Sponsors (3)
The bill speeds and protects the careers of recalled Foreign Service officers and increases congressional transparency, at the trade-off of reducing departmental personnel flexibility, raising potential costs, and creating privacy/operational-security reporting risks.
Former Foreign Service officers seeking reappointment will be reappointed within 180 days and enter the next onward-assignment cycle with full standing, restoring their promotion and assignment opportunities.
Congressional oversight committees will receive annual data on recalls and reappointments, increasing transparency of State Department personnel actions.
Mandatory timelines and placement rules could reduce the State Department's flexibility in personnel management and assignment planning, complicating workforce deployment.
Faster reappointments and restored standing could increase costs for the Department of State (and thus taxpayers) if salary, benefits, or placement require additional resources.
The required reporting of recalls/reappointments risks exposing individual grades or positions and could create privacy or operational-security concerns if safeguards are insufficient.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Creates a 180-day reappointment timeline for approved former Foreign Service members, guarantees placement into the next assignment cycle with full standing, and requires annual reports to Congress on recalls and grades.
Official title: To amend the Foreign Service Act of 1980 relating to the recall and reappointment of career members.
Introduced May 21, 2026 by Johnny Olszewski · Last progress May 21, 2026
Allows formerly separated or retired career Foreign Service members to be recalled and reappointed with clear timelines and placement rights, and requires yearly reporting to congressional foreign policy committees on recalls and reappointments. It also clarifies that a reappointed member must be placed into the next onward assignment application cycle with full standing and requires the Secretary to report grades at separation and at recall for each recalled member.