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Department of State Inclusivity Act of 2020

USA116th CongressS-3430| Senate 
| Updated: 3/10/2020
Robert Menendez

Robert Menendez

Democratic Senator

New Jersey

Foreign Relations Committee

  • Introduced
  • In Committee
  • On Floor
  • Passed Chamber
  • Enacted
Department of State Inclusivity Act of 2020 This bill establishes measures to promote diversity at the Department of State, and it offers a formal apology from Congress for encouraging policies at the State Department such as the Lavender Scare, which resulted in the wrongful termination of at least 1,000 people for alleged homosexuality. The bill establishes a Chief Diversity Officer at the State Department to lead inclusion initiatives, support recruitment of a diverse workforce, recommend trainings on inclusivity, and ensure continued compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The bill requires the State Department to report certain data regarding the diversity of its workforce; conduct interviews with current employees, and exit interviews with separating employees, to receive feedback on workplace policies, professional development opportunities, and other issues affecting diversity; expand anti-harassment, antidiscrimination, and implicit bias training and make such training mandatory for certain individuals; develop a pilot program to use gender-neutral terms in evaluation forms; review employee terminations to determine wrongful terminations based on sexual orientation and issue a report on the findings; establish a Reconciliation Board to contact an employee (or family member) improperly terminated during the Lavender Scare and offer to change the employee's record; establish a board to address issues faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex Foreign Service employees and their families; and report on which countries refuse to issue spousal visas for Foreign Service employee spouses due to sexual orientation and recommend how to address this issue.
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Timeline
Mar 10, 2020
Introduced in Senate
Mar 10, 2020
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
  • March 10, 2020
    Introduced in Senate


  • March 10, 2020
    Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.

International Affairs

Related Bills

  • S 116-1252: LOVE Act of 2019
Administrative remediesCongressional oversightDepartment of StateDiplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroadEmployee hiringEmployment and training programsEmployment discrimination and employee rightsExecutive agency funding and structureFederal officialsGovernment employee pay, benefits, personnel managementGovernment information and archivesGovernment studies and investigationsHigher educationMarriage and family statusMilitary personnel and dependentsMinority employmentMuseums, exhibitions, cultural centersSex, gender, sexual orientation discriminationStudent aid and college costsVeterans' education, employment, rehabilitationVisas and passportsWomen's employment

Department of State Inclusivity Act of 2020

USA116th CongressS-3430| Senate 
| Updated: 3/10/2020
Department of State Inclusivity Act of 2020 This bill establishes measures to promote diversity at the Department of State, and it offers a formal apology from Congress for encouraging policies at the State Department such as the Lavender Scare, which resulted in the wrongful termination of at least 1,000 people for alleged homosexuality. The bill establishes a Chief Diversity Officer at the State Department to lead inclusion initiatives, support recruitment of a diverse workforce, recommend trainings on inclusivity, and ensure continued compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The bill requires the State Department to report certain data regarding the diversity of its workforce; conduct interviews with current employees, and exit interviews with separating employees, to receive feedback on workplace policies, professional development opportunities, and other issues affecting diversity; expand anti-harassment, antidiscrimination, and implicit bias training and make such training mandatory for certain individuals; develop a pilot program to use gender-neutral terms in evaluation forms; review employee terminations to determine wrongful terminations based on sexual orientation and issue a report on the findings; establish a Reconciliation Board to contact an employee (or family member) improperly terminated during the Lavender Scare and offer to change the employee's record; establish a board to address issues faced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex Foreign Service employees and their families; and report on which countries refuse to issue spousal visas for Foreign Service employee spouses due to sexual orientation and recommend how to address this issue.
View Full Text

Suggested Questions

Get AI-generated questions to help you understand this bill better

Timeline
Mar 10, 2020
Introduced in Senate
Mar 10, 2020
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
  • March 10, 2020
    Introduced in Senate


  • March 10, 2020
    Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Robert Menendez

Robert Menendez

Democratic Senator

New Jersey

Foreign Relations Committee

International Affairs

Related Bills

  • S 116-1252: LOVE Act of 2019
  • Introduced
  • In Committee
  • On Floor
  • Passed Chamber
  • Enacted
Administrative remediesCongressional oversightDepartment of StateDiplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroadEmployee hiringEmployment and training programsEmployment discrimination and employee rightsExecutive agency funding and structureFederal officialsGovernment employee pay, benefits, personnel managementGovernment information and archivesGovernment studies and investigationsHigher educationMarriage and family statusMilitary personnel and dependentsMinority employmentMuseums, exhibitions, cultural centersSex, gender, sexual orientation discriminationStudent aid and college costsVeterans' education, employment, rehabilitationVisas and passportsWomen's employment