[109th Congress Public Law 140]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]


[DOCID: f:publ140.109]

[[Page 2649]]

                     DEPARTMENT OF STATE AUTHORITIES

[[Page 119 STAT. 2650]]

Public Law 109-140
109th Congress

                                 An Act


 
  To provide certain authorities for the Department of State, and for 
         other purposes. <<NOTE: Dec. 22, 2005 -  [H.R. 4436]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. REDI CENTER.

    (a) Authorization.--The Secretary of State is authorized to provide 
for the participation by the United States in the Regional Emerging 
Diseases Intervention Center (in this section referred to as ``REDI 
Center'') in Singapore, as established by the Agreement described in 
subsection (c).
    (b) Consultation and Report.--
            (1) Consultation.--Prior to the review required under 
        Article 6.3 of the Agreement described in subsection (c), the 
        Secretary shall consult with the Committee on International 
        Relations of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
        Foreign Relations of the Senate.
            (2) Report.--In connection with the submission of the annual 
        congressional budget justification, the Secretary shall report 
        on efforts undertaken at the REDI Center with regard to 
        bioterrorism concerns.

    (c) Agreement Described.--The Agreement referred to in this section 
is the Agreement between the Governments of the United States of America 
and the Republic of Singapore Establishing the Regional Emerging 
Diseases Intervention Center, done at Singapore, November 22, 2005.

SEC. 2. RETENTION OF MEDICAL REIMBURSEMENTS.

    Section 904 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4084) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(g) Reimbursements paid to the Department of State for funding the 
costs of medical care abroad for employees and eligible family members 
shall be credited to the currently available applicable appropriation 
account. Such reimbursements shall be available for obligation and 
expenditure during the fiscal year in which they are received or for 
such longer period of time as may be provided in law.''.

SEC. 3. ACCOUNTABILITY REVIEW BOARDS.

    Section 301(a) of the Diplomatic Security Act (22 U.S.C. 4831(a)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``paragraph (2)'' and 
        inserting ``paragraphs (2) and (3)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(3) Facilities in afghanistan and iraq.--

[[Page 119 STAT. 2651]]

                    ``(A) Limited exemptions from requirement to convene 
                board.--The Secretary of State is not required to 
                convene a Board in the case of an incident that--
                          ``(i) involves serious injury, loss of life, 
                      or significant destruction of property at, or 
                      related to, a United States Government mission in 
                      Afghanistan or Iraq; and
                          ``(ii) occurs during the period beginning on 
                      October 1, 2005, and ending on September 30, 2009.
                    ``(B) Reporting requirements.--In the case of an 
                incident described in subparagraph (A), the Secretary 
                shall--
                          ``(i) <<NOTE: Notification.>> promptly notify 
                      the Committee on International Relations of the 
                      House of Representatives and the Committee on 
                      Foreign Relations of the Senate of the incident;
                          ``(ii) conduct an inquiry of the incident; and
                          ``(iii) upon completion of the inquiry 
                      required by clause (ii), submit to each such 
                      Committee a report on the findings and 
                      recommendations related to such inquiry and the 
                      actions taken with respect to such 
                      recommendations.''.

SEC. 4. INCREASED LIMITS APPLICABLE TO POST DIFFERENTIALS AND DANGER PAY 
            ALLOWANCES.

    (a) Repeal of Limited-Scope Effective Date for Previous Increase.--
Subsection (c) of section 591 of the Foreign Operations, Export 
Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2004 (division D of 
Public Law 108-199) <<NOTE: 5 USC 5925 note.>> is repealed.

    (b) Post Differentials.--Section 5925(a) of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended in the third sentence by striking ``25 percent of the 
rate of basic pay or, in the case of an employee of the United States 
Agency for International Development,''.
    (c) Danger Pay Allowances.--Section 5928 of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ``25 percent of the basic pay of the 
employee or 35 percent of the basic pay of the employee in the case of 
an employee of the United States Agency for International Development'' 
both places that it appears and inserting ``35 percent of the basic pay 
of the employee''.
    (d) <<NOTE: 5 USC 5925 note.>> Criteria.--The Secretary of State 
shall inform the Committee on International Relations of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate of 
the criteria to be used in determinations of appropriate adjustments in 
post differentials under section 5925(a) of title 5, United States Code, 
as amended by subsection (b), and danger pay allowances under section 
5928 of title 5, United States Code, as amended by subsection (c).

    (e) Study and Report.--Not later than two years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall conduct a study 
assessing the effect of the increases in post differentials and danger 
pay allowances made by the amendments in subsections (b) and (c), 
respectively, in filling ``hard-to-fill'' positions and shall submit a 
report of such study to the committees specified in subsection (d) and 
to the Committee on Government Reform of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
Senate.

[[Page 119 STAT. 2652]]

SEC. 5. CLARIFICATION OF FOREIGN SERVICE GRIEVANCE BOARD PROCEDURES.

    Section 1106(8) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 
4136(8)) is amended in the first sentence--
            (1) by inserting ``the involuntary separation of the 
        grievant (other than an involuntary separation for cause under 
        section 610(a)),'' after ``considering''; and
            (2) by striking ``the grievant or'' and inserting ``the 
        grievant, or''.

SEC. 6. PERSONAL SERVICES CONTRACTING PILOT PROGRAM.

    Section 504(c) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal 
Year 2003 (Public Law 107-228) <<NOTE: 22 USC 6206 note.>> is amended by 
striking ``December 31, 2005'' and inserting ``December 31, 2006''.

SEC. 7. OFFICIAL RESIDENCE EXPENSES.

    Section 5913 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection:
    ``(c) Funds made available under subsection (b) may be provided in 
advance to persons eligible to receive reimbursements.''.

SEC. 8. COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS EDUCATION BENEFITS.

    Section 305(a) of the United States International Broadcasting Act 
of 1994 (22 U.S.C. 6204(a)) is amended by inserting after paragraph (18) 
the following new paragraph:
            ``(19)(A) To provide for the payment of primary and 
        secondary school expenses for dependents of personnel stationed 
        in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) at a 
        cost not to exceed expenses authorized by the Department of 
        Defense for such schooling for dependents of members of the 
        Armed Forces stationed in the Commonwealth, if the Board 
        determines that schools available in the Commonwealth are unable 
        to provide adequately for the education of the dependents of 
        such personnel.
            ``(B) To provide transportation for dependents of such 
        personnel between their places of residence and those schools 
        for which expenses are provided under subparagraph (A), if

[[Page 119 STAT. 2653]]

        the Board determines that such schools are not accessible by 
        public means of transportation.''.

    Approved December 22, 2005.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 4436:
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 151 (2005):
            Dec. 14, considered and passed House.
            Dec. 15, considered and passed Senate.

                                  <all>