H.R. 9086
Foreign Service Modernization Act
Sponsor: Michael Lawler
3 cosponsors
Official summary
Written by the Congressional Research Service.
Foreign Service Modernization Act
This bill requires or authorizes certain actions related to U.S. Foreign Service (FS) management and operations, including an increased focus on expeditionary diplomacy (a concept that emphasizes diplomats conducting direct diplomacy in high-risk environments outside of the embassy), expanded hiring pathways, and additional training requirements.
For example, the bill requires the Department of State to establish
- a team to develop a plan to improve the capability and willingness of FS members and leaders to engage in expeditionary diplomacy;
- a program to recruit qualified veterans and separating military personnel into the FS, including by integrating FS recruitment into military transition programs; and
- a Diplomatic Reserve Corps pilot program to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of a trained reserve cadre providing a surge workforce to support foreign affairs contingencies.
Additionally, the State Department is authorized to establish a structured training framework that is integrated into normal career progression with protected training periods (similar to the Armed Forces' professional military education model).
The bill specifies that FS members
- must successfully complete specified leadership and management training prior to assuming leadership assignments;
- who participate in approved external training, education, or details shall have certain employment protections (such as eligibility for promotions and pay increases on the same basis as those not on such assignments); and
- who undergo full-time, department-funded language training for more than six months must serve at least three consecutive tours in positions requiring proficiency in that language, with assignments beginning immediately after such language training.
Text of the bill
I General provisions
II Management of Service
III Appointments
IV Classification of Positions and Assignments
V Promotion and retention
VI Career development, training, and orientation
Chapter 7 of title I (22 U.S.C. 4021 et seq.), as amended by sections 608 and 609, is further amended by adding at the end the following:
711. Leadership training
(a) Sense of Congress. It is the sense of Congress that—
(1) effective leadership, including the management of personnel and resources, is essential to the execution of United States foreign policy and the management of United States missions abroad;
(2) Foreign Service Officers frequently assume supervisory and managerial responsibilities in complex, high-risk environments; and
(3) mandatory leadership and management preparation enhances mission performance, accountability, workforce morale, and the responsible stewardship of public resources.
(b) In general. Members of the Service shall receive appropriate and comprehensive leadership training, including personnel and resource management, prior to assuming a leadership assignment, including any Service position of a duration of not less than one month that includes supervisory, managerial, executive, or chief-of-section authority over not fewer than one United States Government employee, eligible family member employed at the mission, or locally employed staff person.
(c) Requirement. A member of the Service may not assume a leadership position as described in subsection (b) unless such a member has successfully completed the leadership and management training required under subsection (d) within the preceding three years.
(d) Leadership and management training
(1) In general. The Secretary, acting through the Director of the National Foreign Affairs Training Center, shall establish a curriculum for tiered joint leadership and management training requirements appropriate to—
(A) first-time supervisors;
(B) mid-level managers;
(C) senior leaders, including Deputy Chiefs of Mission, Chiefs of Mission, and Principal Officers; and
(D) any other category the Secretary determines appropriate.
(2) Duration. The leadership and management training required under paragraph (1) shall, at minimum, consist of at least one month of training per tier.
(3) Frequency and capacity. The Secretary shall ensure that leadership and management training required under paragraph (1) is made available with sufficient frequency and capacity to prevent undue delay in assignments.
(e) Waiver authority
(1) In general. The Secretary may waive the leadership and management training required under subsection (d) on a temporary basis in emergent circumstances where a member of the Service must assume a supervisory, managerial, or leadership position immediately to ensure continuity of operations.
(2) Short-term waiver. A waiver issued under paragraph (1) may permit a member of the Service to serve in a position described in paragraph (1) for a period not to exceed 30 days without having completed the required training.
(3) Extended temporary service. In cases in which a member of the Service is expected to serve in a position described in paragraph (1) for a period exceeding 30 days, the chief of mission and the Director General of the Service shall coordinate to ensure that the member is scheduled to complete the required training for the position within a reasonable amount of time, not to exceed the date that is 60 days after the date on which the member assumes such position.
(4) Congressional notification. Not later than 15 days after issuing a waiver under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall notify the appropriate congressional committees of such waiver, including the justification for the waiver and the expected duration of the assignment.
(f) Sunset. This section shall take effect on the date that is 180 days after the enactment of this section.
VII Other matters