[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 124 (Monday, July 21, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4510-S4511]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2960. Mr. SCHATZ submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill S. 2296, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2026 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 appropriate place in title XII, insert the 
     following:

     SEC. __. REPORT ON STAFFING AND FACILITIES OF THE UNITED 
                   STATES MISSION TO AUSTRALIA.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) Australia is one of the closest allies of the United 
     States and is integral to the national security interests of 
     the United States in the Indo-Pacific;
       (2) the United States-Australia alliance has seen 
     tremendous growth, including through the AUKUS partnership, 
     as part of which the United States plans to rotate up to four 
     Virginia-class attack submarines out of the Australian port 
     of Perth by 2027; and
       (3) staffing and facilities across the United States 
     Mission to Australia do not seem adequately resourced to 
     support an expanding mission set and are no longer 
     commensurate with strategic developments, as the United 
     States will need to station many more Americans, civilians 
     and military, in western Australia to support the maintenance 
     and supply of those submarines.
       (b) Report.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 
     submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
     Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee 
     on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the 
     House of Representatives a report on staffing and facility 
     requirements for the United States Mission to Australia.
       (2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall 
     include the following:

[[Page S4511]]

       (A) An assessment of how many Americans, including United 
     States Government personnel (including members of the United 
     States Armed Forces) and their family members and dependents, 
     the Department of State expects in the Perth area and across 
     Australia during the two-year period beginning on the date on 
     which the report is submitted.
       (B) An assessment of requirements for those Americans, 
     including with respect to housing, schooling, and office 
     space.
       (C) A description of how many staff are employed at the 
     United States Consulate in Perth and the roles of such staff.
       (D) Information regarding any discussions or decisions at 
     the Department of State about transferring staff from 
     elsewhere within the United States Mission to Australia to 
     increase staffing in Perth and the tradeoffs of such 
     personnel transfers.
       (E) A status update on the interagency process that began 
     in 2024 to assess the needs of the United States Mission to 
     Australia.
       (F) An assessment of the impact the Department of State 
     reorganization and workforce reduction is having on the 
     staffing contemplated by that process.
       (G) An estimate of--
       (i) the total cost of expanding staffing in Perth to 
     sufficiently serve the increased presence of United States 
     citizens in the area and to achieve any other foreign policy 
     objectives of the United States;
       (ii) the costs of such expansion that are expected to be 
     covered by the Department of State; and
       (iii) the costs of such expansion that are expected to be 
     covered by the United States Indo-Pacific Command or any 
     other United States Government department or agency.
                                 ______