[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3877 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3877

  To require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and 
    Technology to establish an initiative to promote the research, 
  development, and demonstration of miner tracking and communications 
    systems and to promote the establishment of standards regarding 
   underground communications to protect miners in the United States.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 17, 2007

Mr. Matheson (for himself, Mr. Gordon of Tennessee, Mr. Whitfield, Mr. 
   Ross, Mr. Davis of Kentucky, Mr. Young of Alaska, Mr. Cannon, Mr. 
  Bachus, and Mr. Rogers of Kentucky) introduced the following bill; 
     which was referred to the Committee on Science and Technology

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and 
    Technology to establish an initiative to promote the research, 
  development, and demonstration of miner tracking and communications 
    systems and to promote the establishment of standards regarding 
   underground communications to protect miners in the United States.

    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 ``Mine Communications Technology 
Innovation Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The failure of miner tracking and communications 
        devices or lack thereof in mines severely hampers rescue 
        efforts in the event of emergencies.
            (2) Mines, particularly underground mines, have properties 
        that present unique technical challenges for the integration of 
        currently available tracking and communications systems. These 
        properties include the lack of a clear path or open air which 
        is required for radio signals and WiFi. Additionally, because 
        coal is an absorptive material, less than 10 percent of the 
        radio spectrum that is used above ground can be used 
        underground. A fraction of that (only about 1 percent) radio 
        spectrum is actually allocated for commercial communications 
        purposes. As a consequence, the availability of miner 
        communication equipment is severely limited.
            (3) Research and experience have shown that communications 
        and tracking systems may not work equally well in every mine or 
        in every emergency situation, and therefore several different 
        systems may be necessary for development and integration.
            (4) Because of the serious challenges of the mine 
        environment and the limited market provided by the mining 
        industry, much needed technology has not yet been developed by 
        the private sector or is not commercially available in the 
        United States.
            (5) Furthermore, due to the regulatory structure of the 
        industry and the lengthy approval process for mine tracking and 
        communications systems, research must be accelerated so that 
        next generation technology can be quickly and efficiently 
        integrated into mines to protect the safety of miners.
            (6) The National Institute of Standards and Technology is 
        well positioned to help accelerate the development of mining 
        tracking and communications technology. The National Institute 
        of Standards and Technology has a long history of working in 
        conjunction with industry to invest in longer-term, high-risk 
        research which yields national benefits far beyond private 
        payoff. Further, the National Institute of Standards and 
        Technology builds partnerships with industry to leverage 
        existing research and development to drive next generation 
        technology.
            (7) The National Institute of Standards and Technology is 
        well-positioned to draft mining communications standards given 
        the extensive work that the organization has done in the field 
        of emergency communications to develop standards and 
        technologies for interoperable wireless telecommunications and 
        information systems.
            (8) In developing such standards, the National Institute of 
        Standards and Technology should work in cooperation with the 
        National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the 
        Mine Safety and Health Administration to build on existing 
        technology and knowledge regarding mine communications systems.

SEC. 3. MINE COMMUNICATIONS AND TRACKING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 
              PROGRAM AUTHORIZATION.

    (a) Establishment.--The Director of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology shall provide for the establishment of a 
program of research, development, and demonstration, that includes the 
availability of grants where appropriate, to accelerate the development 
of next generation mine communications and tracking technology systems.
    (b) Coordination.--In carrying out this section, the Director shall 
work with relevant Federal agencies and industry to evaluate areas of 
research and development that will be most promising in protecting 
miner safety.
    (c) Optional Focus.--In establishing this program, the Director may 
focus on the following communications and tracking system 
characteristics:
            (1) Systems that are likely to work in emergency 
        situations.
            (2) Systems that work in coal mines, with special attention 
        paid to deep underground coal mines.
            (3) Systems that provide coverage throughout all areas of 
        the mine.
            (4) Hybrid systems that use both wireless and 
        infrastructure based systems.
            (5) Functionality for 2-way and voice communications.
            (6) Systems that serve emergency and routine communications 
        needs.
            (7) The ability to work with existing legacy systems and to 
        be quickly integrated.

SEC. 4. STANDARDS REGARDING UNDERGROUND COMMUNICATIONS.

    The Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology 
shall work with industry and relevant Federal agencies to develop 
consensus industry standards and standard reference materials for 
wireless communications in underground mines. In their efforts to help 
develop these standards and reference materials, the following issues 
should be addressed:
            (1) The appropriate use of frequency bands and power 
        levels.
            (2) Matters related to interoperability of systems, 
        applications, and devices.
            (3) Technology to prevent interference.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated to the Director of the 
National Institute of Standards and Technology such sums as are 
necessary for carrying out this Act for fiscal years 2009 and 2010, to 
be derived from amounts authorized under section 3001 of the America 
COMPETES Act.
                                 <all>