March 25, 2025
Ms. Houlahan (for herself, Mr. Bergman, Mr. Panetta, and Mr. Bacon) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce, and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services, Foreign Affairs, and Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
To establish an Interagency Council on Service to promote and strengthen opportunities for military service, national service, and public service for all people of the United States, and for other purposes.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Unity through Service Act of 2025
.
Sec. 2. Interagency council on service
(a) Establishment
(1) In general
There is established an Interagency Council on Service (in this section referred to as the Council
).
(2) Functions
The Council shall—
(A)
advise the President with respect to promoting, strengthening, and expanding opportunities for military service, national service, and public service for all people of the United States; and
(B)
review, assess, and coordinate holistic recruitment strategies and initiatives of the executive branch to foster an increased sense of service and civic responsibility among all people of the United States and to explore ways of enhancing connectivity of interested applicants to national service programs and opportunities.
(b) Composition
(1) Membership
The Council shall be composed of members who are representatives of—
(A)
the Secretary of State;
(B)
the Secretary of Defense;
(C)
the Attorney General;
(D)
the Secretary of the Interior;
(E)
the Secretary of Commerce;
(F)
the Secretary of Labor;
(G)
the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
(H)
the Secretary of Education;
(I)
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs;
(J)
the Secretary of Homeland Security;
(K)
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget;
(L)
the Director of National Intelligence;
(M)
the Director of the Office of Personnel Management;
(N)
the Director of the Peace Corps;
(O)
the Director of Selective Service System;
(P)
the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service; and
(Q)
such other officers as the President may designate.
(2) Chair
The President shall annually designate to serve as the Chair of the Council a member of the Council under paragraph (1), the appointment of whom as an officer or employee of the Federal Government was made by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
(3) Meetings
The Council shall meet on a quarterly basis or more frequently as the Chair of the Council may direct.
(c) Responsibilities of the council
The Council shall—
(1)
assist and advise the President in the establishment of strategies, goals, objectives, and priorities to promote service and civic responsibility among all people of the United States;
(2)
develop and recommend to the President common recruitment strategies and outreach opportunities for increasing the participation, and propensity of people of the United States to participate, in military service, national service, and public service in order to address national security and domestic investment;
(3)
serve as a forum for Federal officials responsible for military service, national service, and public service programs to, as feasible and practicable—
(A)
coordinate and share best practices for service recruitment; and
(B)
develop common interagency, cross-service initiatives and pilots for service recruitment;
(4)
lead a strategic, interagency coordinated effort on behalf of the Federal Government to develop joint awareness and recruitment, retention, and marketing initiatives involving military service, national service, and public service;
(5)
consider approaches for assessing impacts of service on the needs of the United States and individuals participating in and benefitting from such service;
(6)
consult, as the Council considers advisable, with representatives of non-Federal entities, including State, local, and Tribal governments, State and local educational agencies, State Service Commissions, institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, faith-based organizations, philanthropic organizations, and the private sector, in order to promote and develop initiatives to foster and reward military service, national service, and public service;
(7)
not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, and quadrennially thereafter, prepare and submit to the President and Congress a Service Strategy, which shall set forth—
(A)
a review of programs and initiatives of the Federal Government relating to the mandate of the Council;
(B)
a review of Federal Government online content relating to the mandate of the Council, including user experience with such content;
(C)
current and foreseeable trends for service to address the needs of the United States;
(D)
recommended service recruitment strategies and branding opportunities to address outreach and communication deficiencies identified by the Council; and
(E)
to the extent practical, a joint service messaging strategy for military service, national service, and public service;
(8)
identify any notable initiatives by State, local, and Tribal governments and by public and nongovernmental entities to increase awareness of and participation in national service programs; and
(9)
perform such other functions as the President may direct.
Sec. 3. Joint market research to advance military and national service
(a) Program authorized
The Secretary of Defense, the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the Director of the Peace Corps may carry out a joint market research, market studies, recruiting, and advertising program to complement the existing programs of the military departments, the national service programs administered by the Corporation, and the Peace Corps.
(b) Information sharing permitted
Section 503 of title 10, United States Code, shall not be construed to prohibit sharing of information among, or joint marketing efforts of, the Department of Defense, the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the Peace Corps to carry out this section.
Sec. 4. Transition opportunities for military servicemembers and national service participants
(a) Employment assistance
Section 1143(c)(1) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by inserting the Corporation for National and Community Service,
after State employment agencies,
.
(b) Employment assistance, job training assistance, and other transitional services: Department of Labor
Section 1144 of title 10, United States Code, is amended—
(1)
in subsection (b), by adding at the end the following:
(11)
Provide information on public service opportunities, training on public service job recruiting, and the advantages of careers with the Federal Government.; and
(2)
in subsection (f)(1)(D)—
(A)
by redesignating clause (v) as clause (vi); and
(B)
by inserting after clause (iv) the following new clause:
(v)
National and community service, taught in conjunction with the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service.
(c) Authorities and duties of the chief executive officer
Section 193A(b) of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12651d(b)) is amended—
(1)
in paragraph (24), by striking and
at the end;
(2)
in paragraph (25), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and
; and
(3)
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
(26)
ensure that individuals completing a partial or full term of service in a program under subtitle C or E or part A of title I of the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4951 et seq.) receive information about military and public service opportunities for which they may qualify or in which they may be interested.
Sec. 5. Joint report to congress on initiatives to integrate military and national service
(a) Reporting requirement
Not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of this Act and quadrennially thereafter, the Chair of the Interagency Council on Service, in coordination with the Secretary of Defense, the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the Director of the Peace Corps, shall submit a joint report on cross-service marketing, research, and promotion, including recommendations for increasing joint advertising and recruitment initiatives for the Armed Forces, programs administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the Peace Corps, to the following congressional committees:
(1)
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
(2)
The Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives.
(3)
The Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the House of Representatives.
(4)
The Committee on Armed Services of the Senate.
(5)
The Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives.
(6)
The Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.
(7)
The Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
(8)
The Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate.
(9)
The Committee on Education and Workforce of the House of Representatives.
(b) Contents of report
Each report under subsection (a) shall include the following:
(1)
The number of Peace Corps volunteers and participants in national service programs administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service, who previously served as a member of the Armed Forces.
(2)
The number of members of the Armed Forces who previously served in the Peace Corps or in a program administered by the Corporation for National and Community Service.
(3)
An assessment of existing (as of the date of the report submission) joint recruitment and advertising initiatives undertaken by the Department of Defense, the Peace Corps, or the Corporation for National and Community Service.
(4)
An assessment of the feasibility and cost of expanding such existing initiatives.
(5)
An assessment of ways to improve the ability of the reporting agencies to recruit individuals from the other reporting agencies.
(6)
A description of the information and data used to develop any initiative or campaign intended to advance military service or national service, including with respect to any activity carried out under section 3.
(c) Consultation
The Chair of the Interagency Council on Service, the Secretary of Defense, the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community Service, and the Director of the Peace Corps shall undertake studies of recruiting efforts that are necessary to carry out the provisions of this section. Such studies may be conducted using any funds appropriated to those entities under Federal law other than this Act.
Sec. 6. Reports to Congress on lessons learned regarding retention and recruitment
The Chair of the Interagency Council on Service shall—
(1)
conduct a study on—
(A)
the effectiveness of past advertising campaigns for military service, national service, and public service; and
(B)
the role of vaccine requirements on the retention and recruitment of individuals for military service, national service, and public service; and
(2)
not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, submit a report on the findings of and lessons learned from the study under paragraph (1) to—
(A)
the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and
(B)
the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives.
Sec. 7. Definitions
In this Act:
(1) Interagency Council on Service
The term Interagency Council on Service means the Interagency Council on Service established by section 2(a).
(2) Military department
The term military department means each of the military departments listed in section 102 of title 5, United States Code.
(3) Military service
The term military service means active service (as defined in subsection (d)(3) of section 101 of title 10, United States Code) or active status (as defined in subsection (d)(4) of such section) in one of the Armed Forces (as defined in subsection (a)(4) of such section).
(4) National service
The term national service means participation, other than military service or public service, in a program that—
(A)
is designed to enhance the common good and meet the needs of communities, the States, or the United States;
(B)
is funded or facilitated by—
(i)
an institution of higher education as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001); or
(ii)
the Federal Government or a State, Tribal, or local government; and
(C)
is a program authorized in—
(i)
the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.);
(ii)
section 171 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3226) relating to the YouthBuild Program;
(iii)
the Domestic Volunteer Service Act of 1973 (42 U.S.C. 4950 et seq.); or
(iv)
the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12501 et seq.).
(5) Public service
The term public service means civilian employment in the Federal Government or a State, Tribal, or local government.
(6) Service
The term service means a personal commitment of time, energy, and talent to a mission that contributes to the public good by protecting the Nation and the citizens of the United States, strengthening communities, States, or the United States, or promoting the general social welfare.
(7) State service commission
The term State Service Commission means a State Commission on National and Community Service maintained by a State pursuant to section 178 of the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12638).
Sec. 8. No additional funds
No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated for the purpose of carrying out this Act.
Sec. 9. GAO report
Not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall report to Congress on the effectiveness of this Act and the amendments made by this Act.