[United States Statutes at Large, Volume 131, 115th Congress, 1st Session]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
<> ENROLLMENT CORRECTIONS--H.R.
601

Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring),
That in the enrollment of the bill H.R. 601, the Clerk of the House
of Representatives shall make the following corrections:
(1) Amend the long title so as to read: ``Making continuing
appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2018,
and for other purposes''.
(2) Insert before the first section 1 immediately following
the enacting clause the following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Continuing Appropriations Act, 2018
and Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Requirements Act,
2017''.

SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
Sec. 3. References.

DIVISION A--REINFORCING EDUCATION ACCOUNTABILITY IN DEVELOPMENT ACT

DIVISION B--SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR DISASTER RELIEF REQUIREMENTS
ACT, 2017

DIVISION C--TEMPORARY EXTENSION OF PUBLIC DEBT RELIEF

DIVISION D--CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2018

SEC. 3. REFERENCES.

Except as expressly provided otherwise, any reference to ``this
Act'' contained in any division of this Act shall be treated as
referring only to the provisions of that division.

[[Page 2315]]

DIVISION A--REINFORCING EDUCATION ACCOUNTABILITY IN DEVELOPMENT ACT

(3) In section 3, strike subparagraph (B) of section
105(c)(4) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as added by
such section 3, and all that follows through the end of such
section 3, and insert the following:
``(B) such assistance can produce a substantial,
measurable impact on children and educational systems;
and
``(C) there is the greatest opportunity to reduce
childhood and adolescence exposure to or engagement in
violent extremism or extremist ideologies.''.
(4) Insert after section 3 the following:

SEC. 4. COMPREHENSIVE INTEGRATED UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PROMOTE BASIC
EDUCATION.

(a) Strategy Required.--Not later than one year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a comprehensive United States strategy to be
carried out during the following five fiscal years to promote quality
basic education in partner countries by--
(1) seeking to equitably expand access to basic education
for all children, particularly marginalized children and
vulnerable groups; and
(2) measurably improving the quality of basic education and
learning outcomes.
(b) Requirement To Consult.--In developing the strategy required
under subsection (a), the President shall consult with--
(1) the appropriate congressional committees;
(2) relevant Executive branch agencies and officials;
(3) partner country governments; and
(4) local and international nongovernmental organizations,
including faith-based organizations and organizations
representing students, teachers, and parents, and other
development partners engaged in basic education assistance
programs in developing countries.
(c) Public Comment.--The President shall provide an opportunity for
public comment on the strategy required under subsection (a).
(d) Elements.--The strategy required under subsection (a)--
(1) shall be developed and implemented consistent with the
principles set forth in section 105(c) of the Foreign Assistance
Act of 1961, as added by section 3; and
(2) shall seek--
(A) to prioritize assistance provided under this
subsection to countries that are partners of the United
States and whose populations are most in need of
improved basic education, as determined by indicators
such as literacy and numeracy rates;
(B) to build the capacity of relevant actors in
partner countries, including in government and in civil
society, to develop and implement national education
plans that measurably improve basic education;

[[Page 2316]]

(C) to identify and replicate successful
interventions that improve access to and quality of
basic education in conflict settings and in partner
countries;
(D) to project general levels of resources needed to
achieve stated program objectives;
(E) to develop means to track implementation in
partner countries and ensure that such countries are
expending appropriate domestic resources and instituting
any relevant legal, regulatory, or institutional reforms
needed to achieve stated program objectives;
(F) to leverage United States capabilities,
including through technical assistance, training, and
research; and
(G) to improve coordination and reduce duplication
among relevant Executive branch agencies and officials,
other donors, multilateral institutions, nongovernmental
organizations, and governments in partner countries.

SEC. 5. IMPROVING COORDINATION AND OVERSIGHT.

(a) Senior Coordinator of United States International Basic
Education Assistance.--There is established within the United States
Agency for International Development a Senior Coordinator of United
States International Basic Education Assistance (referred to in this
section as the ``Senior Coordinator''). The Senior Coordinator shall be
appointed by the President, shall be a current USAID employee serving in
a career or noncareer position in the Senior Executive Service or at the
level of a Deputy Assistant Administrator or higher, and shall serve
concurrently as the Senior Coordinator.
(b) Duties.--
(1) In general.--The Senior Coordinator shall have primary
responsibility for the oversight and coordination of all
resources and activities of the United States Government
relating to the promotion of international basic education
programs and activities.
(2) Specific duties.--The Senior Coordinator shall--
(A) facilitate program and policy coordination of
international basic education programs and activities
among relevant Executive branch agencies and officials,
partner governments, multilateral institutions, the
private sector, and nongovernmental and civil society
organizations;
(B) develop and revise the strategy required under
section 4;
(C) monitor, evaluate, and report on activities
undertaken pursuant to the strategy required under
section 4; and
(D) establish due diligence criteria for all
recipients of funds provided by the United States to
carry out activities under this Act and the amendments
made by this Act.
(c) Offset.--In order to eliminate duplication of effort and
activities and to offset any costs incurred by the United States Agency
for International Development in appointing the Senior Coordinator under
subsection (a), the President shall, after consulting with appropriate
congressional committees, eliminate a position within the United States
Agency for International Development (unless

[[Page 2317]]

otherwise authorized or required by law) that the President determines
to be necessary to fully offset such costs and eliminate duplication.

SEC. 6. MONITORING AND EVALUATION OF PROGRAMS.

The President shall seek to ensure that programs carried out under
the strategy required under section 4 shall--
(1) apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies
to determine if programs and activities provided under this
subsection accomplish measurable improvements in literacy,
numeracy, or other basic skills development that prepare an
individual to be an active, productive member of society and the
workforce;
(2) include methodological guidance in the implementation
plan and support systemic data collection using internationally
comparable indicators, norms, and methodologies, to the extent
practicable and appropriate;
(3) disaggregate all data collected and reported by age,
gender, marital status, disability, and location, to the extent
practicable and appropriate;
(4) include funding for both short- and long-term monitoring
and evaluation to enable assessment of the sustainability and
scalability of assistance programs; and
(5) support the increased use and public availability of
education data for improved decision making, program
effectiveness, and monitoring of global progress.

SEC. 7. TRANSPARENCY AND REPORTING TO CONGRESS.

(a) Annual Report on the Implementation of Strategy.--Not later than
180 days after the end of each fiscal year during which the strategy
developed pursuant to section 4(a) is carried out, the President shall--
(1) submit a report to the appropriate congressional
committees that describes the implementation of such strategy;
and
(2) make the report described in paragraph (1) available to
the public.
(b) Matters To Be Included.--The report required under subsection
(a) shall include--
(1) a description of the efforts made by relevant Executive
branch agencies and officials to implement the strategy
developed pursuant to section 4, with a particular focus on the
activities carried out under the strategy;
(2) a description of the extent to which each partner
country selected to receive assistance for basic education meets
the priority criteria specified in section 105(c) of the Foreign
Assistance Act, as added by section 3; and
(3) a description of the progress achieved over the
reporting period toward meeting the goals, objectives,
benchmarks, and timeframes specified in the strategy developed
pursuant to section 4 at the program level, as developed
pursuant to monitoring and evaluation specified in section 6,
with particular emphasis on whether there are demonstrable
student improvements in literacy, numeracy, or other basic
skills development that prepare an individual to be an active,
productive member of society and the workforce.
(5) In division B, under the heading ``disaster relief
fund'', strike the first ``Provided further'' and insert
``Provided''.

[[Page 2318]]

(6) In section 101(c)(1) of division C, strike ``under
section 101(a)'' and insert ``under section 101(b)(1)''.
(7) Strike the final section 4 and all that follows through
the end.

Agreed to September 8, 2017.