II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 847 

To establish the International Children with Disabilities Protection Program 

within the Department of State, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 16, 2023 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. MORAN, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs. BLACKBURN, 

Mr. CARDIN, Mr. TILLIS, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. KAINE, Ms. DUCKWORTH, 

Mr. MERKLEY, and Mr. MURPHY) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To establish the International Children with Disabilities Protection Program within the Department of State, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘International Children 

5 with Disabilities Protection Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) According to the United Nations Children’s 

9 Fund (UNICEF), there are at least 240,000,000 


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1 children and youth with disabilities in the world, in2 cluding approximately 53,000,000 children under 

3 age 5. 

4 (2) Families and children with disabilities to5 gether make up nearly 2,000,000,000 people, or 25 

6 percent of the world’s population. 

7 (3) Millions of children, particularly children 

8 with intellectual and other developmental disabilities, 

9 are placed in large or small residential institutions 

10 and most of those children are left to grow up with11 out the love, support, and guidance of a family. The 

12 vast majority of children placed in residential insti13 tutions have at least one living parent or have ex14 tended family, many of whom would keep their chil15 dren at home if they had the support and legal pro16 tections necessary to do so. 

17 (4) As described in the 2013 world report pub18 lished by UNICEF, many parents who wish to keep 

19 their children with disabilities feel that they have no 

20 choice but to give up their child to a residential in21 stitution because of prejudice and stigma against 

22 disability, the lack of support and protection that 

23 families receive, and the fact that education and 

24 community services are often inaccessible or inap25 propriate for children with disabilities. 


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1 (5) Extensive scientific research demonstrates 

2 that placing children in residential institutions may 

3 lead to psychological harm, increased developmental 

4 disabilities, stunted growth, rapid spread of infec5 tious diseases, and high rates of mortality. 

6 (6) Leading child protection organizations have 

7 documented that children and adolescents raised 

8 without families in residential institutions face high 

9 risk of violence, trafficking for forced labor or the 

10 sex industry, forced abortion or sterilization, and 

11 criminal detention. 

12 (7) The danger of family breakup and institu13 tionalization has grown enormously as a result of the 

14 COVID–19 pandemic. According to a study pub15 lished in The Lancet, as of September 2022, a min16 imum of 10,500,000 children globally have lost a 

17 parent or co-residing caregiver to COVID–19 and 

18 are now at increased risk of placement in a residen19 tial institution. 

20 (8) The disability rights movement in the 

21 United States has been a world leader and an inspi22 ration to the growth of a global disability rights 

23 movement. The United States has many models of 

24 practice that could be shared with countries around 

25 the world to support laws, policies, and services to 


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1 promote the full inclusion of children with disabil2 ities in families around the world. 

3 (9) The Advancing Protection and Care for 

4 Children in Adversity strategy of the United States 

5 Government (APCCA) and the Global Child Thrive 

6 Act of 2020 (subtitle I of title XII of division A of 

7 Public Law 116–283; 134 Stat. 3985) commit the 

8 United States Government to investing in the devel9 opment, care, dignity, and safety of vulnerable chil10 dren and their families around the world, including 

11 efforts to keep children with their families and re12 duce placement of children in residential institutions. 

13 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

14 It is the sense of Congress that— 

15 (1) stigma and discrimination against children 

16 with disabilities, particularly intellectual and other 

17 developmental disabilities, and lack of support for 

18 community inclusion have left people with disabilities 

19 and their families economically and socially 

20 marginalized; 

21 (2) organizations of persons with disabilities 

22 and family members of persons with disabilities are 

23 often too small to apply for or obtain funds from do24 mestic or international sources or ineligible to re25 ceive funds from such sources; 


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1 (3) as a result of the factors described in para2 graphs (1) and (2), key stakeholders have often been 

3 left out of public policymaking on matters that af4 fect children with disabilities; and 

5 (4) financial support, technical assistance, and 

6 active engagement of people with disabilities and 

7 their families is needed to ensure the development of 

8 effective policies that protect families, ensure the full 

9 inclusion in society of children with disabilities, and 

10 promote the transition of children with disabilities to 

11 independent living as adults. 

12 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

13 In this Act: 

14 (1) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

15 means the Department of State. 

16 (2) FAMILY.—The term ‘‘family’’ includes mar17 ried and unmarried parents, single parents, adoptive 

18 families, kinship care, extended family, and foster 

19 care. 

20 (3) ORGANIZATION OF PERSONS WITH DISABIL21 ITIES.—The term ‘‘organization of persons with dis22 abilities’’ means a nongovernmental civil society or23 ganization with staff leadership and a board of di24 rectors the majority of which consists of— 

25 (A) people with disabilities; 


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1 (B) individuals who were formerly placed 

2 in a residential institution; or 

3 (C) family members of children or youth 

4 with disabilities. 

5 (4) RESIDENTIAL INSTITUTION.—The term 

6 ‘‘residential institution’’— 

7 (A) means a facility where children live in 

8 a collective arrangement that is not family9 based and that— 

10 (i) may be public or privately man11 aged and staffed; 

12 (ii) may be small or large; and 

13 (iii) may or may not be designated for 

14 children with disabilities; and 

15 (B) includes an orphanage, a children’s in16 stitution, a group home, an infant home, a chil17 dren’s village or cottage complex, a boarding 

18 school used primarily for care, and any other 

19 residential setting for children. 

20 SEC. 5. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

21 It is the policy of the United States to— 

22 (1) assist countries abroad in creating rights 

23 protection programs for people with disabilities and 

24 developing policies and social supports to ensure that 

25 children with disabilities can grow up as members of 


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1 families and make the transition to independent liv2 ing as adults; 

3 (2) promote the development of advocacy skills 

4 and leadership abilities of people with disabilities 

5 and family members of children and youth with dis6 abilities so that such individuals can effectively par7 ticipate in their local, regional, and national govern8 ments to promote policy reforms and programs to 

9 support full inclusion in families of children with dis10 abilities; 

11 (3) promote the development of laws and poli12 cies that— 

13 (A) strengthen families and protect against 

14 the unnecessary institutionalization of children 

15 with disabilities; and 

16 (B) create opportunities for youth with dis17 abilities to receive the resources and support 

18 needed to achieve their full potential and transi19 tion to independent living as adults; 

20 (4) promote participation by different groups of 

21 people with disabilities and their families in advo22 cating for disability rights and reforms to legal 

23 frameworks; and 

24 (5) promote the sustainable action needed to 

25 bring about changes in law, policy, and programs to 


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1 ensure full family inclusion of children with disabil2 ities and the transition of children with disabilities 

3 to independent living as adults. 

4 SEC. 6. INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES 

5 PROTECTION PROGRAM AND CAPACITY 

6 BUILDING. 

7 (a) INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES

8 PROTECTION PROGRAM.— 

9 (1) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—There is 

10 established within the Bureau of Democracy, 

11 Human Rights, and Labor of the Department a 

12 grant and capacity-building program to be known as 

13 the ‘‘International Children with Disabilities Protec14 tion Program’’ (in this section referred to as the 

15 ‘‘Program’’). 

16 (2) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Program is 

17 to assist organizations of persons with disabilities 

18 and family members of children with disabilities in 

19 communicating about and advocating for policies 

20 that ensure the family inclusion and transition to 

21 independent living of children with disabilities to ad22 vance the policy described in section 5. 

23 (3) CRITERIA.—The Secretary of State, in con24 sultation with leading civil society groups with experVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S847.IS S847

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1 tise in global disability rights, shall establish criteria 

2 for— 

3 (A) applications for grants awarded under 

4 paragraph (4); and 

5 (B) the selection of— 

6 (i) the countries or regions targeted 

7 under the Program; 

8 (ii) priority activities funded through 

9 grants awarded under paragraph (4); and 

10 (iii) capacity-building needs of recipi11 ents of grants awarded under paragraph 

12 (4). 

13 (4) DISABILITY INCLUSION GRANTS.— 

14 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State 

15 may award grants to eligible implementing 

16 partners to administer grant amounts directly 

17 or through subgrants. 

18 (B) ELIGIBLE IMPLEMENTING PART19 NERS.—For purposes of this paragraph, an eli20 gible implementing partner is a nongovern21 mental organization or other civil society orga22 nization that— 

23 (i) has the capacity to administer 

24 grant amounts— 

25 (I) directly; or 


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1 (II) through subgrants that can 

2 be effectively used by emerging new 

3 organizations of persons with disabil4 ities; and 

5 (ii) has expertise in disability rights. 

6 (C) PRIORITY.—The Secretary of State 

7 shall prioritize awarding grants under this 

8 paragraph to eligible implementing partners 

9 with experience operating or administering sub10 grants in countries for which the Assistant Sec11 retary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, 

12 and Labor, in consultation with the United 

13 States Government Special Adviser and Senior 

14 Coordinator for the Administrator of the United 

15 States Agency for International Development 

16 on Children in Adversity, has determined that 

17 there are significant populations of children liv18 ing in residential institutions. 

19 (D) SUBGRANTS.—An eligible imple20 menting partner that receives a grant under 

21 this paragraph should seek to— 

22 (i) provide not less than 50 percent of 

23 the grant amount through subgrants to 

24 local organizations of persons with disabil25 ities and other nongovernmental organizaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Mar 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S847.IS S847

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1 tions working in country to advance the 

2 policy described in section 5; and 

3 (ii) provide, of any amount distributed 

4 pursuant to clause (i)— 

5 (I) 75 percent to organizations of 

6 persons with disabilities; and 

7 (II) 25 percent to other non8 governmental organizations. 

9 (b) CAPACITY-BUILDING PROGRAMS.—The Secretary 

10 of State is authorized to provide funds to nongovernmental 

11 organizations with expertise in capacity building and tech12 nical assistance to develop capacity-building programs 

13 to— 

14 (1) develop disability leaders, legislators, policy15 makers, and service providers to plan and implement 

16 programs to advance the policy described in section 

17 5; 

18 (2) build the advocacy capacity and knowledge 

19 of successful models of rights enforcement, family 

20 support, and disability inclusion among disability, 

21 youth, and allied civil society advocates, attorneys, 

22 and professionals to advance the policy described in 

23 section 5; 

24 (3) create online programs to train policy25 makers, activists, and other individuals on successful 


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1 models of reform, services, and rights protection to 

2 ensure that children with disabilities can live and 

3 grow up with families and become full participants 

4 in society, which— 

5 (A) are available globally; 

6 (B) offer low-cost or no-cost training ac7 cessible to persons with disabilities, family 

8 members of such persons, and other individuals 

9 with potential to offer future leadership in the 

10 advancement of the goals of family inclusion, 

11 transition to independent living as adults, and 

12 rights protection for children with disabilities; 

13 and 

14 (C) should be targeted to government pol15 icymakers, disability activists, and other poten16 tial allies and supporters among civil society 

17 groups; and 

18 (4) create study tours so activists and policy19 makers from abroad can observe and better under20 stand the operation of successful models of family 

21 and community inclusion and rights advocacy, in22 cluding exposing such activists and policymakers to 

23 models of good practice in the United States. 

24 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

2 appropriated to carry out this section amounts as 

3 follows: 

4 (A) $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2024. 

5 (B) $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

6 2025 through 2029. 

7 (2) CAPACITY-BUILDING AND TECHNICAL AS8 SISTANCE PROGRAMS.—Of the amounts authorized 

9 to be appropriated by paragraph (1), not less than 

10 $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2024 and not less than 

11 $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 through 

12 2029 are authorized to be available for capacity13 building and technical assistance programs to sup14 port disability rights leadership and to train and en15 gage policymakers, professionals, and allies in civil 

16 society organizations in foreign countries. 

17 SEC. 7. BRIEFINGS AND REPORTS ON IMPLEMENTATION. 

18 (a) ANNUAL BRIEFING REQUIRED.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than an20 nually through fiscal year 2029, the Secretary of 

21 State shall submit to the Committee on Health, 

22 Education, Labor, and Pensions, the Committee on 

23 Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Appropria24 tions of the Senate a briefing on— 


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1 (A) the programs and activities carried out 

2 to advance the policy described in section 5; 

3 and 

4 (B) any broader work of the Department 

5 in advancing that policy. 

6 (2) ELEMENTS.—Each briefing required by 

7 paragraph (1) shall include, with respect to each 

8 program carried out under section 6— 

9 (A) the rationale for the country and pro10 gram selection; 

11 (B) the goals and objectives of the pro12 gram, and the kinds of participants in the ac13 tivities and programs supported; 

14 (C) a description of the types of technical 

15 assistance and capacity building provided; and 

16 (D) an identification of any gaps in fund17 ing or support needed to ensure full participa18 tion of organizations of persons with disabilities 

19 or inclusion of children with disabilities in the 

20 program. 

21 (b) REPORTS REQUIRED.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than 

23 once every 3 years through fiscal year 2029, the 

24 Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on 

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1 mittee on Foreign Relations, and the Committee on 

2 Appropriations of the Senate a report on the mat3 ters described in subsection (a)(1). 

4 (2) ELEMENTS.—Each report required by para5 graph (1) shall include the elements described in 

6 subsection (a)(2). 

7 (3) CONSULTATION.—In preparing each report 

8 required by paragraph (1), the Secretary of State 

9 shall consult with organizations of persons with dis10 abilities. 

11 SEC. 8. PROMOTING INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION AND 

12 ADVOCACY FOR CHILDREN WITH DISABIL13 ITIES. 

14 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON PROGRAMMING AND

15 PROGRAMS.—It is the sense of Congress that— 

16 (1) all programming of the Department and the 

17 United States Agency for International Development 

18 related to childcare reform, improvement of health 

19 care systems, primary and secondary education, dis20 ability rights, and human rights should seek to be 

21 consistent with the policy described in section 5; and 

22 (2) programs of the Department and the 

23 United States Agency for International Development 

24 related to children, health care, and education— 

25 (A) should— 


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1 (i) engage organizations of persons 

2 with disabilities in policymaking and pro3 gram implementation; and 

4 (ii) support full inclusion of children 

5 with disabilities in families; and 

6 (B) should aim to avoid support for resi7 dential institutions for children with disabilities 

8 except in situations of conflict or emergency in 

9 a manner that protects family connections as 

10 described in subsection (b). 

11 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON CONFLICT AND EMER12 GENCIES.—It is the sense of Congress that— 

13 (1) programs of the Department and the 

14 United States Agency for International Development 

15 serving children in situations of conflict or emer16 gency, among displaced or refugee populations, or in 

17 natural disasters should seek to ensure that children 

18 with and without disabilities can maintain family 

19 ties; and 

20 (2) in situations of emergency, if children are 

21 separated from parents or have no family, every ef22 fort should be made to ensure that children are 

23 placed with extended family, in kinship care, or in 

24 a substitute family. 

Æ 


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