S 491

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IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

February 6 (legislative day, February 5), 2025

Mr. Kaine (for himself, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Coons, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Booker, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Welch, Mr. Markey, Mr. Sanders, Ms. Duckworth, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Whitehouse, and Mr. Schiff) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

A BILL

To establish the position of Director of Foreign Assistance in the Department of State, 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 “Foreign Assistance Accountability and Oversight Act”.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

It is the sense of Congress that—

(1) the strategic delivery of foreign assistance is critical to supporting the United States’ interests around the world;

(2) foreign assistance furthers United States’ national security priorities, advances United States’ values, and ensures the United States is the partner of choice for areas such as defense procurement and economic investment in cutting edge scientific research;

(3) the administration of foreign assistance programming should be—

(A) managed by a qualified, competent Department of State official; and

(B) subject to strict congressional oversight pursuant to its constitutionally authorized power of the purse; and

(4) section 1413 of the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (Division G of Public Law 105-277; 22 U.S.C. 6563) codified into law the status of the United States Agency for International Development as an “independent establishment” outside of the Department of State.

SEC. 3. DIRECTOR OF FOREIGN ASSISTANCE AT THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.

Section 1 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“(p) Director of Foreign Assistance.—

“(1) Definitions.—In this subsection:

“(A) Appropriate congressional committees.—The term ‘appropriate congressional committees’ means—

“(i) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;

“(ii) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;

“(iii) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; and

“(iv) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives.

“(B) Personnel decision.—The term ‘personnel decision’ means any decision relating to promotions, transfers, demotions, or dismissals.

“(2) Establishment.—There is established in the Department of State, a Director of Foreign Assistance (referred to in this subsection as the ‘Director’), who—

“(A) shall report directly to the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources; and

“(B) should not hold another position in the United States Government while holding the position of Director.

“(3) Duties.—The Director shall—

“(A) optimize the impact of foreign assistance by—

“(i) strategically aligning foreign assistance resources to the Secretary of State’s overarching foreign policy goals;

“(ii) measuring effectiveness; and

“(iii) promoting evidence-based policies, including budget formulation, justification, and execution mechanisms;

“(B) serve as a resource for the Secretary of State, the Deputy Secretary of State, the Under Secretaries of State, the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, and the heads of other Federal departments and agencies that implement United States foreign assistance programs to support the development of policies, plans, and programs to achieve national security, foreign policy, and development goals;

“(C) perform results-oriented functions related to United States foreign assistance, including—

“(i) leading an integrated budget, strategic planning, and performance process as part of integrated interagency program planning to amplify foreign assistance;

“(ii) promoting monitoring and evaluation;

“(iii) increasing transparency;

“(iv) facilitating data analysis, information management, and reporting; and

“(v) developing foreign assistance policies through research and partnerships;

“(D) support interagency collaboration on foreign assistance programs and policies of other Federal agencies and entities, including the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the United States International Development Finance Corporation, the Department of the Treasury, the United States Trade and Development Agency, the Export-Import Bank of the United States, and the Peace Corps;

“(E) create and direct, as part of integrated interagency program planning to amplify foreign assistance, consolidated policy, strategic, and program plans, the operational budget, program evaluation and results reporting from bureaus and offices within the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development.

“(4) Appointment; confirmation.—

“(A) Appointment.—The Director shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

“(B) Acting director.—No individual may serve as Director in an acting capacity or otherwise assume the responsibilities of the Director for more than 90 days without being confirmed to such position by the Senate.

“(5) Personnel decisions.—Any adverse personnel decision made by the Director, or affecting the Director or any staff member reporting to the Director, including demotions, suspensions, furloughs and reductions in force, shall require the approval of the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources.”.

SEC. 4. TIMELY OBLIGATION OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS.

All funds appropriated by Congress to the Department of State or to the United States Agency for International Development, or that are otherwise under the direction of the Director of Foreign Assistance, shall be made available to be obligated not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of the related appropriations Act. <all>