[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3775 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3775
To encourage, enhance, and integrate Green Alert plans throughout the
United States, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 31, 2023
Ms. Moore of Wisconsin (for herself and Mr. Mfume) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To encourage, enhance, and integrate Green Alert plans throughout the
United States, 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 ``Corey Adams Searchlight Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Missing veteran.--The term ``missing veteran'' means an
individual who--
(A) is reported to, or identified by, a law
enforcement agency as a missing person;
(B) is a veteran; and
(C) meets the requirements to be designated as a
missing veteran, as determined by the State in which
the individual is reported or identified as a missing
person.
(2) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the 50 States,
the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the
United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
(3) Green alert.--The term ``Green Alert'' means an alert
issued through the Green Alert communications network, related
to a missing veteran.
(4) Veteran.--The term ``veteran'' means an individual who
is currently serving or a former member who served in the
United States Armed Forces, including National Guard, or a
Reserve or auxiliary unit from any branch of the Armed Forces.
SEC. 3. GREEN ALERT COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.
(a) In General.--The Attorney General shall, subject to the
availability of appropriations, establish a national communications
network, to be known as the Green Alert communications network, within
the Department of Justice to provide assistance to regional and local
search efforts for missing veterans through the initiation,
facilitation, and promotion of local elements of the network (referred
to in this Act as ``Green Alert plans''), in coordination with States,
federally or State recognized Tribes, units of local government, law
enforcement agencies, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and other
concerned entities with expertise in providing services to veterans.
(b) Coordination With AMBER Alert Network and Other Alert
Networks.--In establishing the Green Alert communications network under
subsection (a), the Attorney General shall work with States to ensure,
when feasible, the Green Alert communications network is able to
operate in coordination with a State's existing AMBER Alert
communications network, established under subtitle A of title III of
the PROTECT Act (34 U.S.C. 20501 et seq.), and any other State alert
networks, to maximize the efficiency of all such alert systems, and to
prevent overuse or improper activations of such networks.
SEC. 4. GREEN ALERT COORDINATOR.
(a) National Coordinator Within Department of Justice.--The
Attorney General shall designate an individual of the Department of
Justice to act as the national coordinator of the Green Alert
communications network. The individual so designated shall be known as
the Green Alert Coordinator of the Department of Justice (referred to
in this Act as the ``Coordinator'').
(b) Duties of the Coordinator.--In acting as the national
coordinator of the Green Alert communications network, the Coordinator
shall--
(1) work with States and Tribal governments to encourage
the development of additional Green Alert plans in the network;
(2) assess the ability of each State to implement Green
Alerts, including the ability and resources available to each
State to broadcast such alerts;
(3) establish voluntary guidelines for States to use in
developing Green Alert plans that will promote compatible and
integrated Green Alert plans throughout the United States,
including--
(A) a list of the resources necessary to establish
a Green Alert plan;
(B) criteria for evaluating whether a situation
warrants issuing a Green Alert, taking into
consideration the need to prevent overuse or
desensitization to such alerts, including criteria to
determine--
(i) whether the mental or physical capacity
of a veteran who is missing, and the
circumstances of his or her disappearance,
warrant the issuance of a Green Alert,
including whether the veteran has a condition
related to the veteran's service in the Armed
Forces that increases the risk that the veteran
will harm himself or herself, or another
person; and
(ii) whether the individual who reports
that a veteran is missing is an appropriate and
credible source on which to base the issuance
of a Green Alert;
(C) a description of the appropriate uses of the
Green Alert name to readily identify the nature of
search efforts for missing veterans; and
(D) recommendations on how to protect the privacy,
dignity, independence, and autonomy of any missing
veteran who may be the subject of a Green Alert;
(4) develop proposed protocols for efforts to recover
missing veterans and to reduce the number of veterans who are
reported missing, including protocols for procedures that are
needed from the time of initial notification of a law
enforcement agency that the veteran is missing through the time
of the return of the veteran to family, guardian, or domicile,
as appropriate, including--
(A) public safety communications protocol;
(B) case management protocol;
(C) command center operations;
(D) reunification protocol; and
(E) incident review, evaluation, debriefing, and
public information procedures;
(5) work with States and Tribal governments to ensure
appropriate regional coordination of various elements of the
network;
(6) establish an advisory board to assist States, Tribal
governments, units of local government, law enforcement
agencies, and other entities involved in the Green Alert
communications network with initiating, facilitating, and
promoting Green 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 veteran advocacy
groups, law enforcement agencies, and public
safety communications;
(ii) broadcasters, first responders,
dispatchers, and radio station personnel;
(iii) representatives from the Department
of Veterans Affairs and representatives of
State veterans agencies or offices;
(iv) federally recognized tribes or tribes
recognized by the State; and
(v) representatives of any other
individuals or organizations that the
Coordinator determines are necessary to the
success of the Green Alert communications
network; and
(7) act as the nationwide point of contact for--
(A) the development of the network; and
(B) regional coordination of alerts for missing
veterans through the network.
(c) Coordination.--
(1) Coordination with other agencies.--The Coordinator
shall coordinate and consult with the Secretary of
Transportation, the Federal Communications Commission, the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Secretary of the Interior, and
other appropriate offices of the Department of Justice in
carrying out activities under this Act.
(2) State and local coordination.--The Coordinator shall
consult with local broadcasters and State, Tribal, and local
law enforcement agencies in establishing minimum standards
under section 5 and in carrying out other activities under this
Act, as appropriate.
(d) Annual Reports.--Not later than one 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 Green Alert plans of each State
that has established or is in the process of establishing such a plan.
Each such report shall include--
(1) a list of States that have established Green Alert
plans;
(2) a list of States that are in the process of
establishing Green Alert plans;
(3) for each State that has established such a plan, to the
extent the data is available--
(A) the number of Green Alerts issued;
(B) a summary of the efforts by the State to
coordinate with and engage tribal governments and
ensure that tribal communities are included in their
Green Alert plans, including in the issuance of Green
Alerts;
(C) the number of individuals located successfully;
(D) the average period of time between the issuance
of a Green Alert and the location of the individual for
whom such Alert was issued;
(E) the State, local, or Tribal agencies or
authorities issuing Green Alerts, and the process by
which Green Alerts are disseminated;
(F) the cost of establishing and operating such a
plan;
(G) the criteria used by the State to determine
whether to issue a Green Alert; and
(H) the extent to which missing individuals for
whom Green Alerts were issued crossed State lines;
(4) actions States have taken to protect the privacy and
dignity of the individuals for whom Green Alerts are issued;
(5) ways that States have facilitated and improved
communication about missing individuals between families,
caregivers, law enforcement officials, and other authorities;
and
(6) any other information the Coordinator determines to be
appropriate.
SEC. 5. MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR ISSUANCE AND DISSEMINATION OF ALERTS
THROUGH GREEN ALERT COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.
(a) Establishment of Minimum Standards.--Subject to subsection (b),
the Coordinator, in consultation with the Department of Veterans
Affairs and the Advisory Committee, shall establish minimum standards
for--
(1) the issuance of alerts through the Green Alert
communications network; and
(2) the extent of the dissemination of alerts issued
through the network.
(b) Limitations.--
(1) Voluntary participation.--The minimum standards
established under subsection (a) of this section, and any other
guidelines and programs established under section 4, shall be
adoptable on a voluntary basis only.
(2) Dissemination of information.--The minimum standards
shall, to the maximum extent practicable (as determined by the
Coordinator in consultation with State, Tribal government, and
local law enforcement agencies), provide that appropriate
information relating to the special needs of a missing veteran
(including health care needs) are disseminated to the
appropriate law enforcement, public health, and other public
officials.
(3) Geographic areas.--The minimum standards shall, to the
maximum extent practicable (as determined by the Coordinator in
consultation with State and local law enforcement agencies),
provide that the dissemination of an alert through the Green
Alert communications network be limited to the geographic areas
which the missing veteran could reasonably reach, considering
the missing veteran's circumstances and physical ability, the
modes of transportation available to the missing veteran, and
the circumstances of the disappearance.
(4) Privacy and civil liberties protections.--The minimum
standards shall--
(A) ensure that alerts issued through the Green
Alert communications network comply with all applicable
Federal, State, and local privacy laws and regulations;
and
(B) include standards that specifically provide for
the protection of the privacy and sensitive medical
information of missing veterans.
(5) State and local voluntary coordination.--In carrying
out the activities under subsection (a), the Coordinator may
not interfere with the current system of voluntary coordination
between local broadcasters and State and local law enforcement
agencies for purposes of the Green Alert communications
network.
SEC. 6. TRAINING AND OTHER RESOURCES.
The Coordinator shall make available to States, Tribal governments,
units of local government, law enforcement agencies, and other
concerned entities that are involved in initiating, facilitating, or
promoting Green Alerts, including broadcasters, first responders,
dispatchers, public safety communications personnel, and radio station
personnel--
(1) training and educational programs related to the Green
Alert communications network and the capabilities, limitations,
and anticipated behaviors of missing veterans, which shall be
updated regularly to encourage the use of new tools,
technologies, and resources in Green Alert plans;
(2) informational materials, including brochures, videos,
posters, and websites to support and supplement such training
and educational programs;
(3) support, using funding authorized under section 7, to
create or integrate such Green alerts into an existing State
alert system;
(4) funding, using funds authorized under section 7, for a
full-time State Green Alert Coordinator to carry out the
State's Green Alert Plan; and
(5) other assistance, as determined appropriate by the
Coordinator, to support the purposes of this Act.
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE GREEN ALERT
COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK.
There are authorized to be appropriated to the Attorney General
$3,000,000 to carry out the Green Alert communications network as
authorized under this Act. States receiving assistance under this
program must submit a Green Alert Plan containing any information that
the Coordinator shall require. Such plan must include a description of
how they intend to coordinate with other Alert systems in the State and
work with Tribal governments in the State.
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