[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4798 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4798

 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to update and strengthen 
existing efforts to end violence against children, improve coordination 
    among agencies addressing this violence, and promote the use of 
     evidence-based strategies and critical information gathering 
                 capabilities, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 20, 2023

Mr. McGovern (for himself, Ms. Salazar, and Mr. Fitzpatrick) introduced 
  the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to update and strengthen 
existing efforts to end violence against children, improve coordination 
    among agencies addressing this violence, and promote the use of 
     evidence-based strategies and critical information gathering 
                 capabilities, 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 ``Strengthening Efforts to End 
Violence Against Children Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING VIOLENCE AGAINST CHILDREN SURVEYS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) Violence Against Children Surveys (VACS) are critical 
        tools for realizing the objectives of the ``Advancing 
        Protection and Care for Children in Adversity: U.S. Government 
        Strategy for International Assistance, 2019-2023'' for--
                    (A) building strong beginnings for vulnerable 
                children through early childhood development 
                interventions;
                    (B) strengthening families and advancing positive 
                parenting; and
                    (C) protecting children from violence; and
            (2) when leveraging the findings of a VACS, relevant 
        bureaus and offices should consider whether--
                    (A) governments have fully committed to the process 
                of conducting the survey;
                    (B) there is presence and capacity amongst partner 
                entities in-country to support implementation of the 
                survey;
                    (C) there is availability of funding to both 
                implement the survey and support Centers for Disease 
                Control technical assistance for implementation; and
                    (D) governments have expressed support for action 
                in response to survey findings, such as demonstrating 
                the ability to mobilize resources and having funding in 
                place for programs and services.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States to--
            (1) promote, fund, and support the protection of children 
        from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect by investing in 
        preventative and responsive programming care in relevant 
        foreign assistance programs; and
            (2) rely on evidence-based, efficient, and effective 
        interventions in strategies and programs to support vulnerable 
        children, promote permanent family care, and protect children 
        from violence, exploitation, and abuse.

SEC. 4. ASSISTANCE FOR CHILDREN IN ADVERSITY.

    Section 135 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2152f) 
is amended--
            (1) by adding at the end of subsection (a) the following:
            ``(10) Exposure to sexual, physical, and emotional 
        violence, particularly when such exposure is repeated or 
        chronic, can significantly affect a child's brain development 
        and function and cause life-long consequences, including poor 
        mental health, hindered neurological development, slowed 
        physical development, reduced learning, and risky health 
        behavior, continuing cycles of poverty, and epigenetic 
        consequences.
            ``(11) Child protection interventions can be lifesaving, 
        especially in such critical circumstances as humanitarian 
        responses, regions experiencing fragility, and conflict areas.
            ``(12) The Violence Against Children Surveys are critical 
        tools in partnering with foreign governments to analyze 
        violence against children and in creating action plans to 
        address this violence and protect vulnerable children.'';
            (2) by adding at the end of subsection (b) the following:
            ``(6) Vulnerable children.--The term `vulnerable children' 
        means children who are experiencing conditions of serious 
        deprivation and danger, including those who--
                    ``(A) are living outside of family care;
                    ``(B) have been trafficked;
                    ``(C) are experiencing violence;
                    ``(D) are experiencing labor or sexual 
                exploitation;
                    ``(E) are affected by, or are emerging from, armed 
                conflict or humanitarian crises;
                    ``(F) have disabilities;
                    ``(G) are orphans; or
                    ``(H) are otherwise vulnerable, including because 
                of HIV/AIDS, acute illness, or having been born 
                prematurely.''; and
            (3) in subsection (c)--
                    (A) in paragraph (6), by striking ``; and'' and 
                inserting a semicolon;
                    (B) in paragraph (7), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting a semicolon; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(8) to support nurturing, protective, and permanent 
        family care for vulnerable children and to extend protective 
        services to children living outside of family care;
            ``(9) to promote the protection of children from violence, 
        exploitation, abuse, and neglect by investing in preventative 
        and responsive programming built upon evidence-based 
        strategies; and
            ``(10) to provide lifesaving protection and interventions 
        for vulnerable children in emergency settings and fragile 
        contexts.''.

SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO THE ASSISTANCE FOR ORPHANS AND OTHER VULNERABLE 
              CHILDREN IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES ACT.

    The Assistance for Orphans and Other Vulnerable Children in 
Developing Countries Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-95) is amended as 
follows:
            (1) In section 4 (22 U.S.C. 2152f note)--
                    (A) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
    ``(a) Requirement for Strategy.--
            ``(1) Initial submission.--Not later than 180 days after 
        the date of the enactment of the Strengthening Efforts to End 
        Violence Against Children Act of 2023, the President shall 
        develop and submit to the appropriate congressional committees 
        a strategy for coordinating, implementing, and monitoring 
        assistance programs for children in adversity under section 135 
        of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.
            ``(2) Comment and review.--The strategy required by 
        paragraph (1) shall not be implemented before the date that is 
        90 days after the date of the submission of the strategy. 
        During such 90-day period, the President shall consider and, if 
        appropriate, revise, such strategy in light of any comments 
        provided to the President by the appropriate congressional 
        committees.
            ``(3) Implementation deadline.--Subject to revisions in 
        accordance with paragraph (2), the President shall begin 
        implementation of the strategy required by paragraph (1) not 
        later than 150 days after the date of the submission of the 
        strategy.
            ``(4) Review of implementation.--Every 4 years, the 
        President shall submit to the appropriate congressional 
        committees--
                    ``(A) a review of the manner and extent to which 
                the strategy required by paragraph (1) has been 
                implemented during the preceding 4 years; and
                    ``(B) an updated strategy, incorporating the 
                findings of such review, for the subsequent 4 years.'';
                    (B) by amending subsection (b) to read as follows:
    ``(b) Consultation.--
            ``(1) In general.--The strategy described in subsection 
        (a)(1) shall be developed by the Special Advisor for Assistance 
        to Orphans and Vulnerable Children (appointed pursuant to 
        section 135(e)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961), in 
        consultation with the appropriate consulting partners listed in 
        paragraph (2), to ensure that the strategy--
                    ``(A) will not impede the efficiency of 
                implementing assistance programs for orphans and 
                vulnerable children;
                    ``(B) addresses the specific needs of local 
                populations; and
                    ``(C) is fully implemented.
            ``(2) Appropriate consulting partners.--The appropriate 
        consulting partners listed in this paragraph are--
                    ``(A) relevant offices in the Department of Health 
                and Human Services, Department of Labor, Department of 
                State, PEPFAR, and the Peace Corps;
                    ``(B) United States civil society stakeholders, 
                including service providers; and
                    ``(C) employees of the field missions of the United 
                States Agency for International Development.''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Publication.--The strategy required by subsection (a)(1) and 
each review of the implementation of such strategy required by 
subsection (a)(4) shall be made publicly available.''.
            (2) In section 5(b) (22 U.S.C. 2152g(b))--
                    (A) by striking paragraph (1);
                    (B) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (4) as 
                paragraphs (1) through (3), respectively; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) The activities of the United States Agency for 
        International Development, the Department of Health and Human 
        Services, the Department of Labor, the Department of State, 
        PEPFAR, and the Peace Corps that implement INSPIRE strategies 
        for ending violence against children, which include--
                    ``(A) implementation and enforcement of law;
                    ``(B) norms and values;
                    ``(C) safe environments;
                    ``(D) parent and caregiver support;
                    ``(E) income and economic strengthening;
                    ``(F) response and support services; and
                    ``(G) education and life skills.
            ``(5) The manner and extent to which Federal departments 
        and agencies and partner organizations have used findings from 
        Violence Against Children Surveys to inform programming to 
        support, care for, and protect children in adversity.''.

SEC. 6. IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON CHILDREN IN ADVERSITY.

    (a) In General.--The Administrator of the United States Agency for 
International Development, acting through the Special Advisor for 
Children in Adversity, shall include in the first report submitted 
pursuant to section 5 of the Assistance for Orphans and Other 
Vulnerable Children in Developing Countries Act of 2005 (22 U.S.C. 
2152g) after the date of the enactment of this Act a report on the 
impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on violence against children globally.
    (b) Matters To Be Included.--The report required under subsection 
(a) shall also include the following elements:
            (1) An assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on 
        violence against children and child protection risks, including 
        domestic violence, child trafficking, child marriage, female 
        genital mutilation/cutting, and sexual exploitation, especially 
        as these forms of violence affect marginalized children and 
        youth, such as girls, LGBTQ children and youth, children with 
        disabilities, and other minority populations.
            (2) An overview of programs being carried out by 
        participants in the Advancing Protection and Care for Children 
        in Adversity Interagency Working Group to continue investments 
        in child protection, child safeguarding, social-service 
        workforce strengthening, positive parenting, and family 
        strengthening programming during the COVID-19 pandemic, 
        including existing data on funding and programmatic focus 
        disaggregated by gender, country, income level, and disability.
            (3) Descriptions of the effectiveness, cost, and 
        accessibility of the tools and strategies most commonly used to 
        minimize child protection risks and mitigate service 
        disruptions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
            (4) Identification of any gaps in reaching marginalized 
        populations with child protection information and services 
        during the COVID-19 pandemic, such as girls, children with 
        disabilities, or children affected by conflict and crisis.
            (5) Descriptions of the tools and resources needed for the 
        Agency to contribute to long-term recovery of children's 
        protection and well-being in the wake of COVID-19 including 
        distance learning interventions, safe school reopening 
        guidelines, and reenrollment campaigns for out-of-school 
        children and youth.
    (c) Form.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be submitted 
in unclassified form and made available to the public.
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