,i  #aaith ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #ajjfd  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of 
,,representatives  ,august #f1 #bjbf,mr4
 ,olszewski 7for himself and ,mr4       
,baumgartner7 introduced the following  
bill2 which was referred to the         
,committee on ,foreign ,affairs  ,a     
,,bill  ,to amend the ,foreign ,service 
,act of #aihj to require a list of      
critical foreign languages for purposes 
of that ,act4  #a4 ,short title ,this   
,act may be cited as the ,foreign       
,service ,language ,readiness ,act4  #b4
 ,list of critical foreign languages    
7a7 ,in general ,section #gja of the    
,foreign ,service ,act of #aihj 7#bb    
,u4,s4,c4 #djba7 is amended by adding at
 the end the following3  7h7 ,list of   
critical foreign languages  7#a7 ,in    
general ,not later than #ahj days after 
the date of the enactment of this       
subsection1 and not less frequently than
 once every three years thereafter1 the 
,secretary should designate1 and make   
available to the ,committee on ,foreign 

,affairs of the ,house of               
,representatives and the ,committee on  
,foreign ,relations of the ,senate1 a   
list of critical foreign languages for  
purposes of this ,act4  7#b7 ,matters to
 be included ,for each critical foreign 
language designated pursuant to         
paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall    
include information in the list         
describing--  7,a7 minimum tested levels
 at which a member of the ,service shall
 be considered to be proficient in the  
language2 and  7,b7 criteria for        
determining positions for which such    
critical foreign language capability is 
mission essential4  7#c7 ,coordination  
,in carrying out this subsection1 the   
,secretary shall1 to the maximum extent 
practicable1 coordinate with the heads  
of other ,federal departments and       
agencies that maintain foreign language 
capabilities1 in order to promote       
interoperability1 avoid duplication1 and
 achieve cost savings to the taxpayer4  
7#d7 ,workforce planning ,the ,secretary

 should incorporate critical foreign    
language capability planning into the   
career development1 training1 and       
assignment processes under this chapter1
 including through--  7,a7 the use of   
training at the ,national ,foreign      
,affairs ,training ,center2  7,b7 the   
use of limited noncareer appointments   
and recall and reappointment authorities
 under sections #cjh and #cji to address
 temporary or surge requirements2 and   
7,c7 the development of a surge reserve 
of rehired officers and other           
appropriately cleared individuals with  
critical foreign language capabilities  
who may be activated rapidly in response
 to crises4  7#e7 ,critical foreign     
language defined ,in this subsection1   
the term critical foreign language means
 a foreign language identified by the   
,secretary1 in consultation with the    
heads of other ,federal departments and 
agencies1 as appropriate--  7,a7 as     
essential to the protection of ,united  
,states national security interests1    

,united ,states economic prosperity1 and
 the protection of ,united ,states      
citizens abroad2  7,b7 with respect to  
which required levels of proficiency are
 limited in the ,united ,states         
workforce relative to strategic needs   
and operational demand2 and  7,c7 as    
corresponding to category ,i1 ,,ii1     
,,iii1 or ,,iv languages1 as specified  
in section #ciaa4b of volume #c of the  
,foreign ,affairs ,manual 7#c ,,fam     
#ciaa4b7 or successor guidance1         
encompassing difficult1 hard1 and super 
hard languages that are less commonly   
taught or studied in the ,united        
,states4  4  7b7 ,critical foreign      
language requirement ,section #gjb 7#bb 
,u4,s4,c4 #djbb7 is amended by adding at
 the end the following3  7c7 ,critical  
foreign language requirement ,in        
carrying out this section1 the          
,secretary shall ensure that policies   
for the instruction1 testing1 and use of
 foreign languages explicitly support   
the preservation of capabilities with   

respect to critical foreign languages   
identified pursuant to section #gja7;h74
  4  7c7 ,report  7#a7 ,in general ,not 
later than ,december #ca1 #bjbg1 the    
,secretary of ,state shall submit to the
 ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs of the 
,house of ,representatives and the      
,committee on ,foreign ,relations of the
 ,senate a report on the ,department of 
,state's critical language capabilities4
  7#b7 ,matters to be included ,the     
report required by this subsection      
should include the following3 7,a7 ,an  
assessment of the ,department of        
,state's critical foreign language      
staffing requirements1 by regional and  
functional bureau4  7,b7 ,for each      
critical language1 numbers of the       
,foreign ,service meeting the minimum   
critical language proficiency standards1
 as well as the criteria for determining
 if a critical language is mission      
essential for a given position4  7,c7   
,the impact of workforce shortages on   
the ,department's ability to meet       

mission-essential critical foreign      
language requirements4  7,d7 ,any       
actions taken or planned to strengthen  
critical foreign language capability in 
the ,service4  7,e7 ,a list of each     
,service position abroad that is        
language-designated in order to         
determine whether or not a continuing   
requirement for foreign language        
proficiency for such position is        
warranted4