Requires the Associate Director to designate a FEMA officer or employee in each of FEMA's ten regions to serve as the Office contact for the States in that region.
(Sec. 5) Requires the Director of FEMA (Director), acting through the Office, to: (1) establish a program to provide assistance to enhance the ability of State and local first responders to respond to incidents of terrorism, including incidents involving weapons of mass destruction; and (2) make specified funds available to the States and Territories (including additional funds based on need criteria such as population and location of vital infrastructures).
Requires that at least 75 percent of the assistance granted each State be provided to local governments and entities within the State in accordance with criteria established by the Director. Requires each State to coordinate with local governments and entities concerning the use of assistance provided.
Limits expenditures for administrative expenses of this program.
Requires the Director to coordinate provisions of assistance with specified Federal emergency relief agencies and programs, as well as (along with States) Indian tribes and Alaska Native villages.
(Sec. 6) Requires the President carry out a program for the protection, assessment, monitoring, and study of the health and safety of first responders in the event one or more harmful substances are released in a major disaster area. Requires the President take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of any participant in a registry of first responders exposed to a harmful substance, or in a study of the long-term health effects of any such exposures. Authorizes the President to carry out the program through a cooperative agreement with a medical or academic institution, or a consortium of such institutions.
(Sec. 7) Requires the Director to provide each of 28 designated urban search and rescue task forces a grant to pay the costs of operations. Authorizes the Director to provide an additional discretionary grant to pay for equipment, training, transportation, expansion of the task force, incident support teams, and the costs of operations in excess of the funds provided.
Permits the Director to establish any additional task forces as long as the 28 original task forces are able to deploy at least two fully functional teams simultaneously.
(Sec. 8) Authorizes appropriations for FY 2003 through 2006 for preparedness assistance for first responders and for the urban search and rescue task forces.
[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2664 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
107th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2664
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act to establish a program to provide assistance to enhance
the ability of first responders to respond to incidents of terrorism,
including incidents involving weapons of mass destruction, and for
other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 20, 2002
Mr. Jeffords (for himself and Mr. Smith of New Hampshire) introduced
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee
on Environment and Public Works
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act to establish a program to provide assistance to enhance
the ability of first responders to respond to incidents of terrorism,
including incidents involving weapons of mass destruction, and for
other purposes.
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 ``First Responder Terrorism
Preparedness Act of 2002''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) the Federal Government must enhance the ability of
first responders to respond to incidents of terrorism,
including incidents involving weapons of mass destruction; and
(2) as a result of the events of September 11, 2001, it is
necessary to clarify and consolidate the authority of the
Federal Emergency Management Agency to support first
responders.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to establish within the Federal Emergency Management
Agency the Office of National Preparedness;
(2) to establish a program to provide assistance to enhance
the ability of first responders to respond to incidents of
terrorism, including incidents involving weapons of mass
destruction; and
(3) to address issues relating to urban search and rescue
task forces.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
(a) Major Disaster.--Section 102(2) of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122(2)) is
amended by inserting ``incident of terrorism,'' after ``drought),''.
(b) Weapon of Mass Destruction.--Section 602(a) of the Robert T.
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
5196(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(11) Weapon of mass destruction.--The term `weapon of
mass destruction' has the meaning given the term in section
2302 of title 50, United States Code.''.
SEC. 4. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS.
Subtitle A of title VI of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5196 et seq.) is amended by
adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 616. OFFICE OF NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS.
``(a) In General.--There is established in the Federal Emergency
Management Agency an office to be known as the `Office of National
Preparedness' (referred to in this section as the `Office').
``(b) Appointment of Associate Director.--
``(1) In general.--The Office shall be headed by an
Associate Director, who shall be appointed by the President, by
and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
``(2) Compensation.--The Associate Director shall be
compensated at the annual rate of basic pay prescribed for
level IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title
5, United States Code.
``(c) Duties.--The Office shall--
``(1) lead a coordinated and integrated overall effort to
build viable terrorism preparedness and response capability at
all levels of government;
``(2) establish clearly defined standards and guidelines
for Federal, State, tribal, and local government terrorism
preparedness and response;
``(3) establish and coordinate an integrated capability for
Federal, State, tribal, and local governments and emergency
responders to plan for and address potential consequences of
terrorism;
``(4) coordinate provision of Federal terrorism
preparedness assistance to State, tribal, and local
governments;
``(5) establish standards for a national, interoperable
emergency communications and warning system;
``(6) establish standards for training of first responders
(as defined in section 630(a)), and for equipment to be used by
first responders, to respond to incidents of terrorism,
including incidents involving weapons of mass destruction; and
``(7) carry out such other related activities as are
approved by the Director.
``(d) Designation of Regional Contacts.--The Associate Director
shall designate an officer or employee of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency in each of the 10 regions of the Agency to serve as
the Office contact for the States in that region.
``(e) Use of Existing Resources.--In carrying out this section, the
Associate Director shall--
``(1) to the maximum extent practicable, use existing
resources, including planning documents, equipment lists, and
program inventories; and
``(2) consult with and use--
``(A) existing Federal interagency boards and
committees;
``(B) existing government agencies; and
``(C) nongovernmental organizations.''.
SEC. 5. PREPAREDNESS ASSISTANCE FOR FIRST RESPONDERS.
(a) In General.--Subtitle B of title VI of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5197 et seq.)
is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 630. PREPAREDNESS ASSISTANCE FOR FIRST RESPONDERS.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Director.--The term `Director' means the Director of
the Federal Emergency Management Agency, acting through the
Office of National Preparedness established by section 616.
``(2) First responder.--The term `first responder' means--
``(A) fire, emergency medical service, and law
enforcement personnel; and
``(B) such other personnel as are identified by the
Director.
``(3) Local entity.--The term `local entity' has the
meaning given the term by regulation promulgated by the
Director.
``(4) Program.--The term `program' means the program
established under subsection (b).
``(b) Program To Provide Assistance.--
``(1) In general.--The Director shall establish a program
to provide assistance to States to enhance the ability of State
and local first responders to respond to incidents of
terrorism, including incidents involving weapons of mass
destruction.
``(2) Federal share.--The Federal share of the costs
eligible to be paid using assistance provided under the program
shall be not less than 75 percent, as determined by the
Director.
``(3) Forms of assistance.--Assistance provided under
paragraph (1) may consist of--
``(A) grants; and
``(B) such other forms of assistance as the
Director determines to be appropriate.
``(c) Uses of Assistance.--Assistance provided under subsection
(b)--
``(1) shall be used--
``(A) to purchase, to the maximum extent
practicable, interoperable equipment that is necessary
to respond to incidents of terrorism, including
incidents involving weapons of mass destruction;
``(B) to train first responders, consistent with
guidelines and standards developed by the Director;
``(C) in consultation with the Director, to
develop, construct, or upgrade terrorism preparedness
training facilities;
``(D) to develop, construct, or upgrade emergency
operating centers;
``(E) to develop preparedness and response plans
consistent with Federal, State, and local strategies,
as determined by the Director;
``(F) to provide systems and equipment to meet
communication needs, such as emergency notification
systems, interoperable equipment, and secure
communication equipment;
``(G) to conduct exercises; and
``(H) to carry out such other related activities as
are approved by the Director; and
``(2) shall not be used to provide compensation to first
responders (including payment for overtime).
``(d) Allocation of Funds.--For each fiscal year, in providing
assistance under subsection (b), the Director shall make available--
``(1) to each of the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the
Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of
the Northern Mariana Islands, $3,000,000; and
``(2) to each State (other than a State specified in
paragraph (1))--
``(A) a base amount of $15,000,000; and
``(B) a percentage of the total remaining funds
made available for the fiscal year based on criteria
established by the Director, such as--
``(i) population;
``(ii) location of vital infrastructure,
including--
``(I) military installations;
``(II) public buildings (as defined
in section 13 of the Public Buildings
Act of 1959 (40 U.S.C. 612));
``(III) nuclear power plants;
``(IV) chemical plants; and
``(V) national landmarks; and
``(iii) proximity to international borders.
``(e) Provision of Funds to Local Governments and Local Entities.--
For each fiscal year, not less than 75 percent of the assistance
provided to each State under this section shall be provided to local
governments and local entities within the State.
``(f) Administrative Expenses.--
``(1) Director.--For each fiscal year, the Director may use
to pay salaries and other administrative expenses incurred in
administering the program not more than the lesser of--
``(A) 5 percent of the funds made available to
carry out this section for the fiscal year; or
``(B)(i) for fiscal year 2003, $75,000,000; and
``(ii) for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2006,
$50,000,000.
``(2) Recipients of assistance.--For each fiscal year, not
more than 10 percent of the funds retained by a State after
application of subsection (e) may be used to pay salaries and
other administrative expenses incurred in administering the
program.
``(g) Maintenance of Expenditures.--The Director may provide
assistance to a State under this section only if the State agrees to
maintain, and to ensure that each local government that receives funds
from the State in accordance with subsection (e) maintains, for the
fiscal year for which the assistance is provided, the aggregate
expenditures by the State or the local government, respectively, for
the uses described in subsection (c)(1) at a level that is at or above
the average annual level of those expenditures by the State or local
government, respectively, for the 2 fiscal years preceding the fiscal
year for which the assistance is provided.
``(h) Reports.--
``(1) Annual report to the director.--As a condition of
receipt of assistance under this section for a fiscal year, a
State shall submit to the Director, not later than 60 days
after the end of the fiscal year, a report on the use of the
assistance in the fiscal year.
``(2) Exercise and report to congress.--As a condition of
receipt of assistance under this section, not later than 3
years after the date of enactment of this section, a State
shall--
``(A) conduct an exercise, or participate in a
regional exercise, approved by the Director, to measure
the progress of the State in enhancing the ability of
State and local first responders to respond to
incidents of terrorism, including incidents involving
weapons of mass destruction; and
``(B) submit a report on the results of the
exercise to--
``(i) the Committee on Environment and
Public Works and the Committee on
Appropriations of the Senate; and
``(ii) the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure and the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
``(i) Coordination.--
``(1) With federal agencies.--The Director shall, as
necessary, coordinate the provision of assistance under this
section with activities carried out by--
``(A) the Administrator of the United States Fire
Administration in connection with the implementation by
the Administrator of the assistance to firefighters
grant program established under section 33 of the
Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15
U.S.C. 2229) (as added by section 1701(a) of the Floyd
D. Spence National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2001 (114 Stat. 1654, 1654A-360)); and
``(B) other appropriate Federal agencies.
``(2) With indian tribes.--In providing and using
assistance under this section, the Director and the States
shall, as appropriate, coordinate with--
``(A) Indian tribes (as defined in section 4 of the
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act
(25 U.S.C. 450b)) and other tribal organizations; and
``(B) Native villages (as defined in section 3 of
the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C.
1602)) and other Alaska Native organizations.''.
(b) Cost Sharing for Emergency Operating Centers.--Section 614 of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 5196c) is amended--
(1) by inserting ``(other than section 630)'' after ``carry
out this title''; and
(2) by inserting ``(other than section 630)'' after ``under
this title''.
SEC. 6. URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE TASK FORCES.
Subtitle B of title VI of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief
and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5197 et seq.) (as amended by
section 5) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 631. URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE TASK FORCES.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Urban search and rescue equipment.--The term `urban
search and rescue equipment' means any equipment that the
Director determines to be necessary to respond to a major
disaster or emergency declared by the President under this Act.
``(2) Urban search and rescue task force.--The term `urban
search and rescue task force' means any of the 28 urban search
and rescue task forces designated by the Director as of the
date of enactment of this section.
``(b) Assistance.--
``(1) Mandatory grants for costs of operations.--For each
fiscal year, of the amounts made available to carry out this
section, the Director shall provide to each urban search and
rescue task force a grant of not less than $1,500,000 to pay
the costs of operations of the urban search and rescue task
force (including costs of basic urban search and rescue
equipment).
``(2) Discretionary grants.--The Director may provide to
any urban search and rescue task force a grant, in such amount
as the Director determines to be appropriate, to pay the costs
of--
``(A) operations in excess of the funds provided
under paragraph (1);
``(B) urban search and rescue equipment;
``(C) equipment necessary for an urban search and
rescue task force to operate in an environment
contaminated or otherwise affected by a weapon of mass
destruction;
``(D) training, including training for operating in
an environment described in subparagraph (C);
``(E) transportation;
``(F) expansion of the urban search and rescue task
force; and
``(G) incident support teams, including costs of
conducting appropriate evaluations of the readiness of
the urban search and rescue task force.
``(3) Priority for funding.--The Director shall distribute
funding under this subsection so as to ensure that each urban
search and rescue task force has the capacity to deploy
simultaneously at least 2 teams with all necessary equipment,
training, and transportation.
``(c) Grant Requirements.--The Director shall establish such
requirements as are necessary to provide grants under this section.
``(d) Establishment of Additional Urban Search and Rescue Task
Forces.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Director
may establish urban search and rescue task forces in addition
to the 28 urban search and rescue task forces in existence on
the date of enactment of this section.
``(2) Requirement of full funding of existing urban search
and rescue task forces.--Except in the case of an urban search
and rescue task force designated to replace any urban search
and rescue task force that withdraws or is otherwise no longer
considered to be an urban search and rescue task force
designated by the Director, no additional urban search and
rescue task forces may be designated or funded until the 28
urban search and rescue task forces are able to deploy
simultaneously at least 2 teams with all necessary equipment,
training, and transportation.''.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 626 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5197e) is amended by striking subsection (a)
and inserting the following:
``(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--
``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated
such sums as are necessary to carry out this title (other than
sections 630 and 631).
``(2) Preparedness assistance for first responders.--There
are authorized to be appropriated to carry out section 630--
``(A) $3,340,000,000 for fiscal year 2003; and
``(B) $3,458,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004
through 2006.
``(3) Urban search and rescue task forces.--
``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out section 631--
``(i) $160,000,000 for fiscal year 2003;
and
``(ii) $42,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2004 through 2006.
``(B) Availability of amounts.--Amounts made
available under subparagraph (A) shall remain available
until expended.''.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works. (text of measure as introduced: CR S5861-5862)
Committee on Environment and Public Works. Ordered to be reported with amendments favorably.
Committee on Environment and Public Works. Reported by Senator Jeffords with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 107-295. Additional views filed.
Committee on Environment and Public Works. Reported by Senator Jeffords with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 107-295. Additional views filed.
Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 625.
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