September 30, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 170 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
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SAFE COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2020; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 170
(House of Representatives - September 30, 2020)
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[Pages H5078-H5080] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] SAFE COMMUNITIES ACT OF 2020 Ms. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5780) to enhance stakeholder outreach to and operational engagement with owners and operators of critical infrastructure and other relevant stakeholders by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to bolster security against acts of terrorism and other homeland security threats, including by maintaining a clearinghouse of security guidance, best practices, and other voluntary content developed by the Agency or aggregated from trusted sources, and for other purposes, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 5780 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 ``Safe Communities Act of 2020''. SEC. 2. RESPONSIBILITIES OF CISA DIRECTOR RELATING TO SECURITY RESOURCES CLEARINGHOUSE. Subsection (c) of section 2202 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 652) is amended-- (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through (11) as paragraphs (7) through (12), respectively; and (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following new paragraph: [[Page H5079]] ``(6) maintain a clearinghouse for owners and operators of critical infrastructure and other relevant stakeholders to access security guidance, best practices, and other voluntary content developed by the Agency in a manner consistent with the requirements of section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d) and the Plain Writing Act of 2010 (5 U.S.C. note) or aggregated from trusted sources;''. SEC. 3. STAKEHOLDER OUTREACH AND OPERATIONAL ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY. (a) Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security shall issue a strategy to improve stakeholder outreach and operational engagement that includes the Agency's strategic and operational goals and priorities for carrying out stakeholder engagement activities. (b) Contents.--The stakeholder outreach and operational engagement strategy issued under subsection (a) shall include the following: (1) A catalogue of the stakeholder engagement activities and services delivered by protective security advisors and cybersecurity advisors of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security, including the locations of the stakeholder engagement and services delivered and the critical infrastructure sectors (as such term is defined in section 2001(3) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 601(3)) involved. (2) An assessment of the capacity of programs of the Agency to deploy protective security advisors and cybersecurity advisors, including the adequacy of such advisors to meet service requests and the ability of such advisors to engage with and deliver services to stakeholders in urban, suburban, and rural areas. (3) Long-term objectives of the protective security advisor and cybersecurity advisor programs, including cross-training of the protective security advisor and cybersecurity advisor workforce to optimize the capabilities of such programs and capacity goals. (4) A description of programs, policies, and activities used to carry out such stakeholder engagement activities and services under paragraph (1). (5) Resources and personnel necessary to effectively support critical infrastructure owners and operators and, as appropriate, other entities, including non-profit organizations, based on current and projected demand for Agency services. (6) Guidance on how outreach to critical infrastructure owners and operators in a region should be prioritized. (7) Plans to ensure that stakeholder engagement field personnel of the Agency have a clear understanding of expectations for engagement within each critical infrastructure sector and subsector, whether during steady state or surge capacity. (8) Metrics for measuring the effectiveness of stakeholder engagement activities and services under paragraph (1), including mechanisms to track regional engagement of field personnel of the Agency with critical infrastructure owners and operators, and how frequently such engagement takes place. (9) Plans for awareness campaigns to familiarize owners and operators of critical infrastructure with security resources and support offered by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, including the clearinghouse maintained pursuant to paragraph (6) of section 2202(c) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 652(c)), as added by section 2. (10) A description of how to prioritize engagement with critical infrastructure sectors based on threat information and the capacity of such sectors to mitigate such threats (c) Stakeholder Input.--In issuing the stakeholder outreach and operational engagement strategy required under subsection (a), the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security shall, to the extent practicable, solicit input from stakeholders representing the following: (1) Each of the critical infrastructure sectors. (2) Critical infrastructure owners and operators located in each region in which the Agency maintains a field office. (d) Implementation Plan.--Not later than 90 days after issuing the stakeholder outreach and operational engagement strategy required under subsection (a), the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security shall issue an implementation plan for the strategy that includes the following: (1) Strategic objectives and corresponding tasks for protective security advisor and cybersecurity advisor workforce development, training, and retention plans. (2) Projected timelines, benchmarks, and resource requirements for such tasks. (3) Metrics to evaluate the performance of such tasks. (e) Congressional Oversight.--Upon issuance of the implementation plan required under subsection (d), the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security, shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate the stakeholder outreach and operational engagement strategy required under subsection (a) and the implementation plan required under subsection (b), together with any other associated legislative or budgetary proposals relating thereto. SEC. 4. INFORMATION PROVIDED BY PROTECTIVE SECURITY ADVISORS. The Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security shall ensure, to the greatest extent practicable, protective security advisors of the Agency are disseminating homeland security information on voluntary programs and services of the Department of Homeland Security, including regarding the Nonprofit Security Grant Program, to bolster security and terrorism resilience. SEC. 5. PROTECTIVE SECURITY ADVISOR FORCE MULTIPLIER PILOT PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security shall establish a one-year pilot program for State, local, Tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies and appropriate government officials to be trained by protective security advisors of the Agency regarding carrying out security vulnerability or terrorism risk assessments of facilities. (b) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the completion of the pilot program under subsection (a), the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security shall report on such pilot program to the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Underwood) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Joyce) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Illinois. General Leave Ms. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this measure. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentlewoman from Illinois? There was no objection. Ms. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 5780, the Safe Communities Act. Last month, a teenager from my district in Antioch, Illinois, went to Kenosha, Wisconsin, where he allegedly killed two people with an AR-15- style rifle. The next day, I heard from another constituent, a mother who lives in the alleged shooter's hometown. She wrote: ``There is a militia cell in Antioch that is becoming more and more emboldened to take the law into their own hands. I am becoming fearful to send my children to the same schools at white supremacist militia members.'' I share my constituents' concerns with the rise of domestic violent extremism in this country. FBI Director Wray recently testified before the House Homeland Security Committee that white supremacist extremists are a leading threat to our Nation. I believe we must do more to address the root causes of violent behavior, and I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in Congress to make America a place where racism, misogyny, and other forms of hate can no longer flourish. Meanwhile, in the face of extremist threats like these, we must take immediate action to secure our critical infrastructure and make soft targets less vulnerable to attack. In addition to domestic extremists, our suburban and rural communities face too many other threats of mass violence. Just last year, five of our neighbors, four of whom were my constituents, were killed by an act of gun violence at the Henry Pratt Company in Aurora, Illinois. Our workplaces, schools, and places of worship are far too vulnerable to mass shootings and other forms of targeted violence. This bill seeks to fix that. Rural and suburban communities like mine in northern Illinois are increasingly targets of violence but often don't have access to the Federal resources they need to protect themselves. That is why I introduced H.R. 5780, the Safe Communities Act of 2020, bipartisan legislation to help better protect soft targets in communities like mine. [[Page H5080]] The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency's protective security advisers help improve security at schools, places of worship, and other soft targets, but there are too few of them to meet the demand of their services. H.R. 5780 would require CISA to maintain an online security resources clearinghouse to provide security guidance and best practices, serving as a one-stop shop for school districts, religious organizations, and local officials to find the information they need to keep their communities safe. The bill would also require CISA to develop a stakeholder outreach and operational engagement strategy and implementation plan to ensure that the Agency is delivering infrastructure security services across sectors and throughout regions. Finally, H.R. 5780 would authorize a PSA force multiplier pilot program, which would require CISA PSAs to train State, local, Tribal, and territorial officials to perform security vulnerability and terrorism risk assessments. These risk assessments are an important part of qualifying for FEMA's security grants; the force multiplier program will help expand access to them. I am proud that the Safe Communities Act of 2020 has been endorsed by the Jewish Federations of North America and the Anti-Defamation League. I would like to thank my colleague, Mr. Katko, for joining me in introducing this measure. I am grateful for his collaboration and leadership as ranking member of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Innovation. I want to extend my sincere appreciation to the Homeland Security Committee staff for their work on this legislation. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this legislation today to make sure every community in America has the resources it needs to keep people safe. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 5780, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. JOYCE of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of H.R. 5780. This bill makes the great work done by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency more accessible to stakeholders. CISA provides advice and recommendations upon the request of critical infrastructure owners and operators on how to secure and protect their facilities in cyberspace and physically. This bill will help stakeholders clearly know what CISA can do. Continuing to develop the relationship between CISA and our private stakeholders remains an integral piece of our critical infrastructure security. I thank Representatives Underwood and Katko for their bill. Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time. Ms. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Last week, I was appointed as the new chair of the Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Innovation of the Homeland Security Committee. It is a great honor and opportunity for me to amplify the homeland security concerns of the people of Illinois' 14th Congressional District here in Washington. {time} 1330 My constituents are concerned about the vulnerability of so-called soft targets to violence. CISA, which is overseen by my subcommittee, has a critical role to play to empower communities to be more secure and resilient against ever-increasing lists of homeland security threats. I am committed to ensuring the success of the PSA program, and I look forward to working with CISA to make sure that every community can benefit from it. Enactment of the Safe Communities Act of 2020 will help CISA think more strategically about how it deploys PSAs and other services and do so in a way that will scale. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the measure, and I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Underwood) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5780, as amended. The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________
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