To provide certain authorities for the Department of State, and for other purposes.

Summary: (Sec. 1) Authorizes the Secretary of State to provide for U.S. participation in the Regional Emerging Diseases Intervention Center ("REDI Center") in Singapore.

Requires the Secretary to: (1) consult with the Committee on International Relations of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate (Committees); and (2) report on REDI Center efforts respecting bioterrorism concerns.

(Sec. 2) Amends the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to credit Department of State medical reimbursements to the currently available appropriation account, which shall be available for expenditure during the fiscal year received or longer as may be provided by law.

(Sec. 3) Amends the Diplomatic Security Act to authorize the Secretary to not convene an Accountability Review Board to conduct an inquiry for incidents that involve serious injury, loss of life, or significant property destruction at a U.S. mission in Iraq or Afghanistan during the period of October 1, 2005, through September 30, 2009.

Requires the Secretary, in the case of such an incident, to: (1) notify the Committees; and (2) investigate the incident and submit a report to such Committees.

(Sec. 4) Amends the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2004 to repeal the provision making United States Agency for International Development (USAID) post differential and danger pay increases for employees not in Iraq or Afghanistan subject to the provision of similar pay allowances for Department employees.

Increases the maximum post-differential and danger pay allowance for a Foreign Service employee to 35% of base pay.

Directs the Secretary to report to the Committees and to the Committee on Government Reform of the House and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate respecting such increases' effect on "hard-to-fill" positions.

(Sec. 5) Amends the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to authorize the Foreign Service Grievance Board to retain an employee on the payroll while a grievance is being reviewed.

 (Sec. 6) Amends the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003 to extend the International Broadcasting Bureau personal services contracting pilot program through December 31, 2006.

(Sec. 7) Authorizes the Department to provide in advance funds available for official residence expenses to those persons currently eligible to receive such reimbursement.

(Sec. 8) Amends the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 to authorize the Broadcasting Board of Governors to pay the primary and secondary education costs of dependents of personnel stationed in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, including certain transportation costs, if the Board determines that the schools available in the Commonwealth are unable to provide an adequate education. Limits such payments to amounts similarly permitted to Department of Defense (DOD) dependents' educational expenses in the Commonwealth.

SECTION 1. REDI CENTER.

    (a) Authorization.--The Secretary of State is authorized to provide 
for the participation by the United States in the Regional Emerging 
Diseases Intervention Center (in this section referred to as ``REDI 
Center'') in Singapore, as established by the Agreement described in 
subsection (c).
    (b) Consultation and Report.--
        (1) Consultation.--Prior to the review required under Article 
    6.3 of the Agreement described in subsection (c), the Secretary 
    shall consult with the Committee on International Relations of the 
    House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of 
    the Senate.
        (2) Report.--In connection with the submission of the annual 
    congressional budget justification, the Secretary shall report on 
    efforts undertaken at the REDI Center with regard to bioterrorism 
    concerns.
    (c) Agreement Described.--The Agreement referred to in this section 
is the Agreement between the Governments of the United States of 
America and the Republic of Singapore Establishing the Regional 
Emerging Diseases Intervention Center, done at Singapore, November 22, 
2005.

SEC. 2. RETENTION OF MEDICAL REIMBURSEMENTS.

    Section 904 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4084) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(g) Reimbursements paid to the Department of State for funding 
the costs of medical care abroad for employees and eligible family 
members shall be credited to the currently available applicable 
appropriation account. Such reimbursements shall be available for 
obligation and expenditure during the fiscal year in which they are 
received or for such longer period of time as may be provided in 
law.''.

SEC. 3. ACCOUNTABILITY REVIEW BOARDS.

    Section 301(a) of the Diplomatic Security Act (22 U.S.C. 4831(a)) 
is amended--
        (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``paragraph (2)'' and 
    inserting ``paragraphs (2) and (3)''; and
        (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
        ``(3) Facilities in afghanistan and iraq.--
            ``(A) Limited exemptions from requirement to convene 
        board.--The Secretary of State is not required to convene a 
        Board in the case of an incident that--
                ``(i) involves serious injury, loss of life, or 
            significant destruction of property at, or related to, a 
            United States Government mission in Afghanistan or Iraq; 
            and
                ``(ii) occurs during the period beginning on October 1, 
            2005, and ending on September 30, 2009.
            ``(B) Reporting requirements.--In the case of an incident 
        described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall--
                ``(i) promptly notify the Committee on International 
            Relations of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
            on Foreign Relations of the Senate of the incident;
                ``(ii) conduct an inquiry of the incident; and
                ``(iii) upon completion of the inquiry required by 
            clause (ii), submit to each such Committee a report on the 
            findings and recommendations related to such inquiry and 
            the actions taken with respect to such recommendations.''.

SEC. 4. INCREASED LIMITS APPLICABLE TO POST DIFFERENTIALS AND DANGER 
              PAY ALLOWANCES.

    (a) Repeal of Limited-Scope Effective Date for Previous Increase.--
Subsection (c) of section 591 of the Foreign Operations, Export 
Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2004 (division D of 
Public Law 108-199) is repealed.
    (b) Post Differentials.--Section 5925(a) of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended in the third sentence by striking ``25 percent of the 
rate of basic pay or, in the case of an employee of the United States 
Agency for International Development,''.
    (c) Danger Pay Allowances.--Section 5928 of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ``25 percent of the basic pay of the 
employee or 35 percent of the basic pay of the employee in the case of 
an employee of the United States Agency for International Development'' 
both places that it appears and inserting ``35 percent of the basic pay 
of the employee''.
    (d) Criteria.--The Secretary of State shall inform the Committee on 
International Relations of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate of the criteria to be used 
in determinations of appropriate adjustments in post differentials 
under section 5925(a) of title 5, United States Code, as amended by 
subsection (b), and danger pay allowances under section 5928 of title 
5, United States Code, as amended by subsection (c).
    (e) Study and Report.--Not later than two years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall conduct a study 
assessing the effect of the increases in post differentials and danger 
pay allowances made by the amendments in subsections (b) and (c), 
respectively, in filling ``hard-to-fill'' positions and shall submit a 
report of such study to the committees specified in subsection (d) and 
to the Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
Senate.

SEC. 5. CLARIFICATION OF FOREIGN SERVICE GRIEVANCE BOARD PROCEDURES.

    Section 1106(8) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 
4136(8)) is amended in the first sentence--
        (1) by inserting ``the involuntary separation of the grievant 
    (other than an involuntary separation for cause under section 
    610(a)),'' after ``considering''; and
        (2) by striking ``the grievant or'' and inserting ``the 
    grievant, or''.

SEC. 6. PERSONAL SERVICES CONTRACTING PILOT PROGRAM.

    Section 504(c) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal 
Year 2003 (Public Law 107-228) is amended by striking ``December 31, 
2005'' and inserting ``December 31, 2006''.

SEC. 7. OFFICIAL RESIDENCE EXPENSES.

    Section 5913 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(c) Funds made available under subsection (b) may be provided in 
advance to persons eligible to receive reimbursements.''.

SEC. 8. COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS EDUCATION 
              BENEFITS.

    Section 305(a) of the United States International Broadcasting Act 
of 1994 (22 U.S.C. 6204(a)) is amended by inserting after paragraph 
(18) the following new paragraph:
        ``(19)(A) To provide for the payment of primary and secondary 
    school expenses for dependents of personnel stationed in the 
    Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) at a cost not 
    to exceed expenses authorized by the Department of Defense for such 
    schooling for dependents of members of the Armed Forces stationed 
    in the Commonwealth, if the Board determines that schools available 
    in the Commonwealth are unable to provide adequately for the 
    education of the dependents of such personnel.
        ``(B) To provide transportation for dependents of such 
    personnel between their places of residence and those schools for 
    which expenses are provided under subparagraph (A), if the Board 
    determines that such schools are not accessible by public means of 
    transportation.''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.