Public Safety Broadband Network Enabling Act

Public Safety Broadband Network Enabling Act - Amends the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to: (1) document operational requirements for a nationwide interoperable public safety broadband network; (2) if necessary and practical, help accelerate the development of national voluntary consensus standards for such network; (3) conduct research and assist with the development of technologies and applications to advance wireless public safety communications; and (4) continue to develop and maintain a demonstration testbed for use by manufacturers, providers of commercial mobile services, and public safety agencies to evaluate advanced broadband communications equipment and software for use by the public safety community.

Directs the Director to: (1) coordinate with federal agencies, the private sector, and public safety organizations; and (2) convene any appropriate working groups of government and commercial stakeholders.

Requires that a specified amount be made available to the Director from any trust fund established in the Treasury after October 1, 2011, consisting of proceeds from the auction of electromagnetic spectrum.

[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3642 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3642

  To amend the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to 
    require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and 
 Technology to document operational requirements, assist with national 
   voluntary consensus standards, and conduct technology research to 
advance a nationwide interoperable public safety broadband network, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 13, 2011

   Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas (for herself and Ms. Edwards) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
  Science, Space, and Technology, and in addition to the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To amend the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act to 
    require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and 
 Technology to document operational requirements, assist with national 
   voluntary consensus standards, and conduct technology research to 
advance a nationwide interoperable public safety broadband network, 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 ``Public Safety Broadband Network 
Enabling Act''.

SEC. 2. PUBLIC SAFETY BROADBAND NETWORK STANDARDS AND RESEARCH.

    The National Institute of Standards and Technology Act is amended--
            (1) by redesignating section 34 as section 35; and
            (2) by inserting after section 33 the following:

``SEC. 34. PUBLIC SAFETY BROADBAND NETWORK STANDARDS, RESEARCH, AND 
              DEMONSTRATION TESTBED.

    ``(a) In General.--The Director shall--
            ``(1) document operational requirements for a nationwide 
        interoperable public safety broadband network;
            ``(2) if necessary and practical, help to accelerate the 
        development of national voluntary consensus standards for a 
        nationwide interoperable public safety broadband network, 
        including standards that address the requirements documented 
        under paragraph (1);
            ``(3) conduct research and assist with the development of 
        technologies and applications to advance wireless public safety 
        communications; and
            ``(4) continue to develop and maintain a demonstration 
        testbed for use by manufacturers, providers of commercial 
        mobile services (as defined in section 332 of the 
        Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 332)), and public safety 
        agencies to evaluate advanced broadband communications 
        equipment and software for use by the public safety community.
    ``(b) Research Activities.--In carrying out subsection (a)(3), the 
Director shall--
            ``(1) accelerate the development of communication 
        capabilities between currently deployed public safety 
        narrowband systems and a nationwide interoperable public safety 
        broadband network;
            ``(2) seek to develop technologies, processes, and 
        architectures that improve network security, resiliency, and 
        trustworthiness; and
            ``(3) develop and implement a research roadmap that 
        addresses the wireless communications needs of public safety 
        entities beyond what can be provided by the current generation 
        of broadband technology.
    ``(c) Coordination.--
            ``(1) In general.--In carrying out the activities described 
        in this section, the Director shall coordinate with relevant 
        Federal agencies, the private sector, and public safety 
        organizations.
            ``(2) Working groups.--The Director shall convene working 
        groups of relevant government and commercial stakeholders to 
        achieve the requirements of this section, as appropriate.''.

SEC. 3. SPECTRUM AUCTION PROCEEDS.

    From any trust fund established in the Treasury of the United 
States after October 1, 2011, consisting of proceeds from the auction 
of electromagnetic spectrum, there shall be made available to the 
Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, without 
further appropriation, $300,000,000 to carry out section 34 of the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology Act, as amended by 
section 2. Such amount shall remain available until expended.
                                 <all>