II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1252 

To direct the Secretary of State to review the termination characterization 

of former members of the Department of State who were fired by 

reason of the sexual orientation of the official, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 30, 2019 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. UDALL, Mr. 

MARKEY, Ms. BALDWIN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. 

MERKLEY, Mr. KAINE, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. 

COONS, Mrs. MURRAY, Ms. HARRIS, Mr. WYDEN, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. 

BOOKER, Mr. SCHATZ, and Mr. WHITEHOUSE) introduced the following 

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

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of State to review the termination 

characterization of former members of the Department 

of State who were fired by reason of the sexual orientation of the official, 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 ‘‘Lavender Offense Vic5 tim Exoneration Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘LOVE Act of 

6 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress makes the following findings: 

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

4 least 1,000 people were wrongfully dismissed from 

5 the Department of State for alleged homosexuality 

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

7 (2) According to the Department of State’s Bu8 reau of Diplomatic Security, Department of State 

9 employees were forced out of the Department on the 

10 grounds that their sexual orientation ostensibly ren11 dered them vulnerable to blackmail and made them 

12 security risks. 

13 (3) In addition to those wrongfully terminated, 

14 many other patriotic Americans were prevented from 

15 joining the Department due to a screening process 

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

17 who, according to the findings of the Bureau of Dip18 lomatic Security, ‘‘seemed like they might be gay or 

19 lesbian’’. 

20 (4) Congress bears a special measure of respon21 sibility for these discriminatory actions as the De22 partment’s actions were in part in response to con23 gressional investigations into ‘‘sex perversion of Fed24 eral employees’’, reports on the employment of 

25 ‘‘moral perverts by Government Agencies’’, hearings 

26 and pressure placed on the Department through the 


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1 appropriations process and congressional complaints 

2 that Foggy Bottom was ‘‘rampant with homosexuals 

3 who were sympathetic to Communism and vulnerable 

4 to blackmail’’. 

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

6 State was required to report on the number of ho7 mosexuals fired each year as part of their annual ap8 peals before Committees on Appropriations. 

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

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

11 the Department of State’s diplomatic security office 

12 was investigating State personnel thought to be gay 

13 and driving them out of government service as ‘‘se14 curity risks’’. 

15 (7) In 1994, Secretary of State Warren Chris16 topher issued a prohibition against discrimination in 

17 the Department of State, including that based on 

18 sexual orientation. 

19 (8) In 1998, President William Jefferson Clin20 ton signed Executive Order 13087 barring discrimi21 nation on the basis of sexual orientation. 

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

23 John Kerry issued a statement regarding the ‘‘Lav24 ender Scare’’, saying, ‘‘On behalf of the Department, 

25 I apologize to those who were impacted by the pracVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:11 May 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1252.IS S1252

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1 tices of the past and reaffirm the Department’s 

2 steadfast commitment to diversity and inclusion for 

3 all our employees, including members of the LGBTI 

4 community.’’. 

5 SEC. 3. DIRECTOR GENERAL REVIEW. 

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

7 Service and Director of Human Resources of the Depart8 ment of State, in consultation with the Historian of the 

9 Department of State, shall review all employee termi10 nations that occurred after January 1, 1950, to determine 

11 who was wrongfully terminated owing to their sexual ori12 entation, whether real or perceived. 

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

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

15 consistent with applicable privacy regulations, compile the 

16 information compiled under subsection (a) in a publicly 

17 available report. The report shall include historical state18 ments made by officials of the Department of State and 

19 Congress encouraging and implementing policies and tac20 tics that led to the termination of employees due to their 

21 sexual orientation. 

22 SEC. 4. REPORTS ON REVIEWS. 

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

24 reviews of the consistency and uniformity of the reviews 

25 conducted by the Director General under section 3. 


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

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

3 for 2 years, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a re4 port on the reviews conducted under section 3. Each re5 port shall include any comments or recommendations for 

6 continued actions. 

7 SEC. 5. ESTABLISHMENT OF RECONCILIATION BOARD. 

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

9 establish, within the Office of Civil Rights of the Depart10 ment of State, an independent Reconciliation Board to re11 view the reports released by the Director General of the 

12 Foreign Service and Director of Human Services under 

13 section 3(b). 

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

15 (1) consistent with applicable privacy regula16 tions, contact all employees found to be fired due to 

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

18 former employees, the family members of the em19 ployees, to inform them that their termination from 

20 the Department of State has been deemed inappro21 priate and that, if they wish, their employment 

22 record can be changed to reflect these findings; 

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

24 position within the Office of the Director General of 

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1 sources to receive oral testimony of any employees or 

2 family members of deceased employees mentioned in 

3 the report who personally experienced discrimination 

4 and termination because of the actual or perceived 

5 sexual orientation in order that such testimony may 

6 serve as an official record of these discriminatory 

7 policies and their impact on the lives of United 

8 States citizens serving their Nation; and 

9 (3) provide an opportunity for any former em10 ployee not mentioned in the report to bring forth a 

11 grievance to the Board if they believe they were ter12 minated due to their sexual orientation. 

13 (c) REVIEW OF CLAIMS.— 

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

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

16 receiving the claim. Lack of paperwork may not be 

17 used as a basis for dismissing any claims. 

18 (2) COOPERATION.—The Department of State 

19 shall be responsible for producing pertinent informa20 tion regarding each claim to prove the employee was 

21 not wrongfully terminated. 

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

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


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1 SEC. 6. ISSUANCE OF APOLOGY. 

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

3 following apology on January 9, 2017: 

4 ‘‘Throughout my career, including as Secretary of 

5 State, I have stood strongly in support of the LGBTI com6 munity, recognizing that respect for human rights must 

7 include respect for all individuals. LGBTI employees serve 

8 as proud members of the State Department and valued 

9 colleagues dedicated to the service of our country. For the 

10 last several years, the Department has pressed for the 

11 families of LGBTI officers to have the same protections 

12 overseas as families of other officers. In 2015, to further 

13 promote LGBTI rights throughout the world, I appointed 

14 the first ever Special Envoy for the Human Rights of 

15 LGBTI Persons. 

16 ‘‘In the past—as far back as the 1940s, but con17 tinuing for decades—the Department of State was among 

18 many public and private employers that discriminated 

19 against employees and job applicants on the basis of per20 ceived sexual orientation, forcing some employees to resign 

21 or refusing to hire certain applicants in the first place. 

22 These actions were wrong then, just as they would be 

23 wrong today. 

24 ‘‘On behalf of the Department, I apologize to those 

25 who were impacted by the practices of the past and reaf26 firm the Department’s steadfast commitment to diversity 


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1 and inclusion for all our employees, including members of 

2 the LGBTI community.’’ 

3 (b) CONGRESSIONAL APOLOGY.—Congress hereby of4 fers a formal apology for its responsibility in encouraging 

5 the ‘‘Lavender Scare’’ and similar policies at the Depart6 ment of State, as these policies were in part a response 

7 to congressional investigations into ‘‘sex perversion of 

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

9 perverts by Government Agencies’’, and hearings or pres10 sure otherwise placed on the Department of State through 

11 the appropriations process. 

12 SEC. 7. ESTABLISHMENT OF PERMANENT EXHIBIT ON THE 

13 LAVENDER SCARE. 

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

15 with the current public-private partnership associated with 

16 the Department of State’s new United States Diplomacy 

17 Center, shall establish a permanent exhibit on the ‘‘Lav18 ender Scare’’ in the museum to assure that the history 

19 of this discriminatory episode is not brushed aside. 

20 (b) SPECIFICATIONS.—The exhibit— 

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

22 than one year after the date of enactment of this 

23 Act; 

24 (2) should provide access to the reports com25 piled by the Director General of the Foreign Service 


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1 and Director of Human Resources under section 

2 3(b); and 

3 (3) shall readily display material gathered from 

4 oral testimony received pursuant to section 5(b)(2) 

5 from employees or family members of deceased em6 ployees who were subject to these discriminatory 

7 policies during the ‘‘Lavender Scare’’. 

8 SEC. 8. GUIDANCE ON ISSUING VISAS. 

9 To demonstrate the Department of State’s commit10 ment to ensuring fairness for current employees, not later 

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

12 the Secretary of State shall submit to Congress a report 

13 on countries not issuing spousal visas to the spouses of 

14 all Foreign Service personnel posted overseas due to their 

15 sexual orientation. This report shall include any comments 

16 or recommendations for actions, including eliminating visa 

17 reciprocity with countries found to be instituting these 

18 practices against the spouses of Foreign Service personnel, 

19 that will lead to ensuring that all spouses of Foreign Serv20 ice personnel receive spousal visas for the country their 

21 spouse is assigned, regardless of sexual orientation. 

22 SEC. 9. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVANCEMENT BOARD. 

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

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

25 Department of State, a board comprised of senior-level ofVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:11 May 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1252.IS S1252

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1 ficials to address the issues faced by LGBTQI Foreign 

2 Service employees and their families. 

3 (b) HEARING OF TESTIMONY.—The Advancement 

4 Board shall hear testimony from any willing LGBTQI 

5 Foreign Service employees and their families regarding 

6 any discrimination they have faced due to their sexual ori7 entation. 

8 (c) REPORT.— 

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

10 after completing collection of testimony described 

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

12 years, the Advancement Board shall submit to Con13 gress a report based on the testimony. 

14 (2) CONTENT.—The report required under 

15 paragraph (1) shall include any comments or rec16 ommendations for continued actions to improve the 

17 Department of State to ensure that no employee or 

18 their family members experience discrimination due 

19 to their sexual orientation. 

20 (3) PRIVACY.—The report required under para21 graph (1) shall remain private and will only be ac22 cessible to Members of Congress, their appropriate 

23 staff, and members of the Advancement Board. 

Æ 


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