[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 120 (Wednesday, July 24, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Page S5478]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 3157. Mr. SCHATZ submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2025 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 D of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 1266. INCLUSION OF PACIFIC ISLAND COUNTRIES IN 
                   DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND USAID PLANNING AND 
                   PROGRAM EVALUATION PROCESSES.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of State, in coordination 
     with the Administrator of the United States Agency for 
     International Development (in this section referred to as 
     ``USAID''), shall include Pacific Island countries in 
     existing strategic planning and multi-sector program 
     evaluation processes, including the Integrated Country 
     Strategies of the Department of State, the Country 
     Development Cooperation Strategies of USAID, and the Joint 
     Strategic Plan of the Department and USAID.
       (b) Programmatic Considerations.--Evaluations and 
     considerations for Pacific Island countries in the program 
     planning and strategic development processes described in 
     subsection (a) should include--
       (1) descriptions of the diplomatic and development 
     challenges of each Pacific Island country as those challenges 
     relate to the strategic, economic, and humanitarian interests 
     of the United States;
       (2) reviews of existing Department of State and USAID 
     programs to address the diplomatic and development challenges 
     of those countries identified under paragraph (1);
       (3) descriptions of the barriers, if any, to increasing 
     Department of State and USAID programming to Pacific Island 
     countries, including--
       (A) the income level of Pacific Island countries relative 
     to other regions where there is high demand for United States 
     foreign assistance to support development needs;
       (B) the relative capacity of Pacific Island countries to 
     absorb United States foreign assistance for diplomatic and 
     development needs through partner governments and civil 
     society institutions; and
       (C) any other factor that the Secretary or the 
     Administrator determines may constitute a barrier to 
     deploying or increasing United States foreign assistance to 
     the Pacific Island countries;
       (4) assessments of the presence of, degree of international 
     development by, partner country indebtedness to, and 
     political influence of malign foreign governments, such as 
     the Government of the People's Republic of China, and non-
     state actors;
       (5) assessments of new foreign economic assistance 
     modalities that could strengthen United States foreign 
     assistance in to Pacific Island countries, including the 
     deployment of technical assistance and asset recovery tools 
     to partner governments and civil society institutions to help 
     develop the capacity and expertise necessary to achieve self-
     sufficiency;
       (6) an evaluation of the existing budget and resource 
     management processes for the mission and work of the 
     Department of State and USAID with respect to programming in 
     Pacific Island countries;
       (7) an explanation of how the Secretary and the 
     Administrator will use existing programming processes, 
     including those with respect to development of an Integrated 
     Country Strategy, a Country Development Cooperation Strategy, 
     and the Joint Strategic Plan to advance the long-term growth, 
     governance, economic development, and resilience of Pacific 
     Island countries; and
       (8) any recommendations about appropriate budgetary, 
     resource management, and programmatic changes necessary to 
     assist in strengthening United States foreign assistance 
     programming in the Pacific Island countries.
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