R E P O R T [To accompany H.R. 4060] [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] The Committee on International Relations, to whom was referred the bill (H.R. 4060) to amend the Peace Corps Act to establish an Ombudsman and an Office of Safety and Security of the Peace Corps, and for other purposes, (Part 1)



R E P O R T [To accompany H.R. 4060] [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] The Committee on International Relations, to whom was referred the bill (H.R. 4060) to amend the Peace Corps Act to establish an Ombudsman and an Office of Safety and Security of the Peace Corps, and for other purposes, (Part 1)

29–006
108TH CONGRESS REPT. 108–481 " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 2d Session Part 1
HEALTH, SAFETY, AND SECURITY OF PEACE CORPS
VOLUNTEERS ACT OF 2004
MAY 6, 2004.—Ordered to be printed
Mr. HYDE, from the Committee on International Relations,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 4060]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on International Relations, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 4060) to amend the Peace Corps Act to establish
an Ombudsman and an Office of Safety and Security of the
Peace Corps, and for other purposes, having considered the same,
report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that
the bill do pass.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Purpose and Summary ............................................................................................ 1
Background and Need for the Legislation ............................................................. 2
Hearings ................................................................................................................... 9
Committee Consideration ........................................................................................ 9
Votes of the Committee ........................................................................................... 9
Committee Oversight Findings ............................................................................... 9
New Budget Authority and Tax Expenditures ...................................................... 9
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate .......................................................... 10
Performance Goals and Objectives ......................................................................... 11
Constitutional Authority Statement ...................................................................... 11
Section-by-Section Analysis .................................................................................... 11
New Advisory Committees ...................................................................................... 15
Congressional Accountability Act ........................................................................... 15
Federal Mandates .................................................................................................... 15
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ..................................... 15
PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
The purpose of ‘‘Health, Safety and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers
Act of 2004’’ (H.R. 4060) is to make several amendments
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to the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2501 et. seq.) to provide better
health, safety, and security for Peace Corps Volunteers.
H.R. 4060 addresses safety and security issues in the Peace
Corps by establishing a more independent Inspector General of the
Peace Corps; establishing an Ombudsman of the Peace Corps; establishing
an Office of Safety and Security; requiring a report on
medical screening and placement of volunteers; exempting Inspector
General, safety and security personnel, and key medical personnel
from the ‘‘five year rule’’; and requiring a GAO report on the
impact of the ‘‘five year rule’’ on the effectiveness of the Peace
Corps in achieving its mission.
The reforms of H.R. 4060 were prompted by recent reports by the
General Accounting Office and by the Committee’s oversight of the
Peace Corps, including an important oversight hearing held on
March 24, 2004, entitled ‘‘Safety and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers.’’
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR THE LEGISLATION
The House of Representatives has demonstrated its support for
the Peace Corps, most recently through the passage of H.R. 1950,
the ‘‘Millennium Challenge Account, Peace Corps Expansion, and
Foreign Relations Act of 2003,’’ of which the ‘‘Peace Corps Expansion
Act’’ is included as Division B. The ‘‘Peace Corps Expansion
Act’’ responds to the President’s call for the doubling of the size of
the Peace Corps by 2008, and authorizes Peace Corps programs
through that date.
H.R. 4060, the ‘‘Health, Safety, and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers
Act of 2004’’ takes into account the changing nature of security
of American citizens overseas since the Committee considered
last year’s legislation, and promotes a more accountable Peace
Corps better able to expand over the next several years.
The Members of the Committee support the Peace Corps and are
admirers of the sacrifice of its volunteers and of the important
work that they do. The Committee wants to ensure that the Peace
Corps has the necessary procedures in place to protect our nation’s
citizens who dedicate 2 years of their lives to helping people of the
developing world improve their circumstances.
A July 2002 GAO report on Peace Corps safety and security stated
that the Peace Corps ‘‘is embarking on a major expansion of its
volunteer workforce during a time of heightened risk for Americans
living abroad. Providing safety and security for its volunteers is the
Peace Corps’ highest priority. Our review of the agency’s efforts to
ensure compliance with its basic safety and security policies and
guidelines shows that there are cases of uneven implementation of
key elements of the safety and security framework that could pose
risks to volunteers. These include uneven performance in developing
safe and secure housing and work sites, responding to volunteer
concerns, and planning for emergencies.’’
At the hearing on March 24, 2004, Members heard about some
of the past problems and current challenges the Peace Corps faces
as it expands the number of volunteers around the world, while at
the same time taking into account the changed circumstances for
American citizens living abroad during the post-September 11th
period. The hearing also provided Committee Members with the
context for the consideration of H.R. 4060, which was ordered fa-
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vorably reported by the Committee at its meeting on March 31,
2004.
The hearing on March 24, 2004, inquired into the adequacy of
safety and security practices that govern volunteers’ assignments,
and provided Members with necessary background information on
the problems that have existed in recent years, and, as a case
study, examined the specific problems and management failures
which are alleged to have led to and followed the disappearance of
a volunteer in Bolivia, Walter J. Poirier. The hearing also provided
Members with an opportunity to understand the policy and organizational
changes made within the Peace Corps over the past 2
years toward the goal of improving safety and security of volunteers.
The Committee heard testimony from the family of Walter
Poirier which stated that, in Bolivia in 2001, the Peace Corps did
not have in place the necessary management procedures to monitor
or account for missing volunteer Walter J. Poirier. The family further
stated that they notified the Peace Corps their son was missing.
The Committee has been informed by the General Accounting
Office that the Peace Corps has taken important steps to remedy
some of these problems, but still has room for improvement.
A GAO report dated July 20, 2001, requested by Congressman
Martin Meehan following the disappearance of volunteer Walter J.
Poirier, stated that [both] ‘‘the Country Director and Deputy Country
Director for the Peace Corps in Bolivia told [the GAO] that the
Associate Director was not keeping close enough contact with Mr.
Poirier.’’ The report also stated that the ‘‘Associate Director also
said that he became so busy supervising the other volunteers that
Mr. Poirier ‘dropped off my radar screen.’ He said he made no further
attempt to contact Mr. Poirier.’’ The July 2001 GAO report is
summarized in the following statement: ‘‘The Peace Corps failed to
properly supervise Mr. Poirier and lost track of him.’’
The Committee believes that the highest priority of the Peace
Corps should be volunteer safety and security. Prior to embarking
on a major expansion as envisioned by the President, it is imperative
that the Peace Corps demonstrate competency in management
practices, including safety and security. There appear to have been
clear management failures in 2001 in the case of missing volunteer
Walter J. Poirier. One such management failure was the inappropriately
large ‘‘span of control’’ of Peace Corps staff in Bolivia. According
to the GAO, the Peace Corps associate director in Bolivia
who was directly responsible for Mr. Poirier was also responsible
for ‘‘over 40 other volunteers in Bolivia.’’ According to the same
GAO report, the associate director was ‘‘responsible for helping the
volunteers find housing and set up meetings with their Bolivian
project supervisors, was also supposed to periodically check on the
volunteers’ well-being.’’
The Committee urges the Director of the Peace Corps and the Inspector
General of the Peace Corps to review the existing management
practices to ensure that Peace Corps staff responsible for the
supervision of Peace Corps volunteers have an appropriate ‘‘span of
control,’’ that volunteers are placed in meaningful assignments,
and that the Peace Corps provides an appropriate level of contact
and communication with volunteers.
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In testimony at the March 24, 2004 hearing, the General Accounting
Office provided an update of its July 2002 report, and testified
that ‘‘[t]he full extent of crime against Peace Corps volunteers
is unknown because there is significant underreporting of
crime by volunteers. We reported that Peace Corps had initiated efforts
to encourage reporting and collect additional data but that
there were also other unrealized opportunities for additional examination
of data. For example, our analysis showed that newer volunteers
may be more likely to become victims of crime than their
more experienced colleagues. In response to our findings, in April
2003, Peace Corps hired an analyst to enhance its capacity for
gathering and analyzing crime data. The analyst has focused on
upgrading the crime data system and shifting the responsibility for
data collection and analysis from the medical office to the newly
created safety and security office, to place the responsibility for
crime data in an office dedicated to safety and security. According
to the analyst, additional crime analyses have not yet been conducted,
as the focus has been on upgrading the process for collecting
and reporting data.’’
The Committee remains concerned that the Peace Corps crime
data system records and tracks data by criminal ‘‘event’’ rather
than by volunteer; those charged with filing reports are instructed
to count events involving more than one volunteer only once. The
Committee believes that the use of such methodology serves to
underreport the true nature of crime against volunteers. The Committee
suggests that the Associate Director for Safety and Security
should establish improved crime data methodology that tracks incidents
of crime against individual volunteers.
The March 24, 2004 testimony by the GAO also reported that the
Peace Corps headquarters had developed a safety and security
framework, ‘‘but that the field’s implementation of the framework
had produced varying results.’’
The testimony further reported that while volunteers were generally
satisfied with the agency’s training programs, ‘‘there was
mixed performance in key elements of the framework such as in
developing safe and secure housing sites, monitoring volunteers,
and planning for emergencies. For example, at each of the five
posts we visited, we found instances of volunteers who began their
service in housing that had not been inspected and had not met
Peace Corps’ guidelines. We also found that the frequency of staff
contact with volunteers and the quality and comprehensiveness of
emergency action plans varied.’’
The Committee encourages the Director of the Peace Corps to ensure
that the agency institutes policies on a worldwide or country-
specific basis concerning frequency of staff contact with volunteers.
The GAO testimony stated further that ‘‘recent Inspector General
reports indicate that safety and security shortcomings in the field
are still occurring. We reported that a number of factors, including
staff turnover, informal supervision and oversight mechanisms, and
unclear guidance hampered Peace Corps’ efforts to ensure high-
quality performance for the agency as a whole.’’
The GAO testimony states that ‘‘high staff turnover, caused in
part by the agency’s statutorily imposed 5-year limit on employment
for U.S. direct hire staff, had resulted in a lack of institutional
memory, producing a situation in which agency staff are con-
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tinually ‘‘reinventing the wheel.’’ This is know as the ‘‘five year
rule.’’
The GAO’s July 2002 report recommended that the Peace Corps
develop a strategy to address staff turnover, including an assessment
of the ‘‘five year rule’’—a statutory restriction on the tenure
of U.S. direct hire employees of the Peace Corps. In response to the
GAO recommendation on staff turnover and the difficulties it created,
Congress has granted the Peace Corps authority to exempt
safety and security staff from the 5-year rule (P.L. 108–7 and 108–
199).
H.R. 4060 is responsive to GAO’s recommendations on the subject
of the 5-year rule by establishing that the rule shall not apply
to the Inspector General of the Peace Corps; officers of the Office
of the Inspector General of the Peace Corps; any individual whose
official duties primarily include the safety and security of Peace
Corps volunteers or employees; the head of the office responsible
for medical services of the Peace Corps; or any health care professional
within the office responsible for medical services of the Peace
Corps.
The Committee included the exemptions to the 5-year rule for
the head of the office which is responsible for medical services of
the Peace Corps and any other health care professional within that
office due to credible reports which it received about serious
failings in the medical services office over the last 2 years. The reports
allege, among other things, that for the first time in recent
memory the head of the office responsible for medical services, who
traditionally has been a civil servant, is now also the Associate Director
for Volunteer Safety, a political appointee. As a result, the
medical office is suffering from a lack of attention, continuity and
direction and may be compromising volunteer health and safety. In
large part because of these concerns, the Committee required in
H.R. 4060 that the director of medical services and the Associate
Director for Volunteer Safety be two different individuals. The
Committee urges the Director of the Peace Corps to evaluate the
management and procedures within the office of medical services
to ensure that volunteers continue to receive the highest standard
of care possible.
H.R. 4060 requires the GAO to perform its own independent review
of the 5-year rule by requesting that the Comptroller General
report on the effects the rule on the ability of the Peace Corps to
effectively manage its operations. The report required by H.R. 4060
shall include a description of the 5-year rule; a description of the
history of the rule and the purposes for which it was enacted and
amended; an analysis of the impact of the rule on the ability of the
Peace Corps to recruit capable volunteers, establish productive and
worthwhile assignments for volunteers; an assessment of whether
the application of the rule has accomplished the objectives for
which it was intended; and recommendations, if any, for legislation
to amend provisions of the Peace Corps Act relating to the rule.
The Committee recognizes and applauds the recent establishment
by the Director of Peace Corps of the Office of Safety and Security
within the Peace Corps. H.R. 4060 establishes such an office
by law, in amending the Peace Corps Act. This measure, and the
enumeration of responsibilities of such office in the Peace Corps
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Act, will emphasize the importance of safety and security as the
Peace Corps embarks upon its expansion.
The Committee also believes that it is essential that there be
Peace Corps security coordinators posted in each Peace Corps country.
Such coordinators should function in a manner analogous to
the Department of State’s ‘‘Regional Security Officers,’’ and should
have access to threat information through Embassy channels in
order to take active steps to provide up-to-date information to enhance
the safety and security of Peace Corps volunteers in a changing
security environment. Such security coordinators should be
United States citizens. The Committee is aware that existing Peace
Corps plans provide for foreign nationals to serve in such positions
in the majority of countries overseas. The Committee recommends
that the Director of the Peace Corps reassess such plans.
At the March 24, 2004 hearing, the Committee heard from Mr.
Walter R. Poirier, the father of missing volunteer Walter J. Poirier,
who testified that following his son’s disappearance, he spoke with
the Peace Corps country director for Bolivia, and asked ‘‘what safety
protocols were in place for volunteers whose assignments were
in remote areas such as my son, and what provisions were made
to enable them to communicate with Peace Corps Bolivia headquarters.’’
Mr. Poirier testified that the country director replied
that there was a radio telephone within two or three kilometers of
the younger Poirier’s site. Mr. Poirier testified that ‘‘The radio telephone
was actually several miles upriver. When asked why these
young people had no cell phones, satellite phones, or GPS devices,
[the country director’s] response was ‘we’ve been doing it this way
for forty years.’ This attitude that the Peace Corps had no need for
change is a recurring theme in Peace Corps liturgy.’’
The Committee is concerned about these assertions and the concerns
of other returned volunteers about their level of communication
with Peace Corps in-country staff. The Committee urges the
Director of the Peace Corps to respond to the questions which were
submitted for the record on this topic in a timely manner so the
Committee may have the benefit of that information before the
House considers the bill. The Committee also urges the Director of
the Peace Corps to consider employing appropriate telecommunications
technology, such as cellular telephones, satellite telephones,
and digital data transmission technology, where available and consistent
with budgetary allocations, to improve the ability of Peace
Corps volunteers to communicate with country offices. Such improved
use of telecommunications technology could assist Peace
Corps country offices better manage and supervise volunteers,
without sacrificing the unique nature of the Peace Corps experience.
Improved lines of communication could also allow volunteers
to contact Peace Corps staff or other authorities in the event of an
emergency.
The Committee has received numerous communications from current
and former volunteers expressing support for the creation of
an Ombudsman of the Peace Corps. The Committee notes that this
proposal was originally suggested by former Peace Corps volunteer
and former Representative Tony Hall of Ohio. The Committee has
included a provision in H.R. 4060 that creates the position of Ombudsman
in order to serve the community of current and former
Peace Corps volunteers and staff.
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The Committee has provided in H.R. 4060 that the Ombudsman
shall carry out its duties in a manner that is independent, impartial
in the conduct of inquiries, confidential, and consistent with
the revised Standards for the Establishment and Operation of Ombudsman
Offices (August 2003) as endorsed by the American Bar
Association.
The Committee believes that work of the Ombudsman can and
should complement, but not overlap, with the work of the Inspector
General. A well-functioning Office of the Ombudsman will serve as
a channel for dispute resolution, while at the same time assisting
in areas not appropriate for review by the Inspector General.
The Committee expresses appreciation for the Ombudsperson of
the Department of Justice, Ella Wheaton, and the Ombudsman of
the National Institutes of Health, Howard Gadlin, who assisted the
Committee in the drafting of the provisions of H.R. 4060 that relate
to the establishment of the Ombudsman of the Peace Corps.
Members of the Committee heard testimony at the March 24,
2004 oversight hearing by the current Inspector General of the
Peace Corps, who testified that ‘‘the Peace Corps Act itself invites
and even requires intrusion through the [Peace Corps] Director’s
discretion into the I.G.’s personnel decisions and his or her own
tenure. Both affect the I.G.’s independence. Amending the I.G. Act
as proposed would be the most sure resolution of this problem.
Amending the Peace Corps Act to lift the 5-year rule from the I.G.
and staff would also resolve the most important structural and
legal impediment to independence.’’
The Committee believes that volunteer safety and security partially
depends upon the proper and independent establishment of
the Office of Inspector General. The past work of the Office of Inspector
General of the Peace Corps with respect to safety and security
is known and appreciated by the Committee. However, the
Committee believes that by elevating the Peace Corps Inspector
General to a position that is nominated by the President and confirmed
by the Senate, the Inspector General will have the necessary
stature to adequately and independently examine the management
practices, including with respect to safety and security of
volunteers.
On March 24, 2004, the Committee also heard testimony from
Kevin Quigley, the President of the National Peace Corps Association
(NPCA). The NPCA, a network of over 30,000 individuals from
across the country, is the only national organization for current
and former Peace Corps volunteers, staff, family, and friends. Mr.
Quigley stated that while the Peace Corps community agrees that
safety and security of volunteers should be paramount, the discussion
surrounding safety and security issues tends to obscure other
concerns. First, Mr. Quigley continued, many in the community
question ‘‘whether the Peace Corps experience is, relatively speaking,
any more risky in terms of homicides assaults than life for a
comparable cohort in urban America . . .’’ The Committee notes
that the 2002 FBI Crime Report documents that 42 homicides occurred
in 2002 in Dayton, Ohio, with a population of approximately
166,000. In comparison, approximately 170,000 volunteers have
served in Peace Corps during its 43-year history in over 130 developing
countries and unfortunately 20 volunteers have been killed
in incidents which have been ruled to be homicides. Second, Mr.
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Quigley testified that the Peace Corps community is concerned that
efforts to improve safety and security should not unnecessarily
compromise the ability of volunteers ‘‘to live and work alongside
host country counterparts.’’ Lastly, Mr. Quigley expressed concern
that safety and security measures should not be funded at the expense
of programming requirements for volunteers.
The Committee is cognizant of the concerns raised by Mr.
Quigley. H.R. 4060 addresses these concerns by requiring that the
Director of the Peace Corps evaluate the effectiveness and merit of
assignments for volunteers and report to Congress with the director’s
findings. The report required of the director also mandates an
assessment of the Peace Corps’ plan to increase the number of volunteers
assigned to projects, particularly in communities of African
descent in the Western Hemisphere, which help combat HIV/AIDS
and other global infectious diseases.
The Committee notes that approximately 100 million individuals
of African descent live in Latin America and the Caribbean, making
this population the largest group of African descendants living
outside of Africa. While it is largely known that Afro-descendants
constitute the majority of Caribbean populations, Afro-descendants
are also present in almost all Latin American countries, including
Belize, Brazil, Colombia, and Venezuela. Oftentimes Afro-descendant
communities in the region constitute the majority of the poor,
have shorter life expectancies, higher rates of infant mortality,
higher incidences of HIV/AIDS, and higher rates of illiteracy. As
such, the poor social and economic situation of Afro-descendant
populations is in many ways comparable to that of indigenous populations
living in Latin American countries. However, while a number
of efforts have been targeted to address the situations of indigenous
persons, relatively few efforts have focused on Afro-descendant
communities in Latin America. The Committee is pleased that
Peace Corps has engaged in efforts that target Afro-descendant
communities in Honduras and encourages the agency to expand
those efforts in Honduras and throughout Latin America.
By establishing for a more independent Inspector General, by
creating the position of Ombudsman, by establishing the Office of
Safety and Security, by exempting certain positions from the 5-year
rule, and by calling for further examination of the rule by the
Comptroller General, H.R. 4060 will improve accountability for
safety and security matters in the Peace Corps, and will provide for
the improved safety and security of Peace Corps volunteers by preparing
the Peace Corps for expansion in a dangerous world.
THE LEGISLATION
The ‘‘Health, Safety and Security of Peace Corps Volunteers Act
of 2004’’ (H.R. 4060) makes a number of important changes to the
Peace Corps Act.
The legislation creates the position of Ombudsman to receive and
inquire into complaints, questions, or concerns raised by current or
former volunteers or employees regarding services or support provided
by the Peace Corps.
The legislation statutorily creates an Office of Safety and Security
within the Peace Corps, to be headed by an Associate Director
for Safety and Security, who shall be responsible for all safety and
security activities of the Peace Corps.
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This bill requires a report on the medical screening procedures
and guidelines used by the Peace Corps to determine whether an
applicant is medically and psychologically qualified to serve in the
Peace Corps as a volunteer.
The legislation also requires a report by the Comptroller General
on the ‘‘five year rule,’’ which was cited by the GAO in previous reports
as one of the reasons for an unacceptably high degree of staff
turnover and loss of institutional memory, especially on safety and
security matters.
The legislation also creates a more independent Inspector General
of the Peace Corps, exempting that individual and the staff of
the I.G. from the 5-year rule and creating more accountable oversight
by this Committee through the increased access to information
from the I.G. on all matters relating to the management of the
Peace Corps.
This legislation responds to the concerns addressed by our witnesses
last week, and also responds to the concerns raised by current
and former volunteers who have contacted the Committee to
discuss their experience with the Peace Corps.
HEARINGS
The Committee held an oversight hearing entitled ‘‘Safety and
Security of Peace Corps Volunteers’’ on March 24, 2004.
COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION
H.R. 4060 was introduced by Chairman Henry J. Hyde on March
30, 2004, co-sponsored by Ranking Democratic Member Tom Lantos,
and was referred to the Committee on International Relations.
The Committee considered H.R. 4060 at a meeting on March 31,
2004.

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