State Department Personnel: Background and July 7, 2021 Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Cory R. Gill Congress has played a significant role in the management of the Department of State’s Analyst in Foreign Affairs workforce since 1789, when it established the State Department pursuant to statute and established salaries for the Secretary of State and other personnel. Beginning in the early 20th century, Congress passed a series of laws intended to address corruption and graft in the State Department’s diplomatic and consular services by merging them into the modern-day Foreign Service, a professional diplomatic corps. Today, the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (P.L. 96- 465) serves as the framework through which the Department of State organizes and administers the Foreign Service. This law seeks to maintain and strengthen the Foreign Service’s status as a professional diplomatic corps, providing for admission, appointment, promotion, and separation procedures that reflect merit principles and a rank-in-person merit classification system. In addition, the Foreign Service Act includes a finding stating that “the members of the Foreign Service should be representative of the American people,” and further provides that it intends to foster “the development and vigorous implementation of policies and procedures, including affirmative action programs” to encourage “entry into and advancement in the Foreign Service by persons from al segments of American society.” President Biden has stated his intention to leverage the State Department’s personnel to advance U.S. foreign policy goals, saying that he wil work to empower department staff and incorporate their perspectives into the policy development process. To date, much of the Biden Administration’s efforts in this area have focused on improving the State Department’s diversity and inclusion programs and increasing the size of the Foreign Service and Civil Service. However, in recent years several Members of Congress, former and current senior State Department officials, academics and think-tank analysts, and other stakeholders have published reports recommending that the State Department and Congress consider significant changes regarding the State Department’s personnel practices, not only with respect to diversity and inclusion and personnel strength, but also in several other areas including training and professional development opportunities for staff, Chief of Mission authority, and persistent vacancies in senior State Department positions requiring the advice and consent of the Senate, especial y ambassadorships. The proliferation of such proposals may reflect concerns among some that the State Department needs to consider reforms to restore the foreign policymaking influence that some perceive it to have lost to other government entities over the past several decades, including the National Security Council and the Department of Defense. In recent Congresses, Members have demonstrated interest in applying the legislative branch’s constitutional and statutory authorities to shape policies pertaining to Department of State personnel. For example, in 2016 Congress passed the Department of State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 (P.L. 114-323). This law provided new authorities to the State Department on matters such as security training for personnel assigned to high-risk, high- threat posts; compensation for local y employed staff; the expansion of opportunities for Civil Service personnel to serve overseas; and means of lateral entry into the Foreign Service for mid-career professionals. The 117th Congress is currently considering H.R. 1157, the Department of State Authorization Act of 2021 that, if enacted, would weigh in on a wide variety of personnel matters, including diversity and inclusion, fil ing Foreign Service vacancies, and workforce planning. Congressional Research Service link to page 4 link to page 5 link to page 5 link to page 8 link to page 8 link to page 11 link to page 11 link to page 13 link to page 15 link to page 16 link to page 17 link to page 17 link to page 19 link to page 20 link to page 21 link to page 24 link to page 27 link to page 29 link to page 31 link to page 34 link to page 9 link to page 22 link to page 22 link to page 25 link to page 12 link to page 14 link to page 16 link to page 19 link to page 35 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Contents Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 Background of the Department of State and the Foreign Service............................................. 2 The Emergence of a Professional Foreign Service and Key Related Statutes ....................... 2 Selected Professional Attributes of the Foreign Service Provided for in the Foreign Service Act of 1980 ................................................................................................. 5 Department of State Personnel by Category......................................................................... 8 Foreign Service Personnel........................................................................................... 8 Ambassadors, Chiefs of Mission, and Ambassadors-at-Large .................................... 10 Foreign Service Officers...................................................................................... 12 Foreign Service Specialists .................................................................................. 13 Senior Foreign Service ........................................................................................ 14 Local y Employed Staff....................................................................................... 14 Civil Service Personnel ............................................................................................ 16 Selected Issues for Congress ........................................................................................... 17 Diversity and Inclusion............................................................................................. 18 Personnel Staffing Levels ......................................................................................... 21 Training and Professionalism..................................................................................... 24 Chief of Mission Authority........................................................................................ 26 Ambassador Vacancies ............................................................................................. 28 Outlook ....................................................................................................................... 31 Figures Figure 1. Department of State 2020 Foreign Service Pay Schedule (Base Schedule) .................. 6 Figure 2. Department of State Minority Workforce by Rank, 2018 ........................................ 19 Figure 3. Department of State Female Workforce by Rank, 2018 .......................................... 19 Figure 4. Department of State Foreign Service and Civil Service Personnel Levels.................. 22 Tables Table 1. Categories of Foreign Service Personnel ................................................................. 9 Table 2. Positions at the Rank of Ambassador-at-Large in the Department of State ................. 11 Table 3. Foreign Service Officer Cones ............................................................................ 13 Table 4. Department of State Civil Service Job Categories................................................... 16 Contacts Author Information ....................................................................................................... 32 Congressional Research Service State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Introduction The Biden Administration has indicated a commitment to “revitalizing the foreign policy workforce” following what some view as a tumultuous period for the State Department’s personnel.1 For example, the State Department Office of Inspector General’s (OIG) most recent report identifying the department’s most significant management and performance chal enges noted recent incidents that, according to the OIG, hindered some employees’ trust in the State Department’s leadership. These included a case where the department “ended the detail of a career employee [in the Office of the Secretary] after significant discussion concerning the employee’s perceived political views, association with former administrations, and perceived national origin.”2 The State Department’s Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs and Chief of Protocol also resigned in November 2019 and June 2019, respectively, following al egations involving the mistreatment of personnel and leadership and management deficiencies.3 Additional y, in 2018 Congress directed the OIG to review the effects of the State Department’s hiring freeze, which lasted from January 2017 through April 2018, on the department’s operations.4 The OIG released its report in August 2019 and found, among other conclusions, that implementation of the hiring freeze “was not guided by strategic goals,” impacted the State Department’s capacity to address its most significant management chal enges, and negatively affected workforce morale.5 Consistent with the Biden Administration’s broader commitment to strengthening the foreign policy workforce, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has stated that he wil prioritize “reinvorgat[ing] the [State] Department,” by “investing in its greatest asset: the Foreign Service Officers, civil servants, and local y employed staff who animate American diplomacy around the world.”6 Much of Secretary Blinken’s efforts to date have focused on addressing concerns regarding the perceived lack of diversity in the State Department’s workforce, especial y with regard to the Foreign Service, including through appointing Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley to serve as the State Department’s first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer (CDIO). Additional y, as part of its FY2022 International Affairs budget request, the Biden Administration is seeking funding for an additional 485 Foreign Service and Civil Service Officers to work in areas such as countering Chinese, Russian, and Iranian malign influence; protecting U.S. critical infrastructure; and advancing the Biden Administration’s science and technology priorities.7 1 U.S. Department of State, Congressional Budget Justification, Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, Fiscal Year 2022, at ht t ps://www.st at e.gov/wp-cont ent /uploads/2021/05/FY-2022-St ate_USAID-Congressional-Budget -Justification.pdfm p. 17. 2 U.S. Department of State, Office of Inspector General Inspector General Statement on the Department of State’s Major Management and Performance Challenges (FY 2020), OIG-EX-21-01, December 8, 2020, at ht t ps://www.st at eoig.gov/syst em/files/fy_2020_ig_letter_on_department_management_challenges_final.pdf , pp. 15, 17. 3 Colum Lynch, “ Senior State Oficial Accused of Mismanagement to Step Down,” Foreign Policy, October 18, 2019, at https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/10/18/pompeo-senior-diplomat-accused-of-mismanagement -to-step-down-international-orgnizations/; Josh Lederman, “ Trump’s chief of protocol pulled off the job ahead of G-20,” NBC News, June 25, 2019, at ht t ps://www.nbcnews.com/polit ics/nat ional-securit y/t rump-s-chief-protocol-pulled-job-ahead-g-20-n1021781. 4 Joint Explanatory Statement Accompanying Division K of Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2018 (Division K of P.L. 115-141 ), at https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20180319/DIV%20K%20SFROPSSOM%20FY18-OMNI.OCR.pdf, p. 9. 5 U.S. Department of State, Office of Inspector General, Review of the Effects of the Department of State Hiring Freeze, ISP-I-19-23, August 2019, at ht t ps://www.st at eoig.gov/syst em/files/aud-mero-20-09.pdf, pp. 2-3. 6 Antony J. Blinken, “ Statement for the Record before the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations,” January 19, 2021, at https://www.foreign.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/011921_Blinken_Testimony.pdf. 7 U.S. Department of State, “ FY2022 Budget Request: Department of State and USAID,” Slide Presentation, May 28, 2021, p. 14. Congressional Research Service 1 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Members of the 117th Congress have demonstrated interest in leveraging their authorities to shape policies pertaining to Department of State personnel. For example, Congress is currently considering H.R. 1157, the Department of State Authorization Act of 2021 that, if enacted, would weigh in on a wide variety of personnel matters, including diversity and inclusion, fil ing Foreign Service vacancies, and workforce planning. Additional y, Members of Congress, former and current senior State Department officials, academics and think-tank analysts, and other stakeholders have published several reports with increased frequency over the past decade recommending that the State Department and Congress consider significant changes regarding the State Department’s personnel practices. Proposed changes address diversity and inclusion and personnel strength, but also several other issues including training and professional development opportunities for staff, Chief of Mission authority, and persistent vacancies in senior State Department positions requiring the advice and consent of the Senate, especial y ambassadorships. In some cases, these issues have persisted across many Administrations and may present considerable chal enges should the Biden Administration and Congress seek remedies. Background of the Department of State and the Foreign Service

Congress established the Department of State in 1789 and prescribedprescribed an initial salary for the the Secretary of State, the department'’s chief clerk,, and other clerks employed by the department. The department'’s domestic staff was initiallyinitial y extremely smallsmal , consisting of only three clerks and translators when Thomas Jefferson became Secretary of State inin 1790 and expanding to 10 such individuals 10 such individuals by the conclusion of the 18^th century.²18th century.8 Similarly, U.S. diplomatic representation abroad was fairlyfairly limited during this period—only two commissioned American diplomats were present in Europe when President Washington was inaugurated in 1789. By 17971797, the United States maintained diplomatic relations with France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain,Spain, yet had only limited diplomatic ties with other countries,, including Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Sweden.³

9 The Emergence of a Professional Foreign Service and Key Related Statutes⁴

Related Statutes10 For nearly 70 years subsequent to the founding of the Department of State in 1789, an individual employee'employee’s rank and salary were attached to a specific position. In practice, this meant that the President appointed individuals to specific posts (frequently his political alliesal ies) and, upon his own determination, set the compensation that the individual would receive at that post. If a person was sent to a subsequent overseas post, another appointment was required and a new compensation level was established. Because of funding constraints, ministers at larger posts such as London and Paris often had to spend their own funds to maintain their ability to provide representation, limiting limiting the scope of individuals capable of serving at such posts. Some observers refer to this framework as the "“spoils system"” or a "“patronage system."” When addressing the spoils system, President Theodore Roosevelt reflected that

8 Elmer Plischke, U.S. Department of State: A Reference History (Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 1999), p. 45. 9 Elmer Plischke, U.S. Department of State: A Reference History, pp. 46-47, 56. 10 This section draws on previous CRS analysis charting historical movement toward a merit -based diplomatic service. See CRS Memo DL095495, The Foreign Service and the Senate’s advice and consent authority, by Kennon H. Nakamura. Congressional Research Service 2 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress [t]he spoils system of making appointments to and removals from office is so wholly and unmixedly evil, is so emphatically un-American and undemocratic, and is so potent a force for degradation in our public life, that it is difficult to believe that any intelligent man of ordinary decency who has looked into the matter can be its advocate. As a matter of fact, the arguments in favor of the merit system against the arguments in favor of the merit system against the spoils system are not not only convincing; they are absolutely unanswerable.⁵

11 Congress codified compensation levels for individuals appointed to specific diplomatic and consular positions beginning in 1855, in effect taking compensation determinations out of the hands of the President. U.S. consuls were also provided, for the first time, with annual federal salaries, the amount depending on where they were posted. However, the federal government continued to staff its bureaucracy through the spoils system. Following the Civil War, difficulties stemming from the spoils systems were becoming increasingly evident throughout the federal government, including in the Department of State. It is reported that Secretary of State Hamilton Fish (1869-1877) threatened President Ulysses Grant with his resignation if President Grant and his political allies al ies did not stop interfering with the organization and operation of the department and appointments of diplomats and consular officers.

During this period, graft was found to be especiallyespecial y rampant in the consular service. On September 20, 1885, President Grover Cleveland issued an executive order placing the lower grades of the consular service under a merit system with emphasis on "“character, responsibility and capacity"” as criteria for appointment. President Theodore Roosevelt made efforts to professionalize the diplomatic service, placing diplomatic officers under previous laws intended to reform the Civil Service and creating a Board of Examiners tasked with developing an entrance 11 American Foreign Service Association, “ In the Beginning: The Rogers Act of 1924,” at http://www.afsa.org/beginning-rogers-act-1924. Congressional Research Service 3 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress examination system testing knowledge of international law, diplomatic usage, and modern language skills. It also was tasked with developing and overseeing a merit promotion system for all all diplomatic and consular positions except those of minister and ambassador. The Stone-Flood Act (P.L 63-242, also known as "“An Act for the Improvement of the Foreign Service"”) was later enacted in 1915, which gavegiving previous executive orders in this area the force of law. This law also divided divided personnel into their own classes or grades for the first time, assigned salary levels to classes or grades, and stated that appointments to a class "shall “shal be by commission to the offices of the secretary of embassy or legation, consul general, or consul, and not by commission to any particular post."” This marked the first time that the "“rank-in-person"” concept was incorporated into law for diplomatic personnel.

In addition to combining the U.S. diplomatic and consular services for the first time and establishing the modern Foreign Service, the Rogers Act of 1924 (P.L. 68-135) included several provisions to further professionalize the Foreign Service. It defined a Foreign Service Officer as a "permanent officer in the Foreign Service below the grade of minister, all al of whom are subject to promotion on merit, and who may be assigned to duty in either the diplomatic or the consular branch of the Foreign Service at the discretion of the President."” Furthermore, this law

•  established grades and classes of Foreign Service Officers and established salaries for those grades and classes;
•  stated that appointments to the position of Foreign Service Officer shall shal be made after examination and a suitable period of probation in an unclassified grade, or after five years of continuous service in the Department of State by transfer to the Foreign Service upon meeting the rules and regulations established by the President;
•  established that all al appointments to the Foreign Service shall shal be by commission to a class and not by commission to any particular post, and that a Foreign Service Officer shall shal be assigned to a post and may be transferred by the President from post to post depending upon the interests of the service;
•  stated that Foreign Service Officers may be appointed as secretaries in the diplomatic service or as consular officers or both and that any such appointment shall shal be made by and with the advice and consent of the Senate; and
•  authorized the President to establish a Foreign Service retirement and disability system to be administered by the Secretary of State, and provided for a mandatory retirement age of 65 with 15 years of service.

Congress worked to consolidate and revise laws pertaining to the administration of the Foreign Service when it passed the Foreign Service Act of 1946 (P.L. 79-724). This law created a new Director General of the Foreign Service and a Foreign Service Board with the intent of improving the department'’s administration of the Foreign Service, while a new Board of Examiners was authorized and tasked with maintaining the principle of competitive entrance into the Foreign Service. According to the Department of State, "“the law also provided for improvements in assignments policy, promotion procedures, allowancesal owances and benefits, home leave, and the retirement system."⁶ Congressional Research Service 4 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress retirement system.”12 Congress did not pass significant new legislation to govern the Foreign Service for several decades, until the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-465) was enacted. Among other measures, this law created a new Senior Foreign Service and reformed overseas allowances al owances and spousal rights.⁷13 Selected aspects of this legislation are discussed in detail below.

Selected Professional Attributes of the Foreign Service Provided for in the Foreign Service Act of 1980

Like the Foreign Service Act of 1946, the Foreign Service Act of 1980 sought to maintain and strengthen the Foreign Service'’s status as a professional diplomatic corps. The law provides for admission, appointment, promotion, and separation procedures that reflect merit principles and a rank-in-person merit classification system. Section 101 of the law reaffirms that "“a career foreign service, characterized by excellenceexcel ence and professionalism, is essential in the national interest to assist the President and the Secretary of State in conducting the foreign affairs of the United States."” Section 105 provides that "all “al personnel actions with respect to career members and career candidates in the service (including applicants for career candidate appointments) shall be shal be made in accordance with merit principles."⁸

”14 With specific regard to admission procedures, Section 301 requires the Secretary of State to "“prescribe, as appropriate, written, oral, physical, foreign language, and other examinations for appointment to the service (other than as a chief of mission or ambassador at large)."” In addition, Section 211 requires the President to establish a Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service to develop and supervise the administration of these examinations to candidates for appointment. The President is required to appoint the Board'’s 15 members, at least five of whom must "“be appointed from among individuals who are not Government employees and who shall shal be qualified for service on the Board by virtue of their knowledge, experience, or training in the fields of testing or equal employment opportunity."” The Board must be chaired by a member of the Foreign Service. Individuals who pass the examinations and are admitted into the Foreign Service are required to serve for a trial period that generallygeneral y does not exceed five years under a limited appointment prior to receiving a career appointment in the Foreign Service. Section 306 of the law requires that any decision by the Secretary of State to recommend that the President give a career appointment to such an individual shall shal be informed "“based upon the recommendations of boards, established by the Secretary and composed entirely or primarily of career members of the service, which shall shal evaluate the fitness and aptitude of career candidates for the work of the service."⁹

”15 As with admission requirements and procedures, the Foreign Service Act of 1980 intends to ensure that appointments processes preserve and bolster the Foreign Service'’s status as a professional organization. Section 302 provides the President the authority to, "“by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint an individual as a chief of mission, as an ambassador at large, as an ambassador, as a minister, as a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, or as a 12 U.S. Department of State, Ofice of the Historian, “ A Short History of the Department of State: A Changing Role for the Secretary,” at ht t ps://hist ory.st ate.gov/depart menthistory/short-hist ory/secretary. 13 U.S. Department of State, Ofice of the Historian, “ A Short History of the Department of State: Landmark Departmental Reform, ” at ht t ps://hist ory.st ate.gov/depart menthistory/short-hist ory/reforms/ 14 According to Section 105(a)(2) of the Foreign Service Act, “ personnel action” means “ any appointment, promotion, assignment (including assignment to any position or salary class), award of performance pay or special differential, within-class salary increase, separation, or performance evaluation,” and any decision, recommendation, examination, or ranking provided for under this act which relates to any such action previously referred to in subparagraph (A) of the section. 15 See Section 306 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. Congressional Research Service 5 link to page 9 link to page 17 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress large, as an ambassador, as a minister, as a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, or as a Foreign Service officer."” Section 301 clarifies that "“an appointment as a Foreign Service officer is a career appointment,"” while Section 303 indicates that the Secretary of State'’s appointment authorities do not extend to the personnel categories specified for presidential appointments in Section 302. Thus, all al Foreign Service Officers (with the exception of some Senior Foreign Service Officers) are career members of the Foreign Service, appointed by the President by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and typicallytypical y serve over the course of several presidential administrations. Section 305 provides for authorized limited, noncareer appointments to the Senior Foreign Service under certain circumstances.¹⁰

16 Sections 305 and 404 further stipulate that Foreign Service officersOfficers and other personnel, and both career and noncareer members of the Senior Foreign Service, shall shal be appointed to salary classes—rather than to individual positions—that the Secretary of State is authorized to establish.¹¹17 These provisions undergird the Foreign Service personnel system as a rank-in-person, rather than rank-in-position, approachapproach. Figure 1 illustrates one currentil ustrates one recent pay schedule, providing the salary classes to which Foreign Service Officers are appointed and promoted.

Figure 1. Department of State 20182020 Foreign Service Salary TablePay Schedule (Base Schedule) Source: U.S. Department of State, 2020 Foreign Service Salary Schedule, Base Schedule, at https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/2020-FS-Pay-Schedules-by-Locality.pdf. While the State Department has released the 2021 Foreign Service Pay Schedule, CRS could not locate a single, comprehensive source outlining salaries for both the Foreign Service and the Senior Foreign Service. To review the 2021 pay schedule, see U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Global Talent Management, “FS Pay Schedules,” at https://www.state.gov/resources-bureau-of-global-talent-management/. (Base Schedule)

Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Human Resources, "Pay Schedules," https://www.state.gov/m/dghr/pay/, accessed March 5, 2018. U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Human Resources, "2018 Foreign Service (FS) Salary Table," at https://www.state.gov/documents/organization/277016.pdf.

This rank-in-person orientation of Foreign Service personnel practices is widely perceived as a merit-based system. Inherent to the rank-in-person system are the "“up or out rules,"” which are 16 See the “ Senior Foreign Service” subsection for more detail regarding limited, noncareer appointments to the Senior Foreign Service. 17 See Sections 305 and 404 of Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. Congressional Research Service 6 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress which are mandated in Section 607 the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (where they are known as "“time-in-class limitations"”). These rules require that both career members of the Senior Foreign Service and the Foreign Service are either promoted within a specified time period denoted for each salary class (or a combination of salary classes) or are otherwise retired from the service if not performing at an adequate level.¹²18 The process the law prescribes for considering the promotion of members of the Senior Foreign Service and the Foreign Service is also intended to promote merit-based practices. Section 602 mandates the establishment of selection boards tasked with evaluating the performance of these personnel through ranking the members of a salary class on the basis of relative performance and making recommendations for personnel actions, including promotion. The membership of selection boards is required to include public members and "a “a substantial number of women and members of minority groups."¹³”19 The law also requires that the selection boards'’ recommendations and rankings reflect "“records of the character, ability, conduct, quality of work, industry, experience, dependability, usefulness, and general performance of members of the service."¹⁴”20 Section 605 further provides that the Secretary of State shall shal make promotions (and, with respect to career appointments into or within the Senior Foreign Service, recommendations to the President for promotions) "“in accordance with the rankings of the selection boards."” It also provides the Secretary the authority to delay the promotion of an individual individual designated for promotion on a selection board list or remove that individual from a list in “in "special circumstances"” provided for by department regulations.¹⁵

Finally21 Final y, provisions of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 governing the separation of members from the service for cause seek to further preserve the Foreign Service'’s professional character and ensure that individuals are not separated without due process. Section 610 provides that the Secretary of State may "“decide to separate any member from the service for such cause as will wil promote the efficiency of the service."” However, in most cases any member of the Foreign Service serving under a career appointment or a limited appointment may not be separated on the basis of misconduct until the member in question receives a hearing before the Foreign Service Grievance Board and the Board decides that cause for separation has been established.¹⁶22 The Foreign Service Grievance Board is itself authorized in Section 1105 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980. The law requires that its membership comprise individuals approved by the exclusive representative (labor organization) representing Foreign Service employees and the department itself; to further help ensure impartiality, five of board members are required by law not to be department employees. It also authorizes the Foreign Service Grievance Board to intervene in cases where it determines that the department is considering the involuntary separation of a grievant for reasons other than cause. If the Foreign Service Grievance Board finds that a grievant'grievant’s claim is valid, it is authorized to direct the Department of State to retain the member in the service.¹⁷

23 18 See Section 607 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. 19 See Section 602 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. 20 See Section 603 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. 21 See Section 605 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. 22 As the law notes, the right to a hearing does not apply in cases where an individual “ has been convicted of a crime for which a sentence of imprisonment of more than one year may be imposed.” The right to a hearing also does not apply to United States citizens employed under Section 311 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended, who is not a family member of a government employee assigned abroad. 23 See Sections 1105, 1106, and 1107 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. Congressional Research Service 7 link to page 12 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Department of State Personnel by Category Department of State Personnel by Category

Department of State personnel can broadly be characterized as being employed in the Foreign Service or the Civil Service; however, many categories therein are governed by various legal authorities passed by Congress. With respect to the Foreign Service, such categories encompass Chiefs of Mission, all al U.S. diplomats serving at State Department posts abroad and in the United States, the locallylocal y employed staff with management responsibilities important to the functioning of overseas posts, and all al other Foreign Service personnel. Therefore, should Congress seek to weigh in on executive branch practices—including the admission, appointment, or promotion of an official of the Department of State; the responsibilities or compensation afforded to a department official; or the separation of an official from the Department of State—the means through which it would do so depend on the employment category of the official in question and its associated legal authorities.

Foreign Service Personnel

Both Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution and The Foreign Service Act of 1980 provide Congress with substantial authorities with respect to the appointment, governance, and administration of Foreign Service personnel. Article II, Section 2, allowsal ows the President to appoint Ambassadors by and with the advice and consent of the Senate in most circumstances; additionally, additional y, Congress has invoked its constitutional authority to provide advice and consent for " “other public Ministers and Consuls"” by explicitly requiring advice and consent for senior Department of State officials, including positions typicallytypical y held by career Senior Foreign Service and Foreign Service officers.¹⁸

Officers.24 Furthermore, Congress authorized and defined the Foreign Service and its employees pursuant to the Foreign Service Act of 1980.¹⁹25 The Foreign Service Act of 1980 also placed within the purview of Congress the admission, appointment, promotion, and separation procedures of the Foreign Service. It authorized the Senior Foreign Service and the appointment of Foreign Service Nationals, Eligible Family Members, and Consular Agents, and required that the Foreign Service operate in a fashion consistent with merit principles. Table 1 makes note of categories of Foreign Service personnel described in the FAM.

In other areas, the Foreign Service Act of 1980 gives more discretion to the executive branch. It does not prescribe the five "cones"“cones” within which Foreign Service Officers work, nor does it explicitly prescribe the titles for the Senior Foreign Service salary classes. In still stil other cases, the law provides for arrangements where responsibilities are shared by the legislative and executive branch. For example, although the Foreign Service Act of 1980 requires candidates for the career Foreign Service Officer to serve a trial period prior to their appointment, the department is afforded flexibility to determine the duration and nature of the trial period.

. Ambassadors, Chiefs of Mission, and Ambassadors-at-Large

The Department of State'’s Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) prescribes several categories of Foreign Service personnel. Among the most senior Foreign Service personnel identified in the FAM are Ambassadors and Ambassadors-at-Large. Section 302(a) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 requires that the President appoint Ambassadors and Ambassadors-at-Large by and with the advice and consent of the Senate in nearly all al circumstances; the President can circumvent the Senate only with respect to conferring the personal rank of ambassador on an individual in connection with a special, temporary mission for the President not exceeding six months in duration and, separately, through the use of recess appointments.²⁰

26 U.S. ambassadors who lead U.S. embassies abroad and ambassadors who head other official U.S. missions are usuallyusual y appointed by the President as the "“Chief of Mission"” (COM), which is the title conferred on the principal officer in charge of each U.S. diplomatic mission to a foreign country, foreign territory, or international organization. Each COM thus serves as the President's ’s personal representative, leading diplomatic efforts for a particular mission or in the country of assignment under the general supervision of the Secretary of State and with the support of the regional assistant secretary of state. COM authority is authorized by the Foreign Service Act of 1980 and is also derived from an array of executive branch orders and directives.²¹ Section 207 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 states that under the direction of the President, a COM "shall have full responsibility for the direction, coordination, and supervision of all While Congress has vested several authorities in COMs pursuant to Section 207 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 and other laws, COM authority is also shaped through executive branch directives and regulations, including Presidential Letters of Instruction, Executive Orders, and State Department regulations.27 The Section 207 authorities entail:  exercising full responsibility for the direction, coordination, and supervision of al Government executive branch employees in that country (except for Voice of America correspondents on official assignment and employees under the command of a United States area military commander);  keeping fully and currently informed with respect to al activities and operations of the Government within that country, and insuring that al Government executive branch employees in that country," (except for Voice of America (VOA) correspondents on official assignment and employees under the command of a U.S. Geographic Combatant Commander (GCC).²²

While Section 304 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 provides that " United States area military commander) comply fully with al applicable directives of the chief of mission; 26 The President’s authority to make recess appointments is derived from Article II, Section 2, clause 3 of the U.S. Constitutio n. 27 For more information on COM authority, see CRS Report R43422, U.S. Diplomatic Missions: Background and Issues on Chief of Mission (COM) Authority, by Matthew C. Weed and Nina M. Serafino . Others laws, as codified, through which Congress has vested authorities in Chiefs of Mission include 8 U.S.C. §1157 and 22 U.S.C §2656i. Congressional Research Service 10 link to page 14 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress  promoting United States goods and services for export to such country; and  promoting United States economic and commercial interests in such country.28 While Section 304 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 provides that “positions as chief of mission should normallynormal y be accorded to career members of the [Foreign] Service,"” the President is not required to appoint exclusively career Foreign Service Officers as COMs. In most recent Administrations, approximately 70% of appointees to U.S. ambassadorships have been career Foreign Service Officers, while the remainder have been political appointees.²³non-career (political) appointees.29 President Trump chose to appoint a greater proportion of political appointees, which comprised around 44% of his ambassador appointments.30 Section 401 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 authorizes the President to compensate COMs at one of the annual rates payable for levels II through V of the Executive Schedule, with some conditions.

Ambassadors-at-Large, on the other hand, are "“appointed by the President and serve anywhere in the world to help with emergent problems, to conduct special or intensive negotiations, or serve in other capacities, as requested by the Secretary or the President."²⁴ All individuals ”31 Al individuals currently serving at the rank of Ambassador-at-Large are based in Washington, DC (seesee Table 2), and none are therefore currently employed as COMs abroad. Ambassadors-at-Large generallygeneral y rank immediately below assistant secretaries of state in terms of protocol. They are perceived within the department as managers of crucial yet narrow issues, while assistant secretaries have much broader responsibilities.²⁵

Foreign Service Officers

Foreign Service Officers are U.S. diplomats who serve in one of five career tracks, or "“cones," ” within the Foreign Service: consular, economic, management, political, and public diplomacy.²⁶ 33 These cones, which are not provided for in statute, are described in more detail inin Table 3. Foreign Service Officers are also referred to by the Department of State as "“Foreign Service Generalists,"” a term that does not appear in the Foreign Service Act of 1980.²⁷34 The term "generalist"“generalist” derives from the view that Foreign Service Officers should be sufficiently flexible to accept a variety of assignments and effectively transfer their skillsskil s successfully across different jobs.²⁸35 According to the Department of State'’s website, "“the mission of a U.S. diplomat in the Foreign Service is to promote peace, support prosperity, and protect American citizens while advancing the interests of the U.S. abroad."²⁹

”36 As previously noted, Section 302 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 authorizes the President to appoint individuals as Foreign Service Officers, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, after such individuals serve under a limited appointment as a career candidate for a trial period of service prescribed by the Secretary of State.³⁰37 The trial period of service for Foreign Service Generalist Career Candidates generallygeneral y does not exceed five years.³¹38 The Foreign Service Act of 1980 also authorizes the Secretary of State to establish a Foreign Service Schedule consisting of nine salary classes, which is used to compensate Foreign Service Officers. The Foreign Service Act of 1980 also (1) serves as the basis through which Foreign Service Officers are promoted (in other words, they are promoted from one salary class to the next rather than from one single position to another; see Sections 404 and 601 of the law); (2) codifies the process through which Foreign Service Officers are promoted in a way that seeks to ensure conformity with merit principles and the overall overal needs of the Foreign Service; and (3) governs the process to which the Secretary of State and other department officials must adhere when seeking to separate a Foreign Service Officer from the Foreign Service for cause.³²

. Foreign Service Specialists

Foreign Service Specialists "“provide important technical, management, healthcare or administrative services"” at both Department of State posts in the United States and those overseas.³³40 Unlike Foreign Service Officers, Foreign Service Specialists are not presidential appointees. Instead, the Secretary of State appoints Foreign Service Specialists pursuant to the authorities conferred by Section 303 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980.³⁴41 There are 19 different specialist jobs grouped into the following categories: administration, construction engineering, facility management, information technology, international information and English language programs, medical and health, office management, and law enforcement and security.³⁵ The law enforcement and security, medical and health, and office management.42 The Department of State created these job categories; they are not provided for in law.

The Department of State administers a career candidate program for Foreign Service Specialists separate from the aforementioned career candidate program for Foreign Service Officers. The trial period for such appointees generallygeneral y does not exceed four years.³⁶43 As Foreign Service Specialists are assigned to positions on the Foreign Service Schedule, they are compensated through the same means as Foreign Service Officers. Foreign Service Specialists serve under career or limited appointments and are entitled to the same statutory protections as Foreign Service Officers should the Secretary of State seek to separate a Foreign Service Specialist for cause from the Foreign Service.³⁷

Senior Foreign Service

The Foreign Service Act of 1980 established a Senior Foreign Service (SFS), which serves as "the 44 40 U.S. Department of State, “ Foreign Service Specialist,” at https://careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service/specialist/. 41 The status of Foreign Service Specialists as career members of the Foreign Service appointed under Section 303 of the Foreign Service Act is noted in 3 FAM 2234.1(b). 42 U.S. Department of State, “ Foreign Service Specialist,” at https://careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service/specialist/career-tracks. 43 See Section 309 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-465), as amended; U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM), “ General Provisions,” 3 FAM 2251.3, at ht t ps://fam.st at e.gov/. 44 The status of Foreign Service Specialists as career members of the Foreign Service is noted in 3 FAM 2234.1(b). Section 610(a)(2)(A) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-465), as amended, which governs the separation for cause process, indicates that it applies to individuals serving under a career or limited appointment. Congressional Research Service 13 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Senior Foreign Service The Foreign Service Act of 1980 established a Senior Foreign Service (SFS), which serves as “the corps of senior leaders and experts for the management of the service and the performance of its functions."³⁸”45 The SFS was created to address what at the time was viewed by some as a glut of senior officers in the Department of State, which exceeded the number of senior positions available. Congress intended for entrance standards into the SFS to be higher than those previously applied for promotion into the senior ranks. More stringent entrance standards and time-in-class limitations were intended to ensure that the ranks of the Senior Foreign Service did not become bloated and corresponded more closely to the number of available senior-level posts. Moreover, the time-in-class limitations curtailed the amount of time that Foreign Service Officers had to secure promotion to the SFS, as well wel as the amount of time that career Senior Foreign Service Officers had to be promoted to the next available grade within the SFS. (If an officer exceeds these time-in-class limitations, he or she is required to be retired from the Foreign Service.³⁹)

Service.)46 The President is authorized to appoint career members of the SFS, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, by Section 302 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980. Section 302 also authorizes the President to confer the personal rank of career ambassador upon a career member of the SFS, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, "“in recognition of especially especial y distinguished service over a sustained period."” The Secretary of State is authorized to make limited, noncareer appointments to the SFS pursuant to Section 303 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, but Section 305 prohibits the Secretary from making a limited appointment if it would "“cause the number of members of the Senior Foreign Service serving under limited appointments to exceed 5 percent of the total number of members of the Senior Foreign Service,"” with some exceptions.⁴⁰

exceptions.47 Section 402 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 requires the President to prescribe salary classes for the SFS and appropriate titles and ranges of basic salary rates for each class. The three salary classes and titles so prescribed are, in ascending order, those of Counselor, Minister-Counselor, and Career Minister. As with the Foreign Service, promotion within the Senior Foreign Service comprises one'’s placement from one salary class to the next; promotion is not based on movement from one single position to the next.

Locally Employed Staff

As of December 31, 20172020, the Department of State employed 50,225451 individuals classified as LocallyLocal y Employed Staff (LES), who comprise approximately 6866% of total State Department personnel.48 LESs include several subcategories of employees, including Foreign Service Nationals (FSNs), Appointment Eligible Family Members (or AEFMs, these staff are categorized as locally-employed staff for some but not all purposes), locally resident U.S. citizens, and third-country nationals.⁴¹ FSNs and AEFMs are discussed in more detail below.

The Department of State'categorized as local y- 45 U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM), “ Senior Foreign Service,” 3 FAM 2233, at https://fam.state.gov/. 46 See Section 607 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended; also see U.S. Department of State, Ofice of the Historian, “ A Short History of the Department of State: Landmark Departmental Reform,” at ht t ps://hist ory.state.gov/department hist ory/short-history/reforms/. 47 See Section 305 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended 48 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Global T alent Management, “ HR Fact Sheet: Facts About Our Most Valuable Asset – Our People,” fact sheet, December 31, 2020, at https://www.afsa.org/sites/default/files/1220_state_dept_hr_factsheet.pdf. Congressional Research Service 14 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress employed staff for some but not al purposes), local y resident U.S. citizens, and third-country nationals.49 FSNs and AEFMs are discussed in more detail below. Foreign Service Nationals (FSNs) The Department of State’s website notes that LES, including FSNs, provide an important source of continuity to each overseas post as American citizen employees rotate in and out, and that the department "“depend[s] heavily on [them], frequently delegating to them significant management roles and program functions."⁴²”50 The Foreign Service Act of 1980 authorizes the Secretary of State to appoint foreign national employees and states that foreign nationals who provide "“clerical, administrative, technical, fiscal, and other support at Foreign Service posts abroad" shall be ” shal be considered members of the Foreign Service."⁴³”51 FSNs are appointed by individual overseas posts.⁴⁴52 They are hired under local compensation plans established by the Secretary of State and based on prevailing wage rates and compensation practices for corresponding types of positions in the locality of employment, as provided by Section 408 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980. The department'’s Office of Overseas Employment, located in the Bureau of Human ResourcesGlobal Talent Management, is responsible for developing and implementing human resources policies pertaining to FSNs at overseas posts, including matters regarding recruitment, position evaluation and classification evaluation, and compensation.⁴⁵

53 Appointment Eligible Family Eligible Family Members (AEFMs)

Section 311(a) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 authorizes the Secretary of State to appoint "“United States citizens, who are family members of government employees assigned abroad or are hired for service at their post of residence, for employment in positions customarily filledfil ed by by Foreign Service officers, Foreign Service personnel, and foreign national employees."” It further provides that family members appointed under this provision shall shal be compensated in accordance ac cordance with the Foreign Service Schedule or at lower rates that the Secretary of State is authorized to establish pursuant to Section 407 of the law.⁴⁶

54 The Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) clarifies that in order to be considered an AEFM, one must be a U.S. citizen, the spouse or domestic partner of a sponsoring employee, listed on the travel orders or approved Foreign Service Residence and Dependency Report of a sponsoring employee, employee, and residing at the sponsoring employee'’s post of assignment abroad.⁴⁷.55 The Department of State can employ AEFMs through family member appointments, which are limited, noncareer non-career appointments that exceed one year but are no longer than five years and can be extended or renewed pursuant to Section 309 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980. AEFMs can also be employed through temporary appointments that Section 309 provides shall shal last for one year or less.56 49 According to 6 FAH 5 H-352.2, AEFMs are counted as locally employed staff for some, but not all, purposes. 50 U.S. Department of State, “ Local Employment in U.S. Embassies and Consulates,” at https://careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service/local-employment/. 51 See Section 103 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. 52 U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM), “ Appointment,” 3 FAM 7240, at https://fam.state.gov/. 53 U.S. Department of State, “ Local Employment in U.S. Embassies and Consulates,” at https://careers.state.gov/work/foreign-service/local-employment/. 54 See Section 408 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. 55 U.S. Department of State, Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM), “ Definitions,” 3 FAM 7121, at https://fam.state.gov/ 56 Ibid; also see Section 309 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. Congressional Research Service 15 link to page 19 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress last for one year or less.⁴⁸

Civil Service Personnel

Civil Service Personnel The Department of State employed over 10,00010,639 Civil Service (CS) employees as of December 2017.31, 2020.57 These employees are among the 2.09 million civilian nonpostalmil ion civilian non-postal employees that the federal government employs.⁵⁶58 According to the Department of State, "the “Civil Service corps, most of whom are headquartered in Washington, D.C., is involved in virtuallyvirtual y every policy and management area – from democracy and human rights, to narcotics control, trade, and environmental issues. Civil Service employees also serve as the domestic counterpart to Foreign Service consular officers who issue passports and assist U.S. citizens overseas."⁵⁷”59 Table 4 shows the 11 Civil Service job categories within the department and describes each category.

Department of State Staffing Levels Over Time

Amid these declines, the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) expressed particular concern regarding reductions in the number of Senior Foreign Service Officers, including those at the rank of Career Minister and Minister Counselor. According to the Department of State, the number of Senior Foreign Service Officers serving at the rank of Career Minister declined from 27 at the end of FY2016 to 19 at the end of FY2017, while the number of those serving at the rank of Minister-Counselor declined from 431 to 385.⁵⁹ AFSA attributed such declines in part to what it said were department decisions to slash promotions. It added that because the Foreign Service, like the military, recruits officers at the entry level and develops them into senior leaders over a number of years, the Department of State will face significant difficulties replacing lost talent quickly. ⁶⁰ Department of State officials offered a different assertion, attributing the broader decline in the number of Senior Foreign Service personnel largely to Senate inaction in approving career Senior Foreign Service promotions transmitted for advice and consent.⁶¹ See Table 5 for more information comparing the department's personnel levels in 2008 and 2017.

Selected Issues for Congress

State Department Leadership and Modernization Impact Initiative

Tillerson initiated the redesign in 2017 to implement Executive Order 13781 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memorandum M-17-22, which comprise White House directives to "improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of the executive branch."⁶⁶ The Impact Initiative seeks to advance Tillerson's vision "to reaffirm the United States' position as a world leader for decades to come by modernizing the processes, procedures, and technology of the Department of State ... and fostering a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and strong leadership at every level."⁶⁷ The Impact Initiative constitutes 16 keystone modernization projects in three focus areas: (1) Modernizing Information Technology and Human Resources Operations; (2) Modernizing Global Presence, and Creating and Implementing Policy; and (3) Improving Operational Efficiencies (see Table 6). According to the Department of State, these focus areas and keystone modernization projects are derived from the results of the listening tour that Tillerson launched in May 2017, which included interviews conducted with approximately 300 individuals that the department said comprised a representative cross-section of its broader workforce. Inputs also came from a survey completed by 35,000 department personnel that asked them to discuss both the means they use to help complete the department's mission and the obstacles they encounter in the process.

Workforce Readiness

Improve Performance Management

State Department Personnel Staffing Levels

Transition from Hiring Freeze and Staff Reductions to Resumed Hiring

• Congress exercises the power of the pursecivil-service/job-categories/. Selected Issues for Congress Members of Congress, former and current senior State Department officials, academics and think- tank analysts, and other stakeholders have long maintained an interest in personnel matters at the Department of State. Issues concerning State Department personnel, including but not limited to those discussed below, are frequently highlighted in reports and analyses concerning broader potential efforts to reorganize or reform the department. Several such reports have been released over the past year, including those published by the Council on Foreign Relations, the Harvard Kennedy School, and the Truman Center.60 In general, these and other reports maintain that efforts to strengthen the capacity of the State Department’s personnel to advance U.S. foreign policy and national security goals must be holistic in scope and recognize the interrelated nature of existing management chal enges. For example, some analysts who have expressed concern regarding the absence of mid-level entry programs in the Foreign Service recommend that the State Department leverage such programs to simultaneously target mid-career professionals from racial and ethnic groups that are currently underrepresented in the department’s workforce, and those with requisite expertise to fil previously unanticipated mid-level skil gaps in areas such as science and technology. Similarly, analysts note persistent overseas Foreign Service vacancies may contribute to difficulties that the State Department’s Chiefs of Mission currently face in exercising their statutory authorities. Thus, efforts to expand the size of the Foreign Service workforce or fil these vacancies through other means, such as Civil Service overseas rotation programs, might also enhance the ability of COMs to direct and coordinate U.S. government activities abroad. To date, the 117th Congress’s engagement on State Department personnel matters has focused in large part on diversity and inclusion issues. For example, in May 2021 the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1157, the Department of State Authorization Act of 2021, which includes several provisions regarding diversity and inclusion matters, including measures affecting the State Department’s recruiting, training, and promotion practices. Members have also introduced several additional bil s focused on this topic.61 The 117th Congress is also considering 60 Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, Council on Foreign Relations, November 2020, at ht t ps://www.cfr.org/report /revit alizing-st at e-department-and-american-diplomacy; Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, Harvard Kennedy School: Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, November 2020, at ht t ps://www.hks.harvard.edu/publicat ions/us-diplomat ic-service-21st -century; Truman Center, Transforming State: Pathways to a More Just, Equitable, and Innovative Institution, March 2021, at ht t p://t rumancenter.org/ideas/t ask-force-report-t ransforming-the-state-department/. 61 For example, see S. 599 and H.R. 1096. Congressional Research Service 17 link to page 22 link to page 22 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress the Biden Administration’s FY2022 International Affairs budget request, which includes a cal for funding to support the hiring of an additional 485 Foreign Service and Civil Service Officers at the State Department. The below sections examine the state of play regarding these and other issues, including recent congressional activity and potential policy options. Diversity and Inclusion Successive Secretaries of State and other senior State Department officials, regardless of Administration or political affiliation, have stated the importance of a diverse State Department workforce. In 2002, Colin Powel , the first Black Secretary of State, remarked that “[t]o advance America’s values and interests today, we must draw on the talents and the knowledge and experience of the widest possible range of Americans. The diversity of our diplomats can help us make the case al around the globe that the keys to a better future are ... societies where citizens are equal under the law, and in which their contributions are valued.”62 Similarly, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has asserted that “[b]ecause we’re operating in a diverse world, and America’s diversity is a source of strength that few countries can match, when we fail to build a team that reflects America, it’s like we’re engaging the world with one arm tied behind our back.”63 The Foreign Service Act also includes multiple provisions addressing diversity. For example, Section 101 includes a finding stating that “the members of the Foreign Service should be representative of the American people,” and further provides that the law intends to foster “the development and vigorous implementation of policies and procedures, including affirmative action programs” to encourage “entry into and advancement in the Foreign Service by persons from al segments of American society.” Many stakeholders, including Secretary Blinken and some Members of Congress, argue that the State Department has long failed to make necessary progress on workforce diversity and inclusion efforts. For example, Secretary Blinken observed that a January 2020 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on diversity in the State Department’s workforce revealed lower rates of promotion for racial and ethnic minorities and commented on what he perceived to be “the alarming lack of diversity at the highest levels of the State Department” (see Figure 2 and Figure 3).64 However, programs to promote diversity and inclusion sometimes face opposition. Broadly, critics have argued that categorizing Americans by race, ethnicity, and other means of differentiation, although sometimes required by equal opportunity laws, fosters “identity politics” that encourage people to focus on individual differences rather than common national and agency interests.65 Additional y, some experts have argued that diversity training within organizations creates an “us versus them” response in many people that may actual y increase discrimination.66 62 Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, “ Remarks with Distinguished Guests at Ceremony Announcing Grant to Howard Universit y,” May 17, 2002, at https://2001-2009.state.gov/secretary/former/powell/remarks/2002/10287.htm. 63 U.S. Department of State, Ofice of the Spokesperson, “ At the Announcement of Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley as Chief Diversity and Inclusion Oficer,” April 12, 2021, at https://www.state.gov/secretary-antony-j-blinken-at-the-announcement -of-ambassador-gina-abercrombie-winstanley-as-chief-diversity-and-inclusion-officer/. 64 Ibid. 65 For examples, see Mike Gonzales, “ It Is T ime to Debate—and End—Identity Politics” T he Heritage Foundation, October 9, 2018, https://www.herit age.org/civil-society/commentary/it-time-debate-and-end-identity-politics; and Francis Fukuyama, Identity: The Dem and for Dignity and the Politics of Resentm ent, Farrar, Straus, and Giroux; 1st Edition (Sept ember 11, 2018). 66 David Rock, “ Is Your Company’s Diversity T raining Making You More Biased?” Psychology Today, June 7, 2017, at https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/your-brain-work/201706/is-your-company-s-diversity-training-making-you-more-biased. Congressional Research Service 18 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Figure 2. Department of State Minority Figure 3. Department of State Female Workforce by Rank, 2018 Workforce by Rank, 2018 Source: CRS, adapted from data from GAO, State Department: Additional Steps Are Needed to Identify Potential Barriers to Diversity, GAO-20-237, January 27, 2020. Notes: Percentages calculated in-grade as the share of that grade comprised of minority and female employees. Both the White House and the State Department have announced new initiatives intended to promote diversity and inclusion. On June 25, 2021, President Biden signed an executive order requiring, among other priorities, that al federal agencies review whether employees from underserved groups face barriers to employment, promotion, or professional development and, separately, establish Chief Diversity Officers within their organizations.67 The State Department has already fulfil ed the latter requirement, as Secretary Blinken appointed Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley to serve as the State Department’s first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer (CDIO) in April 2021. Secretary Blinken noted that the CDIO wil report directly to him and be tasked with aligning and advancing diversity and inclusion efforts across the State Department and finalizing and implementing the State Department’s forthcoming Diversity and Inclusion Strategic Plan.68 Following the death of George Floyd and ensuing protests in 2020, calls for the State Department to improve and expand its diversity and inclusion efforts intensified.69 Many observers argue that to improve diversity and inclusion, the State Department must implement reforms throughout its personnel management cycle, including with respect to recruitment, training, assignment procedures, promotion, retention, and other areas.70 For example, some have recommended that the State Department conduct more targeted recruiting efforts to engage with high school and college students throughout the United States, including those at historical y Black colleges and 67 T he White House, “ FACT SHEET : President Biden Signs Executive Order Advancing Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in the Federal Government,” June 25, 2021, at https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/06/25/fact-sheet-president-biden-signs-executive-order-advancing-diversity-equity-inclusion-and-accessibility-in-the-federal-government/. 68 U.S. Department of State, Ofice of the Spokesperson, “ At the Announcement of Ambassador Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley as Chief Diversity and Inclusion Oficer,” April 12, 2021, at ht t ps://www.st at e.gov/secret ary-ant ony-j-blinken-at-the-announcement -of-ambassador-gina-abercrombie-winstanley-as-chief-diversity-and-inclusion-officer/. 69 Conor Finnegan, “ State Department expands diversity fellowships amid pressure to better support diplomats of color,” ABC News, September 3, 2020, at https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/state-department-expands-diversity-fellowships-amid-pressure-support/story?id=72754381. 70 For example, see “ Diversity and Inclusion in the U.S. Foreign Service: Recommendations for Action,” Foreign Service Journal, January/February 2021. Congressional Research Service 19 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress universities.71 Additional y, both Members of Congress and former State Department officials have cal ed for a significant expansion of paid internship opportunities, including at U.S. embassies and consulates abroad.72 Others have advocated for Congress to create a program similar to the U.S. military’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) that would provide a new avenue for students, including those from underrepresented backgrounds, to pursue a career in either the Foreign or Civil Service.73 Many analysts have also emphasized that the State Department should place particular emphasis on measures to retain and promote existing staff from underrepresented backgrounds, as the previously mentioned 2020 GAO report found that the proportion of racial and ethnic minorities and women were general y smal er in the State Department’s higher ranks, while promotion rates for such groups were sometimes lower than those for Whites.74 Suggested actions include revising promotion criteria to ensure that advancing diversity and inclusion is a factor for promotion to supervisory positions and expanding the use of oral exit interviews to obtain feedback from departing employees regarding the State Department’s diversity and inclusion efforts.75 Others have cal ed on the State Department to appoint an independent academic expert to conduct a “diversity review” of its personnel practices, including promotion and retention.76 At the most senior levels, some cal ed on the State Department to more strongly prioritize diversity and gender parity for appointments to such positions.77 Secretary Blinken’s decision to include Ambassador Abercrombie-Winstanley in the State Department’s “D Committee,” which is responsible for reviewing candidates to serve in senior positions including Chiefs of Mission, may lead to change in this area.78 Congressional Responses and Options  On May 18, 2021, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1157, the Department of State Authorization Act of 2021. This bil has been received in the Senate and was referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. It includes several provisions regarding diversity and inclusion. If enacted, this bil would require the State Department to publicly disclose more detailed demographic data and other information regarding the diversity of the State Department’s workforce, expand its recruiting efforts to better target individuals from underrepresented groups, increase training for staff on anti-harassment and anti- discrimination, and implement performance and advancement requirements that reward and recognize the efforts of individuals in senior positions to foster an inclusive environment. 71 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 27. 72 Ibid; See also Truman Center, Transforming State: Pathways to a More Just, Equitable, and Innovative Institution, p. 31. 73 Anne-Marie Slaughter, “ Reinventing the State Department,” Democracy Journal, September 15, 2020, at https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/reinventing-the-state-department/. 74 William J. Burns and Linda Thomas-Greenfield, “ The Transformation of Diplomacy: How to Save the State Department,” Foreign Affairs, September 23, 2020. 75 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 27; Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, November 2020, p. 15. 76 Truman Center, Transforming State: Pathways to a More Just, Equitable, and Innovative Institution, March 2021, p. 31. 77 Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, November 2020, p. 15. 78 Jory Heckman, “ Elevated State Dept. chief diversity officer looks to move needle on decades-long challenges,” Federal News Network, May 3, 2021, at ht t ps://federalnewsnet work.com/hiring-ret ention/2021/05/elevated-st ate-dept-chief-diversit y-officer-looks-to-move-needle-on-decades-long-challenges/. Congressional Research Service 20 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress  During the 117th Congress, Members of Congress have introduced several additional bil s seeking to advance diversity and inclusion programs at the State Department. S. 599, the Department of State Student Internship Program Act, for example, would expand the availability of paid internship programs and require the State Department to transition al of its unpaid internship programs to programs offering compensation. Separately, the Represent America Abroad Act of 2021 (H.R. 1096), if enacted, would require the State Department to establish a new mid-level entry program enabling the Foreign Service to recruit mid-career professionals from minority groups (for more information regarding mid-level entry programs, see the “Training and Professionalism” subsection).  Some analysts have recommended that the Senate establish a confidential channel through which the State Department’s personnel could share information with Senate leadership regarding actions by nominees to senior positions requiring Senate advice and consent that amount to bullying, discrimination, or harassment.79 The Senate Foreign Relations Committee may wish to explore whether such a channel would prove necessary or beneficial. Personnel Staffing Levels The Biden Administration has indicated a commitment to “revitalizing the foreign policy workforce.”80 As part of its FY2022 International Affairs budget request, it is seeking funding for an additional 255 Foreign Service Officers and 230 Civil Service personnel. The request includes Foreign Service positions in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and elsewhere that the Biden Administration maintains are critical to advancing U.S. prosperity and countering Chinese, Russian, and Iranian malign influence. It also includes Civil Service positions to protect U.S. critical infrastructure, expand the State Department’s cybersecurity and risk management programs, and advance the Biden Administration’s science and technology priorities.81 These requested positions broadly align with staffing priorities Secretary Blinken articulated at his nomination hearing in January 2021. At the hearing, Secretary Blinken asserted that the State Department needed additional personnel with expertise in critical areas such as global health, climate change, and technology.82 Some analysts have termed the size of the State Department’s workforce a “foundational issue,” arguing that it is currently too smal to most effectively shape and execute U.S. foreign policy priorities.83 Yet many others caution that increasing the size of the Foreign Service workforce is not a panacea. One former State Department official noted, for example, that while the size of the diplomatic corps increased by around 50% from 2003 through 2012, the State Department stil faced numerous chal enges delivering on its mission.84 Another observer has similarly asserted that management chal enges are not attributable to the State Department’s personnel strength, but 79 Truman Center, Transforming State: Pathways to a More Just, Equitable, and Innovative Institution, March 2021, p. 16. 80 U.S. Department of State, Congressional Budget Justification, Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, Fiscal Year 2022, p. 17. 81 U.S. Department of State, “ FY2022 Budget Request: Department of State and USAID,” Slide Presentation, May 28, 2021, p. 14. 82 Testimony of Secretary of State-designate Antony Blinken, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Nomination Hearing, 117th Cong., 1st sess., January 19, 2021. 83 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 36. 84 Kori Schake, “ State of Disrepair,” Foreign Policy, April 11, 2012, at https://foreignpolicy.com/2012/04/11/state-of-disrepair/. Congressional Research Service 21 link to page 25 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress rather the al ocation of resources and personnel to several tertiary priorities outside the State Department’s traditional remit.85 The number of Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel declined during the Trump Administration, which instituted a hiring freeze from January 2017 to April 2018. However, these declines did not approach the lower numbers of Foreign and Civil Service personnel in place near the end of the George W. Bush Administration (see Figure 4). Figure 4. Department of State Foreign Service and Civil Service Personnel Levels Source: Chart created by CRS with data from U.S Department of State, Bureau of Human Resources, “HR Fact Sheet: Facts About Our Most Valuable Asset – Our People,” fact sheet, June 30, 2008; U.S Department of State, Bureau of Human Resources (later known as the Bureau of Global Talent Management), “HR Fact Sheet: Facts About Our Most Valuable Asset – Our People,” fact sheet, December 31, 2016-December 31, 2020. While many analysts and other observers believe the size of the Foreign Service (or the State Department workforce more broadly) should increase, there are many competing proposals regarding precisely how the State Department should supplement existing personnel levels. Some observers have cal ed on the State Department to gradual y hire as many as 3,800 additional career Foreign Service personnel through traditional hiring mechanisms to both provide for an adequate training float (see “Training and Professionalism” below) and address projected future vacancies.86 Other proposals include cal s for Congress to establish a Diplomatic Reserve Corps that would provide the State Department with a diplomatic surge capacity that could be deployed to respond to crises or emergencies abroad; address, on a short-term basis, human capital deficits in emerging areas such as quantum computing and cybersecurity; and fil critical vacancies at overseas posts.87 Additional y, some have espoused the idea of a more robust Foreign Service 85 Brett D. Schaefer, How to Make the State Department More Effective at Implementing U.S. Foreign Policy , Heritage Foundation, Backgrounder no. 3115, April 20, 2016, at https://www.heritage.org/political-process/report/how-make-the-state-department-more-effective-implementing-us-foreign. 86 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 37; Joaquin Castro, “ How to Bring American Diplomacy Back from the Brink,” Foreign Affairs, October 28, 2020, at https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2020-10-28/how-bring-american-diplomacy-back-brink. 87 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 44-45; Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Departm ent and Am erican Diplom acy, November 2020, p. 30; William J. Burns and Linda T homas-Greenfield, “ T he T ransformation of Diplomacy: How to Save the State Department,” Foreign Affairs, September 23, 2020; American Academy of Diplomacy, Strengthening the Departm ent of State, May 2019, at https://www.academyofdiplomacy.org/publication/strengthening-the- Congressional Research Service 22 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress mid-level entry program, or alternatively, new hiring authorities, to al ow the Foreign Servic e to bring in personnel from the private sector or other government agencies to meet unanticipated mid-level skil gaps in priority disciplines, while also improving diversity.88 Congressional Responses and Options  Congress exercises the power of the purse, which includes authority to set the , which includes authority to set the amount of funding that agencies receive, as well wel as determining how specific to make such appropriations. In recent years, Congress has inserted directives in appropriations laws requiring the State Department to obligate funds to support the department’s workforce at specified levels. For example, Section 7073 of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programsmake such appropriations. If Congress appropriates specific funds for the hiring of Foreign or Civil Service officers and those funds have not been disbursed before a hiring freeze, for example, that freeze might contradict the terms of the appropriation. Similarly, the Impoundment Control Act obligates the President to spend appropriated funds absent a bill rescinding those funds. Without the passing of such a bill, it could be argued that a hiring freeze that prevented appropriated funds from being spent could violate the act.⁸⁷ After initially seeking to reduce personnel levels at the onset of the Trump Administration, the Department of State is now seeking to increase personnel levels in a manner consistent with congressional funding and directives provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2018 (P.L. 115-141). If Congress sought to impel the Department of State to further increase hiring, it could consider appropriating more funds to the Human Resources category of the department's Diplomatic & Consular Programs account, which is used to pay salaries for the department's domestic and overseas American employees. Congress could also provide guidance to the department modeled in part on Section 7081 of P.L. 115-141, which stipulates that no funds appropriated for the Department of State shall be used to "expand or reduce the size of the Civil Service, Foreign Service, eligible family member, and locally employed staff workforce of the Department of State and USAID from the on-board levels as of December 31, 2017" without prior consultation with Congress.
• During the hiring freeze, AFSA expressed concern that because the Foreign Service recruits officers at the entry level and develops them into senior leaders over a number of years, the Department of State would face significant difficulties replacing lost talent quickly. If it sought to assist the Department of State in plugging any perceived personnel shortages at certain ranks within the Foreign Service, Congress could consider expanding and/or adjusting the three-year pilot program authorized 2019 (Division F of P.L. 116-6) provided that the State Department could not use appropriated funds to expand or reduce the size of the State Department Civil Service, Foreign Service, eligible family member, and local y employed staff workforce from the on-board levels as of December 31, 2017, without consultation with Congress. Congress has also included reporting requirements obligating the State Department to submit regular reports detailing on-board personnel levels, hiring, and attrition of the Civil Service, Foreign Service, eligible family members, and local y employed staff workforce.89 Congress could continue to include such measures in annual appropriations laws to provide guidance and oversight with respect to the State Department’s personnel levels.  Congress could choose to establish a Diplomatic Reserve Corps or a mid-level hiring program through amending the Foreign Service Act or another legislative vehicle. There is precedent for both actions–for example, in 2008, Congress authorized both a Response Readiness Corps and a Civilian Reserve Corps to support reconstruction and stabilization assistance in contingency environments.90 With regard to mid-level entry programs, Congress in 2016 authorized a three-year pilot program pursuant to the Department of State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 (P.L. 114-323), intended to facilitate mid-career entry into the Foreign Service for qualified individuals from the Civil Service and the private sector.91 Subsequent chal enges in standing up these programs may indicate a need for Congress to provide consistent funding, expanded authorities, and robust oversight over a period of many years to ensure that the State Department has the tools at its disposal to fulfil ambitious statutory mandates.92  H.R. 1157, the Department of State Authorization Act of 2021, which passed the House of Representatives in May 2021, includes some provisions related to department -of-state/, p. 23. 88 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 41; Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, November 2020, pp. 4, 6, 9, 17, 24; Truman Center, Transforming State: Pathways to a More Just, Equitable, and Innovative Institution, March 2021, p. 22. 89 For example, see Joint Explanatory Statement Accompanying Division K of Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2021 (Division K of P.L. 116-260), at https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20201221/BILLS-116RCP68-JES-DIVISION-K.pdf, p. 93. 90 See 22 U.S.C. §2734. 91 See Section 404 of the Department of State Authorities Act, Fiscal Year 2017 (P.L. 114-323). 92 For example, see archived CRS Report RL32862, Peacekeeping/Stabilization and Conflict Transitions: Background and Congressional Action on the Civilian Response/Reserve Corps and other Civilian Stabilization and Reconstruction Capabilities , by Nina M. Serafino (available to congressional clients upon request). Congressional Research Service 23 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress personnel strength and vacancies. If enacted, this bil would authorize the State Department to temporarily fil Foreign Service designated positions that have been vacant for over a year with non-Foreign Service personnel. Additional y, it would require the State Department to submit a comprehensive five-year strategic staffing plan to Congress that aligns with and furthers the objectives of the National Security Strategy. Training and Professionalism Many former State Department officials and other observers have expressed concern that State Department personnel are not sufficiently equipped with “the knowledge, skil s, abilities, and outlooks needed to equip career diplomats to conduct 21st-century diplomacy.”93 Others similarly note persistent tension between the need for education, training, and professional development throughout al stages of an employee’s career on the one hand, and the State Department’s immediate operational needs both overseas and domestical y on the other.94 This situation may have fomented what some have described as a cultural aversion to training within the State Department. Training assignments are often viewed, from this perspective, as potential y damaging to one’s career prospects because they do not improve chances for promotion.95 While some express concern that the State Department’s perceived lack of emphasis on training and professional development could put its personnel at a disadvantage relative to those of other executive agencies and foreign diplomatic corps, others may argue that it constitutes a sound approach and may better ensure the advancement of the most talented and effective personnel to the senior ranks. Those in favor of expanding the State Department’s training and professional development opportunities argue that improved programming must be available immediately when one enters the State Department and continue through promotion to senior positions. Recommendations include increasing the length of training for incoming Foreign Service Officers from 6 weeks to at least 6 months, and expanding the curricula to include additional focus on U.S. diplomatic history and practice; the respective roles of the Foreign Service, Civil Service, Local y Employed Staff, and other personnel; leadership and management skil s; and how to best utilize on-the-job training.96 Others have cal ed for the State Department to adopt more collaborative entry-level training modules in which Foreign Service Officers, Foreign Service Specialists, and Civil Service personnel participate together in order to promote a more unified State Department and reduce stove-piping between the Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel systems.97 As personnel move through the State Department’s ranks, some argue that the department should afford them more opportunities to go on temporary details to other executive agencies, think tanks, state and local governments, congressional offices, and private sector firms. Supporters of this policy argue that it wil enable both Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel to 93 Atlantic Council, State Department Reform Report, August 2017, pp. 15-16. 94 American Academy of Diplomacy, Strengthening the Department of State, p. 44. 95 William J. Burns and Linda Thomas-Greenfield, “ The Transformation of Diplomacy: How to Save the State Department,”, September 23, 2020; Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, November 2020, p. 26. 96 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 33; Atlantic Council, State Department Reform Report, August 2017, p. 18; American Academy of Diplomacy, Strengthening the Department of State, May 2019, p. 46. 97 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, Harvard Kennedy School: Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, November 2020, p. 33; American Academy of Diplomacy, Strengthening the Department of State, May 2019, p. 47. Congressional Research Service 24 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress strengthen their skil s in core areas of increasing importance to 21st century statecraft, including business and commercial advocacy, cybersecurity, and information and communications technology, while also (in the case of additional details to Capitol Hil ) improving relations with Congress.98 Stakeholders have similarly cal ed on the State Department to provide more opportunities for staff to study at outside academic institutions, noting that personnel accepted to prestigious universities to earn advanced degrees relevant to their work are currently offered leave without pay only under limited circumstances.99 Others note the importance of increasing in-house training programs for mid-level personnel in areas such as the federal budget, the roles and missions of other federal agencies involved with national security policy, and inter-agency policymaking and implementation processes.100 For the State Department’s senior leadership, analysts note that recent Secretaries of State successfully demanded that the Foreign Service Institute establish a school for leadership and management training in large part to provide these personnel more access to professional development programs in such disciplines. Some argue that the State Department must strengthen and expand requirements that Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel seeking promotion into the senior ranks complete training modules in these areas.101 Others have suggested that senior leaders should receive as much as six months of training upon promotion, including in areas such as current and emerging policy issues, strategic foresight, and diplomatic skil s and tradecraft.102 Al of the aforementioned proposals are general y predicated on the notion that the State Department should advance the further professionalization of its workforce. However, this idea does not enjoy universal adherence, as some have argued that changes to the international political environment since the end of the Cold War demand that the State Department “deprofessionalize” its workforce.103 This point of view reflects an assumption that in the post-Cold War era, the most acute geopolitical chal enges facing the United States have transcended traditional bilateral relations and now involve complex multidisciplinary issues such as climate change, disinformation, global health security, mass migration, and natural resource shortages. To address these chal enges effectively, national governments must, this argument follows, partner with broad coalitions including stakeholders within the business community, academia, the philanthropy sector, local governments, and faith groups.104 Supporters of this view argue that the State Department can most effectively leverage these coalitions by deprofessionalizing its workforce and creating a new “Global Service” comprised of personnel with backgrounds working on global issues in a wide range of capacities serving on non-career, renewable five-year appointments. Given the diverse backgrounds of such personnel, proponents of this approach predict that they wil offer new perspectives to addressing national security and foreign policy 98 Joaquin Castro, “ How to Bring American Diplomacy Back from the Brink,” October 28, 2020,.; Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, November 2020, pp. 8, 10; Atlantic Council, State Department Reform Report, August 2017, p. 17; Truman Center, Transforming State: Pathways to a More Just, Equitable, and Innovative Institution, March 2021, pp. 23, 35; American Academy of Diplomacy, Strengthening the Department of State, May 2019, p. 51. 99 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 31; Joaquin Castro, “ How to Bring American Diplomacy Back from the Brink,” October 28, 2020. 100 Atlantic Council, State Department Reform Report, August 2017, p. 18. 101 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, pp. 30-31; Uzra S. Zeya, and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, November 2020, p. 27; American Academy of Diplomacy, Strengthening the Department of State, pp. 31, 40. 102 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, pp. 32-33. 103 Anne-Marie Slaughter, “ Reinventing the State Department,” Democracy Journal, September 15, 2020, at https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/reinventing-the-state-department/. 104 Ibid. Congressional Research Service 25 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress chal enges. They would also be expected to “cross civic, corporate, and government boundaries with ease” and reach out to their professional networks to mobilize the coalitions and resources necessary to address contemporary national security threats.105 Congressional Responses and Options  Those who have cal ed on the State Department to develop and offer a more comprehensive suite of training, education, and professional development opportunities often acknowledge that their proposals are not feasible unless the State Department hires at least 2,000 additional Foreign Service Officers.106 This would enable the State Department to create a “training float” of 15% above the level required to staff al authorized positions to al ow Foreign Service personnel to participate in long-term training programs without posts and bureaus having to endure widespread vacancies.107 Such an effort would require congressional action. Most State Department positions are funded through congressional appropriations, and Congress has inserted directives in recent appropriations laws requiring the State Department to obligate funds to support the State Department’s workforce at certain levels (see the “Personnel Staffing Levels” subsection).  Congress has frequently passed laws instituting training requirements for State Department personnel and could elect to do so again should it identify any areas where training and professional development opportunities are currently lacking. For example, in 2019 Congress amended Section 708 of the Foreign Service Act to provide additional training on economic and commercial diplomacy to Foreign Service personnel, including Chiefs of Mission. Specifical y, such training is focused on “market access and other elements of an enabling framework for United States businesses, commercial advocacy, and United States foreign economic policy, in addition to awareness about the support of the United States Government available to United States businesses.”108 In legislating such training requirements, Congress would need to provide concomitant funding to the State Department if it wanted to ensure that their implementation did not amount to an unfunded mandate. Chief of Mission Authority As previously discussed, “Chief of Mission” is the title conferred on the principal officer in charge of each U.S. diplomatic mission to a foreign country, foreign territory, or international organization. In their capacity as the President’s personal representatives, COMs are responsible for exercising the authorities vested in them by both law and executive branch directives and regulations (for additional detail, see the “Ambassadors, Chiefs of Mission, and Ambassadors-at- Large” subsection of this report). 105 Ibid. 106 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, November 2020, p. 6. 107 Ambassador Charles Ray, “ America Needs a Professional Foreign Service: Speaking Out,” Foreign Service Journal, July/August 2015, at ht t ps://www.afsa.org/america-needs-professional-foreign-service. 108 See Section 708(d) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as amended. Congressional Research Service 26 State Department Personnel: Background and Selected Issues for the 117th Congress Former senior State Department officials and other analysts have recently expressed concern that many COMs have proven unable to effectively exercise their authorities. They often fear that deficiencies in this area not only contribute to perceptions among the State Department’s inter-agency partners that it is ineffective in developing, coordinating, and implementing policy, but also foment confusion and a lack of cohesiveness among personnel at U.S. overseas posts.109 Similar concerns regarding the need for the executive branch to strengthen the capacity of COMs to leverage their authorities have been expressed for many decades. In 1949, for example, the Hoover Commission on Organization of the Executive Branch (created by Congress in 1947 and tasked with recommending changes to promote economy and efficiency within the executive branch) recommended that in light of the State Department’s own limited resources and personnel, it should focus on coordinating the overseas work of other agencies endowed with the capacity and budgets needed to implement significant programs.110 Yet subsequent reports issued in 1975, 1998, and 2010 similarly identified the need for effective coordination of inter-agency activities abroad, with some judging the State Department incapable of fostering improvements in this area.111 Many analysts attribute the current state of affairs to an unwil ingness of both other agencies and Washington-based State Department personnel to al ow the COM to manage interagency activities within his or her jurisdiction; an absence of explicit authorities to empower COMs to better unify the efforts of interagency groups that include the heads of non-State government agencies represented at overseas posts (also known as country teams); the limited authorities provided to COMs to manage budget and personnel issues; and, in some cases, the inability of COMs to apply basic leadership and management practices required to exercise their statutory authorities.112 In recent years, the State Department has worked to improve the training afforded to COMs and provide more guidance on the details of COM authority.113 However, some believe the State Department must take far more action to bolster the standing of each individual COM and, by extension, the ability of the State Department to act as the lead U.S. foreign affairs agency abroad. For example, three retired U.S. Ambassadors recently cal ed on the President to exercise leadership in this area by clearly designating the State Department as the lead agency in executing American foreign policy and ensuring that each COM’s role is “clear, paramount, safeguarded, and unassailable.”114 Others have advocated for the State Department to adopt a more agile policy coordination framework that ensures overseas posts are able to make significant contributions to policy development processes that are often centered in Washington, develop means to more promptly and efficiently transmit instructions to posts in the field to implement policy, and afford overseas personnel under the COM’s supervision more autonomy.115 COMs could be further empowered, these analysts maintain, if the State Department committed to 109 Amb. Nicolas Burns, Amb. Marc Grossman, and Amb. Marcie Ries, A U.S. Diplomatic Service for the 21st Century, , November 2020, p. 12; Uzra S. Zeya and John Finer, Revitalizing the State Department and American Diplomacy, p. 19. 110 Hoover and Acheson, p. 144, 155-158. See also Harry Kopp, “ Blue-Ribbon Blues: Why So Many Great Reports and Good Ideas Go Nowhere,” Foreign Service Journal, September 2018, at ht t ps://www.afsa.org/blue-ribbon-blues-why-so-many-great -reports-and-good-ideas-go-nowhere. 111 Ibid. The reports referred to are Ambassador Robert D. Murphy’s 1975 Commission on the Organization of the U.S. Government for the Conduct of Foreign Policy, a 1998 Stimson Center report titled “ Equipped for the Future,” and the State Department’s 2010 Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review. 112 Ibid. See also CRS the private sector.⁸⁸

Pace of Presidential Appointments to Senior Positions

During 2017-2018, the Trump Administration's pace of selecting nominees for PAS positions has been widely scrutinized. Of the department's 22 Assistant Secretary of State positions requiring Senate confirmation, President Trump as of May 14, 2018 was yet to transmit nominations to the Senate for seven such positions: the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs; the Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor; the Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs; the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs; the Assistant Secretary of State for Conflict Stabilization Operations; the Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research; and the Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration (see Figure 2). As of May 14, 2018, the Senate had confirmed 10 Assistant Secretary of State nominations transmitted by President Trump, and was yet to act on five additional nominations he has transmitted. President Trump was also yet to submit nominations to the Senate for ambassadorships to countries frequently viewed as strategically important to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests, including Egypt, Georgia, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.

Figure 2. Status of Selected Department of State PAS Positions (as of May 14, 2018)

Source: U.S. Department of State, "Department of State Organization Chart: November 2016," https://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/rls/dos/99484.htm, accessed April 3, 2018. CRS edited this Organization Chart to display the status of each position. Status of each position determined by CRS through searches of http://lis.gov/nomis/ on April 23, 2018 (status of each position will be subject to change).

Congressional Responses and Options

• The Senate has the authority, pursuant to Article II, Section 2 of the Constitution, to provide advice and consent for presidential appointments of ambassadors and other public ministers and consuls. Congress has leveraged this authority with respect to the Department of State, as the 266 positions within the department that are required by law to be subject to advice and consent exceeds the number of positions designated as such in any other federal agency. As described below, Congress has taken, or may consider to take, some actions to alleviate concerns that Department of State PAS positions are not being filled expeditiously or, in other cases, are not being filled at all.
• Congress could expand on action in recent years to reduce the number of positions for which advice and consent is required to expedite the process for considering nominees. Enacted in 2012, the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act (P.L. 112-166) eliminated the requirement for advice and consent for 163 positions, including selected positions within the Department of State.¹⁰² In doing so, the legislation amended each section of the U.S. Code that established the 163 positions across the federal government generally by striking the phrase "by and with advice and consent of the Senate," thus allowing the President to fill these positions on his own. In addition, in 2011, the Senate passed S.Res. 116, which created a new process for Senate consideration of nominations to 272 positions, wherein the nominations would bypass formal committee consideration unless any single Senator objected.¹⁰³ Congress could take similar actions to further reduce the number of Department of State positions for which advice and consent is required.¹⁰⁴
• The Senate could also change its procedural rules with the intent of increasing the likelihood that it will provide advice and consent for the President's nominees or expediting the pace at which the President's nominees are considered.¹⁰⁵ On November 21, 2013, the Senate reinterpreted the "cloture rule" (Senate Rule XXII) to lower the threshold for invoking cloture, in effect allowing a simple majority of Senators voting (as opposed to three-fifths of the full Senate pursuant to the previous interpretation of the rule) to restrict the time for considering a nomination or other items of business. As a result, a nominee requires the support of only a simple majority of Senators voting for his or her nomination to receive a subsequent up or down vote. (A simple majority is required for the Senate to provide advice and consent, provided that a quorum is present.)¹⁰⁶ Other proposals for changing the cloture process include reductions in the time costs associated with certain cloture-related actions or new or additional restrictions on debate in certain circumstances. Some Members of Congress and other observers have argued against such proposals, maintaining that the ability of any Senator to speak at length about virtually any topic at any time is a unique characteristic of the Senate that allows the chamber to play a vital role in the legislative process. If this deliberative function is removed, they believe the Senate would become a shadow of the larger House of Representatives, and would specifically surrender its unique role as a check on the executive branch through its role in executive business—that is, nominations and treaties.¹⁰⁷

Diversity

Outlook