Topic: International Affairs — General
Subject: International affairs
Date: 2011-07-27 00:00:00

Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 2012 and 2013 - Transfers statutory responsibility for performing actuarial duties related to the Department of State's retirement systems from the Secretary of the Treasury to the Secretary of State (Secretary). Authorizes Department and Foreign Service special agents to investigate: (1) illegal passport or visa issuance or use, (2) Department-related identity theft and document fraud, and (3) federal offenses committed in the special maritime and territorial jurisdictions (nonmilitary) of the United States. Authorizes the Department to use uniformed guards to protect buildings and areas in the United States for which the Department provides protective services. Revises provisions regarding local guard contracts abroad. Extends the U.S. reimbursement period with respect to seized commercial fishermen. Increases the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund maximum. Provides Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty employees with federal service parity of pay. Extends the International Broadcasting Bureau personal services contractor program. Eliminates the "pilot program" designation. Extend civil liability immunity to members of the Middle East Broadcasting Networks. Authorizes the Secretary to: (1) increase the number of scientific, medicine, research, educational, and cultural exchange activities; and (2) establish science and technology fellowship programs. Revises provisions regarding the Vietnam Education Foundation. Revises adjustment of refugee status to permanent resident status provisions. Authorizes a two-year pilot program that uses secure remote videoconferencing technology to conduct tourist visa interviews. Extends visa ineligibility for aliens involved in U.S. child abductions to situations in which the child is located in a foreign state that is a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. Provides for Foreign Service officer training in conflict resolution, and in the ability to function in unstable areas or areas without civil authority. Directs the Secretary to: (1) submit to Congress an assessment of current methods to monitor indicators of potential mass atrocities, and (2) establish a diplomatic facilities task force. Foreign Service Overseas Pay Equity Act of 2011 - Extends comparability pay adjustments on a phased-in schedule to (non-Senior) Foreign Service members assigned abroad. Treats such payments as basic pay. Revises provisions concerning the computation of the death gratuity payable to surviving dependents of Foreign Service employees who die from injuries sustained in the performance of duty abroad. Extends the Secretary's authority to recruit retired Foreign Service or Civil Service employees as reemployed annuitants to serve in Pakistan, Iraq, or Afghanistan. Includes members of the Response Readiness Corps in such group. Authorizes the Secretary to establish exchange programs under which Department officers or employees and members of the Foreign Service may be temporarily assigned to a position with any foreign government or international entity that permits an employee to be assigned to the Department. Establishes: (1) the Office for Global Women's Issues, which shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues; and (2) the Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment. Extends the passport fee surcharge. Authorizes: (1) appropriations for the synchronization of U.S. contributions to international organizations, (2) the U.S. share of assessed contributions for each U.N. peacekeeping operation after 2010 at 27.5%, (3) the readmission and participation of the United States in the Inter-Parlimentary Union, and (4) U.S. membership in the International Renewable Energy Agency. Limits specified assistance to governments of countries in default to the United States. Increases authority for foreign law enforcement training. Authorizes Millenium Challenge Compact extensions and concurrent Compacts. Authorizes the Inspector General of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to temporarily reemploy annuitants for positions in the Office of Inspector General in Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Prohibits assistance to a country for production of agricultural commodities which would be available in surplus quantities on world markets and would adversely affect U.S. agricultural producers. Directs the Secretary to report to Congress regarding implementation of the Global Health Initiative. Urges the Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor to designate an officer or officers to track violence, criminalization, and restrictions on freedoms in foreign countries based on actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity. Directs the Secretary to: (1) monitor threats to users' rights over connection technologies, especially the Internet and mobile devices, and include such information in the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices; (2) implement efforts to protect communications freedom; and (3) develop a strategy to implement a global access to connective technologies strategy. Establishes within the office of the Secretary a Coordinator for Cyberspace and Cybersecurity Issues to develop a strategy for U.S. engagement on international cyber issues. Authorizes the Secretary to provide assistance to countries in crisis, or facing the threat of crisis, for the purpose of supporting transition to democracy and long-term development. Repeals specified reporting requirements. Authorizes the Administrator of USAID to establish a Working Capital Fund for administrative costs resulting from agency implementation and procurement reform efforts, Fund administration, and administrative contingencies. Directs the President to: (1) implement a system to evaluate U.S. foreign assistance effectiveness, and (2) coordinate with executive branch agencies to draft a National Action Plan that supports the rights and roles of women in conflict-affected and post-conflict regions. Peace Corps Improvement and Expansion Act of 2011 - Requires the Director of the Peace Corps to report to Congress regarding: (1) the progress made toward implementing the recommendations of the Peace Corps Comprehensive Agency Assessment of 2010, and (2) the impact of the Portfolio Review on the distribution of Peace Corps volunteers throughout the world. R.M.S. Titanic Maritime Memorial Preservation Act of 2011 - Amends the R.M.S. Titanic Maritime Memorial Act of 1986 to set forth: (1) the scope and applicability of the Act, (2) prohibited activities and related liabilities, (3) authorities of the Secretary of Commerce, (4) civil and criminal enforcement provisions, (5) seizure and forfeiture provisions, (6) statute of limitations, and (7) authorization of appropriations. Authorizes (specified) FY2012 and (as necessary) FY2013 appropriations for: (1) Department administration of foreign affairs; (2) diplomatic and consular programs; (3) the Capital Investment Fund; (4) embassy security, construction, and maintenance; (5) conflict stabilization operations; (6) educational and cultural exchange programs; (7) representation allowances; (8) protection of foreign missions and officials; (9) diplomatic and consular emergencies; (10) repatriation loans; (11) the American Institute in Taiwan; (12) Office of the Inspector General; (13) international organizations; (14) international peacekeeping activities; (15) foreign currency exchange rate offsets; (16) the International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico; (17) International Boundary Commission, United States and Canada; (18) the International Joint Commission; (19) the International Fisheries Commissions; (20) migration and refugee assistance; (21) U.S. emergency refugee and migration assistance; (22) the Asia Foundation; (23) the National Endowment for Democracy; (24) the Center for Cultural and Technical Interchange Between East and West; (25) international broadcasting operations; (26) broadcasting capital improvements; and (27) the Peace Corps. Prohibits the amount of funds which may be appropriated to the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Account which, when added to amounts previously appropriated but not yet obligated, would exceed $200 million (currently, $100 million).