text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
  
      This Act may be cited as the ``National Center for Social Work 
  Research Act''.
  
  SEC. 2 ESTABLISHMENT OF NATIONAL CENTER FOR SOCIAL WORK RESEARCH.
  
      (a) In General.--Section 401(b)(2) of the Public Health Service Act 
  (42 U.S.C. 281(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
              ``(F) The National Center for Social Work Research.''.
      (b) Establishment.--Part E of title IV of the Public Health Service 
  Act (42 U.S.C. 287 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
  following:
  
           ``Subpart 5--National Center for Social Work Research
  
  ``SEC. 485G. PURPOSE OF CENTER.
  
      ``The general purpose of the National Center for Social Work 
  Research (referred to in this subpart as the `Center') is the conduct 
  and support of, and dissemination of information with respect to basic, 
  clinical, and services social work research, training, and other 
  programs in patient care, including child and family care.
  
  ``SEC. 485H. SPECIFIC AUTHORITIES.
  
      ``(a) In General.--To carry out the purpose described in section 
  485G, the Director of the Center may provide research training and 
  instruction and establish, in the Center and in other nonprofit 
  institutions, research traineeships and fellowships in the study and 
  investigation of the prevention of disease, health promotion, and the 
  social work care of persons with and families of individuals with acute 
  and chronic illnesses, including child abuse and neglect and child and 
  family care.
      ``(b) Stipends and Allowances.--The Director of the Center may 
  provide individuals receiving training and instruction or traineeships 
  or fellowships under subsection (a) with such stipends and allowances 
  (including amounts for travel and subsistence and dependency 
  allowances) as the Director determines necessary.
      ``(c) Grants.--The Director of the Center may make grants to 
  nonprofit institutions to provide training and instruction and 
  traineeships and fellowships under subsection (a).
  
  ``SEC. 485I. ADVISORY COUNCIL.
  
      ``(a) Duties.--
              ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish an 
          advisory council for the Center that shall advise, assist, 
          consult with, and make recommendations to the Secretary and the 
          Director of the Center on matters related to the activities 
          carried out by and through the Center and the policies with 
          respect to such activities.
              ``(2) Gifts.--The advisory council for the Center may 
          recommend to the Secretary the acceptance, in accordance with 
          section 231, of conditional gifts for study, investigations, 
          and research and for the acquisition of grounds or 
          construction, equipment, or maintenance of facilities for the 
          Center.
              ``(3) Other duties and functions.--The advisory council for 
          the Center--
                      ``(A)(i) may make recommendations to the Director 
                  of the Center with respect to research to be conducted 
                  by the Center;
                      ``(ii) may review applications for grants and 
                  cooperative agreements for research or training and 
                  recommend for approval applications for projects that 
                  demonstrate the probability of making valuable 
                  contributions to human knowledge; and
                      ``(iii) may review any grant, contract, or 
                  cooperative agreement proposed to be made or entered 
                  into by the Center;
                      ``(B) may collect, by correspondence or by personal 
                  investigation, information relating to studies that are 
                  being carried out in the United States or any other 
                  country as to the diseases, disorders, or other aspects 
                  of human health with respect to which the Center is 
                  concerned and, with the approval of the Director of the 
                  Center, make such information available through 
                  appropriate publications for the benefit of public and 
                  private health entities and health professions 
                  personnel and scientists and for the information of the 
                  general public; and
                      ``(C) may appoint subcommittees and convene 
                  workshops and conferences.
      ``(b) Membership.--
              ``(1) In general.--The advisory council shall be composed 
          of the ex officio members described in paragraph (2) and not 
          more than 18 individuals to be appointed by the Secretary under 
          paragraph (3).
              ``(2) Ex officio members.--The ex officio members of the 
          advisory council shall include--
                      ``(A) the Secretary, the Director of NIH, the 
                  Director of the Center, the Chief Social Work Officer 
                  of the Veterans' Administration, the Assistant 
                  Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Associate 
                  Director of Prevention Research at the National 
                  Institute of Mental Health, and the Director of the 
                  Division of Epidemiology and Services Research (or the 
                  designees of such officers); and
                      ``(B) such additional officers or employees of the 
                  United States as the Secretary determines necessary for 
                  the advisory council to effectively carry out its 
                  functions.
              ``(3) Appointed members.--The Secretary shall appoint not 
          to exceed 18 individuals to the advisory council, of which--
                      ``(A) not more than two-thirds of such individual 
                  shall be appointed from among the leading 
                  representatives of the health and scientific 
                  disciplines (including public health and the behavioral 
                  or social sciences) relevant to the activities of the 
                  Center, and at least 7 such individuals shall be 
                  professional social workers who are recognized experts 
                  in the area of clinical practice, education, or 
                  research; and
                      ``(B) not more than one-third of such individuals 
                  shall be appointed from the general public and shall 
                  include leaders in fields of public policy, law, health 
                  policy, economics, and management.
          The Secretary shall make appointments to the advisory council 
          in such a manner as to ensure that the terms of the members do 
          not all expire in the same year.
              ``(4) Compensation.--Members of the advisory council who 
          are officers or employees of the United States shall not 
          receive any compensation for service on the advisory council. 
          The remaining members shall receive, for each day (including 
          travel time) they are engaged in the performance of the 
          functions of the advisory council, compensation at rates not to 
          exceed the daily equivalent of the annual rate in effect for an 
          individual at grade GS-18 of the General Schedule.
      ``(c) Terms.--
              ``(1) In general.--The term of office of an individual 
          appointed to the advisory council under subsection (b)(3) shall 
          be 4 years, except that any individual appointed to fill a 
          vacancy on the advisory council shall serve for the remainder 
          of the unexpired term. A member may serve after the expiration 
          of the member's term until a successor has been appointed.
              ``(2) Reappointments.--A member of the advisory council who 
          has been appointed under subsection (b)(3) for a term of 4 
          years may not be reappointed to the advisory council prior to 
          the expiration of the 2-year period beginning on the date on 
          which the prior term expired.
              ``(3) Vacancy.--If a vacancy occurs on the advisory council 
          among the members under subsection (b)(3), the Secretary shall 
          make an appointment to fill that vacancy not later than 90 days 
          after the date on which the vacancy occurs.
      ``(d) Chairperson.--The chairperson of the advisory council shall 
  be selected by the Secretary from among the members appointed under 
  subsection (b)(3), except that the Secretary may select the Director of 
  the Center to be the chairperson of the advisory council. The term of 
  office of the chairperson shall be 2 years.
      ``(e) Meetings.--The advisory council shall meet at the call of the 
  chairperson or upon the request of the Director of the Center, but not 
  less than 3 times each fiscal year. The location of the meetings of the 
  advisory council shall be subject to the approval of the Director of 
  the Center.
      ``(f) Administrative Provisions.--The Director of the Center shall 
  designate a member of the staff of the Center to serve as the executive 
  secretary of the advisory council. The Director of the Center shall 
  make available to the advisory council such staff, information, and 
  other assistance as the council may require to carry out its functions. 
  The Director of the Center shall provide orientation and training for 
  new members of the advisory council to provide such members with such 
  information and training as may be appropriate for their effective 
  participation in the functions of the advisory council.
      ``(g) Comments and Recommendations.--The advisory council may 
  prepare, for inclusion in the biennial report under section 485J--
              ``(1) comments with respect to the activities of the 
          advisory council in the fiscal years for which the report is 
          prepared;
              ``(2) comments on the progress of the Center in meeting its 
          objectives; and
              ``(3) recommendations with respect to the future direction 
          and program and policy emphasis of the center.
  The advisory council may prepare such additional reports as it may 
  determine appropriate.
  
  ``SEC. 485J. BIENNIAL REPORT.
  
      ``The Director of the Center, after consultation with the advisory 
  council for the Center, shall prepare for inclusion in the biennial 
  report under section 403, a biennial report that shall consist of a 
  description of the activities of the Center and program policies of the 
  Director of the Center in the fiscal years for which the report is 
  prepared. The Director of the Center may prepare such additional 
  reports as the Director determines appropriate. The Director of the 
  Center shall provide the advisory council of the Center an opportunity 
  for the submission of the written comments described in section 
  485I(g).''.
target: National Center for Social Work Research Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish the National Center for Social Work Research.
feat_title: National Center for Social Work Research Act