[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7673 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7673
To ensure the United States diplomatic workforce at all levels reflects
the diverse composition of the United States.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 20, 2020
Ms. Bass (for herself, Mr. Meeks, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Sires, Ms.
Judy Chu of California, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mr. Evans, Ms. Jayapal,
Ms. Haaland, Mrs. Hayes, and Ms. Omar) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To ensure the United States diplomatic workforce at all levels reflects
the diverse composition of the United States.
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 ``Represent America Abroad Act of
2020''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) As the United States becomes more racially and
ethnically diverse, the Department of State must continue to
invest in policies to recruit, retain, and develop the best and
brightest from the full spectrum of American society in order
to be better positioned to advance United States interests
abroad.
(2) Foreign Service officers are America's face to the
world. Thus, the workforce must represent the United States
commitment to inclusion and diversity in order to effectively
advance American values on the world stage.
(3) The Department of State must embrace policies that
recruit professionals from the broadest possible pool of talent
and retain them in order to significantly increase diversity in
the Foreign Service. Timely action to increase diversity at the
mid-levels is crucial, as it takes approximately nine years for
an entry level Foreign Service officer (class 6, 5, 4) to rise
to the mid-ranks of the Foreign Service (class 3, 2, or 1).
(4) A February 2020 report by the Government Accountability
Office found barriers to a diverse and inclusive workforce at
the Department of State, especially at the mid-career and
senior levels. Individuals who are racial or ethnic minorities
comprise only 24 percent of Foreign Service officers as a
whole. At the executive level, individuals who are racial or
ethnic minorities comprise only 13 percent. This means that the
leadership is the least diverse level within the Foreign
Service.
(5) In the past, the Department of State has acknowledged
its lack of workforce diversity and pledged to take concrete
steps to address the problem. In 2017, then-Secretary of State
Rex Tillerson recognized a great diversity gap in the
Department of State and former Secretary of State John Kerry
noted that in order to represent the United States, the
Department of State must have a workforce that reflects the
rich composition of its citizenry. Yet there has been no
concrete plan to address the lack of diversity at the mid-
career and senior levels.
SEC. 3. DECLARATION OF NATIONAL INTEREST; STATEMENT OF POLICY.
(a) Declaration of National Interest.--Congress declares that it is
in the national interest of the United States to ensure that the
members of the United States Foreign Service workforce be
representative of the American people.
(b) Statement of Policy.--It shall be the policy of the Department
of State--
(1) to strengthen the Foreign Service workforce by
bolstering the diversity of those who represent Americans
abroad;
(2) to treat the people of the Foreign Service as its
primary asset, and as such, hold as a central tenet making
strides in increasing minority representation at all levels of
the Foreign Service workforce to secure the country's national
interests; and
(3) in accordance with the Foreign Service Act of 1980, to
attract highly qualified, mid-career professionals who are also
American minorities, through a pathway program for entry into
the Foreign Service.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall establish a
program, which shall be known as the ``Represent America Mid-Career
Foreign Service Entry Program'' (in this section referred to as the
``Program''), to be administered jointly by the Director General of the
Foreign Service and the Director of Global Talent Management, to
identify, attract, and welcome mid-career professionals who are from
minority groups into the Foreign Service.
(b) Elements of Program.--
(1) Program requirements.--The Secretary of State shall
carry out the following with respect to the Program:
(A) Establish and publish on the Department's
website eligibility criteria for candidates to
participate in the program.
(B) Carry out countrywide recruitment efforts to
attract highly qualified, mid-career professionals from
minority groups, such as the following:
(i) Community agencies and organizations.
(ii) Faith-based organizations.
(iii) Community events.
(iv) Professional associations.
(v) Colleges and universities, including
historically Black colleges and universities
and other minority-serving institutions such as
Hispanic-serving institutions, Asian American
and Native American Pacific Islander-serving
institutions, American Indian Tribally
controlled colleges and universities, Alaska
Native and Native Hawaiian-serving
institutions, Tribal colleges and universities,
Predominantly Black Institutions, and Native
American-serving, Nontribal institutions.
(vi) Diplomats in residence.
(vii) Job fairs.
(viii) Newspaper/magazines/journals.
(ix) Radio stations and programs.
(x) Websites, webcasts, podcasts, and other
online channels.
(C) Recruit eligible candidates for the Program.
(D) Develop a structured program that includes as
part of the initial training, a class or module that
specifically prepares participants for life in the
Foreign Service, including conveying to such
participants essential elements of the practical
knowledge that is normally acquired during a Foreign
Service Officer's initial assignments.
(E) Include appropriate mentorship and other career
development opportunities, such as leadership training,
for Program participants.
(2) Overall qualifications.--In recruiting, training, and
assigning members of the Program, the Secretary of State should
seek highly qualified minority individuals who are mid-career
professionals--
(A) with diverse work experience who have
capabilities, insights, techniques, and experiences
that would serve to enrich the Foreign Service
workforce and empower it to perform more effectively;
(B) with demonstrated knowledge of, experience
with, and interest in United States foreign policy and
national security and international affairs, including
knowledge of the affairs, cultures, and languages of
other countries;
(C) with demonstrable leadership skills and the
potential for further growth;
(D) that demonstrate a track record of
collaboration, team-building, and stakeholder
management skills;
(E) with demonstrated capacity for critical
thinking and analytical skills, including the ability
to synthesize information into clear and concise
recommendations;
(F) with strategic thinking, and ability to solve
complex problems;
(G) with flexibility, adaptability, and
determination; and
(H) who are United States citizens with worldwide
service availability and who are able to obtain
appropriate security and medical clearances.
(c) Advancement From Program.--Candidates who are accepted into the
Program in accordance with the qualifications and requirements of this
section shall have the opportunity to advance to the Foreign Service
oral assessment for potential entry as the appropriate class of mid-
level Foreign Service officer in accordance with the candidate's
professional qualifications.
(d) Mid-Career Professional Defined.--For purposes of the Program,
the term ``mid-career professional'' means an individual who has the
skills and experience to serve as a mid-level Foreign Service officer
(class 3, 2, or 1) and who meets any of the following criteria,
consistent with the merit-based principles and core precepts set forth
in the Foreign Affairs Manual and Handbook and in accordance with
applicable requirements of the Foreign Service Act of 1980:
(1) An individual with 8+ years of professional experience
and a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or
university in selected fields of study representing the needs
of the Department of State, including public policy, public
administration, international law, international relations,
political science, foreign languages, business administration,
economics, history, sociology, geography, social or cultural
anthropology, statistics, or the humanities.
(2) An individual with 7+ years of professional experience
and a master's degree from an accredited college or university
in selected fields of study representing the needs of the
Department of State, including any field listed in paragraph
(1).
(3) An individual with 5+ years of professional experience
and doctoral degree from an accredited college or university in
selected fields of study representing the needs of the
Department of State, including any field listed in paragraph
(1).
SEC. 5. REPORTS.
(a) Initial Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on
Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on a plan to establish the
Represent America Mid-Career Foreign Service Entry Program.
(b) Annual Update.--Annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and
the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on the status
of the Represent America Mid-Career Foreign Service Entry Program. Each
such report shall include the following information with respect to the
previous year:
(1) The number of candidates approved for the program.
(2) The number of candidates who began participating,
including anonymized information on such candidates'
backgrounds with respect to education and prior work experience
and grade level at which the candidate entered the Foreign
Service.
(3) A breakdown of the number of participants recruited
into and advancing from the program by ethnicity and sex.
(4) A disaggregation by Foreign Service cone and post
(including identifying whether the post is hard-to-fill)
assigned to each participant advancing from the program.
(5) Program attrition rates and retention data, including
information on how such data compares to the data reported in
the most recent prior submission of such report.
(6) Information on the Department's recruiting efforts for
the program, including an outreach strategy detailing resources
allocated to outreach, as well as where, how, and when outreach
will be carried out.
(7) Information on the Department's efforts to improve the
efficacy of the program and promote retention of program
participants.
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