[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 91 (Tuesday, June 9, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S3964]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 1949. Mr. WHITEHOUSE submitted an amendment intended to be 
proposed to amendment SA 1463 proposed by Mr. McCain to the bill H.R. 
1735, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2016 for military 
activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and 
for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe 
military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other 
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the end of subtitle A of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 1209. REPORT ON FEASIBILITY AND ADVISABILITY OF 
                   ESTABLISHING PERMANENT FOREIGN DISASTER 
                   ASSISTANCE FORCE WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF 
                   DEFENSE.

       (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in 
     consultation with the Secretaries of the military 
     departments, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and 
     the commander of each combatant command, shall submit to the 
     congressional defense committees a report on the feasibility 
     and advisability of establishing a permanent command 
     structure along with permanently assigned forces (from either 
     the active duty or reserve components) to respond to requests 
     for foreign disaster assistance.
       (b) Elements.--The report required under subsection (a) 
     should include a description of--
       (1) the funding mechanism and amount required to stand up 
     and sustain a foreign assistance disaster force;
       (2) the authorities and policies related to the role of the 
     Department of Defense in foreign disaster assistance;
       (3) the organizational and functional requirements of 
     establishing a foreign disaster assistance force; and
       (4) the requisite skills, experience, and training needed 
     to sustain an effective disaster assistance response force 
     that would be tasked with--
       (A) planning and executing disaster response missions;
       (B) coordinating with the Department of State, the United 
     States Agency for International Development, and 
     international and nongovernmental partners; and
       (C) training partner countries in preparedness and 
     response.
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