[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 665 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
S.665
One Hundred Fourteenth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
the sixth day of January, two thousand and fifteen
An Act
To encourage, enhance, and integrate Blue Alert plans throughout the
United States in order to disseminate information when a law enforcement
officer is seriously injured or killed in the line of duty, is missing
in connection with the officer's official duties, or an imminent and
credible threat that an individual intends to cause the serious injury
or death of a law enforcement officer is received, 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 ``Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu
National Blue Alert Act of 2015''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Coordinator.--The term ``Coordinator'' means the Blue Alert
Coordinator of the Department of Justice designated under section
4(a).
(2) Blue alert.--The term ``Blue Alert'' means information sent
through the network relating to--
(A) the serious injury or death of a law enforcement
officer in the line of duty;
(B) an officer who is missing in connection with the
officer's official duties; or
(C) an imminent and credible threat that an individual
intends to cause the serious injury or death of a law
enforcement officer.
(3) Blue alert plan.--The term ``Blue Alert plan'' means the
plan of a State, unit of local government, or Federal agency
participating in the network for the dissemination of information
received as a Blue Alert.
(4) Law enforcement officer.--The term ``law enforcement
officer'' shall have the same meaning as in section 1204 of the
Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C.
3796b).
(5) Network.--The term ``network'' means the Blue Alert
communications network established by the Attorney General under
section 3.
(6) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the 50 States, the
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin
Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands.
SEC. 3. BLUE ALERT COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.
The Attorney General shall establish a national Blue Alert
communications network within the Department of Justice to issue Blue
Alerts through the initiation, facilitation, and promotion of Blue
Alert plans, in coordination with States, units of local government,
law enforcement agencies, and other appropriate entities.
SEC. 4. BLUE ALERT COORDINATOR; GUIDELINES.
(a) Coordination Within Department of Justice.--The Attorney
General shall assign an existing officer of the Department of Justice
to act as the national coordinator of the Blue Alert communications
network.
(b) Duties of the Coordinator.--The Coordinator shall--
(1) provide assistance to States and units of local government
that are using Blue Alert plans;
(2) establish voluntary guidelines for States and units of
local government to use in developing Blue Alert plans that will
promote compatible and integrated Blue Alert plans throughout the
United States, including--
(A) a list of the resources necessary to establish a Blue
Alert plan;
(B) criteria for evaluating whether a situation warrants
issuing a Blue Alert;
(C) guidelines to protect the privacy, dignity,
independence, and autonomy of any law enforcement officer who
may be the subject of a Blue Alert and the family of the law
enforcement officer;
(D) guidelines that a Blue Alert should only be issued with
respect to a law enforcement officer if--
(i) the law enforcement agency involved--
(I) confirms--
(aa) the death or serious injury of the law
enforcement officer; or
(bb) the attack on the law enforcement officer
and that there is an indication of the death or
serious injury of the officer; or
(II) concludes that the law enforcement officer is
missing in connection with the officer's official
duties;
(ii) there is an indication of serious injury to or
death of the law enforcement officer;
(iii) the suspect involved has not been apprehended;
and
(iv) there is sufficient descriptive information of the
suspect involved and any relevant vehicle and tag numbers;
(E) guidelines that a Blue Alert should only be issued with
respect to a threat to cause death or serious injury to a law
enforcement officer if--
(i) a law enforcement agency involved confirms that the
threat is imminent and credible;
(ii) at the time of receipt of the threat, the suspect
is wanted by a law enforcement agency;
(iii) the suspect involved has not been apprehended;
and
(iv) there is sufficient descriptive information of the
suspect involved and any relevant vehicle and tag numbers;
(F) guidelines--
(i) that information should be provided to the National
Crime Information Center database operated by the Federal
Bureau of Investigation under section 534 of title 28,
United States Code, and any relevant crime information
repository of the State involved, relating to--
(I) a law enforcement officer who is seriously
injured or killed in the line of duty; or
(II) an imminent and credible threat to cause the
serious injury or death of a law enforcement officer;
(ii) that a Blue Alert should, to the maximum extent
practicable (as determined by the Coordinator in
consultation with law enforcement agencies of States and
units of local governments), be limited to the geographic
areas most likely to facilitate the apprehension of the
suspect involved or which the suspect could reasonably
reach, which should not be limited to State lines;
(iii) for law enforcement agencies of States or units
of local government to develop plans to communicate
information to neighboring States to provide for seamless
communication of a Blue Alert; and
(iv) providing that a Blue Alert should be suspended
when the suspect involved is apprehended or when the law
enforcement agency involved determines that the Blue Alert
is no longer effective; and
(G) guidelines for--
(i) the issuance of Blue Alerts through the network;
and
(ii) the extent of the dissemination of alerts issued
through the network;
(3) develop protocols for efforts to apprehend suspects that
address activities during the period beginning at the time of the
initial notification of a law enforcement agency that a suspect has
not been apprehended and ending at the time of apprehension of a
suspect or when the law enforcement agency involved determines that
the Blue Alert is no longer effective, including protocols
regulating--
(A) the use of public safety communications;
(B) command center operations; and
(C) incident review, evaluation, debriefing, and public
information procedures;
(4) work with States to ensure appropriate regional
coordination of various elements of the network;
(5) establish an advisory group to assist States, units of
local government, law enforcement agencies, and other entities
involved in the network with initiating, facilitating, and
promoting Blue Alert plans, which shall include--
(A) to the maximum extent practicable, representation from
the various geographic regions of the United States; and
(B) members who are--
(i) representatives of a law enforcement organization
representing rank-and-file officers;
(ii) representatives of other law enforcement agencies
and public safety communications;
(iii) broadcasters, first responders, dispatchers, and
radio station personnel; and
(iv) representatives of any other individuals or
organizations that the Coordinator determines are necessary
to the success of the network;
(6) act as the nationwide point of contact for--
(A) the development of the network; and
(B) regional coordination of Blue Alerts through the
network; and
(7) determine--
(A) what procedures and practices are in use for notifying
law enforcement and the public when--
(i) a law enforcement officer is killed or seriously
injured in the line of duty;
(ii) a law enforcement officer is missing in connection
with the officer's official duties; and
(iii) an imminent and credible threat to kill or
seriously injure a law enforcement officer is received; and
(B) which of the procedures and practices are effective and
that do not require the expenditure of additional resources to
implement.
(c) Limitations.--
(1) Voluntary participation.--The guidelines established under
subsection (b)(2), protocols developed under subsection (b)(3), and
other programs established under subsection (b), shall not be
mandatory.
(2) Dissemination of information.--The guidelines established
under subsection (b)(2) shall, to the maximum extent practicable
(as determined by the Coordinator in consultation with law
enforcement agencies of States and units of local government),
provide that appropriate information relating to a Blue Alert is
disseminated to the appropriate officials of law enforcement
agencies, public health agencies, and other agencies.
(3) Privacy and civil liberties protections.--The guidelines
established under subsection (b) shall--
(A) provide mechanisms that ensure that Blue Alerts comply
with all applicable Federal, State, and local privacy laws and
regulations; and
(B) include standards that specifically provide for the
protection of the civil liberties, including the privacy, of
law enforcement officers who are seriously injured or killed in
the line of duty, is missing in connection with the officer's
official duties, or who are threatened with death or serious
injury, and the families of the officers.
(d) Cooperation With Other Agencies.--The Coordinator shall
cooperate with the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of
Transportation, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission,
and appropriate offices of the Department of Justice in carrying out
activities under this Act.
(e) Restrictions on Coordinator.--The Coordinator may not--
(1) perform any official travel for the sole purpose of
carrying out the duties of the Coordinator;
(2) lobby any officer of a State regarding the funding or
implementation of a Blue Alert plan; or
(3) host a conference focused solely on the Blue Alert program
that requires the expenditure of Federal funds.
(f) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, and annually thereafter, the Coordinator shall submit to
Congress a report on the activities of the Coordinator and the
effectiveness and status of the Blue Alert plans that are in effect or
being developed.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.