[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 171 (Wednesday, November 30, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6623-S6626]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RESPONSE SYSTEM ACT OF 2016
Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the immediate consideration of Calendar No. 578, S. 2971.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 2971) to authorize the National Urban Search and
Rescue Response System.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill,
which had been reported from the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs, with an amendment, as follows:
(The part of the bill intended to be stricken is shown in boldface
brackets and the part of the bill intended to be inserted is shown in
italics.)
S. 2971
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 ``National Urban Search and
Rescue Response System Act of 2016''.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RESPONSE SYSTEM.
(a) In General.--Title III of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5141
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 327. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RESPONSE SYSTEM.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section, the following
definitions shall apply:
``(1) Administrator.--The term `Administrator' means the
Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
``(2) Agency.--The term `Agency' means the Federal
Emergency Management Agency.
``(3) Hazard.--The term `hazard' has the meaning given the
term in section 602.
``(4) Nonemployee system member.--The term `nonemployee
System member' means a System member not employed by a
sponsoring agency or participating agency.
``(5) Participating agency.--The term `participating
agency' means a State or local government, nonprofit
organization, or private organization that has executed an
agreement with a sponsoring agency to participate in the
System.
``(6) Sponsoring agency.--The term `sponsoring agency'
means a State or local government that is the sponsor of a
task force designated by the Administrator to participate in
the System.
``(7) System.--The term `System' means the National Urban
Search and Rescue Response System to be administered under
this section.
``(8) System member.--The term `System member' means an
individual who is not a full-time employee of the Federal
Government and who serves on a task force or on a System
management or other technical team.
``(9) Task force.--The term `task force' means an urban
search and rescue team designated by the Administrator to
participate in the System.
``(b) General Authority.--Subject to the requirements of
this section, the Administrator shall continue to administer
the emergency response system known as the National Urban
Search and Rescue Response System.
``(c) Functions.--In administering the System, the
Administrator shall provide for a national network of
standardized search and rescue resources to assist States and
local governments in responding to hazards.
``(d) Task Forces.--
``(1) Designation.--The Administrator shall designate task
forces to participate in the System. The Administration shall
determine the criteria for such participation.
``(2) Sponsoring agencies.--Each task force shall have a
sponsoring agency. The Administrator shall enter into an
agreement with the sponsoring agency with respect to the
participation of each task force in the System.
``(3) Composition.--
``(A) Participating agencies.--A task force may include, at
the discretion of the sponsoring agency, 1 or more
participating agencies. The sponsoring agency shall enter
into an agreement with each participating agency with respect
to the participation of the participating agency on the task
force.
``(B) Other individuals.--A task force may also include, at
the discretion of the sponsoring agency, other individuals
not otherwise associated with the sponsoring agency or a
participating agency. The sponsoring agency of a task force
may enter into a separate agreement with each such individual
with respect to the participation of the individual on the
task force.
``(e) Management and Technical Teams.--The Administrator
shall maintain such management teams and other technical
teams as the Administrator determines are necessary to
administer the System.
``(f) Appointment of System Members Into Federal Service.--
``(1) In general.--The Administrator may appoint a System
member into Federal service for a period of service to
provide for the participation of the System member in
exercises, preincident staging, major disaster and emergency
response activities, and training events sponsored or
sanctioned by the Administrator.
``(2) Nonapplicability of certain civil service laws.--The
Administrator may make appointments under paragraph (1)
without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States
Code, governing appointments in the competitive service.
``(3) Relationship to other authorities.--The authority of
the Administrator to make appointments under this subsection
shall not
[[Page S6624]]
affect any other authority of the Administrator under this
Act.
``(4) Limitation.--A System member who is appointed into
Federal service under paragraph (1) shall not be considered
an employee of the United States for purposes other than
those specifically set forth in this section.
``(g) Compensation.--
``(1) Pay of system members.--Subject to such terms and
conditions as the Administrator may impose by regulation, the
Administrator shall make payments to the sponsoring agency of
a task force--
``(A) to reimburse each employer of a System member on the
task force for compensation paid by the employer to the
System member for any period during which the System member
is appointed into Federal service under subsection (f)(1);
and
``(B) to make payments directly to a nonemployee System
member on the task force for any period during which the
nonemployee System member is appointed into Federal service
under subsection (f)(1).
``(2) Reimbursement for employees filling positions of
system members.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to such terms and conditions as
the Administrator may impose by regulation, the Administrator
shall make payments to the sponsoring agency of a task force
to be used to reimburse each employer of a System member on
the task force for compensation paid by the employer to an
employee filling a position normally filled by the System
member for any period during which the System member is
appointed into Federal service under subsection (f)(1).
``(B) Limitation.--Costs incurred by an employer shall be
eligible for reimbursement under subparagraph (A) only to the
extent that the costs are in excess of the costs that would
have been incurred by the employer had the System member not
been appointed into Federal service under subsection (f)(1).
``(3) Method of payment.--A System member shall not be
entitled to pay directly from the Agency for a period during
which the System member is appointed into Federal Service
under subsection (f)(1).
``(h) Personal Injury, Illness, Disability, or Death.--
``(1) In general.--A System member who is appointed into
Federal service under subsection (f)(1) and who suffers
personal injury, illness, disability, or death as a result of
a personal injury sustained while acting in the scope of such
appointment, shall, for the purposes of subchapter I of
chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, be treated as
though the member were an employee (as defined by section
8101 of that title) who had sustained the injury in the
performance of duty.
``(2) Election of benefits.--
``(A) In general.--A System member (or, in the case of the
death of the System member, the System member's dependent)
who is entitled under paragraph (1) to receive benefits under
subchapter I of chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, by
reason of personal injury, illness, disability, or death, and
to receive benefits from a State or local government by
reason of the same personal injury, illness, disability or
death shall elect to--
``(i) receive benefits under such subchapter; or
``(ii) receive benefits from the State or local government.
``(B) Deadline.--A System member or dependent shall make an
election of benefits under subparagraph (A) not later than 1
year after the date of the personal injury, illness,
disability, or death that is the reason for the benefits, or
until such later date as the Secretary of Labor may allow for
reasonable cause shown.
``(C) Effect of election.--An election of benefits made
under this paragraph is irrevocable unless otherwise provided
by law.
``(3) Reimbursement for state or local benefits.--Subject
to such terms and conditions as the Administrator may impose
by regulation, if a System member or dependent elects to
receive benefits from a State or local government under
paragraph (2)(A), the Administrator shall reimburse the State
or local government for the value of the benefits.
``(4) Public safety officer claims.--Nothing in this
subsection shall be construed to bar any claim by, or with
respect to, any System member who is a public safety officer,
as defined in section 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. [3769b]
3796b), for any benefits authorized under part L of title I
of that Act (42 U.S.C. 3796 et seq.).
``(i) Liability.--A System member appointed into Federal
service under subsection (f)(1), while acting within the
scope of the appointment, shall be considered to be an
employee of the Federal Government under section 1346(b) of
title 28, United States Code, and chapter 171 of that title,
relating to tort claims procedure.
``(j) Employment and Reemployment Rights.--With respect to
a System member who is not a regular full-time employee of a
sponsoring agency or participating agency, the following
terms and conditions apply:
``(1) Service.--Service as a System member shall be
considered to be `service in the uniformed services' for
purposes of chapter 43 of title 38, United States Code,
relating to employment and reemployment rights of individuals
who have performed service in the uniformed services
(regardless of whether the individual receives compensation
for such participation). All rights and obligations of such
persons and procedures for assistance, enforcement, and
investigation shall be as provided for in such chapter.
``(2) Preclusion.--Preclusion of giving notice of service
by necessity of appointment under this section shall be
considered to be preclusion by `military necessity' for
purposes of section 4312(b) of title 38, United States Code,
pertaining to giving notice of absence from a position of
employment. A determination of such necessity shall be made
by the Administrator and shall not be subject to judicial
review.
``(k) Licenses and Permits.--If a System member holds a
valid license, certificate, or other permit issued by any
State or other governmental jurisdiction evidencing the
member's qualifications in any professional, mechanical, or
other skill or type of assistance required by the System, the
System member is deemed to be performing a Federal activity
when rendering aid involving such skill or assistance during
a period of appointment into Federal service under subsection
(f)(1).
``(l) Preparedness Cooperative Agreements.--Subject to the
availability of appropriations for such purpose, the
Administrator shall enter into an annual preparedness
cooperative agreement with each sponsoring agency. Amounts
made available to a sponsoring agency under such a
preparedness cooperative agreement shall be for the following
purposes:
``(1) Training and exercises, including training and
exercises with other Federal, State, and local government
response entities.
``(2) Acquisition and maintenance of equipment, including
interoperable communications and personal protective
equipment.
``(3) Medical monitoring required for responder safety and
health in anticipation of and following a major disaster,
emergency, or other hazard, as determined by the
Administrator.
``(m) Response Cooperative Agreements.--The Administrator
shall enter into a response cooperative agreement with each
sponsoring agency, as appropriate, under which the
Administrator agrees to reimburse the sponsoring agency for
costs incurred by the sponsoring agency in responding to a
major disaster or emergency.
``(n) Obligations.--The Administrator may incur all
necessary obligations consistent with this section in order
to ensure the effectiveness of the System.
``(o) Equipment Maintenance and Replacement.--Not later
than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section,
the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees (as defined in section 2 of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101)) a report on the
development of a plan, including implementation steps and
timeframes, to finance, maintain, and replace System
equipment.
``(p) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out the System and the provisions
of this section such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal
years 2017, 2018, and 2019.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Applicability of title 5, united states code.--Section
8101(1) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) by transferring subparagraph (F) to between
subparagraph (E) and the matter following subparagraph (E);
(C) in subparagraph (F)--
(i) by striking ``United States Code,''; and
(ii) by adding ``and'' at the end; and
(D) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the following:
``(G) an individual who is a System member of the National
Urban Search and Rescue Response System during a period of
appointment into Federal service pursuant to section 327 of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act;''.
(2) Inclusion as part of uniformed services for purposes of
userra.--Section 4303 of title 38, United States Code, is
amended--
(A) in paragraph (13), by inserting ``, a period for which
a System member of the National Urban Search and Rescue
Response System is absent from a position of employment due
to an appointment into Federal service under section 327 of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act'' before ``, and a period''; and
(B) in paragraph (16), by inserting ``System members of the
National Urban Search and Rescue Response System during a
period of appointment into Federal service under section 327
of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act,'' after ``Public Health Service,''.
Mr. DAINES. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
committee-reported amendment be agreed to, the bill, as amended, be
considered read a third time and passed, and the motion to reconsider
be considered made and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The committee-reported amendment was agreed to.
The bill (S. 2971), as amended, was ordered to be engrossed for a
third reading, was read the third time, and passed, as follows:
S. 2971
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 ``National Urban Search and
Rescue Response System Act of 2016''.
[[Page S6625]]
SEC. 2. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RESPONSE SYSTEM.
(a) In General.--Title III of the Robert T. Stafford
Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5141
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 327. NATIONAL URBAN SEARCH AND RESCUE RESPONSE SYSTEM.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section, the following
definitions shall apply:
``(1) Administrator.--The term `Administrator' means the
Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
``(2) Agency.--The term `Agency' means the Federal
Emergency Management Agency.
``(3) Hazard.--The term `hazard' has the meaning given the
term in section 602.
``(4) Nonemployee system member.--The term `nonemployee
System member' means a System member not employed by a
sponsoring agency or participating agency.
``(5) Participating agency.--The term `participating
agency' means a State or local government, nonprofit
organization, or private organization that has executed an
agreement with a sponsoring agency to participate in the
System.
``(6) Sponsoring agency.--The term `sponsoring agency'
means a State or local government that is the sponsor of a
task force designated by the Administrator to participate in
the System.
``(7) System.--The term `System' means the National Urban
Search and Rescue Response System to be administered under
this section.
``(8) System member.--The term `System member' means an
individual who is not a full-time employee of the Federal
Government and who serves on a task force or on a System
management or other technical team.
``(9) Task force.--The term `task force' means an urban
search and rescue team designated by the Administrator to
participate in the System.
``(b) General Authority.--Subject to the requirements of
this section, the Administrator shall continue to administer
the emergency response system known as the National Urban
Search and Rescue Response System.
``(c) Functions.--In administering the System, the
Administrator shall provide for a national network of
standardized search and rescue resources to assist States and
local governments in responding to hazards.
``(d) Task Forces.--
``(1) Designation.--The Administrator shall designate task
forces to participate in the System. The Administration shall
determine the criteria for such participation.
``(2) Sponsoring agencies.--Each task force shall have a
sponsoring agency. The Administrator shall enter into an
agreement with the sponsoring agency with respect to the
participation of each task force in the System.
``(3) Composition.--
``(A) Participating agencies.--A task force may include, at
the discretion of the sponsoring agency, 1 or more
participating agencies. The sponsoring agency shall enter
into an agreement with each participating agency with respect
to the participation of the participating agency on the task
force.
``(B) Other individuals.--A task force may also include, at
the discretion of the sponsoring agency, other individuals
not otherwise associated with the sponsoring agency or a
participating agency. The sponsoring agency of a task force
may enter into a separate agreement with each such individual
with respect to the participation of the individual on the
task force.
``(e) Management and Technical Teams.--The Administrator
shall maintain such management teams and other technical
teams as the Administrator determines are necessary to
administer the System.
``(f) Appointment of System Members Into Federal Service.--
``(1) In general.--The Administrator may appoint a System
member into Federal service for a period of service to
provide for the participation of the System member in
exercises, preincident staging, major disaster and emergency
response activities, and training events sponsored or
sanctioned by the Administrator.
``(2) Nonapplicability of certain civil service laws.--The
Administrator may make appointments under paragraph (1)
without regard to the provisions of title 5, United States
Code, governing appointments in the competitive service.
``(3) Relationship to other authorities.--The authority of
the Administrator to make appointments under this subsection
shall not affect any other authority of the Administrator
under this Act.
``(4) Limitation.--A System member who is appointed into
Federal service under paragraph (1) shall not be considered
an employee of the United States for purposes other than
those specifically set forth in this section.
``(g) Compensation.--
``(1) Pay of system members.--Subject to such terms and
conditions as the Administrator may impose by regulation, the
Administrator shall make payments to the sponsoring agency of
a task force--
``(A) to reimburse each employer of a System member on the
task force for compensation paid by the employer to the
System member for any period during which the System member
is appointed into Federal service under subsection (f)(1);
and
``(B) to make payments directly to a nonemployee System
member on the task force for any period during which the
nonemployee System member is appointed into Federal service
under subsection (f)(1).
``(2) Reimbursement for employees filling positions of
system members.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to such terms and conditions as
the Administrator may impose by regulation, the Administrator
shall make payments to the sponsoring agency of a task force
to be used to reimburse each employer of a System member on
the task force for compensation paid by the employer to an
employee filling a position normally filled by the System
member for any period during which the System member is
appointed into Federal service under subsection (f)(1).
``(B) Limitation.--Costs incurred by an employer shall be
eligible for reimbursement under subparagraph (A) only to the
extent that the costs are in excess of the costs that would
have been incurred by the employer had the System member not
been appointed into Federal service under subsection (f)(1).
``(3) Method of payment.--A System member shall not be
entitled to pay directly from the Agency for a period during
which the System member is appointed into Federal Service
under subsection (f)(1).
``(h) Personal Injury, Illness, Disability, or Death.--
``(1) In general.--A System member who is appointed into
Federal service under subsection (f)(1) and who suffers
personal injury, illness, disability, or death as a result of
a personal injury sustained while acting in the scope of such
appointment, shall, for the purposes of subchapter I of
chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, be treated as
though the member were an employee (as defined by section
8101 of that title) who had sustained the injury in the
performance of duty.
``(2) Election of benefits.--
``(A) In general.--A System member (or, in the case of the
death of the System member, the System member's dependent)
who is entitled under paragraph (1) to receive benefits under
subchapter I of chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, by
reason of personal injury, illness, disability, or death, and
to receive benefits from a State or local government by
reason of the same personal injury, illness, disability or
death shall elect to--
``(i) receive benefits under such subchapter; or
``(ii) receive benefits from the State or local government.
``(B) Deadline.--A System member or dependent shall make an
election of benefits under subparagraph (A) not later than 1
year after the date of the personal injury, illness,
disability, or death that is the reason for the benefits, or
until such later date as the Secretary of Labor may allow for
reasonable cause shown.
``(C) Effect of election.--An election of benefits made
under this paragraph is irrevocable unless otherwise provided
by law.
``(3) Reimbursement for state or local benefits.--Subject
to such terms and conditions as the Administrator may impose
by regulation, if a System member or dependent elects to
receive benefits from a State or local government under
paragraph (2)(A), the Administrator shall reimburse the State
or local government for the value of the benefits.
``(4) Public safety officer claims.--Nothing in this
subsection shall be construed to bar any claim by, or with
respect to, any System member who is a public safety officer,
as defined in section 1204 of title I of the Omnibus Crime
Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3796b), for
any benefits authorized under part L of title I of that Act
(42 U.S.C. 3796 et seq.).
``(i) Liability.--A System member appointed into Federal
service under subsection (f)(1), while acting within the
scope of the appointment, shall be considered to be an
employee of the Federal Government under section 1346(b) of
title 28, United States Code, and chapter 171 of that title,
relating to tort claims procedure.
``(j) Employment and Reemployment Rights.--With respect to
a System member who is not a regular full-time employee of a
sponsoring agency or participating agency, the following
terms and conditions apply:
``(1) Service.--Service as a System member shall be
considered to be `service in the uniformed services' for
purposes of chapter 43 of title 38, United States Code,
relating to employment and reemployment rights of individuals
who have performed service in the uniformed services
(regardless of whether the individual receives compensation
for such participation). All rights and obligations of such
persons and procedures for assistance, enforcement, and
investigation shall be as provided for in such chapter.
``(2) Preclusion.--Preclusion of giving notice of service
by necessity of appointment under this section shall be
considered to be preclusion by `military necessity' for
purposes of section 4312(b) of title 38, United States Code,
pertaining to giving notice of absence from a position of
employment. A determination of such necessity shall be made
by the Administrator and shall not be subject to judicial
review.
``(k) Licenses and Permits.--If a System member holds a
valid license, certificate, or other permit issued by any
State or other governmental jurisdiction evidencing the
member's qualifications in any professional, mechanical, or
other skill or type of assistance required by the System, the
System member is deemed to be performing a Federal activity
when rendering aid involving such skill or assistance during
a period of appointment into Federal service under subsection
(f)(1).
[[Page S6626]]
``(l) Preparedness Cooperative Agreements.--Subject to the
availability of appropriations for such purpose, the
Administrator shall enter into an annual preparedness
cooperative agreement with each sponsoring agency. Amounts
made available to a sponsoring agency under such a
preparedness cooperative agreement shall be for the following
purposes:
``(1) Training and exercises, including training and
exercises with other Federal, State, and local government
response entities.
``(2) Acquisition and maintenance of equipment, including
interoperable communications and personal protective
equipment.
``(3) Medical monitoring required for responder safety and
health in anticipation of and following a major disaster,
emergency, or other hazard, as determined by the
Administrator.
``(m) Response Cooperative Agreements.--The Administrator
shall enter into a response cooperative agreement with each
sponsoring agency, as appropriate, under which the
Administrator agrees to reimburse the sponsoring agency for
costs incurred by the sponsoring agency in responding to a
major disaster or emergency.
``(n) Obligations.--The Administrator may incur all
necessary obligations consistent with this section in order
to ensure the effectiveness of the System.
``(o) Equipment Maintenance and Replacement.--Not later
than 180 days after the date of enactment of this section,
the Administrator shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees (as defined in section 2 of the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101)) a report on the
development of a plan, including implementation steps and
timeframes, to finance, maintain, and replace System
equipment.
``(p) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out the System and the provisions
of this section such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal
years 2017, 2018, and 2019.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Applicability of title 5, united states code.--Section
8101(1) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(A) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(B) by transferring subparagraph (F) to between
subparagraph (E) and the matter following subparagraph (E);
(C) in subparagraph (F)--
(i) by striking ``United States Code,''; and
(ii) by adding ``and'' at the end; and
(D) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the following:
``(G) an individual who is a System member of the National
Urban Search and Rescue Response System during a period of
appointment into Federal service pursuant to section 327 of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act;''.
(2) Inclusion as part of uniformed services for purposes of
userra.--Section 4303 of title 38, United States Code, is
amended--
(A) in paragraph (13), by inserting ``, a period for which
a System member of the National Urban Search and Rescue
Response System is absent from a position of employment due
to an appointment into Federal service under section 327 of
the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act'' before ``, and a period''; and
(B) in paragraph (16), by inserting ``System members of the
National Urban Search and Rescue Response System during a
period of appointment into Federal service under section 327
of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act,'' after ``Public Health Service,''.
____________________