H.R. 6678

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6678 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6678

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to authorize a national 
network of statewide senior legal hotlines, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 11, 2025

Mr. Tran (for himself, Ms. Norton, Mr. Hernandez, Mr. Lynch, Mr. 
Johnson of Georgia, Ms. Titus, and Mr. Gottheimer) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and 
Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To amend the Older Americans Act of 1965 to authorize a national 
network of statewide senior legal hotlines, and for other purposes.

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 ``Senior Legal Hotline Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. STATEWIDE SENIOR LEGAL HOTLINES.

Subtitle B of title VII of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 
U.S.C. 3058aa et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 753. STATEWIDE SENIOR LEGAL HOTLINES.

``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Eligible entity.--
``(A) In general.--The term `eligible entity' means 
a nonprofit organization or a partnership described in 
subparagraph (B) that--
``(i) provides legal assistance to older 
individuals at no cost to such individuals; and
``(ii)(I) operates a senior legal hotline 
in existence on the date on which the entity 
submits an application under subsection (c); or
``(II) demonstrates the capacity to provide 
legal assistance to older individuals through a 
statewide senior legal hotline.
``(B) Partnership.--A partnership described in this 
subparagraph is a partnership between--
``(i) multiple nonprofit organizations; or
``(ii) one or more nonprofit organizations 
with one or more State or local governments.
``(2) Senior legal hotline.--The term `senior legal 
hotline' means a program or partnership of programs that--
``(A) provides legal services, such as counseling, 
advice, advocacy, information, referrals, and other 
services, as appropriate, to older individuals on a 
broad range of civil legal issues;
``(B) provides such services by telephone (and may 
provide such services by additional forms of 
communication), regardless of whether such services are 
provided 24 hours a day and 7 days a week;
``(C) provides such services at no cost to the 
older individuals receiving such services;
``(D) serves older individuals with the greatest 
social need and greatest economic need as a target 
population for such services; and
``(E) develops partnerships with other programs and 
legal assistance providers to ensure that older 
individuals who need more extensive services, including 
representation, have access to such services.
``(3) Statewide senior legal hotline.--The term `statewide 
senior legal hotline' means a senior legal hotline that serves 
older individuals throughout a State.
``(b) Authorization.--The Assistant Secretary may award grants, on 
a competitive basis, to eligible entities that submit an application 
under subsection (c) to establish or operate a statewide senior legal 
hotline in accordance with the requirements under subsection (d).
``(c) Application Process.--
``(1) In general.--An eligible entity seeking a grant under 
this section shall submit to the Assistant Secretary an 
application at such time, in such manner, and containing such 
information as the Assistant Secretary may reasonably require, 
including the contents described in paragraph (2).
``(2) Contents.--An application submitted under paragraph 
(1) shall contain, at a minimum, each of the following:
``(A) An identification of the State to be served 
by the statewide senior legal hotline.
``(B) A plan indicating how the eligible entity 
will satisfy each requirement under subsection (d) with 
respect to establishing or operating a statewide senior 
legal hotline.
``(C) An assurance that the eligible entity will be 
able to provide, from non-Federal funds, an amount 
equal to not less than 25 percent of the estimated 
amount awarded through the grant under this section. An 
eligible entity may use in-kind contributions to meet 
the matching requirement under this subparagraph.
``(D) A description of the certification process 
the eligible entity has in place to ensure that staff 
members of and volunteers serving the statewide senior 
legal hotline will have no conflict of interest 
(including any financial or substantive conflict of 
interest) in providing services through the hotline.
``(3) Selection.--The Assistant Secretary shall, in 
selecting eligible entities to receive a grant under this 
section--
``(A) consider--
``(i) the extent to which the application 
submitted by the eligible entity under 
paragraph (2) meets the requirements of such 
paragraph; and
``(ii) the demonstrated capacity of the 
eligible entity to administer a statewide 
senior legal hotline, including the experience 
and history of the eligible entity in 
delivering high-quality advice, assistance, and 
other legal services, to older individuals 
through low-cost and innovative methods; and
``(B) ensure that no 2 eligible entities receiving 
a grant under this section for a fiscal year are 
planning to establish or operate a statewide senior 
legal hotline that serves the same State for such 
fiscal year.
``(d) Requirements.--Each eligible entity receiving a grant under 
this section shall, in establishing or operating a statewide senior 
legal hotline supported by such grant--
``(1) provide for a sufficient number of appropriately 
trained attorneys, paralegals, other staff members, and 
volunteers to ensure effective delivery of the services 
described in subsection (a)(2)(A);
``(2) collaborate with the appropriate State agency, 
including any legal assistance developer of the State agency, 
and free or low-cost legal service providers throughout the 
State, including those who provide free legal assistance to 
older individuals, to maximize coordination and cost-effective 
delivery of legal assistance to older individuals;
``(3) strive to maximize coordination in the delivery of 
legal assistance to older individuals in the State, including 
legal assistance funded by the Legal Services Corporation under 
the Legal Services Corporation Act (42 U.S.C. 2996 et seq.), 
legal assistance supported by a grant under part B of title III 
of this Act, legal assistance provided by a law school clinic, 
and any other legal assistance provided at no cost to the 
persons receiving the assistance;
``(4) build effective communication within the aging 
network operating in the State to provide coordinated 
assistance and referrals as appropriate;
``(5) establish mechanisms to make referrals for 
representation and other assistance beyond the scope of the 
hotline to--
``(A) other divisions or projects of the same legal 
aid agency of which the hotline is a division or 
project;
``(B) other legal aid agencies;
``(C) private attorneys, including those providing 
pro bono legal services;
``(D) providers included in the aging network 
operating in the State;
``(E) advocacy and assistance programs for older 
individuals; or
``(F) any other individuals or entities, as 
appropriate; and
``(6) conduct outreach through the aging network operating 
in the State, and by other means, to inform older individuals 
about the availability of the services provided by the hotline, 
specifically targeting older individuals with the greatest 
economic need and greatest social need.
``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2027 through 2031.''.
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