,i #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #ecbi ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,september #aa1 #bjbe,mr4 ,meeks 7for himself and ,mr4 ,mackenzie7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to authorize the establishment of a ,regional ,china ,officer ,program ,unit in the ,department of ,state to monitor and assess the global presence of the ,people's ,republic of ,china and to help ,united ,states diplomatic and consular posts abroad address its malign influence and activities1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,regional ,china ,officer ,authorization ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,department of ,state started the ,regional ,china ,officer 7,,rco7 program in #bjai with six officers deployed overseas4 7#b7 ,as of ,january #bjbe1 the program had grown in size to #bj ,,rco positions1 spanning across all the regional bureaus4 7#c7 ,r,c,os assess and report on emerging patterns in activity by the ,people's ,republic of ,china 7,,prc71 help ,united ,states diplomatic missions focus on the most important1 ,,prc-related1 ,united ,states priorities1 and help coordinate effective messaging and strategies to counter ,,prc malign influence in the region4 7#d7 ,the ,,rco program is part of the ,office of ,china ,coordination in the ,bureau of ,east ,asia and ,pacific ,affairs at the ,state ,department4 #c4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 the ,united ,states is engaged in a global competition for influence with the ,people's ,republic of ,china 7,,prc71 which requires that the ,united ,states adequately monitor and analyze ,,prc malign activity that is contrary to ,united ,states interests globally2 7#b7 the ,,rco program is a key asset for the ,department of ,state in the context of strategic competition with ,china at the global1 regional1 and subregional levels2 and 7#c7 the ,united ,states must continue to counter ,,prc activities that seek to coerce other countries1 distort markets1 and undermine ,united ,states interests4 #d4 ,regional ,china ,program ,unit 7a7 ,authorization ,the ,secretary of ,state shall establish within the ,office of ,china ,coordination of the ,bureau of ,east ,asia and ,pacific ,affairs a ,regional ,china ,officer ,program ,unit4 7b7 ,staffing ,the ,regional ,china ,officer ,program ,unit shall be comprised of-- 7#a7 one ,director appointed in accordance with subsection 7c72 and 7#b7 not fewer than #bj forward-deployed ,foreign ,service ,officers assigned to ,united ,states diplomatic or consular posts or detailed to the foreign ministry of an ally1 to be known as ,regional ,china ,officers 7,r,c,os71 who shall be responsible for-- 7,a7 monitoring and reporting on activities of the ,people's ,republic of ,china in the region of his or her responsibility1 including in the commercial1 development1 finance1 critical infrastructure1 technology1 and military domains1 including projects associated with the ,,prc's ,belt and ,road ,initiative1 ,global ,security ,initiative1 and ,global ,development ,initiative2 and 7,b7 advising ,united ,states embassy personnel1 diplomatic allies and partners1 and host countries on how to understand and address ,,prc activities globally and locally4 7c7 ,director of the regional china officer program 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #ij days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,state shall appoint a ,director for the ,regional ,china ,officer ,program ,unit from among career members of the ,foreign ,service4 7#b7 ,limitation on position ,the establishment of the position of the ,director pursuant to this section shall not result in an increase in the overall full-time equivalent positions within the ,department4 7#c7 ,responsibilities ,the ,director shall be responsible for coordinating and overseeing the activities of ,r,c,os in order to-- 7,a7 improve ,united ,states responsiveness to activities1 strategies and tactics of the ,people's ,republic of ,china 7,,prc72 7,b7 ensure that ,,rco program activities increase the knowledge1 understanding1 and trust of the ,united ,states by relevant target audiences2 7,c7 identify gaps in ,united ,states engagements regarding ,,prc cross-cutting activities2 and 7,d7 manage hiring for ,,rco positions4 7d7 ,regional china officers 7#a7 ,qualifications ,the ,secretary of ,state shall select and assign ,r,c,os from among ,foreign ,service ,officrs who have expertise related to the ,,prc1 including in the forms of prior experience working in or on ,china1 ,taiwan1 and ,hong ,kong1 and proficiency in ,mandarin language4 7#b7 ,geographic placement ,of the total number of ,r,c,os in the ,regional ,china ,officer ,program ,unit1 there shall be no fewer than #b ,regional ,china ,officers assigned to ,united ,states diplomatic posts associated with each of the following bureaus-- 7,a7 ,bureau of ,african ,affairs2 7,b7 ,bureau of ,east ,asian and ,pacific ,affairs2 7,c7 ,bureau of ,european and ,eurasian ,affairs2 7,d7 ,bureau of ,international ,organization ,affairs2 7,e7 ,bureau of ,near ,eastern ,affairs2 7,f7 ,bureau of ,south and ,central ,asian ,affairs2 and 7,g7 ,bureau of ,western ,hemisphere ,affairs4 7e7 ,authorization of appropriations 7#a7 ,expansion of the ,,rco program ,there is authorized to be appropriated #b1ejj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjbf through #bjcj to-- 7,a7 expand the ,,rco program at strategic ,united ,states diplomatic missions and at the foreign ministries of allies2 and 7,b7 support the management of the ,,rco program1 including one ,locally ,employed ,staff support position in each geographic region4 7#b7 ,programs and activities ,there is authorized to be appropriated #a1bej1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjbf through #bjcj with up to #ej1jjj for each ,regional ,china ,officer to support programs and public diplomacy activities of the ,regional ,china ,officer ,program4 7#c7 ,availability ,amounts appropriated pursuant to the authorizations under this section are authorized to remain available until expended and shall be in addition to amounts otherwise authorized to be appropriated for the ,countering ,,prc ,influence ,fund4 7f7 ,sunset ,the requirement to maintain the ,regional ,china ,officer ,program ,unit and the ,regional ,china ,officer ,program under subsection 7a7 shall expire on the date that is #e years after the date of the enactment of this ,act4 7g7 ,ally defined ,in this ,act1 the term ally means only-- 7#a7 a member country of the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty ,organization2 or 7#b7 a country designated as a major non-,,nato ally pursuant to the authorities provided by section #eag of the ,foreign ,assistance ,act of #aifa 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #bcbak74