Accountability in Assignment Restrictions and Reviews Act of 2023

To provide for the review and appeal of determinations that personnel of the Department of State should be restricted or precluded from serving in certain assignments, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Accountability in Assignment Restrictions and Reviews Act of 2023 2. Increased accountability in assignment restrictions and review (a) Sense of congress It is the sense of Congress that— (1) the use of policies to restrict personnel from serving in certain assignments may undermine the ability of the Department of State to deploy relevant cultural and linguistic skills at diplomatic posts abroad if not applied judiciously; and (2) the Department should continuously evaluate all processes relating to assignment restrictions, assignment reviews, and preclusions at the Department. (b) Notification of status Beginning not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall— (1) provide a status update for all Department personnel who, prior to such date of enactment, were subject to a prior assignment restriction, assignment review, or preclusion for whom a review or decision related to assignment is pending; and (2) on an ongoing basis, provide a status update for any Department personnel who has been the subject of a pending assignment restriction or pending assignment review for more than 30 days. (c) Notification content The notification required under subsection (b) shall inform relevant personnel, as of the date of the notification— (1) whether any prior assignment restriction has been lifted; (2) if their assignment status is subject to ongoing review, and an estimated date for completion; and (3) if they are subject to any other restrictions on their ability to serve at posts abroad. (d) Adjudication of ongoing assignment reviews (1) Time limit The Department shall establish a reasonable time limit for the Department to complete an assignment review and establish a deadline by which it must inform personnel of a decision related to such a review. (2) Appeals For any personnel the Department determines are ineligible to serve in an assignment due to an assignment restriction or assignment review, a Security Appeal Panel shall convene not later than 120 days of an appeal being filed. (3) Entry-level bidding process The Department shall include a description of the assignment review process and critical human intelligence threat posts in a briefing to new officers as part of their entry-level bidding process. (4) Point of contact The Department shall designate point of contacts in the Bureau of Diplomatic Security and Bureau of Global Talent Management to answer employee and Career Development Officer questions about assignment restrictions, assignment reviews, and preclusions. (e) Security appeal panel Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Security Appeal Panel shall be comprised of— (1) the head of an office responsible for human resources or discrimination who reports directly to the Secretary; (2) the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Global Talent Management; (3) the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research; (4) an Assistant Secretary or Deputy, or equivalent, from a third bureau as designated by the Under Secretary for Management; (5) a representative from the geographic bureau to which the restriction applies; and (6) a representative from the Office of the Legal Adviser and a representative from the Bureau of Diplomatic Security, who shall serve as non-voting advisors. (f) Appeal rights Section 414(a) of the Department of State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 ( 22 U.S.C. 2734c(a) The Secretary shall establish and maintain a right and process for employees to appeal a decision related to an assignment, based on a restriction, review, or preclusion. Such right and process shall ensure that any such employee shall have the same appeal rights as provided by the Department regarding denial or revocation of a security clearance. (g) Fam update Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall amend all relevant provisions of the Foreign Service Manual, and any associated or related policies of the Department, to comply with this section. (h) Definitions In this section: (1) Department The term Department (2) Secretary The term Secretary

Summary: Accountability in Assignment Restrictions and Reviews Act of 2023This bill establishes various requirements related to Department of State personnel assignments and denials. For example, the State Department must (1) provide status updates to its personnel with pending assignment decisions, (2) establish reasonable time lines to complete adjudications of ongoing assignment reviews, and (3) establish a security appeal panel for those denied an assignment due to an assignment restriction.