Title: Multilateral Aid Review Act of 2020
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Multilateral Aid Review Act of 2020
This bill establishes a U.S. Multilateral Aid Review to assess U.S. government investments in multilateral entities. The President shall establish a U.S. Multilateral Aid Review Task Force, which shall report to Congress the review's findings.
The task force shall establish and report the methodology for the reviews, which shall include assessments of (1) the relationship between such multilateral entities' stated goals and actual results, (2) the management practices and transparency of the entities, (3) the alignment between an entity's policies and practices with U.S. foreign policy objectives, and (4) whether U.S. goals may be better served by pursing a bilateral approach.
The bill establishes a U.S. Multilateral Aid Review Peer Review Group, which shall review the reports and provide feedback to the task force and to Congress.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3626 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3626

        To establish a review of United States multilateral aid.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 6, 2020

   Mr. Risch (for himself, Mr. Young, Mr. Perdue, Mr. Rubio, and Mr. 
    Romney) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
        To establish a review of United States multilateral aid.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Multilateral Aid 
Review Act of 2020''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Purpose.
Sec. 3. Appropriate congressional committees defined.
Sec. 4. Objectives.
Sec. 5. Scope.
Sec. 6. Report on Review.
Sec. 7. United States Multilateral Review Task Force.
Sec. 8. United States Multilateral Aid Review Peer Review Group.
Sec. 9. Termination of authorities.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to establish a United States 
Multilateral Aid Review (referred to in this Act as the ``Review'') to 
publicly assess the value of United States Government investments in 
multilateral entities.

SEC. 3. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DEFINED.

    In this Act, the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
means--
            (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
            (2) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
            (3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives;
            (4) the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 
        Representatives; and
            (5) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
        Representatives.

SEC. 4. OBJECTIVES.

    The objectives of the Review are--
            (1) to provide a tool to guide the United States 
        Government's decision making and prioritization with regard to 
        funding multilateral entities;
            (2) to provide a methodological basis for allocating 
        budgetary resources to entities that advance relevant United 
        States foreign policy objectives;
            (3) to incentivize improvements in the performance of 
        multilateral entities to achieve better outcomes, including in 
        developing, fragile, and crisis-afflicted regions; and
            (4) to protect United States taxpayer investments in 
        foreign assistance by promoting transparency with regard to the 
        funding of multilateral entities.

SEC. 5. SCOPE.

    The Review shall, at a minimum, assess the following multilateral 
entities to which the United States Government contributes voluntary or 
assessed funding, whether cash or in-kind:
            (1) The World Bank Group, including the International Bank 
        for Reconstruction and Development, the International 
        Development Association, and the International Finance 
        Corporation.
            (2) The regional development banks, including the Asian 
        Development Bank, the African Development Bank, the Inter-
        American Development Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction 
        and Development, and the North American Development Bank.
            (3) Climate Investment Funds.
            (4) The Food and Agriculture Organization.
            (5) Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
            (6) The Global Environment Facility.
            (7) The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and 
        Malaria.
            (8) The Green Climate Fund.
            (9) The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation for 
        Agriculture.
            (10) The International Civil Aviation Organization.
            (11) The International Committee of the Red Cross.
            (12) The International Fund for Agricultural Development.
            (13) The International Labour Organization.
            (14) The International Organization for Migration.
            (15) The International Telecommunication Union.
            (16) The Joint UN Program on HIV/AIDS.
            (17) The Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the 
        Montreal Protocol.
            (18) The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for 
        Human Rights.
            (19) The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for 
        Refugees.
            (20) The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and 
        Development.
            (21) The Organization of American States.
            (22) The Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency.
            (23) The Pan American Health Organization.
            (24) The United Nations Children's Fund.
            (25) The United Nations Department of Economic and Social 
        Affairs.
            (26) The United Nations Development Programme.
            (27) The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the 
        Empowerment of Women.
            (28) The United Nations Environment Programme.
            (29) The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate 
        Change.
            (30) The United Nations Office for Project Services.
            (31) The United Nations Office for the Coordination of 
        Humanitarian Affairs.
            (32) The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
            (33) The United Nations Population Fund.
            (34) The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for 
        Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
            (35) The United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of 
        Torture.
            (36) The World Food Program.
            (37) The World Health Organization.
            (38) The World Meteorological Organization.

SEC. 6. REPORT ON REVIEW.

    (a) Submission.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 21 months after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the United States Multilateral Aid 
        Review Task Force established under section 7, in regular 
        consultation with the Peer Review Group established under 
        section 8, shall submit a report to the appropriate 
        congressional committees that describes the findings of the 
        Review.
            (2) Publication.--The Secretary of State shall publish the 
        report described in paragraph (1) on the internet website of 
        the Department of State not later than 15 days after the date 
        on which the report is submitted to the appropriate 
        congressional committees.
    (b) Methodology.--
            (1) Use of criteria.--The Task Force shall establish an 
        analytical framework and assessment scorecard for the Review 
        using the criteria set forth in subsection (c).
            (2) Consultation with congress.--Not later than 90 days 
        after the appointments to the Peer Review Group under section 
        8(b), the Task Force shall submit the methodology for the 
        Review to the appropriate congressional committees. The Task 
        Force may not proceed with the Review until 30 days after 
        submission of the methodology to the appropriate congressional 
        committees, taking into consideration the views of the Chairmen 
        and Ranking Members of each of the appropriate congressional 
        committees.
            (3) Publication of criteria and methodology.--Final 
        criteria and methodology shall be published on the internet 
        website of the Department of State not later than 60 days after 
        the submission of the methodology to the appropriate 
        congressional committees under paragraph (2).
    (c) Assessment Criteria.--The assessment scorecard shall include 
the following criteria:
            (1) Relationship of stated goals to actual results.--The 
        extent to which the stated mission, goals, and objectives of 
        the entity have been achieved during the review period, 
        including--
                    (A) an identification of the stated mission, goals, 
                and objectives of each entity;
                    (B) an evaluation of the extent to which the entity 
                met its stated implementation timelines and achieved 
                declared results; and
                    (C) an evaluation of whether the entity optimizes 
                resources to achieve the stated mission, goals, and 
                objectives of the entity.
            (2) Responsible management.--The extent to which management 
        of the entity follows best management practices, including--
                    (A) an evaluation of the ratio of management and 
                administrative expenses to program expenses, including 
                an evaluation of entity resources spent on 
                nonprogrammatic expenses;
                    (B) an evaluation of program expense growth, 
                including a comparison of the annual growth of program 
                expenses to the annual growth of management and 
                administrative expenses; and
                    (C) an evaluation of whether the entity has 
                established appropriate levels of senior management 
                compensation.
            (3) Accountability and transparency.--The extent to which 
        the policies and procedures of the entity follow best practices 
        of accountability and transparency, taking into consideration 
        credible reporting regarding unauthorized conversion or 
        diversion of entity resources, and including an evaluation of 
        whether the entity has--
                    (A) established and enforced appropriate auditing 
                procedures;
                    (B) established and enforced appropriate rules to 
                reduce the risk of conflicts of interest among the 
                senior leadership of the entity;
                    (C) established and enforced appropriate 
                whistleblower policies;
                    (D) established and maintained appropriate records 
                retention policies and guidelines;
                    (E) established and maintained best practices with 
                respect to transparency and public disclosure; and
                    (F) established and maintained best practices with 
                respect to disclosure of the compensation of senior 
                leadership officials.
            (4) Alignment with united states foreign policy 
        objectives.--The extent to which the policies and practices of 
        the entity align with relevant United States foreign policy 
        objectives, including an evaluation of--
                    (A) the entity's stated mission, goals, and 
                objectives in comparison to relevant United States 
                foreign policy objectives;
                    (B) any significant divergence between the actions 
                of the entity and relevant United States foreign policy 
                objectives; and
                    (C) whether continued participation by the United 
                States in the entity contributes a net benefit towards 
                achieving relevant United States foreign policy 
                objectives, including the reasons for such conclusion.
            (5) Multilateral approach compared to bilateral approach.--
        The extent to which pursuing relevant United States foreign 
        policy objectives through a multilateral approach is effective 
        and cost-efficient compared to, or complementary to, a 
        bilateral approach, including an evaluation of--
                    (A) whether relevant United States foreign policy 
                objectives are effectively pursued through the entity, 
                compared to existing or potential bilateral approaches, 
                including the criteria used in the evaluation; and
                    (B) whether relevant United States foreign policy 
                objectives are pursued on a cost-effective basis 
                through the entity, including the amount of funding 
                leveraged from non-United States Government sources, 
                compared to existing or potential bilateral approaches.
            (6) Redundancies and overlap.--The extent to which the 
        mission, goals, and objectives of the entity overlap with, or 
        complement, the mission, goals, objectives, and programs of 
        other multilateral institutions to which the United States 
        Government contributes voluntary or assessed funding, whether 
        cash or in-kind, including--
                    (A) a comparison of the extent to which relevant 
                United States foreign policy objectives are effectively 
                pursued on a cost-effective basis through each of the 
                overlapping entities; and
                    (B) whether continued participation in each entity 
                contributes a benefit towards achieving United States 
                foreign policy objectives.

SEC. 7. UNITED STATES MULTILATERAL REVIEW TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--The President shall establish an interagency 
Multilateral Review Task Force (referred to in this Act as the ``Task 
Force'') to review and assess United States participation in 
multilateral entities identified in section 5 and to develop and 
transmit to the appropriate congressional committees the report 
required under section 6.
    (b) Leadership.--The Task Force shall be chaired by the Secretary 
of State. The Secretary may delegate his or her responsibilities under 
this Act to an appropriate senior Senate-confirmed Department of State 
official.
    (c) Membership.--The President may appoint to the interagency Task 
Force senior Senate-confirmed officials from the Department of State, 
the Department of the Treasury, the United States Agency for 
International Development, the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy, 
and any other relevant executive branch department or agency.
    (d) Consultation.--In preparing the report under section 6, 
including the initial review of methodology, the Task Force shall 
consult regularly with the Peer Review Group established under section 
8.

SEC. 8. UNITED STATES MULTILATERAL AID REVIEW PEER REVIEW GROUP.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established the United States 
Multilateral Aid Review Peer Review Group (referred to in this Act as 
the ``Peer Review Group'').
    (b) Membership.--
            (1) Composition.--The Peer Review Group shall be composed 
        of 8 nongovernmental volunteer members, of whom--
                    (A) 2 shall be appointed by the majority leader of 
                the Senate;
                    (B) 2 shall be appointed by the minority leader of 
                the Senate;
                    (C) 2 shall be appointed by the Speaker of the 
                House of Representatives; and
                    (D) 2 shall be appointed by the minority leader of 
                the House of Representatives.
            (2) Appointment criteria.--The members of the Peer Review 
        Group shall have appropriate expertise and knowledge of the 
        multilateral entities subject to the Review established by this 
        Act. In making appointments to the Peer Review Group, potential 
        conflicts of interest should be taken into account.
            (3) Date.--The appointments to the Peer Review Group shall 
        be made not later than 30 days after the date on which the Task 
        Force is established pursuant to section 7(a), and the terms of 
        such appointments shall begin on such date.
            (4) Chairman and vice chairman.--The Peer Review Group 
        shall select a Chairman and Vice Chairman from among the 
        members of the Peer Review Group.
    (c) Expert Analysis.--The Peer Review Group shall meet regularly 
with the Task Force, including regarding the initial review of 
methodology, to offer their expertise of the funding and performance of 
multilateral entities.
    (d) Review of Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days before submitting 
        the report required under section 6(a), the Task Force shall 
        submit a draft of the report to--
                    (A) the Peer Review Group; and
                    (B) the appropriate congressional committees.
            (2) Review.--The Peer Review Group shall--
                    (A) review the draft report submitted under 
                paragraph (1); and
                    (B) not later than 90 days before the submission of 
                the report required under section 6(a), provide to the 
                Task Force and to the appropriate congressional 
                committees--
                            (i) an analysis of the conclusions of the 
                        report;
                            (ii) an analysis of the established 
                        methodologies used to reach such conclusions;
                            (iii) an analysis of the evidence used to 
                        reach such conclusions; and
                            (iv) any additional comments to improve the 
                        evaluations and analysis of the report.
    (e) Period of Appointment; Vacancies.--
            (1) In general.--Each member of the Peer Review Group shall 
        be appointed for a 2-year term.
            (2) Vacancies.--Any vacancy in the Peer Review Group--
                    (A) shall not affect the powers of the Peer Review 
                Group; and
                    (B) shall be filled in the same manner as the 
                original appointment.
    (f) Meetings.--
            (1) In general.--The Peer Review Group shall meet at the 
        call of the Chairman.
            (2) Initial meeting.--The Peer Review Group shall hold its 
        first meeting not later than 30 days after its last member is 
        appointed.
            (3) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Peer Review 
        Group shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of members 
        may hold meetings.

SEC. 9. TERMINATION OF AUTHORITIES.

    The authorities and requirements provided under this Act shall 
terminate on the date that is 2 years after the date of the enactment 
of this Act.
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