified

by ederal agencies, sae, and local governmens, and nonprofi organizaions45 • A process o ideniy curren and ormer VISA sponsors working in fields likely

o experience increased demand during a period o high unemploymen• A requiremen ha sae service commissions develop plans wihin heir saes

o implemen in he even o a emporary naional service expansion• A markeing and recruimen plan o reach individuals experiencing long-erm

unemploymen o inorm hem o opporuniies o serve, which should include

workers o all ages and skill levels• A plan o proec agains negaive impacs on communiies and programs afer

he auomaic sabilizer expires

Finally, CNCS should ideniy legislaive and adminisraive barriers ha sand

in he way o rapid implemenaion and make recommendaions o waive hese

barriers in he even ha he auomaic sabilizer is riggered. Areas where such

waivers migh be appropriae include he ollowing:

• Te AmeriCorps requiremen or organizaions o provide maching unds

could be scaled back during a emporary expansion since hese organizaions

may sruggle o raise addiional unding during a recession.• Federal procuremen regulaions may need o be sreamlined o enable a rapid

emporary expansion o naional service programs.• esricions on using AmeriCorps unding o help people access public benefi

programs could be suspended during a emporary expansion when he need is

greaes or hese programs.46

Tese waivers mus balance he imporance o rapidly responding o changing

economic condiions wih reasonable rules o mainain high sandards or naionalservice programs.


18/27


Parameters for a temporary

expansion of national service

Policymakers will need o balance several goals o craf a policy or auomaic

and emporary naional service expansions. Firs, new service posiions should

be esablished rapidly o respond o long-erm unemploymen beore jobless

workers permanenly exi he labor orce. Second, he rae o his expansion

should no exceed he rae ha nonprofis can expand heir own capaciy o man-

age new naional service posiions, or he rae ha he Corporaion or Naional

and Communiy Service can expand is capaciy o oversee hese posiions. And

finally, he expansion should be designed o avoid an abrup cu in suppor ornaional service as hese emporary posiions expire. Tis secion offers a plan o

achieve hese goals, and esimaes he impac ha his plan would have or boh

naional service and he ederal budge.

CAP proposes he auomaic creaion o 25,000 posiions or every enh o a

percenage poin by which he long-erm unemploymen rae exceeds is hisori-

cal average o 1 percen. o preven scaling up more rapidly han CNCS and he

nonprofi communiy can manage, no more han 25,000 new posiions would be

esablished in any calendar quarer. o preven an abrup cliff in naional service

unding, hese emporary posiions would be suppored or a ull year even i

he long-erm unemploymen rae declines during ha period. I he long-erm

unemploymen rae remains elevaed a he end o he year, he posiions would be

renewed or anoher ull year, which would no preclude he esablishmen o up

o 25,000 new posiions i he long-erm unemploymen rae remains high. Tese

guard rails do no limi he overall size o a emporary expansion i long-erm

unemploymen remains high or an exended period, bu hey do regulae he rae

a which naional service posiions are creaed and eliminaed.

I is well wihin he capaciy o he ederal governmen o esablish 25,000naional service posiions per quarer, or 100,000 per year. In 1933, he oosevel

Adminisraion filled 274,375 posiions or he newly esablished Civilian

Conservaion Corps in jus hree monhs.47 Te AR creaed abou 15,000 new


19/27


posiions hrough AmeriCorps grans and AmeriCorps VISAon shor noice

and as par o a much broader response o he Grea ecessionwhich increased

he size o hese programs abou 21 percen above heir fiscal year 2008 capaciy o

abou 72,000 posiions.48 CAP’s plan makes a rapid expansion possible by requiring

CNCS o mainain coningency plans or such an expansion, and by consisenly

unding 250,000 naional service posiions across a variey o secorsincreasinghe number o pahways or CNCS o implemen a emporary expansion.

Tis proposed policy would respond effecively o boh large and small recessions,

alhough i would no eliminae he need or Congress o ake urher decisive

acion or deep economic downurns. When long-erm unemploymen grew

above is hisorical average rom 2002 o 2004, his policy would have generaed

a seady and moderae response, wih a peak o 100,000 emporary posiions in

mid-2003.49 Tis would have had he poenial o reach 5 percen o he approxi-

maely 2 million workers who were unemployed or 27 weeks or more in mid-

2003.50 Te objecive o he program is no o creae a naional service posiion orevery long-erm unemployed worker, bu raher o provide more opions or some

workers o choose service while he privae-secor job marke recovers.

When long-erm unemploymen began o climb sharply in 2008 during he Grea

ecession, his policy would have seadily ramped up naional service. Naional

service would have coninued o expand even afer he Grea ecession echni-

cally ended, since long-erm unemploymen has remained elevaed or such a long

period o ime. A oal o 100,000 posiions would have been added each year

saring in mid-2008, and he number o emporary naional service posiions

would have peaked a 475,000 in 2013. Afer ha, he emporary expansion would

begin o wind down as long-erm unemploymen ell oward is hisorical average.

Under his policy, here would have been 125,000 emporary posiion in he hird

quarer o 2015, a a ime when here were abou 2.2 million long-erm unem-

ployed workers and he long-erm unemploymen rae was 1.4 percen.51 While

a long-erm unemploymen rae o 1.4 percen ypically corresponds o 100,000

emporary posiions under his policy, here would sill be an exra 25,000 posi-

ions ha were creaed previously and susained or a ull year despie he alling

long-erm unemploymen rae.


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Expanding naional service is a highly cos effecive way o responding o unem-

ploymen. Funding 25,000 posiions or a ull year would cos abou $520 million,

based on he average cos or an AmeriCorps VISA posiion o slighly less han

$21,000.52 Federal coss or AmeriCorps VISA posiions are significanly higher

han ypical ederal coss or posiions unded hrough AmeriCorps sae and

naional grans, meaning ha his cos esimae provides room or CNCS o scale

back maching und requiremens or hose gran programs.53

For he sake o comparison, he average weekly unemploymen benefi in 2013

was $309.44, which ranslaes o an annualized benefi o $17,328.64 a a ime

when beneficiaries in high-unemploymen saes were eligible or more han a year

o paymens.54 I should be noed, however, ha he average duraion o unem-

ploymen benefis in 2013 was approximaely 17 weeks, so he ypical beneficiarydid no receive unemploymen compensaion or a ull year.55 AmeriCorps service

may reduce unemploymen compensaion claims, bu i does no necessarily

preclude coninued receip o unemploymen compensaion rom a previous los

jobhis is deermined by sae law.56

0

100K

200K

300K

400K

500K

FIGURE 3

Long-term unemployment rate and the numberof temporary national service positions

Simulation of CAP policy to increase national service in

times of high long-term unemployment, 2000 to 2015

Source: Authors' calculations are based on Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, “Number of Civilians Unemployed for 27 Weeks and Over,”available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OV (last accessed December 2015); Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis,

“Civilian Labor Force,” available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OV (last accessed December 2015).

0.0%

1.0%

2.0%

3.0%

4.0%

0.5%

1.5%

2.5%

3.5%

4.5%

600K

700K

800K

900K

2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2015

Long-term

unemployment rate

Temporary national

service positions


21/27


Since a emporary expansion would uncion as an auomaic fiscal sabilizer, he

cos o he program will peak during periods o persisen economic weakness,

and here will be no cos when he economy is working and long-erm unem-

ploymen remains a or below is hisorical average. Based on CAP’s calculaions,

during he milder recession in he early 2000s, he cos would have peaked a

around $1.4 billion in fiscal year 2003 o suppor beween 50,000 and 100,000emporary posiions. In he wake o he Grea ecession, spending on emporary

naional service would have peaked a abou $9.4 billion in fiscal year 2013 o sup-

por more han 400,000 emporary posiions. For he sake o comparison, ederal

spending on unemploymen compensaionanoher vially imporan auomaic

sabilizeroaled $69 billion in fiscal year 2013.57

During he 15-year period rom fiscal year 2000 o fiscal year 2014, emporary

naional service posiions would have cos a oal o $38.9 billion, or around $2.6

billion per year on average. Tis unding would have provided opporuniies or

abou 1.87 million Americans o complee a year o service and ge back ino he workorce during ough economic imes.

As ormerly unemployed naional service paricipans move ino permanen jobs

where hey are paying more axes and relying less on public benefis, he ederal

governmen may be able o deray he coss o he naional service program. A

2013 sudy by economis Clive Belfield calculaed ha $1 o public invesmen

in naional service yields $2.15 in fiscal benefis rom higher ax collecions and

lower spending on saey ne programs.58 Te same sudy also looked beyond

governmen o analyze he reurn on invesmen or he overall economy, and

calculaed a reurn on invesmen o $3.93 or every $1 spen on naional service,

which includes he value o he service provided and he long-erm benefis o a

more producive workorce.59 Tese esimaes are subjec o considerable uncer-

ainy, bu hey sugges ha an invesmen o $2.6 billion in naional service would

evenually yield a oal o $5.59 billion in higher ax receips and reduced spend-

ing, and $10.2 billion oal economic benefis.


22/27


Conclusion

Long-erm unemploymen remains a serious naional economic problem, espe-

cially since many workers who are no longer couned as unemployed may have

exied he labor orce having given up on ever finding a job. Te persisenly high

long-erm unemploymen rae in he wake o he Grea ecession indicaes a pol-

icy response ha was inadequae o address he scope o his paricular challenge.

Expanding naional service now by ully unding he Serve America Ac is a way

o help address he immediae problem o long-erm unemploymen, as well as

increase all o he oher benefis ha he naion accrues rom service. Esablishingan auomaic sabilizer o und emporary naional service posiions would apply

lessons learned rom he Grea ecession o address persisenly high long-erm

unemploymen in uure economic downurns.

Long-erm unemployed workers ace paricularly seep challenges o finding a job,

bu long-erm unemploymen is a solvable problem. During he Grea Depression,

he ederal governmen made a choice o dramaically reduce he unemploymen

rae wih work relie programs. In addiion o puting he unemployed back o work,

hose programs buil roads, bridges, parks, and airporsincluding many aciliies

ha sill exis oday, such as Camp David and New York’s LaGuardia Airpor.

I lawmakers plan in advance o respond decisively o spikes in long-erm unem-

ploymen by esablishing a sysem o auomaically and emporarily expand

naional service, hen oday’s service programs will alleviae uure economic

hardship and build a legacy or generaions o come.


23/27


About the authors

Shirley Sagawa is a Visiing Senior Fellow a American Progress and is he

auhor o Te American Way to Change , which highlighs ways ha voluneer and

naional service is an imporan bu underuil ized sraegy o solve problems

in American communiies. She is he Presiden and CEO o he Service Year Alliance and he ounder o he Service Year Exchange, a echnology plaorm

or ull-ime, ull-year service.

Sagawa served as a presidenial appoinee in boh he George H.W. Bush and

Clinon adminisraions. As depuy chie o saff o ormer Firs Lady Hillary

Clinon, she advised he firs lady on domesic policy and organized hree Whie

House conerencesincluding he firs-ever Whie House Conerence on

Philanhropy. As special assisan o he presiden or domesic policy, Sagawa was

insrumenal o he drafing and passage o legislaion creaing he Corporaion

or Naional Service. Afer being confirmed by he Senae as he corporaion’s firsmanaging direcor, she led he developmen o new service programs or aduls

and sudens, including AmeriCorps. She also direced sraegic planning or his

new governmen corporaion.

Sagawa graduaed magna cum laude rom Smih College. She holds a maser’s

degree in public policy rom he London School o Economics and is a cum

laude graduae o Harvard Law School.

Harry Stein is he Direcor o Fiscal Policy a he Cener or American Progress.His work ocuses on he ax and spending choices wihin he ederal budge, and

he has writen exensively abou opics including appropriaions, ax expendiures,

and he budge oulook. Prior o joining he Cener, he worked as a legislaive

assisan o Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI). His porolio included he ederal budge,

ax policy, and naional securiy, including Sen. Kohl’s work on he Deense

Appropriaions Subcommitee. In ha posiion, Sein spearheaded successul

effors o permanenly exend he ax credi or employer-provided child care and

o compensae roops who had been wrongully denied benefis ha hey earned

in connecion wih overseas deploymens.


24/27


Sein has appeared on radio and elevision saions including MSNBC, CNBC,

and BBC World Service, and he has published opinion pieces in oules such

as euers, Te Guardian , and Roll Call. His work has been cied by publica-

ions including Te Washington Post , Te Atlantic , and Te New Yorker , and he

has been quoed in Te Wall Street Journal , Bloomberg , Politico , and many oher

major news sources.

Sein is an experienced ax proessional and voluneers his ime o prepare ax

reurns or low-income cliens hrough he DC Earned Income ax Credi

Campaign. He received his bachelor’s degree in poliical science and psychology

rom he Universiy o Wisconsin–Madison.


25/27


Endnotes

1 Data are seasonally adjusted. Federal Reserve Bank of St.Louis, “Number of Civilians Unemployed for 27 Weeksand Over,” available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OV (last accessed January 2016).

2 The National Bureau of Economic Research, “US Busi-ness Cycle Expansions and Contractions,” available athttp://www.nber.org/cycles.html (last accessed January2016).

3 National Park Service, “Franklin Delano RooseveltMemorial Quotations,” available at http://www.nps.gov/frde/photosmultimedia/quotations.htm (last accessedJanuary 2016).

4 Michael R. Darby, “Three-and-a-Half Million U.S.Employees Have Been Mislaid: Or, an Explanation of Un-employment, 1934-1941,” Journal of Political Economy 84 (1) ( 1976): 1–16, available at http://www.jstor.org/stable/1830168.

5 The Living New Deal, “Projects by Category,” availableat https://livingnewdeal.org/project-categories/ (lastaccessed January 2016).

6 Serve America Act, Public Law 111-13, 111th Cong.,1 sess. (2009), available at https://www.congress.gov/111/plaws/publ13/PLAW-111publ13.pdf.

7 Corporation for National and Community Service, Con-gressional Budget Justification, Fiscal Year 2016 (2015),p. 8, available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdf .

8 Martin Luther King, Jr., “The Drum Major Instinct,” Febru-ary 4, 1968. In Clayborne Carson and Peter Holloran, eds., A Knock at Midnight(New York: Warner Books, 2000).

9 Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, “Civilian Labor Force,”available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OV (last accessed January 2016); Federal ReserveBank of St. Louis, “Number of Civilians Unemployed for27 Weeks and Over.”

10 Under the policy recommended in this report, tempo-

rary national service positions would have peaked inthe first quarter of 2013. Federal Reserve Bank of St.Louis, “Number of Civilians Unemployed for 27 Weeksand O ver.”

11 Clive Belfield, “The Economic Value of National Service”(New York: Columbia University Center for Benefit-CostStudies in Education, 2013), p. 16, available at http://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_Na-tional_Service.pdf .

12 Ben Steverman, “The Great Recession Put Us in a Hole.Are We Out Yet?,” Bloomberg, October 27, 2014, avail-able at http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.html; Bureau of Economic Analysis, “National Data,”

Table 1.12, available at http://www.bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfm (last accessed January 2016 ); FederalReserve Bank of St. Louis, “Number of Civilians Unem-

ployed for 27 Weeks and Over.”

13 Alan B. Krueger, Judd Cramer, David Cho, “Are theLong-Term Unemployed on the Margins of the LaborMarket?” Brookings Papers on Economic Activity (Spring)(2014): 229-299, available at http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdf .

14 Jeffry Bartash, “Why companies are wary to hirelong-term unemployed,” MarketWatch, April 3, 2014,available at http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unem-ployed-2014-04-03.

15 Sarah Ayres, “The High Cost of Youth Unemployment”(Washington: Center for American Progress, 2013), avail-able at http://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/AyresYouthUnemployment1.pdf .

16 Data are not seasonally adjusted. Federal ReserveBank of St. Louis, “Unemployment Rate: Not Enrolledin School, 16-24 years,” available at https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/LNU04023016 (last accessedJanuary 2016).

17 Ibid.

18 Bureau of Labor Statistics, “A-36. Unemployed personsby age, sex, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, maritalstatus, and duration of unemployment,” November2015, available at http://www.bls.gov/opub/ee/2015/cps/tablea36_201511.pdf .

19 Steve Crabtree, “In U.S., Depression Rates Higher forLong-Term Unemployed,” Gallup, June 9, 2014, availableat http://www.gallup.com/poll/171044/depression-rates-higher-among-long-term-unemployed.aspx.

20 Austin Nichols, Josh Mitchell, and Stephan Lindner,“Consequences of Long-Term Unemployment” (Washington: The Urban Institute, 2013), p. 5, availableat http://www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/412887-conse-quences-of-long-term-unemployment.pdf.

21 Ibid.

22 Congressional Budget Office, “The Budget and Eco-nomic Outlook: 2014 to 2024” (2014), p. 40, availableat http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/45010-Out-look2014_Feb_0.pdf.

23 Krueger, Cramer, and Cho, “Are the Long-Term Unem-ployed on the Margins of the Labor Market?”

24 Ben Casselman, “The Biggest Predictor of How LongYou’ll Be Unemployed Is When You Lose Your Job,”FiveThirtyEight, April 17, 2014, available at http://fivethir-tyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/ .

25 Ibid.

26 Martin Luther King, Jr., “Speech to the United Automo-bile Workers Union in Detroit, Michigan,” April 27, 1961.In Michael K. Honey, ed., All Labor Has Dignity (Boston:Beacon Press, 2011).

27 Christopher Spera and others, “Volunteering as a Path-way to Employment: Does Volunteering Increase Oddsof Finding a Job for the Out of Work?” (Washington:Corporation for National and Community Service,2013), available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/

sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_re-port.pdf.

28 Corporation for National and Community Service,“AmeriCorps State and National Policy FrequentlyAsked Questions (FAQs),” p. 26, available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdf (last ac-cessed January 2016).

https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OVhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OVhttp://www.nber.org/cycles.htmlhttp://www.nps.gov/frde/photosmultimedia/quotations.htmhttp://www.nps.gov/frde/photosmultimedia/quotations.htmhttps://livingnewdeal.org/project-categories/https://www.congress.gov/111/plaws/publ13/PLAW-111publ13.pdfhttps://www.congress.gov/111/plaws/publ13/PLAW-111publ13.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OVhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OVhttp://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_National_Service.pdfhttp://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_National_Service.pdfhttp://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_National_Service.pdfhttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.htmlhttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.htmlhttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.htmlhttp://www.bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfmhttp://www.bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfmhttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unemployed-2014-04-03http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unemployed-2014-04-03http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unemployed-2014-04-03http://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/AyresYouthUnemployment1.pdfhttp://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/AyresYouthUnemployment1.pdfhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/LNU04023016https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/LNU04023016http://www.bls.gov/opub/ee/2015/cps/tablea36_201511.pdfhttp://www.bls.gov/opub/ee/2015/cps/tablea36_201511.pdfhttp://www.gallup.com/poll/171044/depression-rates-higher-among-long-term-unemployed.aspxhttp://www.gallup.com/poll/171044/depression-rates-higher-among-long-term-unemployed.aspxhttp://www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/412887-consequences-of-long-term-unemployment.pdfhttp://www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/412887-consequences-of-long-term-unemployment.pdfhttp://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/45010-Outlook2014_Feb_0.pdfhttp://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/45010-Outlook2014_Feb_0.pdfhttp://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/AmeriCorps_State_National_Policy_FAQs.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/upload/employment_research_report.pdfhttp://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-biggest-predictor-of-how-long-youll-be-unemployed-is-when-you-lose-your-job/http://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/45010-Outlook2014_Feb_0.pdfhttp://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/45010-Outlook2014_Feb_0.pdfhttp://www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/412887-consequences-of-long-term-unemployment.pdfhttp://www.urban.org/uploadedpdf/412887-consequences-of-long-term-unemployment.pdfhttp://www.gallup.com/poll/171044/depression-rates-higher-among-long-term-unemployed.aspxhttp://www.gallup.com/poll/171044/depression-rates-higher-among-long-term-unemployed.aspxhttp://www.bls.gov/opub/ee/2015/cps/tablea36_201511.pdfhttp://www.bls.gov/opub/ee/2015/cps/tablea36_201511.pdfhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/LNU04023016https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/LNU04023016http://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/AyresYouthUnemployment1.pdfhttp://cdn.americanprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/AyresYouthUnemployment1.pdfhttp://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unemployed-2014-04-03http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unemployed-2014-04-03http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-companies-are-wary-to-hire-the-long-term-unemployed-2014-04-03http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Projects/BPEA/Spring%202014/2014a_Krueger.pdfhttp://www.bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfmhttp://www.bea.gov/iTable/index_nipa.cfmhttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.htmlhttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.htmlhttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-10-27/the-great-recession-put-us-in-a-hole-are-we-out-yet-.htmlhttp://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_National_Service.pdfhttp://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_National_Service.pdfhttp://voicesforservice.org/resources/Sep19_Econ_Value_National_Service.pdfhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OVhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CLF16OVhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttps://www.congress.gov/111/plaws/publ13/PLAW-111publ13.pdfhttps://www.congress.gov/111/plaws/publ13/PLAW-111publ13.pdfhttps://livingnewdeal.org/project-categories/http://www.nps.gov/frde/photosmultimedia/quotations.htmhttp://www.nps.gov/frde/photosmultimedia/quotations.htmhttp://www.nber.org/cycles.htmlhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OVhttps://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/UEMP27OV


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29 Gina Cardazone and others, “AmeriCorps AlumniOutcomes” (Washington: Corporation for Nationaland Community Service, 2015), available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evi-denceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdf .

30 Corporation for National and Community Service, “TheHealth Benefits of Volunteering: A Review of Research”(2007), available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/07_0506_hbr.pdf .

31 Spera and others, “Volunteering as a Pathway to Em-ployment: Does Volunteering Increase Odds of Findinga Job for the Out of Work?”

32 YouthBuild, “About YouthBuild USA,” available at https://www.youthbuild.org/about-youthbuild-usa (last ac-cessed January 2016).

33 Corporation for National and Community Service,“Employers of National Service,” available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-service (last accessed January 2016).

34 Charles Tsai, “The Case for Social Innovation Micro-Credentials,” Stanford Social Innovation Review , July1, 2014, available at http://ssir.org/articles/entry/the_case_for_social_innovation_micro_credentials.

35 Nonprofit Finance Fund, “2011 State of the Sector Sur-

vey” (2011), available at http://www.nonprofitfinance-fund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdf.

36 Corporation for National and Community Service, “Con-gressional Budget Justification, Fiscal Year 2012” (2011),p. 54, available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/11_0214_cbj_web_version.pdf.

37 Ibid, at pp. 17 and 21.

38 Office of Inspector General, Recovery Act: ETA Took Recom-mended Corrective Action to Ensure Congressional IntentCould Be Met in the YouthBuild Program (U.S. Departmentof Labor, 2010), p. 1, available at https://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2010/18-10-006-03-001.pdf .

39 John A. Salmond, “The Civilian Conservation Corps,1933-1942: A New Deal Case Study ” (Durham: Duke

University Press, 1967), available online at http://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/con-tents.htm.

40 Data include AmeriCorps State and National grantsand AmeriCorps VISTA. Corporation for National andCommunity Service, “Report on the American Recoveryand Reinvestment Act” (2010), available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/11_0224_arra_finalreport.pdf .

41 Allan Chernoff, “Funding cuts threaten U.S. youthprograms,” CNN, June 25, 2011, available at http://tran-scripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1106/25/ybl.01.html.

42 Serve America Act , Public Law 111-13.

43 Corporation for National and Community Service,“Justice Department and CNCS Announce New Part-nership to Enhance Immigration Courts and Provide

Critical Legal Assistance to Unaccompanied Minors,”Press release, June 6, 2014, available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/

justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partner-ship-enhance.

44 Nonprofit Finance Fund, “2011 State of the SectorSurvey.”

45 Shirley Sagawa, “From Idea to Reality: A National-Ser-vice Platform,” Democracy (33) (2014): 28-33, availableat http://democracyjournal.org/magazine/33/from-idea-to-reality-a-national-service-platform/.

46 Corporation for National and Community Service,“AmeriCorps State and National Policy FrequentlyAsked Questions (FAQs),” p. 3.

47 Salmond, “The Civilian Conservation Corps, 1933-

1942:A New Deal Case Study.”

48 Corporation for National and Community Service,“Fiscal Year 2010: Congressional Budget Justification” (2009), available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justifica-tion.pdf.

49 Long-term unemployment rate from Federal ReserveBank of St. Louis, “Civilian Labor Force;” Federal ReserveBank of St. Louis, “Number of Civilians Unemployed for27 Weeks and Over.”

50 Ibid.

51 Ibid.

52 This calculation is based on the average cost per mem-

ber service year for AmeriCorps VISTA over a three-yearperiod from FY 2012 to FY 2014. The calculation alsoincludes the estimated cost per member service yearfor offering the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award.Corporation for National and Community Service, “Con-gressional Budget Justification, Fiscal Year 2016” (2015),pp. 27 and 34, available at http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdf.

53 Ibid.

54 Twelve-month average weekly benefit amount reportedin December 2013. U.S. Department of Labor, “MonthlyProgram and Financial Data,” available at http://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/claimssum.asp (last accessedJanuary 2016); Katelin P. Isaacs and Julie M. Whittaker,“Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC08):Status of Benefits Prior to Expiration” (Washington: Con-gressional Research Service, 2014), available at https://

www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42444.pdf .

55 Twelve-month average duration reported in December2013. United States Department of Labor, “MonthlyProgram and Financial Data.”

56 Corporation for National and Community Service,“AmeriCorps State and National Policy FrequentlyAsked Questions (FAQs),” p. 25.

57 Congressional Budget Office, “An Update to the Budgetand Economic Outlook: 2014 to 2024” (2014), availableat https://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-con-gress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdf .

58 Belfield, “The Economic Value of National Service,” p. 17.

59 Ibid, at p. 16.

http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/07_0506_hbr.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/07_0506_hbr.pdfhttps://www.youthbuild.org/about-youthbuild-usahttps://www.youthbuild.org/about-youthbuild-usahttp://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-servicehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-servicehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-servicehttp://ssir.org/articles/entry/the_case_for_social_innovation_micro_credentialshttp://ssir.org/articles/entry/the_case_for_social_innovation_micro_credentialshttp://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdfhttp://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdfhttp://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/11_0214_cbj_web_version.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/11_0214_cbj_web_version.pdfhttps://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2010/18-10-006-03-001.pdfhttps://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2010/18-10-006-03-001.pdfhttp://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/contents.htmhttp://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/contents.htmhttp://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/contents.htmhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/11_0224_arra_finalreport.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/11_0224_arra_finalreport.pdfhttp://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1106/25/ybl.01.htmlhttp://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1106/25/ybl.01.htmlhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://democracyjournal.org/magazine/33/from-idea-to-reality-a-national-service-platform/http://democracyjournal.org/magazine/33/from-idea-to-reality-a-national-service-platform/http://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justification.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justification.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justification.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttp://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/claimssum.asphttp://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/claimssum.asphttps://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42444.pdfhttps://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42444.pdfhttps://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-congress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdfhttps://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-congress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdfhttps://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-congress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdfhttps://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-congress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdfhttps://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-congress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdfhttps://www.cbo.gov/sites/default/files/113th-congress-2013-2014/reports/45653-OutlookUpdate_2014_Aug.pdfhttps://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42444.pdfhttps://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R42444.pdfhttp://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/claimssum.asphttp://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/claimssum.asphttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/page/cncs_2016_CBJ_Final.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justification.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justification.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2010_budget_justification.pdfhttp://democracyjournal.org/magazine/33/from-idea-to-reality-a-national-service-platform/http://democracyjournal.org/magazine/33/from-idea-to-reality-a-national-service-platform/http://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2014/justice-department-and-cncs-announce-new-partnership-enhancehttp://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1106/25/ybl.01.htmlhttp://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1106/25/ybl.01.htmlhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/11_0224_arra_finalreport.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/11_0224_arra_finalreport.pdfhttp://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/contents.htmhttp://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/contents.htmhttp://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ccc/salmond/contents.htmhttps://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2010/18-10-006-03-001.pdfhttps://www.oig.dol.gov/public/reports/oa/2010/18-10-006-03-001.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/11_0214_cbj_web_version.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/11_0214_cbj_web_version.pdfhttp://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdfhttp://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdfhttp://www.nonprofitfinancefund.org/sites/default/files/docs/2011/2011survey_brochure.pdfhttp://ssir.org/articles/entry/the_case_for_social_innovation_micro_credentialshttp://ssir.org/articles/entry/the_case_for_social_innovation_micro_credentialshttp://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-servicehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-servicehttp://www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/employers-national-servicehttps://www.youthbuild.org/about-youthbuild-usahttps://www.youthbuild.org/about-youthbuild-usahttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/07_0506_hbr.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/pdf/07_0506_hbr.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdfhttp://www.nationalservice.gov/sites/default/files/evidenceexchange/FR_CNCS_Alumni%20Outcomes%20Survey%20Report.pdf


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