H.R. 7990 — State Department Disability Policy and Accommodations Act

This section states the sense of Congress that international disability rights are foundational to achieving global peace, stability, and prosperity and should be fully championed as a focus of U.S. diplomacy and development efforts. It directs the Secretary of State, through the Ambassador-at-Large for International Disability Rights and in consultation with relevant foreign affairs agencies, U.S. missions and bureaus, individuals with disabilities, civil society organizations, international organizations, and specified groups (e.g., women, indigenous persons, youth, survivors of violence, and combat-injured persons living with disabilities including U.S. security partners), to develop and adopt within 180 days of enactment a formal policy directing the Department of State's approach to advancing disability rights through U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance; update the Foreign Affairs Manual to reflect the policy; and publish the policy on a publicly available Department website.

This section mandates the establishment of the Office of International Disability Rights within the Department of State (previously recommended under the Department of State Authorization Act of 2021). It specifies the office's purpose to coordinate and elevate U.S. global engagement on disability rights policy, including promotion of accessibility, equality of opportunity, and protection of persons with disabilities worldwide (new subsection (b)). The section further requires the office to (1) coordinate all U.S. international disability policy and assistance in consultation with relevant State Department bureaus and chiefs of mission (new paragraph (1) under redesignated subsection (c)); (2) collect and report disaggregated data on related U.S. foreign assistance and diplomatic spending (new paragraph (9)); (3) establish interagency details or rotations to share best practices and strengthen coordination (new paragraph (10)); and (4) promote educational and cultural exchanges with international disability policymakers and advocates (new paragraph (11)). It designates the office to be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for International Disability Rights, appointed by the President with Senate advice and consent and provided appropriate funding and staff (redesignated and revised subsection (d)). Finally, the section requires the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Ambassador-at-Large, to submit to specified congressional committees (i.e., Senate Foreign Relations and Appropriations Committees and House counterparts) an initial international disability rights strategy within one year of enactment—covering priorities, target countries, resources, action plans, and partnerships—followed by annual reports on implementation, progress, stakeholder coordination, spending, and exchanges with disaggregated data where feasible (new subsection (f)).

This section directs the Under Secretary of State for Management, in consultation with the Office of International Disability Rights, to ensure equal access to hiring, recruitment, and overseas assignments for Civil Service and Foreign Service officers, locally employed staff with disabilities, and their family members with chronic medical conditions or disabilities—consistent with veterans' preference under 5 U.S.C. §2108 and with consideration for locally employed staff sustaining service-related disabilities in support of U.S. military or intelligence operations. The Under Secretary must (1) ensure U.S. embassies, consulates, and leased facilities abroad comply with U.S. Access Board standards by making websites and communications accessible, providing reasonable accommodations, contracting with section 503 Rehabilitation Act-compliant firms to hire workers with disabilities (including combat-injured allies), and consulting the Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs on Americans with Disabilities Act and section 503 compliance; (2) develop recruitment and placement policies for Foreign Service officers and families that comply with the Rehabilitation Act; (3) consult the Department of Justice's Disability Rights Section on hiring compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Rehabilitation Act section 501; and (4) establish policies offering, providing, and funding accommodations for locally employed staff abroad from the Department's centralized reasonable accommodation fund, including for national security-related injuries. The section further requires the Under Secretary to ensure embassy and consulate accessibility—including physical facilities, websites, public internet and telecommunications, and other public communications—and that diplomatic residences meet adaptable standards set by the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations.

This section requires the Secretary of State to provide online or in-person disability policy training for all Department of State civil service and Foreign Service personnel and chiefs of mission on six topics: (1) developing policies and programs reflecting U.S. disability policy priorities; (2) ensuring workplace compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Rehabilitation Act of 1973; (3) analyzing relevant laws and programming; (4) engaging local organizations led by and serving people with disabilities; (5) removing barriers to U.S. foreign assistance for such organizations; and (6) incorporating disability needs into U.S. humanitarian response per international frameworks such as IASC guidelines and the Charter on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian Action. Such training for Foreign Service officers must include country-specific and cultural considerations. The section amends human rights training requirements for Foreign Service officers under the Foreign Service Act of 1980 by (1) inserting after subparagraph (C) a new subparagraph (D) requiring instruction on recognizing risks and vulnerabilities of individuals with disabilities in specific country contexts, addressing their needs in policymaking and embassy outreach, and analyzing disability-inclusive laws and programming; and (2) redesignating the existing subparagraph (D) on mass atrocities training as subparagraph (E).

This section requires the Secretary of State to provide a report and briefing to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and the House Committee on Foreign Affairs not later than 180 days after enactment of this Act and annually thereafter on steps taken to implement the Act. The report and briefing must include (1) an explanation of policies and programs to fulfill duties of the Office of International Disability Rights under section 4 and training requirements under section 6; (2) a description of efforts to mainstream disability policy in U.S. diplomatic outreach and programming; (3) an explanation of disability-specific programming across the Department of State; (4) a description of the status of accessible facilities in all foreign missions as required under section 5(c); (5) a description of policy, programming, or human resources gaps in mainstreaming disability rights policy and plans to address them; (6) a description of progress on realizing rights of people with disabilities from Department policies and programming; (7) an explanation of the status of evidence gathering and systematic disability data collection, including disaggregated data; and (8) recommendations for legislative actions to fully implement the foregoing matters.

This section establishes the Judy Heumann Foreign Service Disability Fellowship program in the Department of State to expand expertise on disability rights policy formulation, execution, negotiation, and advocacy. The Secretary of State must select at least two fellows annually from entry-, mid-, and senior-level Foreign Service and civil service personnel—prioritizing diverse candidates—for placements of six months to one year with organizations of persons with disabilities (i.e., nongovernmental entities with majority staff leadership and board consisting of people with disabilities that serve people with disabilities); set performance goals; and reimburse one international trip and one domestic trip per fellow. Fellows must study the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, attend its Conference of States Parties with one member of the hosting organization, and conduct other activities as determined by the Ambassador-at-Large for International Disability Rights. The section further requires annual reports to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and House Committee on Foreign Affairs—beginning one year after the initial cohort—on implementation, cohort summaries, placements and lessons learned, and diversity trends; and authorizes appropriations of such sums as necessary for FY2026 and each fiscal year thereafter.