Foreign Service Language Readiness Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 10064 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                               H. R. 10064

To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to require a list of critical
              foreign languages for purposes of that Act.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 6, 2026

    Mr. Olszewski (for himself and Mr. Baumgartner) introduced the
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to require a list of critical
              foreign languages for purposes of that Act.

    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 ``Foreign Service Language Readiness
Act''.

SEC. 2. LIST OF CRITICAL FOREIGN LANGUAGES.

    (a) In General.--Section 701 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22
U.S.C. 4021) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h) List of Critical Foreign Languages.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
        of the enactment of this subsection, and not less frequently
        than once every three years thereafter, the Secretary should
        designate, and make available to the Committee on Foreign
        Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
        Foreign Relations of the Senate, a list of critical foreign
        languages for purposes of this Act.
            ``(2) Matters to be included.--For each critical foreign
        language designated pursuant to paragraph (1), the Secretary
        shall include information in the list describing--
                    ``(A) minimum tested levels at which a member of
                the Service shall be considered to be proficient in the
                language; and
                    ``(B) criteria for determining positions for which
                such critical foreign language capability is mission
                essential.
            ``(3) Coordination.--In carrying out this subsection, the
        Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, coordinate
        with the heads of other Federal departments and agencies that
        maintain foreign language capabilities, in order to promote
        interoperability, avoid duplication, and achieve cost savings
        to the taxpayer.
            ``(4) Workforce planning.--The Secretary should incorporate
        critical foreign language capability planning into the career
        development, training, and assignment processes under this
        chapter, including through--
                    ``(A) the use of training at the National Foreign
                Affairs Training Center;
                    ``(B) the use of limited noncareer appointments and
                recall and reappointment authorities under sections 308
                and 309 to address temporary or surge requirements; and
                    ``(C) the development of a surge reserve of rehired
                officers and other appropriately cleared individuals
                with critical foreign language capabilities who may be
                activated rapidly in response to crises.
            ``(5) Critical foreign language defined.--In this
        subsection, the term `critical foreign language' means a
        foreign language identified by the Secretary, in consultation
        with the heads of other Federal departments and agencies, as
        appropriate--
                    ``(A) as essential to the protection of United
                States national security interests, United States
                economic prosperity, and the protection of United
                States citizens abroad;
                    ``(B) with respect to which required levels of
                proficiency are limited in the United States workforce
                relative to strategic needs and operational demand; and
                    ``(C) as corresponding to category I, II, III, or
                IV languages, as specified in section 3911.2 of volume
                3 of the Foreign Affairs Manual (3 FAM 3911.2) or
                successor guidance, encompassing difficult, hard, and
                super hard languages that are less commonly taught or
                studied in the United States.''.
    (b) Critical Foreign Language Requirement.--Section 702 (22 U.S.C.
4022) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Critical Foreign Language Requirement.--In carrying out this
section, the Secretary shall ensure that policies for the instruction,
testing, and use of foreign languages explicitly support the
preservation of capabilities with respect to critical foreign languages
identified pursuant to section 701(h).''.
    (c) Report.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than December 31, 2027, the
        Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign
        Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on
        Foreign Relations of the Senate a report on the Department of
        State's critical language capabilities.
            (2) Matters to be included.--The report required by this
        subsection should include the following:
                    (A) An assessment of the Department of State's
                critical foreign language staffing requirements, by
                regional and functional bureau.
                    (B) For each critical language, numbers of the
                Foreign Service meeting the minimum critical language
                proficiency standards, as well as the criteria for
                determining if a critical language is mission essential
                for a given position.
                    (C) The impact of workforce shortages on the
                Department's ability to meet mission-essential critical
                foreign language requirements.
                    (D) Any actions taken or planned to strengthen
                critical foreign language capability in the Service.
                    (E) A list of each Service position abroad that is
                language-designated in order to determine whether or
                not a continuing requirement for foreign language
                proficiency for such position is warranted.
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