110th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 371
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to clarify the house
parent exemption to certain wage and hour requirements.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 24, 2007
Mr. MARTINEZ (for himself and Mr. SESSIONS) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions
A BILL
To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to clarify the house
parent exemption to certain wage and hour requirements.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Appropriate and Consistent Care for Youth
Act of 2007'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Private, nonprofit organizations dedicated to providing residential
care and treatment for children have long been a vital part of the social
service networks serving America's communities.
(2) No longer just serving orphans, these institutions tend to the needs
of the `orphans of the living', children and youth who are unable to remain
in their natural homes due to emotional conflicts, life adjustment problems,
relationship disturbances, and spiritual and psychological scarring associated
with sexual, physical, and emotional abuse.
(3) The effectiveness of these institutions in caring for these troubled
and abused children has long been due to the love, care, and supervision
provided by residential houseparents.
(4) These houseparents volunteer to permanently reside at the group home
in which they work in order to create a family environment for those without
a true sense of home, one that offers a structured atmosphere where these
vulnerable youth can heal, grow, and become productive members of society.
(5) Traditionally, these houseparents have received food, lodging, insurance,
and transportation free of charge, in addition to a fixed salary.
(6) Congress recognized the unique role houseparents serve, and passed
the Hershey Exemption (section 13(b)(24) of the Fair Labor Standards Act
of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212(b)(24))) in 1974 to assist with the provision of
houseparents for orphaned and disadvantaged youth by allowing for lodging
and food provided free of cost to be considered when determining an appropriate
salary for married houseparents serving with their spouse at nonprofit
educational institutions.
(7) Since the addition of the Hershey Exemption, research shows that due
to the negative experiences some troubled youth have faced, they find
a better environment for growth in having a single houseparent of the
same sex.
(8) Because the wage provision under the Hershey Exemption was extended
only to married houseparents serving with their spouse, the Department
of Labor has enforced a rule that single houseparents need to be reimbursed
on a 24-hour-a-day basis, even for time they are sleeping or otherwise
not directly caring for residents of the home, and regardless of the provision
of free lodging, food, and other services.
(9) This has placed an undue financial burden on these nonprofit institutions
who wish to provide the best possible care for their residents, forcing
some homes to close and others to adopt an employment model where `teams'
of houseparents work 8-hour shifts to care for residents. This `team'
model drives up the cost and destroys the family-like arrangement of the
home.
(10) In order to provide for more appropriate and consistent care for
these foster children and troubled youth, this Act seeks to extend the
Hershey Exemption to single houseparents residing in educational institutions
where they receive lodging and board free of charge.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT OF 1938.
Section 13(b)(24) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 212(b)(24))
is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking `and his spouse';
and
(2) in the matter following subparagraph (B)--
(A) by striking `and his spouse reside' and inserting `resides';
(B) by striking `receive' and inserting `receives'; and
(C) by striking `are together' and inserting `is'.
END
