H.R. 9062 — BOOST American Business Act

This section provides the short title of the Act as the Building Opportunities Overseas to Strengthen and Train American Business Act or BOOST American Business Act, and sets forth the table of contents.

This section states findings on the 1979 transfer of the Foreign Commercial Service to the Department of Commerce, its current staffing of 207 officers at 80 posts, and proposed funding reductions of 31 to 51 percent. It expresses the sense of Congress that the Commercial Diplomatic Service should reach 750 officers by 2028 with specialized hiring and deployment, and states the policy of consolidating commercial diplomacy functions under the Secretary of State.

This section establishes the purposes of the Act to create a dedicated cadre of commercial diplomacy specialists within the Foreign Service of the Department of State, integrate those efforts with other foreign policy priorities, provide training to Economic Officers already performing such functions at two-thirds of U.S. diplomatic posts, address the decline in Foreign Commercial Service resources at the Department of Commerce, and ensure coordination with the Department of Commerce and other agencies.

This section establishes the Director General of the Foreign and Commercial Diplomatic Services, appointed by the President with Senate confirmation at the rank of Assistant Secretary, who reports to the Under Secretary for Management on the deployment and operations of Foreign Service generalist officers and the Commercial Diplomatic Service. It requires two deputies—one current or former career Foreign Service member for each service—and sets qualifications and duties for the Commercial Diplomatic Service deputy covering investment promotion, supply chain resilience, intellectual property protection, and related commercial diplomacy functions.

This section establishes the Commercial Diplomatic Service within the Foreign Service to help United States companies, particularly in industries of strategic importance, export products and services to international markets. It requires the Secretary to recruit officers with demonstrated experience conducting business and economic analysis, negotiating international contracts, developing long-term cross-cultural business relationships, and analyzing quantitative market data.

This section requires the Secretary of State to designate an appropriate number of Foreign Service positions, both domestically and abroad, as commercial diplomacy positions to be filled by members of the Commercial Diplomatic Service. It directs the Secretary to classify all positions to attract and retain candidates with appropriate skills and experience and to support career development. It limits assignments of Commercial Diplomatic Service members to those designated positions, requires coordination to minimize duplication with the Foreign Commercial Service, and mandates an application and selection process for qualified Foreign Service members to transfer within 180 days of enactment.

This section requires the Under Secretary for Management, in consultation with the Director General of the Foreign and Commercial Diplomatic Service, to annually assess training needs across the Commercial Diplomatic Service. It establishes standard training for Commercial Diplomatic Service members on commercial advocacy, market access barriers, business-enabling environments, U.S. foreign economic policies, interagency coordination with the Export-Import Bank, U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, and the Treasury, Millennium Challenge Corporation, and U.S. Trade and Development Agency, and business intelligence techniques. It directs the Secretary of State to develop and begin implementing this training course for all such members within 180 days of enactment.

This section establishes direct hire authority for the Director General of the Foreign and Commercial Diplomatic Service to appoint qualified candidates directly to positions in the Commercial Diplomatic Service, terminating 10 years after enactment. It also requires submission of a report within 180 days to the appropriate congressional committees detailing plans to attract and retain commercial diplomacy expertise, including career promotion tracks to supervisory and non-supervisory Senior Foreign Service positions.

This section clarifies that the management rights provisions do not preclude the Secretary from employing individuals or organizations by contract to carry out the Foreign Service Act. It provides that such contractors are not considered federal employees for purposes of laws administered by the Office of Personnel Management, except as the Secretary may determine for laws the Secretary administers, and permits the negotiation, terms, and performance of such contracts without regard to certain statutory provisions on contracting and work performed in the United States.

This section defines terms used throughout the Act, including “appropriate congressional committees” as the House and Senate committees on foreign affairs and appropriations; “commercial diplomacy” as activities promoting U.S. exports, providing market information, and assisting exporters with foreign governments and financing programs; and “Commercial Diplomatic Service” as the service of Foreign Service members trained in commercial diplomacy.