Title VII — Pub. L. 114-323

SEC. 701. Foreign Relations Exchange Programs.

(a)

Exchanges Authorized.— Title I of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

“SEC. 63. FOREIGN RELATIONS EXCHANGE PROGRAMS.

“(a) Authority.—The Secretary may establish exchange programs under which officers or employees of the Department of State, including individuals appointed under title 5, United States Code, and members of the Foreign Service (as defined in section 103 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3903)), may be assigned, for not more than 1 year, to a position with any foreign government or international entity that permits an employee to be assigned to a position with the Department of State.

“(b) Salary and Benefits.—

“(1) Members of foreign service.—During a period in which a member of the Foreign Service is participating in an exchange program authorized pursuant to subsection (a), such member shall be entitled to the salary and benefits to which such member would receive but for the assignment under this section.

“(2) Non-foreign service employees of department.—An employee of the Department of State other than a member of the Foreign Service participating in an exchange program authorized pursuant to subsection (a) shall be treated in all respects as if detailed to an international organization pursuant to section 3343(c) of title 5, United States Code.

“(3) Foreign participants.—The salary and benefits of an employee of a foreign government or international entity participating in an exchange program authorized pursuant to subsection (a) shall be paid by such government or entity during the period in which such employee is participating in such program, and shall not be reimbursed by the Department of State.

“(c) Non-Reciprocal Assignment.—The Secretary may authorize a non-reciprocal assignment of personnel pursuant to this section, with or without reimbursement from the foreign government or international entity for all or part of the salary and other expenses payable during such assignment, if such is in the interests of the United States.

“(d) Rule of Construction.—Nothing in this section may be construed to authorize the appointment as an officer or employee of the United States of—

“(1) an individual whose allegiance is to any country, government, or foreign or international entity other than to the United States; or

“(2) an individual who has not met the requirements of sections 3331, 3332, 3333, and 7311 of title 5, United States Code, or any other provision of law concerning eligibility for appointment as, and continuation of employment as, an officer or employee of the United States.”

SEC. 702. United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy.

(a)

In General.— Section 1334 of the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6553) is amended by striking “ October 1, 2015” and inserting “ October 1, 2020”.

(b)

Retroactivity of Effective Date.— The amendment made by subsection (a) shall take effect as of October 1, 2016. Any lapse in powers, authorities, or responsibilities of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy from the period beginning on October 1, 2016, and ending on the date of the enactment of this Act, shall be deemed to have not so lapsed.

SEC. 703. Broadcasting Board of Governors.

(a)

Broadcasting to Asia.— Section 309 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 (22 U.S.C. 6208) is amended—

(1)

in subsection (a)(1), by striking “ the following countries” and all that follows through the period at the end and inserting “ Asia.”; and

(2)

in subsection (b)(1), by striking “ the respective countries of”.

(b)

Prohibitions.—

(1)

In general.— Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any change to the Federal status of—

(A)

the Cuba Service established pursuant to section 4 of the Radio Broadcasting to Cuba Act (22 U.S.C. 1465b; Public Law 98–111) is prohibited unless such section is explicitly repealed and such service is dissolved by an Act of Congress enacted on or after the date of the enactment of this Act; and

(B)

the Television Marti Service established by section 244(a) of Television Broadcasting to Cuba Act (22 U.S.C. 1465cc; Public Law 101–246) is prohibited unless such section is explicitly repealed and such service is dissolved by an Act of Congress enacted on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

(2)

Definition.— In this subsection, the term “change to the Federal status”, with respect to a service referred to in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1), includes any significant restructuring, privatization, subordination to a private or private-public entity, or merger with a private or public-private entity of such service.

(c)

Sense of Congress.— It is the sense of Congress that the Broadcasting Board of Governors should start broadcasting in the Sindhi language.

SEC. 704. Rewards for Justice.

(a)

Rewards Authorized.—

(1)

In general.— Section 36(b) of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708(b)) is amended in paragraphs (4) and (5) by striking “ or (9)” each place it appears and inserting “ (9), or (10)”.

(2)

Reports; definitions.— Section 36 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708) is amended—

(A)

in subsection (g), by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

“(4) Reports on rewards authorized.—Not less than 15 days after a reward is authorized under this section, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report, which may be submitted in classified form if necessary to protect intelligence sources and methods, detailing information about the reward, including the identity of the individual for whom the reward is being made, the amount of the reward, the acts with respect to which the reward is being made, and how the reward is being publicized.”

; and

(B)

in subsection (k)(2), by striking “ International Relations” and inserting “ Foreign Affairs”.

(3)

Effective date.— The amendments made by paragraphs (1) and (2) take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act and apply with respect to any reward authorized under section 36 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (as so amended) on or after such date.

(b)

Extraditions.—

(1)

Sense of congress.— It is the sense of Congress that the refusal by other countries to extradite or otherwise render to the United States fugitives who have been indicted or convicted within the United States for serious crimes, including murder, hijacking, and acts of domestic terrorism, is an impediment to justice, undermines international security, and deserves high level diplomatic efforts toward resolution.

(2)

Briefing requirement.— Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall provide to Congress a briefing related to the issues raised in paragraph (1), including—

(A)

the number of fugitives and others for whom the United States Government is seeking extradition or rendition, both in total and listed by country;

(B)

the average length of time such extradition or rendition requests have been outstanding, both in general and by country;

(C)

discussion of diplomatic and other efforts the United States has undertaken to secure the return of such fugitives;

(D)

discussion of factors that have been barriers to the resolution of such cases; and

(E)

information on the number of United States citizens whose extradition has been sought by foreign governments during the past 5 years, both in total and listed by country, and a discussion of the outcome of such requests.

SEC. 705. Extension of Period for Reimbursement of Seized Commercial Fishermen.

Subsection (e) of section 7 of the Fishermen’s Protective Act of 1967 (22 U.S.C. 1977) is amended by striking “ 2008” and inserting “ 2018”.

SEC. 706. Expansion of the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program, the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship Program, and the Donald M. Payne International Development Fellowship Program.

(a)

Additional Fellowships Authorized.— Beginning in fiscal year 2017, the Secretary shall—

(1)

increase by 10 the number of fellows selected for the Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program;

(2)

increase by 10 the number of fellows selected for the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship Program; and

(3)

increase by 5 the number of fellows selected for the Donald M. Payne International Development Fellowship Program.

(b)

Rule of Construction.— Nothing in this section may be construed as authorizing the hiring of additional personnel at the Department beyond existing, projected hiring patterns.

SEC. 707. Gao Report on Department Critical Telecommunications Equipment or Services Obtained from Suppliers Closely Linked to a Leading Cyber-Threat Actor.

(a)

Report Required.— Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report on any critical telecommunications equipment, technologies, or services obtained or used by the Department or its contractors or subcontrators that is—

(1)

manufactured by a foreign supplier, or a contractor or subcontractor of such supplier, that is closely linked to a leading cyber-threat actor; or

(2)

from an entity that incorporates or utilizes information technology manufactured by a foreign supplier, or a contractor or subcontractor of such supplier, that is closely linked to a leading cyber-threat actor.

(b)

Form.— The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.

(c)

Definitions.— In this section:

(1)

Leading cyber-threat actor.— The term “leading cyber-threat actor” means a country identified as a leading threat actor in cyberspace in the report entitled “Worldwide Threat Assessment of the US Intelligence Community”, dated February 9, 2016.

(2)

Closely linked.— The term “closely linked”, with respect to a foreign supplier, contractor, or subcontrator and a leading cyber-threat actor, means the foreign supplier, contractor, or subcontractor—

(A)

has ties to the military forces of such actor;

(B)

has ties to the intelligence services of such actor;

(C)

is the beneficiary of significant low interest or no-interest loans, loan forgiveness, or other support of such actor; or

(D)

is incorporated or headquartered in the territory of such actor.

SEC. 708. Implementation Plan for Information Technology and Knowledge Management.

Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees an implementation plan, including timelines and resources, required to—

(1)

establish a hub for analytics, data science, strategy, and knowledge management at the Department; and

(2)

migrate suitable information technology (as such term is defined in section 11101(6) of title 40 United States Code) to a cloud computing service or a cloud-based solution.

SEC. 709. Ransoms to Foreign Terrorist Organizations.

(a)

In General.— Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President, in consultation with the Secretary, shall transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a report covering the previous calendar providing the following details:

(1)

Which foreign governments are believed to have facilitated, directly or indirectly, the payment of ransoms.

(2)

Which foreign terrorist organizations received payments from foreign governments identified in paragraph (1).

(3)

The amount of each such payment.

(4)

The means of delivering such payments.

(5)

A summary of the efforts of the United States to counter such payments.

(6)

Recommendations for improving coordination among the foreign allies of the United States to not pay ransoms.

(b)

Form.— The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, may include a classified annex, shall be made available to the public by posting the unclassified form of such report on the website of the Department, and may be included in any other report that is required to be made public.

SEC. 710. Strategy to Combat Terrorist Use of Social Media.

(a)

In General.— Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on United States strategy to combat terrorists’ and terrorist organizations’ use of social media consistent with the President’s 2011 “Strategic Implementation Plan for Empowering Local Partners to Prevent Violent Extremism in the United States”.

(b)

Elements.— The report required by subsection (a) shall include the following:

(1)

An evaluation of what role social media plays in radicalization in the United States and elsewhere.

(2)

An analysis of how terrorists and terrorist organizations are using social media, including trends.

(3)

A summary of the Federal Government’s efforts to disrupt and counter the use of social media by terrorists and terrorist organizations, an evaluation of the success of such efforts, and recommendations for improvement.

(4)

An analysis of how social media is being used for counter-radicalization and counter-propaganda purposes, irrespective of whether or not such efforts are made by the Federal Government.

(5)

An assessment of the value to law enforcement of social media posts by terrorists and terrorist organizations.

(6)

An overview of social media training available to law enforcement and intelligence personnel that enables such personnel to understand and combat the use of social media by terrorists and terrorist organizations, as well as recommendations for improving or expanding existing training opportunities.

(c)

Form.— The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex in accordance with the protection of intelligence sources and methods.

(d)

Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.— In this section, the term “appropriate congressional committees” means—

(1)

the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on the Armed Services, the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives; and

(2)

the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.

SEC. 711. Report on Department Information Technology Acquisition Practices.

(a)

Report Required.— Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report detailing the Department’s information technology acquisition practices.

(b)

Elements of Report.— The report required under subsection (a) shall include the following elements:

(1)

Agency chief investment officer authority enhancements, including reporting on incremental developments regarding whether information technology investments are delivering functionality every 6 months.

(2)

Enhanced transparency and risk management, including the methodology for calculating risk.

(3)

The frequency and status of agency-wide portfolio reviews to identify opportunities for information technology efficiency, effectiveness, duplication, and potential savings.

(4)

Data center consolidation and optimization, including potential savings.

SEC. 712. Public Availability of Reports on Nominees to Be Chiefs of Mission.

Not later than 7 days after submitting the report required under section 304(a)(4) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3944(a)(4)) to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, the President shall make the report available to the public, including by posting the report on the website of the Department in a conspicuous manner and location.

SEC. 713. Recruitment and Retention of Individuals Who Have Lived, Worked, or Studied in Predominantly Muslim Countries or Communities.

(a)

Findings.— Congress finds that successful engagement, including robust public diplomacy, with predominantly Muslim countries and communities is critical for achieving United States foreign policy objectives.

(b)

Sense of Congress.— It is the sense of Congress that the Department should recruit more employees that have a personal background in, and thorough understating of, the cultures, languages, and history of the Middle East and wider Muslim world.

(c)

Recruitment and Retention of Certain Individuals.— The Secretary shall make every effort to recruit and retain individuals that have lived, worked, or studied in predominantly Muslim countries or communities, including individuals who have studied at an Islamic institution of higher learning.

SEC. 714. Sense of Congress Regarding Coverage of Appropriate Therapies for Dependents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (asd).

(a)

Finding.— Congress finds that physical, occupational, speech, and applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapies are evidenced-based interventions proven to bring about positive change and assist in the long term development of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

(b)

Sense of Congress.— It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary should endeavor to ensure coverage and access, for dependents with ASD of overseas employees, to the therapies described in subsection (a), including through telehealth, computer software programs, or alternative means if appropriate providers are not accessible due to such employees’ placement overseas.

SEC. 715. Repeal of Obsolete Reports.

(a)

Repeal of Certain Reporting Requirements.— The following provisions of law are repealed:

(1)

Section 12 of the Foreign Service Buildings Act, 1926 (Act of May 7, 1926, 22 U.S.C. 303).

(2)

Section 404 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993 (Public Law 102–138, 22 U.S.C. 2778 note).

(b)

Other Reporting Reform.—

(1)

Section 613 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003 (Public Law 107–228, 22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended—

(A)

by striking subsection (b);

(B)

by striking “ (a) Policy.—”; and

(C)

by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as subsections (a) and (b), respectively, and moving such subsections, as so redesignated, two ems to the left.

(2)

Section 721 of Appendix G of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2000 (Public Law 106–113, 22 U.S.C. 287 note) is amended—

(A)

by striking subsection (c); and

(B)

by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (c).

(3)

Section 10 of the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006 (Public Law 109–446, 22 U.S.C. 2378b note) is amended—

(A)

by striking subsection (b); and

(B)

by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (b).

(4)

Section 1207 of the Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 (Public Law 107–314, 22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended—

(A)

by striking subsection (d); and

(B)

by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (d).

(5)

Subsection (c) of section 601 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4001) is amended by striking paragraphs (4) and (5).

SEC. 716. Prohibition on Additional Funding.

No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act and the amendments made by this Act.

Title VII — Miscellaneous Provisions

TITLE VII Miscellaneous Provisions