[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 6 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 6

Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should provide, 
 on an annual basis, an amount equal to at least one percent of United 
   States gross domestic product for nonmilitary foreign assistance 
                               programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 5, 2017

   Ms. Lee submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should provide, 
 on an annual basis, an amount equal to at least one percent of United 
   States gross domestic product for nonmilitary foreign assistance 
                               programs.

Whereas, on April 3, 1948, President Harry Truman signed into law the Economic 
        Recovery Act of 1948, inspired by a plan of economic trade and 
        assistance for European countries proposed by Secretary of State George 
        C. Marshall, otherwise known as the Marshall Plan;
Whereas, from the years 1947 to 1951, the United States gave $13 billion, 
        equivalent to approximately $140 billion in 2016 and less than one 
        percent of United States gross domestic product (GDP) for nonmilitary 
        foreign assistance programs for 2015, in economic aid and technical 
        assistance to assist in the economic recovery of 16 European countries;
Whereas the Marshall Plan, among other objectives, sought to assure global peace 
        and defend the national security of the United States through direct 
        foreign assistance programs aimed at combating economic, social, and 
        political degradation;
Whereas poverty, lack of opportunity, and environmental degradation are 
        recognized as significant contributors to socioeconomic and political 
        instability, as well as to the exacerbation of disease pandemics and 
        other global health threats;
Whereas elevating the United States standing in the world represents a critical 
        and essential element of any strategy to improve national and global 
        security by mitigating the root causes of conflict and multinational 
        terrorism, strengthening diplomatic and economic relationships, 
        preventing global climate change, curbing weapons proliferation, and 
        fostering peace and cooperation between all nations;
Whereas the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, signed into law on September 4, 
        1961, reaffirms ``the traditional humanitarian ideals of the American 
        people and renews its commitment to assist people in developing 
        countries to eliminate hunger, poverty, [and] illness'';
Whereas Congress created the Peace Corps in 1961 and the United States has since 
        sent more than 220,000 volunteers to 140 nations to promote the Peace 
        Corps' mission of world peace and friendship through service in the 
        developing world;
Whereas, on November 3, 1961, President John F. Kennedy established the United 
        States Agency for International Development (USAID) with the aim of 
        providing direct support to developing countries in a manner free of 
        political and military influence;
Whereas over the last 10 years, Congress and successive administrations have 
        worked to more than double foreign assistance and implement a number of 
        new foreign aid initiatives to support global health, development, human 
        rights, and good governance, including the Millennium Challenge Account 
        (MCA), the President's International Education Initiative, the 
        President's Malaria Initiative (PMI), the President's Emergency Plan for 
        AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the Global Food Security and Feed the Future 
        Initiatives, and the Global Health Initiative;
Whereas President Obama has expressed his commitment to achieve the Millennium 
        Development Goal of cutting extreme poverty and hunger around the world 
        in half by 2015, as well as his intent to double the level of foreign 
        assistance to meet that goal;
Whereas the United States has pledged its support, along with every United 
        Nations member state and numerous international organizations, to 
        achieve the United Nations Millennium Development Goals in order to 
        reduce extreme poverty, support sustainable development, and address the 
        needs of the world's most vulnerable populations;
Whereas the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, derived from the United 
        Nations Millennium Declaration signed on September 8, 2000, seek to 
        eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, achieve universal primary 
        education, promote gender equality and empower women, reduce child 
        mortality, improve maternal health, combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other 
        diseases, ensure environmental sustainability, and develop a global 
        partnership for development;
Whereas the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs indicates 
        that in September 2015, major gaps still persisted in development aid 
        monetary flows to the least developed countries and in eliminating trade 
        barriers for developing countries;
Whereas, additionally, many people could not access essential medicines--generic 
        medicines were available on average in 58 percent of public sector 
        facilities--and only 32 per 100 citizens in developing countries had 
        access to the Internet at affordable prices;
Whereas the World Bank estimates that in 2013, 767 million people across the 
        globe were experiencing extreme poverty, living on less than $1.90 a 
        day;
Whereas according to the United Nations Development Program's ``2015 Human 
        Development Report'' more than 1.5 billion people (across 101 countries 
        examined in the report) live in multidimensional poverty according to 
        the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), an indicator which provides a 
        comprehensive picture of severe deprivations common to poor households 
        including in health, education, and standard of living;
Whereas the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates 
        that the number of undernourished people in the world totaled 793 
        million in 2015, equivalent to 12.9 percent of the world population and 
        representing a decrease of roughly 200 million people from 1990;
Whereas the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 
        Secretariat has indicated that by 2050, the cost of adapting to global 
        climate change in developing countries could amount to anywhere between 
        $280 and $500 billion annually;
Whereas in 2014, the United States was in 19th place behind most industrialized 
        nations in official development assistance funding as a percentage of 
        gross national income (GNI), totaling $23.4 billion and representing 
        0.19 percent;
Whereas, in April 2015, Secretary of State John Kerry released the second 
        Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR), as a ``blueprint 
        for the next generation of American diplomacy'' that builds on the 
        ``recognition that development is a co-equal pillar of our foreign 
        policy'' by focusing on four strategic priorities: fighting against 
        violent extremism, building open societies, promoting shared prosperity, 
        and curbing climate change;
Whereas a principal objective of the foreign policy of the United States, as 
        codified in the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, is ``the encouragement 
        and sustained support of the people of developing countries in their 
        efforts to acquire the knowledge and resources essential to development 
        and to build the economic, political, and social institutions which will 
        improve the quality of their lives'';
Whereas broad-based country- and community-ownership, sustainable and 
        responsible trade opportunities, the robust engagement of vulnerable 
        populations, including women, and a commitment to improve governance and 
        the rule of law, are all critical to the long-term success of 
        development programs;
Whereas individuals, businesses, and philanthropic organizations across the 
        United States continue to play a vital and increasing role in 
        international efforts to create a more peaceful and prosperous world for 
        all individuals through direct and indirect assistance;
Whereas studies indicate that 65 percent of the individuals in the United 
        States, whose tax dollars fund Federal expenditures, support increasing 
        funding to meet the Millennium Development Goals and to committing a 
        higher percentage of GDP to address global poverty provided that other 
        wealthy countries are willing to make the same commitment; and
Whereas a firm and significant financial commitment to enhance United States 
        foreign assistance programs exemplifies the compassion and resolve of 
        the people of the United States to benefit and empower all peoples of 
        the world for the betterment of humankind: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) recognizes that foreign assistance programs are of 
        critical importance in promoting national security, 
        demonstrating the humanitarian spirit of the people of the 
        United States, and improving the credibility and standing of 
        the United States in world affairs; and
            (2) expresses its support for attaining the goal of 
        providing, on an annual basis, an amount equal to no less than 
        one percent of United States gross domestic product (GDP) for 
        nonmilitary foreign assistance programs.
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