[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1389 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1389

 To enhance the ability of first responders to respond to incidents of 
               terrorism and for certain other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 20, 2003

  Mr. Crowley (for himself, Mr. Fossella, Mr. Bishop of New York, Mr. 
King of New York, Mrs. McCarthy of New York, Mr. Engel, Mr. Towns, Mr. 
Houghton, Mr. Weiner, Mrs. Maloney, Mr. Capuano, Mr. Owens, Mr. Rangel, 
   Mr. Emanuel, Ms. Waters, Mr. Meeks of New York, Mr. Hinchey, Mr. 
Nadler, Mr. Bell, and Mrs. Lowey) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and 
  in addition to the Committees on Science, the Judiciary, and Select 
 Homeland Security, 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 enhance the ability of first responders to respond to incidents of 
               terrorism and for certain 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 ``Homeland Emergency Response Act of 
2003''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) First responders, which include local law enforcement 
        departments, fire departments, offices coordinating emergency 
        management, local health departments and local public 
        hospitals, are crucial elements of anti-terror preparation and 
        response.
            (2) Local efforts include increased counter-terrorism, 
        intelligence, increased security at events and venues of 
        national and international significance. These efforts 
        supplement and enhance Federal efforts.
            (3) Local needs include training, personnel, equipment, 
        communication, security upgrades to facilities, and Federal 
        assistance with personnel as well as capital costs and 
        expenses.
            (4) The fiscal crisis at the local level is unprecedented 
        since WWII and threatens to undermine the ability of local 
        governments to conduct their efforts in the War against 
        Terrorism.
            (5) The Federal Government has a responsibility to provide 
        for the common defense and therefore to assist local 
        governments in their counter-terrorism efforts.
            (6) Terrorists, according to the Al Queda manual and by 
        their actions, have shown they seek to inflict maximum 
        casualties, to disrupt the national economy, to disrupt the 
        governmental leadership, and that they will return to those 
        targets where earlier attacks have failed.
            (7) When the criteria that the terrorists use is applied, 
        it is clear that the localities targeted on September 11, 2001 
        as well as several other large metropolitan areas continue to 
        be at the greatest risk of terrorist attack.
            (8) While every community must have a well prepared first 
        responder and public health infrastructure in place to cope 
        with terrorist attacks, the Nation's defensive efforts should 
        also be focused on where the greatest threats are.
            (9) As the Nation builds up its defenses, the Nation must 
        also adequately defend the homeland through the support of 
        first responders.
            (10) A new, long-term grant program by the Federal 
        Government needs to be established to enhance the ability of 
        first responders to respond to incidents of terrorism, 
        including weapons of mass destruction, such as biological, 
        chemical and nuclear attacks to ensure the safety of all 
        Americans.

SEC. 3. FIRST RESPONDERS.

    Section 430(d) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (7) by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (8) by striking the period and inserting 
        ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(9) establish clear guidelines for Federal, State, 
        tribal, and local government terrorism preparedness and 
        response;
            ``(10) establish and coordinate an integrated capability 
        for Federal, State, and local governments and emergency 
        responders to plan for and address potential consequences of 
        terrorism;
            ``(11) establish standards for a national, interoperable 
        emergency communications and warning system which allows for 
        communications capability between local and other first 
        responders on all levels of government;
            ``(12) evaluate equipment to be used by first responders, 
        to respond to incidents of terrorism, including incidents 
        involving weapons of mass destruction; and
            ``(13) carry out such other related activities as are 
        approved by the Secretary.''.

SEC. 4. PREPAREDNESS ASSISTANCE FOR FIRST RESPONDERS.

    (a) In General.--Section 430 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 
is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Program To Provide Assistance.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a program 
        to provide assistance to States and certain local governments 
        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 cost of 
        assistance under this subsection is as follows:
                    ``(A) 1st year.--shall not exceed 100 percent;
                    ``(B) 2d year.--shall not exceed 95 percent;
                    ``(C) 3d year.--shall not exceed 90 percent; and
                    ``(D) 4th year.--shall not exceed 80 percent.
            ``(3) Forms of assistance.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Assistance provided under 
                paragraph (1) may consist of--
                            ``(i) grants; and
                            ``(ii) such other forms of assistance as 
                        the Secretary determines to be appropriate.
                    ``(B) Uses of assistance.--Assistance provided 
                under this subsection shall be used--
                            ``(i) 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;
                            ``(ii) to train first responders, 
                        consistent with guidelines and standards 
                        developed by the Secretary;
                            ``(iii) in consultation with the Secretary, 
                        to develop, construct, or upgrade terrorism 
                        preparedness training facilities and other 
                        facilities dealing with emergency preparedness;
                            ``(iv) to develop, construct, or upgrade 
                        emergency operating centers;
                            ``(v) to develop preparedness and response 
                        plans consistent with Federal, State, and local 
                        strategies as determined by the Secretary;
                            ``(vi) to provide systems and equipment to 
                        meet communication needs, such as emergency 
                        notification systems, interoperable equipment, 
                        and secure communication equipment;
                            ``(vii) to conduct exercises;
                            ``(viii) to provide for the necessary 
                        equipment needed by local first responders to 
                        prepare for and prevent possible terrorist 
                        attacks;
                            ``(ix) to provide for personnel training 
                        costs; and
                            ``(x) to provide for personnel costs of 
                        counterterrorism security and intelligence 
                        activities;
                            ``(xi) to enhance security at facilities; 
                        and
                            ``(xii) to carry out such other related 
                        activities as are approved by the Secretary.
            ``(4) Allocation of funds.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall make 
                available for each fiscal year--
                            ``(i) \1/3\ of the total amount 
                        appropriated for this subsection to the 5 local 
                        governments that the Secretary determines (in 
                        consultation with the Director of the Central 
                        Intelligence Committee, the Director of the 
                        Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the 
                        Secretary of Health and Human Services) are at 
                        the greatest risk and vulnerability of a 
                        terrorist attack.
                            ``(ii) the remaining \2/3\ of the total 
                        amount appropriated for this subsection to the 
                        50 States as the Secretary determines (in 
                        consultation with the Director of the Central 
                        Intelligence Committee, the Director of the 
                        Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the 
                        Secretary of Health and Human Services) are at 
                        the greatest risk and vulnerability of a 
                        terrorist attack.
                    ``(B) Distrubtion of funds for 5 local 
                governments.--Of the amount made available for the 5 
                local governments under subparagraph (A)(i), the 
                Secretary shall distribute--
                            ``(i) \1/2\ in the ratio that the level of 
                        risk of terrorist attack of each local 
                        government bears to the level of risk of 
                        terrorist attack of all 5 such municipalities.
                            ``(ii) \1/4\ in the ratio that the total 
                        population of each local government bears 
to the total population of all 5 such municipalities.
                            ``(iii) \1/4\ in the ratio that the number 
                        of marquee landmarks in the jurisdiction of 
                        each local government bears to the number of 
                        marquee landmarks in the jurisdiction of all 5 
                        such local governments.
                    ``(C) Distribution of funds to states.--Of the 
                amount made available under subparagraph (A)(ii), the 
                Secretary shall distribute to States--
                            ``(i) \1/3\ in the ratio that the level of 
                        risk of terrorist attack of each State bears to 
                        the level of risk of terrorist attack of all 
                        States.
                            ``(ii) \1/3\ in the ratio that the total 
                        population of each State bears to the total 
                        population of all States.
                            ``(iii) \1/3\ in the ratio that the number 
                        of marquee landmarks in each State bears to the 
                        number of marquee landmarks in all States.
                    ``(D) Construction.--Nothing in this paragraph 
                shall preclude a State from distributing funds to a 
                local government that receives funds under subparagraph 
                (A)(i).
            ``(5) Administrative expenses.--
                    ``(A) Expenses of secretary.--From amounts made 
                available under this subsection, the Secretary may use 
                to pay salaries and other administrative expenses 
                incurred in administering the program not more than the 
                lesser of--
                            ``(i) 5 percent of the funds made available 
                        to carry out this subsection for the fiscal 
                        year; or
                            ``(ii) for fiscal year 2004, $75,000,000; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) for each of fiscal years 2005 
                        through 2007, $50,000,000.
                    ``(B) State expenses.--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.
            ``(6) Coordination.--
                    ``(A) State coordination.--Each State shall 
                coordinate with local governments concerning the use of 
                assistance provided to local governments under 
                paragraph (5).
                    ``(B) Federal agency coordination.--The Secretary 
                shall, as necessary, coordinate the provision of 
                assistance under this section with activities carried 
                out by--
                            ``(i) 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));
                            ``(ii) the Attorney General, in connection 
                        with the implementation of the Community 
                        Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Program 
                        established under section 1701(a) of the 
                        Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 
                        1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796dd(a)).
            ``(7) Reports.--
                    ``(A) Annual report to the secretary.--Each of the 
                5 local governments selected under paragraph (4)(A)(i) 
                and each State that receives assistance under this 
                subsection, shall submit to the Secretary, not later 
                than 60 days after the end of each fiscal year, a 
                report regarding the use of the assistance in the 
                fiscal year.
                    ``(B) Exercise and report to congress.--Not later 
                than 3 years after the date of enactment of this 
                subsection, a State shall--
                            ``(i) conduct an exercise, or participate 
                        in a regional exercise, approved by the 
                        Secretary, 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
                            ``(ii) submit a report on the results of 
                        the exercise to--
                                    ``(I) the Committees on the 
                                Judiciary and the Committees on 
                                Appropriations of the House of 
                                Representatives and the Senate; and
                                    ``(II) the Select Committee on 
                                Homeland Security of the House of 
                                Representatives.
            ``(8) Definitions.--In this subsection the following 
        definitions apply:
                    ``(A) 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.''.
                    ``(B) First responders.--The term `first responder' 
                means--
                            ``(i) fire, emergency medical service, 
                        health service, law enforcement personnel, and 
                        urban search and rescue forces; and
                            ``(ii) such other personnel as are 
                        identified by the Secretary of Homeland 
                        Security.
                    ``(C) Marquee landmarks.--The term `marquee 
                landmarks' means recognizable landmarks or structures 
                such as skyscrapers, bridges, tunnels, historic 
                landmarks, locations of international noteworthiness or 
                other notable landmarks that are associated with a 
                given community on a national scale. Additionally, 
                these also include major seaports and airports, power 
plants, military installations, major transportation lines such as 
subways, dams and other structures associated with America
                    ``(D) State.--The term `State' means any State of 
                the United States or any instrumentality thereof 
                approved by the Governor; the Commonwealth of Puerto 
                Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, 
                Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.
                    ``(E) Terrorism.--The term `terrorism' includes 
                attacks with biological, chemical, or nuclear weaponry.
            ``(9) Authorization of appropriations.--
                    ``(A) In general.--There are authorized to be 
                appropriated to carry out this subsection--
                            ``(i) $3,500,000,000 for fiscal year 2004;
                            ``(ii) $3,750,000,000 for each of fiscal 
                        years 2005 through 2007; and
                    ``(B) Fund to supplement.--The funds authorized 
                under subparagraph (A) are to supplement, not supplant, 
                other Federal funding programs for America's first 
                responders or HEROs including the Local Law Enforcement 
                Block Grant, State Criminal Alien Assistance program, 
                the Edward Byrne grant program, and the Community 
                Orientated Policing Program (COPS).''.

SEC. 5. FIREFIGHTER COUNTERTERRORISM PROGRAM.

    The Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act of 1974 (15 U.S.C. 2201 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 35. FIREFIGHTER COUNTERTERRORISM PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Grants.--The Director shall provide grants for 
counterterrorism activities of the fire departments in the five 
localities of greatest vulnerability, as determined under section 
430(e)(4)(A)(i) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
    ``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the Director for carrying out this section such sums as 
may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2004 through 2007.''.

SEC. 6. USA PATRIOT ACT.

    (a) Grants.--Section 1014(c) of the Uniting and Strengthening 
America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and 
Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (USA Patriot Act) (42 U.S.C. 3711) is 
amended by adding the following:
            ``(4) Any amount above the minimum described in paragraph 
        (3) shall be allocated among the States as follows--
                    ``(A) \1/2\ in the ratio that the level of risk of 
                terrorist attack of each State bears to the level of 
                risk of terrorist attack of all States based on an 
                assessment by the Secretary of Homeland Security (in 
                consultation with the Directors of the Federal Bureau 
                of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency);
                    ``(B) \1/4\ in the ratio that the total population 
                of each State, bears to the total population of all 
                States; and
                    ``(C) \1/4\ in the ratio that the number of marquee 
                landmarks in each State, bears to the number of marquee 
                landmarks in all States.
    (b) Use of Grant Amounts.--Section 1014(b) is amended to read as 
follows:
    ``(b) Use of Grant Amounts.--Grants under this section may be used 
to purchase necessary equipment, to enhance security at facilities, to 
provide training (including the personnel costs of the trainees), to 
support counter-terrorism, intelligence, and security activities 
(including personnel costs) and to provide technical assistance to 
State and local first responders.''.
    (c) Section 1014 of Public Law 107-56 is amended by adding at the 
end the following new subsections:
    ``(d) Grant Distribution.--Each State receiving a grant under this 
section shall distribute not less than 75 percent of such grant amount 
(before reduction for any administrative costs of the State) to local 
jurisdictions within the State.
    ``(e) Exception.--Grants under this section shall not be subject to 
a maintenance of effort or matching requirement.''.

SEC. 7. PROTECTION OF HEALTH AND SAFETY OF FIRST RESPONDERS.

    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(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 631. PROTECTION OF HEALTH AND SAFETY OF FIRST RESPONDERS.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) First responder.--The term `first responder' means--
                            ``(i) fire, emergency medical service, 
                        health service, law enforcement personnel, and 
                        urban search and rescue forces; and
                            ``(ii) such other personnel as are 
                        identified by the Secretary of Homeland 
                        Security.
            ``(2) Harmful substance.--The term `harmful substance' 
        means a substance that the President determines may be harmful 
        to human health.
            ``(3) Program.--The term ``program'' means a program 
        described in subsection (b)(1).
    ``(b) Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--If the President determines that 1 or 
        more harmful substances are being, or have been, released in an 
        area that the President has declared to be a major disaster 
        area under this Act, the President shall carry out a program 
        with respect to the area for the protection, assessment, 
        monitoring, and study of the health and safety of first 
        responders.
            ``(2) Activities.--A program shall include--
                    ``(A) collection and analysis of environmental and 
                exposure data;
                    ``(B) development and dissemination of educational 
                materials;
                    ``(C) provision of information on releases of a 
                harmful substance;
                    ``(D) identification of, performance of baseline 
                health assessments on, taking biological samples from, 
                and establishment of an exposure registry of first 
                responders exposed to a harmful substance;
                    ``(E) study of the long-term health impacts of any 
                exposures of first responders to a harmful substance 
                through epidemiological studies; and
                    ``(F) provision of assistance to participants in 
                registries and studies under subparagraphs (D) and (E) 
                in determining eligibility for health coverage and 
                identifying appropriate health services.
            ``(3) Participation in registries and studies.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Participation in any registry or 
                study under subparagraph (D) or (E) of paragraph (2) 
                shall be voluntary.
                    ``(B) Protection of privacy.--The President shall 
                take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of any 
                participant in a registry or study described in 
                subparagraph (A).
            ``(4) Cooperative agreements.--The President may carry out 
        a program through a cooperative agreement with a medical or 
        academic institution, or a consortium of such institutions, 
        that is--
                    ``(A) located in close proximity to the major 
                disaster area with respect to which the program is 
                carried out; and
                    ``(B) experienced in the area of environmental or 
                occupational health and safety, including experience 
                in--
                            ``(i) conducting long-term epidemiological 
                        studies;
                            ``(ii) conducting long-term mental health 
                        studies; and
                            ``(iii) establishing and maintaining 
                        environmental exposure or disease registries.
    ``(c) this will authorize and fund the necessary medical monitoring 
and treatment of the first responders at Ground Zero from the attacks 
on New York City of September 11, 2001.
    ``(d) Reports and Responses to Studies.--
            ``(1) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
        completion of a study under subsection (b)(2)(E), the 
        President, or the medical or academic institution or consortium 
        of such institutions that entered into the cooperative 
        agreement under subsection (b)(4), shall submit to the 
        Secretary, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the 
        Secretary of Labor, the Administrator of the Environmental 
        Protection Agency and the Majority and Minority Leaders of the 
        House of Representatives and the Senate a report on the study.
            ``(2) Changes in procedures.--To protect the health and 
        safety of first responders, the President shall make such 
        changes in procedures as the President determines to be 
        necessary based on the findings of a report submitted under 
        paragraph (1).''.
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