22 Cfr 305 82 Fr 1188 2016-30442

Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 3 / Thursday, January 5, 2017 / Rules and Regulations
Imports, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements, Steel.
Dated: December 23, 2016.
Paul Piquado,
Assistant Secretary for Enforcement &
Compliance.

For reasons discussed in the
preamble, 19 CFR part 360 is amended
as follows:
PART 360—STEEL IMPORT
MONITORING AND ANALYSIS SYSTEM
1. The authority citation for part 360
continues to read as follows:

■

Authority: 13 U.S.C. 301(a) and 302.

2. Section 360.105 is revised to read
as follows:

■

§ 360.105 Duration of the steel import
licensing requirement.

The licensing program will be in
effect through March 21, 2022, but may
be extended upon review and
notification in the Federal Register
prior to this expiration date. Licenses
will be required on all subject imports
entered during this period, even if the
entry summary documents are not filed
until after the expiration of this
program. The licenses will be valid for
10 business days after the expiration of
this program to allow for the final filing
of required Customs documentation.
[FR Doc. 2016–31667 Filed 1–4–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–DS–P

PEACE CORPS
22 CFR Part 305
RIN 0420–AA26

Eligibility and Standards for Peace
Corps Volunteer Service
Peace Corps.
Final rule.

AGENCY:
ACTION:

The Peace Corps issues this
final rule to restate and update the
requirements for eligibility for Peace
Corps Volunteer service, and the factors
considered in the assessment and
selection of eligible applicants for
training and service. The requirements
and factors for eligibility and selection
were last published in 1984. A revision
of the regulation is necessary to conform
to changes in Federal laws and
regulations, particularly with respect to
those prohibiting discrimination on the
basis of disability, and to reflect policy
changes made by the Peace Corps.
DATES: The final rule is effective on
January 5, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Anthony F. Marra, Associate General

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SUMMARY:

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Counsel, Peace Corps, 1111 20th Street
NW., Washington, DC 20526.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Under the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C.
2501 et seq.), the Peace Corps is
authorized to enroll qualified U.S.
citizens and nationals as Volunteers to
serve abroad, under conditions of
hardship if necessary, (i) to help the
people of interested countries meet their
need for trained manpower, particularly
in meeting the basic needs of those
living in the poorest areas of such
countries, (ii) to help promote a better
understanding of the American people
on the part of the people served, and
(iii) to help promote a better
understanding of other peoples on the
part of the American people. The Peace
Corps is authorized to establish the
terms and conditions of enrollment of
Volunteers, as well as the terms and
conditions of service. The Peace Corps
published a proposed rule on July 31,
2015 (80 FR 45620) to revise and update
the 30 year-old regulation concerning
eligibility and selection standards for
Peace Corps Volunteer service. The
comment period for the proposed rule
ended on August 31, 2015, and the
Peace Corps received three comments.
II. Summary of Rulemaking
The revised rule will make the
following changes:
(1) Introduction. The introductory
section (22 CFR 305.1) provides new
definitions for the three stages
(Applicant, Trainee, and Volunteer) that
an individual who is interested in
service as a Volunteer passes through. It
also provides a definition of the term
‘‘enrollment’’, which is used in
connection with an individual’s service
as a Volunteer. The section includes a
general statement explaining the process
the Peace Corps follows in the selection
of Volunteers and provides notice to
applicants regarding the importance of
submitting complete and accurate
information in the application process.
The section eliminates the recitation of
the various anti-discrimination statutes
that the Peace Corps is obligated to
follow and replaces it with a clear
statement that the Peace Corps does not
discriminate on various grounds in the
selection of Volunteers. Note that with
regard to prohibiting discrimination on
the basis of disability in the programs
and activities of the Peace Corps, the
agency is in the process of developing
its section 504 implementing regulation
and plans to coordinate the regulation’s
development with the Department of
Justice pursuant to the requirements of
Executive Order 12250. The section

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advises that applicants may be
disqualified, and Volunteers and
Trainees may be separated, if the Peace
Corps determines they provided
materially false, misleading, inaccurate,
or incomplete information during the
Peace Corps application process.
(2) Eligibility. The eligibility section
(22 CFR 305.2) is simplified to address
only the existing citizenship and age
criteria for Volunteer applicants. Other
eligibility factors in the current § 305.2
are moved to succeeding sections,
where they are updated and expanded.
(3) Selection Standards. A revised
§ 305.3 incorporates the selection factors
that previously appeared in § 305.4. The
revision restates the attributes that an
applicant must meet for Volunteer
service. It revises the description of the
various personal attributes that are
taken into account when evaluating
applicants. The revised § 305.3 explains
that the Peace Corps assesses each
applicant’s personal, professional,
educational, and legal qualifications in
order to select those applicants most
likely to be successful in a Peace Corps
assignment, serving under conditions of
hardship if necessary, to achieve the
goals of the Peace Corps. Meeting the
several qualifications does not in and of
itself entitle any individual to serve in
the Peace Corps, because the revision
states that the Peace Corps endeavors to
select the best qualified individuals
from among all eligible applicants.
(4) Medical Status. The revised part
305 creates a new § 305.4 that replaces
the provision on the medical
qualifications of applicants that
previously appeared in § 305.2. The
revised section implements, in relation
to applications for Volunteer service,
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. It
states that an applicant must have the
physical and mental capacity required
to meet the essential eligibility
requirements for a Volunteer and sets
out those essential eligibility
requirements, which include the
capability to:
A revised § 305.4(a)(1)(i)–(iii)
addresses medical stat.
It also requires that, in order for an
applicant to be medically qualified for
Volunteer service, the Peace Corps must
have the capability to provide necessary
or appropriate health care for the
applicant. It includes a requirement that
the Peace Corps consider reasonable
accommodations in determining
whether an applicant has the physical
and mental capacity required to meet
the essential eligibility requirements for
a Volunteer and whether the Peace
Corps has the capability to provide
necessary or appropriate health care for
the applicant.

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A new provision provides that an
applicant must not pose a direct threat,
which is defined as a significant risk to
the health and safety of others that
cannot be eliminated by reasonable
accommodation, removal of
architectural, communication, or
transportation barriers, or the provision
of auxiliary aids or services.
The revisions include a requirement
that an applicant’s medical eligibility be
based on an individualized assessment
of the factors applicable to reasonable
accommodations. An applicant
determined not to be medically
qualified for Volunteer service has a
right to obtain a further review of the
determination by a physician and,
ultimately, by a review panel. In any
case involving review of issues of
mental health, at least one professional
staff person from the Counseling and
Outreach Unit also participates as a
voting member of the review panel. The
decision of the review panel, which is
reviewed by the General Counsel for
legal sufficiency, constitutes a final
agency action and is not subject to
further appeal.
(5) Legal Status. A new § 305.5
changes the eligibility qualifications for
an applicant who is on parole or
probation, previously covered in
§ 305.2(d), and reframes the eligibility
standard in terms of the existence of an
arrest or conviction record. The revision
provides the Peace Corps with greater
flexibility to consider the nature of the
offense, how long ago the offense
occurred, whether the applicant was
acquitted of the offense, the terms of any
applicable parole or probation, and
other relevant facts or indications of
rehabilitation. Specific standards will be
established for drug and alcohol related
offenses. An applicant rejected because
of an arrest or conviction will have a
right to have a review of the rejection by
a more senior Peace Corps official
outside of the office that made the
original eligibility determination. The
new provision will also eliminate the
requirement that an applicant not have
any court established financial or other
obligation that cannot be satisfied or
postponed during a Peace Corps service
period.
(6) Intelligence Background. The
Peace Corps has a longstanding policy
to exclude from Volunteer service
individuals who have engaged in
intelligence activity or related work or
who have been employed by or
connected with an intelligence agency,
either for a specific period of time or
permanently (depending on the agency).
This policy is founded on the premise
that it is crucial to the Peace Corps in
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complete and total separation of the
Peace Corps from the intelligence
activities of the United States
Government or any foreign government,
both in reality and appearance.
The previous regulation contained a
one-sentence statement in § 305.2(e)
regarding the eligibility of applicants
having a background with an
intelligence agency or intelligence
activities. It referred applicants to
provisions of the Peace Corps Manual
for more details. The new § 305.6
provides greater transparency for
applicants regarding this policy.
The policy covers both employment
(defined broadly) by an intelligence
agency and engagement in intelligence
activities. It applies to an employee of
an intelligence agency even if the
employee was not engaged in
intelligence activities for the
intelligence agency. An applicant who
was employed by an intelligence agency
(other than the CIA) or engaged in
intelligence activities is barred from
Peace Corps service for a minimum of
10 years. An applicant who was
employed by the CIA is barred from
Peace Corps service permanently.
The policy also applies to an
applicant whose background discloses a
relationship to an intelligence agency or
intelligence activity, but who was not
employed by an intelligence agency or
engaged in intelligence activities. Such
a relationship might be one based on
familial, personal or financial
connections to an intelligence agency or
intelligence activities. In these cases, the
period of ineligibility will be
determined by the General Counsel
based on a number of stated factors.
Serious doubts about an applicant’s
connection with intelligence agencies or
activities are to be resolved in favor of
exclusion. An applicant rejected based
on an intelligence background criteria
has a right to appeal the rejection to the
Peace Corps Director.
(7) Special Circumstances. A new
§ 305.7 addresses special circumstances
involving some applicants, which were
previously covered in § 305.2(f), (g) and
(h).
The former § 305.2(f) placed
restrictions on Peace Corps Volunteer
service for applicants who are married
and who wish to serve without their
spouse. These restrictions have been
removed as they are no longer relevant
to eligibility for Volunteer service. In
addition, a new § 305.7(a) expressly
provides that two applicants who are
married or are in a same sex or opposite
sex domestic partnership or committed
relationship may apply to serve
together. This codifies in regulation the
Peace Corps policy on placement of

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couples, including its recent policy to
accept same-sex and opposite-sex
couple applicants on an equal basis
whether married, or unmarried and in a
committed relationship/domestic
partnership.
The former § 305.2(g) places
restrictions on the ability of an
applicant who has dependent children
under the age of 18 to serve as a Peace
Corps Volunteer. These restrictions have
been removed because they are not
relevant to the ability of an individual
to serve as a Volunteer. However, a new
provision has been added that generally
prohibits dependents and other family
members from accompanying a
Volunteer during service. This provision
permits the Peace Corps to make
exceptions from time to time either on
a case-by-case basis or for particular
categories of Volunteers to the extent
permitted by Federal law.
The previous policy on military
service obligations of applicants that
was contained in § 305.2(h) is continued
in § 305.7(c), but the written statement
from a commanding officer is no longer
required.
(8) Background Investigation. Section
22 of the Peace Corps Act requires that
applicants be investigated to ensure that
their assignment ‘‘is consistent with the
national interest.’’ The Peace Corps
previously satisfied this statutory
requirement under § 305.3, which
required a National Agency Check
(NAC) and background investigation for
all applicants. A NAC is a clearance
conducted by the Federal Investigations
Services of the U.S. Office of Personnel
Management (OPM) and is the
minimum clearance required for all
civilian Federal employees. Peace Corps
has required that Volunteer applicants
be cleared through a NAC investigation
for many years, in large part because it
was initially the only feasible way to
comply with Section 22 of the Peace
Corps Act. However, there are now
other commercial, non-governmental
investigative entities approved by the
General Services Administration that
can provide equivalent clearance
services for Volunteer applicants.
The revision of part 305 includes a
new § 305.8, replacing the former
§ 305.3. It retains the requirement that
all an appropriate background
investigation be completed for all
Applicants who are invited to serve in
the Peace Corps. However, it does not
specify that the background
investigation be OPM’s Federal
Investigations Services background
investigation for Federal employment
positions. This change gives Peace
Corps flexibility to use other contractors
to conduct background investigations,

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as well OPM’s Federal Investigative
Services.

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III. Changes From Proposed to Final
Rule
The Peace Corps has made the
following non-substantive changes to
the final rule.
(1) It has eliminated the provision for
the enrollment of persons who are noncitizens but who have made satisfactory
arrangements to be naturalized. This
provision of the proposed rule aligns
with the Peace Corps Act, which
stipulates that enrollment as a Volunteer
is limited to U.S. citizens and nationals.
Furthermore, this provision has not in
practice been necessary or appropriate,
as all applicants are required to have
U.S. passports prior to travel overseas
for pre-service training.
(2) It has amended the age
requirement to make clear that
Applicants must reach the age of 18
prior to becoming a Trainee (as opposed
to at the time of enrollment). This
correction is needed for the eligibility
requirement so that only adults can
become Trainees. The age of 18 is the
standard for adulthood under the laws
of most states.
(3) The specific number of medical
personnel required to staff the PreService Review Board has been deleted
as unnecessarily detailed and overly
constraining on the Peace Corps’
decisions on how to staff the Board.
(4) The requirement for an affidavit in
connection with applying for service as
a member of an unmarried couple has
been replaced with a requirement for a
sworn statement, to allow for greater
ease in electronic submission of this
information.
IV. Responses to Comments
The Peace Corps received three
comments on the proposed rule.
Comment 1: One commenter had a
number of thoughtful suggestions about
the order of the presentation of various
topics in the Peace Corps application for
Volunteer service, presumably on the
assumption that the order of the topics
in the proposed rule would be the same
order in the application.
Response: The application is a
separate document and is periodically
revised and does not necessarily follow
the order of presentation of topics in the
proposed rule. The commenter’s
suggestions will be useful for a future
revision of the application.
Comment 2: Another commenter
objected to the provision in the
proposed rule that would give the Peace
Corps the flexibility to have the
statutorily required background
investigation performed by outside

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contractors, rather than the Federal
Investigations Services of the U.S. Office
of Personnel Management. The
commenter cited concerns about the
reliability of investigations performed
by outside contractors.
Response: The Peace Corps recognizes
the commenter’s concerns and will
address them by limiting the use of
outside contractors to those approved to
conduct background investigations by
the General Services Administration.
Comment 3: A third commenter
recommended that any Volunteer who
ends service, before completion of the
full 27 months of service, except for
medical reasons, should have to pay
back to the Peace Corps some
proportionate amount related to the
actual amount spent by the Peace Corps
to train and transport the Volunteer to
the country of service.
Response: The Peace Corps
appreciates the commenter’s position,
but does not view the proposal as
workable. Peace Corps service is
entirely voluntary and there are many
valid reasons, in additional to medical,
for a Volunteer to terminate his or her
service before the normal 27 month
service period. Furthermore, the threat
of the imposition of an exit fee would
likely reduce interest in Peace Corps
service.
Statement of Effects
Executive Order 12866
The Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) has reviewed the proposed
regulatory action under Executive Order
12866 and has determined that it is not
a significant regulatory action within
the meaning of the Executive Order.
Consistent with the Executive Order, the
Peace Corps is providing an explanation
of the need for the regulatory action and
an assessment of the potential costs and
benefits of the regulatory action.
(1) Need for Regulatory Action. Under
Section 5(a) of the Peace Corps Act (22
U.S.C. 2504(a)), the Peace Corps is
entitled to enroll qualified citizens and
nationals into Peace Corps service and
is delegated authority to establish the
terms and conditions of enrollment. The
Peace Corps last published its terms and
conditions of enrollment in 1984 and
those rules are outdated and need to
reflect current laws and policies that
have been implemented over the past 30
years. In addition, the structure of the
current regulation needs to be revised to
simplify the description of the
information required in order to apply
to the Peace Corps, as well as the
explanation of the Peace Corps selection
process as described in the
Supplementary Information section.

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(2) Potential Costs and Benefits. It is
difficult to precisely quantify the costs
and benefits of the new regulation that
is designed to reflect current law and
regulations and to make it easier for
American citizens to apply for service as
a Peace Corps Volunteer. However, the
Peace Corps has concluded that the
current regulatory structure, and the
accompanying application form, is seen
as a daunting, confusing and timeconsuming process, which has
discouraged many Americans who
might otherwise be interested in and
well-qualified for Volunteer service. The
new regulation will improve the
possibility of the most suitable
candidates being selected as a
Volunteer, decrease the barriers to
service and broaden the rights of
applicants. This will be a substantial
benefit to all Americans who want to
serve as Volunteers, as well as being a
benefit to the Peace Corps which is
interested in creating a large, diverse
pool of qualified, suitable candidates to
serve abroad as Volunteers. The Peace
Corps estimates that agency staff will
spend less time reviewing each
individual application, because the
application itself will be shorter. For
2016, the Peace Corps anticipates that
use of the new application will result in
a savings of $95.00 per application,
compared to the former application.
With 22,000 expected applications for
the year, the new application is
expected to provide a savings of
$1,384,000 resulting from the reduction
in staff time spent reviewing
applications. However, the agency
expects that the total number of
completed applications will increase,
and that the agency will not realize
immediate cost savings from these
changes.
The former regulation listed nine
factors as relevant to the determination
of eligibility. These factors include
citizenship, age, medical status, legal
status, intelligence background, marital
status, dependents, military service, and
failure to disclose requested
information. This listing combined
factors that are basic, clear-cut
requirements for Peace Corps service,
such as the citizenship requirement
(under the Peace Corps Act only citizens
and nationals can be Volunteers), with
factors that are more relevant to whether
an applicant is suitable for Volunteer
service, where an applicant could
effectively serve, or whether the
applicant has the requisite
qualifications to serve as a Volunteer,
which involve more judgmental and
situational issues. As a result, the Peace
Corps has found that many potential

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applicants, after reviewing the nine
requirements, make self-judgments that
they are not eligible to apply for
Volunteer service. In addition, the
application form that had been in use
until June 30, 2014 was over 61 Web
pages long and took approximately eight
hours to complete. This was an added
deterrence to many potential applicants.
Approximately 75 percent of the annual
40,000 individuals who started the
application never finished it due to its
length and density. The Peace Corps has
recently introduced a new application,
which is 9 Web pages rather than the
former 61 pages. It is estimated that
each applicant will save approximately
7 hours with the shorter application
form. The shorter application will
clearly benefit applicants, because it
will result in a reduced paperwork
burden on applicants. The Peace Corps
estimates that the shorter application
form will result in a savings to the
public of approximately $5,840,000.
This is based on (i) an assumed hourly
wage equivalent of $37.94 derived from
the median wage earnings, including
overhead and benefits, for persons age
25 or over who have attained a
bachelor’s degree, (ii) the reduction of 7
hours spent on the application, and (iii)
22,000 applications in 2015.
The shorter application should also
increase the pool of individuals who
complete an application from the
current 10,000 per year to over 20,000
per year. Although the Peace Corps is
able to simplify the application form
without regard to a regulatory change,
the new regulation is needed to
accurately reflect the current laws and
policies that relate to the Volunteer
selection process.
The new regulatory action addresses
deficiencies in the current regulation
that have deterred potential applicants
and reduced the applicant pool. The
new regulation specifies only two
baseline eligibility requirements for
applying to the Peace Corps. An
applicant must be a citizen or national
of the United States and at least 18 years
of age. The regulation clearly
enumerates the suitability and
qualification standards that are used by
the Peace Corps in determining who
should be invited to enroll as a
Volunteer. It explains that an applicant
must demonstrate suitability for Peace
Corps service generally and for the
particular assignment for which the
applicant is being considered. It
describes the medical qualifications that
are applied, taking into account Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
The new regulation gives the Peace
Corps greater flexibility in accepting
applicants with arrest or conviction

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records. It provides a more complete
description of how the Peace Corps
considers applicants who have worked
for intelligence agencies or engaged in
intelligence activities. The former
regulation merely stated that an
applicant with an intelligence
background may be disqualified,
without an explanation of the criteria
for disqualification in the regulation. As
a result, applicants could have initiated
and completed the lengthy application
process only to be informed that they
are not eligible for Volunteer service
because of having worked for
intelligence agencies or having engaged
in intelligence activities. Other
applicants may have been deterred from
applying because they concluded that
any connection to an intelligence
background disqualifies an applicant.
By explaining the intelligence
background criteria front-end,
applicants will be more informed about
whether they meet Peace Corps
selection standards and whether it is
worth their time to initiate the
application process.
The new regulation also reflects the
new policy of the Peace Corps to accept
same sex and opposite sex couple
applicants on an equal basis whether
married or unmarried in a committed
relationship. It removes some of the
restrictions on applicants who have
dependent children under the age of 18.
Finally, the new regulation incorporates
appeal rights when an applicant has
been rejected on grounds relating to
medical status, an arrest or conviction
record, or for having a background in
intelligence activities. Any applicant in
an expanded list of protected categories
who thinks that he or she had been
discriminated against is given the
option for review and consideration by
the Office of Civil Rights and Diversity
at the Peace Corps. These changes to the
Volunteer application process will
provide an easier, clearer, faster and
more equitable and consistent process
for potential applicants, and result in a
greater number of well-qualified
applicants available for Peace Corps
Volunteer service.
Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5
U.S.C. 605(b))
The Director of the Peace Corps
certifies that this regulatory action will
not have a significant adverse impact on
a substantial number of small entities.
The regulation only applies to
individuals who are interested in
service as a Volunteer and has no
application to small entities.

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Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995 (Sec.
202, Pub. L. 104–4)
This regulatory action does not
contain a Federal mandate that will
result in the expenditure by State, local,
and tribal governments, in aggregate, or
by the private sector of $100 or more in
any one year.
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C., Chapter 35)
This regulatory action does not
contain any paperwork or recordkeeping
requirements and does not require
clearance under the Paperwork
Reduction Act. The Peace Corps
Volunteer application form for
Volunteer service referenced in the
regulation has been approved by the
Office of Management and Budget
(Control Number 0420–0005).
Federalism (Executive Order 13132)
This regulatory action does not have
Federalism implications, as set forth in
Executive Order 13132. It will not have
substantial direct effects on the States,
on the relationship between the national
government and the States, or on the
distribution of power and
responsibilities among the various
levels of government.
Executive Order 12291
This document is not a major rule as
described in Executive Order 12291.
Lists of Subjects in 22 CFR Part 305
Aged, Citizenship and naturalization,
Civil rights, Discrimination, Equal
employment opportunity, Foreign aid,
Health, Individuals with disabilities,
Intelligence, Nondiscrimination,
Political affiliation, Volunteers.
■ For the reasons set out in the
preamble, the Peace Corps revises 22
CFR Part 305 to read as follows:
PART 305—ELIGIBILITY AND
STANDARDS FOR PEACE CORPS
VOLUNTEER SERVICE
Sec.
305.1 Purpose and general guidelines.
305.2 Eligibility.
305.3 Selection standards.
305.4 Medical status eligibility standards.
305.5 Legal status eligibility standards.
305.6 Applicants with an intelligence
background.
305.7 Special circumstances.
305.8 Background investigation.
Authority: 22 U.S.C. 2503, 2504 2521; 29
U.S.C. 794; E.O. 12137, 44 FR 29023, 3 CFR,
1979 Comp., p. 389; E.O. 13160, 65 FR 39775,
3 CFR, 2000 Comp., p. 1461.
§ 305.1

Purpose and general guidelines.

This part states the requirements for
eligibility for Peace Corps Volunteer

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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 3 / Thursday, January 5, 2017 / Rules and Regulations
service and the factors considered in the
assessment and selection of eligible
applicants for Peace Corps Volunteer
service.
(a) Definitions. For purposes of this
part:
(1) Applicant means an individual for
enrollment as a Volunteer, who has
completed and submitted the Peace
Corps Volunteer application form.
(2) Trainee means an individual for
enrollment as a Volunteer during any
period of training occurring prior to
such enrollment.
(3) Volunteer means an individual
who has taken the prescribed oath and
enrolled for service in the Peace Corps.
(4) Enrollment means the act by
which an individual becomes a
Volunteer upon successful completion
of training and taking the prescribed
oath of office pursuant to Section 5 of
the Peace Corps Act, 22 U.S.C. 2504.
(5) Dependent means an individual
for whom an applicant or Volunteer has
a legal or familial obligation to provide
financial support.
(6) Family member means any
individual related by blood or affinity
whose close association with the
applicant or Volunteer is the equivalent
of a family relationship.
(b) Selection. Invitations to serve in
the Peace Corps are the result of a
highly competitive application process.
Many more individuals apply for Peace
Corps Volunteer service than can be
accepted. Because the Peace Corps
cannot accept all eligible and qualified
applicants who wish to serve, it
evaluates applicants to select the best
qualified among eligible applicants. The
Peace Corps determines Applicants’
eligibility, and assesses their relative
skills, qualifications, and personal
attributes, such as motivation, aptitude,
fitness for service, emotional maturity,
adaptability, productive competence,
and ability to serve effectively as a
Volunteer in a foreign country and
culture.
(c) Authority. Under section 5(a) of
the Peace Corps Act, 22 U.S.C. 2504(a),
the President may enroll in the Peace
Corps for service abroad qualified
citizens and nationals of the United
States. The terms and conditions of the
enrollment of Volunteers are exclusively
those set forth in the Peace Corps Act
and those consistent therewith which
the President may prescribe. The
President has delegated his authority
under section 5(a) of the Peace Corps
Act to the Director of the Peace Corps
pursuant to Executive Order 12137 (May
16, 1979), as amended.
(d) Non-discrimination. The Peace
Corps does not discriminate against any
person on account of race, color,

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religion, sex (including but not limited
to gender identity and gender
expression), national origin, age (40 and
over), disability, sexual orientation,
gender identity, gender expression,
pregnancy, marital status, parental
status, political affiliation, union
membership, genetic information, or
history of participation in the EEO
process, any grievance procedure or any
authorized complaint procedure.
Anyone who feels he or she has been
discriminated against should contact the
Office of Civil Rights and Diversity,
202.692.2139, ocrd@peacecorps.gov,
Peace Corps, 1111 20th Street NW.,
Washington, DC 20526.
(e) Failure to disclose requested
information. In order for the Peace
Corps to be able to make appropriate
selection and placement decisions, it is
critical that Applicants provide
complete and accurate information
throughout the application process,
including information provided for a
mandatory background investigation.
The Peace Corps may disqualify an
Applicant or separate a Volunteer or
Trainee from Peace Corps service at any
time if the Peace Corps determines that
the Applicant, Volunteer, or Trainee
provided materially false, misleading,
inaccurate or incomplete information
during the Peace Corps application
process.
§ 305.2

Eligibility.

In order to be eligible for enrollment
as a Volunteer, Applicants must meet
mandatory citizenship and age
requirements.
(a) Citizenship. The Applicant must
be a citizen or national of the United
States prior to entering on duty as a
Trainee.
(b) Age. The Applicant must be at
least 18 years old at the time of entry on
duty as a Trainee.
§ 305.3

Selection standards.

(a) General. To qualify for selection
for overseas service as a Volunteer, an
Applicant must demonstrate that he or
she is suitable, possessing the requisite
personal and professional attributes
required for Peace Corps service
generally, and for the particular
Volunteer assignment for which he or
she is considered. The Peace Corps
assesses each Applicant’s personal,
professional, educational, and legal
qualifications in order to select those
Applicants most likely to be successful
in a Peace Corps assignment, serving
under conditions of hardship if
necessary to achieve the goals of the
Peace Corps. Meeting these
qualifications does not in and of itself
entitle any individual to serve in the

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Peace Corps. The Peace Corps endeavors
to select the best qualified individuals
from among all eligible Applicants.
(b) Personal attributes. Applicants
must adequately demonstrate the
following personal attributes to Peace
Corps:
(1) Motivation. A sincere desire to
carry out the goals of Peace Corps
service, and a commitment to serve a
full term as a Volunteer.
(2) Productive competence. The
intelligence and professional experience
or educational background to meet the
needs of the individual’s assignment.
(3) Emotional maturity and
adaptability. The maturity, flexibility,
cultural sensitivity, and self-sufficiency
to adapt successfully to life in another
culture, and to interact and
communicate with other people
regardless of cultural, social, and
economic differences.
(4) Skills. In addition to any
educational, professional or other
qualifications and prerequisites that an
individual must possess in order to be
selected for a given assignment, a
Trainee must demonstrate competence
in the following areas by the end of preservice training:
(i) Language. The ability to
communicate effectively in the
appropriate language or languages of the
country of service with the fluency
required to meet the needs of the
overseas assignment.
(ii) Technical competence.
Proficiency in the technical skills
needed to carry out the Trainee’s
assignment as a Volunteer.
(iii) Knowledge. Adequate knowledge
of the culture and history of the country
of assignment to ensure a successful
adjustment to, and acceptance by, the
host country society, as well as an
appropriate understanding of the history
and government of the United States
which qualifies the individual to
represent the United States abroad.
(c) Failure to meet standards. Failure
to meet initial selection standards,
failure to attain any of the selection
standards by the completion of training,
or failure to maintain these standards
during service, may be grounds for deselection and disqualification from
Peace Corps service.
§ 305.4

Medical status eligibility standard.

(a) Requirements. Under the Peace
Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2504(e)), the Peace
Corps is responsible for ensuring that
Peace Corps Volunteers receive all
necessary or appropriate health care
during their service. To ensure that the
Peace Corps will be capable of doing so,
Applicants must be medically qualified
for Peace Corps Volunteer service. An

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Applicant who is otherwise qualified
must meet the following requirements:
(1) The Applicant, with or without
reasonable accommodation, removal of
architectural, communication or
transportation barriers, or the provision
of auxiliary aids or services, must have
the physical and mental capacity
required to meet the essential eligibility
requirements for a Volunteer. In this
context, the essential eligibility
requirements for a Volunteer include,
without limitation, the capability to:
(i) Live and work independently in an
isolated location overseas at the same
socio-economic level and in similar
conditions as members of the
community to which the Applicant is
assigned;
(ii) Perform the job to which the
Applicant is assigned; and
(iii) Complete a specified tour of
service without undue disruption.
(2) The Peace Corps must be capable
of providing the Applicant with such
health care as the Peace Corps deems to
be necessary or appropriate.
(3) The Applicant must not pose a
direct threat (as defined in paragraph (c)
of this section).
(b) Individualized assessment. In
determining whether an Applicant is
medically qualified, an individualized
assessment is required regarding each of
the requirements set forth in paragraph
(a) of this section.
(c) Direct threat. (1) A ‘‘direct threat’’
is a significant risk to the health or
safety of others that cannot be
eliminated by a reasonable
accommodation to policies, practices or
procedures, removal of architectural,
communication or transportation
barriers, or the provision of auxiliary
aids or services.
(2) In determining whether an
applicant poses a direct threat, the
Peace Corps will make an
individualized assessment based on
reasonable judgment that relies on
current medical knowledge or on the
best available objective evidence to
ascertain:
(i) The nature, duration and severity
of the risk;
(ii) The probability that the potential
injury will actually occur; and
(iii) Whether reasonable
accommodations, removal of
architectural, communication or
transportation barriers, or the provision
of auxiliary aids or services will
mitigate the risk.
(d) Reasonable accommodation. (1)
The term ‘‘accommodation’’ means
modifications to the Peace Corps’
policies, practices or procedures.
(2) An accommodation is not
reasonable if:

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(i) It would modify the essential
eligibility requirements for a Volunteer;
(ii) It would modify, among other
things, the Applicant’s Volunteer
assignment or the Peace Corps’ medical
program in a way that would result in
a fundamental alteration in the nature of
the service, program, or activity; or
(iii) It would impose an undue
financial and administrative burden on
the operations of the Peace Corps,
including its medical program.
(3) In determining whether an
accommodation would impose an
undue financial and administrative
burden on the operations of the Peace
Corps, the Peace Corps may take into
account, among other things:
(i) The size and composition of the
Peace Corps staff at the post of
assignment;
(ii) The adequacy of local medical
facilities and the availability of other
medical facilities;
(iii) The nature and cost of the
accommodation compared to the overall
number of Volunteers and the overall
size of the Peace Corps budget; and
(iv) The capacities of the host country
agency and of the host community to
which the Applicant would be assigned.
(e) Medical status eligibility review.
(1) An Applicant who is determined by
medical screening staff not to be
medically qualified for Peace Corps
Volunteer service may request review of
that decision by submitting any relevant
information to the Office of Medical
Services (OMS). The information
submitted by the Applicant will be
reviewed by a physician, and, unless the
physician determines that the Applicant
is medically qualified, by a Pre-Service
Review Board (PSRB) composed of
medical personnel in OMS and advised
by the General Counsel. Procedures for
such review are subject to approval by
the General Counsel.
(2) The PSRB will include as voting
members at least one physician as well
as other medical professionals in OMS.
In any case involving review of issues
involving mental health, at least one
mental health professional from the
Counseling and Outreach Unit will also
participate as a voting member.
(3) The decision of the PSRB will be
reviewed by the General Counsel for
legal sufficiency. Subject to that review,
it will constitute the final agency action.
§ 305.5

Legal status eligibility standard.

(a) General requirements. The
existence of an arrest or conviction
record may, but will not automatically,
exclude an Applicant from
consideration for Peace Corps service.
The Peace Corps will consider the
nature of the offense, how long ago the

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offense occurred, whether the Applicant
was acquitted of the offense, the terms
of any applicable parole or probation,
and other relevant facts or indications of
rehabilitation.
(b) Drug and alcohol related offenses.
(1) An Applicant with any drug-related
conviction, with a conviction for public
intoxication, driving under the
influence (DUI), or driving while
intoxicated (DWI), with a conviction for
reckless driving after having been
initially charged with DUI or DWI, or
with a similar alcohol-related
conviction, is not eligible to have his or
her application for Peace Corps service
considered until 12 months has passed
from the date of the incident.
(2) An Applicant who, at any time on
or prior to the day of departure for Peace
Corps service, is arrested for any drug
offense or for public intoxication, DUI,
DWI or any similar alcohol-related
offense will have any pending
application or invitation for Peace Corps
service withdrawn. If the charges are
dismissed, an Applicant whose
application or invitation for Peace Corps
service was terminated may
immediately reapply. If the applicant is
convicted of the offense, he or she may
reapply after 12 months from the date of
the incident.
(c) Review process. An Applicant who
is rejected for a Volunteer position
because of an arrest or conviction may
request a review of that decision by
submitting any relevant information to
the Associate Director of the Office of
Volunteer Recruitment and Selection
(VRS). The Associate Director will
review the information submitted and
consult with the General Counsel. The
decision of the Associate Director will
be the final agency decision. The
Associate Director may delegate
authority to conduct such a review to
another senior member of VRS, but not
to the supervisor of the office making
the original eligibility determination.
(d) Subsequent application. An
Applicant rejected for service due to
failure to meet the legal status eligibility
standard may reapply at a later date, but
not sooner than 12 months after the
final agency decision.
§ 305.6 Applicants with an intelligence
background.

(a) General. It has been the
longstanding policy of the Peace Corps
to exclude from Volunteer service any
individuals who have engaged in
intelligence activity or related work or
who have been employed by or
connected with an intelligence agency,
either for a specific period of time or
permanently (depending on the agency).
This policy is founded on the premise

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that it is crucial to the Peace Corps in
carrying out its mission that there be a
complete and total separation of Peace
Corps from the intelligence activities of
the United States Government or any
foreign government, both in reality and
appearance. Any semblance of a
connection between the Peace Corps
and the intelligence community would
seriously compromise the ability of the
Peace Corps to develop and maintain
the trust and confidence of the people
of the host countries. To ensure that
there is not the slightest basis for the
appearance of any connection between
the Peace Corps and the intelligence
community, this policy contains certain
temporary and permanent bars to Peace
Corps service. Serious doubts about an
Applicant’s connection with
intelligence activities are to be resolved
in favor of exclusion.
(b) Definitions. For purposes of this
section:
(1) Intelligence activity includes any
activities or specialized training
involving or related to the clandestine
collection of information, or the analysis
or dissemination of such information,
intended for use by the United States
Government or any foreign government
in formulating or implementing political
or military policy in regard to other
countries. The term ‘‘intelligence
activity’’ includes any involvement in
covert actions designed to influence
events in foreign countries. The fact that
the name of an employer or the
description of a person’s work uses or
does not use the term ‘‘intelligence’’
does not, in and of itself, mean that the
person has or has not engaged in
intelligence activity or related work.
(2) Intelligence agency includes:
(i) Any agency, division of an agency,
or instrumentality of the United States
Government that is a member of the
United States Intelligence Community;
and
(ii) Any other agency, division of an
agency, or instrumentality of the United
States Government or any foreign
government, a substantial part of whose
mission has been determined by the
General Counsel to include intelligence
activities.
(3) Employment, employee or
employed refer to the existence of a
relationship of employer and employee,
whether full-time or part-time,
permanent or temporary, whether or not
the individual is engaged in intelligence
activity for an employer, without regard
to the length of time the relationship
existed or is proposed to exist, and
includes individuals performing duties
as volunteers, fellows, interns,
consultants, personal services
contractors, contractors (non-personal

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services contractors), and employees of
contractors who were assigned to work
for an intelligence agency or to engage
in intelligence activities. Employees of
contractors who were or are not
themselves assigned to work for an
Intelligence Agency or to engage in
intelligence activities are not considered
to have been or to be employed by an
intelligence agency.
(c) Employment by an intelligence
agency or engagement in intelligence
activities. (1) An Applicant currently or
formerly employed by the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA) is
permanently ineligible for Peace Corps
Volunteer service.
(2) An Applicant who has been
employed by an intelligence agency
other than the CIA is ineligible for a
minimum of 10 years from the last day
of employment by such intelligence
agency. This bar on an Applicant who
is or was employed by an intelligence
agency applies whether or not the
Applicant was engaged in intelligence
activity for the intelligence agency.
(3) An Applicant who has been
engaged in intelligence activities is
ineligible for service as a Volunteer for
a period of 10 years from the last date
on which the Applicant engaged in
intelligence activities.
(4) An Applicant may be ineligible for
service for a period in excess of 10 years
if the General Counsel determines that
the Applicant’s background or work
history with regard to intelligence
activities warrants such action.
(d) Relationship to intelligence agency
or activity. (1) An Applicant whose
background discloses a relationship to
an intelligence agency or intelligence
activity may be ineligible to serve as a
Peace Corps Volunteer. The term
‘‘relationship’’ means any association
with an intelligence agency or with an
intelligence activity, if such association
could be the basis for an inference or the
appearance that an Applicant was
engaged in an intelligence activity. The
association could include, but not be
limited to, one based upon a familial,
personal or financial connection to an
intelligence agency or with an
intelligence activity.
(2) Determinations of the eligibility or
periods of ineligibility of such
Applicants will be made by the General
Counsel on a case by case basis using
the criteria set forth below. Examples of
the type of relationships among others
that could lead to ineligibility are
Applicants whose spouses, domestic
partners, or parents are or were involved
in actual intelligence activities, or
members of the immediate family of
prominent highly placed officials in an
intelligence agency who might be the

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1191

target of harassment or violence
overseas as the result of family
connections. Employment by an
organization that has been funded by an
intelligence agency may also lead to
ineligibility.
(3) In determining whether an
Applicant’s relationship to an
intelligence agency or intelligence
activity makes the Applicant ineligible
for service, or in determining the
duration of any ineligibility, the General
Counsel will consider the following
factors as appropriate:
(i) Nature of the relationship.
(ii) The intelligence agency with
which the Applicant has the
relationship.
(iii) Duration of the relationship.
(iv) Length of time that has elapsed
since the last connection to the
intelligence agency.
(v) Where the intelligence activity or
work was performed.
(vi) Nature of the connection with
intelligence activity or work.
(vii) Whether or not the intelligence
activity or work involved contact with
foreign nationals.
(viii) Whether the connection was
known or unknown to the Applicant at
the time it occurred.
(ix) Training received, if any.
(x) Regularity of the contact with
foreign nationals, and nature of duties,
if any.
(xi) Public knowledge of the activity
or connection.
(xii) Any other information which
bears on the relationship of the
Applicant to an intelligence agency or
intelligence activity.
(e) Determination. VRS is responsible
for the initial screening of Peace Corps
Volunteer applications for compliance
with the provisions of this policy. In
cases where that office is unable to
make a decision regarding the eligibility
of an Applicant under this policy, the
individual’s application will be referred
to the General Counsel, who will make
the determination on eligibility.
(f) Appeal. VRS will inform all
Applicants promptly and in writing of
any decision to disqualify them based
on an intelligence background and the
reasons for that decision. Applicants
have 15 days from the date of receipt of
the letter from VRS to appeal the
decision to the Director of the Peace
Corps. The decision of the Director of
the Peace Corps will be the final agency
decision.
(g) Post Peace Corps employment by
United States intelligence agencies.
Pursuant to agreements between the
Peace Corps and certain intelligence
agencies, those intelligence agencies
will not employ former Volunteers for a

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specified period after the end of their
Peace Corps service and will not use
former Volunteers for certain purposes
or in certain positions. Information
regarding such agreements may be
obtained from the Office of the General
Counsel.
§ 305.7

Special circumstances.

(a) Couples. Two Applicants who are
married to one another or two
unmarried Applicants who are in a
same-sex or opposite-sex domestic
partnership or other committed
relationship are eligible to apply for
service as a couple. In the case of an
unmarried couple, each member of the
couple must provide a sworn statement,
in a form acceptable to the Peace Corps,
attesting to their domestic partnership
status or committed relationship (as the
case may be) and their request to be
considered for assignment as a couple.
In all cases, both members of the couple
must apply and qualify for assignment
at the same location.
(b) Serving with dependents and other
family members. In general, dependents
and other family members may not
accompany a Volunteer during service.
However, the Peace Corps may from
time to time make exceptions either on
a case-by-case basis or for particular
categories of Volunteers to the extent
permitted by Federal law.
(c) Military service. The Peace Corps
welcomes applications from veterans,
reservists, and active duty military
personnel who are interested in Peace
Corps service after completion of their
military service. After receiving an
invitation for Peace Corps service,
applicants with reserve obligations are
reminded to comply with all
requirements to notify their reserve
component that they will be unavailable
for drills and annual training because of
their Peace Corps service. Such
applicants are urged to obtain written
confirmation from their reserve
component that they have complied
with these requirements.

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§ 305.8

Background investigation.

Section 22 of the Peace Corps Act
requires that each Applicant be
investigated to ensure that enrollment of
the Applicant as a Volunteer is
consistent with the national interest.
The Peace Corps therefore obtains an
appropriate background investigation
for all Applicants who are invited to
serve in the Peace Corps. Information
revealed by the background
investigation may be grounds for
disqualification from Peace Corps
service. Under the Peace Corps Act, if a
background investigation regarding an
Applicant develops any data reflecting

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that the Applicant is of questionable
loyalty or is a questionable security risk,
the Peace Corps must refer the matter to
the Federal Bureau of Investigation for
a full field investigation. The results of
that full field investigation will be
furnished to the Peace Corps for
information and appropriate action.
Dated: December 13, 2016.
William Stoppel,
Acting Associate Director, Management.
[FR Doc. 2016–30442 Filed 1–4–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6051–01–P

List of Subjects in 32 CFR Part 154
Classified information, Government
employees, Investigations, Security
measures.
PART 154—[REMOVED]
Accordingly, by the authority of 5
U.S.C. 301, 32 CFR part 154 is removed.

■

Dated: December 27, 2016.
Aaron Siegel,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison
Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 2016–31756 Filed 1–4–17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5001–06–P

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Office of the Secretary

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

32 CFR Part 154

Office of the Secretary

[Docket ID: DOD–2016–OS–0121]

32 CFR Part 286

RIN 0790–AJ55

[DOD–2007–OS–0086; 0790–AI24]

Department of Defense Personnel
Security Program Regulation

DoD Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA) Program

Office of the Under Secretary
for Intelligence, DoD.
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:

This final rule removes DoD’s
regulation concerning personnel
security. The codified rule is outdated
and no longer accurate or applicable as
written. The rule does not impose
obligations on members of the public
that are not already imposed by statute.
It paraphrases and summarizes relevant
sources of law and does not
substantively deviate from them.
DATES: This rule is effective on January
5, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Patricia Toppings at 571–372–0485.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DoD
internal guidance concerning personnel
security will continue to be published
in DoD Manual 5200.02. Once the
revision of DoD Manual 5200.02 is
signed, a copy will be made available at
http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/
corres/pub1.html.
It has been determined that
publication of this CFR part removal for
public comment is impracticable,
unnecessary, and contrary to public
interest since it is based on removing
DoD internal policies and procedures
that are publically available on the
Department’s issuance Web site.
The removal of this rule will be
reported in future status updates of
DoD’s retrospective review plan in
accordance with the requirements in
Executive Order 13563. DoD’s full plan
can be accessed at: http://
www.regulations.gov/
#!docketDetail;D=DOD-2011-OS-0036.
SUMMARY:

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Department of Defense.
Interim final rule.

AGENCY:
ACTION:

This part revises the
Department of Defense (DoD) Freedom
of Information Act (FOIA) regulation to
implement the FOIA and incorporate
the provisions of the OPEN Government
Act of 2007 and the FOIA Improvement
Act of 2016. This part promotes
uniformity in the Department of Defense
(DoD) FOIA Program. It takes
precedence over all DoD Component
issuances that supplement and
implement the DoD FOIA Program.
DATES: Effective date: This rule is
effective January 5, 2017. Comment
date: Comments must be received by
March 6, 2017.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
James Hogan, 571–372–0462.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
SUMMARY:

Executive Summary
This rule revises 32 CFR part 286 to
implement section 552 of title 5, United
States Code (U.S.C.) and incorporate the
provisions of the OPEN Government Act
of 2007 and the FOIA Improvement Act
of 2016. This part promotes uniformity
in the DoD FOIA Program across the
entire Department.
The FOIA, 5 U.S.C. 552, requires
agencies to ‘‘promulgate regulations,
pursuant to notice and receipt of public
comment, specifying the schedule of
fees applicable to the processing of
requests [the FOIA] and establishing
procedures and guidelines for
determining when such fees should be
waived or reduced.’’ Additionally,

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