Utilizing and Supporting Evacuated Peace Corps Volunteers Act

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6833 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6833

   To provide Peace Corps volunteers and trainees whose service was 
terminated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic with health insurance, 
an expedited redeployment process, and domestic service opportunities, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 12, 2020

Mr. Phillips (for himself, Mr. Young, Ms. McCollum, Mr. Garamendi, Ms. 
Wexton, Mr. Case, Mr. Sires, Mr. Huffman, Mr. Quigley, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. 
   Engel, and Mr. Connolly) introduced the following bill; which was 
 referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the 
   Committee on Education and Labor, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To provide Peace Corps volunteers and trainees whose service was 
terminated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic with health insurance, 
an expedited redeployment process, and domestic service opportunities, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Utilizing and Supporting Evacuated 
Peace Corps Volunteers Act''.

SEC. 2. HEALTH INSURANCE CONTINUATION FOR PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS.

    Section 5(e) of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2504(e)) is 
amended--
            (1) by striking ``Volunteers shall receive such health 
        care'' and inserting the following:
            ``(1) Volunteers shall receive such health care''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
            ``(2) Volunteers whose periods of service were subject to 
        early termination as a result of the COVID-19 public health 
        emergency declared under section 319 of the Public Health 
        Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d), and applicants for enrollment 
        described in section 8(a) whose training prior to enrollment 
        was subject to early termination as a result of such public 
        health emergency, shall receive--
                    ``(A) 2 months of health insurance upon their 
                return to the United States; and
                    ``(B) an opportunity to extend such health 
                insurance, at the expense of such volunteer or 
                applicant for enrollment, until the last day of the 
                last week for which such volunteer or applicant for 
                enrollment is eligible for payments under section 2102 
                of the CARES Act (Public Law 116-136).
            ``(3) Not later than 30 days prior to the date on which the 
        period of service of a volunteer shall terminate, the Director 
        of the Peace Corps, in consultation with the Secretary of 
        Health and Human Services, shall provide general guidance to 
        such volunteer on options for health care after termination 
        other than health care provided by the Peace Corps, including--
                    ``(A) on the application process and eligibility 
                requirements for medical assistance under State plans 
                under title XIX of the Social Security Act (or waivers 
                of State plans);
                    ``(B) on the qualified health plans (as defined in 
                section 1301(a) of the Patient Protection and 
                Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18021(a))) offered 
                through an Exchange established under title I of such 
                Act, including on the enrollment periods for enrolling 
                in such plans; and
                    ``(C) in the case such volunteer is 25 years of age 
                or younger, that such volunteer may be eligible to 
                enroll as a dependent child in a group health plan or 
                health insurance coverage in which the parent of such 
                volunteer is enrolled if such plan or coverage offers 
                such dependent coverage.''.

SEC. 3. EXPEDITED HIRING FOR PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEERS.

    (a) Noncompetitive Eligibility Hiring Status.--
            (1) Distribution of information.--Not later than 30 days 
        after the date of enactment of this Act, and annually 
        thereafter, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, 
        in coordination with the Director of the Peace Corps, shall 
        prepare and distribute information to each Federal department 
        and agency in the executive branch regarding the noncompetitive 
        appointment eligibility available to Peace Corps volunteers for 
        up to 3 years under Executive Order 11103 (22 U.S.C. 2504 note; 
        relating to Providing for the Appointment of Former Peace Corps 
        volunteers to the Civilian Career Services), as amended by 
        Executive Order 12107 (44 Fed. Reg. 1055; relating to the Civil 
        Service Commission and Labor-Management in the Federal 
        Service), including the qualifications for such eligibility.
            (2) Expedited process.--Each Federal department and agency 
        in the executive branch facing critical hiring needs as a 
        result of the COVID-19 pandemic or that have unfilled 
        noncompetitive positions shall establish a process by which 
        staff with hiring authority receive the information described 
        in paragraph (1) from the Office of Personnel Management about 
        the expedited process for hiring such individuals who meet the 
        minimum qualifications of a vacant position.
    (b) Corporation for National and Community Service.--The Chief 
Executive Officer of the Corporation for National and Community 
Service, in coordination with the Director of the Peace Corps, shall 
establish an expedited process by which Peace Corps volunteers and 
trainees evacuated due to the COVID-19 public health emergency can 
participate in domestic service opportunities through AmeriCorps, FEMA 
Corps, or affiliated programs to help address the COVID-19 pandemic.
    (c) Foreign Service.--Section 301(c) of the Foreign Service Act of 
1980 (22 U.S.C. 3941(c)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(c)(1) The fact that an applicant for appointment as a Foreign 
Service officer candidate is a veteran or disabled veteran shall be 
considered an affirmative factor in making such appointments.
    ``(2) The fact that an applicant for appointment as a Foreign 
Service officer candidate is a returned Peace Corps volunteer shall be 
considered an affirmative factor in making such appointments. The value 
accorded the affirmative factor under this paragraph shall be 
significant, but shall be less than the affirmative factor provided to 
individuals who qualify under paragraph (1).
    ``(3) In this subsection:
            ``(A) The term `returned Peace Corps volunteer' means an 
        individual who has completed--
                    ``(i) a full term of service as a volunteer under 
                the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.); or
                    ``(ii) satisfactory service as a Peace Corps 
                volunteer (as defined by the Director of the Peace 
                Corps).
            ``(B) The term `veteran or disabled veteran' means an 
        individual who is preference eligible (as defined in 
        subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 2108(3) of title 5, 
        United States Code).''.

SEC. 4. RESUMPTION OF PEACE CORPS OPERATIONS.

    (a) In General.--As soon as practicable after the Director of the 
Peace Corps determines, as a result of the cessation of the COVID-19 
pandemic, that it is safe to resume Peace Corps global operations, the 
Director shall seek to resume, to the fullest extent possible, all of 
its programs in every country in which it operated immediately before 
the March 15, 2020, suspensions of all Peace Corps volunteer 
activities.
    (b) Report on Restart of Peace Corps Operations Following End of 
Public Health Emergency.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Peace Corps shall submit a 
report to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the 
Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives that 
describes the efforts of the Peace Corps to--
            (1) offer reenrollment to each Peace Corps volunteer and 
        trainee whose service ended suddenly on March 15, 2020 (or 
        earlier, in the case of volunteers who were serving China and 
        Mongolia), due to the COVID-19 public health emergency;
            (2) obtain approval from countries, as appropriate, to 
        return reenrolled volunteers and trainees to their previous 
        assignments or countries of service;
            (3) provide additional measures necessary for the safety 
        and health of volunteers and trainees and develop contingency 
        plans in the event overseas operations are disrupted by future 
        COVID-19 outbreaks;
            (4) develop and maintain a robust volunteer cohort; and
            (5) identify the anticipated additional appropriations or 
        new statutory authorities that would be necessary to achieve 
        the goal of safely redeploying 7,300 Peace Corps volunteers 
        during the 1-year period beginning on the date on which Peace 
        Corps operations resume.
    (c) Expedited Reenrollment Process.--The Director of the Peace 
Corps shall establish an expedited process for the reenrollment of 
former Peace Corps volunteers and trainees whose service was 
interrupted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, including--
            (1) streamlining, to the fullest extent practicable, all 
        application requirements for the reenrollment of such 
        volunteers and trainees during the 2-year period beginning on 
        March 15, 2020;
            (2) expediting the medical clearance for such volunteers 
        and trainees to facilitate reenrollment;
            (3) starting on the date on which such a volunteer or 
        trainee reenrolls, providing such volunteer and trainee with 
        the compensation, allowances, benefits, and other terms and 
        conditions of service to which such volunteer or trainee is 
        entitled under the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et seq.); 
        and
            (4) subject to the discretion of the Director of the Peace 
        Corps, affording evacuated volunteers and trainees, to the 
        fullest extent possible, the opportunity to return to their 
        previous country of service and resume work in the project area 
        in which they had been serving prior to the evacuation due to 
        the COVID-19 public health emergency.
    (d) Reenroll Defined.--In this section, the term ``reenroll'' means 
a Peace Corps volunteer or trainee that was evacuated due to the COVID-
19 public heath emergency resuming service in the Peace Corps for a 
length of time determined by the Director of the Peace Corps.

SEC. 5. USE OF OFFICIAL SEAL, EMBLEM, AND NAME OF THE PEACE CORPS.

    Section 19(b) of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2518(b)) is 
amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``under this 
        chapter'' the following: ``, except that the official seal or 
        emblem and the name `Peace Corps' may be used on any death 
        announcement, gravestone, plaque, or other grave marker of any 
        person who served as a volunteer or as an officer or employee 
        of the Peace Corps under such rules as may be prescribed by the 
        Director''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``or in accordance with 
        the exception specified in paragraph (1),'' after ``under this 
        chapter,''.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act and 
section 5(e)(2) of the Peace Corps Act, as added by section 2, such 
sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2020 through 
2022.
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