Foreign Affairs Committee

Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

This concurrent resolution commemorates the 65th anniversary of the Peace Corps' establishment in 1961. It formally honors the nearly 250,000 American volunteers who have served in 144 countries to support areas such as education, health, and economic development. The bill also commends the organization for its role in fostering international stability and enhancing global perceptions of the United States through cultural exchange and service.

House Resolution 1570 marks the eighth anniversary of the detention of Dr. Gulshan Abbas, a retired Uyghur doctor who has been imprisoned in China since 2018. The resolution characterizes her imprisonment as an act of transnational repression intended to retaliate against her family members for exercising free speech in the United States. It calls on the Chinese government to immediately and unconditionally release Dr. Abbas and condemns the use of detention to silence critics abroad. Additionally, the bill urges U.S. officials to raise her case during diplomatic engagements with China and recommends considering sanctions against responsible officials while working with international partners to secure her freedom.

The Justice for Veterans and Victims of Terrorism Act of 2026 directs the Comptroller General to conduct a study and report to Congress by December 31, 2028. The study must assess how many additional individuals would qualify for compensation if the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act were expanded to cover victims of attempted extrajudicial killings, assaults, and psychiatric injuries. It also requires an estimate of the funding needed for these potential payments and recommendations for legislative amendments. Additionally, the report must provide a detailed accounting of all funds forfeited or paid to the United States since 2015 from violations of specific economic sanctions laws and terrorism-related offenses, including interest earned on those penalties.

The Tropical Forest and Coral Reef Conservation Reauthorization Act of 2026 extends funding for the existing conservation program through fiscal year 2032. The bill allocates $20 million per year for each of the five new fiscal years, from 2028 to 2032. This action directly affects U.S. foreign assistance efforts aimed at protecting tropical forests and coral reefs by ensuring continued financial support.