II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 3426 

To promote diversity at the Department of State, to direct the Secretary 

of State to review the termination characterization of former members 

of the Department who were fired by reason of their sexual orientation, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 16, 2021 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. KAINE, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. 

SCHATZ, Mr. COONS, and Mr. MURPHY) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To promote diversity at the Department of State, to direct 

the Secretary of State to review the termination characterization of former members of the Department who 

were fired by reason of their sexual orientation, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Department of State Inclusivity Act of 2021’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—A DIVERSE WORKFORCE: RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, 

AND PROMOTION 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. Office of the Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer. 

Sec. 103. Collection, analysis, and dissemination of workforce data. 

Sec. 104. Workforce interviews. 

Sec. 105. Recruitment and retention. 

Sec. 106. Sense of Congress on support for equal employment opportunity and 

merit principles criteria. 

Sec. 107. Leadership engagement and accountability. 

Sec. 108. Professional development opportunities and tools. 

Sec. 109. Examination and oral assessment for the Foreign Service. 

Sec. 110. Sense of Congress on veterans’ recruitment for the Foreign Service. 

Sec. 111. Department of State and USAID fellowships and programs. 

Sec. 112. Expansion of Diplomats in Residence Program. 

Sec. 113. Use of gender neutral terms in employee evaluation forms. 

Sec. 114. Voluntary participation. 

Sec. 115. Sense of Congress on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the foreign 

affairs workforce. 

Sec. 116. Employee assignment restrictions and preclusions. 

Sec. 117. Mentorship program. 

Sec. 118. Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program. 

TITLE II—LOVE ACT OF 2021 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Findings. 

Sec. 203. Director General review. 

Sec. 204. Reports on reviews. 

Sec. 205. Establishment of Reconciliation Board. 

Sec. 206. Issuance of apology. 

Sec. 207. Establishment of permanent exhibit on the Lavender Scare. 

Sec. 208. Guidance on issuing visas. 

Sec. 209. Establishment of Advancement Board. 

TITLE III—SHAPE ACT OF 2021 

Sec. 301. Short title; rule of construction. 

Sec. 302. Department of State policy and procedures on prevention and response to harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related retaliation. 

Sec. 303. Reporting, documentation, and investigation procedures. 

Sec. 304. Sexual assault protocol and victim care. 

Sec. 305. Rights of employees harassed, discriminated against, retaliated 

against, or sexually assaulted. 

Sec. 306. Provision of climate surveys. 

Sec. 307. Reports to Congress, the Department, and the public. 

Sec. 308. Required training for Department personnel. 

Sec. 309. Hiring, vetting, and promotion. 


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Sec. 310. Nondisclosure and nondisparagement agreements. 

Sec. 311. Sense of Congress on sexual harassment and assault prevention and 

eradication in the foreign affairs workforce. 

1 TITLE I—A DIVERSE WORK2 FORCE: RECRUITMENT, RE3 TENTION, AND PROMOTION 

4 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

5 In this title: 

6 (1) APPLICANT FLOW DATA.—The term ‘‘appli7 cant flow data’’ means data that tracks the rate of 

8 applications for job positions among demographic 

9 categories. 

10 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT11 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com12 mittees’’ means the Committee on Foreign Relations 

13 of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

14 of the House of Representatives. 

15 (3) DEMOGRAPHIC DATA.—The term ‘‘demo16 graphic data’’ means facts or statistics relating to 

17 the demographic categories specified in the Office of 

18 Management and Budget statistical policy directive 

19 entitled ‘‘Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and 

20 Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity’’ 

21 (81 Fed. Reg. 67398). 

22 (4) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

23 means the Department of State. 


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1 (5) DIVERSITY.—The term ‘‘diversity’’ means 

2 those classes of persons protected under the Civil 

3 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a et seq.) and 

4 the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 

5 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.). 

6 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

7 the Secretary of State. 

8 (7) WORKFORCE.—The term ‘‘workforce’’ 

9 means— 

10 (A) individuals serving in a position in the 

11 civil service (as defined in section 2101 of title 

12 5, United States Code); 

13 (B) individuals who are members of the 

14 Foreign Service (as defined in section 103 of 

15 the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 

16 3902)); 

17 (C) all individuals serving under a personal 

18 services agreement or personal services con19 tract; 

20 (D) all individuals serving under a Foreign 

21 Service Limited appointment under section 309 

22 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 

23 3949); or 

24 (E) individuals working in the Department 

25 of State under any other authority. 


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1 SEC. 102. OFFICE OF THE CHIEF DIVERSITY AND INCLU2 SION OFFICER. 

3 Section 1 of the State Department Basic Authorities 

4 Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub6 section (h); and 

7 (2) by inserting after subsection (f) the fol8 lowing new subsection: 

9 ‘‘(g) CHIEF DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION OFFICER.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be established 

11 within the Department of State in the immediate of12 fice of the Secretary an Office of the Chief Diversity 

13 and Inclusion Officer, which shall have at least two 

14 additional members of staff. The head of the Office 

15 of the Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer shall re16 port directly to the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(2) DUTIES.—The Office of the Chief Diver18 sity and Inclusion Officer shall— 

19 ‘‘(A) lead the development and implemen20 tation of proactive diversity, equity, and inclu21 sion initiatives in support of the Department’s 

22 strategic plan to create a culture for diversity, 

23 equity, and inclusion; 

24 ‘‘(B) work with the Office of Management 

25 and Budget to assess areas of improvement for 

26 recruitment and retention; 


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1 ‘‘(C) ensure the recruitment and retention 

2 of a diverse workforce, including through col3 laboration with other Department offices and 

4 bureaus to support them in assessing potential 

5 barriers and developing recruitment and reten6 tion strategies; 

7 ‘‘(D) recommend training initiatives on 

8 cultural competency, gender differences, dis9 ability, sexual harassment, explicit and implicit 

10 bias, and other topics designed to increase 

11 awareness and support of equity and inclusion 

12 values; 

13 ‘‘(E) ensure the Department maintains 

14 compliance with all relevant and applicable laws 

15 and regulations; and 

16 ‘‘(F) coordinate and engage with the Office 

17 of Civil Rights and the Bureau of Global Talent 

18 Management as necessary.’’. 

19 SEC. 103. COLLECTION, ANALYSIS, AND DISSEMINATION OF 

20 WORKFORCE DATA. 

21 (a) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 

22 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall, 

23 in consultation with the Director of the Office of Per24 sonnel Management and the Director of the Office of Man25 agement and Budget, submit to the appropriate congresVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:23 Dec 23, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3426.IS S3426

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1 sional committees a report, which shall also be posted on 

2 a publicly available website of the Department in a search3 able database format, that includes disaggregated demo4 graphic data and other information regarding the diversity 

5 of the workforce of the Department. 

6 (b) DATA.—The report under subsection (a) shall in7 clude the following data: 

8 (1) Demographic data on each element of the 

9 workforce of the Department, disaggregated by rank 

10 and grade or grade-equivalent, with respect to the 

11 following groups: 

12 (A) Applicants for positions in the Depart13 ment. 

14 (B) Individuals hired to join the workforce. 

15 (C) Individuals promoted during the 2-year 

16 period ending on the date of the enactment of 

17 this Act, including promotions to and within the 

18 Senior Executive Service or the Senior Foreign 

19 Service. 

20 (D) Individuals serving on applicable selec21 tion boards. 

22 (E) Members of any external advisory com23 mittee or board who are subject to appointment 

24 by individuals at senior positions in the Depart25 ment. 


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1 (F) Individuals participating in profes2 sional development programs of the Depart3 ment, and the extent to which such participants 

4 have been placed into senior positions within 

5 the Department after such participation. 

6 (G) Individuals participating in mentorship 

7 or retention programs. 

8 (H) Individuals who separated from the 

9 agency during the 2-year period ending on the 

10 date of the enactment of this Act, including in11 dividuals in the Senior Executive Service or the 

12 Senior Foreign Service. 

13 (2) An assessment of agency compliance with 

14 the essential elements identified in Equal Employ15 ment Opportunity Commission Management Direc16 tive 715, effective October 1, 2003. 

17 (3) Data on the overall number of individuals 

18 who are part of the workforces of the Department 

19 of State overall and within each bureau of the De20 partment, the percentages of such workforce cor21 responding to each element listed in section 101(6), 

22 and the percentages corresponding to each rank, 

23 grade, or grade-equivalent. 


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1 (4) Data on the promotion outcomes of women 

2 and racial or ethnic minorities in mid-career ranks 

3 of the workforce. 

4 (5) Demographic data, disaggregated by rank 

5 and grade or grade-equivalent, of contractors and 

6 subcontractors, as well as the nongovernmental orga7 nizations and civil society organizations that win 

8 bids or obtain contracts and grants and serve as 

9 subcontractors. 

10 (c) RECOMMENDATION.—The Secretary may include 

11 in the report under subsection (a) a recommendation to 

12 the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and 

13 to the appropriate congressional committees regarding 

14 whether the Department should collect more detailed data 

15 on demographic categories in addition to the race and eth16 nicity categories specified in the Office of Management 

17 and Budget statistical policy directive entitled ‘‘Standards 

18 for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data 

19 on Race and Ethnicity’’ (81 Fed. Reg. 67398). 

20 (d) OTHER CONTENTS.—The report under sub21 section (a) shall also describe the efforts of the Depart22 ment— 

23 (1) to propagate fairness, impartiality, and in24 clusion in the work environment, both domestically 

25 and abroad; 


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1 (2) to enforce anti-harassment and anti-dis2 crimination policies; 

3 (3) to refrain from engaging in unlawful dis4 crimination in any phase of the employment process, 

5 including recruitment, hiring, evaluation, assign6 ments, promotion, retention, and training; 

7 (4) to prevent retaliation against employees for 

8 participating in a protected equal employment op9 portunity activity; 

10 (5) to provide reasonable accommodation for 

11 qualified employees and applicants with disabilities; 

12 and 

13 (6) to recruit a representative workforce by— 

14 (A) recruiting women and minorities; 

15 (B) recruiting at women’s colleges, histori16 cally Black colleges and universities, minority17 serving institutions, and other institutions serv18 ing a significant percentage of minority stu19 dents; 

20 (C) placing job advertisements in news21 papers, magazines, and job sites oriented to22 ward women and minorities; 

23 (D) sponsoring and recruiting at job fairs 

24 in urban and rural communities and land-grant 

25 colleges or universities; 


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1 (E) providing opportunities through the 

2 Foreign Service Internship Program under 

3 chapter 12 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 

4 (22 U.S.C. 4141 et seq.) and other hiring ini5 tiatives, including a description of efforts to 

6 provide opportunities for paid internships; 

7 (F) recruiting mid-level and senior-level 

8 professionals through programs designed to in9 crease minority representation in international 

10 affairs; 

11 (G) offering the Foreign Service written 

12 and oral assessment examinations in multiple 

13 locations throughout the United States to re14 duce the burden of applicants having to travel 

15 at their own expense to take either or both such 

16 examinations; and 

17 (H) supporting recruiting and hiring op18 portunities including through— 

19 (i) the Charles B. Rangel Inter20 national Affairs Fellowship Program; 

21 (ii) the Thomas R. Pickering Foreign 

22 Affairs Fellowship Program; 

23 (iii) the International Career Advance24 ment Program; and 


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1 (iv) other initiatives, including agency2 wide policy initiatives. 

3 (e) ANNUAL UPDATES.—Not later than one year 

4 after the publication of the report required under sub5 section (a), and annually thereafter for five years, the Sec6 retary shall, in consultation with the Director of the Office 

7 of Personnel Management and the Director of the Office 

8 of Management and Budget, provide a report to the appro9 priate congressional committees, which shall be posted on 

10 the Department’s website and may be included in another 

11 annual report required under another provision of law, 

12 that includes— 

13 (1) disaggregated demographic data relating to 

14 the workforce and information on the status of di15 versity and inclusion efforts of the Department; 

16 (2) an analysis of applicant flow data; and 

17 (3) disaggregated demographic data relating to 

18 participants in professional development programs of 

19 the Department and the rate of placement into sen20 ior positions for participants in such programs. 

21 SEC. 104. WORKFORCE INTERVIEWS. 

22 (a) RETAINED MEMBERS.—The Director General of 

23 the Foreign Service and the Director of the Bureau of 

24 Global Talent Management of the Department should conVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:23 Dec 23, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3426.IS S3426

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1 duct periodic interviews with a representative and diverse 

2 cross-section of the workforce of the Department— 

3 (1) to understand the reasons of individuals in 

4 such workforce for remaining in a position in the 

5 Department; and 

6 (2) to receive feedback on workplace policies, 

7 professional development opportunities, and other 

8 issues affecting the decision of individuals in the 

9 workforce to remain in the Department. 

10 (b) DEPARTING MEMBERS.—The Director General of 

11 the Foreign Service and the Director of the Bureau of 

12 Global Talent Management shall provide an opportunity 

13 for an exit interview to each individual in the workforce 

14 of the Department who separates from service with the 

15 Department to better understand the reasons of such indi16 vidual for leaving such service. 

17 (c) USE OF ANALYSIS FROM INTERVIEWS.—The Di18 rector General of the Foreign Service and the Director of 

19 the Bureau of Global Talent Management shall analyze 

20 demographic data and other information obtained through 

21 interviews under subsections (a) and (b) to determine— 

22 (1) to what extent, if any, the diversity of those 

23 conducting the interviews impacts the results; and 

24 (2) whether to implement any policy changes or 

25 include any recommendations in a report required 


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1 under subsection (a) or (e) of section 102 relating 

2 to the determination reached pursuant to paragraph 

3 (1). 

4 (d) TRACKING DATA.—The Chief Diversity Officer 

5 shall— 

6 (1) track demographic data relating to partici7 pants in professional development programs and the 

8 rate of placement into senior positions for partici9 pants in such programs; 

10 (2) annually evaluate such data— 

11 (A) to identify ways to improve outreach 

12 and recruitment for such programs, consistent 

13 with merit system principles; and 

14 (B) to understand the extent to which par15 ticipation in any professional development pro16 gram offered or sponsored by the Department 

17 differs among the demographic categories of the 

18 workforce; and 

19 (3) actively encourage participation from a 

20 range of demographic categories, especially from cat21 egories with consistently low participation, in such 

22 professional development programs. 

23 SEC. 105. RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary should— 


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1 (1) continue to seek a diverse and talented pool 

2 of applicants; and 

3 (2) instruct the Director General of the Foreign 

4 Service and the Director of the Bureau of Global 

5 Talent Management of the Department to have a 

6 plan of action for the recruitment of people belong7 ing to traditionally underrepresented groups, which 

8 should include outreach at appropriate colleges, uni9 versities, affinity groups, and professional associa10 tions. 

11 (b) SCOPE.—The diversity recruitment initiatives de12 scribed in subsection (a) should include— 

13 (1) recruiting at women’s colleges, historically 

14 Black colleges and universities, minority-serving in15 stitutions, and other institutions serving a signifi16 cant percentage of minority students; 

17 (2) placing job advertisements in newspapers, 

18 magazines, and job sites oriented toward diverse 

19 groups; 

20 (3) sponsoring and recruiting at job fairs in 

21 urban and rural communities and land-grant colleges 

22 or universities; 

23 (4) providing opportunities through highly re24 spected, international leadership programs, that 

25 focus on diversity recruitment and retention; and 


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1 (5) cultivating partnerships with organizations 

2 dedicated to the advancement of the profession of 

3 international affairs and national security to advance 

4 shared diversity goals. 

5 (c) EXPAND TRAINING ON ANTI-HARASSMENT AND

6 ANTI-DISCRIMINATION.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, through 

8 the Foreign Service Institute and other educational 

9 and training opportunities— 

10 (A) expand the provision of training on 

11 workplace rights and responsibilities to focus on 

12 anti-harassment and anti-discrimination infor13 mation and policies; 

14 (B) expand the provision of training on 

15 workplace rights and responsibilities to focus on 

16 explicit and implicit bias, including training on 

17 the effects of bias; and 

18 (C) make such expanded training manda19 tory for— 

20 (i) individuals in senior and super21 visory positions; and 

22 (ii) individuals having responsibilities 

23 related to recruitment, retention, or pro24 motion of employees. 


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1 (2) BEST PRACTICES.—Each agency shall give 

2 special attention to ensuring the continuous incorpo3 ration of evidence-based best practices in training 

4 provided under this subsection. 

5 SEC. 106. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON SUPPORT FOR EQUAL 

6 EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY AND MERIT 

7 PRINCIPLES CRITERIA. 

8 It is the sense of Congress that— 

9 (1) the ‘‘support for equal employment oppor10 tunity and merit principles’’ criteria for tenure and 

11 promotion in the Foreign Service is critical to pro12 moting a more diverse Foreign Service; 

13 (2) equal employment opportunity and merit 

14 principles criteria for tenure and promotion in the 

15 Civil Service is critical to promoting a more diverse 

16 Civil Service; and 

17 (3) the Department should— 

18 (A) develop mechanisms to ensure that the 

19 Foreign Service promotion list appropriately 

20 promotes a diverse workforce; 

21 (B) develop mechanisms to ensure that the 

22 Civil Service appropriately promotes a diverse 

23 workforce; 

24 (C) establish criteria within the Foreign 

25 Service Employee Evaluation Report that inVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:23 Dec 23, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00017 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3426.IS S3426

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1 clude evaluating the support of Foreign Service 

2 officers for equal employment opportunities; 

3 and 

4 (D) establish criteria to evaluate the sup5 port of Civil Service officers for equal employ6 ment opportunities. 

7 SEC. 107. LEADERSHIP ENGAGEMENT AND ACCOUNT8 ABILITY. 

9 (a) REWARD AND RECOGNIZE EFFORTS TO PRO10 MOTE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall imple12 ment performance and advancement requirements 

13 that reward and recognize the efforts of individuals 

14 in senior positions and supervisors in the Depart15 ment in fostering an inclusive environment and culti16 vating talent consistent with merit system principles, 

17 such as through participation in mentoring pro18 grams or sponsorship initiatives, recruitment events, 

19 and other similar opportunities. 

20 (2) OUTREACH EVENTS.—The Secretary shall 

21 create opportunities for individuals in senior posi22 tions and supervisors in the Department to partici23 pate in outreach events and to discuss issues relat24 ing to diversity and inclusion within the workforce 


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1 on a regular basis, including with employee resource 

2 groups. 

3 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON EXTERNAL ADVISORY

4 COMMITTEES AND BOARDS.—It is the sense of Congress 

5 that the Secretary should ensure that qualified teams that 

6 represent the diversity of the Department review in ad7 vance appointments to external advisory committees or 

8 boards by senior officials in the Department. 

9 SEC. 108. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES 

10 AND TOOLS. 

11 (a) EXPAND PROVISION OF PROFESSIONAL DEVEL12 OPMENT AND CAREER ADVANCEMENT OPPORTUNITIES.— 

13 The Secretary is authorized to expand professional devel14 opment opportunities that support the mission needs of 

15 the Department, such as— 

16 (1) academic programs; 

17 (2) private-public exchanges; and 

18 (3) detail assignments to relevant positions in— 

19 (A) private or international organizations; 

20 (B) State, local, and Tribal governments; 

21 (C) other branches of the Federal Govern22 ment; or 

23 (D) schools of international affairs or 

24 those with related programs. 

25 (b) TRAINING FOR SENIOR POSITIONS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall offer, or 

2 sponsor members of the workforce to participate in, 

3 a Senior Executive Service candidate development 

4 program or other program that trains members on 

5 the skills required for appointment to senior posi6 tions in the Department. 

7 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—In determining which 

8 members of the workforce are granted professional 

9 development or career advancement opportunities 

10 under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall— 

11 (A) ensure any program offered or spon12 sored by the Department under such subpara13 graph comports with the requirements of sub14 part C of part 412 of title 5, Code of Federal 

15 Regulations, or any successor thereto, including 

16 merit staffing and assessment requirements; 

17 (B) consider the number of expected va18 cancies in senior positions as a factor in deter19 mining the number of candidates to select for 

20 such programs; 

21 (C) understand how participation in any 

22 program offered or sponsored by the Depart23 ment under such subparagraph differs by gen24 der, race, national origin, disability status, or 

25 other demographic categories; and 


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1 (D) actively encourage participation from a 

2 range of demographic categories, especially 

3 from categories with consistently low participa4 tion. 

5 SEC. 109. EXAMINATION AND ORAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE 

6 FOREIGN SERVICE. 

7 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con8 gress that the Department should offer both the Foreign 

9 Service written examination and oral assessment in more 

10 locations throughout the United States. Doing so would 

11 ease the financial burden on potential candidates who do 

12 not currently reside in and must travel at their own ex13 pense to one of the few locations where these assessments 

14 are offered. 

15 (b) FOREIGN SERVICE EXAMINATIONS.—Section 

16 301(b) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 

17 3941) is amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting: 

19 ‘‘(1) The Secretary’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

21 paragraphs: 

22 ‘‘(2) The Secretary shall ensure that the Board of 

23 Examiners for the Foreign Service annually offers the oral 

24 assessment examinations described in paragraph (1) in 

25 cities, chosen on a rotating basis, located in at least three 


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1 different time zones across the United States, and that 

2 those examinations give sufficient weight to a candidate’s 

3 commitment to inclusion and diversity. 

4 ‘‘(3) The Secretary shall consider whether partici5 pants in Department fellowship programs should be re6 quired to take oral examinations, and whether there is any 

7 justification for requiring certain, but not all, fellowship 

8 participants to take such examinations.’’. 

9 SEC. 110. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON VETERANS’ RECRUIT10 MENT FOR THE FOREIGN SERVICE. 

11 It is the sense of Congress that the Foreign Service 

12 exam should be offered in multiple diverse locations, at 

13 least in three different time zones in a calendar year, to 

14 encourage more accessibility to the test, especially for vet15 erans and members of the United States Armed Forces 

16 transitioning to civilian life. 

17 SEC. 111. DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND USAID FELLOW18 SHIPS AND PROGRAMS. 

19 (a) EDUCATION GRANTS.—The Secretary of State 

20 may make grants to postsecondary educational institu21 tions, including minority-serving institutions, or students 

22 for the purpose of increasing knowledge and awareness of 

23 and interest in employment with the Civil Service. To the 

24 extent possible, the Secretary shall give special emphasis 

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1 est in employment with, the Civil Service among minority 

2 students. Any grants awarded shall be made pursuant to 

3 regulations to be established by the Secretary of State, 

4 which shall provide for a limit on the size of any specific 

5 grant and, regarding any grants to individuals, shall en6 sure that no grant recipient receives an amount of grants 

7 from one or more Federal programs which in the aggre8 gate would exceed the cost of his, her, or their education 

9 and shall require satisfactory educational progress by 

10 grantees as a condition of eligibility for continued receipt 

11 of grant funds. 

12 (b) DONALD M. PAYNE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOP13 MENT FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM.—Undergraduate and 

14 graduate components of the Donald M. Payne Inter15 national Development Fellowship Program are authorized 

16 and encouraged to conduct outreach to attract out17 standing students with an interest in pursuing a Foreign 

18 Service career who represent diverse ethnic and socio19 economic backgrounds. 

20 (c) REVIEW OF PAST PROGRAMS.—The Secretary of 

21 State and the Administrator of the United States Agency 

22 for International Development shall review past and 

23 present programs, including the Donald M. Payne Inter24 national Development Fellowship Program, the Thomas 

25 R. Pickering Fellowship in International Affairs, and the 


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1 Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program, de2 signed to increase minority representation in international 

3 affairs positions. 

4 SEC. 112. EXPANSION OF DIPLOMATS IN RESIDENCE PRO5 GRAM. 

6 Not later than one year after the date of the enact7 ment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall double the 

8 number of diplomats in the Diplomats in Residence Pro9 gram as of the date of the enactment of this Act. 

10 SEC. 113. USE OF GENDER NEUTRAL TERMS IN EMPLOYEE 

11 EVALUATION FORMS. 

12 The Secretary shall develop a pilot program to use 

13 gender neutral terms in employee evaluation forms. 

14 SEC. 114. VOLUNTARY PARTICIPATION. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Nothing in this title shall be con16 strued so as to compel any Department personnel to par17 ticipate in the collection of the data or divulge any per18 sonal information. Department employees shall be in19 formed that their participation in the data collection con20 templated by this title is voluntary. 

21 (b) PRIVACY PROTECTION.—Any data collected 

22 under this title shall be subject to the relevant privacy pro23 tection statutes and regulations applicable to Federal em24 ployees. 


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1 SEC. 115. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON DIVERSITY, EQUITY, 

2 AND INCLUSION IN THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

3 WORKFORCE. 

4 It is the sense of Congress that the foreign affairs 

5 workforce, including the United States Agency for Inter6 national Development, the Broadcasting Board of Gov7 ernors, the Peace Corps, the Development Finance Cor8 poration, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, 

9 should take significant steps to improve diversity, equity, 

10 and inclusion in their workforce, especially as it relates 

11 to recruitment, retention, and promotion. 

12 SEC. 116. EMPLOYEE ASSIGNMENT RESTRICTIONS AND 

13 PRECLUSIONS. 

14 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con15 gress that the Department of State should expand the ap16 peal process it makes available to employees related to as17 signment preclusions and restrictions. 

18 (b) APPEALS OF ASSIGNMENT RESTRICTION OR PRE19 CLUSION.—Section 414(a) of the Department of State Au20 thorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 (22 U.S.C. 2734c(a)) is 

21 amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The right 

22 and process shall ensure that any employee subjected to 

23 an assignment restriction or preclusion shall have the 

24 same appeal rights as provided by the Department regard25 ing denial or revocation of a security clearance, including 

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1 cer serving on the Security Appeals Panel as part of any 

2 appeals process. Any such appeal shall be resolved not 

3 later than 60 days after the appeal is filed.’’. 

4 SEC. 117. MENTORSHIP PROGRAM. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Foreign Service Act of 1980 

6 is amended by inserting after section 708 (22 U.S.C. 

7 4028) the following new section: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 709. MENTORSHIP PROGRAM. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State shall es10 tablish in the Department of State a mentorship program 

11 to match interested participants who are— 

12 ‘‘(1) entry-level members of the Foreign Serv13 ice; and 

14 ‘‘(2) mid-level members of the Foreign Service. 

15 ‘‘(b) DURATION.—Individuals participating in the 

16 mentorship program under this section should participate 

17 for a minimum of two years. 

18 ‘‘(c) EMPLOYEE AFFINITY GROUPS.—Members of 

19 Employee Affinity Groups shall be encouraged to partici20 pate in the mentorship program established under this sec21 tion. 

22 ‘‘(d) Service as a mentor in the mentorship program 

23 may be considered as satisfying the criteria described in 

24 section 603(b)(1).’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

2 in section 2 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 is amended 

3 by inserting after the item relating to section 708 the fol4 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 709. Mentorship program.’’. 

5 (c) MENTORSHIP PROGRAM FOR CIVIL SERVICE.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State shall 

7 establish a mentorship program to match mentors 

8 with interested participants who are— 

9 (A) members of the civil service at the GS– 

10 12 level and below; and 

11 (B) members of the civil service from at 

12 the GS–13 level to the GS–15 level. 

13 (2) DURATION.—Individuals participating in 

14 the civil service mentorship program under para15 graph (1) should participate for a minimum of two 

16 years. 

17 (3) INCLUSION OF EMPLOYEE AFFINITY

18 GROUPS.—Members of employee affinity groups shall 

19 be encouraged to participate in the civil service 

20 mentorship program established under paragraph 

21 (1). 

22 SEC. 118. SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERVICE CANDIDATE DEVEL23 OPMENT PROGRAM. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State shall offer 

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1 gram every three years to members of the civil service at 

2 the Department of State at the GS–14 and GS–15 levels. 

3 (b) REPORT.—The Secretary of State shall submit to 

4 the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and 

5 the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep6 resentatives a report detailing disaggregated demographic 

7 information of candidates referred by each bureau of the 

8 Department of State to interview for the Senior Executive 

9 Service, including de-identified demographic information, 

10 disaggregated by bureau, relating to the diversity of such 

11 candidates. 

12 TITLE II—LOVE ACT OF 2021 

13 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

14 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Lavender Offense Vic15 tim Exoneration Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘LOVE Act of 

16 2021’’. 

17 SEC. 202. FINDINGS. 

18 Congress makes the following findings: 

19 (1) During the so-called ‘‘Lavender Scare’’, at 

20 least 1,000 people were wrongfully dismissed from 

21 the Department of State for alleged homosexuality 

22 during the 1950s and well into the 1960s. 

23 (2) According to the Department of State’s Bu24 reau of Diplomatic Security, Department of State 

25 employees were forced out of the Department on the 


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1 grounds that their sexual orientation ostensibly 

2 made them vulnerable to blackmail and rendered 

3 them security risks. 

4 (3) In addition to those wrongfully terminated, 

5 many other patriotic Americans were prevented from 

6 joining the Department due to a screening process 

7 that was put in place to prevent the hiring of those 

8 who, according to the findings of the Bureau of Dip9 lomatic Security, ‘‘seemed like they might be gay or 

10 lesbian’’. 

11 (4) Congress bears some responsibility for these 

12 discriminatory actions as the Department’s actions 

13 were in part a response to congressional investiga14 tions into ‘‘sex perversion of Federal employees’’, re15 ports on the employment of ‘‘moral perverts by Gov16 ernment Agencies’’, hearings and pressure placed on 

17 the Department through the appropriations process 

18 and congressional complaints that Foggy Bottom 

19 was ‘‘rampant with homosexuals who were sympa20 thetic to Communism and vulnerable to blackmail’’. 

21 (5) Between 1950 and 1969, the Department of 

22 State was required to report on the number of ho23 mosexuals fired each year as part of their annual ap24 peals before the Committees on Appropriations. 


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1 (6) Although the worst effects of the ‘‘Lavender 

2 Scare’’ are behind us, as recently as the early 1990s, 

3 the Department of State’s diplomatic security office 

4 was investigating State personnel thought to be gay 

5 and driving them out of government service as ‘‘se6 curity risks’’. 

7 (7) In 1994, Secretary of State Warren Chris8 topher issued a prohibition against discrimination at 

9 the Department of State, including that based on 

10 sexual orientation. 

11 (8) In 1998, President William Jefferson Clin12 ton signed Executive Order 13087 barring discrimi13 nation on the basis of sexual orientation. 

14 (9) On January 9, 2017, Secretary of State 

15 John Kerry issued a statement regarding the ‘‘Lav16 ender Scare’’, saying, ‘‘On behalf of the Department, 

17 I apologize to those who were impacted by the prac18 tices of the past and reaffirm the Department’s 

19 steadfast commitment to diversity and inclusion for 

20 all our employees, including members of the LGBTI 

21 community.’’. 

22 SEC. 203. DIRECTOR GENERAL REVIEW. 

23 (a) REVIEW.—The Director General of the Foreign 

24 Service and Director of the Bureau of Global Talent Man25 agement of the Department of State, in consultation with 


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1 the Historian of the Department of State, shall review all 

2 employee terminations that occurred after January 1, 

3 1950, to determine who was wrongfully terminated owing 

4 to their sexual orientation or gender identity, whether real 

5 or perceived. 

6 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after the date 

7 of the enactment of this Act, the Director General shall, 

8 consistent with applicable privacy regulations, compile the 

9 information required under subsection (a) in a publicly 

10 available report. The report shall include historical state11 ments made by officials of the Department of State and 

12 Congress encouraging and implementing policies and tac13 tics that led to the termination of employees due to their 

14 sexual orientation or gender identity. 

15 SEC. 204. REPORTS ON REVIEWS. 

16 (a) REVIEWS.—The Secretary of State shall conduct 

17 reviews of the consistency and uniformity of the reviews 

18 conducted by the Director General under section 203. 

19 (b) REPORTS.—Not later than 270 days after the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter 

21 for 2 years, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re22 port on the reviews conducted under section 203. Each 

23 report shall include any comments or recommendations for 

24 continued actions. 


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1 SEC. 205. ESTABLISHMENT OF RECONCILIATION BOARD. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of State shall 

3 establish, within the Office of Civil Rights of the Depart4 ment of State, an independent Reconciliation Board to re5 view the reports released by the Director General of the 

6 Foreign Service and the Director of the Bureau of Global 

7 Talent Management under section 203(b). 

8 (b) DUTIES.—The Reconciliation Board shall— 

9 (1) consistent with applicable privacy regula10 tions, contact all employees found to be fired due to 

11 the ‘‘Lavender Scare’’ or, in the case of deceased 

12 former employees, the family members of the em13 ployees, to inform them that their termination from 

14 the Department of State has been deemed inappro15 priate and that, if they wish, their employment 

16 record can be changed to reflect these findings; 

17 (2) designate a point of contact at a senior level 

18 position within the Office of the Director General of 

19 the Foreign Service and the Director of the Bureau 

20 of Global Talent Management to receive oral testi21 mony of any employees or family members of de22 ceased employees mentioned in the report who per23 sonally experienced discrimination and termination 

24 because of the actual or perceived sexual orientation 

25 or gender identity in order that such testimony may 

26 serve as an official record of these discriminatory 


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1 policies and their impact on the lives of United 

2 States citizens serving their Nation; and 

3 (3) provide an opportunity for any former em4 ployee not mentioned in the report to bring forth a 

5 grievance to the Board if they believe they were ter6 minated due to their sexual orientation or gender 

7 identity. 

8 (c) REVIEW OF CLAIMS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall review each 

10 claim described in subsection (b) within 150 days of 

11 receiving the claim. Lack of paperwork may not be 

12 used as a basis for dismissing any claims. 

13 (2) COOPERATION.—The Department of State 

14 shall be responsible for producing pertinent informa15 tion regarding each claim to prove the employee was 

16 not wrongfully terminated. 

17 (d) TERMINATION.—The Board shall terminate 5 

18 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 206. ISSUANCE OF APOLOGY. 

20 (a) FINDING.—Secretary of State Kerry delivered the 

21 following apology on January 9, 2017: ‘‘Throughout my 

22 career, including as Secretary of State, I have stood 

23 strongly in support of the LGBTI community, recognizing 

24 that respect for human rights must include respect for all 

25 individuals. LGBTI employees serve as proud members of 


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1 the State Department and valued colleagues dedicated to 

2 the service of our country. For the last several years, the 

3 Department has pressed for the families of LGBTI offi4 cers to have the same protections overseas as families of 

5 other officers. In 2015, to further promote LGBTI rights 

6 throughout the world, I appointed the first ever Special 

7 Envoy for the Human Rights of LGBTI Persons. In the 

8 past—as far back as the 1940s, but continuing for dec9 ades—the Department of State was among many public 

10 and private employers that discriminated against employ11 ees and job applicants on the basis of perceived sexual ori12 entation, forcing some employees to resign or refusing to 

13 hire certain applicants in the first place. These actions 

14 were wrong then, just as they would be wrong today. On 

15 behalf of the Department, I apologize to those who were 

16 impacted by the practices of the past and reaffirm the De17 partment’s steadfast commitment to diversity and inclu18 sion for all our employees, including members of the 

19 LGBTI community.’’. 

20 (b) CONGRESSIONAL APOLOGY.—Congress hereby of21 fers a formal apology for its responsibility in encouraging 

22 the ‘‘Lavender Scare’’ and similar policies at the Depart23 ment of State, as these policies were in part a response 

24 to congressional investigations into ‘‘sex perversion of 

25 Federal employees’’, reports on the employment of ‘‘moral 


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1 perverts by Government Agencies’’, and hearings or pres2 sure otherwise placed on the Department of State through 

3 the appropriations process. 

4 SEC. 207. ESTABLISHMENT OF PERMANENT EXHIBIT ON 

5 THE LAVENDER SCARE. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State, working 

7 with the current public-private partnership associated with 

8 the Department of State’s United States Diplomacy Cen9 ter, shall establish a permanent exhibit on the ‘‘Lavender 

10 Scare’’ in the museum to assure that the history of this 

11 discriminatory episode is not brushed aside. 

12 (b) SPECIFICATIONS.—The exhibit— 

13 (1) shall be installed at the museum not later 

14 than one year after the date of enactment of this 

15 Act; 

16 (2) shall provide access to the reports compiled 

17 by the Director General of the Foreign Service and 

18 the Director of the Bureau of Global Talent Man19 agement under section 203(b); and 

20 (3) shall readily display material gathered from 

21 oral testimony received pursuant to section 

22 205(b)(2) from employees or family members of de23 ceased employees who were subject to these discrimi24 natory policies during the ‘‘Lavender Scare’’. 


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1 SEC. 208. GUIDANCE ON ISSUING VISAS. 

2 To demonstrate the Department of State’s commit3 ment to ensuring fairness for current employees, not later 

4 than 100 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

5 the Secretary of State shall submit to Congress a report 

6 on countries not issuing spousal visas to the spouses of 

7 all Foreign Service personnel posted overseas due to their 

8 sexual orientation or gender identity. This report shall in9 clude any comments or recommendations for actions, in10 cluding eliminating visa reciprocity with countries found 

11 to be instituting these practices against the spouses of 

12 Foreign Service personnel, that will lead to ensuring that 

13 all spouses of Foreign Service personnel receive spousal 

14 visas for the country their spouse is assigned, regardless 

15 of sexual orientation or gender identity. 

16 SEC. 209. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVANCEMENT BOARD. 

17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of State shall 

18 establish, within the Office of the Director General of the 

19 Department of State, a board comprised of senior-level of20 ficials to address the issues faced by LGBTQI+ Foreign 

21 Service employees and their families. 

22 (b) HEARING OF TESTIMONY.—The Advancement 

23 Board shall hear testimony from any willing LGBTQI+ 

24 Foreign Service employees and their families regarding 

25 any discrimination they have faced due to their sexual ori26 entation. 


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1 (c) REPORT.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 100 days 

3 after completing collection of testimony described 

4 under subsection (b), and annually thereafter for 5 

5 years, the Advancement Board shall submit to Con6 gress a report based on the testimony. 

7 (2) CONTENT.—The report required under 

8 paragraph (1) shall include any comments or rec9 ommendations for continued actions to improve the 

10 Department of State to ensure that no employee or 

11 their family members experience discrimination due 

12 to their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

13 (3) PRIVACY.—The report required under para14 graph (1) shall remain private and will only be ac15 cessible to Members of Congress, their appropriate 

16 staff, and members of the Advancement Board. 

17 TITLE III—SHAPE ACT OF 2021 

18 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE; RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

19 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This title may be cited as the 

20 ‘‘State Harassment and Assault Prevention and Eradi21 cation Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘SHAPE Act of 2021’’. 

22 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this title 

23 shall be construed to supersede or otherwise affect the dis24 crimination protections or related processes provided 

25 under section 717 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 


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1 U.S.C. 2000e–16) to officers and employees of the Depart2 ment of State or applicants for employment at the Depart3 ment. 

4 SEC. 302. DEPARTMENT OF STATE POLICY AND PROCE5 DURES ON PREVENTION AND RESPONSE TO 

6 HARASSMENT, DISCRIMINATION, SEXUAL AS7 SAULT, AND RELATED RETALIATION. 

8 (a) COMPREHENSIVE POLICY ON PREVENTION AND

9 RESPONSE.—Not later than one year after the date of the 

10 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall develop 

11 a comprehensive policy for the Department of State on 

12 the prevention of and response to harassment, discrimina13 tion, sexual assault, and related retaliation involving em14 ployees, contractors, and officials of the Department. 

15 (b) ELEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE POLICY.—The 

16 policy developed under subsection (a) may include ele17 ments as the Secretary deems necessary, but shall include, 

18 at a minimum, the following: 

19 (1) Prevention measures. 

20 (2) Education and training on prevention and 

21 response, as provided in this title. 

22 (3) Investigation of complaints. 

23 (4) Medical treatment of victims. 


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1 (5) Mechanisms for confidential reporting of in2 cidents by staff and service contractors, to include 

3 online and telephonic methods. 

4 (6) Victim advocacy, intervention, and coun5 seling for covered employees of the Department who 

6 are victims of harassment, discrimination, sexual as7 sault, and related retaliation that shall be made 

8 available, irrespective of where such covered employ9 ees are located, to assist and guide such victims. 

10 (7) Supportive services, including counseling 

11 and victim advocacy, that shall be made available ir12 respective of whether the victim identifies the ac13 cused individual. 

14 (8) Oversight and review of administrative and 

15 disciplinary actions, to include termination, for em16 ployees and officials of the Department of State. 

17 (9) Review by appropriate authority of adminis18 trative separation actions involving victims of har19 assment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related 

20 retaliation. 

21 (10) Uniform collection of data on the incidence 

22 of violations and on disciplinary actions taken in 

23 cases of harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, 

24 and related retaliation. 


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1 (11) Procedures for disciplinary action in cases 

2 of harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and 

3 related retaliation by employees or officials of the 

4 Department. 

5 (12) Workforce communications relating to har6 assment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related 

7 retaliation prevention, discipline, and reporting, to 

8 include printed and electronic materials made avail9 able in both English and the working languages at 

10 overseas posts, made available for all staff. 

11 (13) Acknowledgment of the challenges facing 

12 vulnerable groups including women, people of color, 

13 members of the LGBTQI+ community, entry-level 

14 officers, and locally employed staff. 

15 (14) Policies regarding the retention of docu16 ments relating to complaints, investigations, and dis17 ciplinary action. 

18 (c) CLARIFICATION OF VICTIM REPORTING AND

19 CASE RESOLUTION.—The Secretary of State shall review 

20 Department of State processes for victim reporting and 

21 resolution of complaints, as in effect on the date of enact22 ment of this Act, to ensure that the Department’s proce23 dures are clear and easily accessible to all covered employ24 ees. Such review shall be included in the report to be sub25 mitted in section 307. 


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1 (d) APPLICATION OF COMPREHENSIVE POLICY TO

2 OFFICES IN THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.—The Sec3 retary of State shall ensure that the policy developed 

4 under subsection (a) is implemented uniformly by the bu5 reaus and offices of the Department of State. 

6 (e) COORDINATION WITH OTHER AGENCIES.—The 

7 Department of State is directed to coordinate with other 

8 United States Government agencies which provide per9 sonnel to serve in overseas posts under Chief of Mission 

10 authority to develop interagency policies for addressing, 

11 reporting, and disciplining incidents of harassment, dis12 crimination, sexual assault, or related retaliation occurring 

13 between covered employees and non-covered employees. 

14 SEC. 303. REPORTING, DOCUMENTATION, AND INVESTIGA15 TION PROCEDURES. 

16 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this title: 

17 (1) The term ‘‘covered employee’’ means— 

18 (A) any officer or employee (including any 

19 temporary, part-time, contract, intermittent em20 ployee, intern, fellow, or other unpaid staff; 

21 both American citizens and foreign nationals) 

22 performing work for or on behalf of the Depart23 ment of State; 

24 (B) members of the Foreign Service (as 

25 that term is defined under section 103 of the 


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1 Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3903)), 

2 to include Foreign Service Officers, Foreign 

3 Service Specialists, Locally Employed Staff, and 

4 Consular Agents; and 

5 (C) any individual who is engaged by an 

6 employer or entity as a contractor. 

7 (2) The term ‘‘Office of Employee Advocacy’’ 

8 means the Office of Employee Advocacy, as estab9 lished under subsection (b). 

10 (3) The term ‘‘Office of Civil Rights’’ means 

11 the Office of Civil Rights within the Department of 

12 State. 

13 (4) The term ‘‘Global Talent Management’’ 

14 means the Bureau of Global Talent Management, 

15 Office of Employee Relations, Conduct, Suitability, 

16 and Discipline Division within the Department of 

17 State. 

18 (5) The term ‘‘Diplomatic Security’’ means the 

19 Bureau of Diplomatic Security within the Depart20 ment of State. 

21 (6) The term ‘‘harassment’’ means as follows: 

22 (A) Harassment is conduct based on race, 

23 color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation, 

24 gender identity, pregnancy, childbirth, a med25 ical condition related to pregnancy or childbirth, 


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1 and a sex stereotype), or national origin, re2 gardless of whether it is direct or indirect, or 

3 verbal or nonverbal, that unreasonably alters an 

4 individual’s terms, conditions, or privileges of 

5 employment, including by creating an intimi6 dating, hostile, or offensive work environment. 

7 (B) Sexual harassment is conduct that 

8 takes place in a circumstance described in sub9 paragraph (C) and that takes the form of— 

10 (i) a sexual advance; 

11 (ii) a request for sexual favors; or 

12 (iii) any other conduct of a sexual na13 ture. 

14 (C) A circumstance described in this sub15 paragraph is a situation in which— 

16 (i) submission to the conduct involved 

17 is made either explicitly or implicitly a 

18 term or condition of employment; 

19 (ii) submission to or rejection of such 

20 conduct is used as the basis for an employ21 ment decision affecting an individual’s em22 ployment; or 

23 (iii) such conduct unreasonably alters 

24 an individual’s terms, conditions, or privi25 leges of employment, including by creating 


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1 an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work 

2 environment. 

3 (D) In determining whether conduct con4 stitutes harassment because the conduct unrea5 sonably alters an individual’s terms, conditions, 

6 or privileges of employment, including by cre7 ating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work 

8 environment, the following rules shall apply: 

9 (i) The determination shall be made 

10 on the basis of the record as a whole, ac11 cording to the totality of the cir12 cumstances. A single incident may con13 stitute workplace harassment. 

14 (ii) Incidents that may be workplace 

15 harassment shall be considered in the ag16 gregate, with— 

17 (I) conduct of varying types 

18 (such as expressions of sex-based hos19 tility, requests for sexual favors, and 

20 denial of employment opportunities 

21 due to sexual orientation) viewed in 

22 totality, rather than in isolation; and 

23 (II) conduct based on multiple 

24 protected characteristics (such as sex 


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1 and race) viewed in totality, rather 

2 than in isolation. 

3 (iii) The factors specified in this 

4 clause are among the factors to be consid5 ered in determining whether conduct con6 stitutes harassment and are not meant to 

7 be exhaustive. None of these factors shall 

8 be considered to be determinative in estab9 lishing whether conduct constitutes harass10 ment. Factors to be used in determining 

11 whether conduct constitutes harassment in12 clude— 

13 (I) the frequency of the conduct; 

14 (II) the duration of the conduct; 

15 (III) the location where the con16 duct occurred; 

17 (IV) the number of individuals 

18 engaged in the conduct; 

19 (V) the nature of the conduct, 

20 which may include physical, verbal, 

21 pictorial, or visual conduct, and con22 duct that occurs in person or is trans23 mitted, such as electronically; 

24 (VI) whether the conduct is 

25 threatening; 


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1 (VII) any power differential be2 tween the alleged harasser and the 

3 person allegedly harassed; 

4 (VIII) any use of epithets, slurs, 

5 or other conduct that is humiliating 

6 or degrading; or 

7 (IX) whether the conduct reflects 

8 stereotypes about individuals in the 

9 protected class involved. 

10 (iv) In determining whether conduct 

11 constitutes harassment, conduct may be 

12 harassment regardless of whether, for ex13 ample— 

14 (I) the complaining party is not 

15 the individual being harassed; 

16 (II) the complaining party acqui17 esced or otherwise submitted to, or 

18 participated in, the conduct; 

19 (III) the conduct is also experi20 enced by others outside the protected 

21 class involved; 

22 (IV) the complaining party was 

23 able to continue carrying out duties 

24 and responsibilities of the party’s job 

25 despite the conduct; 


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1 (V) the conduct did not cause a 

2 tangible injury or psychological injury; 

3 or 

4 (VI) the conduct occurred outside 

5 of the workplace. 

6 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF EMPLOYEE AD7 VOCACY.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

9 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec10 retary shall establish a new office to be the Office 

11 of Employee Advocacy, to be headed by a full-time 

12 Chief Advocate. Personnel of the Office shall be ap13 pointed without regard to political affiliation and 

14 solely on the basis of fitness to perform the duties 

15 of the position. The Chief Advocate— 

16 (A) shall report directly to the Under Sec17 retary for Management; and 

18 (B) may not have any other duties in the 

19 Department of State that are not reasonably 

20 connected to employee advocacy. 

21 (2) DUTIES OF OFFICE OF EMPLOYEE ADVO22 CACY.—The duties of the Office of Employee Advo23 cacy are as follows: 

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1 ily member (EFM), as defined in the Foreign 

2 Affairs Manual, of harassment, discrimination, 

3 sexual assault, and related retaliation. 

4 (B) Counsel victims of their rights, proce5 dures for seeking relief, and available resources, 

6 both locally and at headquarters, under this 

7 title, and other employment laws enforced by 

8 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commis9 sion including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the 

10 Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978, the 

11 Equal Pay Act of 1963, the Age Discrimination 

12 in Employment Act of 1967, the Americans 

13 with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Civil Rights 

14 Act of 1991, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 

15 and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination 

16 Act of 2008. 

17 (C) Provide confidential support and infor18 mation, including referrals to medical and men19 tal health care. 

20 (D) Refer complaints to the appropriate 

21 offices in the Department of State promptly in22 cluding— 

23 (i) the Office of Civil Rights in in24 stances of harassment, discrimination, or 

25 related retaliation; and 


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1 (ii) the Bureau of Diplomatic Security 

2 in instances of sexual assault or other com3 plaints with security clearance implica4 tions. 

5 (E) For the purposes of receiving com6 plaints, operate secure, confidential means of 

7 reporting 24 hours a day, including an elec8 tronic reporting system and an internationally 

9 accessible hotline. 

10 (F) Employ Employee Advocates to carry 

11 out the duties of the Office and assist those fil12 ing or considering filing a complaint. 

13 (G) If a victim chooses to file a complaint, 

14 such Advocates shall assist the victim in pro15 viding information and support until an inves16 tigation is completed, and a final agency deci17 sion has been made. 

18 (H) Provide assistance to complainants 

19 without undue pressure from Department of 

20 State leadership. 

21 (I) Provide routine training to attorneys 

22 and advocates on harassment, discrimination, 

23 sexual assault, and related retaliation policies 

24 and best practices for victim care. 


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1 (J) Track the stage of reporting, investiga2 tion, or disciplinary process a complaint is in. 

3 (K) Conduct climate surveys, as specified 

4 in section 306. 

5 (3) ELECTRONIC REPORTING SYSTEM.—The 

6 system established under this subsection shall— 

7 (A) include an electronic reporting system 

8 under which a complaint may be filed, in addi9 tion to a non-electronic system; 

10 (B) maintain an electronic record of the 

11 date and time at which any complaint is so 

12 filed; 

13 (C) ensure the security and confidentiality 

14 of records; and 

15 (D) allow the submission of confidential re16 ports that will not prompt individualized inves17 tigations, but shall be monitored by the Office 

18 to identify trends and determine whether inves19 tigations should be undertaken by the Office of 

20 Civil Rights. 

21 (4) INTERNATIONAL HOTLINE.—The system es22 tablished under this subsection shall— 

23 (A) include an international toll-free num24 ber accessible by all covered employees and 

25 EFM both domestic and overseas; 


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1 (B) be staffed 24 hours day, 7 days a week 

2 by Office of Employee Advocacy staff during 

3 normal working hours, and by a rotating OEA 

4 duty officer or contractor during non-working 

5 hours; 

6 (C) be entered by OEA staff into the elec7 tronic reporting system so that all reported 

8 cases are captured in the system; and 

9 (D) to the extent practicable, ensure access 

10 to the hotline for non-English speakers. 

11 (5) OVERSEAS POST REPORTING.— 

12 (A) Each overseas post shall notify employ13 ees that they may use the electronic reporting 

14 system or international hotline as established in 

15 paragraphs (3) and (4), or report in person to 

16 the Deputy Chief of Mission or other employees 

17 designated as Office of Employee Advocacy Li18 aisons. 

19 (B) The OEA Liaisons may include (but 

20 are not limited to) the Equal Employment Op21 portunity Counselor, the Community Liaison 

22 Officer, the Locally Employed Staff (LES) 

23 Equal Employment Opportunity Officer Liai24 son, or other staff to be selected by the Deputy 

25 Chief of Mission. 


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1 (C) OEA Liaisons should be provided with 

2 educational materials to distribute as well as 

3 training on the resources and services provided 

4 by the Office of Employee Advocacy, and on the 

5 various means of communications that employ6 ees can use to reach out to OEA Employee Ad7 vocates. 

8 (D) The Chief of Mission shall not be noti9 fied of the identity of the complainant without 

10 the express permission of the complainant. 

11 (6) APPLICATION.—This section shall not be 

12 construed to preclude, limit, or otherwise effect the 

13 rights of a covered employee to file a complaint, 

14 based on the alleged harassment, discrimination, 

15 sexual assault, and related retaliation that gave rise 

16 to the complaint under this subsection, under any 

17 other provision of law. This section shall not be con18 strued to preclude, limit, or otherwise affect the 

19 rights of a covered employee to file a complaint with 

20 another office. 

21 (7) CONSULTATION; TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

22 In developing the Office of Employee Advocacy, the 

23 Department of State shall receive technical assist24 ance and consultation from organizations and other 

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1 ma-informed care, individuals who have experienced 

2 harassment, discrimination, or retaliation at the De3 partment of State, the Equal Employment Oppor4 tunity Commission, and other relevant executive 

5 agencies. 

6 (c) DUTIES OF OFFICE OF CIVIL RIGHTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon the referral of a com8 plaint from the Office of Employee Advocacy to the 

9 Office of Civil Rights, the Office of Civil Rights 

10 shall— 

11 (A) take steps for the initial intake and re12 cording of the complaint, including providing 

13 the covered employee who filed the complaint 

14 with all relevant information with respect to the 

15 rights of the covered employee under this title 

16 and other relevant law; and 

17 (B) notify the accused covered employee— 

18 (i) of the complaint and the right of 

19 that covered employee to participate in any 

20 mediation, hearing, or civil action under 

21 this section and other applicable law with 

22 respect to the complaint; 

23 (ii) that retention of documents and 

24 evidence is crucial, and any unauthorized 

25 destruction of documents and evidence may 


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1 result in additional investigations and po2 tential punishment; and 

3 (iii) that there is a prohibition on re4 taliation against the covered employee who 

5 filed the complaint and may be investiga6 tion and discipline for retaliation. 

7 (2) INVESTIGATION OF COMPLAINTS.— 

8 (A) INVESTIGATION.—The Office of Civil 

9 Rights shall investigate all complaints in a 

10 prompt, thorough, and impartial manner. The 

11 Department shall update the Foreign Affairs 

12 Manual to enable Office of Civil Rights inves13 tigators to travel to the foreign and domestic 

14 sites of received complaints in which widespread 

15 or pervasive sexual harassment is reported. The 

16 Under Secretary for Management shall author17 ize sufficient funding for Office of Civil Rights 

18 attorney advisors to conduct this travel as nec19 essary. 

20 (B) INVESTIGATION OF CHIEF OF MIS21 SION.—If the Chief of Mission at an overseas 

22 post is named as the alleged perpetrator in a 

23 complaint, the Office of Civil Rights must no24 tify the Secretary of State. The Office of Civil 


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1 Rights must prioritize the investigation of such 

2 cases. 

3 (C) REPORT.—Not later than 120 days 

4 after a complaint is filed under this section and 

5 transmitted to the Office of Civil Rights, the 

6 Office of Civil Rights shall conclude the inves7 tigation regarding that complaint. On the date 

8 the investigation is so concluded, the Office of 

9 Civil Rights shall transmit a written report on 

10 the results of the investigation to— 

11 (i) the covered employee who filed the 

12 complaint; 

13 (ii) the accused employee and his or 

14 her employing office; and 

15 (iii) Global Talent Management. 

16 (D) EXTENSION.—The Office of Civil 

17 Rights may extend the 120 day deadline in sub18 paragraph (A) if the Office of Civil Rights de19 termines that additional time is necessary to 

20 conclude the investigation. The Office of Civil 

21 Rights shall notify the Committee on Foreign 

22 Relations of the Senate and the Committee on 

23 Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 

24 of the extension and provide justification for 

25 each extension of 30 days. 


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1 (E) TRANSMISSION TO GLOBAL TALENT

2 MANAGEMENT.—After the Office of Civil Rights 

3 concludes the investigation, it shall transmit a 

4 report providing a summary of the facts with 

5 all investigatory material including transcripts 

6 of interviews and evidence to Global Talent 

7 Management for consideration of disciplinary 

8 action. 

9 (F) TRANSMISSION TO SECRETARY OF

10 STATE.—Global Talent Management shall 

11 transmit the investigatory report and any re12 sulting disciplinary actions to the Secretary of 

13 State. Reports shall be transmitted to the Sec14 retary no less than quarterly. 

15 (G) STAFFING.—If the number of com16 plaints received by the Office of Civil Rights ex17 ceeds its capacity to respond within 120 days to 

18 the majority of cases, the Director of the Office 

19 of Civil Rights and Under Secretary for Man20 agement shall authorize the hiring of additional 

21 attorney advisors or other appropriate staff on 

22 a temporary or permanent basis. 

23 (H) RECORD RETENTION.— 

24 (i) RECORD RETENTION.—Global Tal25 ent Management shall keep a record of inVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:23 Dec 23, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3426.IS S3426

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1 vestigations, hearings, and other pro2 ceedings conducted related to complaints of 

3 harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, 

4 or related retaliation. 

5 (ii) PERSONNEL FILES.—Subsequent 

6 disciplinary action taken by Global Talent 

7 Management in response to the investiga8 tion and any EEO settlements or judge9 ments of harassment, discrimination, sex10 ual assault, or related retaliation shall be 

11 documented and kept on file and accessible 

12 to the Office of Civil Rights, Diplomatic 

13 Security, security clearance investigators, 

14 and Federal law enforcement officials. 

15 Global Talent Management shall also en16 sure that a standalone document con17 taining a description of the offense and 

18 disciplinary action taken, redacted of any 

19 personally identifiable information, shall be 

20 provided to and reviewed by all subsequent 

21 Department Foreign Service and Civil 

22 Service Selection and promotion Boards, to 

23 include a permanent notation in the em24 ployee’s file, including annual performance 

25 assessments or employee evaluations. 


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1 (d) DISCIPLINARY ACTION.— 

2 (1) SUSPENSION.—Section 610(c)(1) of the 

3 Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4010(c)(1)) 

4 is amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(1) In order to promote the efficiency of the 

6 Service, the Secretary may suspend a member of the 

7 Foreign Service without pay when the member’s se8 curity clearance is suspended or when there is rea9 sonable cause to believe that the member has com10 mitted a crime for which a sentence of imprisonment 

11 may be imposed or if the member has a history of 

12 harassment or Equal Employment Opportunity vio13 lations documented and substantiated by Global Tal14 ent Management.’’. 

15 (2) SEPARATION FOR CAUSE.—Section 

16 610(a)(1) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 

17 U.S.C. 4010(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows: 

18 ‘‘(1) The Secretary may decide to separate any 

19 member from the Service for such cause as will pro20 mote the efficiency of the service, to include findings 

21 by Diplomatic Security that the member has en22 gaged in criminal misconduct, to include murder, 

23 rape, or other sexual assault.’’. 

24 (3) UPDATE TO MANUAL.—Global Talent Man25 agement shall update the Foreign Affairs Manual’s 


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1 ‘‘Grounds for Disciplinary Action’’ and ‘‘List of Dis2 ciplinary Offenses and Penalties’’ to reflect the 

3 amendments made by this subsection and commu4 nicate such amendments to staff via Department 

5 Notices. 

6 (e) PENALTIES.—Consistent with other civil service 

7 and Foreign Service laws and regulations, the Secretary 

8 of State shall develop a policy of applying penalties to any 

9 covered employee who is determined to have sexual as10 sault, harassment, discrimination, or related retaliation 

11 complaints against him or her substantiated. Such pen12 alties shall include additional mandatory training, suspen13 sion with or without pay, demotion in rank, or removal 

14 for a period of the Secretary’s choosing. 

15 (f) ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION.—Global Talent 

16 Management shall ensure, to the extent practicable and 

17 appropriate, that any third country national or any na18 tional of a host country that was assigned to work at a 

19 diplomatic facility or employee residence who harasses, 

20 discriminates against, sexually assaults, or retaliates 

21 against a covered employee is— 

22 (1) documented in an appropriate site history 

23 file and in a global tracking and recording system, 

24 to be coordinated by Global Talent Management; 


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1 (2) taken into account with respect to deter2 minations regarding placements of third country na3 tionals or any national of a host country at such 

4 post and the provision of any funds or other benefit 

5 by the Department; and 

6 (3) any covered employee who filed the com7 plaint may opt out of having personally identifiable 

8 information included in such a report. 

9 (g) CASE REVIEW.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Civil Rights 

11 and Diplomatic Security shall conduct case reviews 

12 of a statistically significant number of cases on a 

13 quarterly basis to determine if proper procedures 

14 were followed in accordance with the harassment, 

15 discrimination, sexual assault, and related retaliation 

16 protocols and guidelines provided under this title 

17 and other applicable laws. 

18 (2) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—An analysis of 

19 such case reviews shall be annually reported to the 

20 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

21 Affairs and the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

22 the Senate and the Committee on Oversight and Re23 form and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 

24 House of Representatives in the report required 

25 under section 307(a). 


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1 SEC. 304. SEXUAL ASSAULT PROTOCOL AND VICTIM CARE. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the other re4 quirements of this title, not later than one year after 

5 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

6 of State shall develop and implement comprehensive 

7 sexual assault protocol and guidelines that conform 

8 to best practices in the sexual assault field and are 

9 applicable to all posts at which covered employees 

10 serve. 

11 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the proto12 cols and guidelines under paragraph (1), the Sec13 retary shall consult with and incorporate, as appro14 priate, the recommendations and views of experts in 

15 the sexual assault prevention and response field, vic16 tims, victim advocates, and current or former cov17 ered employees who have reported sexual assault or 

18 related retaliation. 

19 (b) ELEMENTS.—The protocols and guidelines under 

20 subsection (a)(1) shall include the following services with 

21 respect to a covered employee who has made an allegation 

22 of sexual assault: 

23 (1) Protection of such employee’s confiden24 tiality. 

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1 tim to supportive services and resources and explain 

2 the victim’s rights at no cost to the victim. 

3 (3) Provision, within 72 hours of a report, of a 

4 sexual assault forensic evidence kit to such em5 ployee, upon request. 

6 (4) Provision of emergency health care to such 

7 employee, including, to the greatest extent prac8 ticable, a choice of medical providers and a mecha9 nism for such employee to evaluate such provider. 

10 (5) Provision of comprehensive health services, 

11 to the greatest extent practicable, to include physical 

12 and mental health services. 

13 (6) Nothing in this subsection may be con14 strued to authorize the furnishing of any medical 

15 benefit that the Secretary of State is not otherwise 

16 authorized to reimburse for covered employees who 

17 receive treatment for injury or disease proximately 

18 caused by their service in the Department of State. 

19 (c) NOTIFICATION.—Diplomatic Security Office of 

20 Special Investigations shall be notified immediately of any 

21 reported sexual assault against any covered employee. For 

22 the purposes of maintaining comprehensive records of all 

23 incidents of sexual misconduct at the Department of 

24 State, if Diplomatic Security receives the initial report of 


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1 a sexual assault involving a covered employee, Diplomatic 

2 Security shall notify the Office of Employee Advocacy. 

3 (d) SEXUAL ASSAULT PREVENTION AND RESPONSE

4 VICTIM ADVOCATES.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State shall 

6 ensure the Victims’ Resource Advocacy Program, as 

7 defined in the Foreign Assistance Manual, includes, 

8 in the competitive service in Diplomatic Security 

9 within the Department of State, staff formally 

10 trained to provide victim-centered, trauma-informed 

11 care and advocacy for victims of sexual assault. (In 

12 this subsection referred to as the ‘‘Advocates’’). 

13 (2) DUTIES.—The Advocates shall— 

14 (A) receive continuous training in victim 

15 advocacy; 

16 (B) assist the victim in navigating those 

17 processes required to obtain care and services 

18 needed; and 

19 (C) offer trauma-informed care to victims, 

20 referrals, and ongoing nonclinical support. 

21 (3) LIMITATIONS.—The Advocates shall not 

22 be— 

23 (A) responsible for providing mental health 

24 services or to act as an investigator; or 


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1 (B) placed under the Department’s med2 ical offices or be responsible for providing phys3 ical health services. 

4 (4) PLACEMENT.—The Secretary shall ensure 

5 that Advocates are physically present at Department 

6 headquarters, major domestic and international fa7 cilities and embassies, as determined by the Depart8 ment and with logistical consideration to allow for 

9 expedient travel to Department facilities without Ad10 vocates. 

11 (e) OVERSEAS POST.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Department shall serve 

13 as the lead agency for reporting and responding to 

14 harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and re15 lated retaliation within an Embassy, Consulate, or 

16 other overseas location (in this subsection referred to 

17 as an ‘‘overseas post’’), and shall make Advocates 

18 and other resources available to victims of other 

19 agencies who fall under Chief of Mission authority at 

20 the overseas post. 

21 (2) REFERRAL.—The Department shall refer 

22 incident reporting to the appropriate agency for any 

23 employees working under Chief of Mission authority 

24 if the accused is not a covered employee of the De25 partment of State. 


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1 (3) CHIEF OF MISSION AUTHORITY.—If a cred2 ible allegation of harassment, discrimination, sexual 

3 assault, or related retaliation is made by a covered 

4 employee at an overseas post against a non-covered 

5 employee serving under Chief of Mission authority, 

6 including against an employee of another executive 

7 agency or non-executive branch agencies operating 

8 under memoranda of understanding, the Chief of 

9 Mission may use all authorities at their disposal to 

10 include revoking the non-covered employee’s permis11 sion to be in the country on official business. 

12 (4) DIPLOMATIC SECURITY TRAINING.—Diplo13 matic Security shall ensure that individuals serving 

14 as regional security officers in overseas posts are 

15 trained in victim-centered, trauma-informed care 

16 and sexual assault investigation techniques. 

17 (f) SANE PROGRAM TRAINING.—The Bureau of 

18 Medical Services within the Department of State shall en19 sure that to the greatest extent practicable, Sexual Assault 

20 Nurse Examiner trained staff shall be placed at Depart21 ment headquarters and major domestic and international 

22 facilities and embassies. 


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1 SEC. 305. RIGHTS OF EMPLOYEES HARASSED, DISCRIMI2 NATED AGAINST, RETALIATED AGAINST, OR 

3 SEXUALLY ASSAULTED. 

4 (a) RIGHT TO LEGAL COUNSEL.—Any covered em5 ployee filing a complaint of harassment, discrimination, 

6 sexual assault, or related retaliation may have access to 

7 legal counsel as specified in section 303(b). 

8 (b) AVAILABILITY OF MEDIATION DURING HARASS9 MENT INVESTIGATIONS.— 

10 (1) AVAILABILITY OF MEDIATION DURING IN11 VESTIGATION.—During the complaint intake of a 

12 covered employee’s complaint under section 303— 

13 (A) the Office of Civil Rights may inform 

14 the covered employee of the availability of medi15 ation; 

16 (B) the covered employee who filed the 

17 complaint and the accused covered employee 

18 may jointly file a request for mediation with the 

19 Office of Civil Rights; and 

20 (C) the covered employee who filed the 

21 complaint and the accused employee may re22 quest the presence of an attorney or a victim 

23 advocate in the mediation. 

24 (2) REQUIRING PARTIES TO BE SEPARATED

25 DURING MEDIATION AT REQUEST OF EMPLOYEE.— 

26 At the request of either party, the parties shall be 


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1 separated during any mediation proceeding under 

2 this subsection. 

3 (c) AVAILABILITY OF ALTERNATE WORK ASSIGN4 MENT OR PAID LEAVE OF ABSENCE DURING PENDENCY

5 OF PROCEDURES.— 

6 (1) OPTIONS FOR EMPLOYEES.— 

7 (A) EMERGENCY CURTAILMENT OF OVER8 SEAS ASSIGNMENT.—At the request of a cov9 ered employee who files a complaint of harass10 ment, discrimination, sexual assault, or related 

11 retaliation, an employee may request emergency 

12 curtailment of his or her tour of duty at no 

13 penalty to their career progress and shall be re14 assigned. Such requests for emergency curtail15 ment shall be approved by the Secretary or 

16 their designee, not post management, within 10 

17 days. The Department shall develop a process 

18 by which covered employees may request this 

19 option in a manner which does not inadvert20 ently result in retaliation against the employee. 

21 (B) ALTERNATE WORK ASSIGNMENT.—At 

22 the request of a covered employee who files a 

23 complaint, during the pendency of any of the 

24 procedures available under this title for consid25 eration of the violation, the employing office 


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1 shall permit the covered employee to carry out 

2 the employee’s responsibilities from an alternate 

3 location where such relocation would have the 

4 effect of materially reducing interactions be5 tween the covered employee and any person al6 leged to have committed the violation, instead 

7 of from a location of the employing office. 

8 (C) EXCEPTION FOR WORK ASSIGNMENTS

9 REQUIRED TO BE CARRIED OUT ONSITE.—If, in 

10 the determination of the covered employee’s em11 ploying office, a covered employee who makes a 

12 request under this subsection cannot carry out 

13 the employee’s responsibilities from an alternate 

14 location or such relocation would not have the 

15 effect described in subparagraph (B), the em16 ploying office may during the pendency of the 

17 procedures described in subparagraph (B)— 

18 (i) reassign the covered employee; 

19 (ii) make another workplace adjust20 ment that would have the effect of reduc21 ing interactions between the covered em22 ployee and any person alleged to have com23 mitted the violation described in subpara24 graph (B); or 

25 (iii) grant a paid leave of absence. 


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1 (D) ENSURING NO RETALIATION.—An em2 ploying office may not grant a covered employ3 ee’s request under this subsection in a manner 

4 which would constitute retaliation in violation of 

5 any provision of law, including any provision of 

6 title 5, United States Code. 

7 (E) NO IMPACT ON ANNUAL OR PERSONAL

8 LEAVE.—In granting leave for a paid leave of 

9 absence under this section, an employing office 

10 shall not require the covered employee to sub11 stitute, for that leave, any of the accrued paid 

12 annual leave of the covered employee. 

13 (F) USE OF DUTY HOURS.—An employee 

14 may use up to 16 hours of duty hours to pre15 pare for the investigation and resolution of the 

16 applicable complaint. 

17 (2) EXCEPTION FOR ARRANGEMENTS SUBJECT

18 TO COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS.—Para19 graph (1) does not apply to the extent that it is in20 consistent with the terms and conditions of any col21 lective bargaining agreement which is in effect with 

22 respect to an employing office. 

23 (3) PROTECTIONS.—A request under paragraph 

24 (1) may not be granted or carried out in a retalia25 tory manner, including retaliation for whistleblowing 


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1 in violation of the provisions of title 5, United States 

2 Code, or any other provision of law. 

3 (d) EXIT INTERVIEWS.—Departing employees may 

4 request the opportunity to be interviewed in person with 

5 Global Talent Management or its designee to discuss the 

6 circumstances of their departure and should be asked spe7 cifically about the prevalence of and incidents of harass8 ment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related retalia9 tion. 

10 SEC. 306. PROVISION OF CLIMATE SURVEYS. 

11 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

12 (1) the term ‘‘bureaus and offices of the De13 partment of State’’ includes the Foreign Service (as 

14 that term is defined in section 102 of the Foreign 

15 Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3902)); 

16 (2) the terms ‘‘Department of State’’ and ‘‘De17 partment’’ include the Foreign Service; and 

18 (3) the terms ‘‘employees and officials of the 

19 Department of State’’ includes members of the Serv20 ice (as that term is defined in section 103 of the 

21 Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3903)). 

22 (b) CLIMATE SURVEYS OF EMPLOYEES OF THE DE23 PARTMENT OF STATE.— 

24 (1) REQUIREMENT TO CONDUCT SURVEYS.— 

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1 ment of this Act and every 2 years thereafter, the 

2 Office of Employee Advocacy within the Department 

3 of State shall conduct a survey of covered employees 

4 of the Department of State regarding harassment, 

5 discrimination, sexual assault, and related retaliation 

6 in Department of State employment, including a 

7 survey of the following: 

8 (A) The prevalence of perceived violations 

9 by employees and officials of the Department of 

10 State. 

11 (B) The extent to which such violations 

12 arise from harassment or discrimination, in13 cluding on the basis of sex, race, religion, na14 tional origin, disability, genetic information, 

15 and other demographic characteristics. 

16 (C) The presence of a hostile work environ17 ment in the agency. 

18 (D) Whether employees are aware of their 

19 rights and Department processes and proce20 dures, and able to effectively exercise the rights 

21 and protections provided under this title and 

22 other applicable laws, including the effectiveness 

23 of the procedures applicable under this title and 

24 other applicable laws for investigating and hold25 ing accountable violations. 


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1 (E) The extent to which employees feel 

2 comfortable making use of the available report3 ing and resolution mechanisms. 

4 (F) For employees who have used the re5 porting and resolution mechanisms, the extent 

6 to which the process was accessible and fair. 

7 (2) SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—In each survey con9 ducted under this section, the Office of Em10 ployee Advocacy shall survey respondents re11 garding the prevalence of and attitudes regard12 ing harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, 

13 and related retaliation in Department of State 

14 employment. 

15 (B) COMPILATION OF INFORMATION BY

16 VARIOUS CATEGORIES.—The Office of Em17 ployee Advocacy shall endeavor to compile infor18 mation from the survey on the basis of various 

19 categories of demographic characteristics, in20 cluding gender, race and ethnicity, and age, so 

21 that the survey will report on the rates of inci22 dents of harassment, discrimination, sexual as23 sault, and related retaliation affecting each 

24 such demographic category. The provision of 


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1 such demographic information shall be vol2 untary. 

3 (C) CONSULTATION; TECHNICAL ASSIST4 ANCE.—The Office of Employee Advocacy shall 

5 develop the survey in consultation with offices 

6 of the executive branch which currently conduct 

7 similar surveys of their employees, including the 

8 Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office 

9 of the Department of Defense, the Office of Vi10 olence Against Women of the Department of 

11 Justice, and the Merit Systems Protection 

12 Board. Additionally, in developing the survey, 

13 the Office of Employee Advocacy shall enter 

14 into agreement to receive technical assistance 

15 from Workplaces Respond to Domestic and 

16 Sexual Violence: A National Resource Center 

17 (also known as ‘‘Workplaces Respond’’), the 

18 nonprofit nongovernmental entity described in 

19 section of the Violence Against Women Act of 

20 1994 (34 U.S.C. 12501). 

21 (D) CONFIDENTIALITY.—The underlying 

22 data of the climate surveys shall only be avail23 able to the Office of Employee Advocacy. 


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1 (3) METHODOLOGY.—The Office of Employee 

2 Advocacy shall conduct each survey under this sec3 tion in accordance with the following: 

4 (A) All responses to all portions of the sur5 vey shall be anonymous and confidential, and 

6 each respondent shall be told throughout the 

7 survey that all responses shall be anonymous 

8 and confidential. 

9 (B) The Office of Employee Advocacy shall 

10 design the survey so that it will take no more 

11 than 15 minutes to complete, and so that it 

12 may be taken online through the use of both 

13 stationary communication devices (such as 

14 desktop computers) and portable communica15 tion devices (such as cell phones and tablets). 

16 (C) The Office of Employee Advocacy shall 

17 include in the survey a list of resources avail18 able to respondents who wish to get more infor19 mation about harassment, discrimination, sex20 ual assault, or related retaliation in Department 

21 of State employment, including the services the 

22 Department of State provides to individuals 

23 who allege violations. 


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1 SEC. 307. REPORTS TO CONGRESS, THE DEPARTMENT, AND 

2 THE PUBLIC. 

3 (a) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

5 after the date of enactment, and annually thereafter, 

6 the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee 

7 on Foreign Relations and Committee on Homeland 

8 Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate 

9 and the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Com10 mittee on Oversight and Reform of the House of 

11 Representatives a report on allegations of harass12 ment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related re13 taliation involving employees and officials of the De14 partment of State during the preceding year. 

15 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Any report submitted 

16 under paragraph (1) shall be made available to— 

17 (A) Department personnel on internal 

18 websites and town hall meetings; and 

19 (B) to the general public on the Depart20 ment’s public website. 

21 (b) CONTENTS.—Each report under subsection (a)(1) 

22 shall contain the following: 

23 (1) The number of instances of harassment, 

24 discrimination, sexual assault, and related retaliation 

25 against employees and officials of the Department of 

26 State, and the number of instances of harassment, 


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1 discrimination, sexual assault, and related retaliation 

2 by employees and officials of the Department, that 

3 were reported to the Department during the year 

4 covered by such report, and the number of the cases 

5 so reported that were substantiated. The types of 

6 harassment and discrimination shall be 

7 disaggregated by category. 

8 (2) A summary of types of charges of, and the 

9 disciplinary action taken, in each such resolved case, 

10 with identifying information of both the accused and 

11 complainant removed. 

12 (3) The policies, procedures, and processes im13 plemented by the Secretary of State during the year 

14 covered by each such report in response to incidents 

15 of harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and 

16 related retaliation involving employees and officials 

17 of the Department of State. 

18 (4) A plan for the actions that are to be taken 

19 in the year following the year covered by each such 

20 report on the prevention of and response to harass21 ment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related re22 taliation involving employees and officials of the De23 partment of State. 

24 (5) Details on the average caseload of Depart25 ment investigators handling harassment, discriminaVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:23 Dec 23, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00076 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3426.IS S3426

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1 tion, sexual assault, and related retaliation, to in2 clude the number of staff working, the average and 

3 median time to investigate cases, and the number of 

4 extensions requested by the Office of Civil Rights to 

5 conduct investigations past the 120-day timeframe. 

6 (6) Details on the average caseload of Office of 

7 Employee Advocacy Employee Advocates and staff 

8 attorneys. 

9 (7) Details on cases of bystander intervention 

10 where a bystander assisted to counter or report inci11 dents of harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, 

12 and related retaliation. 

13 (8) Detailed findings and underlying data of 

14 the climate surveys required in section 306, includ15 ing an independent assessment by the Chief Advo16 cate, not subject to the Secretary of State, of the 

17 current climate at the Department of State with re18 gard to harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, 

19 and related retaliation. 

20 (9) Frequency with which those alleging harass21 ment, discrimination, sexual assault, or related retal22 iation took advantage of supportive services, such as 

23 medical care or counseling. 

24 (c) ASSESSMENT.—Each report under paragraph (1) 

25 for each year beginning with 2022 shall also include an 


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1 assessment by the Secretary of State of the implementa2 tion during the preceding fiscal year of the policies and 

3 procedures under section 2(a) of the Department of State 

4 on the prevention of and response to harassment, discrimi5 nation, sexual assault, and related retaliation involving 

6 employees and officials of the Department in order to de7 termine the effectiveness of such policies and procedures 

8 during such fiscal year in providing an appropriate re9 sponse to such harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, 

10 and related retaliation. 

11 (d) ASSESSMENT OF ADDITIONAL AUTHORITIES

12 NEEDED.—Not later than one year after the date of en13 actment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit 

14 to Congress a proposal for such changes and legislation 

15 as the Secretary considers necessary to enhance the capa16 bility of the Department of State to address matters relat17 ing to harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and re18 lated retaliation involving covered employees. The report 

19 shall include recommendations for additional appropria20 tions, as appropriate, to implement these changes. 

21 SEC. 308. REQUIRED TRAINING FOR DEPARTMENT PER22 SONNEL. 

23 (a) WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION TRAINING.—Not 

24 later than one year after the enactment of this Act, and 

25 annually thereafter, the Office of Civil Rights shall provide 


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1 to each covered employee of the Department of State 

2 training regarding whistleblower disclosures and protec3 tions. Such training shall include instruction and an expla4 nation of the rights of such covered employee regarding 

5 whistleblowing, including— 

6 (1) each method established by law in which a 

7 covered employee may file a whistleblower disclosure; 

8 (2) the right of the covered employee to petition 

9 Congress regarding a whistleblower disclosure; and 

10 (3) the fact that the covered employee may not 

11 be prosecuted or retaliated against for disclosing in12 formation to Congress, the Inspector General, or any 

13 other investigatory agency in instances where such 

14 disclosure is permitted by law, rule, or regulation. 

15 (b) BYSTANDER INTERVENTION TRAINING.—Not 

16 later than one year after the enactment of this Act, and 

17 annually thereafter, the Office of Civil Rights shall provide 

18 to each covered employee of the Department of State 

19 training regarding harassment, discrimination, sexual as20 sault, and related retaliation, including— 

21 (1) describing what such conduct entails; 

22 (2) identifying the types of conduct that serve 

23 as grounds to report or intervene; 


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1 (3) training on relevant laws that may require 

2 an officer or employee to report or intervene in in3 stances of such conduct; 

4 (4) reporting and intervening protocols and 

5 strategies for such conduct; 

6 (5) specific training for covered employees who 

7 process allegations of such conduct against other 

8 covered employees; and 

9 (6) such training must be developed based on 

10 consultation with organizations with expertise in 

11 trauma-informed care, effective strategies in preven12 tion and response, and healthy workplace culture. 

13 (c) SUPERVISOR TRAINING.—Not later than one year 

14 after the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 

15 the Office of Civil Rights shall provide and institute man16 datory training on responding to complaints of harass17 ment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related retalia18 tion to each covered employee of the Department of State 

19 who is a supervisor. Such training must be developed 

20 based on consultation with organizations with expertise in 

21 trauma-informed care, effective strategies in prevention 

22 and response, and healthy workplace culture. 

23 (d) EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TRAINING.—Not later 

24 than one year after the enactment of this Act, and annu25 ally thereafter, the Office of Civil Rights shall provide and 


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1 institute mandatory training for each covered employee 

2 serving in an executive leadership role, including Chiefs 

3 of Mission. The training shall emphasize the statutory re4 quirements for reporting and responding to complaints of 

5 harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related re6 taliation, including— 

7 (1) understanding the damage and harm har8 assment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related 

9 retaliation do to the employee and the organization; 

10 (2) senior leadership’s responsibility and role to 

11 create and foster a work environment free from har12 assment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related 

13 retaliation; and 

14 (3) such training must be developed based on 

15 consultation with organizations with expertise in 

16 trauma-informed care, effective strategies in preven17 tion and response, and healthy workplace culture. 

18 (e) POLICIES AND PROCEDURES.—Not later than one 

19 year after the enactment of this Act, and annually there20 after, the Office of Civil Rights shall provide to each cov21 ered employee of the Department of State training on the 

22 policies and procedures on harassment, discrimination, 

23 sexual assault, and related retaliation applicable by oper24 ation of section 302. Employees should receive this train25 ing within 30 days of entering on duty. Such training 


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1 must be developed based on consultation with organiza2 tions with expertise in trauma-informed care, effective 

3 strategies in prevention and response, and healthy work4 place culture. 

5 (f) MANAGER’S TOOLKIT.—The Secretary of State 

6 shall establish resources, to be referred to as a ‘‘Manager’s 

7 Toolkit’’, to aid supervisors in understanding rights, re8 sponsibilities, and penalties associated with conduct of 

9 harassment, discrimination, sexual assault, and related re10 taliation. 

11 (g) EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COUNSELOR

12 TRAINING.—The Office of Civil Rights shall revise the 32 

13 hours of training provided to Equal Employment Oppor14 tunity Counselors to include the resources and responsibil15 ities of the Office of Employee Advocacy, as well as the 

16 various means of communication available to employees to 

17 relay their complaints to OEA. 

18 SEC. 309. HIRING, VETTING, AND PROMOTION. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State, in con20 sultation with relevant agencies, shall ensure that ques21 tions relating to harassment, discrimination, sexual as22 sault, and related retaliation complaints are included in 

23 any background investigation with respect to a security 

24 clearance or access determination and vetting of any cov25 ered employee. 


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1 (b) REQUIREMENTS FOR APPOINTMENT.—Consistent 

2 with the civil service and Foreign Service laws and regula3 tions, the Secretary of State shall ensure that a back4 ground investigation on any potential sexual assault is 

5 conducted before an individual is appointed to a position 

6 within the Department. 

7 (c) REQUIREMENTS FOR PROMOTION INTO THE SEN8 IOR FOREIGN SERVICE OR SENIOR EXECUTIVE SERV9 ICE.—The Secretary of State shall ensure that potential 

10 candidates are vetted for their history of promoting a work 

11 environment free from harassment and discrimination. 

12 Promotion boards shall take into account whether can13 didates have a history of offenses that occurred under 

14 their leadership, regardless of whether the candidate was 

15 named an offender or not. 

16 (d) PROMOTION POLICY OBJECTIVES.—Consistent 

17 with the civil service and Foreign Service laws and regula18 tions, the Secretary of State shall ensure that promotion 

19 precepts and selection panels reward officers who have vol20 unteered to serve as Equal Employment Opportunity 

21 Counselors, and that documentation of the precepts em22 phasize that counseling experience is to be viewed as valu23 able experience preparing officers to perform in senior24 level positions with respect to the leadership, management, 

25 and interpersonal skills precepts. 


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1 SEC. 310. NONDISCLOSURE AND NONDISPARAGEMENT 

2 AGREEMENTS. 

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

4 (1) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘‘employee’’ means 

5 any individual subject to section 717 of the Civil 

6 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e–16), section 

7 411(c) of title 3, United States Code, or section 

8 101(a)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act of 

9 1995. 

10 (2) EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘employer’’ means 

11 any employing office referred to in section 

12 1301(a)(9) of title 2, United States Code, or section 

13 411(c)(2) of title 3, United States Code, or depart14 ment, agency, or unit referred to in subsection (a) 

15 of section 717 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 

16 U.S.C. 2000e–16). 

17 (3) NONDISCLOSURE CLAUSE.—The term ‘‘non18 disclosure clause’’ means a provision in a contract or 

19 agreement establishing that one or more parties to 

20 the contract or agreement agrees not to disclose in21 formation covered by the terms and conditions of the 

22 contract or agreement. 

23 (4) NONDISPARAGEMENT CLAUSE.—The term 

24 ‘‘nondisparagement clause’’ means a provision in a 

25 contract or agreement requiring one or more parties 


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1 to the contract or agreement not to make negative 

2 statements about another such party. 

3 (b) UNLAWFUL PRACTICES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be an unlawful prac5 tice for an employer to enter into a contract or 

6 agreement with an employee, as a condition of em7 ployment, promotion, compensation, benefits, or 

8 change in employment status, or as a term, condi9 tion, or privilege of employment, if that contract or 

10 agreement contains a nondisparagement clause or 

11 nondisclosure clause that covers prohibited discrimi12 nation or harassment in employment or contracting, 

13 or retaliation for reporting, resisting, opposing, or 

14 assisting in the investigation of such discrimination 

15 or harassment. 

16 (2) ENFORCEMENT.—Notwithstanding any 

17 other provision of law, it shall be an unlawful prac18 tice for an employer to enforce or attempt to enforce 

19 a nondisclosure or nondisparagement clause that 

20 covers prohibited discrimination or harassment in 

21 employment, or retaliation for reporting, resisting, 

22 opposing, or assisting in the investigation of such 

23 discrimination or harassment. An employer’s en24 forcement or attempts to enforce such a nondiscloVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:23 Dec 23, 2021 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3426.IS S3426

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1 sure agreement against an employee shall be deter2 mined to be prohibited retaliation. 

3 (3) SETTLEMENT OR SEPARATION AGREE4 MENTS.— 

5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The provisions of para6 graphs (1) and (2) do not apply to a nondispar7 agement clause or nondisclosure clause con8 tained in a settlement agreement or separation 

9 agreement that resolves legal claims or disputes 

10 if— 

11 (i) such legal claims accrued or such 

12 disputes arose before the settlement agree13 ment or separation agreement was exe14 cuted; 

15 (ii) the clause involved is mutually 

16 agreed upon by and mutually benefits 

17 both— 

18 (I) the employer, as the case may 

19 be; and 

20 (II) the employee; 

21 (iii) the employee’s agreement to such 

22 clause is knowing and voluntary, as de23 scribed in subparagraph (C); and 

24 (iv) the settlement agreement or sepa25 ration agreement expressly states that the 


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1 agreement involved does not prohibit, pre2 vent, or otherwise restrict a worker from— 

3 (I) reporting the allegations un4 derlying those settled claims to the 

5 Equal Employment Opportunity Com6 mission, any other Federal, State, or 

7 local agency with the authority to en8 force laws (including regulations) that 

9 prohibit discrimination or harassment 

10 in employment, as the case may be, or 

11 law enforcement; 

12 (II) testifying at, assisting, or 

13 participating in an investigation or 

14 proceeding conducted by the Equal 

15 Employment Opportunity Commis16 sion, any other Federal, State, or local 

17 agency with the authority to enforce 

18 laws (including regulations) that pro19 hibit discrimination or harassment in 

20 employment, as the case may be, or 

21 law enforcement; or 

22 (III) testifying in a hearing or 

23 trial or complying with a request for 

24 discovery in relation to civil litigation. 


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1 (B) PROHIBITION ON SOLE BENEFIT.—For 

2 purposes of this paragraph, it shall be an un3 lawful practice for an employer to unilaterally 

4 include a nondisparagement clause or nondisclo5 sure clause that solely benefits the employer in 

6 a separation or settlement agreement. 

7 (C) KNOWING AND VOLUNTARY AGREE8 MENT.—For purposes of this paragraph, agree9 ment to a nondisparagement clause or non10 disclosure clause may not be considered know11 ing and voluntary unless at a minimum— 

12 (i) the nondisparagement clause or 

13 nondisclosure clause is written in a manner 

14 designed to ensure that the employee un15 derstands the content of the clause in16 volved; 

17 (ii) the nondisparagement clause or 

18 nondisclosure clause is included only in ex19 change for consideration of value provided 

20 to the employee, in addition to anything of 

21 value to which the employee is already en22 titled; 

23 (iii) the nondisparagement clause or 

24 nondisclosure clause does not apply to any 

25 rights or claims that arise after the date 


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1 the settlement or separation agreement is 

2 executed; 

3 (iv) the employee is advised in writing 

4 to consult with an attorney prior to agree5 ing to such an agreement that includes a 

6 nondisparagement clause or nondisclosure 

7 clause; 

8 (v) the employee is given a period of 

9 at least 21 days to consider any proposal 

10 for a settlement or separation agreement 

11 that includes a nondisparagement clause or 

12 nondisclosure clause; and 

13 (vi) the settlement or separation 

14 agreement provides that for a period of at 

15 least 7 days following the execution of such 

16 agreement the employee may revoke the 

17 agreement, and the agreement shall not be18 come effective or enforceable until the rev19 ocation period has expired. 

20 (D) BURDEN OF PROOF.—In any dispute 

21 that may arise over whether any of the require22 ments of subparagraph (A) have been met, the 

23 party asserting the validity of an agreement 

24 shall have the burden of proving that the re25 quirements of subparagraph (A) have been met. 


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1 (E) PARTICIPATION IN INVESTIGATIONS OR

2 PROCEEDINGS.—No nondisparagement clause 

3 or nondisclosure clause may affect the ability of 

4 an employee to testify at, assist, or participate 

5 in an investigation or proceeding conducted by 

6 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commis7 sion, any Federal, State, or local agency with 

8 the authority to enforce laws (including regula9 tions) that prohibit discrimination in employ10 ment, as the case may be, or a law enforcement 

11 agency. 

12 (F) PROHIBITION ON DAMAGES.—Under 

13 no circumstances shall an employee be required 

14 to pay damages for breach of a nondisparage15 ment clause or nondisclosure clause permitted 

16 by this paragraph in excess of an amount equal 

17 to the consideration of value provided to the 

18 worker in exchange for the workers’ agreement 

19 to the nondisparagement clause or nondisclo20 sure clause. 

21 (c) ENFORCEMENT.— 

22 (1) ENFORCEMENT POWERS.—With respect to 

23 the administration and enforcement of this section 

24 in the case of a claim alleged by an employee against 

25 an employer for a violation of this section— 


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1 (A) the Commission shall have the same 

2 powers as the Commission has to administer 

3 and enforce title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

4 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.); 

5 (B) the Librarian of Congress shall have 

6 the same powers as the Librarian of Congress 

7 has to administer and enforce title VII of the 

8 Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et 

9 seq.) in the case of a claim alleged by an em10 ployee of the employer for a violation of such 

11 title; 

12 (C) the Board (as defined in section 

13 101(a) of the Congressional Accountability Act 

14 of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301(a))) shall have the 

15 same powers as the Board has to administer 

16 and enforce the Congressional Accountability 

17 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) in the case 

18 of a claim alleged by an employee of the em19 ployer for a violation of section 201(a)(1) of 

20 such Act (2 U.S.C. 1311(a)(1)); 

21 (D) the President, the Commission, and 

22 the Merit Systems Protection Board shall have 

23 the same powers as the President, the Commis24 sion, and the Board, respectively, to administer 

25 and enforce chapter 5 of title 3, United States 


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1 Code, in the case of a claim alleged by an em2 ployee of the employer for a violation of section 

3 411 of such title; and 

4 (E) a court of the United States shall have 

5 the same jurisdiction and powers as the court 

6 has to enforce— 

7 (i) title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 

8 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) in the case 

9 of a claim alleged by an employee of the 

10 employer for a violation of such title; 

11 (ii) the Congressional Accountability 

12 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.) in the 

13 case of a claim alleged by an employee of 

14 the employer for a violation of section 

15 201(a)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 

16 1311(a)(1)); and 

17 (iii) chapter 5 of title 3, United States 

18 Code, in the case of a claim alleged by an 

19 employee of the employer for a violation of 

20 section 411 of such title. 

21 (2) PROCEDURES AND REMEDIES.—The proce22 dures and remedies applicable to a claim alleged by 

23 an employee against the employer for a violation of 

24 this section are— 


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1 (A) the procedures and remedies applicable 

2 for a violation of title VII of the Civil Rights 

3 Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) in the 

4 case of a claim alleged by an employee of the 

5 employer for a violation of such title; 

6 (B) the procedures and remedies applicable 

7 for a violation of section 201(a)(1) of the Con8 gressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

9 1311(a)(1)) in the case of a claim alleged by an 

10 employee of the employer for a violation of such 

11 section; and 

12 (C) the procedures and remedies applicable 

13 for a violation of section 411 of title 3, United 

14 States Code, in the case of a claim alleged by 

15 an employee of the employer for a violation of 

16 such section. 

17 (d) RIGHT TO REPORT RESERVED.—Notwith18 standing signing (before, on, or after the effective date of 

19 this Act) any nondisparagement clause or nondisclosure 

20 clause, an employee retains— 

21 (1) any right that person would otherwise have 

22 had to report a concern about harassment, including 

23 sexual harassment, in employment or another viola24 tion of the law to the Commission, another Federal 

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1 cial branch), a State or local fair employment prac2 tices agency or any other State or local agency, or 

3 a law enforcement agency; and 

4 (2) any right that person would otherwise have 

5 had to bring an action in a court of the United 

6 States. 

7 (e) REGULATIONS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graphs (2), (3), and (4), the Commission shall have 

10 authority to issue regulations to carry out this sec11 tion. 

12 (2) LIBRARIAN OF CONGRESS.—The Librarian 

13 of Congress shall have authority to issue regulations 

14 to carry out this section with respect to workers of 

15 the Library of Congress. 

16 (3) BOARD.—The Board referred to in sub17 section (c)(1)(C) shall have authority to issue regu18 lations to carry out this section, in accordance with 

19 section 304 of the Congressional Accountability Act 

20 of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1384), with respect to employees 

21 described in subsection (c)(1)(C). 

22 (4) PRESIDENT.—The President shall have au23 thority to issue regulations to carry out this section 

24 with respect to employees described in subsection 

25 (c)(1)(E). 


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1 (f) REMEDIES.—Notwithstanding any other provision 

2 of this title, in an action or administrative proceeding 

3 against the United States for a violation of this section, 

4 remedies (including remedies at law and in equity, and 

5 interest) are available for the violation to the same extent 

6 as the remedies are available for a violation of title VII 

7 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e et seq.) 

8 by an employer, except that— 

9 (1) punitive damages are not available; and 

10 (2) compensatory damages are available to the 

11 extent specified in section 1977A(b) of the Revised 

12 Statutes (42 U.S.C. 1981a(b)). 

13 SEC. 311. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON SEXUAL HARASSMENT 

14 AND ASSAULT PREVENTION AND ERADI15 CATION IN THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS WORK16 FORCE. 

17 It is the sense of Congress that the foreign affairs 

18 workforce, including the United States Agency for Inter19 national Development, the Broadcasting Board of Gov20 ernors, the Peace Corps, the Development Finance Cor21 poration, and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, 

22 should take significant steps to prevent and eradicate sex23 ual harassment and assault. 

Æ 


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