I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1253 To modernize and streamline the public diplomacy capabilities of the Depart- ment of State, increase evaluation of public diplomacy programming, enhance strategic planning for the Department’s public diplomacy phys- ical presence abroad, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 23, 2021 Mr. MEUSER (for himself and Mr. MCCAUL) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To modernize and streamline the public diplomacy capabili- ties of the Department of State, increase evaluation of public diplomacy programming, enhance strategic plan- ning for the Department’s public diplomacy physical presence abroad, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Public Diplomacy Mod- 4 ernization Act of 2021’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1253 IH SEC. 2. AVOIDING DUPLICATION OF PROGRAMS AND EF- 1 FORTS. 2 The Secretary of State shall— 3 (1) identify opportunities for greater efficiency 4 of operations, including through improved coordina- 5 tion of efforts across public diplomacy bureaus and 6 offices of the Department of State; and 7 (2) maximize shared use of resources between, 8 and within, such public diplomacy bureaus and of- 9 fices in cases in which programs, facilities, or admin- 10 istrative functions are duplicative or substantially 11 overlapping. 12 SEC. 3. IMPROVING RESEARCH AND EVALUATION OF PUB- 13 LIC DIPLOMACY. 14 (a) RESEARCH AND EVALUATION ACTIVITIES.—The 15 Secretary of State, acting through the Director of Re- 16 search and Evaluation appointed pursuant to subsection 17 (b), shall— 18 (1) conduct regular research and evaluation of 19 public diplomacy programs and activities of the De- 20 partment, including through the routine use of audi- 21 ence research, digital analytics, and impact evalua- 22 tions, to plan and execute such programs and activi- 23 ties; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1253 IH (2) make available to Congress the findings of 1 the research and evaluations conducted under para- 2 graph (1). 3 (b) DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND EVALUATION.— 4 (1) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 90 days 5 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec- 6 retary of State shall appoint a Director of Research 7 and Evaluation (referred to in this subsection as the 8 ‘‘Director’’) in the Office of Policy, Planning, and 9 Resources for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs 10 of the Department. 11 (2) LIMITATION ON APPOINTMENT.—The ap- 12 pointment of the Director pursuant to paragraph (1) 13 shall not result in an increase in the overall full-time 14 equivalent positions within the Department of State. 15 (3) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Director shall— 16 (A) coordinate and oversee the research 17 and evaluation of public diplomacy programs 18 and activities of the Department of State in 19 order to— 20 (i) improve public diplomacy strate- 21 gies and tactics; and 22 (ii) ensure that such programs and 23 activities are increasing the knowledge, un- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1253 IH derstanding, and trust of the United 1 States by relevant target audiences; 2 (B) routinely organize and oversee audi- 3 ence research, digital analytics, and impact 4 evaluations across all public diplomacy bureaus 5 and offices of the Department; 6 (C) support United States diplomatic 7 posts’ public affairs sections; 8 (D) share appropriate public diplomacy re- 9 search and evaluation information within the 10 Department and with other appropriate Federal 11 departments and agencies; 12 (E) regularly design and coordinate stand- 13 ardized research questions, methodologies, and 14 procedures to ensure that public diplomacy pro- 15 grams and activities across all public diplomacy 16 bureaus and offices are designed to meet appro- 17 priate foreign policy objectives; and 18 (F) report biannually to the United States 19 Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, 20 through the Subcommittee on Research and 21 Evaluation established pursuant to subsection 22 (f), regarding the research and evaluation of all 23 public diplomacy bureaus and offices. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1253 IH (4) GUIDANCE AND TRAINING.—Not later than 1 one year after the appointment of the Director pur- 2 suant to paragraph (1), the Director shall develop 3 guidance and training, including curriculum for use 4 by the Foreign Service Institute, for all public diplo- 5 macy officers of the Department regarding the read- 6 ing and interpretation of public diplomacy program 7 and activity evaluation findings to ensure that such 8 findings and related lessons learned are implemented 9 in the planning and evaluation of all public diplo- 10 macy programs and activities of the Department. 11 (c) PRIORITIZING RESEARCH AND EVALUATION.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The head of the Office of 13 Policy, Planning, and Resources for Public Diplo- 14 macy and Public Affairs of the Department of State 15 shall ensure that research and evaluation of public 16 diplomacy and activities of the Department, as co- 17 ordinated and overseen by the Director pursuant to 18 subsection (b), supports strategic planning and re- 19 source allocation across all public diplomacy bureaus 20 and offices of the Department. 21 (2) ALLOCATION OF RESOURCES.—Amounts al- 22 located for the purpose of research and evaluation of 23 public diplomacy programs and activities of the De- 24 partment of State pursuant to subsection (b) shall 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1253 IH be made available to be disbursed at the direction of 1 the Director of Research and Evaluation among the 2 research and evaluation staff across all public diplo- 3 macy bureaus and offices of the Department. 4 (3) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 5 Congress that the Department of State should 6 gradually increase its allocation of funds made avail- 7 able under the headings ‘‘Educational and Cultural 8 Exchange Programs’’ and ‘‘Diplomatic Programs’’ 9 for research and evaluation of public diplomacy pro- 10 grams and activities of the Department pursuant to 11 subsection (b) to a percentage of program funds that 12 is commensurate with Federal Government best 13 practices. 14 (d) LIMITED EXEMPTION RELATING TO THE PAPER- 15 WORK REDUCTION ACT.—Chapter 35 of title 44, United 16 States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Paperwork Reduc- 17 tion Act’’) shall not apply to the collection of information 18 directed at any individuals conducted by, or on behalf of, 19 the Department of State for the purpose of audience re- 20 search, monitoring, and evaluations, and in connection 21 with the Department’s activities conducted pursuant to 22 any of the following: 23 (1) The Mutual Educational and Cultural Ex- 24 change Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2451 et seq.). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1253 IH (2) Section 1287 of the National Defense Au- 1 thorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (Public Law 2 114–328; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note). 3 (3) The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 4 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.). 5 (e) LIMITED EXEMPTION RELATING TO THE PRI- 6 VACY ACT.— 7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Department of State 8 shall maintain, collect, use, and disseminate records 9 (as such term is defined in section 552a(a)(4) of 10 title 5, United States Code) for audience research, 11 digital analytics, and impact evaluation of commu- 12 nications related to public diplomacy efforts intended 13 for foreign audiences. 14 (2) CONDITIONS.—Audience research, digital 15 analytics, and impact evaluations under paragraph 16 (1) shall be— 17 (A) reasonably tailored to meet the pur- 18 poses of this subsection; and 19 (B) carried out with due regard for privacy 20 and civil liberties guidance and oversight. 21 (f) UNITED STATES ADVISORY COMMISSION ON PUB- 22 LIC DIPLOMACY.— 23 (1) SUBCOMMITTEE FOR RESEARCH AND EVAL- 24 UATION.—The United States Advisory Commission 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1253 IH on Public Diplomacy shall establish a Subcommittee 1 on Research and Evaluation to monitor and advise 2 regarding audience research, digital analytics, and 3 impact evaluations carried out by the Department of 4 State and the United States Agency for Global 5 Media. 6 (2) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Subcommittee on 7 Research and Evaluation established pursuant to 8 paragraph (1) shall submit to the Committee on 9 Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and 10 the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate 11 an annual report, in conjunction with the United 12 States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy’s 13 Comprehensive Annual Report on the performance 14 of the Department of State and the United States 15 Agency for Global Media, describing all actions 16 taken by the Subcommittee pursuant to paragraph 17 (1) and any findings made as a result of such ac- 18 tions. 19 SEC. 4. PERMANENT REAUTHORIZATION OF THE UNITED 20 STATES ADVISORY COMMISSION ON PUBLIC 21 DIPLOMACY. 22 Section 1334 of the Foreign Affairs Reform and Re- 23 structuring Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6553) is amended— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1253 IH (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘SUN- 1 SET’’ and inserting ‘‘CONTINUATION’’; and 2 (2) by striking ‘‘until October 1, 2021’’. 3 SEC. 5. STREAMLINING OF SUPPORT FUNCTIONS. 4 (a) WORKING GROUP ESTABLISHED.—Not later than 5 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 6 Secretary of State shall establish a working group to ex- 7 plore the possibilities and cost-benefit analysis of transi- 8 tioning to a shared services model as such pertains to 9 human resources, travel, purchasing, budgetary planning, 10 and all other executive support functions for all bureaus 11 of the Department of State that report to the Under Sec- 12 retary for Public Diplomacy of the Department. 13 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 14 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 15 submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 16 of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Rela- 17 tions of the Senate a plan to implement any such findings 18 of the working group established under subsection (a). 19 SEC. 6. GUIDANCE FOR CLOSURE OF PUBLIC DIPLOMACY 20 FACILITIES. 21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 22 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 23 shall adopt, and include in the Foreign Affairs Manual, 24 guidelines to collect and utilize information from each dip- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1253 IH lomatic post at which the construction of a new embassy 1 compound or new consulate compound would result in the 2 closure or co-location of an American Space, American 3 Center, American Corner, or any other public diplomacy 4 facility under the Secure Embassy Construction and 5 Counterterrorism Act of 1999 (22 U.S.C. 4865 et seq.). 6 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—The guidelines required by 7 subsection (a) shall include the following: 8 (1) Standardized notification to each chief of 9 mission at a diplomatic post describing the require- 10 ments of the Secure Embassy Construction and 11 Counterterrorism Act of 1999 and the impact on the 12 mission footprint of such requirements. 13 (2) An assessment and recommendations from 14 each chief of mission of potential impacts to public 15 diplomacy programming at such diplomatic post if 16 any public diplomacy facility referred to in section 17 (a) is closed or staff is co-located in accordance with 18 such Act. 19 (3) A process by which assessments and rec- 20 ommendations under paragraph (2) are considered 21 by the Secretary of State and the appropriate Under 22 Secretaries and Assistant Secretaries of the Depart- 23 ment of State. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 1253 IH (4) Notification to the Committee on Foreign 1 Affairs of the House of Representatives and the 2 Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, prior 3 to the initiation of a new embassy compound or new 4 consulate compound design, of the intent to close 5 any such public diplomacy facility or co-locate public 6 diplomacy staff in accordance with such Act. 7 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 8 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 9 submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 10 of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Rela- 11 tions of the Senate a report containing the guidelines re- 12 quired under subsection (a) and any recommendations for 13 any modifications to such guidelines. 14 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 15 In this Act: 16 (1) AUDIENCE RESEARCH.—The term ‘‘audi- 17 ence research’’ means research conducted at the out- 18 set of a public diplomacy program or the outset of 19 campaign planning and design regarding specific au- 20 dience segments to understand the attitudes, inter- 21 ests, knowledge, and behaviors of such audience seg- 22 ments. 23 (2) DIGITAL ANALYTICS.—The term ‘‘digital 24 analytics’’ means the analysis of qualitative and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:20 Mar 21, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1253.IH H1253 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 1253 IH quantitative data, accumulated in digital format, to 1 indicate the outputs and outcomes of a public diplo- 2 macy program or campaign. 3 (3) IMPACT EVALUATION.—The term ‘‘impact 4 evaluation’’ means an assessment of the changes in 5 the audience targeted by a public diplomacy program 6 or campaign that can be attribute [Text truncated for display. 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