119-HR5233

Bill is currently in: House
Path to Law
House Senate President

119th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 5233

1. Short title
2. Limitation on overhead spending
3. Alignment with foreign policy priorities
4. Coordination with embassies
5. Oversight and accountability
6. Foreign service pathway

1. Short title

This Act may be cited as the "Peace Corps Modernization Act".

2. Limitation on overhead spending

(a) In general - The Director of the Peace Corps shall take such steps as may be necessary ensure that—

(1) - not more than 15 percent of the total amount appropriated for any fiscal year for the programs, projects, and activities of the Peace Corps is allocated for administrative or other, non-volunteer, overhead expenses; and

(2) - the remaining 85 percent of the budget is directed toward volunteers, including for recruitment, training, and support.

(b) Savings - To the extent that the annual allocation requirements under subsection (a) result in additional amounts being directed towards the purposes described in subsection (a)(2), the Director shall ensure that such additional amounts are used to increase the number of Peace Corps volunteers deployed worldwide.

3. Alignment with foreign policy priorities

(a) Prioritization by Secretary of State - Pursuant to section 4(c)(3) of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2503(c)(3)), the Secretary of State shall set country priorities for the deployment of Peace Corps volunteers in a manner that ensures alignment with United States strategic interests, including countering authoritarian influence, promoting stability, and supporting allies.

(b) Notification - In addition to any other notification requirements applicable with respect to such a determination, the Director of the Peace Corps shall submit to Congress a notification before the entry into effect of any determination to undertake the first Peace Corps program in a new country or terminate all Peace Corps programs in any country.

(c) Strategic plan - The Director of the Peace Corps shall establish a Peace Corps Strategic Plan, which shall be aligned, in coordination with the Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy, with the Integrated Country Strategies of the Department of State.

(d) Pacific Island country expansion

(1) Requirement for presence - Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), the Director of the Peace Corps shall ensure that programs of the Peace Corps operate in at least five Pacific Island countries, including Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

(2) Report on expansion - Not later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State and Director of the Peace Corps shall brief the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate on the expansion of Peace Corps operations in Pacific Island countries as required by paragraph (1), detailing—

(A) - which such countries have expressed interest in Peace Corps presence;

(B) - any barriers to such expansion;

(C) - the resources needed to expand; and

(D) - opportunities to coordinate with the Department of Defense, Department of State, or other agencies to overcome challenges to such expansion.

4. Coordination with embassies

(a) Embassy oversight - The Director of the Peace Corps, in coordination with relevant Ambassadors and chiefs of mission, shall take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that United States embassies (or other equivalent diplomatic or consular posts, as appropriate) support and integrate country-level Peace Corps operations.

(b) Withdrawal of support - Upon receiving notice of a determination by the Secretary of State that a regional bureau or an embassy has withdrawn support for the program of the Peace Corps in a country, the Director of the Peace Corps shall pause such program and submit to Congress a notification of both such determination and such pause.

5. Oversight and accountability

The Inspector General of the Peace Corps shall coordinate with the Inspector General of the Department of State on all oversight activities relating to volunteers.

6. Foreign service pathway

Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, acting through the Director General of the Foreign Service, shall establish through regulation a mechanism to provide streamlined vetting and consideration of applications for appointment to the Foreign Service of returning and former Peace Corps volunteers. Such mechanism shall establish a pathway exclusively for such volunteers that—

(1) - creates mentorship opportunities through programs pairing such applicants with current Foreign Service officers;

(2) - recognizes Peace Corps service as qualifying experience in the form of bonus evaluation points in the Qualifications Evaluation Panel and Oral Assessment, in a manner equivalent to the veterans appointment preference under section 301(c) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3941(c)); and

(3) - in addition to the recognition under paragraph (2)(B), for any such volunteer appointed to a career appointment in the Foreign Service, treating the term of service to the Peace Corps as service in the Foreign Service for purposes of all benefits (including retirement benefits) provided to members of the Foreign Service or term-of-service requirements relating to pay or benefits, such as the 9-year service requirement before reaching eligibility for mid-level appointments.