To provide for extensions of certain authorities of the Department of State, and for other purposes.
Public Law 110-321 · H.R. 6456 · 110th Congress · began in the House
Signed by George W. Bush (R) on Sep 19, 2008 · International Affairs
Sponsor: Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA-28)
Cosponsors (1): Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Passage votes
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
(Sec. 1) Amends the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to extend for one year the Secretary of State's authority to waive Foreign Service annuitant salary and full-time employment pension restrictions respecting assignment to: (1) consular posts with a substantial visa application backlog; and (2) Iraq and Afghanistan.
(Sec. 2) Amends the Foreign Service Act of 1980 to permit rest and recuperation travel for Foreign Service members and family members to U.S. territories, including American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Specifies that required leave based upon continuous service abroad may be taken in the United States or its territories, including American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. (Current law refers to the United States, its territories and possessions, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.)
(Sec. 3) Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to specify that the Secretary may pay the subsistence expenses of Department of State special agents on authorized protective missions at or away from their duty stations.
(Sec. 4) Amends the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 to extend grant authority for Radio Free Asia for one year.
(Sec. 5) Amends the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003 to extend for one year the International Broadcasting Bureau personal services contracting pilot program under which U.S. citizens or aliens are hired as personal services contractors, without regard to Civil Service and classification laws.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
The record lists no related bills.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 16 actions.
- Sep 19, 2008Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 110-321.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- Sep 11, 2008FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- Sep 9, 2008FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Sep 8, 2008FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- CommitteeCommittee · Senate Committee on Foreign Relations discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- OtherOther · Cleared for White House.
- Aug 1, 2008CommitteeCommittee · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
- Jul 31, 2008CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate.
- Jul 30, 2008FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 6456.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Berman moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Jul 10, 2008CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.