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108th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2454
To amend the Peace Corps Act to establish an Ombudsman of the Peace
Corps and an Office of Safety and Security of the Peace Corps, to
establish an independent Inspector General of the Peace Corps, and for
other purposes.
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IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 20, 2004
Mr. DeWine (for himself and Mr. Durbin) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Peace Corps Act to establish an Ombudsman of the Peace
Corps and an Office of Safety and Security of the Peace Corps, to
establish an independent Inspector General of the Peace Corps, and for
other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Peace Corps Volunteers Health,
Safety, and Security Act of 2004''.
SEC. 2. OMBUDSMAN OF THE PEACE CORPS.
The Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.) is amended by
inserting after section 4 the following new section:
``SEC. 4A. OMBUDSMAN OF THE PEACE CORPS.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Peace Corps the
Office of the Ombudsman of the Peace Corps (in this section referred to
as the `Office'). The Office shall be headed by the Ombudsman of the
Peace Corps (in this section referred to as the `Ombudsman'), who shall
be appointed by and report directly to the Director of the Peace Corps.
``(b) Volunteer Complaints and Other Matters.--The Ombudsman shall
receive and, as appropriate, inquire into complaints, questions, or
concerns submitted by current or former volunteers regarding services
or support provided by the Peace Corps to its volunteers, including
matters pertaining to--
``(1) the safety and security of volunteers;
``(2) due process, including processes relating to
separation from the Peace Corps;
``(3) benefits and assistance that may be due to current or
former volunteers;
``(4) medical or other health-related assistance; and
``(5) access to files and records of current or former
volunteers.
``(c) Employee Complaints and Other Matters.--The Ombudsman shall
receive and, as appropriate, inquire into complaints, questions, or
concerns submitted by current or former employees of the Peace Corps on
any matters of grievance.
``(d) Additional Duties.--The Ombudsman shall--
``(1) recommend responses to individual matters received
under subsections (b) and (c);
``(2) make recommendations for legislative, administrative,
or regulatory adjustments to address recurring problems or
other difficulties of the Peace Corps;
``(3) identify systemic issues relating to the practices,
policies, and administrative procedures of the Peace Corps that
affect volunteers and employees; and
``(4) call attention to problems not yet adequately
considered by the Peace Corps.
``(e) Standards of Operation.--The Ombudsman shall carry out the
duties under this section in a manner that is--
``(1) independent, impartial in the conduct of inquiries,
and confidential; and
``(2) consistent with the revised Standards for the
Establishment and Operation of Ombudsman Offices (August 2003)
as endorsed by the American Bar Association.
``(f) Involvement in Matters Subject to Ongoing Adjudication,
Litigation, or Investigation.--The Ombudsman shall refrain from any
involvement in the merits of individual matters that are the subject of
ongoing adjudication or litigation, or investigations related to such
adjudication or litigation.
``(g) Reports.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this section, and semiannually thereafter,
the Ombudsman shall submit to the Director of the Peace Corps,
the Chair of the Peace Corps National Advisory Council, and
Congress a report containing a summary of--
``(A) the complaints, questions, and concerns
considered by the Ombudsman;
``(B) the inquiries completed by the Ombudsman;
``(C) recommendations for action with respect to
such complaints, questions, concerns, or inquiries; and
``(D) any other matters that the Ombudsman
considers relevant.
``(2) Confidentiality.--Each report submitted under
paragraph (1) shall maintain confidentiality on any matter that
the Ombudsman considers appropriate in accordance with
subsection (e).
``(h) Employee Defined.--In this section, the term `employee' means
an employee of the Peace Corps, an employee of the Office of Inspector
General of the Peace Corps, an individual appointed or assigned under
the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3901 et seq.) to carry out
functions under this Act, or an individual subject to a personal
services contract with the Peace Corps.''.
SEC. 3. OFFICE OF SAFETY AND SECURITY OF THE PEACE CORPS.
The Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.), as amended by section
2 of this Act, is further amended by inserting after section 4A the
following new section:
``SEC. 4B. OFFICE OF SAFETY AND SECURITY OF THE PEACE CORPS.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Peace Corps the
Office of Safety and Security of the Peace Corps (in this section
referred to as the `Office'). The Office shall be headed by the
Associate Director of the Peace Corps for Safety and Security, who
shall be appointed by and report directly to the Director of the Peace
Corps.
``(b) Responsibilities.--The Office established under subsection
(a) shall be responsible for all safety and security activities of the
Peace Corps, including background checks of volunteers and staff, the
safety and security of volunteers and staff (including training), the
safety and security of facilities, the security of information
technology, and other responsibilities as required by the Director.
``(c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
``(1) the Associate Director of Safety and Security of the
Peace Corps, as appointed pursuant to subsection (a) of this
section, should assign a Peace Corps country security
coordinator for each country where the Peace Corps has a
program of volunteer service for the purposes of carrying out
the field responsibilities of the Office; and
``(2) each country security coordinator--
``(A) should be a United States citizen;
``(B) should be under the supervision of the Peace
Corps country director in such country;
``(C) should report directly to the Associate
Director of the Peace Corps for Safety and Security on
all matters of importance that the country security
coordinator considers necessary;
``(D) should be responsible for coordinating
security activities with the regional security officer
of the Peace Corps responsible for the country to which
such country security officer is assigned; and
``(E) should have access to information, including
classified information, relating to possible threats
against Peace Corps volunteers.''.
SEC. 4. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE PEACE CORPS.
(a) Establishment of Independent Inspector General.--
(1) In general.--The Inspector General Act of 1978 (5
U.S.C. App.) is amended--
(A) in section 8G(a)(2), by striking ``, the Peace
Corps'';
(B) in section 9(a)(1), by adding at the end the
following new subparagraph:
``(X) of the Peace Corps, the office of that agency
referred to as the `Office of Inspector General';
and''; and
(C) in section 11--
(i) in paragraph (1), by striking ``or the
Office of Personnel Management'' and inserting
``the Office of Personnel Management, or the
Peace Corps''; and
(ii) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``, the
Peace Corps'' after ``the Office of Personnel
Management''.
(2) Technical amendment.--Section 9(a)(1)(U) of the
Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by
striking ``and'' at the end.
(b) Temporary Appointment.--The Director of the Peace Corps may
appoint an individual to assume the powers and duties of the Inspector
General of the Peace Corps under the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5
U.S.C. App.) on an interim basis until such time as a person is
appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate, pursuant to the amendments made in this section.
(c) Exemption From Employment Term Limits Under the Peace Corps
Act.--
(1) In general.--Section 7 of the Peace Corps Act (22
U.S.C. 2506) is amended--
(A) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection
(b); and
(B) by adding at the end the following new
subsection:
``(c) The provisions of this section that limit the duration of
service, appointment, or assignment of individuals shall not apply to--
``(1) the Inspector General of the Peace Corps;
``(2) officers of the Office of the Inspector General of
the Peace Corps;
``(3) any individual whose official duties primarily
include the safety and security of Peace Corps volunteers or
employees;
``(4) the head of the office responsible for medical
services of the Peace Corps; or
``(5) any health care professional within the office
responsible for medical services of the Peace Corps.''.
(2) Conforming amendment.--The first proviso of section
15(d)(4) of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2514(d)(4)) is
amended by striking ``7(c)'' and inserting ``7(b)''.
(d) Compensation.--Section 7 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C.
2506), as amended by subsection (c) of this section, is further amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(d) The Inspector General of the Peace Corps shall be compensated
at the rate provided for level IV of the Executive Schedule under
section 5315 of title 5, United States Code.''.
SEC. 5. OFFICE OF MEDICAL SERVICES OF THE PEACE CORPS.
(a) Report on Medical Screening and Placement Coordination.--Not
later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
Director of the Peace Corps shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees a report that--
(1) describes the medical screening procedures and
guidelines used by the office responsible for medical services
of the Peace Corps to determine whether an applicant for Peace
Corps service has worldwide clearance, limited clearance, a
deferral period, or is not medically, including
psychologically, qualified to serve in the Peace Corps as a
volunteer;
(2) describes the procedures and guidelines used by the
Peace Corps to ensure that applicants for Peace Corps service
are matched with a host country where the applicant can, with
reasonable accommodations, complete at least two years of volunteer
service without interruption due to foreseeable medical conditions; and
(3) with respect to each of fiscal years 2000 through 2003
and the first six months of fiscal year 2004, states the number
of--
(A) medical screenings of applicants conducted;
(B) applicants who have received worldwide
clearance, limited clearance, deferral periods, and
medical disqualifications to serve;
(C) appeals to the Medical Screening Review Board
of the Peace Corps and the number of times that an
initial screening decision was upheld;
(D) requests that have been made to the head of the
office responsible for medical services of the Peace
Corps for reconsideration of a decision of the Medical
Screening Review Board and the number of times that
such decisions were upheld by the head of such office;
(E) Peace Corps volunteers who became medically
qualified to serve because of a decision of the Medical
Screening Review Board and who were later evacuated or
terminated their service early due to medical reasons;
(F) Peace Corps volunteers who became medically
qualified to serve because of a decision of the head of
the office responsible for medical services of the
Peace Corps and who were later evacuated or terminated
their service early due to medical reasons;
(G) Peace Corps volunteers who the agency has had
to separate from service due to the discovery of
undisclosed medical information; and
(H) Peace Corps volunteers who have terminated
their service early due to medical, including
psychological, reasons.
(b) Full Time Director of Medical Services.--Section 4(c) of the
Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2503(c)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
``(5) The Director of the Peace Corps shall ensure that the head of
the office responsible for medical services of the Peace Corps does not
occupy any other position in the Peace Corps.''.
SEC. 6. REPORTS ON THE ``FIVE YEAR RULE'' AND ON WORK ASSIGNMENTS OF
VOLUNTEERS OF THE PEACE CORPS.
(a) Report by the Comptroller General.--
(1) In general.--Not later than one year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a report on the
effects on the ability of the Peace Corps to effectively manage
Peace Corps operations of the limitations on the duration of
employment, appointment, or assignment of officers and
employees of the Peace Corps under section 7 of the Peace Corps
Act (22 U.S.C. 2506).
(2) Contents.--The report described in paragraph (1) shall
include--
(A) a description of such limitations;
(B) a description of the history of such
limitations and the purposes for which it was enacted
and amended;
(C) an analysis of the impact of such limitations
on the ability of the Peace Corps to recruit capable
volunteers, establish productive and worthwhile
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