The Foreign Service Journal, March 2016

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MARCH 2016 69 AFSA NEWS AFSA ON THE HILL The FY 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act On Dec. 18, the House and Senate passed a $1.14 tril- lion omnibus appropriations package to fund the govern- ment through September 2016, which President Barack Obama promptly signed. There are many pieces of good news for the Foreign Service in the fiscal year 2016 budget. Best-Value Contract- ing. A new provision allows the Department of State to use “best-value” contract- ing when selecting the local guard contractor at all overseas diplomatic mis- sions. Previously, at all but high-threat posts, State was required to hire the secu- rity firm offering the lowest price, regardless of past performance or quality of service. AFSA’s support was instrumental to the addi- tion of this measure to the omnibus. Our consistent and measured advocacy on the Hill led the office of Representative Lois Fran- kel (D-Fla.) to seek AFSA’s assistance to impress on her colleagues the importance and urgency of this change. AFSA responded with a letter to the Hill in favor of best-value contracting signed by six of our most distinguished career ambas- sadors, paving the way for inclusion of the provision. In a press release, Rep. Frankel hailed the measure, “We have a moral obliga- tion and national security imperative to safeguard our diplomats serving this nation overseas.” We thank Rep. Frankel for taking the lead on deliver- ing this new flexibility in contracting, which will improve security at our embassies for decades to come. We also owe thanks to original co-sponsor Rep. Randy Weber Sr. (R-Texas) and longtime AFSA friends, House Committee on For- eign Affairs Chairman Ed Royce (R-Calif.) and Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.). Overseas Comparabil- ity Pay. In other good news, Overseas Comparability Pay will continue at the cur- rent two-thirds level, which AFSA sees as a significant victory in the current budget environment. Funding for full OCP remains one of our members’ highest priorities, and AFSA will continue to work with agency manage- ment and interlocutors on the Hill to secure it at the earliest possible opportu- nity. Compensation for Iran Hostages. At long last, the legislation includes a section approving compensation for American victims of state- sponsored terrorism. The three-decades-long effort—a cause that AFSA advocated throughout the years— was spearheaded by the Americans taken hostage at Embassy Tehran in 1979. The language—promoted by Senator Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) and Rep. Gerry Con- nolly (D-Va.), among oth- ers—authorizes payments of up to $10,000 per day of captivity and up to $4.4. mil- lion for each of the 53 hos- tages or their estates. It also makes American victims of other state-sponsored terrorist attacks eligible for benefits. The International Affairs Budget The overall international affairs budget for fiscal year 2016 increased by 7 percent over the enacted fiscal year 2015 level, and the all- important Diplomatic and Consular Affairs Programs account—which funds State operations around the world—was increased by 4.8 percent to $8.2 billion, a $373 million increase from current levels. Despite the progress on overall funding levels, the continued erosion of funding in the base budget is a significant concern. According to the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, fund- ing for the fiscal year 2016 international affairs bud- get—including the overseas contingency operations (OCO) account and interna- tional food aid—totals $54.6 billion: $39.7 billion in base funds and $14.9 billion in OCO. These figures illustrate that the broader 7-percent increase in the international affairs budget is driven by 61-percent growth in the OCO account ($5.6 billion), while cutting base funding by 5 percent ($2 billion). Base funding has not been this low since fiscal year 2009. Still, AFSA sees this as a good budget for the Foreign Service. Though the budget environment remains chal- lenging, AFSA is pleased that our strategy to protect the Foreign Service from any significant cuts has paid off. If you have any questions about the budget or related topics please email advocacy@afsa.org. n —Javier Cuebas, Director of Advocacy Funding for full OCP remains one of our members’ highest priorities, and AFSA will continue to work with agency management and interlocutors on the Hill to secure it at the earliest possible opportunity.