Sec. 204. Reinstatement of training course on workings of Congress
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Section 316 of title 14, United States Code, as so redesignated, is amended to read as follows: The Commandant, and such other individuals and organizations as the Commandant considers appropriate, shall develop a training course on the workings of Congress and offer such training course at least once each year. The training course required by this section shall provide an overview and introduction to Congress and the Federal legislative process, including— the history and structure of Congress and the committee systems of the House of Representatives and the Senate, including the functions and responsibilities of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate; the documents produced by Congress, including bills, resolutions, committee reports, and conference reports, and the purposes and functions of such documents; the legislative processes and rules of the House of Representatives and the Senate, including similarities and differences between the 2 processes and 2 sets of rules, including— the congressional budget process; the congressional authorization and appropriation processes; the Senate advice and consent process for Presidential nominees; and the Senate advice and consent process for treaty ratification; the roles of Members of Congress and congressional staff in the legislative process; and the concept and underlying purposes of congressional oversight within the governance framework of separation of powers.
The Commandant shall ensure that not less than 60 percent of the lecturers, panelists, and other individuals providing education and instruction as part of the training course required under this section are experts on Congress and the Federal legislative process who are not employed by the executive branch of the Federal Government. In satisfying the requirement under paragraph (1), the Commandant shall seek, and may accept, educational and instructional services of lecturers, panelists, and other individuals and organizations provided to the Coast Guard on a pro bono basis.
The training required by this section shall replace the substantially similar training that was required by the Commandant on the day before the date of enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025 . A Coast Guard flag officer or a Coast Guard Senior Executive Service employee who, not more than 3 years before the date of the enactment of the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2025 , completed the training that was required by the Commandant on the day before such date of enactment, shall not be required to complete the training required by this section.
The Commandant shall develop a training course, which shall be administered in person, on the workings of Congress for any member of the Coast Guard selected for a position as a fellow, liaison, counsel, or administrative staff for the Coast Guard Office of Congressional and Governmental Affairs or as any Coast Guard district or area governmental affairs officer. The training course required under this section shall provide an overview and introduction to Congress and the Federal legislative process, including— the congressional budget process; the congressional appropriations process; the congressional authorization process; the Senate advice and consent process for Presidential nominees; the Senate advice and consent process for treaty ratification; the roles of Members of Congress and congressional staff in the legislative process; the concept and underlying purposes of congressional oversight within the governance framework of separation of powers; the roles of Coast Guard fellows, liaisons, counsels, governmental affairs officers, the Coast Guard Office of Program Review, the Coast Guard Headquarters program offices, and any other entity the Commandant considers relevant; and the roles and responsibilities of Coast Guard public affairs and external communications personnel with respect to Members of Congress and the staff of such Members necessary to enhance communication between Coast Guard units, sectors, and districts and Member offices and committees of jurisdiction so as to ensure visibility of Coast Guard activities.
At the written request of a receiving congressional office, the training course required under this section shall include a multi-day detail within the Coast Guard Office of Budget and Programs to ensure adequate exposure to Coast Guard policy, oversight, and requests from Congress. A detail under this paragraph is not required to be consecutive with the balance of the training. A member of the Coast Guard selected for a position described in subsection
(a)shall complete the training required by this section before the date on which such member reports for duty for such position. . The analysis for chapter 3 of title 14, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 316 and inserting the following: 316. Training courses on workings of Congress. .