Foreign Trade Modernization Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7408 To abolish the United States and Foreign Commercial Service, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 29, 2020 Mr. MCCAUL (for himself and Mr. CUELLAR) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Financial Services, and Small Business, for a pe- riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con- sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com- mittee concerned A BILL To abolish the United States and Foreign Commercial Service, 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 ‘‘Foreign Trade Mod- 4 ernization Act of 2020’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7408 IH SEC. 2. ABOLISHMENT OF UNITED STATES AND FOREIGN 1 COMMERCIAL SERVICE. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The United States and Foreign 3 Commercial Service is abolished. 4 (b) TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS.—There are trans- 5 ferred to the Secretary of State all functions that, on the 6 day before the date of the enactment of this Act, were 7 authorized to be performed by the United States and For- 8 eign Commercial Service under any statute, reorganization 9 plan, Executive order, or other provision of law. 10 SEC. 3. TRANSFER AND ALLOCATION OF PROPERTY AND 11 APPROPRIATIONS. 12 The Secretary of Commerce shall transfer to the Sec- 13 retary of State all contracts, property, records, and unex- 14 pended balance of appropriations, authorizations, alloca- 15 tions, and other funds employed, held, used, arising from, 16 available to, or to be made available in connection with 17 the functions of the United States and Foreign Commer- 18 cial Service transferred under section 2(b), as may be nec- 19 essary to carry out this Act. 20 SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF PERSONNEL. 21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 22 date of the enactment of this Act— 23 (1) the Secretary of Commerce shall transfer to 24 the Department of State those individuals who on 25 the day before the date of the enactment of this Act, 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7408 IH were officers or employees of the United States and 1 Foreign Commercial Service; and 2 (2) the Secretary of State shall, in accordance 3 with subsections (b) and (c), receive those individ- 4 uals into the Foreign Service of the United States 5 and convert them, if need be, to the appropriate 6 class in the Foreign Service Schedule established 7 under the Foreign Service Act of 1980. 8 (b) NEW POSITIONS.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Those individuals trans- 10 ferred to the Department of State under subsection 11 (a) shall be deemed economic officers of the Foreign 12 Service and shall not be subject to any exam or 13 training under the Foreign Service Act of 1980 as 14 a condition of assuming such position. 15 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT REGARDING 16 TITLE CHANGE OF CERTAIN OFFICERS OF THE FOR- 17 EIGN SERVICE.—Subsection (d) of section 708 of the 18 Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4028) is 19 amended by striking ‘‘and commercial’’ before ‘‘offi- 20 cers’’. 21 (3) SAVINGS PROVISION REGARDING CERTAIN 22 OFFICERS OF THE FOREIGN SERVICE SUBJECT TO 23 TITLE CHANGE.—Any individual in the Foreign 24 Service who as of the day before the date of the en- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:44 Jul 29, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7408 IH actment of this Act is a commercial officer shall be 1 known and referred to as an economic officer on and 2 after such date, and shall otherwise— 3 (A) maintain his or her grade, rank, and 4 class in the Foreign Service Schedule with the 5 same tenure held immediately preceding such 6 title change; and 7 (B) maintain his or her same rate of basic 8 pay or basic salary rate immediately preceding 9 such title change. 10 (c) SAVINGS PROVISION REGARDING CERTAIN OFFI- 11 CERS OR EMPLOYEES OF THE UNITED STATES AND FOR- 12 EIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICE.—Any individual transferred 13 to the Department of State under subsection (a) shall— 14 (1) maintain his or her grade, rank, and class 15 in the Foreign Service Schedule with the same ten- 16 ure held immediately preceding transfer; 17 (2) maintain his or her same rate of basic pay 18 or basic salary rate immediately preceding transfer; 19 and 20 (3) be made subject to the Foreign Service Act 21 of 1980 and any other law, rule, regulation, adminis- 22 trative action, and Executive order governing the 23 Foreign Service of the United States. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:44 Jul 29, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 7408 IH SEC. 5. INCIDENTAL DISPOSITIONS. 1 The Director of the Office of Management and Budg- 2 et, if requested by the Secretary of State, shall make such 3 incidental dispositions of personnel, assets, liabilities, 4 grants, contracts, property, records, and unexpended bal- 5 ances of appropriations, authorizations, allocations, and 6 other funds held, used, arising from, available to, or to 7 be made available in connection with the functions of the 8 United States and Foreign Commercial Service trans- 9 ferred under section 2(b), as may be necessary to carry 10 out this Act. 11 SEC. 6. SAVINGS PROVISION. 12 All orders, determinations, rules, regulations, per- 13 mits, agreements, registrations, privileges, and other ad- 14 ministrative actions— 15 (1) that have been issued, made, granted, or al- 16 lowed to become effective by the President, any Fed- 17 eral agency or official thereof, or by a court of com- 18 petent jurisdiction, in the performance of functions 19 exercised by the United States and Foreign Com- 20 mercial Service on the day before the date of the en- 21 actment of this Act; and 22 (2) that are in effect or were final as of the 23 date of the enactment of this Act, or are to become 24 effective on or after the date of the enactment of 25 this Act, 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 7408 IH shall continue in effect according to their terms until 1 modified, terminated, superseded, set aside, or revoked in 2 accordance with law by the President, the Secretary of 3 State, or other authorized official, a court of competent 4 jurisdiction, or by operation of law. 5 SEC. 7. ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE EXPORTS OF GOODS AND 6 SERVICES FROM THE UNITED STATES. 7 The Championing American Business through Diplo- 8 macy Act of 2019 (enacted as title VII of subtitle H of 9 title I of division J of the Further Consolidated Appropria- 10 tions Act, 2020 (Public Law 116–94; 22 U.S.C. 9901 et 11 seq.)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 12 ‘‘SEC. 712. ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE EXPORTS OF GOODS 13 AND SERVICES FROM THE UNITED STATES. 14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State, acting 15 through the Assistant Secretary for Economic and Busi- 16 ness Matters and the relevant chiefs of mission, shall place 17 primary emphasis on the promotion of exports of goods 18 and services from the United States, particularly by small 19 and medium-sized businesses, and on the protection of 20 United States business interests abroad by carrying out 21 activities such as the following: 22 ‘‘(1) Identifying United States businesses with 23 the potential to export goods and services and pro- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 7408 IH viding such businesses with advice and information 1 on establishing export businesses. 2 ‘‘(2) Providing United States exporters with in- 3 formation and advice on the necessary adaptation of 4 product design and marketing strategy to meet the 5 differing cultural and technical requirements of for- 6 eign countries. 7 ‘‘(3) Providing United States exporters with ac- 8 tual leads and an introduction to contacts within 9 foreign countries. 10 ‘‘(4) Assisting United States exporters in locat- 11 ing reliable sources of business services in foreign 12 countries and in their dealings with foreign govern- 13 ments and enterprises owned by foreign govern- 14 ments. 15 ‘‘(5) Assisting the coordination of the efforts of 16 State and local agencies and private organizations 17 that seek to promote United States business inter- 18 ests in foreign countries so as to maximize the effec- 19 tiveness and minimize the duplication of efforts of 20 such agencies and organizations. 21 ‘‘(6) Utilizing district offices established under 22 subsection (b) as one-stop shops for United States 23 exporters by— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 7408 IH ‘‘(A) providing exporters with information 1 on all export promotion and export finance ac- 2 tivities of the Federal Government; 3 ‘‘(B) assisting exporters in identifying 4 which Federal programs may be of greatest as- 5 sistance; and 6 ‘‘(C) assisting exporters in making contact 7 with such identified Federal programs. 8 ‘‘(7) Providing United States exporters and ex- 9 port finance institutions with information on all fi- 10 nancing and insurance programs of the Export-Im- 11 port Bank of the United States, the United States 12 International Development Finance Corporation, the 13 Trade and Development Program, and the Small 14 Business Administration, including providing assist- 15 ance in completing applications for such programs 16 and working with exporters and export finance insti- 17 tutions to address any deficiencies in such applica- 18 tions that have been submitted. 19 ‘‘(b) DISTRICT OFFICES.—The Secretary of State 20 shall establish, or maintain if transferred to the Secretary 21 under the Foreign Trade Modernization Act of 2020, dis- 22 trict offices of the Foreign Service in any United States 23 city in a region in which the Secretary, in consultation 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 7408 IH with the Secretary of Commerce, determines that there is 1 a need for Federal Government export assistance. 2 ‘‘(c) COOPERATION IN FEDERAL FINANCING AND IN- 3 SURANCE PROGRAMS.—To assist the Foreign Service in 4 carrying out subsection (a)(7), the Export-Import Bank 5 of the United States, the United States International De- 6 velopment Finance Corporation, the Trade and Develop- 7 ment Program, and the Small Business Administration 8 shall each— 9 ‘‘(1) provide to the Foreign Service complete 10 and current information on all the programs and fi- 11 nancing practices of each such agency; and 12 ‘‘(2) undertake a training program regarding 13 such programs and practices for economic officers of 14 the Foreign Service.’’. 15 SEC. 8. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 16 (a) OMNIBUS TRADE AND COMPETITIVENESS ACT OF 17 1988.— 18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The following provisions of 19 the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 20 1988 are repealed: 21 (A) Section 2301 (15 U.S.C. 4721). 22 (B) Subsection (c) of section 2303 (15 23 U.S.C. 4723). 24 (C) Section 2306 (15 U.S.C. 4725). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 7408 IH (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 2303 1 of such Act (15 U.S.C. 4723) is amended by redes- 2 ignating subsection (d) as subsection (c). 3 (b) TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section 5315 4 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘As- 5 sistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of 6 the United States and Foreign Commercial Service.’’. 7 (c) TRADE FACILITATION AND TRADE ENFORCE- 8 MENT ACT OF 2015.—Section 505(c)(1) of the Trade Fa- 9 cilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (15 U.S.C. 10 4721a(c)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘acting through the 11 head of the United States Foreign and Commercial Serv- 12 ice’’ and inserting ‘‘in consultation with the Assistant Sec- 13 retary of State for Economic and Business Affairs’’. 14 (d) FOREIGN SERVICE ACT OF 1980.—The Foreign 15 Service Act of 1980 is amended— 16 (1) in section 202(a) (22 U.S.C 3922(a))— 17 (A) by striking paragraph (3); 18 (B) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 19 paragraph (3); and 20 (C) by moving the margins of paragraph 21 (3) (as so redesignated) two ems to the left; 22 and 23 (2) in section 305(c) (22 U.S.C. 3945(c))— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 7408 IH (A) by striking ‘‘(1) Appointments to the 1 Senior Foreign Service by the Secretary of 2 Commerce shall be excluded’’ and inserting 3 ‘‘Appointments to the Senior Foreign Service 4 by the Secretary of Commerce made on or be- 5 fore the date of the enactment of the Foreign 6 Trade Modernization Act of 2020 shall be ex- 7 cluded’’; and 8 (B) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3). 9 (e) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any statute, re- 10 organization plan, Executive order, regulation, agreement, 11 determination, or other official document or proceeding 12 to— 13 (1) the Assistant Secretary of Commerce and 14 Director General of the Commercial Service shall be 15 deemed to refer to the Secretary of State; and 16 (2) the United States and Foreign Commercial 17 Service shall be deemed to refer to the Department 18 of State. 19 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:23 Jul 23, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H7408.IH H7408 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS