Represent America Abroad Act of 2021
Bill: H.R.1096 | Sponsor: Rep. Bass, Karen (D-CA)
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Represent America Abroad Act of 2021
This bill requires the Department of State to establish the Represent America Mid-Career Foreign Service Entry Program to increase diversity in the Foreign Service by recruiting mid-career professionals who are from minority groups.
As part of the program, the State Department shall (1) establish and publish eligibility criteria for participation; (2) carry out recruitment efforts to attract highly qualified, mid-career professionals from minority groups; and (3) include appropriate mentorship and other career development opportunities for program participants.
The State Department must submit an annual report on the status of the program.

To ensure that the United States diplomatic workforce at all levels 
 reflects the diverse composition of the United States, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Represent America Abroad Act of 
2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) As the United States becomes more racially and 
        ethnically diverse, the Department of State and the United 
        States Agency for International Development (USAID) must 
        continue to invest in policies to recruit, retain, and develop 
        the best and brightest from the full spectrum of American 
        society in order to be better positioned to advance United 
        States interests abroad.
            (2) Foreign Service officers are America's face to the 
        world. Thus, the workforce must represent the United States 
        commitment to inclusion and diversity in order to effectively 
        advance American values on the world stage.
            (3) The Department of State and USAID must embrace policies 
        that recruit professionals from the broadest possible pool of 
        talent and retain them in order to significantly increase 
        diversity in the Foreign Service. Timely action to increase 
        diversity at the mid-levels is crucial, as it takes 
        approximately nine years for an entry level Foreign Service 
        officer (class 6, 5, 4) to rise to the mid-ranks of the Foreign 
        Service (class 3, 2, or 1).
            (4) February and June 2020 reports by the Government 
        Accountability Office found barriers to a diverse and inclusive 
        workforce within the ranks of the Foreign Service, especially 
        at the mid-career and senior levels. Individuals who are racial 
        or ethnic minorities comprise only 24 percent at the Department 
        of State and 27 percent at USAID. At the executive level, 
        individuals who are racial or ethnic minorities comprise only 
        13 percent at the Department of State and 17 percent at USAID. 
        This means that the leadership is the least diverse level 
        within the Foreign Service.
            (5) In the past, Secretaries of State have acknowledged the 
        lack of workforce diversity and pledged to take concrete steps 
        to address the problem. In 2017, then-Secretary of State Rex 
        Tillerson recognized a great diversity gap in the Department of 
        State and former Secretary of State John Kerry noted that in 
        order to represent the United States, the Department of State 
        must have a workforce that reflects the rich composition of its 
        citizenry. Yet there has been no concrete plan to address the 
        lack of diversity at the mid-career and senior levels.
            (6) USAID has previously identified under-representation of 
        specific groups in its workforce, but staffing gaps, partly due 
        to a lack of senior leadership attention, prevent the agency 
        from adequately addressing the issue.
            (7) Congress authorized the creation of a 3-year lateral 
        entry pilot project under section 404 of the Department of 
        State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 114-323; 
        130 Stat. 1928) to bring highly qualified individuals with 
        special skills, which the Department may lack, into the Foreign 
        Service at the mid-career level. Such a project would not only 
        allow the Foreign Service to supplement its work force with 
        those possessing complementary and needed skills, but it would 
        also serve as an avenue to diversify the mid-level and senior 
        ranks of the Foreign Service. Yet, more than three years later, 
        the Department has failed to comply with the law.

SEC. 3. DECLARATION OF NATIONAL INTEREST; STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    (a) Declaration of National Interest.--Congress declares that it is 
in the national interest of the United States to ensure that the 
members of the United States Foreign Service workforce be 
representative of the American people.
    (b) Statement of Policy.--It shall be the policy of the Department 
of State and of the United States Agency for International 
Development--
            (1) to strengthen the Foreign Service workforce by 
        bolstering the diversity of those who represent Americans 
        abroad;
            (2) to treat the people of the Foreign Service as its 
        primary asset, and as such, hold as a central tenet making 
        strides in increasing minority representation at all levels of 
        the Foreign Service workforce to secure the country's national 
        interests; and
            (3) in accordance with the Foreign Service Act of 1980, to 
        attract highly qualified, mid-career professionals who are also 
        American minorities, through a pathway program for entry into 
        the Foreign Service.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION.

    (a) Modification of Lateral Entry Foreign Service Program.--Section 
404 of the Department of State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 
(Public Law 114-323; 130 Stat. 1928) is amended as follows:
            (1) In subsection (a)--
                    (A) by striking ``It is the sense of Congress that 
                the Foreign Service'' and inserting the following: ``It 
                is the sense of Congress that--
            ``(1) the Foreign Service'';
                    (B) by striking the period at the end and inserting 
                ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) the lateral entry pilot program authorized under this 
        section should be an avenue for the Foreign Service to 
        diversify its mid-level ranks by including applicants from 
        traditionally under-represented groups in terms of racial, 
        ethnic, geographic, and gender diversity, and disability 
        status.''.
            (2) By redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections 
        (d) and (e), respectively.
            (3) By inserting after subsection (b) the following:
    ``(c) Program Requirements.--The program authorized under 
subsection (b) shall be implemented not later than 60 days after the 
date of the enactment of this subsection, and the Secretary shall--
            ``(1) ensure that not less than 50 percent of program 
        participants per year are placed in the Foreign Service; and
            ``(2) include recruitment outreach for program 
        participation to--
                    ``(A) diversity officers in the private sector;
                    ``(B) all members of the Department's civil service 
                and recognized Department affinity groups;
                    ``(C) the civil service of other national security 
                related Federal agencies; and
                    ``(D) professional associations.''.
    (b) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall establish a 
program, which shall be known as the ``Represent America Mid-Career 
Foreign Service Entry Program'' (in this section referred to as the 
``Program''), to be administered jointly by the Director General of the 
Foreign Service, the Director of Global Talent Management of the 
Department of State, and the Chief Human Capital Officer of the Office 
of Human Capital and Talent Management of the United States Agency for 
International Development, to identify, attract, and welcome into the 
Foreign Service mid-career professionals who are from minority groups.
    (c) Elements of Program.--
            (1) Program requirements.--The Secretary of State shall 
        carry out the following with respect to the Program:
                    (A) Establish and publish eligibility criteria for 
                candidates to participate in the Program.
                    (B) Carry out countrywide recruitment efforts to 
                attract highly qualified, mid-career professionals from 
                minority groups, such as at and through the following:
                            (i) Community agencies and organizations.
                            (ii) Faith-based organizations.
                            (iii) Community events.
                            (iv) Professional associations.
                            (v) Colleges and universities, including 
                        historically Black colleges and universities 
                        and other minority-serving institutions such as 
                        Hispanic-serving institutions, Asian American 
                        and Native American Pacific Islander-serving 
                        institutions, American Indian Tribally 
                        controlled colleges and universities, Alaska 
                        Native and Native Hawaiian-serving 
                        institutions, Tribal colleges and universities, 
                        Predominantly Black Institutions, and Native 
                        American-serving, Nontribal institutions.
                            (vi) Diplomats in residence.
                            (vii) Job fairs.
                            (viii) Newspaper/magazines/journals.
                            (ix) Radio stations and programs.
                            (x) Websites, webcasts, podcasts, and other 
                        online channels.
                    (C) Recruit eligible candidates for the Program.
                    (D) Develop a structured program that includes as 
                part of the initial training, a class or module that 
                specifically prepares participants for life in the 
                Foreign Service, including conveying to such 
                participants essential elements of the practical 
                knowledge that is normally acquired during a Foreign 
                Service Officer's initial assignments.
                    (E) Include appropriate mentorship and other career 
                development opportunities, such as leadership training, 
                for Program participants.
            (2) Overall qualifications.--In recruiting, training, and 
        assigning members of the Program, the Secretary of State should 
        seek highly qualified minority individuals who are mid-career 
        professionals--
                    (A) with diverse work experience who have 
                capabilities, insights, techniques, and experiences 
                that would serve to enrich the Foreign Service 
                workforce and empower it to perform more effectively;
                    (B) with demonstrated knowledge of, experience 
                with, and interest in United States foreign policy and 
                national security and international affairs, including 
                knowledge of the affairs, cultures, and languages of 
                other countries;
                    (C) with demonstrable leadership skills and the 
                potential for further growth;
                    (D) that demonstrate a track record of 
                collaboration, team-building, and stakeholder 
                management skills;
                    (E) with demonstrated capacity for critical 
                thinking and analytical skills, including the ability 
                to synthesize information into clear and concise 
                recommendations;
                    (F) with strategic thinking, and ability to solve 
                complex problems;
                    (G) with flexibility, adaptability, and 
                determination; and
                    (H) who are United States citizens with worldwide 
                service availability and who are able to obtain 
                appropriate security and medical clearances.
    (d) Advancement From Program.--Candidates who are accepted into the 
Program in accordance with the qualifications and requirements of this 
section shall have the opportunity to advance to the Foreign Service 
oral assessment for potential entry as the appropriate class of mid-
level Foreign Service officer in accordance with the candidate's 
professional qualifications.
    (e) Mid-Career Professional Defined.--For purposes of the Program, 
the term ``mid-career professional'' means an individual who has the 
skills and experience to serve as a mid-level Foreign Service officer 
(class 3, 2, or 1) and who meets any of the following criteria, 
consistent with the merit-based principles and core precepts set forth 
in the Foreign Affairs Manual and Handbook and in accordance with 
applicable requirements of the Foreign Service Act of 1980:
            (1) An individual with at least eight years of professional 
        experience and a bachelor's degree from an accredited college 
        or university in selected fields of study representing the 
        needs of the Department of State, including public policy, 
        public administration, international law, international 
        relations, political science, foreign languages, business 
        administration, economics, history, sociology, geography, 
        social or cultural anthropology, statistics, or the humanities.
            (2) An individual with at least seven years of professional 
        experience and a master's degree from an accredited college or 
        university in selected fields of study representing the needs 
        of the Department of State, including any field specified in 
        paragraph (1).
            (3) An individual with at least five years of professional 
        experience and doctoral degree from an accredited college or 
        university in selected fields of study representing the needs 
        of the Department of State, including any field specified in 
        paragraph (1).
    (f) Reports.--
            (1) Initial report.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
        of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 
        submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate a report on a plan to establish the Program.
            (2) Annual update.--Not later than one year after the 
        submission of the report required under paragraph (1) and 
        annually thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the 
        Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 
        and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report 
        on the status of the Program. Each such report shall include 
        the following information with respect to the previous year:
                    (A) The number of candidates approved for the 
                Program.
                    (B) The number of candidates who began 
                participating, including anonymized information on such 
                candidates' backgrounds with respect to education and 
                prior work experience and grade level at which the 
                candidate entered the Foreign Service.
                    (C) A breakdown of the number of participants 
                recruited into and advancing from the Program by 
                ethnicity and sex.
                    (D) A disaggregation by Foreign Service cone and 
                post or mission (including identifying whether the post 
                is hard-to-fill) assigned to each participant advancing 
                from the Program.
                    (E) Program attrition rates and retention data, 
                including information on how such data compares to the 
                data reported in the most recent prior submission of 
                such report.
                    (F) Information on recruiting efforts for the 
                Program, including an outreach strategy detailing 
                resources allocated to outreach, as well as where, how, 
                and when outreach will be carried out.
                    (G) Information on efforts to improve the efficacy 
                of the Program and promote retention of Program 
                participants.
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