Term of Service: One-Year Rule

By Corporation for National and Community Service rule, AmeriCorps members must complete their AmeriCorps service during a period of not less than nine months and not more than one year from their start date. Equal Justice Works mandates an 11 month term of service (unless otherwise agreed upon by the site and Equal Justice Works. Sites must define the term of service (for instance, Sept. 1, 2008 to July 31, 2009 check dates) in the AmeriCorps Attorney Contract. Reaching 1,700 service hours does not automatically fulfill the AmeriCorps Attorney contract, and it does not constitute the end of a term of service if it occurs before the end date in the contract.

Living Allowance

According to the AmeriCorps provisions, AmeriCorps Attorneys are entitled to a living allowance as a benefit of their participation in the program. The living allowance is designed to help members meet the necessary living expenses incurred while participating in the AmeriCorps program. The amount of this living allowance is determined each year by the Corporation for National and Community Service. Therefore, the amount of the allowance may vary from one grant year to another.

Programs must not pay a living allowance on an hourly basis. It is not a wage and should not fluctuate based on the number of hours an AmeriCorps Attorney serves in a given time period. Programs should instead pay the living allowance in increments, such as weekly or biweekly through their organization's payroll.

AmeriCorps prohibits "lump sum" living allowance payments. If an AmeriCorps Attorney completes her/his 1,700 hours of service before the 11 month term expires, any remaining living allowance that has not been paid out to the member at the time they finish their service may not be paid to the member in lieu of fulfilling the complete term of service.

Supplemental Benefits

Equal Justice Works acknowledges that sites incur significant costs to manage a PBLC project. We also understand how difficult it is to get by financially on an AmeriCorps living allowance. Equal Justice Works strongly recommends providing supplemental benefits to AmeriCorps Attorneys. Payments made to a third party to ease financial burden are generally acceptable supplemental benefits. Examples include housing assistance (payments made to a mortgage lender or landlord), loan repayment assistance (for educational or car loans) and even gift cards for groceries. These payments made are not considered income by AmeriCorps, but they must be reported to the IRS and are taxable. Supplemental benefits should be equal for all AmeriCorps Attorneys serving with your organization, although providing a higher benefit to second year AmeriCorps Attorneys is acceptable. Equal Justice Works requires sites to inform us of the type and amount of supplemental benefits you provide, and once promised, payment of these benefits is required. Supplemental benefits are not counted as match. Please contact Equal Justice Works staff with specific questions.

Early Termination of Term of Service

If an AmeriCorps Attorney leaves his/her host site organization for noncompelling reasons (such as dissatisfaction with service activities or another full-time employment opportunity) before completing his/her hours and other service requirements, the member will forfeit the entire loan repayment assistance award. This is a CNCS policy. (see AmeriCorps Provision, (B)(9) ).

An AmeriCorps Attorney who has completed at least 15 percent of his/her required hours and leaves the host site for compelling personal circumstances (see below) will receive a prorated award based on the number of hours completed.

Compelling Personal Circumstances

Compelling personal circumstances are serious factors beyond the member's control, such as a member's serious injury or illness that makes completing the term impossible; serious injury, illness or death of an immediate family member that means the member is needed to care for that family member or take over the duties of the family member; some other circumstance(s) occurs that makes it impossible or very difficult for the member to complete the term of service and Equal Justice Works deems that circumstance(s) compelling.

Please contact Equal Justice Works with any questions. Please do not assure an AmeriCorps Attorney of a prorated award before obtaining approval, as doing so might lead to disappointment on the member's part.

Employee Displacement

Keep in mind that AmeriCorps Attorneys cannot perform activities traditionally reserved for staff, such as signing a fellow member's timesheets (see Program Director's Handbook, Member Classification and Employee Displacement , or AmeriCorps Provisions, (B)(6)(f) and (C)(33) .

QUESTIONS?

Please refer questions about the policies outlined in this guide to Cole McMahon, Senior Program Manager for AmeriCorps.