mr. chairman , i thank the very distinguished chairman for yielding me this time . 
i would echo the statements of the gentleman from california ( mr. lantos ) xz4002310 in applauding chairman hyde for his extraordinary leadership on the committee on international relations . 
he is the best and the most effective chairman i have ever seen , and i want to thank him for his leadership . 
mr. chairman , the foreign relations authorization act for 2006 and 2007 is a comprehensive 332-page bill . 
with 11 titles , it authorizes funding for the state department , international broadcasting , education and exchange programs , peacekeeping , international organizations and much , much more . 
h.r. 2601 funds the all-important framework by which the united states carries out its foreign aid and foreign policy programs and authorizes u.s. contributions to the united nations , nato , the osce , and other vital international organizations . 
the cost of the bill is $ 10.8 billion for fiscal year 2006 , $ 10 billion for 2007 , with some costs in the outyears totaling $ 1.9 billion , for a total multiyear price tag of $ 22.3 billion , and it is within budget . 
as chairman of the subcommittee on africa , global human rights and international relations , i chaired eight hearings on issues related to the bill , and the full committee met twice for consideration of these provisions . 
there were 10 amendments considered during markup in our subcommittee and another 52 amendments considered during the full committee . 
this bipartisan bill , as the gentleman from california ( mr. lantos ) xz4002310 pointed out , passed 42 to 0 , and the rule today permits 39 additional amendments for consideration . 
the legislation , mr. chairman , puts a heavy emphasis on security and authorizes $ 1.5 billion for security-related construction at u.s. missions , $ 690 million to increase security for diplomatic personnel and $ 930 million for border security programs . 
this funding continues the work begun after the devastating terrorist bombings in the late 1990s of our two u.s. embassies in africa . 
subsequent to that , admiral crowe , who headed up the accountability review board , reported that some 85 percent of our missions at the time were vulnerable . 
since then , congress has stepped up and provided funding to try to close that gap . 
this bill continues that work and includes funding for 55 additional diplomatic security personnel positions and 55 new consular positions . 
under the capital security construction program , eight new embassy compounds in eritrea , zimbabwe , pakistan , ukraine , rwanda , zambia , mozambique , bosnia , and for st . 
petersburg in russia , and four usaid annexes in nigeria , ghana , nicaragua , and georgia would be funded . 
the bill also increases funding for minority recruitment , and continues the annual report on minority recruiting efforts at the department of state . 
it increases the ceiling on differential pay for hardship and danger at a time when we are operating new posts in extremely dangerous locations . 
it supports human rights efforts at the department through targeted funding for the office of democracy , human rights and labor ; promotes programs to fight anti-semitism , protects religious freedom in osce countries ; provides a permanent authorization for radio free asia ; and funds scholarships for outstanding individuals from the southern sudan region to study in the united states . 
given the unparalleled threat to the united states and to the world from the continued proliferation of nuclear weapons , strengthening our nuclear nonproliferation effort is an important and vital piece of this legislation . 
title vii of the bill revises and strengthens strategic export controls and mandates a comprehensive review of u.s. strategic exports , including arms and dual-use items . 
its aim is to ensure that u.s. military superiority remains , and that terrorist states and organizations are denied the means to advance their nefarious goals . 
the bill also states that u.s. national interests would be advanced by a stronger international atomic energy agency , or the iaea , including ensuring that a recurring delay in the u.s. annual payment is corrected . 
title viii upgrades policies related to the elimination of the u.n . 
nuclear black market and establishes that nonproliferation is a condition of u.s. foreign aid . 
the bill mandates that countries must be fully cooperative with u.s. efforts to eliminate the nuclear black-market network , again as a precondition to receiving u.s. foreign aid . 
one title , title vi , the advance democracy act of 2005 , authored by the gentleman from virginia ( mr. wolf ) xz4004350 and the gentleman from california ( mr. lantos ) xz4002310 , creates a new office at state to work with democratic movements , establishes an annual report and a list of countries , countries that are either undemocratic or democratic transition countries , and launches a more robust coordinated effort to systematically promote democracy . 
mr. chairman , i am grateful the committee has included a number of provisions that i proposed , including services for overseas children suffering from autism ; a global prevalence study on autism ; steps to promote human rights and democracy in vietnam , belarus , and zimbabwe ; support for a strengthened rule of law in northern ireland , as well as assistance to maternal and child victims of chernobyl ; and the creation of a program to repair and prevent the tragic condition of obstetric fistula . 
mr. chairman , i urge strong support for this bill . 
