[Senate Report 110-237]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 525
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-237
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TO REFORM MUTUAL AID AGREEMENTS FOR THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
__________
R E P O R T
of the
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
to accompany
S. 1245
TO REFORM MUTUAL AID AGREEMENTS FOR THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
December 6, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut, Chairman
CARL LEVIN, Michigan SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine
DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii TED STEVENS, Alaska
THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio
MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana TOM COBURN, Oklahoma
BARACK OBAMA, Illinois PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico
CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri JOHN WARNER, Virginia
JON TESTER, Montana JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire
Michael L. Alexander, Staff Director
Kevin J. Landy, Chief Counsel
Deborah P. Parkinson, Professional Staff Member
Thomas J.R. Richards, Professional Staff Member, Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the
District of Columbia
Brandon L. Milhorn, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel
Amy L. Hall, Minority Director for Governmental Affairs
Amanda Wood, Minority Counsel
David W. Cole, Minority Professional Staff Member, Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the
District of Columbia
Trina Driessnack Tyrer, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 525
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-237
======================================================================
TO REFORM MUTUAL AID AGREEMENTS FOR THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
_______
December 6, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Lieberman, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1245]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 1245), to reform
mutual aid agreements for the National Capital Region, having
considered the same reports favorably thereon without amendment
and recommends that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................3
IV. Section by Section Analysis......................................3
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................4
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............4
I. Purpose and Summary
S. 1245 amends Section 7302 of the Intelligence Reform and
Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-458), to make
technical changes affecting mutual aid agreements in the
National Capital Region.
II. Background and Need for the Legislation
The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of
2004\1\ (IRTPA) authorized the governments of the National
Capital Region (NCR), an area composed of the District of
Columbia and surrounding local jurisdictions in Maryland and
Virginia, to enter into mutual aid agreements for emergency
mitigation, management, response, and recovery. Since the
enactment of statutory authorization, a model mutual aid
agreement has been approved by the majority of the
jurisdictions in the NCR, including 20 of the 21 jurisdictions
in the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG),
the State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Virginia, the
Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), and the
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). As the
jurisdictions began working on the mutual aid agreement,
concern arose that IRTPA included two omissions that could
hinder the establishment of an effective and robust mutual aid
agreement in the NCR.
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\1\P.L. 108-458.
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The first is that certain special purpose governmental
authorities, like water and wastewater utilities, were not
explicitly included in the original language as entities that
could participate in the mutual aid agreement. Under current
law, the functions allowed to be included in the mutual aid
agreement are general purpose governmental activities, such as
law enforcement, fire and rescue, emergency health and medical
services, transportation, communications, public works and
engineering, and mass care.\2\ Like these services, water and
wastewater services are interconnected and interdependent
within the NCR. For example, the District of Columbia Water and
Sewer Authority services portions of Maryland and Virginia in
addition to the District. The Committee concurs with the
jurisdictions in the NCR that security, safety, and continuity
of drinking water and wastewater systems must be maintained
during an emergency. S. 1245 allows water and wastewater
utilities to be covered under any mutual aid agreement
established by the NCR. The amended language also covers the
MWAA and WMATA as such special purpose governmental entities
and does not require their specific designation in the statute.
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\2\Id., Sec. 7302(b)(1)(A).
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The second is that IRTPA only allowed employees and
volunteers who were specifically committed to the mutual aid
agreement prior to an emergency to be included under the law.
It is anticipated that the NCR's localities will rely on a
variety of authorized agents and volunteers to assist in
fulfilling their mutual aid response obligations. The law
currently requires that all agents and volunteers be
``committed in a mutual aid agreement''\3\ to prepare for or
respond to an emergency. The members of the NCR have determined
that it is not likely that a complete list of agents and
volunteers will be identified and become parties to a mutual
aid agreement prior to an emergency. Instead, it is more likely
that agents and volunteers will be associated with a locality
through a mechanism other than an actual mutual aid agreement.
S. 1245 will provide the region with the flexibility to cover
under the mutual aid agreement all employees and authorized
volunteers who respond to a disaster on behalf of a state or
local government or independent authority within the NCR.
Additionally, the language authorizes formal inclusion of
volunteer entities such as incorporated volunteer fire
companies, not just their individual members.
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\3\Id., Sec. 7302(a)(4).
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III. Legislative History
S. 1245 was introduced by Senators Cardin, Mikulski, and
Warner on April 26, 2007, and was referred to the Committee on
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. The bill was
referred to the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government
Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia
on June 6, 2007. Senator Webb was added as a cosponsor on July
26, 2007. The bill was polled out of the Subcommittee on July
31, 2007.
On August 1, 2007, the Committee considered S. 1245. The
Committee ordered the bill favorably reported without amendment
to the full Senate by voice vote. Members present were
Lieberman, Levin, Akaka, Carper, Pryor, Landrieu, McCaskill,
Voinovich, Coleman, Coburn, Warner, and Sununu.
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis
Section 1. Reform of mutual aid agreements for the National Capital
Region
This section amends IRTPA by removing the reference to
``authorized volunteers'' in subsection 7302(a)(4). As the
subsequent language makes clear, such volunteers would be
covered through their organizational affiliation, for example,
a local volunteer fire department. The section also expands the
governmental entities authorized to participate in such mutual
aid agreements to include all governmental agencies,
authorities, and institutions with the power to sue in their
own name. This change will specifically allow for the inclusion
of water and wastewater utilities in the mutual aid agreements.
The language then removes the specific references to the
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority and the
Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority because these
organizations are covered by the general ``governmental
authority'' language.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to the requirement of paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill. CBO states that
there are no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and no costs on
State, local, or tribal governments. The legislation contains
no other regulatory impact.
VI. Estimated Cost of Legislation
August 22, 2007.
Hon. Joseph I. Lieberman,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1245, a bill to
reform mutual aid agreements for the National Capital Region.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Daniel
Hoople.
Sincerely,
Peter R. Orszag.
Enclosure.
S. 1245--A bill to reform mutual aid agreements for the National
Capital Region
Under the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act
of 2004 (Public Law 108-458), the federal government may enter
into an agreement with state and local governments in the
National Capital Region (including the District of Columbia,
the surrounding counties of Maryland and Virginia, and the city
of Alexandria) for the provision of police, fire, rescue and
other services during a disaster or training exercise.
Organizations may be liable for acts or omissions of its
employees, including volunteers, while rendering aid as part of
a mutual aid agreement. S. 1245 would remove that liability for
authorized volunteers of organizations that are party to the
agreement. The bill also would allow other state and local
entities in the National Capital Region to become a party to a
mutual aid agreement.
CBO estimates that implementing S. 1245 would have no
significant federal cost over the 2008-2012 period. Enacting
this legislation would not affect direct spending or revenues.
S. 1245 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Daniel Hoople.
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
VIII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the following changes in existing
law made by the bill, as reported, are shown as follows:
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):
INTELLIGENCE REFORM AND TERRORISM PREVENTION ACT OF 2004 P.L. 108-458
* * * * * * *
SEC. 7302. NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION MUTUAL AID.
``(a) Definitions. In this section:
``(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
``(4) Employee.--The term `employee' means the
employees of the party, [including its agents or
authorized volunteers,] who are committed in a mutual
aid agreement to prepare for or who respond to an
emergency or public service event.
``(5) Locality.--The term `locality' means a county,
city, [or town within the State of Maryland or the
Commonwealth of Virginia and within the National
Capital Region.] town, or other governmental agency,
governmental authority, or governmental institution
with the power to sue or be sued in its own name,
within the National Capital Region.
* * * * * * *
``(d) Liability and Actions at Law.--
(1) In general.--Any responding party or its officers
or employees rendering aid or failing to render aid to
the District of Columbia, the Federal Government, the
State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Virginia, or a
locality, under a mutual aid agreement authorized under
this section, and any party or its officers [or
employees] or employees, or agents engaged in training
activities with another party under such a mutual aid
agreement, shall be liable on account of any act or
omission of its officers [or employees] or employees,
or agents while so engaged or on account of the
maintenance or use of any related equipment,
facilities, or supplies, but only to the extent
permitted under the laws and procedures of the State of
the party rendering aid.
``(2) Actions.--Any action brought against a party or
its officers [or employees] or employees, or agents on
account of an act or omission in the rendering of aid
to the District of Columbia, the Federal Government,
the State of Maryland, the Commonwealth of Virginia, or
a locality, or failure to render such aid or on account
of the maintenance or use of any related equipment,
facilities, or supplies may be brought only under the
laws and procedures of the State of the party rendering
aid and only in the Federal or State courts located
therein. Actions against the United States under this
section may be brought only in Federal courts.