[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1472 Introduced in House (IH)]
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1472
To establish a modernized national Integrated Public Alert and Warning
System, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 19, 2015
Mr. Barletta (for himself, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Mr. Shuster, and Mr.
DeFazio) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a modernized national Integrated Public Alert and Warning
System, and for other purposes.
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 ``Integrated Public Alert and Warning
System Modernization Act of 2015''.
SEC. 2. INTEGRATED PUBLIC ALERT AND WARNING SYSTEM MODERNIZATION.
(a) Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Modernization.--
(1) In general.--To provide timely and effective disaster
warnings under this section, the President, acting through the
Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency,
shall, except as provided in paragraph (4)--
(A) modernize the integrated public alert and
warning system of the United States (in this section
referred to as the ``public alert and warning system'')
to ensure that the President under all conditions is
able to alert and warn governmental authorities and the
civilian population in areas endangered by disasters;
and
(B) implement the public alert and warning system.
(2) Implementation requirements.--In carrying out paragraph
(1), the Administrator shall, consistent with the
recommendations in the final report of the Integrated Public
Alert and Warning System Advisory Committee (established under
subsection (b))--
(A) establish or adopt, as appropriate, common
alerting and warning protocols, standards, terminology,
and operating procedures for the public alert and
warning system;
(B) include in the public alert and warning system
the capability to adapt the distribution and content of
communications on the basis of geographic location,
risks, or personal user preferences, as appropriate;
(C) include in the public alert and warning system
the capability to alert, warn, and provide the
equivalent amount of information to individuals with
disabilities and individuals with access and functional
needs;
(D) ensure that training, tests, and exercises are
conducted for the public alert and warning system and
that the system is incorporated into other training and
exercise programs of the Department of Homeland
Security, as appropriate;
(E) establish and integrate into the National
Incident Management System a comprehensive and periodic
training program to instruct and educate Federal,
State, tribal, and local government officials in the
use of the Common Alerting Protocol enabled Emergency
Alert System; and
(F) ensure that the public alert and warning system
is resilient, secure, and can withstand acts of
terrorism and other external attacks.
(3) System requirements.--Consistent with paragraph (1),
the public alert and warning system shall--
(A) incorporate multiple communications
technologies;
(B) be designed to adapt to, and incorporate,
future technologies for communicating directly with the
public;
(C) to the extent technically feasible, be designed
to provide alerts to the largest portion of the
affected population, including nonresident visitors and
tourists and individuals with disabilities and access
and functional needs, and improve the ability of remote
areas to receive alerts;
(D) promote local and regional public and private
partnerships to enhance community preparedness and
response;
(E) provide redundant alert mechanisms if
practicable so as to reach the greatest number of
people regardless of whether they have access to, or
utilize, any specific medium of communication or any
particular device; and
(F) include a mechanism to ensure the protection of
individual privacy.
(4) Limitation on authority.--Nothing in this subsection
authorizes or requires the Federal Emergency Management Agency
or any other government entity to require any action on the
part of the Federal Communications Commission, the Department
of Commerce, the Office of Emergency Communications, or any
nongovernmental entity, nor impact any existing obligations of
such entities.
(5) Implementation plan.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of submission of the report of the Integrated Public Alert
and Warning System Advisory Committee, the Administrator shall
submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs of the Senate a detailed plan to implement
the public alert and warning system. The plan shall include a
timeline for implementation, a spending plan, and
recommendations for any additional authority that may be
necessary to fully implement this subsection.
(6) Funding.--There is authorized to be appropriated
$12,824,000 of the amount made available pursuant to section
699 of the Post Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006
(Public Law 109-295; 6 U.S.C. 811) for each of fiscal years
2016, 2017, and 2018 to carry out the provisions of this
section.
(b) Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Advisory
Committee.--
(1) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency shall establish an advisory
committee to be known as the Integrated Public Alert and
Warning System Advisory Committee (in this subsection referred
to as the ``Advisory Committee'').
(2) Membership.--The Advisory Committee shall be composed
of the following members (or their designees) to be appointed
by the Administrator as soon as practicable after the date of
enactment of this Act:
(A) The Chairman of the Federal Communications
Commission.
(B) The Administrator of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration of the Department of
Commerce.
(C) The Assistant Secretary for Communications and
Information of the Department of Commerce.
(D) The Director of the Office of Disability
Integration and Coordination of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency.
(E) Representatives of State and local governments,
representatives of emergency management agencies, and
representatives of emergency response providers,
selected from among individuals nominated by national
organizations representing governments and personnel.
(F) Representatives from federally recognized
Indian tribes and national Indian organizations.
(G) Individuals who have the requisite technical
knowledge and expertise to serve on the Advisory
Committee, including representatives of--
(i) communications service providers;
(ii) vendors, developers, and manufacturers
of systems, facilities, equipment, and
capabilities for the provision of
communications services;
(iii) third-party service bureaus;
(iv) the broadcasting industry, including
commercial and noncommercial radio and
television stations;
(v) the commercial mobile radio service
industry;
(vi) the cable industry;
(vii) the satellite industry; and
(viii) national organizations representing
individuals with disabilities and access and
functional needs and national organizations
representing the elderly.
(H) Qualified representatives of such other
stakeholders and interested and affected parties as the
Administrator considers appropriate.
(3) Chairperson.--The Administrator shall serve as the
Chairperson of the Advisory Committee.
(4) Meetings.--
(A) Initial meeting.--The initial meeting of the
Advisory Committee shall take place not later than 120
days after the date of enactment of this Act.
(B) Other meetings.--After the initial meeting, the
Advisory Committee shall meet, at least annually, at
the call of the Chairperson.
(C) Notice; open meetings.--Meetings held by the
Advisory Committee shall be duly noticed at least 14
days in advance and shall be open to the public.
(D) Interested persons.--Interested persons shall
be permitted to attend, appear before, or file
statements with the Advisory Committee, in accordance
with subsection (c) of section 552b of title 5, United
States Code.
(E) Meeting minutes.--The Advisory Committee shall
keep detailed minutes of each meeting, which shall
contain a record of the persons present, a complete and
accurate description of matters discussed and
conclusions reached, and copies of all reports
received, issued, or approved by the Advisory
Committee.
(F) Availability of information.--The records,
reports, transcripts, minutes, appendixes, working
papers, drafts, studies, agenda, or other documents
which were made available to or prepared for or by the
Advisory Committee shall be available for public
inspection and copying, subject to section 552 of title
5, United States Code, at a single location in the
office of the Federal Emergency Management Agency until
the Advisory Committee ceases to exist.
(5) Rules.--
(A) Quorum.--One-third of the members of the
Advisory Committee shall constitute a quorum for
conducting business of the Advisory Committee.
(B) Subcommittees.--To assist the Advisory
Committee in carrying out its functions, the
Chairperson may establish appropriate subcommittees
composed of members of the Advisory Committee and other
subject matter experts as the Chairperson considers
necessary.
(C) Additional rules.--The Advisory Committee may
adopt such other rules as are necessary to carry out
its duties.
(6) Consultation with nonmembers.--The Advisory Committee
and the program offices for the integrated public alert and
warning system for the United States shall regularly meet with
groups that are not represented on the Advisory Committee to
consider new and developing technologies that may be beneficial
to the public alert and warning system. Such groups may
include--
(A) the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency;
(B) entities engaged in federally funded research;
and
(C) academic institutions engaged in relevant work
and research.
(7) Recommendations.--The Advisory Committee shall develop
recommendations for an integrated public alert and warning
system, including--
(A) recommendations for common alerting and warning
protocols, standards, terminology, and operating
procedures for the public alert and warning system; and
(B) recommendations to provide for a public alert
and warning system that--
(i) has the capability to adapt the
distribution and content of communications on
the basis of geographic location, risks, or
personal user preferences, as appropriate;
(ii) has the capability to alert and warn
individuals with disabilities and individuals
with limited English proficiency;
(iii) incorporates multiple communications
technologies;
(iv) is designed to adapt to, and
incorporate, future technologies for
communicating directly with the public;
(v) is designed to provide alerts to the
largest portion of the affected population
feasible, including nonresident visitors and
tourists, and improve the ability of remote
areas to receive alerts;
(vi) promotes local and regional public and
private partnerships to enhance community
preparedness and response;
(vii) provides redundant alert mechanisms
if practicable in order to reach the greatest
number of people regardless of whether they
have access to, or utilize, any specific medium
of communication or any particular device; and
(viii) promotes the participation of
representatives from traditionally underserved
and underrepresented communities, to ensure
that alerts and warnings reach such
populations.
(8) Initial and annual report.--Not later than 1 year after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Advisory Committee shall
submit to the Administrator, the Committee on Transportation
and Infrastructure and the Committee on Homeland Security of
the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report
containing the recommendations of the Advisory Committee.
(9) Federal advisory committee act.--Neither the Federal
Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) nor any rule, order, or
regulation issued under that Act shall apply to the Advisory
Committee.
(10) Termination.--The Advisory Committee shall terminate
not later than 6 years after the date of enactment of this Act.
(c) Limitation on Statutory Construction.--Nothing in this section
shall be construed to provide the Federal Emergency Management Agency
with regulatory authority with respect to any nongovernment entity.
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