[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3310 Reported in Senate (RS)]

                                                       Calendar No. 538
112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3310

                          [Report No. 112-233]

To direct the President, in consultation with the Department of State, 
    United States Agency for International Development, Millennium 
  Challenge Corporation, and the Department of Defense, to establish 
guidelines for United States foreign assistance programs, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 19, 2012

 Mr. Lugar (for himself and Mr. Rubio) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

                           November 13, 2012

 Reported by Mr. Kerry, with an amendment and an amendment to the title
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the President, in consultation with the Department of State, 
    United States Agency for International Development, Millennium 
  Challenge Corporation, and the Department of Defense, to establish 
guidelines for United States foreign assistance programs, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Foreign Aid Transparency 
and Accountability Act of 2012''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. GUIDELINES FOR UNITED STATES FOREIGN ASSISTANCE 
              PROGRAMS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to evaluate 
the performance of United States foreign assistance programs and their 
contribution to policy, strategies, projects, program goals, and 
priorities undertaken by the Federal Government, to foster and promote 
innovative programs to improve the effectiveness of such programs, and 
to coordinate the monitoring and evaluation processes of Federal 
departments and agencies that administer such programs.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Establishment of Guidelines.--The President, in 
consultation with the Department of State, United States Agency for 
International Development, Millennium Challenge Corporation, and the 
Department of Defense, shall establish guidelines regarding the 
establishment of measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring 
and evaluation plans that can be applied on a uniform basis to United 
States foreign assistance programs, country assistance plans, and 
international and multilateral assistance programs receiving financial 
assistance from the United States. Such guidelines shall be established 
according to best practices of monitoring and evaluation studies and 
analyses.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Objectives of Guidelines.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) In general.--Such guidelines shall provide 
        direction to Federal departments and agencies that administer 
        United States foreign assistance programs on how to develop the 
        complete range of activities relating to the monitoring of 
        resources, the evaluation of projects, the evaluation of 
        program impacts, and analysis that is necessary for the 
        identification of findings, generalizations that can be derived 
        from those findings, and their applicability to proposed 
        project and program design.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Objectives.--Specifically, the guidelines 
        shall provide direction on how to achieve the following 
        objectives for monitoring and evaluation programs:</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) Building measurable goals, performance 
                metrics and monitoring and evaluation into program 
                design at the outset, including the provision of 
                sufficient program resources to conduct monitoring and 
                evaluation.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) Disseminating 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 foreign assistance 
                programs.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) Developing a clearinghouse capacity 
                for the dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned 
                to United States development professionals, 
                implementing partners, the international aid community, 
                and aid recipient governments, and as a repository of 
                knowledge on lessons learned.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) Distributing evaluation reports 
                internally and making this material available online to 
                the public. Furthermore, providing a summary including 
                a description of methods, key findings and 
                recommendations to the public on-line in a fully 
                searchable form within 90 days after the completion of 
                the evaluation. Principled exceptions will be made in 
                cases of classified or proprietary material.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (E) Establishing annual monitoring and 
                evaluation agendas and objectives that are responsive 
                to policy and programmatic priorities.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (F) Applying rigorous monitoring and 
                evaluation methodologies, choosing from among a wide 
                variety of qualitative and quantitative methods common 
                in the field of social scientific inquiry.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (G) Partnering with the academic 
                community, implementing partners, and national and 
                international institutions that have expertise in 
                monitoring and evaluation and analysis when such 
                partnerships will provide needed expertise or will 
                significantly improve the evaluation and 
                analysis.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (H) Developing and implementing a training 
                plan for aid personnel on the proper conduct of 
                monitoring and evaluation programs.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (d) Role of Other Federal Departments and Agencies.--The 
President shall carry out this section in conjunction with the heads of 
Federal departments and agencies that administer United States foreign 
assistance programs.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (e) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to Congress a report 
that contains a detailed description of the guidelines that have been 
developed on measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and 
evaluation plans for United States foreign assistance programs 
established under this section.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (f) Evaluation Defined.--In this section, the term 
``evaluation'' means, with respect to a United States foreign 
assistance program, the systematic collection and analysis of 
information about the characteristics and outcomes of the program and 
projects under the program as a basis for judgments, to improve 
effectiveness, and to inform decisions about current and future 
programming.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 3. INTERNET WEB SITE TO MAKE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE 
              COMPREHENSIVE, TIMELY, COMPARABLE, AND ACCESSIBLE 
              INFORMATION ON UNITED STATES FOREIGN ASSISTANCE 
              PROGRAMS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Establishment; Publication and Updates.--Not later 
than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 
shall establish and maintain an Internet Web site to make publicly 
available comprehensive, timely, comparable, and accessible information 
on United States foreign assistance programs. The head of each Federal 
department or agency that administers such programs shall on a regular 
basis publish and update on the Web site such information with respect 
to the programs of the department or agency.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Matters To Be Included.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) In general.--Such information shall be 
        published on a detailed program-by-program basis and country-
        by-country basis.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Types of information.--To ensure transparency, 
        accountability, and effectiveness of United States foreign 
        assistance programs, the information shall include country 
        assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional 
        budget justifications, actual expenditures, and reports and 
        evaluations for such programs and projects under such programs. 
        Each type of information described in this paragraph shall be 
        published on the Web site not later than 30 days after the date 
        of issuance of the information and shall be continuously 
        updated.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Report in lieu of inclusion.--If the head of a 
        Federal department or agency makes a determination that the 
        inclusion of a required item of information on the Web site 
        would jeopardize the health or security of an implementing 
        partner or program beneficiary or would be detrimental to the 
        national interests of the United States, such item of 
        information may be submitted to Congress in a written report in 
        lieu of including it on the Web site, along with the reasons 
        for not including it in the database required under subsection 
        (c)(2).</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Scope of Information.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) In general.--The Web site shall contain such 
        information relating to the current fiscal year and the 
        immediately preceding 5 fiscal years.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Database.--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph 
                (B), the Web site shall also contain a link to a 
                searchable database available to the public containing 
                such information relating to fiscal years prior to the 
                current fiscal year and the immediately preceding 5 
                fiscal years.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) Limitation.--The database shall not 
                contain such information relating to fiscal years prior 
                to fiscal year 2006.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (d) Form.--Such information shall be published on the Web 
site in unclassified form. Any information determined to be classified 
information may be submitted to Congress in classified form and an 
unclassified summary of such information shall be published on the Web 
site.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Foreign Aid Transparency and 
Accountability Act of 2012''.

SEC. 2. GUIDELINES FOR UNITED STATES FOREIGN ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.

    (a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to evaluate the 
performance of United States foreign assistance and its contribution to 
policy, 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 foreign 
assistance.
    (b) Establishment of Guidelines.--Not later than one year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall establish 
guidelines regarding the establishment of measurable goals, performance 
metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans that can be applied on a 
uniform basis to United States foreign 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 assistance 
        on how to develop the complete range of activities relating to 
        the monitoring of resources, the evaluation of projects, the 
        evaluation of program impacts, and analysis that is necessary 
        for the identification of findings, generalizations that can be 
        derived from those findings, and their applicability to 
        proposed project and program design.
            (2) Objectives.--Specifically, the guidelines shall provide 
        direction on how to achieve the following objectives for 
        monitoring and evaluation programs:
                    (A) Building measurable goals, performance metrics 
                and monitoring and evaluation into program design at 
                the outset, including the provision of sufficient 
                program resources to conduct monitoring and evaluation.
                    (B) Disseminating 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 foreign assistance programs.
                    (C) Developing a clearinghouse capacity for the 
                dissemination of knowledge and lessons learned to 
                United States development professionals, implementing 
                partners, the international aid community, and aid 
                recipient governments, and as a repository of knowledge 
                on lessons learned.
                    (D) Distributing evaluation reports internally and 
                making this material available online to the public. 
                Furthermore, providing a summary including a 
                description of methods, key findings and 
                recommendations to the public on-line in a fully 
                searchable form within 90 days after the completion of 
                the evaluation. Principled exceptions will be made in 
                cases of classified or proprietary material.
                    (E) Establishing annual monitoring and evaluation 
                agendas and objectives that are responsive to policy 
                and programmatic priorities.
                    (F) Applying rigorous monitoring and evaluation 
                methodologies, choosing from among a wide variety of 
                qualitative and quantitative methods common in the 
                field of social scientific inquiry.
                    (G) Partnering with the academic community, 
                implementing partners, and national and international 
                institutions that have expertise in monitoring and 
                evaluation and analysis when such partnerships will 
                provide needed expertise or will significantly improve 
                the evaluation and analysis.
                    (H) Developing and implementing a training plan for 
                aid personnel on the proper conduct of monitoring and 
                evaluation programs.
    (d)  Implementation of Guidelines.--Beginning not later than one 
year after the date on which the President establishes the guidelines 
under subsection (b), the head of each Federal department or agency 
that administers United States foreign assistance shall administer the 
foreign assistance in accordance with the guidelines.
    (e) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to Congress a report 
that contains a detailed description of the guidelines that have been 
developed on measurable goals, performance metrics, and monitoring and 
evaluation plans for United States foreign assistance programs 
established under this section.
    (f) Evaluation Defined.--In this section, the term ``evaluation'' 
means, with respect to a United States foreign assistance program, the 
systematic collection and analysis of information about the 
characteristics and outcomes of the program and projects under the 
program as a basis for judgments, to improve effectiveness, and to 
inform decisions about current and future programming.

SEC. 3. INTERNET WEB SITE TO MAKE PUBLICLY AVAILABLE COMPREHENSIVE, 
              TIMELY, COMPARABLE, AND ACCESSIBLE INFORMATION ON UNITED 
              STATES FOREIGN ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS.

    (a) Establishment; Publication and Updates.--Not later than 30 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall direct 
the Secretary of State to establish and maintain an Internet website to 
make publicly available comprehensive, timely, comparable, and 
accessible information on United States foreign assistance programs. 
The head of each Federal department or agency that administers United 
States foreign assistance shall, not later than three years after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, publish and on a quarterly basis 
update on an Internet website such information with respect to the 
programs of the department or agency.
    (b) Matters To Be Included.--
            (1) In general.--Such information shall be published on a 
        detailed program-by-program basis and country-by-country basis.
            (2) Types of information.--To ensure transparency, 
        accountability, and effectiveness of United States foreign 
        assistance programs, the information shall include country 
        assistance strategies, annual budget documents, congressional 
        budget justifications, obligations, expenditures, and reports 
        and evaluations for United States foreign assistance programs 
        and projects under such programs. Each type of information 
        described in this paragraph shall be published or updated on 
        the Internet website not later than 90 days after the date of 
        issuance of the information.
            (3) Report in lieu of inclusion.--If the head of a Federal 
        department or agency makes a determination that the inclusion 
        of a required item of information on the Internet website would 
        jeopardize the health or security of an implementing partner or 
        program beneficiary or would be detrimental to the national 
        interests of the United States, the head of the Federal 
        department or agency may provide briefings to Congress on the 
        item of information or submit to Congress the item of 
        information in a written report in lieu of including it on the 
        Internet website, along with the reasons for not including it 
        in the database required under this section.
    (c) Scope of Information.--
            (1) In general.--The Internet website shall contain the 
        information described in subsection (b) as follows:
                    (A) For fiscal year 2013, the information relating 
                to such fiscal year and each of the immediately 
                preceding 2 fiscal years.
                    (B) For fiscal year 2014, the information relating 
                to such fiscal year and each of the immediately 
                preceding 3 fiscal years.
                    (C) For fiscal year 2015, the information relating 
                to such fiscal year and each of the immediately 
                preceding 4 fiscal years.
                    (D) For fiscal year 2016, the information relating 
                to such fiscal year and each of the immediately 
                preceding 5 fiscal years.
            (2) Older information.--For fiscal year 2017 and each 
        fiscal year thereafter, the Internet website shall also contain 
        a link to a searchable database available to the public 
        containing information described in subsection (b) relating to 
        fiscal years prior to the immediately preceding 5 fiscal years 
        but subsequent to fiscal year 2010.
    (d) Form.--The information required under subsection (b) shall be 
published on the Internet website in unclassified form. Any information 
determined to be classified or particularly sensitive information may 
be submitted to Congress in classified form. An unclassified summary of 
such information shall be published on the Internet website unless the 
head of the Federal department or agency, in consultation with the 
appropriate congressional committees, determines that such publication 
would have a detrimental effect on national security.

SEC. 4. OFFSET.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of State 
and the head of each other Federal department or agency that 
administers United States foreign assistance, in consultation with the 
appropriate congressional committees, shall--
            (1) eliminate such initiatives, positions, and programs 
        within the Department of State or such other department or 
        agency that are not otherwise required by law as the Secretary 
        or the head of such other department or agency determines to be 
        necessary to entirely offset any and all costs incurred to 
        carry out the provisions of this Act with respect to the 
        Department of State or such other department or agency;
            (2) ensure no net increases in personnel are added to carry 
        out the provisions of this Act, with any new full or part time 
        employees ore equivalents offset by eliminating an equivalent 
        number of existing staff; and
            (3) report to Congress not later than 90 days after the 
        date of the enactment of this Act the actions taken to ensure 
        compliance with paragraphs (1) and (2), including the specific 
        initiatives, positions, and programs within the Department of 
        State or such other department or agency that have been 
        eliminated to ensure that the costs of carrying out this Act 
        will be offset.

SEC. 5. 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) United states foreign assistance.--The term ``United 
        States foreign assistance'' has the meaning given the term 
        ``foreign assistance'' in section 634(b) of the Foreign 
        Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2394 (b)).
            Amend the title so as to read: ``A bill to direct the 
        President to establish guidelines for United States foreign 
        assistance, and for other purposes.''.
                                                       Calendar No. 538

112th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 3310

                          [Report No. 112-233]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To direct the President, in consultation with the Department of State, 
    United States Agency for International Development, Millennium 
  Challenge Corporation, and the Department of Defense, to establish 
guidelines for United States foreign assistance programs, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                           November 13, 2012

        Reported with an amendment and an amendment to the title