Source document: https://docs-lawep.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/1696596917808.pdf (United States)
CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE July 13, 2023 S2670 amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 2226, to authorize ap- propriations for fiscal year 2024 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the De- partment of Energy, to prescribe mili- tary personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the appropriate place in title VI, insert the following: SEC.
6ll.

AUTHORIZATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE ABSENCES AND TRAVEL AND TRANS- PORTATION ALLOWANCES FOR RE- PRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE.

(a) LEAVES OF ABSENCE.— (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 40 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 708 the following new section: ‘‘§ 708a.
Reproductive health administrative absence ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Under such regulations as the Secretary of Defense may prescribe, the Secretary shall grant an administrative absence to a member of the armed forces who requests such an absence— ‘‘(1) to receive non-covered reproductive health care; or ‘‘(2) to accompany a spouse or other de- pendent who receives non-covered reproduc- tive health care.
‘‘(b) DURATION.—An administrative absence granted under subsection (a) pursuant to a request made under that subsection may ex- tend for a period of not more than 21 days for each such request.
‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS FOR REGULATIONS.—The regulations prescribed under subsection (a) shall provide that— ‘‘(1) no additional requirement, including consultations with a chaplain, medical test- ing, or any other form of counseling, may be imposed on a member requesting an adminis- trative absence under subsection (a) by the Secretary or the commander or other ap- proval authority of the member; and ‘‘(2) the Secretary and the commander or other approval authority of a member shall prioritize the privacy of the member (and the spouse or other dependent of the member, if applicable), consistent with applicable stat- utes and regulations governing protected medical information.
‘‘(d) CONSTRUCTION WITH OTHER LEAVE.— Leave under this section may not be charged or credited to leave that accrued or that may accrue under section 701.

Any benefits pro- vided to a member under this section are in addition to any other leave or absence to which the member may be entitled under this chapter.
reproductive health ‘‘(e) NON-COVERED REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH CARE DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘non-covered care’ means reproductive health care not author- ized to be performed at a medical treatment facility or other facility of the Department of Defense consistent with Federal law, in- cluding— ‘‘(1) an abortion; or ‘‘(2) assisted reproductive technology, in- cluding— ‘‘(A) ovarian stimulation and egg retrieval, including any needed medications and proce- dures required for retrieval, processing, and utilization of an egg for assisted reproduc- tive technology or cryopreservation; ‘‘(B) sperm collection and processing for or reproductive technology assisted cryopreservation; ‘‘(C) intrauterine insemination; and ‘‘(D) in vitro fertilization, including— ‘‘(i) in vitro fertilization with fresh embryo transfer; ‘‘(ii) gamete intrafallopian transfer; ‘‘(iii) zygote intrafollopian transfer; ‘‘(iv) pronuclear stage tubal transfer; ‘‘(v) tubal embryo transfer; and ‘‘(vi) frozen embryo transfer.’’.
(2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 40 of such title is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 708 the following new item: ‘‘708a.

Reproductive health administrative absence.’’.


(b) AUTHORIZATION OF TRAVEL AND TRANS- PORTATION ALLOWANCES.—Section 452(b) of title 37, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new para- graph: ‘‘(24) Travel by a member or a dependent to receive non-covered reproductive health care (as defined in section 708a(e) of title 10), in- cluding an abortion and assisted reproduc- tive technology.’’.
(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section or an amendment made by this section may be construed to restrict or de- prive a member of the Armed Forces from accessing or being granted convalescent leave consistent with section 701 of title 10, United States Code.

SA 538.
SA 538.

Mrs. SHAHEEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 2226, to authorize ap- propriations for fiscal year 2024 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the De- partment of Energy, to prescribe mili- tary personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the end of subtitle C of title XII, add the following: SEC.

1240A.
1240A.

SPECIAL ENVOY FOR BELARUS.

(a) SPECIAL ENVOY.—The President shall appoint a Special Envoy for Belarus within the Department of State (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Special Envoy’’).

(b) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Special Envoy— (1) should be a person of recognized distinc- tion in the field of European security, geo- politics, democracy, and human rights; and (2) may be a career foreign service officer.
(c) CENTRAL OBJECTIVE.—The central objec- tive of the Special Envoy is to coordinate and promote efforts— (1) to improve respect for the fundamental human rights of the people of Belarus; (2) to sustain focus on the national secu- rity implications, for the United States, of Belarus’s political and military alignment; and (3) to respond to the political, economic, and security impacts of events in Belarus on neighboring countries and the wider region.
(d) DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Special Envoy shall— (1) engage in discussions with Belarusian officials regarding human rights and polit- in ical, economic, and security Belarus; issues (2) support international efforts to pro- mote human rights and political freedoms in Belarus, including coordination and dialogue between the United States and the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the European Union, Belarus, and the other countries in Eastern Europe; (3) consult with nongovernmental organi- zations that have attempted to address human rights and political and economic in- stability in Belarus; (4) make recommendations regarding the funding of activities promoting human rights, democracy, the rule of law, and the development of a market economy in Belarus; (5) review strategies for improving protec- tion of human rights in Belarus, including technical training and exchange programs; (6) develop an action plan for holding to ac- count the perpetrators of the human rights violations documented in the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights report on the situation of human rights in Belarus in the run-up to the 2020 presidential elec- tion and its aftermath (Human Rights Coun- cil Resolution 49/36); (7) engage with member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Or- ganization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the European Union with re- spect to the implications of Belarus’s polit- ical and security alignment for transatlantic security; and (8) to work within the Department of State and among partnering countries to sustain focus on the political situation in Belarus.
(e) ROLE.—The position of Special Envoy— (1) shall be a full-time position; (2) may not be combined with any other position within the Department of State; (3) shall only exist for the period during which United States diplomatic operations in Belarus at the United States Embassy in Minsk have been suspended; and (4) shall oversee the operations and per- sonnel of the Belarus Affairs Unit of the De- partment of State.
(f) REPORT ON ACTIVITIES.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for the fol- lowing 5 years, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Special Envoy, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that describes the ac- tivities undertaken pursuant to subsection (d) during the reporting period.
(g) TERMINATION.—The position of Special Envoy for Belarus Affairs and the authori- ties provided by this section shall terminate on the date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SA 539.
Mrs. SHAHEEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 2226, to authorize ap- propriations for fiscal year 2024 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the De- partment of Energy, to prescribe mili- tary personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the end of title X, add the following: Subtitle H—Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2023 SEC.
1091.

SHORT TITLE.

This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2023’’.

SEC.

1092.

SENSE OF CONGRESS.

It is the sense of Congress that— (1) section 1248(h) of the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007 (Public Law 110–181; 8 U.S.C.
1157 note) requires the Secretary of Home- land Security, the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of Defense to designate senior coordinating officials, with sufficient exper- tise, authority, and resources, to carry out duties relating to the issuance of special im- migrant visas under that Act and the Afghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 (Public Law 111–8; U.S.C.
1101 note); (2) the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of Defense should take all necessary steps to designate such senior coordinating officials; (3) all criteria relating to the requirements for special immigrant visa applicants under the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007 (Public Law 110–181; 8 U.S.C.
1157 note) and the Af- ghan Allies Protection Act of 2009 (Public S