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Title II — Diversity in the Foreign Service and at the Department of State

H.R. 8912 · 116th Congress · Dec 9, 2020 · Lineage

II Diversity in the Foreign Service and at the Department of State

Sec. 201 Representation on Board of Examiners for the purposes of recruitment into the Foreign Service

Section 211 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3931) is amended—
(1)
by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (e); and
(2)
by inserting after subsection (b) the following new subsections:

“(c) Members of the Foreign Service and members of the Senior Foreign Service shall accrue one additional year of time in class for every two years spent as a member of a Board of Examiners.

“(d) The Secretary of State shall ensure that a substantial number of women and members of minority groups are appointed to the Board of Examiners.”

Sec. 202 Promotion in the Foreign Service

The Foreign Service Act of 1980 is amended—
(1)
in section 602 (22 U.S.C. 4002), by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(d) Not later than January 31 of each year, the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report that details the demographic composition of selection boards under this section and the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service under section 211 convened in the previous year, including information on the diversity of the members of such boards, in addition to any other information the Secretary determines relevant.”

(2)
in section 603 (22 U.S.C. 4003)—
(A)
in subsection (a), in the second sentence, by inserting “testimony from peers and subordinates,” after “supervisors,”; and
(B)
in subsection (b)—
(i)
in paragraph (1) by striking “, or” and inserting a semicolon;
(ii)
by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (4); and
(iii)
by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraphs:

“(2) a record of supporting the recruitment and career development goals of members of the Foreign Service, such as serving as a mentor in mentorship program under section 616, participation in recruitment activities, or serving on the Board of Examiners or on selection boards;

“(3) a demonstrated commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion at the Department of State, including in management practices;”

Sec. 203 Diversity and inclusion training

Section 708 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 is amended by inserting after section 614 (22 U.S.C. 4028) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(e) Diversity and inclusion training

“(1) In general—The Secretary of State, with the assistance of other relevant officials, such as the Director General of the Foreign Service and the Director of Human Resources, the Director of the Office of Civil Rights, the Chief Diversity Officer, and the director of the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center, shall establish as part of the standard training provided after the date of the enactment of this section, for officers of the Service, including chiefs of mission, instruction on promoting diversity. Such training shall be informed by the latest available research and methods, and may include unconscious bias training and other such instruction.

“(2) Implementation—In carrying out the training required under paragraph (1), the Director of the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center shall, not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this section, conduct training on diversity and inclusion for all Foreign Service officers, including all entry level officers and all officers prior to service on a selection board or the Board of Examiners. Such training shall be included in—

“(A) the A–100 course attended by all Foreign Service officers; and

“(B) the courses required of all officers prior to service on a selection board or the Board of Examiners.”

Sec. 204 Mentorship program

(a)
In general— The Foreign Service Act of 1980 is amended by inserting after section 708 (22 U.S.C. 4028) the following new sections:

“709. Mentorship program

“(a) The Secretary of State shall establish in the Department of State a mentorship program to match—

“(1) entry-level members of the Foreign Service and newly hired members of the civil service at the GS–9 level and below; and

“(2) mid-level members of the Foreign Service and mid-level members of the civil service at the GS–12 level and above.

“(b) Individuals participating in the mentorship program under this section shall participate for a minimum of two tours of duty.

“(c) The mentorship program established under this section shall include Employee Affinity Groups in the selection of mentors, in addition to other individuals selected by the Secretary of State.

“(d) Service as mentor in the mentorship program shall be considered as satisfying criteria under section 603(b)(2).”

(b)
Clerical amendment— The table of contents in section 2 of the Foreign Service Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 707 the following new items:

Sec. 205 Senior Executive Service candidate development program

(a)
In general— The Secretary of State shall annually offer the Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program to members of the civil service at the Department of State at the GS–14 and GS–15 levels.
(b)
Report— The Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, at the same time as each report required under section 313 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as added by section 2(a)(2), a report detailing the demographic information of candidates referred by each bureau of the Department of State to interview for the Senior Executive Service, including demographic information disaggregated by bureau relating to the diversity (as such term is defined in the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended by section 206) of such candidates.

Sec. 206 Diversity defined in the Foreign Service Act of 1980

Section 102 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3902) is amended by—
(1)
redesignating paragraphs (5) through (12) as paragraphs (6) through (13), respectively; and
(2)
inserting after paragraph (4) the following new paragraph:

“(5) “diversity” includes characteristics such as national origin, language, race, color, disability, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, and family structure.”