[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 194 (Thursday, November 4, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8046-S8048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4530. Mr. VAN HOLLEN (for himself and Mr. Sullivan) submitted an 
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 3867 submitted by Mr. 
Reed and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R. 4350, to authorize 
appropriations for fiscal year 2022 for military activities of the 
Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense 
activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel 
strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was 
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

        At the end of title X, add the following:

            Subtitle H--Foreign Service Families Act of 2021

     SECTION 1071. SHORT TITLE.

       This subtitle may be cited as the ``Foreign Service 
     Families Act of 2021''.

     SEC. 1072. TELECOMMUTING OPPORTUNITIES.

       (a) DETO Policy.--
       (1) In general.--Each Federal department and agency shall 
     establish a policy enumerating the circumstances under which 
     employees may be permitted to temporarily perform work 
     requirements and duties from approved overseas locations 
     where there is a related Foreign Service assignment pursuant 
     to an approved Domestically Employed Teleworking Overseas 
     (DETO) agreement.
       (2) Participation.--The policy described under paragraph 
     (1) shall--

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       (A) ensure that telework does not diminish employee 
     performance or agency operations;
       (B) require a written agreement that--
       (i) is entered into between an agency manager and an 
     employee authorized to telework, that outlines the specific 
     work arrangement that is agreed to; and
       (ii) is mandatory in order for any employee to participate 
     in telework;
       (C) provide that an employee may not be authorized to 
     telework if the performance of that employee does not comply 
     with the terms of the written agreement between the agency 
     manager and that employee;
       (D) except in emergency situations as determined by the 
     head of an agency, not apply to any employee of the agency 
     whose official duties require on a daily basis (every work 
     day)--
       (i) direct handling of secure materials determined to be 
     inappropriate for telework by the agency head; or
       (ii) on-site activity that cannot be handled remotely or at 
     an alternate worksite;
       (E) be incorporated as part of the continuity of operations 
     plans of the agency in the event of an emergency; and
       (F) enumerate the circumstances under which employees may 
     be permitted to temporarily perform work requirements and 
     duties from approved overseas locations.
       (b) Access to ICASS System.--Not later than 90 days after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 
     shall revise chapter 900 of volume 6 of the Foreign Affairs 
     Manual, the International Cooperative Administrative Support 
     Services Handbook, the Personnel Operations Handbook, and any 
     other relevant regulations to allow each Federal agency that 
     has enacted a policy under subsection (a) to have access to 
     the International Cooperative Administrative Support Services 
     (ICASS) system.

     SEC. 1073. EMPLOYMENT AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR ELIGIBLE 
                   FAMILY MEMBERS OF MEMBERS OF THE FOREIGN 
                   SERVICE.

       Section 706(b) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 
     U.S.C. 4026(b)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)--
       (A) by striking ``The Secretary may'' and inserting ``The 
     Secretary shall''; and
       (B) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows:
       ``(C) establishing a program for assisting eligible family 
     members in accessing employment and education opportunities, 
     as appropriate, including by exercising the authorities, in 
     relevant part, under sections 1784 and 1784a of title 10, 
     United States Code, and subject to such regulations as the 
     Secretary may prescribe modeled after those prescribed 
     pursuant to subsection (b) of such section 1784.'';
       (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (9);
       (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new 
     paragraphs:
       ``(2) The Secretary shall prescribe regulations--
       ``(A) to provide preference to eligible family members in 
     hiring for any civilian position in the Department, 
     notwithstanding the prohibition on marital discrimination 
     found in 5 U.S.C. 2302(b)(1)(E), if --
       ``(i) the eligible family member is among persons 
     determined to be best qualified for the position; and
       ``(ii) the position is located in the overseas country of 
     assignment of their sponsoring employee;
       ``(B) to ensure that notice of any vacant position in the 
     Department is provided in a manner reasonably designed to 
     reach eligible family members of sponsoring employees whose 
     permanent duty stations are in the same country as that in 
     which the position is located; and
       ``(C) to ensure that an eligible family member who applies 
     for a vacant position in the Department shall, to the extent 
     practicable, be considered for any such position located in 
     the same country as the permanent duty station of their 
     sponsoring employee.
       ``(3) Nothing in this section may be construed to provide 
     an eligible family member with entitlement or preference in 
     hiring over an individual who is preference eligible.
       ``(4) Under regulations prescribed by the Secretary, a 
     chief of mission may, consistent with all applicable laws and 
     regulations pertaining to the ICASS system, make available to 
     an eligible family member and a non-Department entity space 
     in an embassy or consulate for the purpose of the non-
     Department entity providing employment-related training for 
     eligible family members.
       ``(5) The Secretary may work with the Director of the 
     Office of Personnel Management and the heads of other Federal 
     departments and agencies to expand and facilitate the use of 
     existing Federal programs and resources in support of 
     eligible family member employment.
       ``(6) The Secretary may--
       ``(A) develop partnerships with firms in the private sector 
     to enhance employment opportunities for eligible family 
     members and to provide for improved job portability for such 
     spouses, especially in the case of an eligible family member 
     accompanying a sponsoring employee to a new geographical area 
     because of a change of permanent duty station of the 
     sponsoring employee; and
       ``(B) work with the United States Chamber of Commerce and 
     other appropriate private-sector entities to facilitate the 
     formation of such partnerships.
       ``(7) The Secretary may prescribe regulations to 
     incorporate hiring preferences for eligible family members of 
     sponsoring employees into contracts between the Department 
     and private sector entities.
       ``(8)(A) The Secretary of State may enter into a 
     cooperative agreement with the Council of State Governments 
     to assist with funding of the development of interstate 
     compacts on licensed occupations in order to alleviate the 
     burden associated with relicensing in such an occupation by 
     an eligible family member in connection with a permanent 
     change of duty station of their sponsoring employee.
       ``(B) The total amount of assistance provided under 
     subparagraph (A) for all interstate compacts in any fiscal 
     year may not exceed $4,000,000.
       ``(C) The amount provided under subparagraph (A) as 
     assistance for the development of any particular interstate 
     compact may not exceed $1,000,000.
       ``(D) Not later than February 28 each year, the Secretary 
     shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
     Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives a report on interstate compacts described in 
     subparagraph (A) developed through assistance provided under 
     that subparagraph. Each report shall set forth the following:
       ``(i) Any interstate compact developed during the preceding 
     calendar year, including the occupational licenses covered by 
     such compact and the States agreeing to enter into such 
     compact.
       ``(ii) Any interstate compact developed during a prior 
     calendar year into which one or more additional States agreed 
     to enter during the preceding calendar year.
       ``(E) The authority to enter into a cooperative agreement 
     under subparagraph (A), and to provide assistance described 
     in that subparagraph pursuant to such cooperative agreement, 
     expire on September 30, 2024.''; and
       (4) by adding after paragraph (9), as redesignated by 
     paragraph (2) of this subsection, the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(10) In this subsection, the term `eligible family 
     member' refers to family members of government employees 
     assigned abroad or hired for service at their post of 
     residence who are appointed by the Secretary of State or the 
     Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
     Development pursuant to sections 102, 202, 303, and 311.''.

     SEC. 1074. BRIEFING ON FOREIGN SERVICE FAMILY RESERVE CORPS.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall brief 
     the appropriate congressional committees on the status of 
     implementation of the Foreign Service Family Reserve Corps.
       (b) Elements.--The briefing required under subsection (a) 
     shall include the following elements:
       (1) A description of the status of implementation of the 
     Foreign Service Family Reserve Corps (FSFRC).
       (2) An assessment of the extent to which implementation was 
     impacted by the Department's hiring freeze and a detailed 
     explanation of the effect of any such impacts.
       (3) A description of the status of implementation of a 
     hiring preference for the FSFRC.
       (4) A detailed accounting of any individuals eligible for 
     membership in the FSFRC who were unable to begin working at a 
     new location as a result of being unable to transfer their 
     security clearance, including an assessment of whether they 
     would have been able to port their clearance as a member of 
     the FSFRC if the program had been fully implemented.
       (5) An estimate of the number of individuals who are 
     eligible to join the FSFRC worldwide and the categories, as 
     detailed in the Under Secretary for Management's guidance 
     dated May 3, 2016, under which those individuals would 
     enroll.
       (6) An estimate of the number of individuals who are 
     enrolled in the FSFRC worldwide and the categories, as 
     detailed in the Under Secretary for Management's guidance 
     dated May 3, 2016, under which those individuals enrolled.
       (7) An estimate of the number of individuals who were 
     enrolled in each phase of the implementation of the FSFRC as 
     detailed in guidance issued by the Under Secretary for 
     Management.
       (8) An estimate of the number of individuals enrolled in 
     the FSFRC who have successfully transferred a security 
     clearance to a new post since implementation of the program 
     began.
       (9) An estimate of the number of individuals enrolled in 
     the FSFRC who have been unable to successfully transfer a 
     security clearance to a new post since implementation of the 
     program began.
       (10) An estimate of the number of individuals who have 
     declined in writing to apply to the FSFRC.
       (c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this 
     section, the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
     means--
       (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate; and
       (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives.

     SEC. 1075. TREATMENT OF FAMILY MEMBERS SEEKING POSITIONS 
                   CUSTOMARILY FILLED BY FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS 
                   OR FOREIGN NATIONAL EMPLOYEES.

       Section 311 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 
     3951) is amended by adding at the end the following:

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       ``(e) The Secretary shall hold a family member of a 
     government employee described in subsection (a) seeking 
     employment in a position described in that subsection to the 
     same employment standards as those applicable to Foreign 
     Service officers, Foreign Service personnel, or foreign 
     national employees seeking the same or a substantially 
     similar position.''.

     SEC. 1076. IN-STATE TUITION RATES FOR MEMBERS OF QUALIFYING 
                   FEDERAL SERVICE.

       (a) In General.--Section 135 of the Higher Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 1015d) is amended--
       (1) in the section heading, by striking ``the armed forces 
     on active duty, spouses, and dependent children'' and 
     inserting ``qualifying federal service'';
       (2) in subsection (a), by striking ``member of the armed 
     forces who is on active duty for a period of more than 30 
     days and'' and inserting ``member of a qualifying Federal 
     service'';
       (3) in subsection (b), by striking ``member of the armed 
     forces'' and inserting ``member of a qualifying Federal 
     service''; and
       (4) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the following:
       ``(d) Definitions.--In this section, the term `member of a 
     qualifying Federal service' means--
       ``(1) a member of the armed forces (as defined in section 
     101 of title 10, United States Code) who is on active duty 
     for a period of more than 30 days (as defined in section 101 
     of title 10, United States Code); or
       ``(2) a member of the Foreign Service (as defined in 
     section 103 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 
     3903)) who is on active duty for a period of more than 30 
     days.''.
       (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made under subsection 
     (a) shall take effect at each public institution of higher 
     education in a State that receives assistance under the 
     Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.) for the 
     first period of enrollment at such institution that begins 
     after July 1, 2021.

     SEC. 1077. TERMINATION OF RESIDENTIAL OR MOTOR VEHICLE LEASES 
                   AND TELEPHONE SERVICE CONTRACTS FOR CERTAIN 
                   MEMBERS OF THE FOREIGN SERVICE.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 9 of title I of the Foreign 
     Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4081 et seq.) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new section:

     ``SEC. 907. TERMINATION OF RESIDENTIAL OR MOTOR VEHICLE 
                   LEASES AND TELEPHONE SERVICE CONTRACTS.

       ``The terms governing the termination of residential or 
     motor vehicle leases and telephone service contracts 
     described in sections 305 and 305A, respectively of the 
     Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. 3955 and 3956) 
     with respect to servicemembers who receive military orders 
     described in such Act shall apply in the same manner and to 
     the same extent to members of the Service who are posted 
     abroad at a Foreign Service post in accordance with this 
     Act.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents in section 2 
     of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 is amended by inserting 
     after the item relating to section 906 the following new 
     item:
       

``Sec. 907. Termination of residential or motor vehicle leases and 
              telephone service contracts.''.
                                 ______