Rep. André Thapedi

Filed: 2/7/2019

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 928

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 928 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 2020
5Census Grant Program Act.
 
6    Section 5. Legislative findings. The General Assembly
7finds that:
8        (1) Section 2 of Article 1 of the United States
9    Constitution requires a non-biased and nonpolitical
10    enumeration of the population of the United States every 10
11    years, which is known as the federal decennial census;
12        (2) the federal decennial census is important because
13    census figures affect congressional representation, State
14    redistricting, federal formula grant allocations, State
15    funding to local governments, local programs, and planning
16    activities for the next 10 years;

 

 

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1        (3) the federal decennial census not only counts
2    population, but also: (i) establishes representation
3    decisions for federal, State, and local governments; (ii)
4    is the basis upon which federal funding is allocated for
5    programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and the National
6    School Lunch Program; and (iii) guides business decisions
7    regarding labor pools and investment choices;
8        (4) because federal decennial census data are used in
9    political, business, and social welfare contexts, the
10    accuracy of the count is critical;
11        (5) Congress has underfunded the U.S. Commerce
12    Department's budget to conduct the 2020 Census, causing the
13    Census Bureau to cancel certain preparations that would
14    test the Census Bureau's new digital tools;
15        (6) the Census Bureau plans for 80% of the country to
16    receive communications that urge a response to the census
17    via the Internet;
18        (7) the Census Bureau's reliance on the Internet is
19    worrisome because 21% of rural households do not currently
20    have Internet access at home, putting rural residents at
21    risk of being undercounted;
22        (8) in fiscal year 2015, the 50 states and the District
23    of Columbia received $589,700,000,000 from 16 large
24    federal assistance programs that allocate funds on the
25    basis of federal decennial census–derived statistics;
26        (9) according to the George Washington University

 

 

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1    Institute for Public Policy, in fiscal year 2015, Illinois
2    received $19,738,866,367, or approximately $1,535 per
3    capita, for 16 major federal assistance programs that
4    distribute funds based on federal decennial census-derived
5    statistics;
6        (10) a complete and accurate count of all Illinois
7    residents in the 2020 Census is vital to ensure fair
8    political representation and distribution of funding in
9    Illinois;
10        (11) historically, it has been more difficult to reach
11    and enumerate certain groups as part of the federal
12    decennial census, including, but not limited to, racial and
13    ethnic minorities, persons who do not speak English
14    fluently, lower income persons, homeless persons,
15    undocumented immigrants, young mobile persons, children,
16    persons who are distrustful of the government, and LGBTQ
17    persons;
18        (12) a geographic area is considered hard-to-count if
19    the area's self-response rate in the 2010 decennial census
20    was 73% or less;
21        (13) according to the Census 2020 hard-to-count map
22    application developed by the City University of New York
23    Mapping Service, approximately 16% of Illinoisans are
24    hard-to-count and face a high likelihood of being
25    undercounted;
26        (14) there are census tracts in jurisdictions

 

 

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1    throughout the State where achieving an accurate count of
2    the population is challenging, including the counties of
3    Cook, DeKalb, Pulaski, Kankakee, Peoria, Alexander,
4    Jackson, Coles, Champaign, St. Clair, McDonough,
5    Winnebago, and Lake;
6        (15) the U.S. Government Accountability Office added
7    the 2020 Census to the High Risk list because of concerns
8    about funding and effective operations, increasing
9    concerns about an undercount of the population; and
10        (16) adequate funding is necessary to ensure a complete
11    and accurate count of all people in this State, and it is
12    the intent of the General Assembly that existing
13    governmental outreach and education efforts be used to
14    facilitate a complete count for the 2020 Census.
 
15    Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act:
16    "2020 Census" means the decennial census conducted by the
17United States Census Bureau in the year 2020 to determine the
18number of people living in the United States for purposes of
19apportionment of representatives in the House of
20Representatives.
21    "Grant Panel" means the 2020 Census Grant Program Panel.
 
22    Section 15. 2020 Census Grant Program.
23    (a) There is created the 2020 Census Grant Program for the
24purpose of issuing grants to units of local government and

 

 

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1nonprofit organizations to support the accurate counting of the
2population of the State and its local jurisdictions, and the
3collection of basic demographic and housing information of the
4population of this State for the 2020 Census.
5    (b) There is created the 2020 Census Grant Program Panel.
6The Grant Panel shall consist of the following members:
7        (i) a chair appointed jointly by the President of the
8    Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
9        (ii) two members appointed by the Governor; and
10        (iii) two members appointed jointly by the President of
11    the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
12    (c) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
13shall provide staff and administrative support for the Grant
14Panel. A member of the Grant Panel shall not receive
15compensation for service as a member of the Grant Panel, but is
16entitled to reimbursement for necessary travel expenses
17incurred by the member.
18    (d) On or before July 1, 2019, a unit of local government
19or nonprofit organization may apply to the Grant Panel for
20funds to support the accurate counting of the population of its
21jurisdiction or the State and the collection of basic
22demographic and housing information of the population of the
23State for the 2020 Census.
24    (e) On or before August 1, 2019, the Grant Panel shall
25award funds, in an amount determined by the Grant Panel, to
26units of local government and nonprofit organizations for

 

 

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1approved applications.
2    (f) The Grant Panel shall notify units of local government
3of the 2020 Census Grant Program. Units of local government
4receiving notice from the Grant Panel under this subsection (f)
5shall notify nonprofit organizations within the jurisdiction
6of the unit of local government of the 2020 Census Grant
7Program.
8    (g) For fiscal year 2020, the Governor shall include in the
9annual State budget for the 2020 Census Grant Program an
10appropriation of $33,000,000.
 
11    Section 20. Program application.
12    (a) Applicants for these grants shall use the grant
13application format prepared and made available by the Grant
14Panel for this purpose. The applications will be available on
15the website of the Department of Commerce and Economic
16Opportunity. Public agencies and private sector entities shall
17be eligible to apply for these grants. Each applicant shall
18describe itself, whether it is a public agency or private
19sector entity. Each private sector entity shall describe
20itself, including its legal status (corporation, joint
21venture, partnership, or not-for-profit) and its mission. All
22private sector entities must be authorized to do business in
23the State of Illinois or, if a not-for-profit entity,
24authorized to conduct affairs in Illinois. Applicants shall
25designate that they are applying for a grant to encourage

 

 

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1census participation in hard to count communities and of hard
2to count persons, and shall designate the amount of grant funds
3being requested. Each application shall include a detailed,
4narrative statement describing the proposed use of the grant
5funds. Each applicant also shall provide:
6        (1) project director name, with contact information;
7        (2) description of ability to administer the Grant;
8        (3) project title;
9        (4) project description;
10        (5) target audience and need;
11        (6) project schedule;
12        (7) methods for evaluating outcome; and
13        (8) proposed budget, details, and explanation of
14    expenses.
15    (b) Grant applicants must demonstrate in their grant
16applications that they have satisfactorily met all
17requirements set forth in this Section, and they possess the
18administrative capacity to perform the program, fiscal and
19reporting functions stipulated in this Section.
20    (c) The Grant Panel may deny a grant application if the
21requirements in this Section are not met, or are inadequately
22met. The Grant Panel shall not discriminate on the basis of
23race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin,
24disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military
25status in the awarding of grants.
26    (d) Grant applications not submitted in the required format

 

 

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1by the deadline date set forth in subsection (d) of Section 15,
2or not completed, shall not be considered for funding by the
3Grant Panel.
4    (e) This shall be a competitive grant application process.
5A grant review committee shall review all grant applications
6and make recommendations to the Grant Panel rewarding grant
7awards. The following requirements shall apply to the grant
8review committee:
9        (1) The grant review committee shall consist of
10    personnel of the Department of Commerce and Economic
11    Opportunity, designated members of the Complete Count
12    Commission, and, at the discretion of the Grant Panel,
13    additional qualified reviewers.
14        (2) Any additional reviewers shall be selected based on
15    their academic qualifications and their vocational and
16    volunteer experience related to the subject matter of the
17    grant.
18        (3) No person shall serve on a grant review committee
19    if that person is an applicant for the grant, is employed
20    by an applicant for the grant, has an ownership interest in
21    or receives income from an applicant for the grant, or is
22    related more closely than the fifth degree of consanguinity
23    (second cousins) to an owner or employee of an applicant
24    for the grant.
25        (4) Members of the grant review committee shall
26    independently consider the following criteria, and assign

 

 

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1    weighted scores up to the total amount of points indicated:
2            (A) Abstract. Does the project overview
3        appropriately communicate the proposed project? (25
4        points)
5            (B) Administrative capacity. Does the applicant
6        have adequate experience and qualifications to
7        accomplish the proposed project? Is the applicant a
8        known and trusted voice in the community to be served?
9        (100 points)
10            (C) Project description. Has the applicant
11        provided a comprehensive description of the project,
12        including details about methods, activities, and
13        services to be provided in light of the legislative
14        findings of Section 5? If the applicant is partnering
15        with any other entity, is that partnership fully
16        explained, and are those entities known and trusted
17        voices in the communities to be served? (200 points)
18            (D) Target audience and need. Has the applicant
19        identified the intended audience and its need for
20        services proposed? With regard to grant applications
21        to encourage participation in the census, and noting
22        that based on the latest census estimates
23        approximately 16% of Illinois' current population
24        lives in hard-to-count neighborhoods, has the
25        applicant set forth a plan for identifying and working
26        in these hard-to-count neighborhoods? (500 points)

 

 

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1            (E) Project schedule. Does the applicant's
2        timeline clearly illustrate appropriate scheduling of
3        proposed actions and activities? (50 points)
4            (F) Evaluation. Is the methodology and strategy
5        that the applicant will use to evaluate the success of
6        the project reasonable? (25 points)
7            (G) Budget. Is the proposed budget reasonable,
8        necessary, appropriate, and adequate to perform the
9        proposed services? (100 points)
10        For purposes of this grant application and review
11    process:
12        "Community provider" means an entity that has the
13    capability to provide services or goods to designated
14    communities as necessary to complete the requirements of
15    the grant.
16        "Census participation" means the act of responding to
17    the census questionnaire by mail, phone, or online.
18    (f) The total sum appropriated for a particular purpose may
19be awarded to a single applicant, or that sum may be divided
20into awards to multiple applicants. If grants are awarded to
21multiple applicants, each selected application shall be funded
22according to the amount of funding available based on the
23comparative demonstrated need, experience executing the
24proposed program or plan, and projected outcomes.
25    (g) All grant applicants shall be notified whether or not
26their application has been approved. The decision of the Grant

 

 

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1Panel regarding the award of grants under this Section is
2final.
3    (h) The Grant Panel shall notify the submitting entity when
4an application is approved. All approved applicants shall enter
5into a grant agreement provided by the Grant Panel before any
6grant funds will be distributed.
 
7    Section 25. Grant reporting requirements.
8    (a) As stipulated by the grant agreement, the following
9reports shall be completed and transmitted to the Department of
10Commerce and Economic Opportunity by each grant recipient:
11        (1) monthly narrative and financial reports showing
12    expenditures made from grant funds by line item;
13        (2) a final financial report showing all expenditures
14    of grant funds and the return of any non-expended grant
15    funds; and
16        (3) a final narrative report evaluating the degree to
17    which the grantee achieved the goals and objectives of the
18    project.
19    (b) The Grant Panel may request additional information and
20data from any grant applicant.
21    (c) Grants awarded under this Section are subject to the
22Grant Accountability and Transparency Act, and the Grant Panel
23shall not consider grant applications submitted by entities
24included in the Illinois Debarred and Suspended List maintained
25by the Governor's Office of Management and Budget.

 

 

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1    (d) Grant recipients shall maintain books and records
2relating to the expenditure of grant funds. Books and records,
3including information stored in computer systems, shall be
4maintained by the grant recipient for a period of 3 years from
5the later of the date of the final grant payment or the
6completion of the projects for which the grant was issued.
7Books and records required to be maintained under this Section
8shall be available for review or audit by the Department of
9Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the Attorney General, or the
10Auditor General. Failure to maintain books and records required
11by this Section shall establish a presumption in favor of the
12Grant Panel for the recovery of any grant funds, attorney's
13fees, and costs paid by the Grant Panel or its designee.
14    (e) Grants made under this Section are subject to the
15provisions of the Illinois Grant Funds Recovery Act. Actions
16brought under that Act may include, but are not limited to, a
17grant recipient's failure to spend funds in accordance with the
18application or approved amendment or the failure to comply with
19reporting procedures stipulated in this Section. If a provision
20of this Section conflicts with a provision of the Illinois
21Grant Funds Recovery Act, then the provision of the Illinois
22Grant Funds Recovery Act controls.
23    (f) Obligations of the Grant Panel to fund this Grant
24Program will cease immediately without penalty or further
25payment being required if the funds for the grants are not
26available to the Grant Panel.
 

 

 

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1    Section 30. Repeal. This Act is repealed on January 1,
22022.
 
3    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
4becoming law.".