Sec. 2033. Conflict and stabilization operations

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Section 62 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 ( 22 U.S.C. 2734 ) is amended to read as follows: There is established within the Department of State the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations. The head of the Bureau shall be the Assistant Secretary for Conflict and Stabilization Operations. The Assistant Secretary shall report directly to the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights. The functions of the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations shall include the following:

Training, equipping, and deploying the Civilian Response Corps described in subsection (b)(1). Developing, at the request of a Chief of Mission, a strategy or plan, and designing relevant programming, for stabilization and reconstruction, as appropriate to the local context. At the request of a Chief of Mission, mobilizing and deploying members of the Civilian Response Corps as needed. Entering into appropriate arrangements with agencies to carry out activities under this section and the Reconstruction and Stabilization Civilian Management Act of 2008 (title XVI of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009;

Public Law 110–417 ). Identifying and recruiting personnel in State and local governments, including law enforcement personnel, and in the private sector who are available to participate in the Reserve Corps established under subsection (b)(1)(B) or to otherwise participate in or contribute to reconstruction and stabilization activities. Taking steps to ensure that training and education of civilian personnel to perform such reconstruction and stabilization operations is adequate and is carried out, as appropriate, with other offices in the Department of State and the United States Agency for International Development involved with reconstruction and stabilization activities.

Maintaining the capacity to field on short notice an evaluation team consisting of personnel from all relevant agencies to undertake on-site needs assessment. Maintaining a staff of experts to provide technical support for crisis mitigation, including mediation and negotiation support teams. Establishing and maintaining a cadre of deployable personnel to conduct contingency acquisition support. Establishing and maintaining on active status a contingency contracting office for the purpose of procuring goods, equipment, and services for use in contingency operations and for assistance to support reconstruction and stabilization activities.

The Secretary of State shall establish and maintain a Civilian Response Corps (referred to in this section as the Corps ) to provide assistance in support of reconstruction and stabilization activities in countries or regions that are at risk of, in, or are in transition from, conflict or civil strife. The Corps shall be composed of active and reserve components. The Active Corps shall be composed of not more than 200 positions identified by the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Administrator, based on the skillsets identified by the Coordinator.

The Active Corps shall consist of United States Government personnel, including employees of the Department of State, the United States Agency for International Development, and other agencies. Members of the Active Corps shall— serve as liaisons between the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations and regional bureaus of the Department of State; unless deployed abroad, be employed by the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights; and deploy, within 72 hours, anywhere outside the United States where the Secretary of State directs.

Members of the Active Corps may be detailed by the Assistant Secretary for Conflict and Stabilization Operations to regional bureaus of the Department of State to augment crisis and conflict planning and response. The Reserve Corps shall consist of United States Government personnel, individuals employed by State or local governments, or other experts who have the skills necessary for supporting reconstruction and stabilization activities, or who shall be trained and employed to carry out such activities, and who have volunteered for such purpose.

The Secretary shall maintain and continually update a database composed of personnel who have volunteered for the Reserve Corps. Members of the Reserve Corps shall— on a voluntary basis, deploy within 72 hours, anywhere outside the United States, where the Secretary of State directs; and maintain appropriate skills and conditioning to deploy to assist in reconstruction and stabilization activities. The establishment and deployment of any Reserve Corps shall be undertaken in a manner that avoids substantively impairing the capacity and readiness of the Federal Government or any State or local government from which Reserve Corps personnel may be drawn.

The Secretary of State shall ensure that personnel of the Department of State, and, in coordination with the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development, that personnel of USAID, have access to and make use of the relevant existing training and education programs offered within the Federal Government, such as those at the Center for Stabilization and Reconstruction Studies at the Naval Postgraduate School and the Interagency Training, Education, and After Action Review Program at the National Defense University.

Individuals who serve in the Civilian Response Corps shall be eligible to be appointed as a member of the Foreign Service pursuant to section 303 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 ( 22 U.S.C. 3943 ) for a term of up to three years. Not less than 60 percent of the Active Corps should be deployed outside of the United States at any one time. Individuals who are career members of the Foreign Service shall be considered for promotion on the same basis as individuals who are assigned to diplomatic or consular posts with one-year tours of duty.

Once deployed abroad, a member of the Civilian Response Corps shall report to and serve under the operational control of the chief of mission of the country or region in which such member is deployed. The Secretary of State is authorized to deploy to a foreign country members of the Active Corps for a period of not longer than one year. Such period may be extended on a voluntary basis. The Secretary of State, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Conflict and Stabilization Operations, is authorized to appoint individuals with acquisition backgrounds to the Active or Reserve Corps on a one-year basis to implement contracts for contingency operations.

Pursuant to the authority of section 309 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3949), and notwithstanding the limitation specified in section 305 of such Act ( 22 U.S.C. 3945 ), the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) may appoint to the Senior Foreign Service up to ten individuals to be assigned to or support contingency operations. The provisions of section 8344 or 8468 of title 5, United States Code, may be waived on a case-by-case basis by— the Administrator of USAID, with respect to the employment in USAID, or the Inspector General of USAID, with respect to the employment in the Office of Inspector General, of an annuitant in a position for which there is exceptional difficulty in recruiting or retaining a qualified employee, or when a temporary emergency hiring need exists.

If the authority referred to in paragraph

(1)is delegated, the Administrator of USAID or the Inspector General of USAID, as appropriate, shall prescribe criteria and procedures for the exercise of any authority under this section. A Federal employee for whom a waiver under this section is in effect shall not be considered an employee for purposes of subchapter III of chapter 83, or chapter 84 of title 5, United States Code. The Secretary of State may select and appoint employees to carry out conflict and stabilization activities without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appointment in the competitive service and may fix the basic compensation of such employees without regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title. The Secretary of State may authorize the head of any agency to exercise the authority described in paragraph (1). For the purpose of this subsection, the term employees means individuals who qualify as an employee as defined in section 2105 of title 5, United States Code, and who are appointed on a time-limited basis solely to carry out reconstruction and stabilization activities under or consistent with this section. . Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including section 304(c) of the Omnibus Diplomatic Security and Antiterrorism Act of 1986 ( 22 U.S.C. 4834(c) ; Public Law 99–399 ), personnel designated by the Secretary, including members of the Civilian Response Corps, shall not be bound by the regulations and guidance provided by the Bureau of Diplomatic Security and shall deploy at the direction of the Secretary. The Reconstruction and Stabilization Civilian Management Act of 2008 (title XVI of Public Law 110–417 ) is amended— in section 1603 ( 22 U.S.C. 2734a note), by amending paragraph

(5)to read as follows: The term personnel means— individuals serving in any service described in section 2101 of title 5, United States Code, other than in the legislative or judicial branch; individuals employed by personal services contract, including individuals employed pursuant to— section 2(c) of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 ( 22 U.S.C. 2669(c) ); or section 636(a)(3) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 ( 22 U.S.C. 2396(a)(3) ); individuals appointed under section 303 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3943); and locally employed staff who are employed by participating agencies. ; and in section 1606(b) ( 22 U.S.C. 2734a(b) ), by inserting and to provide any related support after assign personnel of such agency .

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