[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6271 Introduced in House (IH)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6271

To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to require a period of service 
 at an overseas post of at least four years, to amend title 10, United 
States Code, to require a tour of duty at defense attache offices of at 
               least four years, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 28, 2016

Mr. Nunes (for himself, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, Mr. LoBiondo, Mr. King of New 
   York, Mr. Pompeo, Mr. Turner, Mr. Wenstrup, and Mr. Westmoreland) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
 Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services, 
 and Intelligence (Permanent Select), for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to require a period of service 
 at an overseas post of at least four years, to amend title 10, United 
States Code, to require a tour of duty at defense attache offices of at 
               least four years, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Foreign Service Optimization Act of 
2016''.

SEC. 2. PERIOD OF OVERSEAS ASSIGNMENTS FOR CERTAIN FOREIGN SERVICE 
              OFFICERS.

    (a) In General.--Subsection (a) of section 502 of the Foreign 
Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3982) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new paragraphs:
    ``(3)(A) In making assignments under paragraph (1), and in 
accordance, with section 903, and, if applicable, section 503, the 
Secretary shall assure that, except as provided in subparagraph (B), a 
member of the Service serves at a post for a period of not fewer than 
four consecutive years and not more than six consecutive years.
    ``(B) In the case of an unhealthful post (as such term is described 
in section 817), including war, armed conflict, civil strife, or 
similar hardship or other extreme condition, or in the case of a first 
tour of duty or, as determined by the Secretary, other exigent 
circumstance, the Secretary may reduce the period of assignment 
specified in subparagraph (A) by issuing a written waiver. The 
Secretary shall annually submit to Congress a report on any such 
reductions made pursuant to this subparagraph, including an explanation 
of the reasons therefor.
    ``(4) In making assignments under paragraph (1), and in accordance 
with paragraph (3), the Secretary shall assure that members of the 
Service who have demonstrated a useful knowledge of the principal 
languages or dialects of the countries in which the posts are located 
to which such members are assigned, such members are assigned to two 
consecutive tours of duty.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Subsection (a) of section 903 of the 
Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4083) is amended, in the second 
sentence, by striking ``3 years'' and inserting ``four years''.
    (c) Regulations.--The Secretary of State shall promulgate such 
regulations as may be necessary to carry out the amendments made by 
subsections (a) and (b).

SEC. 3. TOUR OF DUTY OF MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES AND CIVILIANS 
              ASSIGNED TO DEFENSE ATTACHE OFFICES.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 83 of title 10, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 1624. Tour of duty of members and civilians assigned to defense 
              attache offices
    ``(a) Members.--The tour of duty of a member of the armed forces 
serving as a defense attache shall be not less than four years and not 
more than six years.
    ``(b) Civilian Employees.--A civilian employee of the Defense 
Intelligence Agency assigned to a Defense Attache Office outside the 
United States shall be assigned to such office for a period that is not 
less than four years and not more than six years.
    ``(c) Waiver.--(1) The Secretary of Defense may issue a written 
waiver to reduce a tour of duty under subsection (a) or a period of 
assignment under subsection (b) if--
            ``(A) the tour of duty or assignment is at a location the 
        Secretary of State has determined is an unhealthful post (as 
        such term is described in section 817 of the Foreign Service 
        Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4057)), including by reason of war, 
        armed conflict, civil strife, or similar hardship or other 
        extreme condition;
            ``(B) such tour of duty is the first tour of duty of a 
        member serving a defense attache or such period of assignment 
        is the first period of assignment of a civilian employee of the 
        Defense Intelligence Agency assigned to a Defense Attache 
        Office outside the United States, as the case may be; or
            ``(C) the Secretary of Defense otherwise determines the 
        waiver appropriate for exigent circumstances.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall annually submit to Congress a report on 
any waivers issued pursuant to paragraph (1), including an explanation 
of the reasons therefor.
    ``(d) Consecutive Tours.--If a member of the armed forces serving 
as a defense attache or a civilian employee of the Defense Intelligence 
Agency assigned to a Defense Attache Office outside the United States 
demonstrates a useful knowledge of the principal language or dialect of 
the country in which the Defense Attache Office is located to which 
such member or employee is assigned, the Secretary may assign the 
member or the employee, as the case may be, to two consecutive tours of 
duty at the Defense Attache Office.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
1623 the following new item:

``1624. Tour of duty of members and civilians assigned to defense 
                            attache offices.''.
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