[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 94 (Thursday, June 7, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3353-S3354]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 2474. Mr. SCHATZ (for himself, Mr. Gardner, and Mr. Sullivan)
submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 2282
submitted by Mr. Inhofe (for himself and Mr. McCain) and intended to be
proposed to the bill H.R. 5515, to authorize appropriations for fiscal
year 2019 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 I of title VIII, add the following:
SEC. 896. INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYSTEM.
(a) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``Administrator'' means the Administrator of
the Agency;
(2) the term ``Agency'' means the Federal Emergency
Management Agency;
(3) the term ``public alert and warning system'' means the
integrated public alert and warning system of the United
States described in section 526 of the Homeland Security Act
of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 321o);
(4) the term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Homeland
Security; and
(5) the term ``State'' means any State of the United
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any
possession of the United States.
(b) Integrated Public Alert and Warning System
Subcommittee.--Section 2 of the Integrated Public Alert and
Warning System Modernization Act of 2015 (Public Law 114-143;
130 Stat. 327) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (6)(B)--
(i) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(ii) in clause (ii)(VII), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(iii) recommendations for best practices of State,
tribal, and local governments to follow to maintain the
integrity of the public alert and warning system, including--
``(I) the procedures for State, tribal, and local
government officials to authenticate civil emergencies and
initiate, modify, and cancel alerts transmitted through the
public alert and warning system, including protocols and
technology capabilities for--
``(aa) the initiation, or prohibition on the initiation, of
alerts by a single authorized or unauthorized individual; and
``(bb) testing a State, tribal, or local government
incident management and warning tool without accidentally
initiating an alert through the public alert and warning
system;
``(II) the standardization, functionality, and
interoperability of incident management and warning tools
used by State, tribal, and local governments to notify the
public of an emergency through the public alert and warning
system;
``(III) the training and recertification of emergency
management personnel on best practices for originating and
transmitting an alert through the public alert and warning
system; and
``(IV) the procedures, protocols, and guidance concerning
the protective action plans that State, tribal, and local
governments should issue to the public following an alert
issued under the public alert and warning system.'';
(B) in paragraph (7)--
(i) in subparagraph (A)--
(I) by striking ``Not later than'' and inserting the
following:
``(i) Initial report.--Not later than'';
(II) in clause (i), as so designated, by striking
``paragraph (6)'' and inserting ``clauses (i) and (ii) of
paragraph (6)(B)''; and
(III) by adding at the end the following:
``(ii) Second report.--Not later than 18 months after the
date of enactment of this clause, the Subcommittee shall
submit to the National Advisory Council a report containing
any recommendations required to be developed under paragraph
(6)(B)(iii) for approval by the National Advisory Council.'';
and
(ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``report'' each place
that term appears and inserting ``reports'';
(C) in paragraph (8), by striking ``3'' and inserting
``5''; and
(2) in subsection (c), by striking ``and 2018'' and
inserting ``2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021''.
(c) Integrated Public Alert and Warning System
Participatory Requirements.--The Administrator shall--
(1) consider the recommendations submitted by the
Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Subcommittee to
the National Advisory Council under section 2(b)(7) of the
Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Modernization Act
of 2015 (Public Law 114-143; 130 Stat. 331), as amended by
subsection (b) of this section; and
(2) not later than 120 days after the date on which the
recommendations described in subparagraph (A) are submitted,
establish minimum requirements for State, tribal, and local
governments to participate in the public alert and warning
system consistent with all public notice rules and
regulations in law.
(d) Incident Management and Warning Tool Validation.--
(1) In general.--The Administrator shall establish a
process to ensure that an incident management and warning
tool used by a State, tribal, or local government to
originate and transmit an alert through the public alert and
warning system meets the minimum requirements established by
the Administrator under subsection (c)(2).
(2) Requirements.--The process required to be established
under paragraph (1) shall include--
(A) the ability to test an incident management and warning
tool in the public alert and warning system lab;
(B) the ability to certify that an incident management and
warning tool complies with the applicable cyber frameworks of
the Department of Homeland Security and the National
Institute of Standards and Technology;
(C) a process to certify developers of emergency management
software; and
(D) requiring developers to provide the Administrator with
a copy of and rights of use for ongoing testing of each
version of incident management and warning tool software
before the software is first used by a State, tribal, or
local government.
(e) Review and Update of Memoranda of Understanding.--
(1) In general.--The Administrator shall review the
memoranda of understanding between the Agency and State,
tribal, and local governments with respect to the public
alert and warning system to ensure that all agreements ensure
compliance with any minimum requirements established by the
Administrator under subsection (c)(2).
(2) Future memoranda.--The Administrator shall ensure that
any new memorandum of understanding entered into between the
Agency and a State, tribal, or local government on or after
the date of enactment of this Act with respect to the public
alert and warning system ensures that the agreement requires
compliance with any minimum requirements established by the
Administrator under subsection (c)(2).
(f) Missile Alert and Warning Authorities.--
(1) In general.--
(A) Authority.--Beginning on the date that is 120 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, the authority to
originate an alert warning the public of a missile launch
directed against a State using the public alert and warning
system shall reside primarily with the Federal Government.
(B) Delegation of authority.--The Secretary may delegate
the authority described in subparagraph (A) to a State,
tribal, or local entity if, not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary submits to the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of
the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security of the
House of Representatives a report stating that--
(i) it is not feasible for the Federal Government to alert
the public of a missile threat against a State; or
(ii) it is not in the national security interest of the
United States for the Federal Government to alert the public
of a missile threat against a State.
(C) Activation of system.--Upon verification of a missile
threat, the President, utilizing established authorities,
protocols and procedures, may activate the public alert and
warning system.
(2) Required processes.--The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator, shall establish a process to promptly notify a
State warning point, and any State entities that the
Administrator determines appropriate, of follow-up actions to
a missile launch alert so the State may take appropriate
action to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the
residents of the State following the issuance of an alert
described in paragraph (1)(A) for that State.
(3) Guidance.--The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator, shall work with the Governor of a State
warning point to develop and implement appropriate protective
action plans to respond to an alert described in paragraph
(1)(A) for that State.
(4) Study and report.--Not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall--
(A) examine the feasibility of establishing an alert
designation under the public alert and warning system that
would be used to alert and warn the public of a missile
threat while concurrently alerting a State warning point so
that a State may activate related protective action plans;
and
(B) submit a report of the findings under subparagraph (A),
including of the costs and timeline for taking action to
implement an alert designation described in subparagraph (A),
to--
[[Page S3354]]
(i) the Subcommittee on Homeland Security of the Committee
on Appropriations of the Senate;
(ii) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate;
(iii) the Subcommittee on Homeland Security of the
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives;
and
(iv) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of
Representatives.
(g) Awareness of Alerts and Warnings.--Not later than 1
year after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Administrator shall--
(1) conduct a review of--
(A) the Emergency Operations Center of the Agency; and
(B) the National Watch Center and each Regional Watch
Center of the Agency; and
(2) submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on
Homeland Security of the House of Representatives a report on
the review conducted under paragraph (1), which shall
include--
(A) an assessment of the technical capability of the
Emergency Operations Center and the National and Regional
Watch Centers described in paragraph (1) to be notified of
alerts and warnings issued by a State through the public
alert and warning system;
(B) a determination of which State alerts and warnings the
Emergency Operations Center and the National and Regional
Watch Centers described in paragraph (1) should be aware of;
and
(C) recommendations for improving the ability of the
National and Regional Watch Centers described in paragraph
(1) to receive any State alerts and warnings that the
Administrator determines are appropriate.
(h) Timeline for Compliance.--Each State shall be given a
reasonable amount of time to comply with any new rules,
regulations, or requirements imposed under this section or
the amendments made by this section.
______