H.R. 9405

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9405 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 9405

To establish, at the Department of State, the Esther Coopersmith Award 
in recognition of a distinguished diplomat advancing sustainable peace 
and security.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 23, 2026

Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida (for herself and Ms. Kamlager-Dove) 
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To establish, at the Department of State, the Esther Coopersmith Award 
in recognition of a distinguished diplomat advancing sustainable peace 
and security.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Esther Coopersmith Award Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:
(1) The United Nations Secretary General's 2025 Report on 
Women, Peace and Security notes an estimated 676,000,000 women 
and girls lived within 50 kilometers of a deadly conflict event 
during 2024, which is the highest number since the 1990s.
(2) The meaningful participation of women in conflict 
prevention and conflict resolution processes--
(A) promotes more inclusive and democratic 
societies; and
(B) is critical to the long-term stability and 
security of those countries and regions.
(3) In 2017, President Trump signed the bipartisan Women, 
Peace, and Security Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-68), which 
codified decades' long efforts to strategically address 
material threats to United States national security by 
supporting United States leadership in improving the 
participation of women in peace and security processes, 
conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and decision-making 
institutions.
(4) In 2018, President Trump signed the bipartisan Women's 
Entrepreneurship and Economic Empowerment Act (Public Law 115-
428) to recognize the vital contribution women's full and 
unfettered economic participation and inclusion plays in 
fostering global growth, prosperity, and stability.
(5) In October 2023, President Biden released the United 
States Strategy and National Action Plan on Women, Peace and 
Security to better equip United States national security 
agencies with the tools to address shifts in geopolitical 
challenges and advancements in technology.
(6) Executive Order 13595 (76 Fed. Reg. 80205 (December 19, 
2011); instituting a National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and 
Security)--
(A) institutionalized a United States Government-
wide effort promoting women's participation in conflict 
prevention, management and resolution, and post-
conflict recovery; and
(B) noted the responsibility of all nations to 
protect their populations from genocide, war crimes, 
ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity, including 
when implemented by means of sexual violence.
(7) For 70 years, the late United States diplomat Esther 
Coopersmith leveraged creativity and innovation to build 
bridges and forge common understanding, which contributed 
invaluably to United States peace and security.

SEC. 3. ALIGNMENT OF AWARD RECOGNIZING UNITED STATES DIPLOMATIC EFFORTS 
WITHIN UNITED STATES LAW.

Section 614 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4013) is 
amended by inserting ``and the rights of women and girls'' after 
``freedom of religion''.

SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE ESTHER COOPERSMITH AWARD FOR ADVANCING 
PEACE AND SECURITY.

(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of State shall establish an 
annual individual or group performance award, which shall be known as 
the ``Esther Coopersmith Award''.
(b) Recipients.--Recipients of the Esther Coopersmith Award shall--
(1) be members of the Civil Service or of the Foreign 
Service who have made meaningful contributions advancing the 
purposes of the Women, Peace, and Security Act of 2017 (Public 
Law 115-68) or the Women's Entrepreneurship and Economic 
Empowerment Act 2018 (Public Law 115-428) to sustainably 
prevent, mitigate, or resolve conflict, violence, or 
instability;
(2) include one honorable mention recipient annually; and
(3) meet with the Secretary of State.
(c) Efforts To Be Recognized.--Recipients of the Esther Coopersmith 
Award shall be recognized for actions promoting women's leadership in 
efforts, such as--
(1) integrating the perspectives and interests of affected 
women into conflict-prevention activities and strategies;
(2) encouraging partner governments to adopt plans to 
improve the meaningful participation of women in peace and 
security processes and decision-making institutions;
(3) promoting the physical safety, economic security, and 
dignity of women and girls;
(4) supporting the equal access of women to aid 
distribution mechanisms and services; and
(5) supporting foreign capacity to collect or analyze data 
for the purpose of developing and enhancing early warning 
systems of conflict and violence.
(d) Representation.--In accordance with section 5(a)(1) of the 
Women, Peace, and Security Act of 2017 (22 U.S.C. 2152j-1(a)(1)), the 
Secretary of State shall support recipients' official travel to attend 
a major global security conference to support the alignment of global 
efforts advancing peace and security.
(e) Administration.--The Secretary of State shall--
(1) designate the Office of Global Women's Issues to 
administer the Esther Coopersmith Award; and
(2) receive input regarding award recipients through an 
award review panel composed of Assistant Secretaries of State 
and Chiefs of Missions.

SEC. 5. MANDATORY TRAINING.

In accordance with section 6(a) of the Women, Peace and Security 
Act of 2017 (22 U.S.C. 2152j-2(a)), award recipients and honorable 
mentions shall present their work virtually to--
(1) the Chiefs of Mission Conference; and
(2) at least 1 entry level training course (such as the A-
100 class) for incoming Foreign Service officers.

SEC. 6. REPORT.

(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the Secretary of 
State selects recipients pursuant to section 4, the Secretary shall 
submit a report to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and 
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives that 
describes the efforts undertaken by the recipients to promote women's 
roles in supporting peace and security.
(b) Matters To Be Included.--The report required under subsection 
(a) shall--
(1) describe United States' interests in resolving the 
conflict, instability, or violence addressed by the recipients;
(2) describe the recipients' actions and resulting 
outcomes, including those taken by a United States Mission, 
Department of State bureau, foreign government, or other 
stakeholders;
(3) assess areas for potential further action and lessons 
learned; and
(4) identify steps to be taken by the Department of State 
to replicate or carry forward work initiated by the award 
recipient, if applicable.

SEC. 7. SUNSET.

This Act, and the amendment made by this Act, shall cease to have 
any force or effect beginning on the date that is 5 years after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.
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