[House Report 110-138]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
110th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session 110-138
======================================================================
SENATOR PAUL SIMON STUDY ABROAD FOUNDATION ACT OF 2007
_______
May 9, 2007.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Lantos, from the Committee on Foreign Affairs, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 1469]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Foreign Affairs, to whom was referred the
bill (H.R. 1469) to establish the Senator Paul Simon Study
Abroad Foundation under the authorities of the Mutual
Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, having
considered the same, reports favorably thereon without
amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Summary.......................................................... 1
Background and Purpose for the Legislation....................... 2
Hearings......................................................... 3
Committee Consideration.......................................... 3
Votes of the Committee........................................... 3
Committee Oversight Findings..................................... 3
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures........................ 3
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................ 3
Performance Goals and Objectives................................. 5
Section-by-Section Analysis and Discussion....................... 5
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............ 10
Summary
H.R. 1469, the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation
Act of 2007 (the ``Act''), authorizes the establishment of the
Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation under the
authorities of the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act
of 1961. The Foundation is authorized to be established as a
new executive branch Corporation operated by a Board of
Directors, chaired by the Secretary of State and managed by a
Chief Executive Officer selected by the Board. The Foundation
is authorized to raise funds and to operate a Program to award
grants to: United States students for study abroad;
nongovernmental institutions that provide and promote study
abroad opportunities for United States students in consortium
with institutions of higher education; and directly to
institutions of higher education.
Background and Purpose for the Legislation
The Act seeks to enhance the national security and global
competitiveness of the United States by establishing the
Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation, which will work to
dramatically increase the number and diversity of United States
students studying abroad.
The Act is responsive to the proposals of two bipartisan,
congressionally-mandated bodies: First, it follows the
recommendation of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks
Upon the United States (The 9/11 Commission) and its successor
``9/11 Public Discourse Project,'' which urged increased
support for scholarship and exchange programs as ``our most
powerful tool to shape attitudes over the course of a
generation.'' Second, it effects key recommendations of the
Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad Fellowship
Program (established pursuant to section 104 of the
Miscellaneous Appropriations and Offsets Act, 2004 (division H
of Public Law 108-199)), which was created, in part, to examine
a concept championed for years by the late Senator Paul Simon
(D-IL), who had worked with the international education
community and congressional leaders to explore how the U.S.
Government could work with institutions of higher education to
dramatically increase the numbers of American college students
studying abroad.
The desperate search for American speakers of Arabic,
Farsi, and Pashto after the terrorist attacks of September 11,
2001 was a dramatic demonstration of the need for study abroad
by U.S. students in places other than traditional destinations
in Western Europe. In the words of the Lincoln Commission: ``In
today's world, study abroad is simply essential to the nation's
security.'' Furthermore, American business leaders recognize
``that they must be able to draw on people with global skills
if their corporations are to succeed in a world in which one
American job in six is tied to international trade.'' (Report
of the Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study Abroad
Fellowship Program, November 2005.)
The Act is intended to dramatically increase study abroad
participation to at least one million college students per year
within 10 years of the date of enactment. One million students
studying abroad would represent almost 50 percent of the number
of degrees (associate's and bachelor's) awarded annually by
accredited American colleges and universities. Attaining that
number would make study abroad a commonplace rather than an
exceptional part of college education for American students.
As part of its unique approach, the Act establishes the
Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation as a separate U.S.
Government corporation that is free from the bureaucracies and
short-term political agendas of other U.S. agencies, and it can
raise private sector funds to supplement its work. The
Foundation, intended to be a lean and entrepreneurial
organization, will leverage broader interest in study abroad by
offering competitive grants (to universities, consortiums, and
individuals) based on priorities identified by its Board.
The Act also will attempt to transform the demographic
composition of participation in study abroad programs to more
accurately reflect the demographics of the United States
undergraduate population, including students enrolled in
community colleges, minority-serving institutions, and
institutions serving large numbers of low-income and first-
generation students. The final objective of the Program will be
to ensure that an increasing portion of study abroad will take
place in nontraditional study abroad destinations, with a
substantial portion of such increases taking place in
developing countries.
The realization of these objectives will significantly
enhance the depth and diversity of cultural knowledge that will
be integral to continued global leadership by the United
States. It will increase the availability of language and
cultural expertise needed by United States foreign affairs
agencies, corporations, educational institutions, and
nongovernmental organizations.
Hearings
No hearings on the bill were held.
Committee Consideration
On March 27, 2006, the Committee met in open session and
ordered favorably reported, the bill, H.R. 1469, without
amendment, by unanimous consent, a quorum being present.
Votes of the Committee
No votes on the bill were taken.
Committee Oversight Findings
In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee reports that the
findings and recommendations of the Committee, based on
oversight activities under clause 2(b)(1) of rule X of the
Rules of the House of Representatives, are incorporated in the
descriptive portions of this report.
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures
This legislation authorizes $80,000,000 per year for the
establishment and operation of the Senator Paul Simon Study
Abroad Foundation.
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
In compliance with clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee sets forth, with
respect to the bill, H.R. 1469, the following estimate and
comparison prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of
1974:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, April 12, 2007.
Hon. Tom Lantos, Chairman,
Committee on Foreign Affairs,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 1469, the Senator
Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act of 2007.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sunita
D'Monte, who can be reached at 226-2840.
Sincerely,
Peter R. Orszag.
Enclosure
cc:
Honorable Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Ranking Member
H.R. 1469--Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act of 2007.
H.R. 1469 would authorize the establishment of the Senator
Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation to encourage U.S. students
to study overseas, particularly in nontraditional destinations
such as China, the Middle East, and developing countries. Over
200,000 American students currently study overseas every year,
and one of the foundation's objectives would be to increase
this number to at least one million within 10 years. The
foundation would be directed to make grants to students,
nongovernmental organizations, and educational institutions,
and to report annually to the Congress.
The bill would authorize the appropriation of $80 million a
year for the foundation and allow it to raise funds and accept
gifts and donations. Based on historical spending patterns for
similar educational exchange programs, CBO estimates that
implementing this legislation would cost $40 million in 2008
and $345 million over the 2008-2012 period, subject to the
appropriation of the authorized amounts. Any gifts and
donations to the foundation would increase governmental
receipts and the spending of these receipts would increase
direct spending. CBO estimates that initially the foundation
would receive and spend gifts and donations of less than
$500,000 a year, but that those amounts could be significant in
later years. Thus, the bill would increase both direct spending
and receipts, but CBO estimates that the net result would
likely be negligible in each year.
H.R. 1469 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
Some public and private colleges and universities would benefit
from grants to encourage students to study abroad. Any costs to
those schools would be incurred voluntarily as a condition of
receiving federal assistance.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D'Monte,
who can be reached at 226-2840. This estimate was approved by
Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget
Analysis.
Performance Goals and Objectives
The Act is intended to increase the number and diversity of
United States undergraduate students studying abroad,
particularly in non-traditional study abroad destinations and
the developing world, with the goal of having one million U.S.
students studying abroad for credit per year within ten years
of enactment.
Section-by-Section Analysis and Discussion
SENATOR PAUL SIMON STUDY ABROAD FOUNDATION ACT OF 2007
Section 1. Short Title.
This section provides that the short title of the Act is
the ``Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act of 2007.''
Section 2. Findings.
This section contains a number of findings that highlight
the need to expand foreign study by U.S. students to equip the
U.S. economy and U.S. foreign policy agencies to thrive in an
increasingly global economy. The findings highlight the work of
the congressionally-chartered Commission on the Abraham Lincoln
Study Abroad Fellowship Program which reported to Congress and
the President on their determination that ``study abroad is one
of the major means of producing foreign language speakers and
enhancing foreign language learning'' and for that reason ``is
simply essential to the National security.'' The findings also
document a U.S. deficit in cultural knowledge wherein any given
year, only approximately one percent of all students enrolled
in United States institutions of higher education study abroad.
The findings also cite the Final Report of the National
Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (The 9/
11 Commission Report) which recommended that the United States
increase support for ``scholarship, exchange, and library
programs'' and the 9/11 Public Discourse Project, successor to
the 9/11 Commission, which noted in its November 14, 2005,
status report that this recommendation was ``unfulfilled,'' and
stated that ``The U.S. should increase support for scholarship
and exchange programs, our most powerful tool to shape
attitudes over the course of a generation.''
Section 3. Purposes.
This section specifies the purpose of H.R. 1469 as follows:
to significantly enhance the global competitiveness and
international knowledge base of the United States by ensuring
that more United States students have the opportunity to
acquire foreign language skills and international knowledge
through significantly enhanced study abroad; to enhance the
foreign policy capacity of the United States by significantly
expanding and diversifying the talent pool of individuals with
non-traditional foreign language skills and cultural knowledge;
to ensure that an increasing portion of study abroad will take
place in nontraditional study abroad destinations; and to
create greater cultural understanding of the United States by
exposing foreign students and their families to U.S. students
in non-traditional host countries.
Section 4. Definitions.
Section 4 provides definitions for terms used in the text
of H.R. 1469.
Section 5. Establishment and Management of the Senator Paul Simon Study
Abroad Foundation.
Subsection (a) provides for the establishment within in the
executive branch of a corporation, the ``Senator Paul Simon
Study Abroad Foundation'' and provides that the Foundation
shall be governed by a Board of Directors, chaired by the
Secretary of State; that is given responsibility for carrying
out the Act under the authorities of the Mutual Educational and
Cultural Exchange Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2451 et seq.). It
provides that the Foundation shall be a government corporation
as defined in section 103 of title 5, United States Code.
Subsection (a) also expresses the intent of Congress that the
structure designed by this section will create an entity that
will administer a study abroad program that serves the long-
term foreign policy and national security needs of the United
States while operating independently of short-term political
and foreign policy considerations.
Subsection (b) provides that the mandate of the Foundation
in administering the study abroad program shall be to advance
the objectives and purposes of the Act through responsive,
flexible grant-making that will promote access to study abroad
opportunities by United States students at diverse institutions
of higher education, including two-year institutions, minority-
serving institutions, and institutions that serve
nontraditional students. The Foundations grant-making will also
be designed to promote access to study abroad opportunities by
diverse United States students, including minority students,
students of limited financial means, and nontraditional
students. Additionally, the Foundation will be permitted to
raise funds from the private sector to supplement funds made
available by the Act and will be committed to minimizing
administrative costs and to maximizing the availability of
funds under this act.
Subsection (c) provides that there shall be in the
Foundation a Chief Executive Officer who shall be responsible
for its management and for the appointment of all of its
officers. The Chief Executive Officer shall be appointed by the
Foundation's Board of Directors and shall be a leader in higher
education, business, or foreign policy, chosen on the basis of
a rigorous search. The Chief Executive Officer shall report to
and be under the direct authority of the Board. This Officer
shall be compensated at the rate provided for level III of the
Executive Schedule under section 5314 of title 5, United States
Code.
Subsection (d) provides that the Foundation be governed by
a Board of Directors chaired by the Secretary of State (or the
Secretary's designee), which will be subject to meet at the
call of the chairperson. The membership of the board also
includes the Secretary of Education (or the Secretary's
designee), the Secretary of Defense (or the Secretary's
designee), and the Administrator of the United States Agency
for International Development (or the Administrator's
designee), and five other individuals with relevant experience
in matters relating to study abroad (such as individuals who
represent institutions of higher education, business
organizations, foreign policy organizations, or other relevant
organizations). This subsection also specifies that these five
individuals shall be appointed by the President, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate. It further specifies that
of the five, one individual shall be appointed from among a
list of individuals submitted by the majority leader of the
House of Representatives; one individual shall be appointed
from among a list of individuals submitted by the minority
leader of the House of Representatives; one individual shall be
appointed from among a list of individuals submitted by the
majority leader of the Senate; and one individual shall be
appointed from among a list of individuals submitted by the
minority leader of the Senate. This subsection also specifies
that the Chief Executive Officer of the Foundation shall serve
as a nonvoting, ex officio member of the Board.
This subsection also provides that the terms of office for
the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Education, the
Secretary of Defense and the Administrator of the United States
Agency for International Development shall be concurrent with
their term of Federal service. This subsection specifies that
for the other five members of the Board, the term of
appointment is 3 years, with the possibility of being
reappointed for an additional three years. This subsection
specifies that vacancies in the Board be filled in the manner
in with the original appointment was made. This subsection
specifies that a majority of the members of Board shall
constitute a quorum except during the 135-day period beginning
on the date of enactment of the Act, during which any quorum
must include at least one of the five individuals appointed by
the President.
This subsection specifies that the Secretary of State, the
Secretary of Education, the Secretary of Defense, and the
Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development will not receive additional pay, allowances, or
benefits by reason of their service on the Board. The other
five members of the Board, appointed by the President shall
receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of
subsistence, in accordance with applicable provisions under
subchapter 1 of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code.
Additionally, these five members shall be paid compensation out
of funds made available by the Act at the daily equivalent of
the highest rate payable under section 5332 of title 5, United
States Code, for each day (including travel time) during which
the member is engaged in the actual performance of duties as a
member of the Board. This subsection specifies however, that
these members may not be paid such compensation for more than
90 days in any calendar year.
The Committee expects the President to act promptly in
nominating qualified appointees, including those selected from
lists provided by Congressional leaders, to the Board. The
success of the Foundation in reaching the goals of the Act will
depend significantly upon the expertise of the Board members
and the direction and support they provide to the Chief
Executive Officer and the Foundation.
Section 6. Establishment and Operation of the Program.
Subsection (a) establishes a program, administered by the
Foundation to award grants to: United States students for study
abroad; nongovernmental institutions that provide and promote
study abroad opportunities for United States students, in
consortium with institutions of higher education; and
institutions of higher education. Subsection (b) specifies that
the objectives of the program are that, within 10 years of the
date of enactment of the Act: not less than one million
undergraduate U.S. students will study abroad annually for
credit; the demographics of study-abroad participation will
reflect the demographics of study-abroad participation will
reflect the demographics of the United States undergraduate
population, including students enrolled in community colleges,
minority-serving institutions, and institutions serving large
numbers of low-income and first-generation students; and an
increasing portion of study abroad will take place in
nontraditional study abroad destinations, with a substantial
portion of such increases taking place in developing countries.
Subsection (c) further specifies that in administering the
program, the Foundation shall take fully into account the
recommendations of the Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study
Abroad Fellowship Program (established pursuant to section 104
of the Miscellaneous Appropriations and Offsets Act, 2004
(division H of Public Law 108-199)). As such, grants awarded
under the program shall be structured to the maximum extent
possible to promote appropriate reforms of higher education in
order to remove barriers to participation by students in study
abroad. Subsection (d) provides that the Foundation seek an
appropriate balance between longer-term study abroad programs,
which maximize foreign-language learning and intercultural
understanding; and shorter term study abroad programs, which
maximize the accessibility of study abroad to non-traditional
students.
The Committee expects that the Foundation, in designing its
program of grant-making, will closely adhere to the six
recommendations of the Commission on the Abraham Lincoln Study
Abroad Fellowship Program as specified on pages 25-34 of its
Report of November 2005, Global Competence and National Needs:
One Million Students Studying Abroad, which was submitted to
the White House and to Congress. In particular, the Committee
believes that if the Foundation is to reach the goals specified
by the legislation, it will be critical that grant-making to
institutions by the Foundation be used strategically to
leverage increased enrollment targets by these institutions for
their study abroad programs and by encouraging them, where
feasible, to establish as a degree requirement participation in
study abroad programs. The Committee also believes strongly
that the Foundation in designing its grant-making program must
focus on the goal of diversifying students, institutions, and
destinations. As such, the Committee expects the Foundation to
direct grant-making in a way to encourage more participation in
study by underrepresented groups which include: racial/ethnic
minorities; males; students majoring in science, engineering,
and related disciplines; students attending two-year colleges;
and students with disabilities. The Committee also expects that
Foundation grant-making resources will be directed at
supporting study in areas other than Western Europe. The
Foundation should also seek to ensure that resource-rich large
research universities and select small liberal arts colleges do
not capture a disproportionate share of its grant-making
resources, and that instead, a large share of such resources
are directed at encouraging study abroad by students attending
institutions where study abroad is not currently a routine
practice. The Committee also believes that wise stewardship of
Foundation resources requires that grant awards be based on
financial need.
The Committee further expects that the vast majority of the
Foundation's budget will be directed to students, not to
administrative overhead. The Committee is in agreement with the
benchmark set in the Report of the Lincoln Commission, which
specifies that not less than 88% of the Foundation's funds be
provided to students either through individual or institutional
grants and that not less than 75% of the funds must flow
through institutional grants, rather than individual
scholarship grants, in order to address non-financial barriers
to study abroad at the campus level and leverage greater
participation in study abroad. The Committee understands that a
significant portion of the Foundation's resources will be
needed to finance a national competition of individual
scholarships, in order to give every undergraduate in the
United States the opportunity to apply for a grant, regardless
of institutional affiliation.
The Committee also strongly believes that the quality of
the students' academic experiences is important to the overall
success of the program. Students should receive grants only for
study abroad programs that carry academic credit toward
graduation.
Section 7. Annual Report.
This section mandates that not later than March 31, 2008,
and each March 31 thereafter, the Foundation shall submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a report on the
implementation of the Act during the prior fiscal year.
Subsection (b) provides that the report include the total
financial resources available to the Foundation during the
year, including appropriated funds, the value and source of any
gifts or donations accepted; a description of the Board's
policy priorities for the year and the bases upon which
competitive grant proposals were solicited and awarded to
institutions of higher education, nongovernmental institutions,
and consortiums; a list of grants made to institutions of
higher education, nongovernmental institutions, and consortiums
and that includes the identity of the institutional recipient,
the dollar amount, and the estimated number of study abroad
opportunities provided to United States students by each grant;
a description of the bases upon which the Foundation made
grants directly to United States students; the number and total
dollar amount of grants made directly to United States students
by the Foundation; and the total administrative and operating
expenses of the Foundation for the year.
Section 8. Powers of the Foundation; Related Provisions.
This section specifies that the powers of the Foundation
shall include: perpetual succession unless dissolved by a law
enacted after the date of enactment of the Act; use of a seal
that will be judicially noticed; the ability to make and
perform contracts, grants, and other agreements with any person
or government however designated and wherever situated, as may
be necessary for carrying out the functions of the foundation;
the ability to determine and prescribe the manner in which its
obligations shall be incurred and its expenses allowed and
paid, including expenses for representation; the ability to
lease, purchase or otherwise acquire, improve, and use such
real property wherever situation, as may be necessary for
carrying out the functions of the Foundation; the right to
accept cash gifts or donations of property (real, personal, or
mixed), tangible or intangible, for the purposes of carrying
out the provisions of this act; the right to use the U.S. mails
in the same manner and on the same conditions as the executive
departments; the right to contract with individuals for
personal services, who shall not be considered Federal
employees for an provision of law administered by the Office of
Personnel Management; the ability to hire or obtain passenger
motor vehicles; and other unspecified powers as may be
necessary and incident to carrying out the Act.
Subsection (b) provides that the foundation shall maintain
its principal office in the metropolitan area of Washington,
District of Columbia. Subsection (c) provides that the
Foundation is subject to the Government Corporation Control
Act. Finally, subsection (d) provides that the Inspector
General (IG) of the Department of State will serve as the
Inspector General of the Foundation. The reporting requirements
of Section 7 are intended to provide information that, in
addition to helping the Congress to exercise responsible
oversight, will assist the State IG in conducting the
``reviews, investigations, and inspections of all actions of
the operations and activities of the Foundation,'' as outlined
in this section.
Section 9. General Personnel Authorities.
This section provides that upon request of the Chief
Executive Officer, the head of an agency may detail any
employee of such agency to the Foundation on a reimbursable
basis. The section provides these individuals with reemployment
rights. The section also provides hiring authority specifying
that of persons employed by the Foundation, not to exceed 30
persons may be appointed, compensated, or removed without
regard to civil service laws and regulations. The section also
provides that the Chief Executive Officer may fix the basic
rate of pay of employees of the Foundation, except that no
employee of the Foundation may receive a rate of basic pay that
exceeds the rate for level IV of the Executive Schedule.
Section 10. Authorization of Appropriations.
This section specifies that there are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out the Act, $80,000,000 for fiscal year
2008 and each subsequent fiscal year. The Committee intends
that this amount should be in addition to any amounts otherwise
authorized or made available for exchange programs, including
the J. William Fulbright Educational Exchange Program and the
Gilman Fellowship Program, administered by the Department of
State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is
printed in italics and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman):
SECTION 5314 OF TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE
Sec. 5314. Positions at level III
Level III of the Executive Schedule applies to the following
positions, for which the annual rate of basic pay shall be the
rate determined with respect to such level under chapter 11 of
title 2, as adjusted by section 5318 of this title:
Solicitor General of the United States.
* * * * * * *
Chief Executive Officer, Senator Paul Simon Study
Abroad Foundation.
* * * * * * *
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SECTION 9101 OF TITLE 31, UNITED STATES CODE
Sec. 9101. Definitions
In this chapter--
(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
(3) ``wholly owned Government corporation'' means--
(A) * * *
* * * * * * *
(R) the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad
Foundation.
* * * * * * *