Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2016

Bill: 114-hr-3766
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Poe, Ted [R-TX-2]
Introduced: 2015-10-20
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Congressional oversight

Department of State

Foreign aid and international relief

Government information and archives

Government studies and investigations

Performance measurement

U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)
Latest action: action_date: 2016-07-15
text: Became Public Law No: 114-191.

Summaries:
action_date: 2015-10-20
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2015</strong></p> <p> The President shall establish guidelines for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for U.S. foreign development and economic assistance. </p> <p> The Department of State shall update its Internet website, ForeignAssistance.gov, to make publicly available comprehensive and accessible information on U.S. foreign development and economic assistance programs.</p> <p> The head of each federal department or agency that administers U.S. foreign development and economic assistance shall provide the State Department with comprehensive information about such assistance programs.</p>

action_date: 2015-12-08
action_desc: Passed House amended
text: <p><strong>Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2015</strong></p> <p>(Sec. 2) This bill requires the President to establish guidelines for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for U.S. foreign development and economic assistance.</p> <p>The guidelines shall require federal departments and agencies that administer foreign development and economic assistance to: </p> <ul> <li>establish annual monitoring and evaluation objectives; </li> <li>develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans, and apply monitoring and evaluation methodologies to such programs; </li> <li>disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to personnel who are responsible for program design, implementation, and management;</li> <li>establish data collection methodologies; </li> <li>evaluate at least once in their lifetime all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau; </li> <li>conduct impact evaluations on all pilot programs; </li> <li>develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned that serve as benchmarks for future programs;</li> <li>distribute evaluation reports internally;</li> <li>publicly report evaluations and related recommendations;</li> <li>undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with appropriate implementing partners, and academic, national and international institutions; and </li> <li> make verifiable and timely data available to monitoring and evaluation personnel. </li> </ul> <p>The President shall provide Congress with a detailed description of such guidelines. </p> <p>The Government Accountability Office shall submit a report to Congress that: (1) analyzes such guidelines; and (2) compares the President's fiscal year budget request of every operational unit that carries out U.S. foreign development and economic assistance, and the prior year's performance of such units.</p> <p>(Sec. 3) The Department of State shall update its Internet website, ForeignAssistance.gov, to make publicly available comprehensive and accessible information on U.S. foreign development and economic assistance programs. </p> <p>The head of each federal department or agency that administers U.S. foreign development and economic assistance shall provide the State Department each quarter with comprehensive information about such assistance programs. </p> <p>Assistance program information shall be published: (1) on an award-by-award and country-by-country basis, or (2) on an award-by-award and region-by-region basis if provided on a regional level. </p> <p>Such information shall include: (1) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, and evaluations; (2) basic descriptive summaries for foreign development and economic assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (3) obligations and expenditures. </p> <p>If the head of a federal department or agency determines that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary or would require the release of proprietary information, he or she shall provide such determination along with a briefing or written report to Congress. </p> <p>If the State Department determines that the inclusion of a required item of information online would be detrimental to U.S. national interests the State Department shall provide such determination to Congress along with a briefing or written report. </p> <p>If a federal department or agency fails to provide required information that is not otherwise excluded from such requirement, the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the head of such department or agency, shall submit to Congress by September 1, 2016, a report describing for each required information item not made publicly available: </p> <ul> <li> the reason for not making such information publicly available; and </li> <li>the department's or agency's plan and time line for making such information publicly available, and for ensuring that future information is made available. </li> </ul> <p>(Sec. 4) Specified terms are defined.</p>

action_date: 2016-06-28
action_desc: Passed Senate amended
text: <p><strong>Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2016</strong></p> <p>(Sec. 2) This bill defines "covered U.S. foreign assistance" as assistance authorized under: </p> <ul> <li> part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (development assistance), except for title IV of chapter 2 (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation), and chapter 3 (relating to International Organizations and Programs); </li> <li> chapter 4 of part II of such Act (Economic Support Fund); </li> <li> the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003; and </li> <li> the Food for Peace Act. </li> </ul> <p>(Sec. 3) The President shall within 18 months prescribe guidelines for establishment of goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for covered U.S. foreign assistance.</p> <p> The guidelines shall direct federal departments and agencies that administer such assistance on how to: </p> <ul> <li> establish annual monitoring and evaluation agendas and objectives; </li> <li> develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans;</li> <li> apply monitoring and evaluation methodologies to covered U.S. foreign assistance programs; </li> <li> disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel responsible for program design, implementation, and management of covered U.S. foreign assistance programs; </li> <li> establish data collection methodologies;</li> <li> evaluate, at least once in their lifetime, all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau; </li> <li> develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned that serve as benchmarks for future programs; </li> <li> distribute evaluation reports internally; </li> <li> publicly report evaluations and related recommendations;</li> <li> undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with academic, national and international institutions; </li> <li> make verifiable and timely data available to monitoring and evaluation personnel; and </li> <li> ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed.</li> </ul> <p> The President shall within 18 months give Congress a detailed description of these guidelines. </p> <p> The Government Accountability Office shall analyze the guidelines and assess their implementation by the appropriate agencies, bureaus, and offices. </p> <p>(Sec. 4) The Department of State shall within 90 days update its Internet website, ForeignAssistance.gov, to make publicly available comprehensive and accessible information on covered U.S. foreign assistance programs.</p> <p>The head of each federal department or agency that administers such assistance shall give the State Department comprehensive program information each quarter.</p> <p>Assistance program information shall be published: (1) on an award-by-award and country-by-country basis, or (2) on an award-by-award and region-by-region basis if provided on a regional level.</p> <p>Such information shall include: (1) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, and evaluations; (2) basic descriptive summaries for foreign development and economic assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (3) obligations and expenditures.</p> <p>If a federal department or agency determines that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, or would require the release of proprietary information, it shall give Congress that determination in writing.</p> <p>If the State Department determines that online inclusion of a required item of information would be detrimental to U.S. national interests, it shall also give Congress that determination in writing.</p> <p>The bill expresses the sense of Congress that the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) should, by the end of FY2018, coordinate data collection consolidation for the State Department's website, ForeignAssistance.gov, and USAID's website, Explorer.USAID.gov.</p>

action_date: 2016-07-15
action_desc: Public Law
text: <p>(This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the Senate on July 5, 2016. The summary of that version is repeated here.)</p> <p><strong>Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2016</strong></p> <p>(Sec. 2) This bill defines &quot;covered U.S. foreign assistance&quot; as assistance authorized under: </p> <ul> <li> part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (development assistance), except for title IV of chapter 2 (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation), and chapter 3 (relating to International Organizations and Programs); </li> <li> chapter 4 of part II of such Act (Economic Support Fund); </li> <li> the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003; and </li> <li> the Food for Peace Act. </li> </ul> <p>(Sec. 3) The President shall within 18 months prescribe guidelines for establishment of goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for covered U.S. foreign assistance.</p> <p> The guidelines shall direct federal departments and agencies that administer such assistance on how to: </p> <ul> <li> establish annual monitoring and evaluation agendas and objectives; </li> <li> develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans;</li> <li> apply monitoring and evaluation methodologies to covered U.S. foreign assistance programs; </li> <li> disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel responsible for program design, implementation, and management of covered U.S. foreign assistance programs; </li> <li> establish data collection methodologies;</li> <li> evaluate, at least once in their lifetime, all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau; </li> <li> develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned that serve as benchmarks for future programs; </li> <li> distribute evaluation reports internally; </li> <li> publicly report evaluations and related recommendations;</li> <li> undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with academic, national and international institutions; </li> <li> make verifiable and timely data available to monitoring and evaluation personnel; and </li> <li> ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed.</li> </ul> <p> The President shall within 18 months give Congress a detailed description of these guidelines. </p> <p> The Government Accountability Office shall analyze the guidelines and assess their implementation by the appropriate agencies, bureaus, and offices. </p> <p>(Sec. 4) The Department of State shall within 90 days update its Internet website, ForeignAssistance.gov, to make publicly available comprehensive and accessible information on covered U.S. foreign assistance programs.</p> <p>The head of each federal department or agency that administers such assistance shall give the State Department comprehensive program information each quarter.</p> <p>Assistance program information shall be published: (1) on an award-by-award and country-by-country basis, or (2) on an award-by-award and region-by-region basis if provided on a regional level.</p> <p>Such information shall include: (1) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, and evaluations; (2) basic descriptive summaries for foreign development and economic assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (3) obligations and expenditures.</p> <p>If a federal department or agency determines that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, or would require the release of proprietary information, it shall give Congress that determination in writing.</p> <p>If the State Department determines that online inclusion of a required item of information would be detrimental to U.S. national interests, it shall also give Congress that determination in writing.</p> <p>The bill expresses the sense of Congress that the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) should, by the end of FY2018, coordinate data collection consolidation for the State Department's website, ForeignAssistance.gov, and USAID's website, Explorer.USAID.gov.</p>

tv_txt: I 114th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3766 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES October 20, 2015 Mr. Poe of Texas (for himself and Mr. Connolly ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To direct the President to establish guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2015 . 2. Guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs (a) Purpose The purpose of this section is to evaluate the performance of United States foreign development and economic assistance and its contribution to the policies, strategies, projects, program goals, and priorities undertaken by the Federal Government, to foster and promote innovative programs to improve effectiveness, and to coordinate the monitoring and evaluation processes of Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance. (b) Establishment of guidelines Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall set forth guidelines for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans that can be applied with reasonable consistency to United States foreign development and economic assistance. Such guidelines shall be established according to best practices of monitoring and evaluation studies and analyses. (c) Objectives of guidelines (1) In general The guidelines established under subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance on monitoring the use of resources, evaluating the outcomes and impacts of United States foreign development and economic assistance projects and programs, and applying the findings and conclusions of such evaluations to proposed project and program design. (2) Objectives Specifically, the guidelines established under subsection (b) shall require Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance to take the following actions: (A) Establish annual monitoring and evaluation agendas and objectives to plan and manage the process of monitoring, evaluating, analyzing progress, and applying learning toward achieving results. (B) Develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans, to include measurable goals and performance metrics, and identify the resources necessary to conduct such evaluations, which should be covered by program costs, during project design. (C) Apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies to such programs, including through the use of impact evaluations, ex-post evaluations, or other methods as appropriate, that clearly define program logic, inputs, outputs, intermediate outcomes, and end outcomes. (D) Disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel, especially in the field, who are responsible for the design, implementation, and management of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs. (E) Establish methodologies for the collection of data, including baseline data to serve as a reference point against which progress can be measured. (F) Evaluate at least once in their lifetime all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau or an equivalent calculation to ensure the majority of program resources are evaluated. (G) Conduct impact evaluations on all pilot programs before replicating wherever possible, or provide a written justification for not conducting an impact evaluation where such an evaluation was deemed inappropriate or impossible. (H) Develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned that serve as benchmarks to guide future programs for United States development professionals, implementing partners, the donor community, and aid recipient governments, and as a repository of knowledge on lessons learned. (I) Distribute evaluation reports internally. (J) Develop a summary of each evaluation, including a description of the evaluation methodology and key findings and recommendations made in the evaluation within 90 days after the completion of the evaluation. (K) Undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with the academic community, implementing partners, and national and international institutions that have expertise in program monitoring, evaluation, and analysis when such partnerships provide needed expertise or significantly improve the evaluation and analysis. (L) Ensure verifiable, valid, credible, precise, reliable, and timely data are available to monitoring and evaluation personnel to permit the objective evaluation of the effectiveness of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, including an assessment of assumptions and limitations in such evaluations. (M) Ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed, including ensuring the integrity and independence of evaluations, permitting and encouraging the exercise of professional judgment, and providing for quality control and assurance in the monitoring and evaluation process. (d) Presidential report Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that contains a detailed description of the guidelines established under subsection (b). The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but it may contain a classified annex. (e) Comptroller general report The Comptroller General of the United States shall, not later than 1 year after the report required by subsection (d) is submitted to Congress, submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that analyzes— (1) the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b); and (2) a side-by-side comparison of the President’s budget request for that fiscal year of every operational unit that carries out United States foreign development and economic assistance and the performance of such units during the prior fiscal year. 3. Information on United States foreign development and economic assistance programs (a) Publication of information (1) Update of existing web site Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall update the Department of State’s Internet Web site, ForeignAssistance.gov , to make publicly available comprehensive, timely, and comparable information on United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, including all information required pursuant to subsection (b) of this section that is then available to the Secretary of State. (2) Information sharing The head of each Federal department or agency that administers United States foreign development and economic assistance shall, not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and on a quarterly basis thereafter, provide to the Secretary of State comprehensive information about the United States foreign development and economic assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Updates to web site Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall publish, through the ForeignAssistance.gov Web site or a successor online publication, the information provided under subsection (b) of this section and shall update such information on a quarterly basis. (b) Matters To be included (1) In general The information described in subsection (a) shall be published on a detailed award-by-award and country-by-country basis unless assistance is provided on a regional level, in which case the information shall be published on an award-by-award and region-by-region basis. (2) Types of information (A) In general To ensure transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, the information described in subsection (a) shall include all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, obligations, expenditures, evaluations and summaries of evaluations as required under section 2(c)(2)(J), and basic descriptive summaries for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs and awards under such programs. Each type of information described in this paragraph shall be published or updated on the Internet Web site not later than 90 days after the date of issuance of the information. (B) Rule of construction Nothing in subparagraph (A) shall be construed to require a Federal department or agency that administers United States foreign development and economic assistance to provide any information that does not relate to or is not otherwise required by the United States foreign development and economic assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Report in lieu of inclusion (A) Health or security of implementing partners If the head of a Federal department or agency makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary or would require the release of proprietary information of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, the head of the Federal department or agency shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination and shall— (i) provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on such information; or (ii) submit to the appropriate congressional committees such information in a written report. (B) National interests of the united states If the Secretary of State makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would be detrimental to the national interests of the United States, the Secretary of State shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination and shall— (i) provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on such information; or (ii) submit to the appropriate congressional committees the item of information in a written report. (C) Form Any briefing or item of information provided under this paragraph may be provided in classified form, as appropriate. (4) Failure to comply If a Federal department or agency fails to comply with the requirements of subsection (a), paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection, or subsection (c) with respect to providing information described in subsection (a), and the information is not subject to a determination under subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (3) of this subsection not to make the information publically available, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the head of such department or agency, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees not later than September 1, 2016, a consolidated report describing, with respect to each required item of information not made publicly available— (A) a detailed explanation of the failure of not making such information publicly available; and (B) the department’s or agency’s plan and timeline for immediately making such information publicly available, and for ensuring that such failures do not take place in following years. (c) Scope of information The online publication required by subsection (a) shall, at a minimum, provide the information required by subsection (b)— (1) in each fiscal year from 2016 through 2019, such information for fiscal years 2012 through the current fiscal year; and (2) for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, such information for the immediately preceding five fiscal years in a fully searchable form. 4. Definitions In this Act: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term appropriate congressional committees means— (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. (2) Evaluation The term evaluation means, with respect to a United States foreign development and economic assistance program, the systematic collection and analysis of information about the characteristics and outcomes of the program, including projects conducted under such program, as a basis for making judgments and evaluations regarding the program, to improve program effectiveness, and to inform decisions about current and future programming. (3) United States foreign development and economic assistance The term United States foreign development and economic assistance means assistance provided primarily for the purposes of foreign development and economic support, including assistance authorized under— (A) part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq. ), other than— (i) title IV of chapter 2 of such part (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation); (ii) chapter 3 of such part (relating to International Organizations and Programs); and (iii) chapter 8 of such part (relating to International Narcotics Control); (B) chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq. ; relating to Economic Support Fund); (C) the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 ( 22 U.S.C. 7701 et seq. ); and (D) the Food for Peace Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1721 et seq. ).

tv_txt: I 114th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3766 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AN ACT To direct the President to establish guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2015 . 2. Guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs (a) Purpose The purpose of this section is to evaluate the performance of United States foreign development and economic assistance and its contribution to the policies, strategies, projects, program goals, and priorities undertaken by the Federal Government, to foster and promote innovative programs to improve effectiveness, and to coordinate the monitoring and evaluation processes of Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance. (b) Establishment of guidelines Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall set forth guidelines for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans that can be applied with reasonable consistency to United States foreign development and economic assistance. Such guidelines shall be established according to best practices of monitoring and evaluation studies and analyses. (c) Objectives of guidelines (1) In general The guidelines established under subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance on monitoring the use of resources, evaluating the outcomes and impacts of United States foreign development and economic assistance projects and programs, and applying the findings and conclusions of such evaluations to proposed project and program design. (2) Objectives Specifically, the guidelines established under subsection (b) shall require Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance to take the following actions: (A) Establish annual monitoring and evaluation agendas and objectives to plan and manage the process of monitoring, evaluating, analyzing progress, and applying learning toward achieving results. (B) Develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans, to include measurable goals and performance metrics, and identify the resources necessary to conduct such evaluations, which should be covered by program costs, during project design. (C) Apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies to such programs, including through the use of impact evaluations, ex-post evaluations, or other methods as appropriate, that clearly define program logic, inputs, outputs, intermediate outcomes, and end outcomes. (D) Disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel, especially in the field, who are responsible for the design, implementation, and management of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs. (E) Establish methodologies for the collection of data, including baseline data to serve as a reference point against which progress can be measured. (F) Evaluate at least once in their lifetime all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau or an equivalent calculation to ensure the majority of program resources are evaluated. (G) Conduct impact evaluations on all pilot programs before replicating wherever possible, or provide a written justification for not conducting an impact evaluation where such an evaluation was deemed inappropriate or impossible. (H) Develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned that serve as benchmarks to guide future programs for United States development professionals, implementing partners, the donor community, and aid recipient governments, and as a repository of knowledge on lessons learned. (I) Distribute evaluation reports internally. (J) Publicly report each evaluation, including an executive summary, a description of the evaluation methodology, key findings, appropriate context (including quantitative and qualitative data when available), and recommendations made in the evaluation within 90 days after the completion of the evaluation. (K) Undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with the academic community, implementing partners, and national and international institutions that have expertise in program monitoring, evaluation, and analysis when such partnerships provide needed expertise or significantly improve the evaluation and analysis. (L) Ensure verifiable, valid, credible, precise, reliable, and timely data are available to monitoring and evaluation personnel to permit the objective evaluation of the effectiveness of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, including an assessment of assumptions and limitations in such evaluations. (M) Ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed, including ensuring the integrity and independence of evaluations, permitting and encouraging the exercise of professional judgment, and providing for quality control and assurance in the monitoring and evaluation process. (d) Presidential report Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that contains a detailed description of the guidelines established under subsection (b). The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but it may contain a classified annex. (e) Comptroller general report The Comptroller General of the United States shall, not later than 1 year after the report required by subsection (d) is submitted to Congress, submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that analyzes— (1) the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b); and (2) a side-by-side comparison of the President’s budget request for that fiscal year of every operational unit that carries out United States foreign development and economic assistance and the performance of such units during the prior fiscal year. 3. Information on United States foreign development and economic assistance programs (a) Publication of information (1) Update of existing web site Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall update the Department of State’s Internet Web site, ForeignAssistance.gov , to make publicly available comprehensive, timely, and comparable information on United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, including all information required pursuant to subsection (b) of this section that is then available to the Secretary of State. (2) Information sharing The head of each Federal department or agency that administers United States foreign development and economic assistance shall, not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and on a quarterly basis thereafter, provide to the Secretary of State comprehensive information about the United States foreign development and economic assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Updates to web site Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall publish, through the ForeignAssistance.gov Web site or a successor online publication, the information provided under subsection (b) of this section and shall update such information on a quarterly basis. (b) Matters To be included (1) In general The information described in subsection (a) shall be published on a detailed award-by-award and country-by-country basis unless assistance is provided on a regional level, in which case the information shall be published on an award-by-award and region-by-region basis. (2) Types of information (A) In general To ensure transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, the information described in subsection (a) shall include— (i) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, evaluations and summaries of evaluations as required under section 2(c)(2)(J); (ii) basic descriptive summaries for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (iii) obligations and expenditures under such programs. Each type of information described in this paragraph shall be published or updated on the Internet Web site not later than 90 days after the date of issuance of the information. (B) Rule of construction Nothing in subparagraph (A) shall be construed to require a Federal department or agency that administers United States foreign development and economic assistance to provide any information that does not relate to or is not otherwise required by the United States foreign development and economic assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Report in lieu of inclusion (A) Health or security of implementing partners If the head of a Federal department or agency, in consultation with the Secretary of State, makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary or would require the release of proprietary information of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, the head of the Federal department or agency shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination and shall— (i) provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on such information; or (ii) submit to the appropriate congressional committees such information in a written report. (B) National interests of the united states If the Secretary of State makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would be detrimental to the national interests of the United States, the Secretary of State shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination and shall— (i) provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on such information; or (ii) submit to the appropriate congressional committees the item of information in a written report. (C) Form Any briefing or item of information provided under this paragraph may be provided in classified form, as appropriate. (4) Failure to comply If a Federal department or agency fails to comply with the requirements of subsection (a), paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection, or subsection (c) with respect to providing information described in subsection (a), and the information is not subject to a determination under subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (3) of this subsection not to make the information publically available, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the head of such department or agency, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees not later than September 1, 2016, a consolidated report describing, with respect to each required item of information not made publicly available— (A) a detailed explanation of the reason for not making such information publicly available; and (B) the department’s or agency’s plan and timeline for immediately making such information publicly available, and for ensuring that information is made publically available in following years. (c) Scope of information The online publication required by subsection (a) shall, at a minimum, provide the information required by subsection (b)— (1) in each fiscal year from 2016 through 2019, such information for fiscal years 2012 through the current fiscal year; and (2) for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, such information for the immediately preceding 5 fiscal years in a fully searchable form. 4. Definitions In this Act: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term appropriate congressional committees means— (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. (2) Evaluation The term evaluation means, with respect to a United States foreign development and economic assistance program, the systematic collection and analysis of information about the characteristics and outcomes of the program, including projects conducted under such program, as a basis for making judgments and evaluations regarding the program, to improve program effectiveness, and to inform decisions about current and future programming. (3) United States foreign development and economic assistance The term United States foreign development and economic assistance means assistance provided primarily for the purposes of foreign development and economic support, including assistance authorized under— (A) part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq. ), other than— (i) title IV of chapter 2 of such part (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation); (ii) chapter 3 of such part (relating to International Organizations and Programs); and (iii) chapter 8 of such part (relating to International Narcotics Control); (B) chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq. ; relating to Economic Support Fund); (C) the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 ( 22 U.S.C. 7701 et seq. ); and (D) the Food for Peace Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1721 et seq. ).

Passed the House of Representatives December 8, 2015. Karen L. Haas, Clerk.

tv_txt: II Calendar No. 318 114th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3766 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES December 9, 2015 Received; read twice and placed on the calendar AN ACT To direct the President to establish guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2015 . 2. Guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs (a) Purpose The purpose of this section is to evaluate the performance of United States foreign development and economic assistance and its contribution to the policies, strategies, projects, program goals, and priorities undertaken by the Federal Government, to foster and promote innovative programs to improve effectiveness, and to coordinate the monitoring and evaluation processes of Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance. (b) Establishment of guidelines Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall set forth guidelines for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans that can be applied with reasonable consistency to United States foreign development and economic assistance. Such guidelines shall be established according to best practices of monitoring and evaluation studies and analyses. (c) Objectives of guidelines (1) In general The guidelines established under subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance on monitoring the use of resources, evaluating the outcomes and impacts of United States foreign development and economic assistance projects and programs, and applying the findings and conclusions of such evaluations to proposed project and program design. (2) Objectives Specifically, the guidelines established under subsection (b) shall require Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign development and economic assistance to take the following actions: (A) Establish annual monitoring and evaluation agendas and objectives to plan and manage the process of monitoring, evaluating, analyzing progress, and applying learning toward achieving results. (B) Develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans, to include measurable goals and performance metrics, and identify the resources necessary to conduct such evaluations, which should be covered by program costs, during project design. (C) Apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies to such programs, including through the use of impact evaluations, ex-post evaluations, or other methods as appropriate, that clearly define program logic, inputs, outputs, intermediate outcomes, and end outcomes. (D) Disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel, especially in the field, who are responsible for the design, implementation, and management of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs. (E) Establish methodologies for the collection of data, including baseline data to serve as a reference point against which progress can be measured. (F) Evaluate at least once in their lifetime all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau or an equivalent calculation to ensure the majority of program resources are evaluated. (G) Conduct impact evaluations on all pilot programs before replicating wherever possible, or provide a written justification for not conducting an impact evaluation where such an evaluation was deemed inappropriate or impossible. (H) Develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection and dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned that serve as benchmarks to guide future programs for United States development professionals, implementing partners, the donor community, and aid recipient governments, and as a repository of knowledge on lessons learned. (I) Distribute evaluation reports internally. (J) Publicly report each evaluation, including an executive summary, a description of the evaluation methodology, key findings, appropriate context (including quantitative and qualitative data when available), and recommendations made in the evaluation within 90 days after the completion of the evaluation. (K) Undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with the academic community, implementing partners, and national and international institutions that have expertise in program monitoring, evaluation, and analysis when such partnerships provide needed expertise or significantly improve the evaluation and analysis. (L) Ensure verifiable, valid, credible, precise, reliable, and timely data are available to monitoring and evaluation personnel to permit the objective evaluation of the effectiveness of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, including an assessment of assumptions and limitations in such evaluations. (M) Ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed, including ensuring the integrity and independence of evaluations, permitting and encouraging the exercise of professional judgment, and providing for quality control and assurance in the monitoring and evaluation process. (d) Presidential report Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that contains a detailed description of the guidelines established under subsection (b). The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but it may contain a classified annex. (e) Comptroller general report The Comptroller General of the United States shall, not later than 1 year after the report required by subsection (d) is submitted to Congress, submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that analyzes— (1) the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b); and (2) a side-by-side comparison of the President’s budget request for that fiscal year of every operational unit that carries out United States foreign development and economic assistance and the performance of such units during the prior fiscal year. 3. Information on United States foreign development and economic assistance programs (a) Publication of information (1) Update of existing web site Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall update the Department of State’s Internet Web site, ForeignAssistance.gov , to make publicly available comprehensive, timely, and comparable information on United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, including all information required pursuant to subsection (b) of this section that is then available to the Secretary of State. (2) Information sharing The head of each Federal department or agency that administers United States foreign development and economic assistance shall, not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and on a quarterly basis thereafter, provide to the Secretary of State comprehensive information about the United States foreign development and economic assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Updates to web site Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall publish, through the ForeignAssistance.gov Web site or a successor online publication, the information provided under subsection (b) of this section and shall update such information on a quarterly basis. (b) Matters To be included (1) In general The information described in subsection (a) shall be published on a detailed award-by-award and country-by-country basis unless assistance is provided on a regional level, in which case the information shall be published on an award-by-award and region-by-region basis. (2) Types of information (A) In general To ensure transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, the information described in subsection (a) shall include— (i) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, evaluations and summaries of evaluations as required under section 2(c)(2)(J); (ii) basic descriptive summaries for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (iii) obligations and expenditures under such programs. Each type of information described in this paragraph shall be published or updated on the Internet Web site not later than 90 days after the date of issuance of the information. (B) Rule of construction Nothing in subparagraph (A) shall be construed to require a Federal department or agency that administers United States foreign development and economic assistance to provide any information that does not relate to or is not otherwise required by the United States foreign development and economic assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Report in lieu of inclusion (A) Health or security of implementing partners If the head of a Federal department or agency, in consultation with the Secretary of State, makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary or would require the release of proprietary information of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, the head of the Federal department or agency shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination and shall— (i) provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on such information; or (ii) submit to the appropriate congressional committees such information in a written report. (B) National interests of the united states If the Secretary of State makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would be detrimental to the national interests of the United States, the Secretary of State shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination and shall— (i) provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees on such information; or (ii) submit to the appropriate congressional committees the item of information in a written report. (C) Form Any briefing or item of information provided under this paragraph may be provided in classified form, as appropriate. (4) Failure to comply If a Federal department or agency fails to comply with the requirements of subsection (a), paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection, or subsection (c) with respect to providing information described in subsection (a), and the information is not subject to a determination under subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (3) of this subsection not to make the information publically available, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the head of such department or agency, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees not later than September 1, 2016, a consolidated report describing, with respect to each required item of information not made publicly available— (A) a detailed explanation of the reason for not making such information publicly available; and (B) the department’s or agency’s plan and timeline for immediately making such information publicly available, and for ensuring that information is made publically available in following years. (c) Scope of information The online publication required by subsection (a) shall, at a minimum, provide the information required by subsection (b)— (1) in each fiscal year from 2016 through 2019, such information for fiscal years 2012 through the current fiscal year; and (2) for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, such information for the immediately preceding 5 fiscal years in a fully searchable form. 4. Definitions In this Act: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term appropriate congressional committees means— (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. (2) Evaluation The term evaluation means, with respect to a United States foreign development and economic assistance program, the systematic collection and analysis of information about the characteristics and outcomes of the program, including projects conducted under such program, as a basis for making judgments and evaluations regarding the program, to improve program effectiveness, and to inform decisions about current and future programming. (3) United States foreign development and economic assistance The term United States foreign development and economic assistance means assistance provided primarily for the purposes of foreign development and economic support, including assistance authorized under— (A) part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq. ), other than— (i) title IV of chapter 2 of such part (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation); (ii) chapter 3 of such part (relating to International Organizations and Programs); and (iii) chapter 8 of such part (relating to International Narcotics Control); (B) chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq. ; relating to Economic Support Fund); (C) the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 ( 22 U.S.C. 7701 et seq. ); and (D) the Food for Peace Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1721 et seq. ).

Passed the House of Representatives December 8, 2015. Karen L. Haas, Clerk

December 9, 2015 Received; read twice and placed on the calendar

tv_txt: 114th CONGRESS 2d Session H.R. 3766 In the Senate of the United States, June 28, 2016. Amendments:

That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 3766) entitled An Act to direct the President to establish guidelines for United States foreign development and economic assistance programs, and for other purposes. , do pass with the following Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2016 . 2. Definitions In this Act: (1) Appropriate congressional committees 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 . (2) Evaluation The term evaluation means, with respect to a covered United States foreign assistance program, the systematic collection and analysis of information about the characteristics and outcomes of the program, including projects conducted under such program, as a basis for— (A) making judgments and evaluations regarding the program; (B) improving program effectiveness; and (C) informing decisions about current and future programming. (3) Covered United States foreign assistance The term covered United States foreign assistance means assistance authorized under— (A) part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq. ), except for— (i) title IV of chapter 2 of such part (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation); and (ii) chapter 3 of such part (relating to International Organizations and Programs); (B) chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq. ; relating to Economic Support Fund); (C) the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 ( 22 U.S.C. 7701 et seq. ); and (D) the Food for Peace Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1721 et seq. ). 3. Guidelines for covered United States foreign assistance programs (a) Purposes The purposes of this section are to— (1) evaluate the performance of covered United States foreign assistance and its contribution to the policies, strategies, projects, program goals, and priorities undertaken by the Federal Government; (2) support and promote innovative programs to improve effectiveness; and (3) coordinate the monitoring and evaluation processes of Federal departments and agencies that administer covered United States foreign assistance. (b) Establishment of guidelines Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall set forth guidelines, according to best practices of monitoring and evaluation studies and analyses, for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans that can be applied with reasonable consistency to covered United States foreign assistance. (c) Objectives of guidelines (1) In general The guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer covered United States foreign assistance on— (A) monitoring the use of resources; (B) evaluating the outcomes and impacts of covered United States foreign assistance projects and programs; and (C) applying the findings and conclusions of such evaluations to proposed project and program design. (2) Objectives The guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer covered United States foreign assistance on how to— (A) establish annual monitoring and evaluation objectives and timetables to plan and manage the process of monitoring, evaluating, analyzing progress, and applying learning toward achieving results; (B) develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans, including measurable goals and performance metrics, and to identify the resources necessary to conduct such evaluations, which should be covered by program costs; (C) apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies to such programs, including through the use of impact evaluations, ex-post evaluations, or other methods, as appropriate, that clearly define program logic, inputs, outputs, intermediate outcomes, and end outcomes; (D) disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel, especially in the field, who are responsible for the design, implementation, and management of covered United States foreign assistance programs; (E) establish methodologies for the collection of data, including baseline data to serve as a reference point against which progress can be measured; (F) evaluate, at least once in their lifetime, all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau or an equivalent calculation to ensure the majority of program resources are evaluated; (G) conduct impact evaluations on all pilot programs before replicating, or conduct performance evaluations and provide a justification for not conducting an impact evaluation when such an evaluation is deemed inappropriate or impracticable; (H) develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection, dissemination, and preservation of knowledge and lessons learned to guide future programs for United States foreign assistance personnel, implementing partners, the donor community, and aid recipient governments; (I) internally distribute evaluation reports; (J) publicly report each evaluation, including an executive summary, a description of the evaluation methodology, key findings, appropriate context, including quantitative and qualitative data when available, and recommendations made in the evaluation within 90 days after the completion of the evaluation; (K) undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with the academic community, implementing partners, and national and international institutions, as appropriate, that have expertise in program monitoring, evaluation, and analysis when such partnerships provide needed expertise or significantly improve the evaluation and analysis; (L) ensure verifiable, reliable, and timely data, including from local beneficiaries and stakeholders, are available to monitoring and evaluation personnel to permit the objective evaluation of the effectiveness of covered United States foreign assistance programs, including an assessment of assumptions and limitations in such evaluations; and (M) ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed, including ensuring the integrity and independence of evaluations, permitting and encouraging the exercise of professional judgment, and providing for quality control and assurance in the monitoring and evaluation process. (d) President’s report Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees that contains a detailed description of the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b). The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but it may contain a classified annex. (e) Comptroller General’s report The Comptroller General of the United States shall, not later than 18 months after the report required by subsection (d) is submitted to Congress, submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that— (1) analyzes the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b); and (2) assesses the implementation of the guidelines by the agencies, bureaus, and offices that implement covered United States foreign assistance as outlined in the President’s budget request. 4. Information on covered United States foreign assistance programs (a) Publication of information (1) Update of existing website Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall update the Department of State’s website, ForeignAssistance.gov , to make publicly available comprehensive, timely, and comparable information on covered United States foreign assistance programs, including all information required under subsection (b) that is available to the Secretary of State. (2) Information sharing Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and quarterly thereafter, the head of each Federal department or agency that administers covered United States foreign assistance shall provide the Secretary of State with comprehensive information about the covered United States foreign assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Updates to website Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and quarterly thereafter, the Secretary of State shall publish, on the ForeignAssistance.gov website or through a successor online publication, the information provided under subsection (b). (b) Matters To be included (1) In general The information described in subsection (a)— (A) shall be published for each country on a detailed basis, such as award-by-award; or (B) if assistance is provided on a regional level, shall be published for each such region on a detailed basis, such as award-by-award. (2) Types of information (A) In general To ensure the transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of covered United States foreign assistance programs, the information described in subsection (a) shall include— (i) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, and evaluations in accordance with section 3(c)(2)(J); (ii) basic descriptive summaries for covered United States foreign assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (iii) obligations and expenditures. (B) Publication Each type of information described in subparagraph (A) shall be published or updated on the appropriate website not later than 90 days after the date on which the information is issued. (C) Rule of construction Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to require a Federal department or agency that administers covered United States foreign assistance to provide any information that does not relate to, or is not otherwise required by, the covered United States foreign assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Report in lieu of inclusion (A) Health or security of implementing partners If the head of a Federal department or agency, in consultation with the Secretary of State, makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary or would require the release of proprietary information of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, the head of the Federal department or agency shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination. (B) National interests of the United States If the Secretary of State makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would be detrimental to the national interests of the United States, the Secretary of State shall provide such determination, including the basis for such determination, in writing to the appropriate congressional committees. (C) Form Information provided under this paragraph may be provided in classified form, as appropriate. (4) Failure to comply If a Federal department or agency fails to comply with the requirements under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a), or subsection (c), with respect to providing information described in subsection (a), and the information is not subject to a determination under subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (3) not to make the information publicly available, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the head of such department or agency, not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, shall submit a consolidated report to the appropriate congressional committees that includes, with respect to each required item of information not made publicly available— (A) a detailed explanation of the reason for not making such information publicly available; and (B) a description of the department’s or agency’s plan and timeline for— (i) making such information publicly available; and (ii) ensuring that such information is made publicly available in subsequent years. (c) Scope of information The online publication required under subsection (a) shall, at a minimum— (1) in each of the fiscal years 2016 through 2019, provide the information required under subsection (b) for fiscal years 2015 through the current fiscal year; and (2) for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, provide the information required under subsection (b) for the immediately preceding 5 fiscal years in a fully searchable form. (d) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should coordinate the consolidation of processes and data collection and presentation for the Department of State’s website, ForeignAssistance.gov , and the United States Agency for International Development’s website, Explorer.USAID.gov , to the extent that is possible to maximize efficiencies, no later than the end of fiscal year 2018.

Amend the title so as to read: A bill to direct the President to establish guidelines for covered United States foreign assistance programs, and for other purposes. .

Secretary

tv_txt: I One Hundred Fourteenth Congress of the United States of America At the Second Session Begun and held at the City of Washington on Monday, the fourth day of January, two thousand and sixteen H. R. 3766 AN ACT To direct the President to establish guidelines for covered United States foreign assistance programs, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act of 2016 . 2. Definitions In this Act: (1) Appropriate congressional committees 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 . (2) Evaluation The term evaluation means, with respect to a covered United States foreign assistance program, the systematic collection and analysis of information about the characteristics and outcomes of the program, including projects conducted under such program, as a basis for— (A) making judgments and evaluations regarding the program; (B) improving program effectiveness; and (C) informing decisions about current and future programming. (3) Covered United States foreign assistance The term covered United States foreign assistance means assistance authorized under— (A) part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq. ), except for— (i) title IV of chapter 2 of such part (relating to the Overseas Private Investment Corporation); and (ii) chapter 3 of such part (relating to International Organizations and Programs); (B) chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq. ; relating to Economic Support Fund); (C) the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 ( 22 U.S.C. 7701 et seq. ); and (D) the Food for Peace Act ( 7 U.S.C. 1721 et seq. ). 3. Guidelines for covered United States foreign assistance programs (a) Purposes The purposes of this section are to— (1) evaluate the performance of covered United States foreign assistance and its contribution to the policies, strategies, projects, program goals, and priorities undertaken by the Federal Government; (2) support and promote innovative programs to improve effectiveness; and (3) coordinate the monitoring and evaluation processes of Federal departments and agencies that administer covered United States foreign assistance. (b) Establishment of guidelines Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall set forth guidelines, according to best practices of monitoring and evaluation studies and analyses, for the establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans that can be applied with reasonable consistency to covered United States foreign assistance. (c) Objectives of guidelines (1) In general The guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer covered United States foreign assistance on— (A) monitoring the use of resources; (B) evaluating the outcomes and impacts of covered United States foreign assistance projects and programs; and (C) applying the findings and conclusions of such evaluations to proposed project and program design. (2) Objectives The guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b) shall provide direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer covered United States foreign assistance on how to— (A) establish annual monitoring and evaluation objectives and timetables to plan and manage the process of monitoring, evaluating, analyzing progress, and applying learning toward achieving results; (B) develop specific project monitoring and evaluation plans, including measurable goals and performance metrics, and to identify the resources necessary to conduct such evaluations, which should be covered by program costs; (C) apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies to such programs, including through the use of impact evaluations, ex-post evaluations, or other methods, as appropriate, that clearly define program logic, inputs, outputs, intermediate outcomes, and end outcomes; (D) disseminate guidelines for the development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation programs to all personnel, especially in the field, who are responsible for the design, implementation, and management of covered United States foreign assistance programs; (E) establish methodologies for the collection of data, including baseline data to serve as a reference point against which progress can be measured; (F) evaluate, at least once in their lifetime, all programs whose dollar value equals or exceeds the median program size for the relevant office or bureau or an equivalent calculation to ensure the majority of program resources are evaluated; (G) conduct impact evaluations on all pilot programs before replicating, or conduct performance evaluations and provide a justification for not conducting an impact evaluation when such an evaluation is deemed inappropriate or impracticable; (H) develop a clearinghouse capacity for the collection, dissemination, and preservation of knowledge and lessons learned to guide future programs for United States foreign assistance personnel, implementing partners, the donor community, and aid recipient governments; (I) internally distribute evaluation reports; (J) publicly report each evaluation, including an executive summary, a description of the evaluation methodology, key findings, appropriate context, including quantitative and qualitative data when available, and recommendations made in the evaluation within 90 days after the completion of the evaluation; (K) undertake collaborative partnerships and coordinate efforts with the academic community, implementing partners, and national and international institutions, as appropriate, that have expertise in program monitoring, evaluation, and analysis when such partnerships provide needed expertise or significantly improve the evaluation and analysis; (L) ensure verifiable, reliable, and timely data, including from local beneficiaries and stakeholders, are available to monitoring and evaluation personnel to permit the objective evaluation of the effectiveness of covered United States foreign assistance programs, including an assessment of assumptions and limitations in such evaluations; and (M) ensure that standards of professional evaluation organizations for monitoring and evaluation efforts are employed, including ensuring the integrity and independence of evaluations, permitting and encouraging the exercise of professional judgment, and providing for quality control and assurance in the monitoring and evaluation process. (d) President’s report Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees that contains a detailed description of the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b). The report shall be submitted in unclassified form, but it may contain a classified annex. (e) Comptroller General’s report The Comptroller General of the United States shall, not later than 18 months after the report required by subsection (d) is submitted to Congress, submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that— (1) analyzes the guidelines established pursuant to subsection (b); and (2) assesses the implementation of the guidelines by the agencies, bureaus, and offices that implement covered United States foreign assistance as outlined in the President’s budget request. 4. Information on covered United States foreign assistance programs (a) Publication of information (1) Update of existing website Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall update the Department of State’s website, ForeignAssistance.gov , to make publicly available comprehensive, timely, and comparable information on covered United States foreign assistance programs, including all information required under subsection (b) that is available to the Secretary of State. (2) Information sharing Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and quarterly thereafter, the head of each Federal department or agency that administers covered United States foreign assistance shall provide the Secretary of State with comprehensive information about the covered United States foreign assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Updates to website Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, and quarterly thereafter, the Secretary of State shall publish, on the ForeignAssistance.gov website or through a successor online publication, the information provided under subsection (b). (b) Matters To be included (1) In general The information described in subsection (a)— (A) shall be published for each country on a detailed basis, such as award-by-award; or (B) if assistance is provided on a regional level, shall be published for each such region on a detailed basis, such as award-by-award. (2) Types of information (A) In general To ensure the transparency, accountability, and effectiveness of covered United States foreign assistance programs, the information described in subsection (a) shall include— (i) links to all regional, country, and sector assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional budget justifications, and evaluations in accordance with section 3(c)(2)(J); (ii) basic descriptive summaries for covered United States foreign assistance programs and awards under such programs; and (iii) obligations and expenditures. (B) Publication Each type of information described in subparagraph (A) shall be published or updated on the appropriate website not later than 90 days after the date on which the information is issued. (C) Rule of construction Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to require a Federal department or agency that administers covered United States foreign assistance to provide any information that does not relate to, or is not otherwise required by, the covered United States foreign assistance programs carried out by such department or agency. (3) Report in lieu of inclusion (A) Health or security of implementing partners If the head of a Federal department or agency, in consultation with the Secretary of State, makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or program beneficiary or would require the release of proprietary information of an implementing partner or program beneficiary, the head of the Federal department or agency shall provide such determination in writing to the appropriate congressional committees, including the basis for such determination. (B) National interests of the United States If the Secretary of State makes a determination that the inclusion of a required item of information online would be detrimental to the national interests of the United States, the Secretary of State shall provide such determination, including the basis for such determination, in writing to the appropriate congressional committees. (C) Form Information provided under this paragraph may be provided in classified form, as appropriate. (4) Failure to comply If a Federal department or agency fails to comply with the requirements under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of subsection (a), or subsection (c), with respect to providing information described in subsection (a), and the information is not subject to a determination under subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (3) not to make the information publicly available, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in consultation with the head of such department or agency, not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, shall submit a consolidated report to the appropriate congressional committees that includes, with respect to each required item of information not made publicly available— (A) a detailed explanation of the reason for not making such information publicly available; and (B) a description of the department’s or agency’s plan and timeline for— (i) making such information publicly available; and (ii) ensuring that such information is made publicly available in subsequent years. (c) Scope of information The online publication required under subsection (a) shall, at a minimum— (1) in each of the fiscal years 2016 through 2019, provide the information required under subsection (b) for fiscal years 2015 through the current fiscal year; and (2) for fiscal year 2020 and each fiscal year thereafter, provide the information required under subsection (b) for the immediately preceding 5 fiscal years in a fully searchable form. (d) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development should coordinate the consolidation of processes and data collection and presentation for the Department of State’s website, ForeignAssistance.gov , and the United States Agency for International Development’s website, Explorer.USAID.gov , to the extent that is possible to maximize efficiencies, no later than the end of fiscal year 2018.

Speaker of the House of Representatives. Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.