US Codex
Pub. L.
Notes

Title II — Peace Corps Oversight and Accountability

115th Congress · Approved Oct 9, 2018 · 132 Stat. 3650

TITLE II Peace Corps Oversight and Accountability

SEC. 201. Peace Corps Volunteer Access to Inspector General.

Section 8 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2507) is amended—
(1)
in subsection (a)—
(A)
by striking “ he” and inserting “ the President”; and
(B)
by adding at the end the following new sentences: “ As part of the training provided to all volunteers under subsection (a), and in coordination with the Inspector General of the Peace Corps, the President shall provide all volunteers with information regarding the mandate of the Inspector General and the availability (including contact information) of the Inspector General and the Office of Victim Advocacy as a resource for volunteers. The President shall ensure that volunteers receive such information at least once during training that occurs prior to enrollment and at least once during each significant instance of training after enrollment.”; and
(2)
by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(c) The President shall implement procedures to maintain a record verifying each individual completing training provided to meet each requirement in this section and sections 8A, 8B, 8F, and 8G(b).”

SEC. 202. Publication Requirement for Volunteer Surveys.

Section 8E of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2507e) is amended—
(1)
in subsection (b), in the first sentence—
(A)
by inserting “ , ensure that each such plan includes a consideration of the results, with respect to each such representative and the country of service of each such representative, of each survey conducted under subsection (c),” after “ standards for Peace Corps representatives”; and
(B)
by striking “ and shall review” and inserting “ , and review”; and
(2)
in subsection (c)—
(A)
in the first sentence, by striking “ 2018” and inserting “ 2023”; and
(B)
in the third sentence, by striking “ subsection (a)” and inserting “ subsection (b)”; and
(C)
by adding at the end the following new sentences: “ The President shall publish, on a publicly available website of the Peace Corps, a report summarizing the results of each survey related to volunteer satisfaction in each country in which volunteers serve, and the early termination rate of volunteers serving in each such country. The information published shall be posted in an easily accessible place near the description of the appropriate country and shall be written in an easily understood manner.”.

SEC. 203. Consultation with Congress Required Before Opening or Closing Overseas Offices and Country Programs.

Section 10 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2509) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(k)

(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Director of the Peace Corps may not open, close, significantly reduce, or suspend a domestic or overseas office or country program unless the Director has notified and consulted with the appropriate congressional committees at least 15 days in advance.

“(2) The Director of the Peace Corps may waive the application of paragraph (1) for a period of not more than 5 days after an action described in such paragraph if the Director determines such action is necessary to ameliorate a substantial security risk to Peace Corps volunteers or other Peace Corps personnel.

“(3) For the purposes of this subsection, the term ‘appropriate congressional committees’ means—

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

“(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.”