[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 170 (Tuesday, November 29, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H6319-H6321]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RESPONSE ACT OF 2016
Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (S. 546) to establish the Railroad Emergency Services
Preparedness, Operational Needs, and Safety Evaluation (RESPONSE)
Subcommittee under the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National
Advisory Council to provide recommendations on emergency responder
training and resources relating to hazardous materials incidents
involving railroads, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 546
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 ``RESPONSE Act of 2016''.
SEC. 2. RAILROAD EMERGENCY SERVICES PREPAREDNESS, OPERATIONAL
NEEDS, AND SAFETY EVALUATION SUBCOMMITTEE.
Section 508 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C.
318) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
``(d) RESPONSE Subcommittee.--
``(1) Establishment.--Not later than 30 days after the date
of the enactment of the RESPONSE Act of 2016, the
Administrator shall establish, as a subcommittee of the
National Advisory Council, the Railroad Emergency Services
Preparedness, Operational Needs, and Safety Evaluation
Subcommittee (referred to in this subsection as the `RESPONSE
Subcommittee').
``(2) Membership.--Notwithstanding subsection (c), the
RESPONSE Subcommittee shall be composed of the following:
``(A) The Deputy Administrator, Protection and National
Preparedness of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or
designee.
``(B) The Chief Safety Officer of the Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or designee.
``(C) The Associate Administrator for Hazardous Materials
Safety of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration, or designee.
``(D) The Director of the Office of Emergency
Communications of the Department of Homeland Security, or
designee.
``(E) The Director for the Office of Railroad, Pipeline and
Hazardous Materials Investigations of the National
Transportation Safety Board, or designee.
``(F) The Chief Safety Officer and Associate Administrator
for Railroad Safety of the Federal Railroad Administration,
or designee.
``(G) The Assistant Administrator for Security Policy and
Industry Engagement of the Transportation Security
Administration, or designee.
``(H) The Assistant Commandant for Response Policy of the
Coast Guard, or designee.
``(I) The Assistant Administrator for the Office of Solid
Waste and Emergency Response of the Environmental Protection
Agency, or designee.
``(J) Such other qualified individuals as the co-
chairpersons shall jointly appoint as soon as practicable
after the date of the enactment of the RESPONSE Act of 2016
from among the following:
``(i) Members of the National Advisory Council that have
the requisite technical knowledge and expertise to address
rail emergency response issues, including members from the
following disciplines:
``(I) Emergency management and emergency response
providers, including fire service, law enforcement, hazardous
materials response, and emergency medical services.
``(II) State, local, and tribal government officials.
``(ii) Individuals who have the requisite technical
knowledge and expertise to serve on the RESPONSE
Subcommittee, including at least 1 representative from each
of the following:
``(I) The rail industry.
``(II) Rail labor
``(III) Persons who offer oil for transportation by rail.
``(IV) The communications industry.
``(V) Emergency response providers, including individuals
nominated by national organizations representing State and
local governments and emergency responders.
``(VI) Emergency response training providers.
``(VII) Representatives from tribal organizations.
``(VIII) Technical experts.
``(IX) Vendors, developers, and manufacturers of systems,
facilities, equipment, and capabilities for emergency
responder services.
``(iii) Representatives of such other stakeholders and
interested and affected parties as the co-chairpersons
consider appropriate.
``(3) Co-chairpersons.--The members described in
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (2) shall serve as the
co-chairpersons of the RESPONSE Subcommittee.
``(4) Initial meeting.--The initial meeting of the RESPONSE
Subcommittee shall take place not later than 90 days after
the date of enactment of the RESPONSE Act of 2016.
[[Page H6320]]
``(5) Consultation with nonmembers.--The RESPONSE
Subcommittee and the program offices for emergency responder
training and resources shall consult with other relevant
agencies and groups, including entities engaged in federally
funded research and academic institutions engaged in relevant
work and research, which are not represented on the RESPONSE
Subcommittee to consider new and developing technologies and
methods that may be beneficial to preparedness and response
to rail hazardous materials incidents.
``(6) Recommendations.--The RESPONSE Subcommittee shall
develop recommendations, as appropriate, for improving
emergency responder training and resource allocation for
hazardous materials incidents involving railroads after
evaluating the following topics:
``(A) The quality and application of training for State and
local emergency responders related to rail hazardous
materials incidents, including training for emergency
responders serving small communities near railroads,
including the following:
``(i) Ease of access to relevant training for State and
local emergency responders, including an analysis of--
``(I) the number of individuals being trained;
``(II) the number of individuals who are applying;
``(III) whether current demand is being met;
``(IV) current challenges; and
``(V) projected needs.
``(ii) Modernization of training course content related to
rail hazardous materials incidents, with a particular focus
on fluctuations in oil shipments by rail, including regular
and ongoing evaluation of course opportunities, adaptation to
emerging trends, agency and private sector outreach,
effectiveness and ease of access for State and local
emergency responders.
``(iii) Identification of overlap in training content and
identification of opportunities to develop complementary
courses and materials among governmental and nongovernmental
entities.
``(iv) Online training platforms, train-the-trainer, and
mobile training options.
``(B) The availability and effectiveness of Federal, State,
local, and nongovernmental funding levels related to training
emergency responders for rail hazardous materials incidents,
including emergency responders serving small communities near
railroads, including--
``(i) identifying overlap in resource allocations;
``(ii) identifying cost savings measures that can be
implemented to increase training opportunities;
``(iii) leveraging government funding with nongovernmental
funding to enhance training opportunities and fill existing
training gaps;
``(iv) adaptation of priority settings for agency funding
allocations in response to emerging trends;
``(v) historic levels of funding across Federal agencies
for rail hazardous materials incident response and training,
including funding provided by the private sector to public
entities or in conjunction with Federal programs; and
``(vi) current funding resources across agencies.
``(C) The strategy for integrating commodity flow studies,
mapping, and rail and hazardous materials databases for State
and local emergency responders and increasing the rate of
access to the individual responder in existing or emerging
communications technology.
``(7) Report.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
the enactment of the RESPONSE Act of 2016, the RESPONSE
Subcommittee shall submit a report to the National Advisory
Council that--
``(i) includes the recommendations developed under
paragraph (6);
``(ii) specifies the timeframes for implementing any such
recommendations that do not require congressional action; and
``(iii) identifies any such recommendations that do require
congressional action.
``(B) Review.--Not later than 30 days after receiving the
report under subparagraph (A), the National Advisory Council
shall begin a review of the report. The National Advisory
Council may ask for additional clarification, changes, or
other information from the RESPONSE Subcommittee to assist in
the approval of the recommendations.
``(C) Recommendation.--Once the National Advisory Council
approves the recommendations of the RESPONSE Subcommittee,
the National Advisory Council shall submit the report to--
``(i) the co-chairpersons of the RESPONSE Subcommittee;
``(ii) the head of each other agency represented on the
RESPONSE Subcommittee;
``(iii) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate;
``(iv) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate;
``(v) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of
Representatives; and
``(vi) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
of the House of Representatives.
``(8) Interim activity.--
``(A) Updates and oversight.--After the submission of the
report by the National Advisory Council under paragraph (7),
the Administrator shall--
``(i) provide annual updates to the congressional
committees referred to in paragraph (7)(C) regarding the
status of the implementation of the recommendations developed
under paragraph (6); and
``(ii) coordinate the implementation of the recommendations
described in paragraph (6)(G)(i), as appropriate.
``(B) Sunset.--The requirements of subparagraph (A) shall
terminate on the date that is 2 years after the date of the
submission of the report required under paragraph (7)(A).
``(9) Termination.--The RESPONSE Subcommittee shall
terminate not later than 90 days after the submission of the
report required under paragraph (7)(C).''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Denham) and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr.
Capuano) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
General Leave
Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous materials on S. 546, as amended.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, rail safety is critical to the transport of goods and
services throughout our country. As chairman of the Railroads,
Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials Subcommittee, I have consistently
worked to improve the safety of transporting hazardous materials by
rail, especially crude by rail.
In the Passenger Rail Reform and Investment Act of 2015, and later in
the FAST Act, Congress required response plans and adopted strong
national standards for transporting hazardous materials by rail.
Additionally, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has held
several hearings at both the full committee and subcommittee level to
examine how Congress can improve upon what is already a very safe rail
network.
I personally have facilitated training for dozens of first responders
in my district to ensure they are prepared to respond in the unlikely
event of an accident involving hazardous materials transported by rail.
Recently, I traveled with my good friends, Ranking Member Capuano and
Congressman Farenthold, to Colorado and the Transportation Technology
Center to see how the first responder community trains for tank car
accidents and the investments our Nation's freight railroad are making
to build a safer network.
The bill before us today is an extension of these efforts to build
and advance rail safety across our Nation. The RESPONSE Act tasks both
government and nongovernmental experts to develop recommendations
improving emergency responder training for hazardous materials
incidents involving rail.
It requires the evaluation of a number of issues related to rail
hazmat incidents, including the quality and application of training for
local emergency first responders. Additionally, it looks at overlap in
training and ways to modernize training for emergency responders,
especially those in small communities near railroads.
This bill will further improve rail safety and enhance responses to
rail hazmat incidents. I saw how important this hands-on training can
be in August at the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo. I
believe that this bill will build upon the safety of our rail network
in communities like mine.
Again, I want to thank the chairman, Mr. Kind, and Senator Heitkamp
for working on this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CAPUANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill as well. I want to thank
Ranking Member Denham, Chairman Shuster, and Ranking Member DeFazio for
taking the lead on this bill.
Very simply, this is the simplest bill in the world, to be perfectly
honest. It gets all the stakeholders together to simply take a look at
the current responses we have when there is a disaster relative to rail
accidents.
It gets them all in one room to take a look at best practices to
figure out what they can do better and to see if resources are
allocated well. It is not just Washington insiders. It includes people
from the rail industry, people from the labor community, and people
from the public safety community at local and State levels. It gets
everybody at the table to do things that Congress is not equipped to do
appropriately. We are not the safety experts; they are.
There is a time limit. This is not one of those endless committees
that is
[[Page H6321]]
going to sit there forever. For 1 year, they get together, work it out
amongst themselves, and come back with recommendations to us so that we
can do our job well, which is to support the people actually
suppressing these fires and maintaining the safety of our communities.
Again, I rise in support of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. DENHAM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, this is a great bill. I urge my
colleagues to join me in supporting this important piece of
legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from California (Mr. Denham) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, S. 546, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________