Sponsors (7)
The bill creates a State Department Special Advisor to better coordinate and oversee U.S. child-welfare assistance abroad, but its practical benefits depend on whether funding and implementation follow, and it adds modest administrative cost.
Orphans and vulnerable children overseas will receive more coordinated U.S. assistance and clearer policy oversight through a dedicated Special Advisor role at the State Department, improving program focus and coordination among U.S. agencies and implementing partners.
If the Special Advisor position is not paired with new or redirected funding, the role may have limited impact on actual services delivered to children overseas, leaving outcomes unchanged despite new oversight.
Creating a new bureaucratic position will increase administrative costs for the State Department and could modestly raise costs borne by U.S. taxpayers.
Based on analysis of 4 sections of legislative text.
Requires a State Department Special Advisor for assistance to orphans and vulnerable children, updates a statutory Act name to 2025, and directs an extension of implementing directives (text incomplete).
Requires the State Department to appoint a Special Advisor for Assistance to Orphans and Vulnerable Children within 90 days of enactment, updates an existing statutory reference to replace a 2020 Act name with 2025, and directs an amendment to extend a requirement to issue implementing directives in the Foreign Assistance Act (text of that change is incomplete). The bill does not specify funding or many operational details; one amendment is missing its inserted language, which creates uncertainty about the scope and timing of the implementing directive requirement.
Introduced December 2, 2025 by Joaquin Castro · Last progress December 2, 2025