[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 113 (Thursday, August 1, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6257-S6258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HELPING HEROES FLY ACT

  Mr. REID. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the Commerce 
Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 1344, and 
that the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 1344) to amend title 49, United States Code, 
     to direct the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security 
     (Transportation Security Administration) to provide expedited 
     air passenger screening to severely injured or disabled 
     members of the Armed Forces and severely injured or disabled 
     veterans, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. REID. I further ask that the Pryor substitute amendment which is 
at the desk be agreed to, and the bill, as amended, be read the third 
time and passed, and that any motions to reconsider be considered made, 
with no intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 1848) was agreed to, as follows:
       Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Helping Heroes Fly Act''.

     SEC. 2. OPERATIONS CENTER PROGRAM FOR SEVERELY INJURED OR 
                   DISABLED MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES AND 
                   SEVERELY INJURED OR DISABLED VETERANS.

       (a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 449 of title 49, 
     United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

     ``Sec. 44927. Expedited screening for severely injured or 
       disabled members of the Armed Forces and severely injured 
       or disabled veterans

       ``(a) Passenger Screening.--The Assistant Secretary, in 
     consultation with the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs, and organizations identified by the 
     Secretaries of Defense and Veteran Affairs that advocate on 
     behalf of severely injured or disabled members of the Armed 
     Forces and severely injured or disabled veterans, shall 
     develop and implement a process to support and facilitate the 
     ease of travel and to the extent possible provide expedited 
     passenger screening services for severely injured or disabled 
     members of the Armed Forces and severely injured or disabled 
     veterans through passenger screening. The process shall be 
     designed to offer the individual private screening to the 
     maximum extent practicable.
       ``(b) Operations Center.--As part of the process under 
     subsection (a), the Assistant Secretary shall maintain an 
     operations center to provide support and facilitate the 
     movement of severely injured or disabled members of the Armed 
     Forces and severely injured or disabled veterans through 
     passenger screening prior to boarding a passenger aircraft 
     operated by an air carrier or

[[Page S6258]]

     foreign air carrier in air transportation or intrastate air 
     transportation.
       ``(c) Protocols.--The Assistant Secretary shall--
       ``(1) establish and publish protocols, in consultation with 
     the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, 
     and the organizations identified under subsection (a), under 
     which a severely injured or disabled member of the Armed 
     Forces or severely injured or disabled veteran, or the family 
     member or other representative of such member or veteran, may 
     contact the operations center maintained under subsection (b) 
     and request the expedited passenger screening services 
     described in subsection (a) for that member or veteran; and
       ``(2) upon receipt of a request under paragraph (1), 
     require the operations center to notify the appropriate 
     Federal Security Director of the request for expedited 
     passenger screening services, as described in subsection (a), 
     for that member or veteran.
       ``(d) Training.--The Assistant Secretary shall integrate 
     training on the protocols established under subsection (c) 
     into the training provided to all employees who will 
     regularly provide the passenger screening services described 
     in subsection (a).
       ``(e) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall 
     affect the authority of the Assistant Secretary to require 
     additional screening of a severely injured or disabled member 
     of the Armed Forces, a severely injured or disabled veteran, 
     or their accompanying family members or nonmedical 
     attendants, if intelligence, law enforcement, or other 
     information indicates that additional screening is necessary.
       ``(f) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the 
     Assistant Secretary shall submit to Congress a report on the 
     implementation of this section. Each report shall include 
     each of the following:
       ``(1) Information on the training provided under subsection 
     (d).
       ``(2) Information on the consultations between the 
     Assistant Secretary and the organizations identified under 
     subsection (a).
       ``(3) The number of people who accessed the operations 
     center during the period covered by the report.
       ``(4) Such other information as the Assistant Secretary 
     determines is appropriate.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of subchapter I of chapter 449 of title 49, United 
     States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating 
     to section 44926 the following new item:
``44927. Expedited screening for severely injured or disabled members 
              of the Armed Forces and severely injured or disabled 
              veterans.''.
  The amendment was ordered to be engrossed and the bill to be read a 
third time.
  The bill (H.R. 1344), as amended, was read the third time and passed.

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