[Senate Report 116-89]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 193
116th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 116-89
======================================================================
PROTECTING FAITH-BASED AND NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS FROM TERRORISM ACT
OF 2019
__________
R E P O R T
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND
GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
UNITED STATES SENATE
TO ACCOMPANY
S. 1539
TO AMEND THE HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002 TO PROVIDE
FUNDING TO SECURE NONPROFIT FACILITIES FROM TERRORIST
ATTACKS, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
September 10, 2019.--Ordered to be printed
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 2019
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COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin, Chairman
ROB PORTMAN, Ohio GARY C. PETERS, Michigan
RAND PAUL, Kentucky THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware
JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire
MITT ROMNEY, Utah KAMALA D. HARRIS, California
RICK SCOTT, Florida KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming JACKY ROSEN, Nevada
JOSH HAWLEY, Missouri
Gabrielle D'Adamo Singer, Staff Director
Joseph C. Folio III, Chief Counsel
Barrett F. Percival, Professional Staff Member
David M. Weinberg, Minority Staff Director
Zachary I. Schram, Minority Chief Counsel
Christopher J. Mulkins, Minority Professional Staff Member
Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk
Calendar No. 193
116th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 116-89
======================================================================
PROTECTING FAITH-BASED AND NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS FROM TERRORISM ACT
OF 2019
_______
September 10, 2019.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Johnson, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1539]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 1539) to amend the
Homeland Security Act of 2002 to provide funding to secure
nonprofit facilities from terrorist attacks, and for other
purposes, 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..................................4
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate........................4
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............6
I. Purpose and Summary
S. 1539, the Protecting Faith-Based and Nonprofit
Organizations From Terrorism Act of 2019, authorizes an
existing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant program,
the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP). The NSGP provides
Federal grant money for nonprofit and faith-based organizations
through the state in which the organizations are located to
implement security measures against physical and cyberattacks.
This bill also increases the amount authorized to be
appropriated under the NSGP for applicants not located in a
designated Urban Area by DHS, thereby increasing the overall
NSGP appropriation for each fiscal year (FY) 2020 through 2024
from $60 million to $75 million.
II. Background and the Need for Legislation
Recent tragic incidents against faith-based institutions
and nonprofit organizations highlight the need to ensure that
these entities have the resources necessary to protect their
communities against violent acts of terrorism. In a February
2019 Joint Intelligence Bulletin (JIB), the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI), DHS, and National Counterterrorism Center
concluded that acts of domestic terrorism are on the rise.\1\
The February 2019 JIB noted that since 2017, five incidents
targeting racial and religious minority groups resulted in 14
deaths and 12 injuries.\2\ In October 2018, the country
grappled with mass shootings at the Tree of Life Synagogue in
Pennsylvania, and a grocery store in Kentucky that killed a
total of 13 religious and racial minorities.\3\ The JIB
determined that synagogues, religious and cultural
institutions, and nonprofit organizations should remain
vigilant against acts of domestic terrorism.\4\
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\1\Joint Intelligence Bulletin (IA-32337-19) (Feb. 22, 2019).
\2\Id.
\3\Campbell Robertson, Christopher Mele & Sabrina Tavernise, 11
Killed in Synagogue Massacre; Suspect Charged With 29 Counts, New York
Times (Oct. 27, 2018), https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/27/us/active-
shooter-pittsburgh-synagogue-shooting.html; Laurel Wamsley, Killing of
2 At Kentucky Supermarket Is Being Investigated As Hate Crime, NPR
(Oct. 29, 2018 3:28 PM ET), https://www.npr.org/2018/10/29/661834642/
killing-of-2-at-kentucky-supermarket-is-being-investigated-as-hate-
crime.
\4\Id.
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In his prepared statement before the House Committee on
Appropriations, Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and
Related Agencies, Christopher Wray, Director of the FBI, warned
of the persistent and growing threat posed by domestic
extremists:
Domestic extremist movements collectively pose a
steady threat of violence . . . to the United States.
The FBI is most concerned about lone offender attacks,
primarily shootings, as they have served as the
dominant mode for lethal domestic extremist violence.
We anticipate law enforcement, racial minorities, and
the U.S. government will continue to be significant
targets for many domestic extremist movements.\5\
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\5\FBI, Statement for the Record (Apr. 4, 2019), available at
https://www.fbi.gov/news/testimony/fbi-budget-request-for-fiscal-year-
2020.
The NSGP provides resources to nonprofit organizations in
both areas that qualify for the State Homeland Security Program
(SHSP), and urban areas that qualify for the Urban Area
Security Initiative (UASI) program, in order to support
physical security enhancements to harden against terrorist
threats.\6\ The SHSP allows eligible states to receive funding
for nonprofits that are not designated by DHS as Urban Areas.
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\6\FEMA, Homeland Security Grant Program, https://www.fema.gov/
homeland-security-grant-program.
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For FY 2019, Congress appropriated $60 million for the
NSGP: $10 million for those that qualify for the SHSP, and $50
million for those that qualify for the UASI program.\7\ In FY
2019, only 21 states have UASI jurisdictions that are eligible
for the NSGP funding.\8\ Accordingly, in FY 2019, $50 million
of the $60 million in grant funding allocated under NSGP is
available to jurisdictions in 21 states.
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\7\Department of Homeland Security, DHS Announces Funding
Opportunity for Fiscal Year 2019 Preparedness Grants, (Apr. 12, 2019),
https://www.dhs.gov/news/2019/04/12/dhs-announces-funding-opportunity-
fiscal-year-2019-preparedness-grants.
\8\Dep't of Homeland Sec., Notice of Funding Opportunity (2019),
https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/1555009440678-
8c53df465068047205697ceb04ce2be2/_2019_NSGP_NOFO_FINAL_508.pdf.
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S. 1539, the Protecting Faith-Based and Nonprofit
Organizations From Terrorism Act of 2019, codifies the NSGP and
increases the amount authorized to be provided under the SHSP
from $10 to $25 million, while still authorizing $50 million
for grants for those that qualify for UASI funding.
Accordingly, the bill authorizes appropriations for the NSGP to
$75 million, $15 million over the $60 million that Congress
appropriated for fiscal year 2019. Codifying the NSGP and
increasing the individual appropriation for the SHSP ensures
that nonprofits outside of UASI-eligible areas facing terrorist
threats will have adequate access to resources.
III. Legislative History
Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced S. 1539, the
Protecting Faith-Based and Nonprofit Organizations From
Terrorism Act of 2019, on May 16, 2019, with Senator Gary
Peters (D-MI). The bill was referred to the Committee on the
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Senators Rosen (D-
NV), Gillibrand (D-NY), Casey (D-PA), Warren (D-MA), Hassan (D-
NH), Johnson (R-WI), Lankford (R-OK), Blumenthal (D-CT), Tillis
(R-NC), Menendez (D-CT), and Cardin (D-MD) later joined as
cosponsors.
The Committee considered S. 1539 at a business meeting on
June 19, 2019. The bill was ordered reported favorably by voice
vote en bloc without amendment. Senators present for the vote
were Johnson, Portman, Paul, Lankford, Romney, Scott, Enzi,
Hawley, Peters, Carper, Hassan, Sinema, and Rosen.
IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported
Section 1. Short title
This section established that the bill may be cited as the
``Protecting Faith-Based and Nonprofit Organizations From
Terrorism Act of 2019.''
Section 2. Nonprofit Security Grant Program
Section 2 subsection (a) inserts a new Section 2009 into
the Homeland Security Act of 2002 under subtitle A of title XX.
New section 2009 subsection (a) defines the term ``eligible
nonprofit organization'' as one the FEMA Administrator deems at
risk of a terrorist attack that is exempt from tax and
described as a 501(c)(3).
New section 2009 subsection (b) establishes the NSGP. It
provides that the Administrator of FEMA makes the grants
available to nonprofit organizations for target hardening and
preventative measures to combat physical or cyber terrorist
attacks.
New section 2009 subsection (c) details what the NSGP may
be used for. The uses include covering the cost of security
enhancements and fees for awareness and training.
New section 2009 subsection (d) states that the FEMA
Administrator shall make grants available for a period of not
less than three years.
New section 2009 subsection (e) mandates that the
Administrator of FEMA for fiscal years 2020 until 2024 submit a
report of grant expenditures by each recipient to the Senate
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the
House Committee on Homeland Security.
New section 2009 subsection (f) authorizes $75,000,000 for
each fiscal year 2020 until 2024 for the grant program.
$50,000,000 is given to organizations in high-risk urban areas
and $25,000,000 for those not in those areas.
Subsection (b) is a conforming amendment that edits section
2002(a) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 in order to add in
section 2009.
Subsection (c) is a clerical amendment that updates the
table of contents in the Homeland Security Act of 2002 in order
to add in section 2009.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has
considered the regulatory impact of this bill and determined
that the bill will have no regulatory impact within the meaning
of the rules. The Committee agrees with the Congressional
Budget Office's statement that the bill contains no
intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs
on state, local, or tribal governments.
VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, July 9, 2019.
Hon. Ron Johnson,
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. 1539, the Protecting
Faith-Based and Nonprofit Organizations from Terrorism Act of
2019.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jon Sperl.
Sincerely,
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director.
Enclosure.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
S. 1539 would authorize the appropriation of $75 million
annually from 2020 through 2024 for the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) to provide grants to certain nonprofit
organizations to enhance security measures aimed at guarding
against terrorist attacks. Those measures would include
hardening potential targets with physical security and covering
the costs of security training for employees. Under the bill,
states would administer the grants to the nonprofit
organizations. The bill also would require FEMA to report
annually to the Congress about the spending of funds provided
to recipients.
FEMA currently administers the Nonprofit Security Grant
Program and in 2018 allocated funds totaling $60 million to
make grants under that program.
Based on historical spending patterns for the grants made
under that program, CBO estimates implementing the bill would
cost $166 million over the 2020-2024 period and $202million
after 2024, assuming appropriation of the authorized amounts.
The costs of the legislation (detailed in Table 1) fall
within budget function 450 (community and regional
development).
TABLE 1.--ESTIMATED INCREASES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION UNDER S. 1539
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By fiscal year, millions of dollars--
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2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2019-2024
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Estimated Authorization........................ 0 75 75 75 75 75 375
Estimated Outlays.............................. 0 5 17 31 49 64 166
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On July 9, 2019, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R.
2476, the Securing American Non-Profit Organizations Against
Terrorism Act of 2019, as passed by the House of
Representatives on June 10, 2019. The two pieces of legislation
are similar and CBO's estimates of their costs are the same.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jon Sperl. The
estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
VII. 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, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows: (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in brackets, new matter is
printed in italic, and existing law in which no change is
proposed is shown in roman:
HOMELAND SECURITY ACT OF 2002
* * * * * * *
SEC. 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
* * * * * * *
Sec. 2008. Use of Funds.
Sec. 2009. Nonprofit security grant program.
* * * * * * *
TITLE XX--HOMELAND SECURITY GRANTS
* * * * * * *
SEC. 2002. HOMELAND SECURITY GRANT PROGRAMS.
(a) Grants authorized.--The Secretary, through the
Administrator, may award grants under [sections 2003 and 2004]
sections 2003, 2004, and 2009 to State, local, and tribal
governments.
* * * * * * *
SEC. 2009. NONPROFIT SECURITY GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Definition.--In this section, the term ``eligible
nonprofit organization'' means an organization that is--
(1) described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under section
501(a) of such Code; and
(2) determined to be at risk of a terrorist attack by
the Administrator.
(b) Establishment.--There is established in the Department
a program to be known as the ``Nonprofit Security Grant
Program'', under which the Secretary, acting through the
Administrator, shall make grants to eligible nonprofit
organizations, through the State in which such organizations
are located, for target hardening and other security
enhancements to protect against terrorist attacks.
(c) Permitted Uses.--The recipient of a grant under this
section may use such grant for any of the following uses:
(1) Target hardening activities, including physical
security enhancement equipment and inspection and
screening systems.
(2) Fees for security training relating to physical
security and cybersecurity, target hardening, terrorism
awareness, and employee awareness.
(3) Any other appropriate activity, including
cybersecurity resilience activities, as determined by
the Administrator.
(d) Period of Performance.--The Administrator shall make
funds provided under this section available for use by a
recipient of a grant for a period of not less than 36 months.
(e) Report.--The Administrator shall annually for each of
fiscal years 2020 through 2024 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 containing information on the
expenditure by each recipient of grant funds provided under
this section.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general. There is authorized to be
appropriated $75,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020
through 2024 to carry out this section.
(2) Specification.--Of the amounts authorized to be
appropriated pursuant to paragraph (1)--
(A) $50,000,000 is authorized for eligible
nonprofit organizations located in
jurisdictions that receive funding under
section 2003; and
(B) $25,000,000 is authorized for eligible
nonprofit organizations located in
jurisdictions not receiving funding under
section 2003.
* * * * * * *
[all]