Title: Standardizing State Department Parental Leave Act
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Standardizing State Department Parental Leave Act
This bill directs the Department of State to establish and implement a standard parental leave policy applicable to employees across all bureaus and offices.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3639 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3639

To direct the Secretary of State to establish a standard parental leave 
   policy applicable to Department of State employees, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 9, 2019

 Ms. Houlahan introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Secretary of State to establish a standard parental leave 
   policy applicable to Department of State employees, 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 ``Standardizing State Department 
Parental Leave Act''.

SEC. 2. STANDARDIZING DEPARTMENT PARENTAL LEAVE POLICIES.

    (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to--
            (1) afford every employee at the Department of State equal 
        access to leave and workplace flexibilities for childbirth, 
        adoption, and foster care;
            (2) encourage the Department to work towards a parental 
        leave policy that will help recruit and retain a dynamic, 
        multi-talented, and diverse workforce capable of meeting the 
        national security and foreign policy goals of the United 
        States; and
            (3) determine the impacts of flexible leave policies on 
        recruitment and retention rates.
    (b) Establishing Standard Parental Leave Policies.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 
        establish and implement a standard parental leave policy 
        applicable to Department of State employees across all bureaus 
        and offices within the Department and Missions abroad. Nothing 
        in this section shall be construed to provide any new category 
        of leave not otherwise provided by law.
            (2) Reports.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
        appropriate congressional committees a report describing--
                    (A) the steps taken to implement the policy 
                required under paragraph (1) across all bureaus and 
                offices within the Department and Missions abroad; and
                    (B) any costs associated with such policy.
            (3) Appropriate congressional committees.--For purposes of 
        paragraph (2), the term ``appropriate congressional 
        committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
                Senate;
                    (B) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
                    (C) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
                of Representatives; and
                    (D) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives.
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