[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 142 (Monday, October 5, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10115-S10117]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SAFE PRISONS COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 2009

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 166, S. 251.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 251

       A bill (S. 251) to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to 
     permit targeted interference with mobile radio services 
     within facilities.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill 
which had been reported from the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation with an amendment to strike all after the enacting 
clause and insert in lieu thereof the following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Safe Prisons Communications 
     Act of 2009''.

     SEC. 2. INTERFERENCE PERMITTED WITHIN CORRECTIONAL 
                   FACILITIES.

       Title III of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 301 
     et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 333 the 
     following:

     ``SEC. 333A. JAMMING UNAUTHORIZED WIRELESS DEVICES IN 
                   CORRECTIONAL FACILITIES.

       ``(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     this Act, after the Commission has promulgated final 
     regulations under sections 3 and 4 of the Safe Prisons 
     Communications Act of 2009, the Commission may authorize the 
     supervisory authority of a correctional facility to operate a 
     jamming system within the correctional facility to prevent, 
     jam, or otherwise interfere with unauthorized wireless 
     communications within the facility by individuals held in the 
     facility. In order to obtain such authority, a supervisory 
     authority shall file a notice of intent under subsection (b), 
     file a petition for such authority under subsection (c), and 
     comply with the requirements of this section and the 
     regulations under this section.
       ``(b) Notice of Intent Procedure.--
       ``(1) Filing with the commission.--Not less than 30 days 
     before filing a petition for authority to operate a jamming 
     system under subsection (c), a correctional facility 
     supervisory authority shall file with the Commission a notice 
     of intent to seek such authority. The notice shall identify 
     the correctional facility to which the authority will relate 
     and be in such form, and contain such information, as the 
     Commission may require.
       ``(2) Notification of public safety agencies and commercial 
     mobile service providers.--Within 10 days after receiving a 
     notice under paragraph (1), the Commission shall--
       ``(A) notify in writing each public safety agency and each 
     commercial mobile service provider serving the area in which 
     the correctional facility to which the notice of intent 
     relates is located; and
       ``(B) provide the name and address of each such agency and 
     provider so notified by the Commission to the supervisory 
     authority that filed the notice of intent.
       ``(3) Consultation and access.--Before filing a petition 
     for jamming authority under this section, a supervisory 
     authority--
       ``(A) shall consult with the public safety agencies and 
     commercial mobile service providers identified by the 
     Commission under paragraph (2)(B), if such consultation is 
     requested, to determine--
       ``(i) the types of equipment used by those agencies and 
     providers in the area in which the correctional facility is 
     located;
       ``(ii) the locations of towers and facilities containing 
     wireless transmission equipment belonging to those agencies 
     and providers in that area, to the extent those agencies and 
     providers voluntarily provide such information; and
       ``(iii) the frequencies used by those agencies and 
     providers in that area;
       ``(B) shall provide access, upon request and in the 
     discretion of the supervisory authority, by those agencies 
     and providers to the outer perimeter of the correctional 
     facility for the purpose of taking measurements and 
     conducting testing to determine signal strength and the 
     potential for interference with their transmissions or 
     service; and
       ``(C) may solicit recommendations from those agencies and 
     providers on the selection, installation, and configuration 
     of a jamming system and jamming devices.
       ``(4) Extension of consultation period.--Upon good cause 
     shown, the Commission may require a supervisory authority 
     that has filed a notice of intent under this subsection to 
     provide an additional period of up to 15 days for the 
     activities described in paragraph (3) before submitting a 
     petition for jamming authority to the Commission.
       ``(c) Petition Procedure.--
       ``(1) In general.--After completing the consultation 
     process provided under subsection (b)(3) (if such 
     consultation was requested), a supervisory authority may file 
     a petition with the Commission requesting authority to 
     install and operate a jamming system within a correctional 
     facility under the supervisory authority's jurisdiction.
       ``(2) Fee.--The Commission may not charge a filing fee for 
     a petition under this section.
       ``(3) Notification of public safety agencies and commercial 
     mobile service providers.--
       ``(A) Public safety agencies.--Upon receipt of a petition 
     under paragraph (1), the Commission shall provide a copy of 
     the petition to each public safety agency serving the area 
     that includes the correctional facility to which the petition 
     applies.
       ``(B) CMS providers.--Upon receipt of a petition under 
     paragraph (1), the Commission shall provide a copy of the 
     petition to each commercial mobile service provider serving 
     the area that includes the correctional facility to which the 
     petition applies.
       ``(C) Content of notice.--The notice shall include a 
     detailed description of the jamming system and a list of all 
     jamming devices, including make and model, that the 
     supervisory authority proposes to use at the correctional 
     facility.
       ``(4) Disposition of petition.--
       ``(A) In general.--After the Commission has promulgated 
     final regulations under sections 3 and 4 of the Safe Prisons 
     Communications Act of 2009, the Commission shall act on a 
     petition under this subsection within 60 days after the date 
     on which the Commission receives a complete petition.
       ``(B) Determination considerations.--In determining whether 
     to grant requested jamming authority, the Commission--

[[Page S10116]]

       ``(i) shall consider, among other factors it deems 
     appropriate, whether the proposed jamming system would 
     interfere with emergency or public safety agency 
     communications and the extent to which the proposed jamming 
     system may cause harmful interference to commercial mobile 
     service communications outside the boundaries of the 
     correctional facility;
       ``(ii) shall consider whether the facility in question is 
     located in an urban area (as defined by the Commission for 
     purposes of this subsection); and
       ``(iii) shall address the potential interference with 
     public safety agency communications and commercial mobile 
     service (as defined in section 332(d)(1)) in such area.
       ``(C) Public comment.--Before making a determination under 
     this paragraph, the Commission shall allow interested parties 
     to submit evidence for the record regarding the interference 
     potential of the jamming system a supervisory authority 
     proposes to use at the correctional facility.
       ``(5) Post-petition coordination.--
       ``(A) FCC notification.--When the Commission approves a 
     petition under this section, the Commission shall notify each 
     public safety agency or commercial mobile service provider 
     serving the area in which the correctional facility to which 
     the petition relates is located.
       ``(B) Coordination request.--When any such agency or 
     provider is notified by the Commission under subparagraph 
     (A), it shall immediately notify the supervisory authority of 
     the correctional facility if it intends to participate in the 
     coordination under subparagraph (C) or the examination under 
     subparagraph (D).
       ``(C) Installation and configuration.--During the 30-day 
     period beginning on the date on which the Commission approves 
     a petition, the correctional facility supervising authority 
     that filed the petition shall, upon request, coordinate the 
     installation and configuration of the jamming system 
     authorized by the Commission with any public safety agency or 
     commercial mobile service provider serving the area in which 
     the correctional facility is located.
       ``(D) Inspection.--Except as provided in subparagraph (E), 
     before commencing the operation of a jamming system 
     authorized by the Commission, the correctional facility 
     supervisory authority that filed the petition shall, upon 
     request, provide access to the correctional facility to any 
     such public safety agency or commercial mobile service 
     provider for the purpose of examining the installation or 
     configuration of the jamming system and jamming devices.
       ``(E)  Commencement of operations.--Unless otherwise 
     directed by the Commission, a correctional facility 
     supervisory authority authorized by the Commission to operate 
     a jamming system may commence operation of the system 30 days 
     after the date on which the Commission approves the petition 
     filed by that authority.
       ``(d) Terms of Authorization.--
       ``(1) Term.--If the Commission grants a petition under this 
     section, the authority granted pursuant to that petition 
     shall be in effect for a term specified by the Commission of 
     not more than 5 years, but shall be renewable by petition.
       ``(2) Termination or suspension of authority.--
       ``(A) Notice from provider.--The Commission shall 
     immediately suspend authorization granted under this section 
     with respect to a correctional facility upon receiving 
     written notice from a commercial mobile service provider, 
     supported by affidavit and such documentation as the 
     Commission may require, stating that use of a jamming device 
     by or at such correctional facility is interfering with 
     commercial mobile service, or is otherwise preventing or 
     jamming such communications (other than within the 
     correctional facility).
       ``(B) Basis for notice.--In establishing the requirements 
     for the affidavit in subparagraph (A) and the necessary 
     supporting documentation, the Commission shall require, at a 
     minimum, that the commercial mobile service provider perform 
     actual testing and measurements in the area near the 
     correctional facility and submit the results to the 
     Commission. Notice pursuant to subparagraph (A) may not be 
     predicated exclusively on customer complaints or trouble 
     reports unsupported by relevant technical analysis suggesting 
     interference.
       ``(C) Notice from public safety licensee.--The Commission 
     shall immediately suspend an authorization granted under this 
     section with respect to a correctional facility upon 
     receiving written notice from a public safety agency, 
     supported by affidavit and such documentation as the 
     Commission may require, stating that use of a device by or at 
     such correctional facility is interfering with public safety 
     agency communications systems or otherwise preventing or 
     jamming communications on that system, and describing the 
     nature of the interference.
       ``(D) Deadline for action on notice.--Within 90 days after 
     receiving notice under subparagraph (A) or subparagraph (C), 
     the Commission shall conclude an investigation to determine 
     whether the jamming device authorized for use at the 
     correctional facility is causing such interference and, based 
     on its findings and conclusions, may issue an order 
     reinstating, modifying, or terminating the authorization.
       ``(E) Noncompliant usage.--If the Commission has reason to 
     believe that a correctional facility for which an 
     authorization has been granted under this section is not in 
     compliance with the regulations under this section, the 
     Commission shall immediately suspend the authorization until 
     it can make a determination with respect to such compliance 
     after notice and an opportunity for a hearing.
       ``(3) Revocation.--The Commission may revoke an 
     authorization under this section for willful or repeated 
     violations, or failure to observe the requirements, of the 
     terms of the authorization or the regulations promulgated by 
     the Commission under this section.
       ``(4) Interim usage.--If the Commission initiates a 
     suspension or a revocation proceeding under this subsection, 
     it shall prohibit use of an authorized jamming system or 
     device at the correctional facility during the pendency of 
     any such proceeding.
       ``(e) Limitations on Authorization.--
       ``(1) Transfer prohibited.--A correctional facility 
     supervisory authority authorized by the Commission to operate 
     a jamming system may not transfer the ownership or right to 
     use the jamming system or associated jamming devices to any 
     third party for use inside or outside the area of the 
     correctional facility for which the authorization was 
     granted.
       ``(2) Location; use by other parties.--The Commission shall 
     require any correctional facility supervisory authority to 
     prevent the use of an authorized jamming system (including 
     any jamming device used by the system)--
       ``(A) in any location other than the correctional facility 
     where use of the system is authorized; or
       ``(B) by any entity other than the correctional facility 
     where use of the jamming system is authorized.
       ``(3) Limitations on use.--The Commission shall require 
     that any correctional facility supervisory authority granted 
     authority under this section to operate a jamming system--
       ``(A) utilize only a jamming device--
       ``(i) authorized by the Commission; and
       ``(ii) specifically approved by the Commission for the 
     purposes of this section;
       ``(B) operate the jamming device at the lowest possible 
     transmission power necessary to prevent, jam, or interfere 
     with wireless communications by within the facility by 
     individuals held in the facility;
       ``(C) operate the device on a directionalized basis, and 
     utilizing all other reasonable interference-limiting 
     capabilities, in a manner that does not interfere with public 
     safety agency communications or lawful commercial wireless 
     communications that originate and terminate inside or outside 
     the area of the correctional facility;
       ``(D) operate the jamming device only in the frequencies 
     necessary to prevent, jam, or interfere with wireless 
     communications within the correctional facility;
       ``(E) have a documented method of controlling custody of 
     such devices and ensure that any jamming device operated 
     pursuant to the authority is destroyed upon expiration of the 
     authority, or at such time as a jamming device is removed 
     from service for any other reason, including replacement by 
     another device;
       ``(F) have a documented method of inspecting the jamming 
     system on a quarterly basis to ensure proper functioning, and 
     a documented method to limit access to the system to 
     personnel specifically designated by the correctional 
     facility;
       ``(G) install the jamming system in a secure area that is 
     inaccessible to individuals held in the facility and connect 
     the system to a permanent power supply with back-up power 
     sources; and
       ``(H) have a documented method of sealing or locking the 
     jamming system so as to prevent tampering.
       ``(4) Destruction of unused or expired jamming devices; 
     notification of additional jamming device acquisitions.--Any 
     correctional facility supervisory authority authorized to 
     operate a jamming system shall--
       ``(A) destroy a jamming device within 60 days after the 
     date on which such authorization expires unless a petition is 
     pending for renewal of the authorization;
       ``(B) destroy any such jamming device that is permanently 
     removed from service;
       ``(C) certify such destruction to the Commission; and
       ``(D) notify the Commission upon the acquisition of any 
     jamming device that replaces a destroyed device.
       ``(f) Database.--The Commission shall maintain an 
     electronic database containing a copy of each notice of 
     intent and each petition received by it under this section 
     and the disposition thereof. The Commission shall update the 
     database at least monthly and, to the extent consistent with 
     public safety and welfare, shall make the contents of the 
     database available upon request to a commercial mobile 
     service provider or public safety agency.
       ``(g) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) Commercial mobile service provider.--The term 
     `commercial mobile service provider' means a person providing 
     commercial mobile service (as defined in section 332(d)(1)).
       ``(2) Correctional facility.--In this subsection, the term 
     `correctional facility' means a jail, prison, penitentiary, 
     or other correctional facility.
       ``(3) Jamming device.--The term `jamming device' means a 
     radio signal generating device used as part of a jamming 
     system designed to disrupt, prevent, interfere with, or jam 
     wireless communications.
       ``(4) Jamming system.--The term `jamming system' means a 
     system of radio signal generating and processing equipment 
     and antennas designed to disrupt, prevent, interfere with, or 
     jam wireless communications within a correctional facility 
     and includes the components and functionality of the system, 
     such as antennas, cabling, and cable elements, the 
     installation, interconnection, and operation of system 
     elements, power levels, and radio frequencies carried on the 
     cables or fed into antennas, the radiation pattern of such 
     antennas, and the location and orientation of the antennas.
       ``(5) Public safety agency.--The term `public safety 
     agency' has the meaning given that term in section 3006(j)(1) 
     of the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 
     2005 (47 U.S.C. 309 note).
       ``(6) Supervisory authority.--The term `supervisory 
     authority' means the Director of the

[[Page S10117]]

     Federal Bureau of Prisons, the chief executive officer of a 
     State (or his or her designee), or the person in charge of a 
     county or local correctional facility not under the authority 
     of the chief executive officer of a State.''.

     SEC. 3. FCC RULEMAKING REQUIRED.

       Within 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 
     the Federal Communications Commission shall initiate a 
     rulemaking proceeding and shall promulgate final regulations 
     governing the use of jamming systems in correctional 
     facilities under section 333A of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 333A). In the proceeding, the Commission 
     shall--
       (1) solicit and consider the recommendations of the 
     National Telecommunications and Information Administration, 
     as well as 1 or more entities with relevant technical 
     expertise in order to develop standards and processes for 
     such jamming systems and jamming devices (as such terms are 
     defined in that section); and
       (2) consider all available technologies capable of 
     preventing the operation of unauthorized wireless 
     communications devices in correctional facilities, including 
     those devices that may evade detection by the supervisory 
     authority of such a facility.

     SEC. 4. DEVICE CERTIFICATION CRITERIA RULEMAKING.

       (a) In General.--Within 120 days after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission 
     shall adopt a final rule establishing criteria for 
     certification for the manufacture, sale, importation, and 
     interstate shipment of devices that may be used pursuant to 
     authorization under section 333A of the Communications Act of 
     1934 (47 U.S.C. 333A), notwithstanding section 302 of such 
     Act (47 U.S.C. 302). In carrying out the requirements of this 
     subsection, the Commission shall consider whether such 
     devices can effectively prevent, jam, or interfere with 
     wireless communications within a correctional facility (as 
     defined in section 333A(g)(2) of that Act (47 U.S.C. 
     333A(g)(2))) without causing harmful interference with 
     commercial mobile services between points outside facility 
     boundaries, or public safety agency wireless communications 
     services between points inside, pursuant to a public safety 
     agency responding to an incident in a correctional facility, 
     and outside facility boundaries. The regulations shall 
     require, at a minimum, that any such device--
       (1) operate at the lowest technically feasible transmission 
     power that will permit correctional facility staff to 
     prevent, jam, or interfere with wireless communications 
     within the geographic boundaries of a correctional facility 
     by individuals held in the facility;
       (2) be capable of directionalized operation and limited to 
     approved frequencies;
       (3) comply with any other technical standards deemed 
     necessary or appropriate by the Commission to ensure that the 
     device does not create interference to other than the 
     targeted wireless communications;
       (4) be marketed and sold only to correctional facility 
     supervisory authority (as defined in section 333A(g) of the 
     Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 333A(g)) authorized by 
     the Commission under section 333A) of that Act (47 U.S.C. 
     333A) to possess and operate such a device; and
       (5) is capable of being shut off from jamming public safety 
     agency communications within and around a correctional 
     facility when a public safety agency is responding to an 
     incident at the facility, such as a fire, explosion, medical 
     emergency, or otherwise.
       (b) Technician Credentialing.--As part of the rulemaking 
     proceeding required by subsection (a), the Commission shall 
     seek public comment on whether to establish minimum training, 
     certification, and eligibility requirements for technicians 
     qualified to work on jamming systems installed and operated 
     by a supervisory authority. The Commission may establish such 
     training, certification, and eligibility criteria as part of 
     the final rule adopted under subsection (a).
       (c) Certification Process.--The Commission shall conduct 
     field testing of proposed devices to determine whether they 
     can operate without causing harmful interference with 
     commercial mobile service communications outside the 
     boundaries of such a correctional facility or public safety 
     agency wireless communications inside, pursuant to a public 
     safety entity responding to an incident in a correctional 
     facility, and outside the boundaries of such a correctional 
     facility. The Commission shall conduct such testing through a 
     public testing process and program. After the date on which 
     the final rule promulgated under subsection (a) is published 
     in the Federal Register, the Commission shall grant or deny 
     an application for certification of a device described in 
     subsection (a) within 120 calendar days of receiving an 
     application therefor.
       (d) List of Devices.--The Commission shall maintain a list 
     of all approved devices on its web site including the make 
     and model of each approved device and its technical 
     specifications and operating parameters.

  Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent that the committee-reported 
substitute be agreed to; the bill, as amended, be read a third time, 
passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any 
statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  The bill (S. 251), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a 
third reading, was read the third time and passed.

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