[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2867 Referred in Senate (RFS)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2867
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
September 15, 2011
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To reauthorize the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, 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 ``United States Commission on
International Religious Freedom Reform and Reauthorization Act of
2011''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT AND COMPOSITION.
(a) Membership.--Section 201(b)(1)(B) of the International
Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6431(b)(1)(B)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking
``Nine'' and inserting ``five'';
(2) in clause (i), by striking ``Three members'' and
inserting ``One member'';
(3) in clause (ii)--
(A) by striking ``Three members'' and inserting
``Two members'';
(B) by striking ``two of the members'' and
inserting ``one member''; and
(C) by striking ``one of the members'' and
inserting ``the other member''; and
(4) in clause (iii)--
(A) by striking ``Three members'' and inserting
``Two members'';
(B) by striking ``two of the members'' and
inserting ``one member''; and
(C) by striking ``one of the members'' and
inserting ``the other member''.
(b) Terms.--Section 201(c) of the International Religious Freedom
Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6431(c)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking the last sentence and
inserting the following: ``An individual is not eligible to
serve more than two consecutive terms as a member of the
Commission. Each member serving on the Commission on the date
of enactment of the United States Commission on International
Religious Freedom Reform and Reauthorization Act of 2011 may be
reappointed to not more than one additional consecutive
term.'';
(2) in paragraph (2)--
(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``May 15,
2003, through May 14, 2005'' and inserting ``May 15,
2012, through May 14, 2014'';
(B) in subparagraph (B) to read as follows:
``(B) Presidential appointments.--The member of the
Commission appointed by the President under subsection
(b)(1)(B)(i) shall be appointed to a 1-year term.'';
(C) in subparagraph (C)--
(i) by striking ``three members'' and
inserting ``two members'';
(ii) by striking ``the other two
appointments'' and inserting ``the other
appointment''; and
(iii) by striking ``2-year terms'' and
inserting ``to a 2-year term'';
(D) in subparagraph (D)--
(i) by striking ``three members'' and
inserting ``two members'';
(ii) by striking ``the other two
appointments'' and inserting ``the other
appointment''; and
(iii) by striking ``2-year terms'' and
inserting ``to a 2-year term''; and
(E) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``May 15,
2003, and shall end on May 14, 2004'' and inserting
``May 15, 2012, and shall end on May 14, 2013''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(3) Ineligibility for reappointment.--If a member of the
Commission attends, by being physically present or by
conference call, less than 75 percent of the meetings of the
Commission during one of that member's terms on the Commission,
the member shall not be eligible for reappointment to the
Commission.''.
(c) Election of Chair.--Section 201(d) of the International
Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6431(d)) is amended by
inserting at the end the following: ``No member of the Commission is
eligible to be elected as Chair of the Commission for a second,
consecutive term.''.
(d) Quorum.--Section 201(e) of the International Religious Freedom
Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6431(e)) is amended by striking ``Six'' and
inserting ``Four''.
(e) Applicability.--A member of the United States Commission on
International Religious Freedom who is serving on the Commission on the
date of enactment of this Act shall continue to serve on the Commission
until the expiration of the current term of the member under the terms
and conditions for membership on the Commission as in effect on the day
before the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 3. APPLICATION OF ANTIDISCRIMINATION LAWS.
Section 204 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22
U.S.C. 6432b) is amended by inserting after subsection (f) the
following new subsection:
``(g) Application of Antidiscrimination Laws.--For purposes of
providing remedies and procedures to address alleged violations of
rights and protections that pertain to employment discrimination,
family and medical leave, fair labor standards, employee polygraph
protection, worker adjustment and retraining, veterans' employment and
reemployment, intimidation or reprisal, protections under the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990, occupational safety and health, labor-
management relations, and rights and protections that apply to
employees whose pay is disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate or the
Chief Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives, all
employees of the Commission shall be treated as employees whose pay is
disbursed by the Secretary of the Senate or the Chief Administrative
Officer of the House of Representatives and the Commission shall be
treated as an employing office of the Senate or the House of
Representatives.''.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 207(a) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998
(22 U.S.C. 6435(a)) is amended by striking ``for the fiscal year 2003''
and inserting ``for each of the fiscal years 2012 and 2013''.
SEC. 5. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT AND DISCLOSURE.
Section 208 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22
U.S.C. 6435a) is amended--
(1) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ``$100,000'' and
inserting ``$250,000''; and
(2) in subsection (e), by striking ``International
Relations'' and inserting ``Foreign Affairs''.
SEC. 6. TERMINATION.
Section 209 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22
U.S.C. 6436) is amended by striking ``September 30, 2011'' and
inserting ``September 30, 2013''.
SEC. 7. REPORT ON EFFECTIVENESS OF PROGRAMS TO PROMOTE RELIGIOUS
FREEDOM.
(a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States
shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on
the implementation of this Act and the amendments made by this Act.
(b) Consultation.--The Comptroller General shall consult with the
appropriate congressional committees and nongovernmental organizations
for purposes of preparing the report.
(c) Matters To Be Included.--The report shall include the
following:
(1) A review of the effectiveness of all United States
Government programs to promote international religious freedom,
including their goals and objectives.
(2) An assessment of the roles and functions of the Office
on International Religious Freedom established in section
101(a) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22
U.S.C. 6411(a)) and the relationship of the Office to other
offices in the Department of State.
(3) A review of the role of the Ambassador at Large for
International Religious Freedom appointed under section 101(b)
of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C.
6411(b)) and the placement of such position within the
Department of State.
(4) A review and assessment of the goals and objectives of
the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom
established under section 201(a) of the International Religious
Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6431(a)).
(5) A comparative analysis of the structure of the United
States Commission on International Religious Freedom as an
independent non-partisan entity in relation to other United
States advisory commissions, whether or not such commissions
are under the direct authority of Congress.
(6) A review of the relationship between the Ambassador at
Large for International Religious Freedom and the United States
Commission on International Religious Freedom, and possible
reforms that would improve the ability of both to reach their
goals and objectives.
(d) Definition.--In this section, the term ``appropriate
congressional committees'' has the meaning given the term in section 3
of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6402).
Passed the House of Representatives September 15, 2011.
Attest:
KAREN L. HAAS,
Clerk.