	Introduction

While attacks on U.S. diplomatic facilities and personnel abroad are not infrequent, the severity of the September 11, 2012, attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya, has caused a reexamination of measures in place to protect U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities abroad. Members have also put forward a number of legislative proposals on issues ranging from the composition of Accountability Review Boards to procedures for awarding contracts for local security guards. Two of these measures have been considered and approved by committees. The Department of State undertook several measures in response to the attack, including immediate steps to bolster security at posts around the world; an investigation of the incident through an Accountability Review Board; and longer-term measures implementing the board's recommendations, including requests for significantly greater funding than in recent years. The following summarizes and tracks congressional and State Department efforts to make U.S. embassies and personnel around the world more secure. It will be updated as necessary to reflect further developments and actions on ongoing policy proposals. Additional information about recent year funding requests and levels is available in CRS Report R42834, Securing U.S. Diplomatic Facilities and Personnel Abroad: Background and Policy Issues . Legislative Response to the Benghazi Attack

Congressional activity in the 112 th and 113 th Congresses on the issue of the protection of U.S. personnel and facilities abroad has included a number of legislative actions and proposals, as well as a variety of hearings and investigations into the Benghazi attack by a number of different committees. The House Select Committee on Benghazi, chaired by Representative Trey Gowdy, held its first hearing on September 17, 2014. S. 1386 , the Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty Embassy Security, Threat Mitigation, and Personnel Protection Act of 2013, introduced by Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Menendez on July 30, 2013; adopted by voice vote and ordered reported favorably to the full Senate on August 1. Funding

H.R. 83 , the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, meets the Administration's $3.1 billion request for Worldwide Security Protection funds—growing the account by 12.7% over FY2014-enacted levels. While the Act exceeds the $1.47 billion request for Worldwide Security Upgrades by $23 million, this represents a reduction of 7.7% from FY2014 levels. The measure was repeated as Section 7006 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2015, H.R. 4. 5. 8.
The September 11, 2012, attack on U.S. facilities in Benghazi, Libya, prompted sustained congressional attention on the specific circumstances of the events in question, as well as broader questions regarding how U.S. diplomatic personnel and facilities abroad are secured. Ensuring that the Department of State is better prepared for the possibility of similar attacks in the future has been a central congressional concern.
The Department of State undertook a number of measures in response to the attack, including immediate steps to bolster security at posts around the world; an investigation of the incident through an Accountability Review Board; and longer-term measures implementing the board's recommendations, including requests for significantly greater funding than in recent years.
Congress has conducted oversight through investigations by a number of committees and through a number of hearings. The House of Representatives voted to create a select committee on the Benghazi attack on May 8, 2014; the committee held its first hearing on September 17, 2014.
Members have also put forward legislative proposals on issues ranging from the composition of Accountability Review Boards to procedures for awarding local security guard force contracts. In the 113th Congress, two wide-ranging bills incorporating many of these areas have been considered: H.R. 2848, the Department of State Operations and Embassy Security Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2014, and S. 1386, the Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods, and Glen Doherty Embassy Security, Threat Mitigation, and Personnel Protection Act of 2013.
The 113th Congress, through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014, fully funded the Administration's FY2014 request for diplomatic security-related accounts, providing approximately $5.4 billion. H.R. 83, the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, meets the Administration's $3.1 billion request for Worldwide Security Protection funds and exceeds the $1.47 billion request for Worldwide Security Upgrades by $23 million.
This report briefly summarizes and tracks congressional and State Department actions in response to the attack, and will be updated as necessary to reflect further developments and actions on ongoing policy proposals. Readers seeking background information on recent embassy attacks, State Department policies and procedures relevant to embassy security, or information on recent year embassy security funding trends should consult CRS Report R42834, Securing U.S. Diplomatic Facilities and Personnel Abroad: Background and Policy Issues.