29 U.S.C. § 718 — Traditionally underserved populations

Page 213 TITLE 29—LABOR § 718 fied generally to chapter 7 (§ 301 et seq.) of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 1305 of Title 42 and Tables. PRIOR PROVISIONS Provisions similar to this section were contained in section 718 of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220. A prior section 716, Pub. L. 93–112, § 17, as added Pub. L. 99–506, title I, § 108(a), Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1812, re- lated to State administration, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220, title IV, § 403, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1093. See section 714 of this title. A prior section 19 of Pub. L. 93–112 was renumbered section 21 and is classified to section 718 of this title. Another prior section 19 of Pub. L. 93–112 was classi- fied to section 718 of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220. AMENDMENTS 2014—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 113–128 substituted ‘‘sub- chapter VI’’ for ‘‘part B of subchapter VI’’. 1998—Pub. L. 105–277, § 101(f) [title VIII, § 402(b)(4)], made technical amendment in the original to section designation and catchline. § 717. Client assistance information All programs, including community rehabili- tation programs, and projects, that provide serv- ices to individuals with disabilities under this chapter shall advise such individuals who are applicants for or recipients of the services, or the applicants’ representatives or individuals’ representatives, of the availability and purposes of the client assistance program under section 732 of this title, including information on means of seeking assistance under such program. (Pub. L. 93–112, § 20, formerly § 18, as added Pub. L. 105–220, title IV, § 403, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1114; renumbered § 20 and amended Pub. L. 105–277, div. A, § 101(f) [title VIII, § 402(a)(1), (b)(5)], Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681–337, 2681–412, 2681–413.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS Provisions similar to this section were contained in section 718a of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220. A prior section 717, Pub. L. 93–112, § 18, as added Pub. L. 99–506, title I, § 109(a), Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1813; amended Pub. L. 100–630, title II, § 201(g), Nov. 7, 1988, 102 Stat. 3304; Pub. L. 102–569, title I, § 108(b), Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4363, related to review of applications, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220, title IV, § 403, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1093. See section 715 of this title. A prior section 20 of Pub. L. 93–112 was classified to section 718a of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220. AMENDMENTS 1998—Pub. L. 105–277, § 101(f) [title VIII, § 402(b)(5)], made technical amendment to section designation and catchline in the original. § 718. Traditionally underserved populations (a) Findings With respect to the programs authorized in subchapters II through VII, the Congress finds as follows: (1) Racial profile The demographic profile of America is rap- idly changing. While the percentage increase from 2000 to 2010 for white Americans was 9.7 percent, the percentage increase for racial and ethnic minorities was much higher: 43.0 per- cent for Latinos, 12.3 percent for African- Americans, and 43.2 percent for Asian-Ameri- cans. (2) Rate of disability Ethnic and racial minorities tend to have disabling conditions at a disproportionately high rate. In 2011— (A) among Americans ages 16 through 64, the rate of disability was 12.1 percent; (B) among African-Americans in that age range, the disability rate was more than twice as high, at 27.1 percent; and (C) for American Indians and Alaska Na- tives in the same age range, the disability rate was also more than twice as high, at 27.0 percent. (3) Inequitable treatment Patterns of inequitable treatment of minori- ties have been documented in all major junc- tures of the vocational rehabilitation process. As compared to white Americans, a larger per- centage of African-American applicants to the vocational rehabilitation system is denied ac- ceptance. Of applicants accepted for service, a larger percentage of African-American cases is closed without being rehabilitated. Minorities are provided less training than their white counterparts. Consistently, less money is spent on minorities than on their white coun- terparts. (4) Recruitment Recruitment efforts within vocational reha- bilitation at the level of preservice training, continuing education, and in-service training must focus on bringing larger numbers of mi- norities into the profession in order to provide appropriate practitioner knowledge, role mod- els, and sufficient manpower to address the clearly changing demography of vocational re- habilitation. (b) Outreach to minorities (1) In general For each fiscal year, the Commissioner and the Director of the National Institute on Dis- ability, Independent Living, and Rehabilita- tion Research (referred to in this subsection as the ‘‘Director’’) shall reserve 1 percent of the funds appropriated for the fiscal year for pro- grams authorized under subchapters II, III, VI, and VII to carry out this subsection. The Com- missioner and the Director shall use the re- served funds to carry out one or more of the activities described in paragraph (2) through a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement. (2) Activities The activities carried out by the Commis- sioner and the Director shall include one or more of the following: (A) Making awards to minority entities and Indian tribes to carry out activities under the programs authorized under sub- chapters II, III, VI, and VII. (B) Making awards to minority entities and Indian tribes to conduct research, train- Page 214 TITLE 29—LABOR § 718 ing, technical assistance, or a related activ- ity, to improve services provided under this chapter, especially services provided to indi- viduals from minority backgrounds. (C) Making awards to entities described in paragraph (3) to provide outreach and tech- nical assistance to minority entities and In- dian tribes to promote their participation in activities funded under this chapter, includ- ing assistance to enhance their capacity to carry out such activities. (3) Eligibility To be eligible to receive an award under paragraph (2)(C), an entity shall be a State or a public or private nonprofit agency or organi- zation, such as an institution of higher edu- cation or an Indian tribe. (4) Report In each fiscal year, the Commissioner and the Director shall prepare and submit to Con- gress a report that describes the activities funded under this subsection for the preceding fiscal year. (5) Definitions In this subsection: (A) Historically Black college or university The term ‘‘historically Black college or university’’ means a part B institution, as defined in section 1061(2) of title 20. (B) Minority entity The term ‘‘minority entity’’ means an en- tity that is a historically Black college or university, a Hispanic-serving institution of higher education, an American Indian tribal college or university, or another institution of higher education whose minority student enrollment is at least 50 percent. (c) Demonstration In awarding grants, or entering into contracts or cooperative agreements under subchapters I, II, III, VI, and VII of this chapter, and section 794e of this title, the Commissioner and the Di- rector of the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Re- search, in appropriate cases, shall require appli- cants to demonstrate how the applicants will address, in whole or in part, the needs of individ- uals with disabilities from minority back- grounds. (Pub. L. 93–112, § 21, formerly § 19, as added Pub. L. 105–220, title IV, § 403, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1115; renumbered § 21 and amended Pub. L. 105–277, div. A, § 101(f) [title VIII, § 402(a)(1), (b)(6), (c)(3)], Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681–337, 2681–412, 2681–413, 2681–415; Pub. L. 113–128, title IV, § 409, July 22, 2014, 128 Stat. 1639.) Editorial Notes PRIOR PROVISIONS Provisions similar to this section were contained in section 718b of this title prior to repeal by Pub. L. 105–220. Prior sections 718 to 718b were repealed by Pub. L. 105–220, title IV, § 403, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1093. Section 718, Pub. L. 93–112, § 19, as added Pub. L. 102–569, title I, § 109(a), Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4363; amended Pub. L. 103–73, title I, § 104, Aug. 11, 1993, 107 Stat. 719, related to carryover of funds. See section 716 of this title. Section 718a, Pub. L. 93–112, § 20, as added Pub. L. 102–569, title I, § 110(a), Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4363; amended Pub. L. 103–73, title I, § 105, Aug. 11, 1993, 107 Stat. 719, related to client assistance information. See section 717 of this title. Section 718b, Pub. L. 93–112, § 21, as added Pub. L. 102–569, title I, § 111(a), Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4363; amended Pub. L. 103–73, title I, § 106, Aug. 11, 1993, 107 Stat. 719, related to traditionally underserved popu- lations. AMENDMENTS 2014—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 113–128, § 409(1)(A), in first sentence, substituted ‘‘demographic’’ for ‘‘racial’’; in second sentence, substituted ‘‘While the percentage in- crease from 2000 to 2010’’ for ‘‘While the rate of in- crease’’, ‘‘was 9.7’’ for ‘‘is 3.2’’, ‘‘percentage increase for racial’’ for ‘‘rate of increase for racial’’, ‘‘was much’’ for ‘‘is much’’, ‘‘43.0’’ for ‘‘38.6’’, ‘‘12.3’’ for ‘‘14.6’’, and ‘‘43.2’’ for ‘‘40.1’’ and struck out ‘‘and other ethnic groups’’ before period at end; and struck out last sen- tence which read as follows: ‘‘By the year 2000, the Na- tion will have 260,000,000 people, one of every three of whom will be either African-American, Latino, or Asian-American.’’ Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 113–128, § 409(1)(B), substituted ‘‘In 2011—’’ and subpars. (A) to (C) for second and third sentences which read as follows: ‘‘The rate of work-re- lated disability for American Indians is about one and one-half times that of the general population. African- Americans are also one and one-half times more likely to be disabled than whites and twice as likely to be sig- nificantly disabled.’’ Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 113–128, § 409(2), substituted ‘‘National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research’’ for ‘‘National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research’’. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 113–128, § 409(3), substituted ‘‘Di- rector of the National Institute on Disability, Inde- pendent Living, and Rehabilitation Research’’ for ‘‘Di- rector’’. 1998—Pub. L. 105–277, § 101(f) [title VIII, § 402(b)(6)], made technical amendment in original to section des- ignation and catchline. Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 105–277, § 101(f) [title VIII, § 402(c)(3)], substituted ‘‘is denied’’ for ‘‘are denied’’ and ‘‘is closed’’ for ‘‘are closed’’. SUBCHAPTER I—VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION SERVICES Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Title I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, comprising this subchapter, was originally enacted by Pub. L. 93–112, title I, Sept. 26, 1973, 87 Stat. 363, and amended by Pub. L. 93–516, Dec. 7, 1974, 88 Stat. 1617; Pub. L. 93–651, Nov. 21, 1974, 89 Stat. 2–3; Pub. L. 94–230, Mar. 15, 1976, 90 Stat. 211; Pub. L. 95–602, Nov. 6, 1978, 92 Stat. 2955; Pub. L. 97–375, Dec. 21, 1982, 96 Stat. 1819; Pub. L. 98–221, Feb. 22, 1984, 98 Stat. 17; Pub. L. 98–524, Oct. 19, 1984, 98 Stat. 2435; Pub. L. 99–506, Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1807; Pub. L. 100–630, Nov. 7, 1988, 102 Stat. 3289; Pub. L. 102–52, June 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 260; Pub. L. 102–54, June 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 267; Pub. L. 102–119, Oct. 7, 1991, 105 Stat. 587; Pub. L. 102–569, Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4344; Pub. L. 103–73, Aug. 11, 1993, 107 Stat. 718; Pub. L. 104–66, Dec. 21, 1995, 109 Stat. 707; Pub. L. 104–106, Feb. 10, 1996, 110 Stat. 186. Title I is shown herein, however, as having been added by Pub. L. 105–220, title IV, § 404, Aug. 7, 1998, 112 Stat. 1116, without reference to those intervening amendments because of the extensive revision of title I by Pub. L. 105–220.