I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2409 

To improve hiring authorities available to the Secretary of State with respect 

to expertise on the People’s Republic of China, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 30, 2023 

Mr. BERA (for himself and Mr. BARR) introduced the following bill; which was 

referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To improve hiring authorities available to the Secretary of 

State with respect to expertise on the People’s Republic 

of China, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Expand eXpertise in 

5 China Education and Language Act’’ or the ‘‘EXCEL 

6 Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

8 It is the sense of Congress that— 

9 (1) strategic competition with the Government 

10 of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
2 

•HR 2409 IH

1 Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is the most signifi2 cant geostrategic challenge the United States faces 

3 in the 21st century; 

4 (2) the United States Government needs to fur5 ther invest in relevant linguistic, cultural, and re6 gional expertise to effectively engage in strategic 

7 competition with the PRC; and 

8 (3) existing hiring authorities across the execu9 tive branch are not being adequately utilized to 

10 bring in necessary expertise to win the strategic 

11 competition against the PRC, and agencies may ben12 efit from additional flexibility to recruit, hire, and 

13 retain talent. 

14 SEC. 3. HIRING ADDITIONAL EXPERTISE AT THE DEPART15 MENT OF STATE. 

16 (a) DIRECT HIRE AUTHORITY.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning not later than 2 

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

19 Secretary of State shall appoint directly to positions 

20 in the competitive service, as defined in section 2102 

21 of title 5, United States Code, without regard to the 

22 provisions of sections 3309 through 3318 of that 

23 title, not fewer than 31 candidates with linguistic, 

24 cultural, or regional expertise relevant to strengthVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:08 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2409.IH H2409

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
3 

•HR 2409 IH

1 ening United States understanding of and ability to 

2 compete with the PRC. 

3 (2) TERMINATION.—The authority provided 

4 under paragraph (1) shall terminate on the date 

5 that is 10 years after the date of enactment of this 

6 Act. 

7 (b) LONG-TERM AND SHORT-TERM CONTRACTS.— 

8 (1) TRAINING.—The Secretary of State shall 

9 train Foreign Service and civil service employees 

10 who hold positions relevant to advancing United 

11 States policies toward competition with the PRC in 

12 the topics described in paragraph (2). 

13 (2) TOPICS COVERED.—The training referred to 

14 in paragraph (1) shall cover the following: 

15 (A) The domestic and foreign policy objec16 tives of the PRC and the CCP, as demonstrated 

17 through publicly available speeches and PRC 

18 and CCP documents. 

19 (B) The tools the PRC and the CCP use 

20 to achieve those objectives. 

21 (C) The role of ideology in shaping CCP 

22 policies and outlook. 

23 (D) Other topics deemed relevant by the 

24 China Strategic Advisory Board, established by 

25 section 4(a). 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
4 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (3) CONTRACTS AND GRANTS FOR TRAINING.— 

2 In providing the training referred to in paragraph 

3 (1), the Secretary of State may obtain assistance 

4 from knowledgeable persons by— 

5 (A) entering into short-term and long-term 

6 contracts for such assistance, including con7 tracts for the temporary or intermittent services 

8 of experts and consultants under section 3109 

9 of title 5, United States Code; 

10 (B) making grants to the persons pro11 viding such assistance; and 

12 (C) taking other appropriate measures, as 

13 the Secretary of State deems necessary. 

14 SEC. 4. PROVIDING ENDURING STRATEGIC ADVICE VIA THE 

15 CHINA STRATEGIC ADVISORY BOARD. 

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established an advi17 sory board to be known as the ‘‘China Strategic Advisory 

18 Board’’ (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Advisory 

19 Board’’). 

20 (b) DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Advisory 

21 Board shall— 

22 (1) provide advice and expertise to the Sec23 retary of State, and continuity, in United States for24 eign policy matters pertaining to strategic competi25 tion with the PRC; 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
5 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (2) review recruitment, training, and retention 

2 of Foreign Service and civil service members with 

3 the expertise and experience necessary to support 

4 United States policy toward the PRC; and 

5 (3) provide guidance on programs across re6 gional and functional bureaus intended to respond to 

7 strategic competition with the PRC, including the 

8 Countering Chinese Influence Fund established by 

9 section 7043(c)(2) of the Department of State, For10 eign Operations, and Related Programs Appropria11 tions Act, 2020 (division G of Public Law 116–94; 

12 133 Stat. 2896). 

13 (c) MEMBERSHIP.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Board shall 

15 consist of at least 18 and not more than 24 mem16 bers, who each should have a demonstrable record of 

17 substantial experience pertaining to issues related to 

18 United States strategic competition with the PRC. 

19 No sitting officer or employee of the United States 

20 Government may be appointed to the Advisory 

21 Board. 

22 (2) APPOINTMENTS.— 

23 (A) APPOINTMENTS BY THE SPEAKER OF

24 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND SEN25 ATE LEADER OF SAME PARTY.—The Speaker of 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
6 

•HR 2409 IH

1 the House of Representatives and the leader 

2 that is of the same party in the Senate (if any), 

3 in consultation with the Chair and Ranking 

4 Member of the Committee on Foreign Relations 

5 of the Senate, shall jointly appoint 3 members. 

6 (B) APPOINTMENTS BY MINORITY LEADER

7 OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND

8 SENATE LEADER OF SAME PARTY.—The leader 

9 of the minority party of the House of Rep10 resentatives and the leader of the same party in 

11 the Senate (if any), in consultation with the 

12 Chair and Ranking Member of the Committee 

13 on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representa14 tives, shall jointly appoint 3 members. 

15 (C) APPOINTMENTS BY THE PRESIDENT.— 

16 (i) NUMBER.—The President shall ap17 point 6 members. 

18 (ii) QUALIFICATIONS.—At least 2 of 

19 the members appointed under clause (i) 

20 shall be between 30 and 50 years of age 

21 (inclusive) at the time of appointment. 

22 (D) APPOINTMENTS BY SECRETARY OF

23 STATE.— 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
7 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (i) NUMBER.—The Secretary of State 

2 shall appoint at least 6 but not more than 

3 12 members. 

4 (ii) QUALIFICATIONS.—The appoint5 ments made under clause (i) shall meet the 

6 following criteria: 

7 (I) At least 1 member who is not 

8 described in subclause (II) or (III) 

9 shall be between 30 and 50 years of 

10 age (inclusive) at the time of appoint11 ment. 

12 (II) At least 1 member who is 

13 not described in subclause (I) or (III) 

14 shall be able to credibly represent the 

15 views of the United States business 

16 community. 

17 (III) At least 1 member who is 

18 not described in subclause (I) or (II) 

19 shall have demonstrable experience as 

20 a United States diplomat. 

21 (3) DEADLINE FOR INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.— 

22 Each appointing authority referred to in paragraph 

23 (2) shall make all initial appointments required by 

24 such paragraph not later than January 1, 2024. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
8 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (4) VACANCIES.—Not later than 30 days after 

2 the date on which a vacancy on the Advisory Board 

3 occurs, the vacancy shall be filled in the same man4 ner as specified for the original appointment under 

5 paragraph (2), and the individual so appointed shall 

6 serve the remainder of the unexpired term. 

7 (5) REPLACEMENT APPOINTMENTS.—Not later 

8 than 30 days after the date on which the term of a 

9 member of the Advisory Board expires, the appoint10 ing authority that appointed such member shall ap11 point the member’s replacement. 

12 (d) TERMS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para14 graph (2), all members appointed to the Advisory 

15 Board shall have a term of 6 years. 

16 (2) INITIAL TERMS.— 

17 (A) APPOINTMENTS BY THE SPEAKER OF

18 THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND SEN19 ATE LEADER OF SAME PARTY.—Of the initial 

20 members appointed under subsection (c)(2)(A), 

21 1 shall have a term of 2 years and 1 shall have 

22 a term of 4 years, as designated by the Speaker 

23 and leader referred to in such subsection at the 

24 time of appointment. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
9 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (B) APPOINTMENTS BY MINORITY LEADER

2 OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND

3 SENATE LEADER OF SAME PARTY.—Of the ini4 tial members appointed under subsection 

5 (c)(2)(B), 1 shall have a term of 2 years and 

6 1 shall have a term of 4 years, as designated 

7 by the leaders referred to in such subsection at 

8 the time of appointment. 

9 (C) APPOINTMENTS BY THE PRESIDENT.— 

10 Of the initial members appointed under sub11 section (c)(2)(C), 2 shall have a term of 2 years 

12 and 2 shall have a term of 4 years, as des13 ignated by the President at the time of appoint14 ment. 

15 (D) APPOINTMENTS BY SECRETARY OF

16 STATE.—Of the initial members appointed 

under subsection (c)(2)(D), at least 1 17 ⁄3 shall 

have a term of 2 years and at least 1 18 ⁄3 shall 

19 have a term of 4 years, as designated by the 

20 Secretary of State at the time of appointment. 

21 (3) ADDITIONAL TERMS.—A member of the Ad22 visory Board may be reappointed to not more than 

23 1 additional term but may not be appointed to a dif24 ferent seat on the Board. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
10 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (e) QUORUM.—A majority of the sitting members of 

2 the Advisory Board shall constitute a quorum but a lesser 

3 number may hold hearings. 

4 (f) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.—The 

5 Advisory Board shall elect, from among its members, a 

6 Chairperson and Vice Chairperson. The terms of office of 

7 the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson shall be 1 year, and 

8 the Chairperson and Vice Chairperson may be reelected 

9 to subsequent terms. 

10 (g) BOARD MEETINGS.— 

11 (1) FREQUENCY.—The Advisory Board shall 

12 meet, at the call of the Chairperson or a majority of 

13 its members, at least once every 3 months and as 

14 frequently as may be necessary to carry out its du15 ties. 

16 (2) SUBCOMMITTEES.—The Advisory Board 

17 may be divided into subcommittees that meet sepa18 rately from the whole Board. 

19 (h) BRIEFINGS WITH OFFICIALS.—Not less fre20 quently than annually, the Advisory Board shall collec21 tively provide to the Secretary of State and the Adminis22 trator of the United States Agency for International De23 velopment a briefing on— 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
11 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (1) the findings made by the Advisory Board in 

2 fulfilling its duties and responsibilities under sub3 section (b); and 

4 (2) any recommendations of the Advisory Board 

5 for future legislative or administrative action. 

6 (i) CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFINGS.—On a semiannual 

7 basis, the Advisory Board shall provide to each of the ap8 propriate congressional committees a briefing on— 

9 (1) the findings made by the Advisory Board in 

10 fulfilling its duties and responsibilities under sub11 section (b); and 

12 (2) any recommendations of the Advisory Board 

13 for future legislative or administrative action. 

14 (j) SECURITY AND ACCESS TO INFORMATION.— 

15 (1) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—The appropriate 

16 departments and agencies of the executive branch 

17 shall cooperate with the Advisory Board to expedi18 tiously provide to the members of the Advisory 

19 Board the appropriate security clearances necessary 

20 to carry out the duties and responsibilities of the 

21 Advisory Board, subject to the standard procedures 

22 and requirements for granting such clearances. 

23 (2) NEED TO KNOW.—For purposes of any law 

24 or regulation governing access to classified informa25 tion, a member of the Advisory Board seeking access 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
12 

•HR 2409 IH

1 to a record or material to fulfill the duties and re2 sponsibilities of the Advisory Board shall be deemed 

3 to have a need to know the contents of the record 

4 or material. 

5 (3) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—The Secretary 

6 of State shall ensure that members of the Advisory 

7 Board have access to all appropriate information to 

8 fulfill the duties and responsibilities of the Advisory 

9 Board. 

10 (k) COMPENSATION.—Members of the Advisory 

11 Board shall— 

12 (1) receive compensation at a rate not to exceed 

13 the daily equivalent of the annual basic pay payable 

14 for positions at GS–15 of the General Schedule 

15 under section 5332 of title 5, United States Code, 

16 for each day such member is engaged in the actual 

17 performance of services of the Advisory Board; and 

18 (2) be allowed travel expenses, including per 

19 diem in lieu of subsistence at rates authorized for 

20 employees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 

21 57 of title 5, United States Code, while away from 

22 their homes or regular places of business in the per23 formance of services of the Advisory Board. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
13 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (l) STAFF.—The Chairperson may appoint and fix 

2 the pay of personnel as the Chairperson considers appro3 priate. 

4 (m) TERMINATION.—Section 1013(a)(2) of title 5, 

5 United States Code, (relating to the termination of advi6 sory committees) shall not apply to the Advisory Board. 

7 (n) REVIEW AND REPORT BY COMPTROLLER GEN8 ERAL.— 

9 (1) REVIEW.—The Comptroller General of the 

10 United States shall conduct a review that analyzes 

11 the progress of the Advisory Board on fulfilling the 

12 duties and responsibilities referred to in subsection 

13 (b). 

14 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 4 years after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen16 eral of the United States shall submit to the appro17 priate congressional committees a report detailing— 

18 (A) the results of the review referred to in 

19 paragraph (1); and 

20 (B) any recommendations for legislative or 

21 administrative action to improve the functioning 

22 of the Advisory Board. 

23 (o) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

24 authorized to be appropriated $100,000 for fiscal year 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
14 

•HR 2409 IH

1 2024 and each succeeding fiscal year to carry out this sec2 tion. 

3 SEC. 5. IDENTIFYING LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS THROUGH 

4 THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OF5 FICE. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General of the United 

7 States shall conduct a study on the personnel capacity and 

8 capability of the Department of State and the United 

9 States Agency for International Development (in this sec10 tion referred to as ‘‘USAID’’) to support United States 

11 strategic competition with the PRC and on available mech12 anisms to address any identified gaps. 

13 (b) REPORT.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

15 the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller 

16 General of the United States shall submit to the ap17 propriate congressional committees a report detailing 

18 the results of the study referred to in subsection (a). 

19 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report referred to in 

20 paragraph (1) shall contain the following: 

21 (A) The percentage of Foreign Service po22 sitions and civil service positions in the Indo23 Pacific region that are vacant, as compared to 

24 the same vacancy rates for such positions in all 

25 other regions globally. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
15 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (B) A qualitative assessment of the gaps in 

2 understanding of the PRC among the Foreign 

3 Service, civil service, and intelligence commu4 nity (as that term is defined in section 3 of the 

5 National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 

6 3003)) and how these perceived gaps hamper 

7 their work, which the Comptroller General of 

8 the United States shall compile after consulting 

9 with directors and deputy directors within the 

10 Department of State and USAID that the 

11 Comptroller General deems appropriate for in12 forming United States policies on competition 

13 with the PRC. 

14 (C) A recommendation of actions that Con15 gress, the Executive Office of the President, 

16 and the Department of State can take to ad17 dress the gaps referred to in subparagraph (B), 

18 disaggregated by whether such actions can be 

19 taken within a 1-, 5-, or 10-year period. 

20 (3) FORM.—The report referred to in para21 graph (1) may be submitted in classified or unclassi22 fied form and shall have an unclassified summary. 

23 (c) CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFINGS.—Not later than 

24 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and 

25 every 180 days thereafter until the submission of the reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:08 Apr 12, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2409.IH H2409

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
16 

•HR 2409 IH

1 port required by subsection (b)(1), the Comptroller Gen2 eral of the United States shall provide the appropriate 

3 congressional committees an interim briefing on the 

4 progress of the study referred to in subsection (a), includ5 ing any preliminary observations, interim findings, and 

6 barriers to completing the work. 

7 SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS. 

8 In this Act: 

9 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT10 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com11 mittees’’ means— 

12 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

13 the House of Representatives; and 

14 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

15 the Senate. 

16 (2) CCP.—The term ‘‘CCP’’ means the Chinese 

17 Communist Party of the People’s Republic of China. 

18 (3) CIVIL SERVICE.—The term ‘‘civil service’’ 

19 has the meaning given that term in section 2101 of 

20 title 5, United States Code. 

21 (4) FOREIGN SERVICE.—The term ‘‘Foreign 

22 Service’’ means the Foreign Service of the United 

23 States. 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
17 

•HR 2409 IH

1 (5) PRC.—The term ‘‘PRC’’ means the Peo2 ple’s Republic of China. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB