I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4526 
To establish an Office of City and State Diplomacy within the Department 
of State, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 19, 2021 
Mr. LIEU (for himself, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. 
CICILLINE, Mr. SIRES, Mrs. WAGNER, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Mrs. AXNE, 
and Mr. CASE) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs 
A BILL 
To establish an Office of City and State Diplomacy within 
the Department of State, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘City and State Diplo-
macy Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The supremacy clause of the United States 
Constitution (article VI, clause 2) establishes that 
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the Federal Government has the primary role in con-
ducting diplomacy on behalf of the United States; in 
turn, the Department of State, which was created 
pursuant to statute by Congress in 1789, has the 
lead role in formulating and implementing United 
States foreign policy. 
(2) The growth of subnational cooperation has 
enabled States and municipalities to play an increas-
ingly significant role in foreign policy and com-
plement the efforts of the Department of State by— 
(A) supporting exchanges and cooperation 
agreements between elected leaders and officials 
of State and municipal governments and those 
of international cities, regions, and countries; 
(B) promoting United States exports to 
foreign markets and foreign direct investment 
into the United States; and 
(C) sharing best practices and striking 
agreements with foreign counterparts on a wide 
range of topics, including facilitating trade and 
investment, protecting the health and safety of 
their respective citizens, cooperating on energy 
and the environment, and promoting people-to- 
people exchanges. 
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(3) Global networks made up exclusively of local 
government officials are at the forefront of har-
nessing the power of cities to advance international 
cooperation, including C40 Cities Climate Leader-
ship Group, ICLEI, United Cities and Local Govern-
ments, Global Parliament of Mayors, Urban20, 
Strong Cities Network, and Global Compact of May-
ors. 
(4) In 2010, the Department of State appointed 
the first-ever special representative for Global Inter-
governmental Affairs, who led efforts to build stra-
tegic peer-to-peer relationships between the Depart-
ment of State, State and local officials, and their 
foreign counterparts. 
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) it is in the interest of the United States to 
support robust two-way partnerships between the 
Department of State and subnational entities to ad-
vance United States foreign policy objectives, im-
prove understanding of United States diplomacy, 
and leverage Federal resources to enhance the im-
pact of subnational engagements; and 
(2) the creation in the Department of State of 
an Office of City and State Diplomacy, headed by a 
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senior Department official of appropriate rank to 
represent the United States at international fora 
would bolster United States interests through inter-
national agreements and Federal support to State 
and local entities. 
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF CITY AND 
STATE DIPLOMACY. 
Section 1 of the State Department Basic Authorities 
Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a) is amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(i) OFFICE OF CITY AND STATE DIPLOMACY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall be established 
within the Department of State an Office of City 
and State Diplomacy (in this subsection referred to 
as the ‘Office’). The Department may use a similar 
name at its discretion and upon notification to Con-
gress. 
‘‘(2) HEAD OF OFFICE.—The head of the Office 
shall be the Ambassador-at-Large for City and State 
Diplomacy (in this subsection referred to as the 
‘Ambassador’) or other appropriate senior official. 
The head of the Office shall— 
‘‘(A) be appointed by the President, by and 
with the advice and consent of the Senate; and 
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‘‘(B) report directly to the Secretary, or 
such other senior official as the Secretary deter-
mines appropriate and upon notification to 
Congress. 
‘‘(3) DUTIES.— 
‘‘(A) PRINCIPAL
DUTY.—The principal 
duty of the head of the Office shall be the over-
all coordination (including policy oversight of 
resources) of Federal support for subnational 
engagements by State and municipal govern-
ments with foreign governments. The head of 
the Office shall be the principal adviser to the 
Secretary of State on subnational engagements 
and the principal official on such matters within 
the senior management of the Department of 
State. 
‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL
DUTIES.—The addi-
tional duties of the head of the Office shall in-
clude the following: 
‘‘(i) 
Coordinating 
overall 
United 
States policy and programs in support of 
subnational engagements by State and mu-
nicipal governments with foreign govern-
ments, including with respect to the fol-
lowing: 
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‘‘(I) 
Coordinating 
resources 
across the Department of State and 
throughout the Federal Government 
in support of such engagements. 
‘‘(II) Identifying policy, program, 
and funding discrepancies among rel-
evant Federal agencies regarding such 
coordination. 
‘‘(III) Identifying gaps in Fed-
eral support for such engagements 
and developing corresponding policy 
or programmatic changes to address 
such gaps. 
‘‘(ii) Identifying areas of alignment 
between United States foreign policy and 
State and municipal goals. 
‘‘(iii) Improving communication with 
the American public, including, potentially, 
communication 
that 
demonstrate 
the 
breadth of international engagement by 
subnational actors and the impact of diplo-
macy across the United States. 
‘‘(iv) Providing advisory support to 
subnational engagements, including by as-
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sisting State and municipal governments 
regarding— 
‘‘(I) developing and implementing 
global engagement and public diplo-
macy strategies; 
‘‘(II) implementing programs to 
cooperate with foreign governments on 
policy priorities or managing shared 
resources; and 
‘‘(III) understanding the implica-
tions of foreign policy developments or 
policy changes through regular and 
extraordinary briefings. 
‘‘(v) Facilitating linkages and net-
works among State and municipal govern-
ments, and between State and municipal 
governments and their foreign counter-
parts, including by tracking subnational 
engagements and leveraging State and mu-
nicipal expertise. 
‘‘(vi) Supporting the work of Depart-
ment of State detailees assigned to State 
and municipal governments pursuant to 
this subsection. 
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‘‘(vii) Under the direction of the Sec-
retary, negotiating agreements and memo-
randa of understanding with foreign gov-
ernments related to subnational engage-
ments and priorities. 
‘‘(viii) Supporting United States eco-
nomic interests through subnational en-
gagements, in consultation and coordina-
tion with the Department of Commerce, 
the Department of the Treasury, and the 
Office of the United States Trade Rep-
resentative. 
‘‘(ix) Coordinating subnational en-
gagements with the associations of sub-
national elected leaders, including the 
United States Conference of Mayors, Na-
tional Governors Association, National 
League of Cities, National Association of 
Counties, Council of State Governments, 
National Conference of State Legislators, 
and State International Development Or-
ganizations. 
‘‘(4) COORDINATION.—With respect to matters 
involving trade promotion and inward investment fa-
cilitation, the Office shall coordinate with and sup-
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port the International Trade Administration of the 
Department of Commerce as the lead Federal agen-
cy for trade promotion and facilitation of business 
investment in the United States. 
‘‘(5) DETAILEES.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary of 
State, with respect to employees of the Depart-
ment of State, is authorized to detail a member 
of the civil service or Foreign Service to State 
and municipal governments on a reimbursable 
or nonreimbursable basis. Such details shall be 
for a period not to exceed two years, and shall 
be without interruption or loss of status or 
privilege. 
‘‘(B) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Detailees under 
subparagraph (A) should carry out the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(i) Supporting the mission and objec-
tives of the host subnational government 
office. 
‘‘(ii) Advising State and municipal 
government officials regarding questions of 
global affairs, foreign policy, cooperative 
agreements, and public diplomacy. 
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‘‘(iii) Coordinating activities relating 
to State and municipal government sub-
national engagements with the Department 
of State, including the Office, Department 
leadership, and regional and functional bu-
reaus of the Department, as appropriate. 
‘‘(iv) Engaging Federal agencies re-
garding security, public health, trade pro-
motion, and other programs executed at 
the State or municipal government level. 
‘‘(v) Any other duties requested by 
State and municipal governments and ap-
proved by the Office. 
‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL
PERSONNEL
SUPPORT 
FOR
SUBNATIONAL
ENGAGEMENT.—For the 
purposes of this subsection, the Secretary of 
State— 
‘‘(i) is authorized to employ individ-
uals by contract; 
‘‘(ii) is encouraged to make use of the 
re-hired annuitants authority under section 
3323 of title 5, United States Code, par-
ticularly for annuitants who are already re-
siding across the United States who may 
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have the skills and experience to support 
subnational governments; and 
‘‘(iii) is encouraged to make use of 
authorities under the Intergovernmental 
Personnel Act of 1970 (42 U.S.C. 4701 et 
seq.) to temporarily assign State and local 
government officials to the Department of 
State or overseas missions to increase their 
international experience and add their per-
spectives on United States priorities to the 
Department. 
‘‘(6) REPORT AND BRIEFING.— 
‘‘(A) REPORT.—Not later than one year 
after the date of the enactment of this sub-
section, the head of the Office shall submit to 
the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign 
Relations and the Committee on Appropriations 
of the Senate a report that includes information 
relating to the following: 
‘‘(i) The staffing plan (including per-
manent and temporary staff) for the Office 
and a justification for the location of the 
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Office within the Department of State’s or-
ganizational structure. 
‘‘(ii) The funding level provided to the 
Office for the Office, together with a jus-
tification relating to such level. 
‘‘(iii) The rank and title granted to 
the head of the Office, together with a jus-
tification relating to such decision and an 
analysis of whether the rank and title of 
Ambassador-at-Large is required to fulfill 
the duties of the Office. 
‘‘(iv) A strategic plan for the Office, 
including relating to— 
‘‘(I) leveraging subnational en-
gagement to improve United States 
foreign policy effectiveness; 
‘‘(II) enhancing the awareness, 
understanding, and involvement of 
United States citizens in the foreign 
policy process; and 
‘‘(III) better engaging with for-
eign 
subnational 
governments 
to 
strengthen diplomacy. 
‘‘(v) Any other matters as determined 
relevant by the head of the Office. 
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‘‘(B) BRIEFINGS.—Not later than 30 days 
after the submission of the report required 
under subparagraph (A) and annually there-
after, the head of the Office shall brief the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Com-
mittee on Appropriations of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the Committee on Foreign Re-
lations and the Committee on Appropriations of 
the Senate on the work of the Office and any 
changes made to the organizational structure or 
funding of the Office. 
‘‘(7) RULE
OF
CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 
this subsection may be construed as precluding— 
‘‘(A) the Office from being elevated to a 
bureau within the Department of State; or 
‘‘(B) the head of the Office from being ele-
vated to an Assistant Secretary, if such an As-
sistant Secretary position does not increase the 
number of Assistant Secretary positions at the 
Department above the number authorized under 
subsection (c)(1). 
‘‘(8) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
‘‘(A) MUNICIPAL.—The term ‘municipal’ 
means, with respect to the government of a mu-
nicipality in the United States, a municipality 
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with a population of not fewer than 100,000 
people. 
‘‘(B) STATE.—The term ‘State’ means the 
50 States, the District of Columbia, and any 
territory or possession of the United States. 
‘‘(C) SUBNATIONAL
ENGAGEMENT.—The 
term ‘subnational engagement’ means formal 
meetings or events between elected officials of 
State or municipal governments and their for-
eign counterparts.’’. 
Æ 
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