[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 199 (Tuesday, November 16, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8280-S8282]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4699. Mr. HAGERTY 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 subtitle G of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 1283. OFFICE OF GLOBAL WOMEN'S ISSUES AND THE WOMEN'S 
                   GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT AND PROSPERITY INITIATIVE.

       Chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

     ``SEC. 138. OFFICE OF GLOBAL WOMEN'S ISSUES AND THE WOMEN'S 
                   GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT AND PROSPERITY INITIATIVE.

       ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of State shall establish, 
     in the Office of the Secretary of State, the Office of Global 
     Women's Issues (referred to in this section as the `Office').
       ``(b) Purpose; Duties.--
       ``(1) Purpose.--The purpose of the Office is to advance 
     equal opportunity for women and the status of women and girls 
     in United States foreign policy.
       ``(2) Duties.--In carrying out the purpose described in 
     paragraph (1), the Office--
       ``(A)(i) shall advise the Secretary of State and provide 
     input on all activities, policies, programs, and funding 
     relating to equal opportunity for women and the advancement 
     of women and girls internationally to all bureaus and offices 
     of the Department of State; and
       ``(ii) may, as appropriate, provide to the international 
     programs of other Federal agencies input on all activities, 
     policies, programs, and funding relating to equal opportunity 
     for women and the advancement of women and girls 
     internationally;
       ``(B)(i) shall work to ensure that efforts to advance equal 
     opportunity for women and men and women's and girls' 
     empowerment are fully integrated into the programs, 
     structures, processes, and capacities of all bureaus and 
     offices of the Department of State; and
       ``(ii) may, as appropriate, work to ensure that efforts to 
     advance equal opportunity for women and men and women's and 
     girls' empowerment are fully integrated into the 
     international programs of other Federal agencies;
       ``(C) shall implement the Women's Global Development and 
     Prosperity Initiative, in accordance with subsection (c); and
       ``(D) may not engage in any activities not described in 
     subparagraphs (A) through (C).
       ``(c) Women's Global Development and Prosperity 
     Initiative.--
       ``(1) Establishment.--The Secretary of State shall 
     establish the Women's Global Development and Prosperity 
     Initiative (referred to in this subsection as the 
     `Initiative') to carry out the activities described in 
     paragraphs (2) through (4).
       ``(2) Women prospering in the workforce.--The Initiative 
     shall advance women in the workforce by improving their 
     access to quality vocational education and skills training, 
     which will enable them to secure jobs in their local 
     economies.
       ``(3) Women succeeding as entrepreneurs.--The Initiative 
     shall promote women's entrepreneurship and increasing access 
     to capital, financial services, markets, technical 
     assistance, and mentorship.
       ``(4) Women enabled in the economy.--The Initiative shall 
     identify and reduce the binding constraints in economic and 
     property laws and practices that prevent women's full and 
     free participation in the global economy and promote 
     foundational legal reforms, including--
       ``(A) ensuring that women can fully participate in the 
     workforce and engage in economic activities by--
       ``(i) ending impunity for violence against women;
       ``(ii) ensuring that women have the authority to sign legal 
     documents, such as contracts and court documents; and
       ``(iii) addressing unequal access to courts and 
     administrative bodies for women, whether officially or 
     through lack of proper enforcement;
       ``(B) ensuring women's equal access to credit and capital 
     to start and grow their businesses, savings, and investments, 
     including prohibiting discrimination in access to credit on 
     the basis of sex or marital status;
       ``(C) lifting restrictions on women's right to own, manage, 
     and make decisions relating to the use of property, including 
     repealing limitations on inheritance and ensuring the ability 
     to transfer, purchase, or lease such property;
       ``(D) addressing constraints on women's freedom of 
     movement, including sex-based restrictions on obtaining 
     passports and identification documents; and
       ``(E) promoting the free and equal participation of women 
     in the economy with regard to working hours, occupations, and 
     occupational tasks.
       ``(d) Supervision.--The Office shall be headed by an 
     Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues and the Women's 
     Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (referred to in 
     this section as the `Ambassador'), who shall--
       ``(1) be appointed by the President, with the advice and 
     consent of the Senate;
       ``(2) report directly to the Secretary; and

[[Page S8282]]

       ``(3) have the rank and status of Ambassador-at-Large.
       ``(e) Coordination.--United States Government efforts to 
     advance women's economic empowerment globally shall be 
     closely aligned and coordinated with the Initiative.
       ``(f) Abortion Neutrality.--
       ``(1) Prohibitions.--The Office, the Initiative, and the 
     Ambassador may not--
       ``(A) lobby other countries, including through multilateral 
     mechanisms and foreign nongovernmental organizations--
       ``(i) to change domestic laws or policies with respect to 
     abortion; or
       ``(ii) to include abortion as a programmatic requirement of 
     any foreign activities; or
       ``(B) provide Federal funding appropriated for foreign 
     assistance to pay for or to promote abortion.
       ``(2) Limitations on use of funds.--Amounts appropriated 
     for the Office or the Initiative may not be used--
       ``(A) to lobby other countries, including through 
     multilateral mechanisms and foreign nongovernmental 
     organizations--
       ``(i) to change domestic laws or policies with respect to 
     abortion; or
       ``(ii) to include abortion as a programmatic requirement of 
     any foreign activities; or
       ``(B) to provide Federal foreign assistance funding to pay 
     for or to promote abortion.
       ``(3) Construction.--Nothing in this subsection may be 
     construed to prevent--
       ``(A) the funding of activities for the purpose of treating 
     injuries or illnesses caused by legal or illegal abortions; 
     or
       ``(B) agencies or officers of the United States from 
     engaging in activities in opposition to policies of coercive 
     abortion or involuntary sterilization.
       ``(g) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this section, and not less frequently than 
     annually thereafter, the Secretary of State shall--
       ``(1) submit a written report to the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate, the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations of the Senate, the Committee on Appropriations of 
     the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Foreign 
     Affairs of the House of Representatives that describes the 
     implementation of this section, including--
       ``(A) measures taken to ensure compliance with subsection 
     (f); and
       ``(B) with respect to funds appropriated pursuant to 
     subsection (h)--
       ``(i) amounts awarded to prime recipients and subrecipients 
     since the end of the previous reporting period; and
       ``(ii) descriptions of each program for which such funds 
     are used; and
       ``(2) make such report publicly available.
       ``(h) Funding.--
       ``(1) In general.--There shall be reserved to carry out 
     this section, from funds made available for development 
     assistance programs of the United States Agency for 
     International Development, $200,000,000, for each of the 
     fiscal years 2022 through 2026, which shall be--
       ``(A) deposited into the Women's Global Development and 
     Prosperity Fund (W-GDP);
       ``(B) administered by the United States Agency for 
     International Development;
       ``(C) expended solely for the purpose, duties, and 
     activities set forth in subsections (b) and (c); and
       ``(D) expended, to the greatest extent practicable, in 
     support of removing legal barriers to women's economic 
     freedom in accordance with the findings of the W-GDP Women's 
     Economic Freedom Index report published by the Council of 
     Economic Advisers in February 2020.
       ``(2) Requirement.--Notwithstanding paragraph (1), amounts 
     reserved under paragraph (1) for fiscal year 2023, or for any 
     later fiscal year, may not be obligated or expended unless 
     the most recent report submitted pursuant to subsection 
     (g)(1) includes the information required under subparagraphs 
     (A) and (B) of subsection (g)(1).
       ``(3) Oversight.--The expenditure of amounts reserved under 
     paragraph (1) shall be jointly overseen by--
       ``(A) the United States Agency for International 
     Development;
       ``(B) the Ambassador; and
       ``(C) the Initiative.''.
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