Senator Bob Corker on Thursday applauded committee passage of the fiscal year 2018 State Department authorization bill. This is the third year in a row that the committee has successfully passed an authorization bill for the department. Legislation combining the fiscal year 2016 and 2017 authorization bills was enacted last year, marking the first time in 14 years that an authorization for the State Department became law.
“One of my top priorities as chairman has been to ensure taxpayer dollars are used in the most efficient manner to advance American interests,” said Senator Corker.
“For the third consecutive year, the committee has passed an authorization bill on a bipartisan basis that strengthens oversight and improves how the State Department functions. This legislation speeds up construction of safer embassies at reduced cost to taxpayers, requires confirmation of special envoys while empowering the secretary to rein in these often unnecessary and duplicative positions, and ensures Congress will play a productive role in the reorganization of the department. It also better protects State’s computer networks from hackers, improves the security of classified information, and seeks to make public diplomacy more effective. I thank my colleagues for their important contributions to this effort.”
Text of the legislation is available online here.