22 U.S.C. § 2507e — Volunteer feedback and Peace Corps re-

Page 1007 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 2507e 1 So in original. (d) Reports 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 Rela- tions and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Af- fairs and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report on its findings based on the reviews conducted pursu- ant to subsection (c). (e) Employee status Members of the Council shall not be consid- ered employees of the United States Govern- ment for any purpose and shall not receive com- pensation other than reimbursement of travel expenses and per diem allowance in accordance with section 5703 of title 5. (f) Nonapplicability of chapter 10 of title 5 Chapter 10 of title 5 shall not apply to the Council. (g) Sunset This section shall cease to be effective on Oc- tober 1, 2023. (Pub. L. 87–293, title I, § 8D, as added Pub. L. 112–57, § 2, Nov. 21, 2011, 125 Stat. 740; amended Pub. L. 115–256, title III, § 305, Oct. 9, 2018, 132 Stat. 3658; Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(a)(168), Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4324.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2022—Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 117–286 substituted ‘‘chapter 10 of title 5’’ for ‘‘FACA’’ in heading and ‘‘Chapter 10 of title 5’’ for ‘‘The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.)’’ in text. 2018—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 115–256, § 305(1), substituted ‘‘not fewer than 8 and not more than 14 individuals se- lected by the President’’ for ‘‘not less than 8 individ- uals selected by the President, not later than 180 days after November 21, 2011,’’ and inserted ‘‘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 organiza- tion.’’ after ‘‘sexual assault field.’’ Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 115–256, § 305(2), inserted ‘‘and im- plemented’’ after ‘‘sexual assault policy developed’’ and inserted at end ‘‘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 volun- teers provide the Peace Corps express consent to be interviewed by the Council), to volunteer surveys under section 2705e of this title, to all data collected from re- stricted reporting, and to any other information nec- essary to conduct case reviews, except that the Council may not have access to any personally identifying in- formation associated with such surveys, data, or infor- mation.’’ Subsec. (g). Pub. L. 115–256, § 305(3), substituted ‘‘2023’’ for ‘‘2018’’. § 2507e. Volunteer feedback and Peace Corps re- view (a) Monitoring and evaluation 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 mon- itoring and evaluation studies and analyses. (b) Performance plans and elements 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 rep- resentative, of each survey conducted under sub- section (c),,1 and review the performance of Peace Corps representatives not less than annu- ally to determine whether they have met these performance elements and standards. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as limiting the discretion of the President to remove a Peace Corps representative. (c) Annual volunteer surveys 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 vol- unteers. The results shall be provided in aggre- gate 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 Com- mittee on Appropriations of the House of Rep- resentatives. Results from the annual volunteer survey shall be considered in reviewing the per- formance 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 termi- nation rate of volunteers serving in each such country. The information published shall be posted in an easily accessible place near the de- scription of the appropriate country and shall be written in an easily understood manner. (d) Peace Corps Inspector General The Inspector General of the Peace Corps shall— (1) submit to the Committee on Foreign Re- lations 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) a report, not later than one year after November 21, 2011, and biennially through September 30, 2018, on reports received from volunteers relating to misconduct, mis- management, or policy violations of Peace Corps staff, any breaches of the confiden- tiality of volunteers, and any actions taken to assure the safety of volunteers who pro- vide such reports; (B) a report, not later than two years and five years after November 21, 2011, evalu- ating the effectiveness and implementation of the sexual assault risk-reduction and re- sponse training developed under section 2507a of this title and the sexual assault pol- icy developed under section 2507b of this title, including a case review of a statis- tically significant number of cases; and Page 1008 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 2507f 2 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘Corps’ ’’. (C) a report, not later than two years after November 21, 2011, describing how Peace Corps representatives are hired, how Peace Corps representatives are terminated, and how Peace Corps representatives hire staff, including an assessment of the implementa- tion of the performance plans described in subsection (b); and (2) when conducting audits or evaluations of Peace Corps programs overseas, notify the Di- rector of the Peace Corps about the results of such evaluations, including concerns the In- spector General has noted, if any, about the performance of Peace Corps representatives, for appropriate action. (e) Portfolio reviews (1) In general The President shall, at least once every 3 years, perform a review to evaluate the alloca- tion and delivery of resources across the coun- tries the Peace Corps serves or is considering for service. Such portfolio reviews shall at a minimum include the following with respect to each such country: (A) An evaluation of the country’s com- mitment to the Peace Corps program. (B) An analysis of the safety and security of volunteers. (C) An evaluation of the country’s need for assistance. (D) An analysis of country program costs. (E) An evaluation of the effectiveness of management of each post within a country. (F) An evaluation of the country’s congru- ence with the Peace Corp’s 2 mission and strategic priorities. (2) Briefing Upon request of the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Foreign Rela- tions of the Senate or the Committee on For- eign Affairs of the House of Representatives, the President shall brief such committees on each portfolio review required under para- graph (1). If requested, each such briefing shall discuss performance measures and sources of data used (such as project status reports, vol- unteer surveys, impact studies, reports of In- spector General of the Peace Corps, and any relevant external sources) in making the find- ings and conclusions in such review. (Pub. L. 87–293, title I, § 8E, as added Pub. L. 112–57, § 2, Nov. 21, 2011, 125 Stat. 740; amended Pub. L. 115–256, title II, § 202, Oct. 9, 2018, 132 Stat. 3654.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2018—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 115–256, § 202(1), inserted ‘‘, 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),’’ after ‘‘standards for Peace Corps representatives’’ and sub- stituted ‘‘, and review’’ for ‘‘and shall review’’. Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 115–256, § 202(2), substituted ‘‘2023’’ for ‘‘2018’’ and ‘‘subsection (b)’’ for ‘‘subsection (a)’’ and inserted at end ‘‘The President shall publish, on a pub- licly available website of the Peace Corps, a report summarizing the results of each survey related to vol- unteer satisfaction in each country in which volunteers serve, and the early termination rate of volunteers serving in each such country. The information pub- lished shall be posted in an easily accessible place near the description of the appropriate country and shall be written in an easily understood manner.’’ § 2507f. Establishment of a policy on stalking (a) In general The President shall develop and implement a comprehensive policy on stalking that— (1) requires an immediate, effective, and thorough response from the Peace Corps upon receipt of a report of stalking; (2) provides, during training, all Peace Corps volunteers with a point of contact for the re- porting of stalking; and (3) protects the confidentiality of volunteers who report stalking to the maximum extent practicable. (b) Development and consultation with experts In developing the stalking policy under sub- section (a), the President shall consult with and incorporate, as appropriate, the recommenda- tions and views of those with expertise regard- ing the crime of stalking. (c) Training of in-country staff The President shall provide for the training of all in-country staff regarding the stalking pol- icy developed under subsection (a). (Pub. L. 87–293, title I, § 8F, as added Pub. L. 112–57, § 2, Nov. 21, 2011, 125 Stat. 742.) § 2507g. Establishment of a confidentiality pro- tection policy (a) In general 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 pro- tect the confidentiality and safety of such vol- unteers and of the information reported, and to ensure that such information is acted on appro- priately. This process shall conform to existing best practices regarding confidentiality. (b) Guidance The President shall provide additional train- ing to officers and employees of the Peace Corps who have access to information reported by vol- unteers under subsection (a) in order to protect against the inappropriate disclosures of such in- formation and ensure the safety of such volun- teers. (c) Penalty Any Peace Corps volunteer or staff member who is responsible for maintaining confiden- tiality 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. (Pub. L. 87–293, title I, § 8G, as added Pub. L. 112–57, § 2, Nov. 21, 2011, 125 Stat. 742.)