Collapse to view only § 2504. Peace Corps volunteers
- § 2501. Congressional declaration of purpose
- § 2501-1. Independent agency status of Peace Corps
- § 2501a. Voluntary service programs
- § 2502. Presidential authorization; appropriations and financial readjustments
- § 2503. Director and Deputy Director; delegation of functions
- § 2504. Peace Corps volunteers
- § 2504a. Health care for volunteers at Peace Corps posts
- § 2505. Peace Corps volunteer leaders; number; applicability of chapter; benefits
- § 2506. Peace Corps employees
- § 2507. Training program
- § 2507a. Sexual assault risk-reduction and response training
- § 2507b. Sexual assault policy
- § 2507c. Office of Victim Advocacy
- § 2507d. Establishment of Sexual Assault Advisory Council
- § 2507e. Volunteer feedback and Peace Corps review
- § 2507f. Establishment of a policy on stalking
- § 2507g. Establishment of a confidentiality protection policy
- § 2507h. Removal and assessment and evaluation
- § 2507i. Reporting requirements
- § 2508. Foreign participants; admission into the United States as nonimmigrants; removal
- § 2509. Presidential powers and authorities
- § 2510. Omitted
- § 2511. Peace Corps National Advisory Council
- § 2512. Experts and consultants
- § 2513. Assignment of personnel to foreign governments or international organizations
- § 2514. Use of funds
- § 2514a. Authorization for Peace Corps to provide separation pay for host country resident personal services contractors of the Peace Corps
- § 2515. Foreign Currency Fluctuations Account
- § 2516. Use of foreign currencies
- § 2517. Activities promoting Americans’ understanding of other peoples
- § 2518. Seal and name
- § 2519. Security investigations
- § 2520. Military training and service exemption
- § 2521. Foreign language proficiency
- § 2521a. Nonpartisan appointments
- § 2522. Definitions
- § 2523. Separability
Effective on December 29, 1981, the Peace Corps shall be an independent agency within the executive branch and shall not be an agency within the ACTION Agency, the successor to the ACTION Agency, or any other department or agency of the United States.
The Congress declares that it is the policy of the United States and a further purpose of this chapter (1) to encourage countries and areas to establish programs under which their citizens and nationals would volunteer to serve in order to help meet the needs of less developed countries or areas for trained manpower; (2) to encourage less developed countries or areas to establish programs under which their citizens and nationals would volunteer to serve in order to meet their needs for trained manpower; and (3) to encourage the development of, and participation in, international voluntary service programs and activities.
Such activities shall not compromise the national character of the Peace Corps.
The President is authorized to carry out programs in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter, on such terms and conditions as he may determine.
In addition to the amount authorized to be appropriated by subsection (b) to carry out the purposes of this chapter, there are authorized to be appropriated for increases in salary, pay, retirement, or other employee benefits authorized by law, for each fiscal year, such sums as may be necessary.
In recognition of the fact that women in developing countries play a significant role in economic production, family support, and the overall development process, the Peace Corps shall be administered so as to give particular attention to those programs, projects, and activities which tend to integrate women into the national economics of developing countries, thus improving their status and assisting the total development effort.
In recognition of the fact that there are over 400,000,000 disabled people in the world, 95 percent of whom are among the poorest of the poor, the Peace Corps shall be administered so as to give particular attention to programs, projects, and activities which tend to integrate disabled people into the national economies of developing countries, thus improving their status and assisting the total development effort.
The President may appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, a Director of the Peace Corps and a Deputy Director of the Peace Corps.
The President may exercise any functions vested in him by this chapter through the Director of the Peace Corps. The Director of the Peace Corps may promulgate such rules and regulations as he may deem necessary or appropriate to carry out such functions, and may delegate to any of his subordinates authority to perform any of such functions.
Except with the approval of the Secretary of State, the Peace Corps shall not be assigned to perform services which could more usefully be performed by other available agencies of the United States Government in the country concerned.
The President may enroll in the Peace Corps for service abroad qualified citizens and nationals of the United States (referred to in this chapter as “volunteers”). The terms and conditions of the enrollment, training (including training under section 2507a of this title), compensation, hours of work, benefits, leave, termination, and all other terms and conditions of the service of volunteers shall be exclusively those set forth in this chapter and those consistent therewith which the President may prescribe; and, except as provided in this chapter, volunteers shall not be deemed officers or employees or otherwise in the service or employment of, or holding office under, the United States for any purpose. In carrying out this subsection, there shall be no discrimination against any person on account of race, sex, creed, or color.
Volunteers shall be provided with such living, travel, and leave allowances, and such housing, transportation, supplies, equipment, subsistence, and clothing as the President may determine to be necessary for their maintenance and to insure their health and their capacity to serve effectively. Supplies or equipment provided volunteers to insure their capacity to serve effectively may be transferred to the government or to other entities of the country or area with which they have been serving, when no longer necessary for such purpose, and when such transfers would further the purposes of this chapter. Transportation and travel allowances may also be provided, in such circumstances as the President may determine, for applicants for enrollment to or from places of training and places of enrollment, and for former volunteers from places of termination to their homes in the United States.
Volunteers shall be entitled to receive a readjustment allowance at a rate not less than $125 for each month of satisfactory service as determined by the President. The readjustment allowance of each volunteer shall be payable on his return to the United States: Provided, however, That, under such circumstances as the President may determine, the accrued readjustment allowance, or any part thereof, may be paid to the volunteer, members of his family or others, during the period of his service, or prior to his return to the United States. In the event of the volunteer’s death during the period of his service, the amount of any unpaid readjustment allowance shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of section 5582(b) of title 5. For purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, a volunteer shall be deemed to be paid and to receive each amount of a readjustment allowance to which he is entitled after December 31, 1964, when such amount is transferred from funds made available under this chapter to the fund from which such readjustment allowance is payable.
Volunteers shall receive such health care (including, if necessary, for volunteers and trainees, services under section 2507b of this title) during their service, applicants for enrollment shall receive such health examinations preparatory to their service, applicants for enrollment who have accepted an invitation to begin a period of training under section 2507(a) of this title shall receive, preparatory to their service, such immunization, dental care, and information on prescription options and potential interactions, as necessary and appropriate and in accordance with subsection (f), and former volunteers shall receive such health examinations within six months after termination of their service, including services provided in accordance with section 2507b of this title (except that the six-month limitation shall not apply in the case of such services), as the President may deem necessary or appropriate. Subject to such conditions as the President may prescribe, such health care may be provided in any facility of any agency of the United States Government, and in such cases the appropriation for maintaining and operating such facility shall be reimbursed from appropriations available under this chapter. Health care may not be provided under this subsection in a manner inconsistent with the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act of 1997 [42 U.S.C. 14401 et seq.].
The Director of the Peace Corps shall consult with health experts outside the Peace Corps, including experts licensed in the field of mental health, and follow guidance by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention regarding the prescription of medications to a volunteer.
The President may detail or assign volunteers or otherwise make them available to any entity referred to in paragraph (1) of section 2509(a) of this title on such terms and conditions as he may determine: Provided, That not to exceed two hundred volunteers may be assigned to carry out secretarial or clerical duties on the staffs of the Peace Corps representatives abroad: Provided, however, That any volunteer so detailed or assigned shall continue to be entitled to the allowances, benefits and privileges of volunteers authorized under or pursuant to this chapter.
Volunteers shall be deemed employees of the United States Government for the purposes of the Federal Tort Claims Act and any other Federal tort liability statute, section 3342 of title 31, section 5732 and section 5584 of title 5 (and readjustment allowances paid under this chapter shall be considered as pay for purposes of such section), and section 214 of this title.
The service of a volunteer may be terminated at any time at the pleasure of the President.
Upon enrollment in the Peace Corps, every volunteer shall take the oath prescribed for persons appointed to any office of honor or profit by section 3331 of title 5.
In order to assure that the skills and experience which former volunteers have derived from their training and their service abroad are best utilized in the national interest, the President may, in cooperation with agencies of the United States, private employers, educational institutions and other entities of the United States, undertake programs under which volunteers would be counseled with respect to opportunities for further education and employment.
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, counsel may be employed and counsel fees, court costs, bail, and other expenses incident to the defense of volunteers may be paid in foreign judicial or administrative proceedings to which volunteers have been made parties and counsel may be employed and counsel fees, court costs and other expenses may be paid in the support of volunteers who are parties, complaining witnesses, or otherwise participating in the prosecution of crimes committed against such volunteers.
The costs of packing and unpacking, transporting to and from a place of storage, and storing the furniture and household and personal effects of a volunteer who has one or more minor children at the time of his entering a period of pre-enrollment training may be paid from the date of his departure from his place of residence to enter training until no later than three months after termination of his service.
The President shall ensure that each overseas post has the services of a medical office that is consistent in size and scope with the needs of the Peace Corps at such post, including, if necessary, by detailing to any such post the licensed medical staff of other United States departments, agencies, or establishments.
The Director of the Peace Corps shall ensure that each Peace Corps medical officer serving in a malaria-endemic country receives training in the recognition of the side effects of such medications.
The Director of the Peace Corps shall include, in the annual Peace Corps congressional budget justification, a confirmation that the review and evaluation of all Peace Corps medical staff required under paragraph (1) has been completed.
The Director of the Peace Corps shall consult with experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention regarding recommendations for prescribing malaria prophylaxis, in order to provide the best standard of care within the context of the Peace Corps environment.
In each country or area in which volunteers serve abroad, the President may appoint an employee or a volunteer as a Peace Corps representative to have direction of other employees of the Peace Corps abroad and to oversee the activities carried on under this chapter in such country or area. Unless a representative is a volunteer, the compensation, allowances and benefits, and other terms and conditions of service of each such representative, shall be the same as those of a person appointed, or assigned pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (a) of this section, except that any such representative may, notwithstanding any provision of law, be removed by the President in his discretion.
The President shall make provision for such training, including training under section 2507a of this title, as the President deems appropriate for each applicant for enrollment as a volunteer and each enrolled volunteer. All of the provisions of this chapter applicable respectively to volunteers and volunteer leaders shall be applicable to applicants for enrollment as such during any period of training occurring prior to enrollment, and the respective terms “volunteers” and “volunteer leaders” shall include such applicants during any such period of training. As part of the training provided to all volunteers under subsection (a), and in coordination with the Inspector General of the Peace Corps, the President shall provide all volunteers with information regarding the mandate of the Inspector General and the availability (including contact information) of the Inspector General and the Office of Victim Advocacy as a resource for volunteers. The President shall ensure that volunteers receive such information at least once during training that occurs prior to enrollment and at least once during each significant instance of training after enrollment.
The President may also make provision, on the basis of advances of funds or reimbursement to the United States, for training for citizens of the United States, other than those referred to in subsection (a) of this section, who have been selected for service abroad in programs not carried out under authority of this chapter which are similar to those authorized by this chapter. The provisions of section 2508 of this title shall apply, on a similar advance of funds or a reimbursement basis, with respect to persons while within the United States for training under authority of this subsection. Advances or reimbursements received under this subsection may be credited to the current applicable appropriation, fund, or account and shall be available for the purposes for which such appropriation, fund, or account is authorized to be used.
The President shall implement procedures to maintain a record verifying each individual completing training provided to meet each requirement in this section and sections 2507a, 2507b, 2507f, and 2507g(b) of this title.
As part of the training provided to all volunteers under section 2507(a) of this title, the President shall develop and implement comprehensive sexual assault risk-reduction and response training that, to the extent practicable, conforms to best practices in the sexual assault field.
In developing the sexual assault risk-reduction and response training under subsection (a), the President shall consult with and incorporate, as appropriate, the recommendations and views of experts in the sexual assault field.
Once a volunteer has arrived in his or her country of service, the President shall provide the volunteer with training tailored to the country of service that includes cultural training relating to gender relations, risk-reduction strategies, treatment available in such country (including sexual assault forensic exams, post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for HIV exposure, screening for sexually transmitted diseases, and pregnancy testing), MedEvac procedures, and information regarding a victim’s right to pursue legal action against a perpetrator.
Upon receiving information 1
The term “restricted reporting” means a system of reporting that allows a volunteer who is sexually assaulted to confidentially disclose the details of his or her assault to specified individuals and receive the services outlined in section 2507b(c) of this title without the dissemination of his or her personally identifying information except as necessary for the provision of such services, and without automatically triggering an official investigative process.
The term “sexual assault” means any conduct prescribed by chapter 109A of title 18, whether or not the conduct occurs in the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, and includes both assaults committed by offenders who are strangers to the victim and assaults committed by offenders who are known or related by blood or marriage to the victim.
In developing the sexual assault policy under subsection (a), the President shall consult with and incorporate, as appropriate, the recommendations and views of experts in the sexual assault field, including experts with international experience.
The President shall train all staff outside the United States regarding the sexual assault policy developed under subsection (a).
The President shall establish an Office of Victim Advocacy in Peace Corps headquarters headed by a full-time Victim’s Advocate who shall report directly to the Director. The Office of Victim Advocacy may deploy personnel abroad when necessary to help assist victims.
Peace Corps Medical Officers, Safety and Security Officers, and program staff may not serve as Victim’s Advocates. The Victim’s Advocate referred to in paragraph (1) may not have any other duties in the Peace Corps that are not reasonably connected to victim advocacy.
The Victim’s Advocate and any additional Victim’s Advocates shall be exempt from the limitations specified in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) and paragraph (5) under section 2506(a) of this title.
The Office of Victim Advocacy shall help develop and update the sexual assault risk-reduction and response training described in section 2507a of this title and the sexual assault policy described in section 2507b of this title, ensure that volunteers who are victims of sexual assault receive services specified in section 2507b(c) of this title, and facilitate their access to such services.
In addition to assisting victims of sexual assault in accordance with paragraph (1), the Office of Victim Advocacy shall assist volunteers who are victims of crime by making such victims aware of the services available to them and facilitating their access to such services.
The Office of Victim Advocacy shall give priority to cases involving serious crimes, including sexual assault and stalking.
The Office of Victim Advocacy shall provide to volunteers who are victims regular updates on the status of their cases if such volunteers have opted to pursue prosecution.
The Office of Victim Advocacy shall assist volunteers who are victims of crime and whose service has terminated in receiving the services specified in section 2507b(c) of this title requested by such volunteer.
The Director of the Peace Corps shall include the head of the Office of Victim Advocacy in agency-wide policymaking processes in the same manner and to the same extent as the directors or associate directors of other offices within the Peace Corps.
There is established a Sexual Assault Advisory Council (in this section referred to as the “Council”).
The Council shall be composed of not fewer than 8 and not more than 14 individuals selected by the President who are returned volunteers (including volunteers who were victims of sexual assault and volunteers who were not victims of sexual assault) and governmental and nongovernmental experts and professionals in the sexual assault field. At least one member should be licensed in the field of mental health and have prior experience working as a counselor or therapist providing mental health care to survivors of sexual assault in a victim services agency or organization. No Peace Corps employee shall be a member of the Council. The number of governmental experts appointed to the Council shall not exceed the number of nongovernmental experts.
The Council shall meet not less often than annually to review the sexual assault risk-reduction and response training developed under section 2507a of this title, the sexual assault policy developed and implemented under section 2507b of this title, and such other matters related to sexual assault the Council views as appropriate, to ensure that such training and policy conform to the extent practicable to best practices in the sexual assault field. To carry out this subsection, the Council may conduct case reviews and is authorized to have access, including through interviews, to current and former volunteers (to the extent that such volunteers provide the Peace Corps express consent to be interviewed by the Council), to volunteer surveys under section 2507e of this title, to all data collected from restricted reporting, and to any other information necessary to conduct case reviews, except that the Council may not have access to any personally identifying information associated with such surveys, data, or information.
On an annual basis for 5 years after November 21, 2011, and at the discretion of the Council thereafter, the Council shall submit to the President and the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report on its findings based on the reviews conducted pursuant to subsection (c).
Members of the Council shall not be considered employees of the United States Government for any purpose and shall not receive compensation other than reimbursement of travel expenses and per diem allowance in accordance with section 5703 of title 5.
Chapter 10 of title 5 shall not apply to the Council.
This section shall cease to be effective on October 1, 2023.
Not later than 1 year after November 21, 2011, the President shall establish goals, metrics, and monitoring and evaluation plans for all Peace Corps programs. Monitoring and evaluation plans shall incorporate best practices from monitoring and evaluation studies and analyses.
The President shall establish performance plans with performance elements and standards for Peace Corps representatives, ensure that each such plan includes a consideration of the results, with respect to each such representative and the country of service of each such representative, of each survey conducted under subsection (c),,1
Annually through September 30, 2023, the President shall conduct a confidential survey of volunteers regarding the effectiveness of Peace Corps programs and staff and the safety of volunteers. The results shall be provided in aggregate form without identifying information to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. Results from the annual volunteer survey shall be considered in reviewing the performance of Peace Corps representatives under subsection (b). The President shall publish, on a publicly available website of the Peace Corps, a report summarizing the results of each survey related to volunteer satisfaction in each country in which volunteers serve, and the early termination rate of volunteers serving in each such country. The information published shall be posted in an easily accessible place near the description of the appropriate country and shall be written in an easily understood manner.
Upon request of the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate or the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives, the President shall brief such committees on each portfolio review required under paragraph (1). If requested, each such briefing shall discuss performance measures and sources of data used (such as project status reports, volunteer surveys, impact studies, reports of Inspector General of the Peace Corps, and any relevant external sources) in making the findings and conclusions in such review.
In developing the stalking policy under subsection (a), the President shall consult with and incorporate, as appropriate, the recommendations and views of those with expertise regarding the crime of stalking.
The President shall provide for the training of all in-country staff regarding the stalking policy developed under subsection (a).
The President shall establish and maintain a process to allow volunteers to report incidents of misconduct or mismanagement, or violations of any policy, of the Peace Corps in order to protect the confidentiality and safety of such volunteers and of the information reported, and to ensure that such information is acted on appropriately. This process shall conform to existing best practices regarding confidentiality.
The President shall provide additional training to officers and employees of the Peace Corps who have access to information reported by volunteers under subsection (a) in order to protect against the inappropriate disclosures of such information and ensure the safety of such volunteers.
Any Peace Corps volunteer or staff member who is responsible for maintaining confidentiality under subsection (a) and who breaches such duty shall be subject to disciplinary action, including termination, and in the case of a staff member, ineligibility for re-employment with the Peace Corps.
If a volunteer requests removal from the site in which such volunteer is serving because the volunteer feels at risk of imminent bodily harm, the President shall, as expeditiously as practical after receiving such request, remove the volunteer from the site. If the President receives such a request, the President shall assess and evaluate the safety of such site and may not assign another volunteer to the site until such time as the assessment and evaluation is complete and the site has been determined to be safe. Volunteers may remain at a site during the assessment and evaluation.
If the President determines that a site is unsafe for any remaining volunteers at the site, the President shall, as expeditiously as practical, remove all volunteers from the site.
The President shall establish a global tracking and recording system to track and record incidents of crimes against volunteers.
Not later than one year after November 21, 2011, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report evaluating the quality and accessibility of health care provided through the Department of Labor to returned volunteers upon their separation from the Peace Corps.
Not later than six months after November 21, 2011, the President shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report on the costs, feasibility, and benefits of providing all volunteers with access to adequate communication, including cellular service and Internet access.
In order to provide for assistance by foreign nationals in the training of volunteers, and to permit effective implementation of Peace Corps projects with due regard for the desirability of cost-sharing arrangements, where appropriate, the President may make provision for transportation, housing, subsistence, or per diem in lieu thereof, and health care or health and accident insurance for foreign nationals engaged in activities authorized by this chapter while they are away from their homes, without regard to the provisions of any other law: Provided, however, That per diem in lieu of subsistence furnished to such persons shall not be at rates higher than those prescribed by the Secretary of State pursuant to section 2679 of title 22. Such persons, and persons coming to the United States under contract pursuant to section 2509(a)(5) of this title, may be admitted to the United States, if otherwise qualified, as nonimmigrants under section 1101(a)(15) of title 8 for such time and under such conditions as may be prescribed by regulations promulgated by the Secretary of State and the Attorney General. A person admitted under this section who fails to maintain the status under which he was admitted or who fails to depart from the United States at the expiration of the time for which he was admitted, or who engages in activities of a political nature detrimental to the interests of the United States, or in activities not consistent with the security of the United States, shall, upon the warrant of the Attorney General, be taken into custody and promptly removed pursuant to chapter 4 of title II of the Immigration and Nationality Act [8 U.S.C. 1221 et seq.] 1
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, whenever the President determines that it will further the purposes of this chapter, the President, under such regulations as he may prescribe, may settle and pay, in an amount not exceeding $20,000, any claim against the United States, for loss of or damage to real or personal property (including loss of occupancy or use thereof) belonging to, or for personal injury or death of, any person not a citizen or resident of the United States, where such claim arises abroad out of the act or omission of any Peace Corps employee or out of the act or omission of any volunteer, but only if such claim is presented in writing within one year after it accrues. Any amount paid in settlement of any claim under this subsection shall be accepted by the claimant in full satisfaction thereof and shall bar any further action or proceeding thereon.
Subject to any future action of the Congress, a contract or agreement which entails commitments for the expenditure of funds available for the purposes of this chapter, including commitments for the purpose of paying or providing for allowances and other benefits of volunteers authorized by sections 2504 and 2505 of this title, may extend at any time for not more than five years.
Whenever the President determines it to be in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter, functions authorized by this chapter may be performed without regard to such provisions of law (other than sections 3101(a) and (c), 3104, 3106, 3301(b)(2), and 6101 of title 41, and the Renegotiation Act of 1951, as amended) regulating the making, performance, amendment, or modification of contracts and the expenditure of Government funds as the President may specify.
The President may allocate or transfer to any agency of the United States Government any funds available for carrying out the purposes of this chapter including any advance received by the United States from any country or international organization under authority of this chapter, but not to exceed 20 per centum in the aggregate of such funds may be allocated or transferred to agencies other than the Peace Corps. Such funds shall be available for obligation and expenditure for the purposes of this chapter in accordance with authority granted in this chapter or under authority governing the activities of the agencies of the United States Government to which such funds are allocated or transferred.
Any officer of the United States Government carrying out functions under this chapter may utilize the services and facilities of, or procure commodities from, any agency of the United States Government as the President shall direct, or with the consent of the head of such agency, and funds allocated pursuant to this subsection to any such agency may be established in separate appropriation accounts on the books of the Treasury.
In the case of any commodity, service, or facility procured from any agency of the United States Government under this chapter, reimbursement or payment shall be made to such agency from funds available under this chapter. Such reimbursement or payment shall be at replacement cost, or, if required by law, at actual cost, or at any other price authorized by law and agreed to by the owning or disposing agency. The amount of any such reimbursement or payment shall be credited to current applicable appropriations, funds, or accounts from which there may be procured replacements of similar commodities, services, or facilities, except that where such appropriations, funds, or accounts are not reimbursable except by reason of this subsection, and when the owning or disposing agency determines that such replacement is not necessary, any funds received in payment therefor shall be covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts.
The President may provide hospitalization and medical treatment to Foreign Service local employees who are within the United States for training related to their employment under this chapter, for illnesses, injuries, or conditions other than those arising out of and in the course of employment, which, in the judgment of the President, began during such employee’s travel related to such training or so near to the beginning of such travel that the onset of the illness, injury, or condition could not have been known, and for which immediate medical treatment or hospitalization is reasonably required.
The Director of the Peace Corps shall have the same authority as is available to the Secretary of State under section 2698(a) of this title. For purposes of this subsection, the reference in such section 2698(a) of this title to a principal officer of the Foreign Service shall be deemed to be a reference to a Peace Corps representative and the reference in such section to a member of the Foreign Service shall be deemed to be a reference to a person employed, appointed, or assigned under this chapter.
The provisions of section 2702 of this title shall apply to volunteers and persons employed, appointed, or assigned under this chapter, and to individuals employed under personal services contracts to furnish medical services abroad pursuant to subsection (a)(5) of this section..1
A Peace Corps National Advisory Council (hereinafter in this section referred to as the “Council”) shall be established in accordance with the provisions of this section.
A majority of the voting members of the Council shall constitute a quorum for the purposes of transacting any business.
A member of the Council shall disclose to the Council the existence of any direct or indirect financial interest of that member in any particular matter before the Council and may not vote or otherwise participate as a Council member with respect to that particular matter.
At its first meeting and at its first regular meeting in each calendar year thereafter, the Council shall elect a Chair and Vice Chair from among its appointed members who are citizens of the United States. The Chair and Vice Chair may not both be members of the same political party.
Not later than January 1, 1988, and not later than January 1 of each second year thereafter, the Council shall submit to the President and the Director of the Peace Corps a report on its views on the programs and activities of the Peace Corps. Each report shall contain a summary of the advice and recommendations provided by the Council to the President and the Director during the period covered by the report and such recommendations (including recommendations for administrative or legislative action) as the Council considers appropriate to make to the Congress. Within ninety days after receiving each such report, the President shall submit to the Congress a copy of the report, together with any comments concerning the report that the President or the Director considers appropriate.
The Director of the Peace Corps shall make available to the Council such personnel, administrative support services, and technical assistance as are necessary to carry out its functions effectively.
Experts and consultants or organizations thereof may, as authorized by section 3109 of title 5, be employed by the President for the performance of functions under this chapter, and individuals so employed may be compensated at rates not in excess of the per diem equivalent of the highest rate payable under section 5332 of title 5, and while away from their homes or regular places of business, they may be paid actual travel expenses and per diem in lieu of subsistence and other expenses at the applicable rate prescribed in the Standardized Government Travel Regulations, as amended from time to time, while so employed: Provided, That contracts for such employment may be renewed annually.
Service of an individual as a member of the Council authorized to be established by section 2511 1
In furtherance of the purposes of this chapter, the head of any agency of the United States Government is authorized to detail, assign, or otherwise make available any officer or employee of his agency (1) to serve with, or as a member of, the international staff of any international organization, or (2) to any office or position to which no compensation is attached with any foreign government or agency thereof: Provided, That such acceptance of such office or position shall in no case involve the taking of an oath of allegiance to another government.
Any such officer or employee, while so detailed or assigned, shall be considered, for the purpose of preserving his allowances, privileges, rights, seniority, and other benefits as such, an officer or employee of the United States Government and of the agency of the United States Government from which detailed or assigned, and he shall continue to receive compensation, allowances, and benefits from funds authorized by this chapter. He may also receive, under such regulations as the President may prescribe, representation allowances similar to those allowed under section 4085 of this title. The authorization of such allowances and other benefits, and the payment thereof out of any appropriations available therefor, shall be considered as meeting all of the requirements of section 5536 of title 5.
Funds made available for the purposes of this chapter may be used for compensation, allowances and travel of employees, including members of the Foreign Service whose services are utilized primarily for the purposes of this chapter, for printing and binding without regard to the provisions of any other law, and for expenditures outside the United States for the procurement of supplies and services and for other administrative and operating purposes (other than compensation of employees) without regard to such laws and regulations governing the obligation and expenditure of Government funds as may be necessary to accomplish the purposes of this chapter.
Funds made available for the purposes of this chapter may be used to pay expenses in connection with travel abroad of employees and, to the extent otherwise authorized by this chapter, of volunteers, including travel expenses of dependents (including expenses during necessary stopovers while engaged in such travel), and transportation of personal effects, household goods, and automobiles when any part of such travel or transportation begins in one fiscal year pursuant to travel orders issued in that fiscal year, notwithstanding the fact that such travel or transportation may not be completed during the same fiscal year, and cost of transporting to and from a place of storage, and the cost of storing automobiles of employees when it is in the public interest or more economical to authorize storage.
Funds available under this chapter may be used to pay costs of training employees employed or assigned pursuant to section 2506(a)(2) of this title (through interchange or otherwise) at any State or local unit of government, public or private nonprofit institution, trade, labor, agricultural, or scientific association or organization, or commercial firm; and the provisions of subchapter VI of chapter 33 of title 5 may be used to carry out the foregoing authority notwithstanding that interchange of personnel may not be involved or that the training may not take place at the institutions specified in that Act.1
There is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund for the Peace Corps to provide separation pay for host country resident personal services contractors of the Peace Corps.
Beginning in fiscal year 2007, amounts deposited in the fund established under subsection (a) shall be available without fiscal year limitation for severance, retirement, or other separation payments to host country resident personal services contractors of the Peace Corps in countries where such payments are legally authorized.
Funds transferred under subsection (a) shall be merged with, and be available for the same time period, as the appropriation to which they are applied. Notwithstanding any provision of law limiting the amount of funds the Peace Corps may obligate in any fiscal year, such amount shall be increased to the extent necessary to reflect fluctuations in exchange rates from those used in preparing the budget submission.
An obligation of the Peace Corps payable in the currency of a foreign country may be recorded as an obligation based upon exchange rates used in preparing a budget submission. A change reflecting fluctuations in exchange rates may be recorded as a disbursement is made.
A transfer of funds back to the account under subsection (d) may not be made after the end of the fiscal year or other period for which the appropriation, to which the funds were originally transferred, is available for obligation.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Foreign Currency Fluctuations, Peace Corps, Account for each fiscal year such sums as may be necessary to maintain a balance of $5,000,000 in such account at the beginning of such fiscal year.
Each year the Director of the Peace Corps shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives, and to the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, a report on funds transferred under this section.
Whenever possible, expenditures incurred in carrying out functions under this chapter shall be paid for in such currency of the country or area where the expense is incurred as may be available to the United States.
In order to further the goal of the Peace Corps, as set forth in section 2501 of this title, relating to the promotion of a better understanding of other peoples on the part of the American people, the Director, utilizing the authorities under section 2509(a)(1) of this title and other provisions of law, shall, as appropriate, encourage, facilitate, and assist activities carried out by former volunteers in furtherance of such goal and the efforts of agencies, organizations, and other individuals to support or assist in former volunteers’ carrying out such activities.
The President may adopt, alter, and use an official seal or emblem of the Peace Corps of such design as he shall determine, which shall be judicially noticed.
All persons employed or assigned to duties under this chapter shall be investigated to insure that the employment or assignment is consistent with the national interest in accordance with standards and procedures established by the President. If an investigation made pursuant to this section develops any data reflecting that the person who is the subject of the investigation is of questionable loyalty or is a questionable security risk, the investigating agency shall refer the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the conduct of a full field investigation. The results of that full field investigation shall be furnished to the initial investigating agency, and to the agency by which the subject person is employed, for information and appropriate action. Volunteers shall be deemed employees of the United States Government for the purpose of this section.
Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law or regulation, service in the Peace Corps as a volunteer shall not in any way exempt such volunteer from the performance of any obligations or duties under the provisions of the Universal Military Training and Service Act [50 U.S.C. 3801 et seq.].
No person shall be assigned to duty as a volunteer under this chapter in any foreign country or area unless at the time of such assignment he possesses such reasonable proficiency as his assignment requires in speaking the language of the country or area to which he is assigned.
If any provision of this chapter or the application of any provision to any circumstances or persons shall be held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this chapter and the applicability of such provision to other circumstances or persons shall not be affected thereby.