22 U.S.C. § 3931 — Board of Examiners

Page 1436 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 3931 1055; Ex. Ord. No. 12292, Feb. 23, 1981, 46 F.R. 13967, which related to administration of foreign service per- sonnel systems, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 12553, Feb. 25, 1986, 51 F.R. 7237. § 3931. Board of Examiners (a) Establishment; membership; chairman The President shall establish a Board of Ex- aminers for the Foreign Service to develop, and supervise the administration of, examinations prescribed under section 3941(b) of this title to be given to candidates for appointment in the Service. The Board shall consist of 15 members appointed by the President (no fewer than 5 of whom shall be appointed from among individ- uals who are not Government employees and who shall be qualified for service on the Board by virtue of their knowledge, experience, or training in the fields of testing or equal employ- ment opportunity). The Board shall include rep- resentatives of agencies utilizing the Foreign Service personnel system and representatives of other agencies which have responsibility for em- ployment testing. The Board shall be chaired by a member of the Board, designated by the Presi- dent, who is a member of the Service. (b) Review of examinations; report to Secretary of State The Board of Examiners shall periodically re- view the examinations prescribed under section 3941(b) of this title in order to determine— (1) whether any such examination has an ad- verse impact on the hiring, promotion, or other employment opportunity of members of any race, sex, or ethnic group; (2) methods of minimizing any such adverse impact; (3) alternatives to any examinations which have such an adverse impact; and (4) whether such examinations are valid in relation to job performance. The Board of Examiners shall annually report its findings under this subsection to the Sec- retary of State and shall furnish to the Sec- retary of State its recommendations for im- provements in the development, use, and admin- istration of the examinations prescribed under section 3941(b) of this title. (c) Vacancies Any vacancy or vacancies on the Board shall not impair the right of the remaining members to exercise the full powers of the Board. (Pub. L. 96–465, title I, § 211, Oct. 17, 1980, 94 Stat. 2083.) Executive Documents ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD OF EXAMINERS For establishment of the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service and appointment of its members, see section 6 of Ex. Ord. No. 12293, Feb. 23, 1981, 46 F.R. 13970, set out as note under section 3901 of this title. SUBCHAPTER III—APPOINTMENTS § 3941. General provisions (a) Citizenship requirement Only citizens of the United States may be ap- pointed to the Service, other than for service abroad as a consular agent or as a foreign na- tional employee. (b) Examinations (1) The Secretary shall prescribe, as appro- priate, written, oral, physical, foreign language, and other examinations for appointment to the Service (other than as a chief of mission or am- bassador at large). (2) The Secretary shall ensure that the Board of Examiners for the Foreign Service annually offers the oral assessment examinations de- scribed in paragraph (1) in cities, chosen on a ro- tating basis, located in at least three different time zones across the United States. (c) Veteran or disabled veteran The fact that an applicant for appointment as a Foreign Service officer candidate is a veteran or disabled veteran shall be considered an af- firmative factor in making such appointments. As used in this subsection, the term ‘‘veteran or disabled veteran’’ means an individual who is a preference eligible under subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 2108(3) of title 5. (d) Career and noncareer appointments (1) Members of the Service serving under ca- reer appointments are career members of the Service. Members of the Service serving under limited appointments are either career can- didates or noncareer members of the Service. (2) Chiefs of mission, ambassadors at large, and ministers serve at the pleasure of the Presi- dent. (3) An appointment as a Foreign Service offi- cer is a career appointment. Foreign Service em- ployees serving as career candidates or career members of the Service shall not represent to the income tax authorities of the District of Co- lumbia or any other State or locality that they are exempt from income taxation on the basis of holding a Presidential appointment subject to Senate confirmation or that they are exempt on the basis of serving in an appointment whose tenure is at the pleasure of the President. (Pub. L. 96–465, title I, § 301, Oct. 17, 1980, 94 Stat. 2083; Pub. L. 100–204, title I, § 179(a), Dec. 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 1362; Pub. L. 117–81, div. E, title LIV, § 5406(b), Dec. 27, 2021, 135 Stat. 2374.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 2021—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 117–81 designated existing provisions as par. (1) and added par. (2). 1987—Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 100–204 inserted sentence at end relating to exemption from income taxation. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1987 AMENDMENT Pub. L. 100–204, title I, § 179(b), Dec. 22, 1987, 101 Stat. 1363, provided that: ‘‘The amendment made by sub- section (a) [amending this section] shall apply with re- spect to tax years beginning after December 31, 1987.’’ STUDY OF FOREIGN SERVICE EXAMINATION Pub. L. 101–246, title I, § 153(g), Feb. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 44, required the Secretary of State to enter into a con- tract with a private organization for a comprehensive review and evaluation of the Foreign Service examina- tion related to cultural, racial, ethnic, and sexual bias