April 7, 2004 - NPCA Weekly Listserv: NPCA Listserv discusses Henry Hyde's HR 4060

Peace Corps Online: Peace Corps News: Special Reports: April 2, 2004: Henry Hyde sponsors Peace Corps Safety and Security Bill: April 7, 2004 - NPCA Weekly Listserv: NPCA Listserv discusses Henry Hyde's HR 4060

By Admin1 (admin) (pool-151-196-178-137.balt.east.verizon.net - 151.196.178.137) on Thursday, April 08, 2004 - 8:07 pm: Edit Post

NPCA Listserv discusses Henry Hyde's HR 4060

NPCA Listserv discusses Henry Hyde's HR 4060



Read and comment on the NPCA's Weekly News coming out on their listserv that talks about HR 4060, the new legislation introduced by Henry Hyde, the Chairman of the House International Relations Committee. One thing that is missing from the NPCA's synopsis of the bill is that HR 4060 contains language that would modify the Peace Corps' five-year rule exempting the following positions from the rule:
(c) The provisions of this section that limit the duration of service, appointment, or assignment of individuals shall not apply to--

`(1) the Inspector General of the Peace Corps ;

`(2) officers of the Office of the Inspector General of the Peace Corps ;

`(3) any individual whose official duties primarily include the safety and security of Peace Corps volunteers or employees;

`(4) the head of the office responsible for medical services of the Peace Corps ; or

`(5) any health care professional within the office responsible for medical services of the Peace Corps
Read the story at:

Weekly news announcements from the National Peace Corps Association News and information from the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA). Please visit us online at http://www.rpcv.org.*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Weekly news announcements from the National Peace Corps Association News and information from the National Peace Corps Association (NPCA). Please visit us online at http://www.rpcv.org.

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1. LEGISLATION INTRODUCED CONCERNING PEACE CORPS SAFETY AND SECURITY ISSUES

Following the March 24th Congressional hearing on the issue of Peace Corps safety and security, the Chairman of the House International Relations Committee, Henry Hyde (R-IL), has introduced H.R. 4060 the "Health, Safety and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers Act of 2004".

The legislation proposes:

1) The establishment of an Office of the Ombudsman for the Peace Corps;

2) The codification of an Office of Safety and Security (with a stated sense of Congress that each country where Peace Corps has a program should have a country security coordinator);

3) A study and assessment of the "Five Year Rule" for Peace Corps employment;

4) Reporting on the Office of Medical Services;

5) Reporting on the work assignments of Peace Corps volunteers, and;

6) The establishment of an independent Inspector General for Peace Corps.

Those interested in reviewing the complete text of the legislation can go to this link: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d108:h.r.04060: or enter bill "HR04060" at http://thomas.loc.gov.

The NPCA will continue to monitor and report on developments pertaining to H.R. 4060. To keep abreast of developments surrounding the safety and security issue, check: http://www.npca-advocacy.net/.

If you have any comments or views on any part of H.R. 4060, please send them to mailto:advocacy@rpcv.org.

_______________________________________________

Please note: The materials and information included in this listserv are provided as a service to you and do not necessarily reflect endorsement by the National Peace Corps Association. Postings to this list are by NPCA staff only. The NPCA is not responsible for the accuracy of information provided from outside sources.

We encourage subscribers to pass the information along to colleagues and other interested parties. Please credit this listserv as the source and include subscription information.

To join the National Peace Corps Association or renew your membership, go to https://secure.schoolyard.com/rpcv/howtojoin.cfm

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_______________________________________________


From: Erica Burman <news@rpcv.org>

Subject: National Peace Corps Association News for April 7, 2004

Date: Wed, 7 Apr 2004 15:49:20 -0400 (EDT)



April 2, 2004 - Dayton Daily News: Hyde Bill would create Peace Corps Ombudsman, independent Inspector General, modify five-year rule

Hyde Bill would create Peace Corps Ombudsman, independent Inspector General, modify five-year rule



On April 2 Henry Hyde introduced HR 4060, the Health, Safety, and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers Act of 2004, that would 1) create an Ombudsman who would respond to safety, medical and other concerns of volunteers and former volunteers, 2) establish an independent inspector general, who would be nominated by the president, approved by the Senate and would submit reports to Congress, 3) permanently establish an office of safety, and 4) waive the Peace Corps' five-year employment limitation for Peace Corps staff who deal with the safety of volunteers.

Many RPCVs have a concern about the modification to the Peace Corps Act that would exempt some Peace Corps employees from the five year rule (employees in the IG's office, employees working in safety and security, and health care professionals within the office responsible for medical services) and caution that changes to the Peace Corps Act should not be made lightly or without considering what the unintended consequences may be.

The five-year rule, established by Sargent Shriver and written into law in 1965, is one of the cornerstones of Peace Corps' organizational structure because it ensures that the Peace Corps culture constantly renews itself with the infusion of young staffers with new ideas who keep the organization from "hardening of the bureaucratic arteries." Congress should take a close look at the provisions in HR 4060 regarding the five-year rule before they vote for this bill. As RPCV Congressman Sam Farr said so eloquently during the hearings, "[Don't] change the nature of the Peace Corps and essentially have a "Fortress America" Peace Corps Volunteer - because that would destroy it. Try to preserve that initial spirit that has served us so well." We'll be discussing this issue in more detail in future issues of PCOL. For now, read the story and leave your comments at:


Bill would create Peace Corps watchdog*

* This link was active on the date it was posted. PCOL is not responsible for broken links which may have changed.



Bill would create Peace Corps watchdog

By Mei-Ling Hopgood

mhopgood@coxnews.com

WASHINGTON | The House International Relations Committee passed a bill that would establish an ombudsman for the U.S. Peace Corps and create an independent watchdog for the agency.

The Health, Safety, and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers Act of 2004, sponsored by Committee Chairman Henry Hyde, R-Illinois, and co-sponsored by the committee's ranking minority member, Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif, would create an ombudsman who would respond to safety, medical and other concerns of volunteers and former volunteers.

The bill also would establish an independent inspector general, who would be nominated by the president and approved by the Senate and would submit reports to Congress. Currently the inspector general, who is charged with investigating crimes against volunteers and critiquing the agency's operations, is appointed by and reports to the Peace Corps director.

The legislation, which the committee passed Wednesday, also would waive the Peace Corps' five-year employment limitation for inspector general employees and Peace Corps staff who deal with the safety of volunteers and permanently establish an office of safety.

The bill also requires the Peace Corps to report to Congress about the medical screening of volunteer applicants, an issue raised by Lantos during a hearing last week.

The legislation and hearing followed a Dayton Daily News examination on the safety and security of volunteers.

The newspaper reported in October that the number of reported assaults from 1991-2002 had more than doubled, yet the agency continued to put many volunteers in danger by sending them to live alone in risky areas without adequate housing, supervision or a job that kept them busy. The series also found that the agency omitted many crime victims from its published statistics.

Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez told the International Relations Committee at a hearing in March that safety is the agency's top priority and outlined several measures, including establishing the safety office in 2002, increasing the number of security staff members by 80 and emphasizing safety and cross-cultural training.

More than 7,500 volunteers are serving in more than 70 countries.

Hyde's bill goes to the full House and the Senate. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee had scheduled a hearing for the end of March on the issue of safety and security of volunteers at the request of Ohio Senators George Voinovich and Mike DeWine. However, that hearing has been postponed, and a new date has not been set.

Contact Mei-Ling Hopgood in the Washington bureau at 202-887-8328

revised posting 4/6/2004



Click on a link below for more stories on PCOL

Read the series on Safety and Security here



Leave your comments on the series below.

Read comments by RPCVs here, here and here.





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This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; NPCA Congress; Legislation

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