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119-s-4719119th Congress

State Department Integrity and Transparency Act

Sponsored By: Senator Kaine, Tim [D-VA]

Introduced

Summary

Strengthening professionalism and transparency in senior State Department appointments. The bill would boost career staffing in top diplomatic roles, require fuller public disclosures about nominees, and limit short-term overseas political placements.

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  • Department leaders: Would require at least 75% of Assistant Secretaries to have served in the Senior Foreign Service or the Senior Executive Service, raising the share of career officials in top policy posts.
  • Nominees and public transparency: Would force nominees to detail language competence and explain their knowledge of a country’s history, culture, economy, politics, and any relevant business ties. It would also require disclosure of bundled campaign contributions and immediate family financial interests and post those reports and competency certificates on a public State Department website.
  • Presidential certification and Senate oversight: Would require the President to certify to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that nominees meet required qualifications and that contributions by the nominee or family did not influence the nomination.
  • Temporary overseas appointments: Would cap special Schedule B and Schedule C overseas appointments at 90 days, limit officials to one such placement per calendar year, and make the rule effective January 1, 2029.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

3 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 1 mixed.

More nominee disclosure for diplomats

If enacted, the bill would require nominees for chiefs of mission and assistant secretaries to disclose campaign "bundled contributions" they helped arrange, using Federal Election Campaign Act definitions. Each competence report would have to explain the nominee’s knowledge of the principal language or dialect and how they meet criteria on history, culture, economics, politics, and relevant business interests. The President would have to certify to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the nominee meets the statutory qualifications and that the nominee’s or family members’ contributions did not influence the nomination. The State Department would publish these reports and Certificates of Competency on a public website. These rules would take effect upon enactment.

Short-term diplomatic appointment limits

If enacted, the bill would limit special appointments and Schedule B or Schedule C positions at U.S. diplomatic missions so each appointment may not exceed 90 days. It would also bar any individual from holding more than one such appointment in the same calendar year. These limits would take effect January 1, 2029 and apply to the named categories of short-term and schedule-based appointments to U.S. diplomatic missions.

Career requirement for Assistant Secretaries

If enacted, the bill would require that at least 75% of Department of State Assistant Secretaries have served in the Senior Foreign Service or the Senior Executive Service. This would create a statutory hiring threshold favoring career senior service members for many top State Department jobs. The rule would apply to Department of State appointment processes and would take effect upon enactment.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Kaine, Tim [D-VA]

VA • D

Cosponsors

  • Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR]

    OR • D

    Sponsored 6/9/2026

  • Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD]

    MD • D

    Sponsored 6/9/2026

  • Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA]

    CA • D

    Sponsored 6/9/2026

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

View on Congress.gov
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