H.R. 7675 would require the Department of State, in coordination with other federal agencies, to provide technical assistance and training to help foreign countries assess national security risks posed to those countries by foreign investment. The bill also would require the department to report annually on its implementation of that program. The bill’s requirements would expire after three years.
The Departments of Commerce and State lead commercial diplomacy at U.S. posts in foreign countries. Although their primary mission is to promote U.S. business interests in overseas markets, they also raise awareness in foreign countries about transparency, good governance, and safeguarding critical infrastructure. The Department of the Treasury provides technical assistance and advice to help foreign countries to strengthen their banking and financial systems. Treasury advisors may be embedded in foreign ministries and central banks to help host nations improve public finances, increase transparency, and disrupt illicit financial flows related to money-laundering, trafficking, and terrorism.
On the basis of information from those agencies about their ongoing efforts, CBO estimates that under H.R. 7675, the State Department would provide the assistance required by the bill in 20 countries each year over the 2027-2029 period. Doing so would increase the department’s workload by 20 full-time equivalent employees. Compensation, operating expenses, and support costs would average $645,000 per employee each year. Based on the costs of similar reports, CBO estimates that satisfying the reporting requirements in the bill would cost less than $500,000. Thus, CBO estimates that implementing the three-year program to provide technical assistance and training in foreign countries would cost $39 million over the 2026-2036 period. Such spending would be subject to the appropriation of the estimated amounts.
The estimated budgetary effects of the legislation are shown in Table 1. The costs of the legislation fall within budget function 150 (international affairs).
Table 1.
Estimated Budgetary Effects of H.R. 7675
By Fiscal Year, Millions of Dollars
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2031
2026-2031
Increases in Spending Subject to Appropriation
Estimated Authorization
0
13
13
13
0
0
39
Estimated Outlays
0
10
13
13
3
0
39
CBO’s estimate is subject to some uncertainty. If the State Department carries out the program in more or fewer countries than CBO estimates, costs would differ from the amounts shown here.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D’Monte. The estimate was reviewed by Chad Chirico, Director of Budget Analysis.
