Peace Corps Reauthorization Act of 2023

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1273 To amend the Peace Corps Act by providing better support for current and returned volunteers, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 1, 2023 Mr. GARAMENDI (for himself, Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana, Mr. MEEKS, and Mrs. RADEWAGEN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To amend the Peace Corps Act by providing better support for current and returned volunteers, 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 ‘‘Peace Corps Reauthor- 4 ization Act of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. FUNDING FOR THE PEACE CORPS; INTEGRATION OF 6 INFORMATION AGE VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNI- 7 TIES. 8 Section 3 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2502) 9 is amended— 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 1273 IH (1) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ‘‘that fiscal 1 year and the subsequent fiscal year’’ and inserting 2 ‘‘obligation until the last day of the subsequent fis- 3 cal year’’; and 4 (2) by redesignating subsection (h) as sub- 5 section (e). 6 SEC. 3. READJUSTMENT ALLOWANCES FOR VOLUNTEERS 7 AND VOLUNTEER LEADERS. 8 Section 5 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2504) 9 is amended— 10 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘insure their 11 health’’ and inserting ‘‘ensure their safety, their 12 health, and’’; 13 (2) in subsection (c)— 14 (A) by striking ‘‘$125’’ and inserting 15 ‘‘$375’’; 16 (B) by striking ‘‘his’’ each place such term 17 appears and inserting ‘‘the volunteer’s’’; and 18 (C) by striking ‘‘he’’ and inserting ‘‘the 19 volunteer’’; 20 (3) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub- 21 section (d); 22 (4) by inserting after subsection (d), as redesig- 23 nated, the following: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 1273 IH ‘‘(e) The Director shall consult with health experts 1 outside of the Peace Corps, including experts licensed in 2 the field of mental health, and follow guidance by the Cen- 3 ters for Disease Control and Prevention regarding the pre- 4 scription of medications to volunteers.’’; 5 (5) in subsection (h), by striking ‘‘he’’ and in- 6 serting ‘‘the President’’; 7 (6) in subsection (n)(2)— 8 (A) by striking ‘‘subsection (e)’’ each place 9 such term appears and inserting ‘‘subsection 10 (d)’’; and 11 (B) by striking ‘‘he’’ and inserting ‘‘the 12 President’’; and 13 (7) in subsection (o), by striking ‘‘his’’ each 14 place such term appears and inserting ‘‘the volun- 15 teer’s’’. 16 SEC. 4. RESTORATION OF VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES 17 FOR MAJOR DISRUPTIONS TO VOLUNTEER 18 SERVICE. 19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5 of the Peace Corps Act 20 (22 U.S.C. 2504), as amended by section 3 of this Act, 21 is further amended by adding at the end the following: 22 ‘‘(q) DISRUPTION OF SERVICE PROTOCOLS.— 23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish 24 processes for the safe return to service of returning 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 1273 IH Peace Corps volunteers whose service is interrupted 1 due to mandatory evacuations of volunteers due to 2 catastrophic events or global emergencies of unknow- 3 able duration, which processes shall include— 4 ‘‘(A) the establishment of monitoring and 5 communications systems, protocols, safety 6 measures, policies, and metrics for determining 7 the appropriate approaches for restoring volun- 8 teer opportunities for evacuated returned volun- 9 teers whose service is interrupted by a cata- 10 strophic event or global emergency; and 11 ‘‘(B) streamlining, to the fullest extent 12 practicable, application requirements for the re- 13 turn to service of such volunteers. 14 ‘‘(2) RETURN TO SERVICE.—Beginning on the 15 date on which any volunteer described in paragraph 16 (1) returns to service, the Director shall strive to af- 17 ford evacuated volunteers, to the fullest extent prac- 18 ticable, the opportunity— 19 ‘‘(A) to return to their previous country of 20 service, except for Peace Corps missions in 21 China; and 22 ‘‘(B) to continue their service in the most 23 needed sectors within the country in which they 24 had been serving immediately before their evac- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 1273 IH uation due to a catastrophic event or global 1 emergency, except for Peace Corps missions in 2 China.’’. 3 (b) MEDICAL PERSONNEL.—Section 5A(b) of the 4 Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2504a(b)) is amended, in the 5 matter preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, mental 6 health professionals’’ after ‘‘medical officers’’. 7 (c) VOLUNTEER LEADERS.—Section 6 of the Peace 8 Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2505) is amended— 9 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘$125’’ and 10 inserting ‘‘$375’’; and 11 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘he’’ and in- 12 serting ‘‘the President’’. 13 SEC. 5. HEALTH CARE CONTINUATION FOR PEACE CORPS 14 VOLUNTEERS. 15 Section 5(d) of the Peace Corps Act, as redesignated 16 by section 3(3) of this Act, is amended to read as follows: 17 ‘‘(d)(1) Volunteers shall receive such health care dur- 18 ing their service as the Director considers necessary or ap- 19 propriate, including, if necessary, services under section 20 8B. 21 ‘‘(2) Applicants for enrollment shall receive such 22 health examinations preparatory to their service, and ap- 23 plicants for enrollment who have accepted an invitation 24 to begin a period of training under section 8(a) shall re- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 1273 IH ceive, preparatory to their service, such immunization, 1 dental care, and information regarding prescription op- 2 tions and potential interactions, as may be necessary and 3 appropriate and in accordance with subsection (F). 4 ‘‘(3) Subject to such conditions as the Director may 5 prescribe, the health care described in paragraphs (1) and 6 (2) for serving volunteers, applicants for enrollment, or 7 returned volunteers may be provided in any facility of any 8 agency of the United States Government, and in such 9 cases the amount expended for maintaining and operating 10 such facility shall be reimbursed from appropriations 11 available under this Act. Health care may not be provided 12 under this subsection in a manner that is inconsistent with 13 the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act of 1997 14 (Public Law 105–12). 15 ‘‘(4) Not later than 30 days before the date on which 16 the period of service of a volunteer terminates, or 30 days 17 after such termination date if such termination is the re- 18 sult of an emergency, the Director, in consultation with 19 the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall pro- 20 vide detailed information to such volunteer regarding op- 21 tions for health care after termination other than health 22 care provided by the Peace Corps, including information 23 regarding— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 1273 IH ‘‘(A) how to find additional, detailed informa- 1 tion, including information regarding— 2 ‘‘(i) the application process and eligibility 3 requirements for medical assistance through a 4 State Medicaid plan under title XIX of the So- 5 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.), or 6 under a waiver of such plan; and 7 ‘‘(ii) health care option identification serv- 8 ices available through the public and private 9 sectors; 10 ‘‘(B) where detailed information on health plans 11 may be obtained; and 12 ‘‘(C) if such volunteer is 25 years of age or 13 younger, the eligibility of such volunteer to enroll as 14 a dependent child in a group health plan or health 15 insurance coverage in which the parent of such vol- 16 unteer is enrolled in such plan or coverage offers 17 such dependent coverage. 18 ‘‘(5) Paragraph (4) shall apply to volunteers whose 19 periods of service are subject to early termination.’’. 20 SEC. 6. ACCESS TO ANTIMALARIAL DRUGS AND HYGIENE 21 PRODUCTS FOR PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS. 22 Section 5A of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2504a) 23 is amended— 24 (1) by striking subsections (c) and (e); 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 1273 IH (2) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub- 1 section (e); 2 (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol- 3 lowing: 4 ‘‘(c) ANTIMALARIAL DRUGS.— 5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall consult 6 with experts at the Centers for Disease Control and 7 Prevention regarding recommendations for pre- 8 scribing malaria prophylaxis, in order to provide the 9 best standard of care within the context of the Peace 10 Corps environment. 11 ‘‘(2) CERTAIN TRAINING.—The Director shall 12 ensure that each Peace Corps medical officer serving 13 in a malaria-endemic country receives training in the 14 recognition of the side effects of such medications. 15 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—The Director shall con- 16 sult with the Assistant Secretary of Defense for 17 Health Affairs regarding the policy of using 18 mefloquine in the field as an antimalarial prophy- 19 lactic. 20 ‘‘(d) ACCESS TO HYGIENE PRODUCTS.—Not later 21 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the 22 Peace Corps Reauthorization Act of 2023, the Director 23 shall establish a comprehensive policy to ensure Peace 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 1273 IH Corps volunteers who require hygiene products are able 1 to access such products.’’. 2 SEC. 7. CODIFICATION OF CERTAIN EXECUTIVE ORDERS 3 RELATING TO EXISTING NONCOMPETITIVE 4 ELIGIBILITY FEDERAL HIRING STATUS FOR 5 RETURNING VOLUNTEERS AND EXTENSION 6 OF THE PERIOD OF SUCH STATUS. 7 The Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.) is 8 amended by inserting after section 5A the following: 9 ‘‘SEC. 5B. CODIFICATION OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS RELAT- 10 ING TO NONCOMPETITIVE ELIGIBILITY FED- 11 ERAL HIRING STATUS FOR RETURNING VOL- 12 UNTEERS. 13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), Execu- 14 tive Order 11103 (22 U.S.C. 2504 note; relating to Pro- 15 viding for the Appointment of Former Peace Corps Volun- 16 teers to the Civilian Career Services), as amended by Ex- 17 ecutive Order 12107 (44 Fed. Reg. 1055; relating to the 18 Civil Service Commission and Labor-Management in the 19 Federal Service), as in effect on the day before the date 20 of the enactment of the Peace Corps Reauthorization Act 21 of 2023, shall remain in effect and have the full force and 22 effect of law. 23 ‘‘(b) PERIOD OF ELIGIBILITY.— 24 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 1273 IH ‘‘(A) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—the term ‘Ex- 1 ecutive agency’— 2 ‘‘(i) has the meaning given such term 3 in section 105 of title 5, United States 4 Code; 5 ‘‘(ii) includes the United States Postal 6 Service and the Postal Regulatory Com- 7 mission; and 8 ‘‘(iii) does not include the Government 9 Accountability Office. 10 ‘‘(B) HIRING FREEZE.—The term ‘hiring 11 freeze’ means any memorandum, Executive 12 order, or other action by the President that 13 prohibits an Executive agency from filling va- 14 cant Federal civilian employee positions or cre- 15 ating new such positions. 16 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—The period of eligibility for 17 noncompetitive appointment to the civil service pro- 18 vided to an individual under subsection (a), includ- 19 ing any individual who is so eligible on the date of 20 the enactment of the Peace Corps Reauthorization 21 Act of 2023, shall be extended by the total number 22 of days, during such period, that— 23 ‘‘(A) a hiring freeze for civilian employees 24 of the executive branch is in effect by order of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 1273 IH the President with respect to any Executive 1 agency at which the individual has applied for 2 employment; 3 ‘‘(B) there is a lapse in appropriations 4 with respect to any Executive agency at which 5 the individual has applied for employment; or 6 ‘‘(C) the individual is receiving disability 7 compensation under section 8142 of title 5, 8 United States Code, based on the individual’s 9 service as a Peace Corps volunteer, retroactive 10 to the date the individual applied for such com- 11 pensation. 12 ‘‘(3) APPLICABILITY.—The period of eligibility 13 for noncompetitive appointment status to the civil 14 service under subsection (a) shall apply to a Peace 15 Corps volunteer— 16 ‘‘(A) whose service ended involuntarily as a 17 result of a suspension of volunteer operations 18 by the Director, but may not last longer than 19 1 year after the date on which such service 20 ended involuntarily; or 21 ‘‘(B) who re-enrolls as a volunteer in the 22 Peace Corps after completion of a term of serv- 23 ice.’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:14 Apr 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1273.IH H1273 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •HR 1273 IH SEC. 8. EXTENSION OF PERIOD OF EXISTING NONCOMPETI- 1 TIVE ELIGIBILITY FEDERAL HIRING STATUS 2 FOR RETURNING VOLUNTEERS. 3 The Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.) is 4 amended by inserting after section 5B, as added by section 5 7 of this Act, the following: 6 ‘‘SEC. 5C. EXTENSION OF PERIOD OF EXISTING NON- 7 COMPETITIVE ELIGIBILITY FEDERAL HIRING 8 STATUS FOR RETURNING VOLUNTEERS. 9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to section 5B, Executive 10 Order 11103 (22 U.S.C. 2504 note; relating to Providing 11 for the Appointment of Former Peace Corps Volunteers 12 to the Civilian Career Services), as amended by Executive 13 Order 12107 (44 Fed. Reg. 1055; relating to the Civil 14 Service Commission and Labor-Management in the Fed- 15 eral Service), as in effect on the day before the date of 16 the enactment of the Peace Corps Reauthorization Act of 17 2023, shall remain in effect and have the full force and 18 effect of law. 19 ‘‘ [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]